Our Brown Dwarf Binary Companion?
» Andy Lloyd's Dark Star Theory regarding our Brown Dwarf Binary Companion. (via br) / (1) Comments / [ 08/22/07 ]
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Science
The Knight Science Journalism Tracker
» The Knight Science Journalism Tracker is a new blog that bills itself as "peer review within science journalism". Science writer Charles Petit summarizes the science news stories of the day with a focus on how it was reported, good and bad. That's blogging in its most classic sense, and it's a really smart use of the form. [ 04/26/07 ]
The neuroscience of speaking in tongues
» Neuroscientists say that brain scans show that when people are speaking in tongues, language centers and the part of the brain through which people control what they do are relatively quiet—supporting the description of the experience evangelicals say they are having. / (4) Comments / [ 11/09/06 ]
Teenagers brains are a work in progress
» Why do teenagers show such a lack of awareness of the consequences of their actions? Their brains aren't done growing yet. [ 09/11/06 ]
PETA targets sex-preference biologist
» A great overview of current research into sexual preference in animals (it turns out that changing only one gene in fruit flies and mice can change sexual behavior) and the amazing story of how one scientist's experiments on sexual preference in sheep has raised the ire of both right wing groups like Focus on the Family and PETA. Features an interview with Dr. Charles Roselli, the biologist who has been targeted. (via pharyngula) [ 09/06/06 ]
Babies can detect errors at a young age
» Babies can tell when a tableau has changed. I'm not sure I'll go with the conclusion that they can detect arithmetic errors, though. I'm sharing it primarily for the picture of the baby wearing the gaudy brain-sensor bathing cap. / (1) Comments / [ 08/10/06 ]
Animats are rat neurons that can think
» This is trippy: Scientists at the Georgia Institute of Technology have grown clumps of neurons from rat brains called 'animats'—and they are able to do simple tasks. "Since our cultured networks are so interconnected, they have some sense of what is going in themselves. We can also feed their activity back to them, to mediate their 'sense of self.'" Daniel Wagenaar, a California Institute of Technology neuroscientist who worked on the animats. [ 08/02/06 ]
Solar Cooking Research Needed
» By the way, Solarcooking.org has put up a list of topics that need research.
Does placing contaminated water into clear plastic bottles and exposing the water to the sun (not inside a solar cooker) actually make it safe to drink? There is a technology called SODIS being promoted around the world for this purpose. There is some doubt about whether this really makes the water safe to drink. A good science project would be to test this by using toilet water and measuring using the Colilert System.
If you do the research, they will post your results. [ 07/20/06 ]
Barres: Does gender matter in the sciences?
» NYT: Fascinating interview with Ben A. Barres, professor of neurobiology at Stanford. He started life as Barbara, and he has a unique perspective on sexism in the sciences.
Q. When you were a woman did you experience bias?
A. An M.I.T. professor accused me of cheating on this test. I was the only one in the class who solved a particular problem, and he said my boyfriend must have solved it for me. One, I did not have a boyfriend. And two, I solved it myself, goddamn it! But it did not occur to me to think of sexism. I was just indignant that I would be accused of cheating.
Then later I was in a prestigious competition. I was doing my Ph.D. at Harvard, which would nominate one person. It came down to me and one other graduate student, and a dean pulled me aside and said, “I have read both applications, and it’s going to be you; your application is so much better.” Not only did I not win, the guy got it, but he dropped out of science a year later.
But even then I did not think of sexism.
[ 07/19/06 ]
Study shows middle-aged British are more healthy than Americans, on less money
» A new study shows that, though they spend half as much on healthcare, the middle-aged English are healthier than their American counterparts. In fact, the health of the poorest Britons was about equivalent to that of the wealthiest Americans. [ 05/04/06 ]
Brain shuts down introspection as it enters 'flow state'
» Researchers at the Weizmann Institute of Science have have caught the brain in the act of losing its sense of "self" as it shuts down introspection and enters a flow state during a demanding sensory task. / (1) Comments / [ 05/01/06 ]
Wallaby milk contains new penicillin
» Scientists have discovered an antibacterial compound 100 times more potent than penicillin in wallaby's milk. (via shn) / (1) Comments / [ 04/24/06 ]
Best American Science and Nature Writing 2006
» The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2006. (Or, buy the book.) [ 04/03/06 ]
Google Mars
» I guess you've seen Google Mars. [About.] [ 03/13/06 ]
Nepalese Sherpas may be the most efficient carriers
» Nepalese Sherpas may be the world's most efficient carriers. Their technique of walk-pause-walk isn't well understood, but it may be more efficient than the gait African women use when carrying loads — which conserves 80 percent of each stride's momentum. [ 03/10/06 ]
The Family That Walks on All Fours
» This appears to be real: The Family that Walks on All Fours is a BBC production about a Kurdish family in which the siblings are only capable of walking using both their hands and feet. Researchers believe the group may offer a glimpse into the time before we became bipeds. (thanks, Chris!)(There's a lot of traffic to this post all at once. Would someone kindly let me know in comments where you're all coming from? Thanks.) / (1) Comments / [ 03/10/06 ]
Dance DNA Revolution
» The Birch Aquarium at Scripps (?) is using Dance Dance Revolution to teach about DNA. [ 01/31/06 ]
