online archive

Science and stuff

A review of Six Feet Over: Science Tackles the Afterlife by Mary Roach. In a taut soliloquy that takes us from the origins of the universe to the last days of a dying sun 6 billion years later, renowned cosmologist Sir Martin Rees explains why the 21st century is a pivotal moment in the history of humanity. A Survival Imperative for Space Colonization: J. Richard Gott III has issued a wake-up call: To ensure our long-term survival, we need to get a colony up and running on Mars within 46 years. Although astronaut missions are much more expensive and risky than robotic craft, they are absolutely critical to the success of our exploration program.

A review of The Telescope: Its History, Technology, and Future by Geoff Andersen. The Gedanken Experimenter: In putting teleportation, entanglement and other quantum oddities to the test, physicist Anton Zeilinger hopes to find out just how unreal quantum reality can get. An Economic Gamble: What does society get for the billions it spends on science? Cracking a nearly eight-decade-old riddle, new calculations have solved the equations to produce simulated Möbius strips, the shape of Escher's muse, and it can explain why wide bands make bad Möbius strips. Math Wonder: Danica McKellar is counting on girls to love numbers. Eric Mazur, the Gordon McKay Professor of Applied Physics at Harvard, is driven by a passion. He wants to end science illiteracy among the nation’s college students; specifically, he strives to open them to the "great beauties of physics".

From the Union of Concerned Scientists, a list of prominent global warming skeptic organizations. An Islamic creationist is mailing a lavishly illustrated, 800-page attack on evolutionary theory to scientists around the world. From Skeptical Inquirer, a review of Abducted: How People Come to Believe They Were Kidnapped by Aliens by Susan A. Clancy; and who were the ancient engineers of Egypt? James Trefil finds out. Isn’t It Ionic? The Ionocraft was a masterpiece of engineering elegance... except for the extension cord.

The Gene of the Crop: A new study shows that some genetically modified crops might be better for the environment than those treated with pesticides. Rise of Roboethics: An article on grappling with the implications of an artificially intelligent culture. Spray could banish shyness: It was hailed as the "trust" hormone, then the "mind-reading" hormone. Now it seems oxytocin may also help people with social phobia to interact. The end of barroom brawls: A study shows alcohol can reduce aggression. The human hand, when made into a fist, can do considerable damage. It can be deadly. Particularly when young, beefy men are throwing punches, not skinny 10-year-olds on a playground. Great expectations: Research looks at why placebo effect varies from person to person. Would you take medication that had no pharmacological effect? Maybe you already have.