Cast Your Vote in Absurd Creature of the Week’s Tournament of Absurdity!
We’re coming up on one whole year of Absurd
Creature of the Week! So to celebrate, we’ve used a super-secret,
super-complex algorithm to choose the most absurd of the absurd—to pit
them against each other in mortal combat. For the next week and a half,
we’ll present you with matchups. The first round is split […]
Nature Zen: Blue Bees
NatureZen: Bits of the outdoors to make you say “Wow!” while you’re stuck at the computer.
Could You Charge a Smartwatch by Shaking It?
Smartwatches are cool. They can give you
smartphone-like access to data without the phone. However, as Uncle Ben
said (Spider-Man’s uncle): “With great power in a smartwatch comes
terrible battery life.” Ok, Uncle Ben didn’t actually say that – but he
would have if he had a smartwatch. Also, I will admit that the battery
[…]
Radical New Theory Could Kill the Multiverse Hypothesis
Mass and length may not be fundamental properties of nature, according to new ideas bubbling out of the multiverse.
Book & Blog
Over the next few months, please do not be
disappointed if the gaps between my posts increase. I am currently
working on a spaceflight history book for Skyhorse Publishing, and it is
consuming even more of my time than I expected. The manuscript is due
at the beginning of May 2015 and we’re shooting for […]
Small Eruption Suspected at Iceland’s Barðarbunga
Ruv.is is reporting that a small subglacial
eruption has begun at Iceland’s Barðarbunga after a week of seismic
unrest. It appears that the eruption is occurring under about 500 meters
(1640 feet) of ice. Airspace over the volcano has been closed with the
alert raised to red and more evacuations are occurring apparently no
evacuations are occurring. […]
Turns Out the U.S. Has Its Very Own Species of Ant-Zombifying Fungus
Zombie ants, the ghostly slaves of a
mind-controlling fungus seen creeping around places like South
America for years, have now been spotted in the United States. But don’t
panic—they’ve probably been here all along, and we only just now
noticed. Scientists at Penn State have for the first time shown that a
fungus here in the U.S. invades […]
A University Can Pick Two of These Three Things
A recent trend seems to be the evaluation
of higher education institutions. I’m not sure about other states, but
in Louisiana the state funding each university receives is partly based
on “performance metrics”. Personally, I think all of these things are
just silly. At one point or another, I have heard administrators and
politicians saying […]
Absurd Creature of the Week: The Bird That Builds Nests So Huge They Pull Down Trees
My father worked for over 30 years in
construction, falling off of ladders and getting slivers of metal in his
eye and generally bleeding profusely. He toiled like a maniac so our
family could eat, all while furthering one of humanity’s most
indispensable inventions: large-scale construction of shelter. From the
most modest roof that my […]
How to Solve Google’s Crazy Open-Ended Interview Questions
Consider the following question that has
been asked at actual Google job interviews: How much does the Empire
State Building weigh? Now, there is no correct answer to this question
in any practical sense because no one knows the answer. Google isn’t
interested in the answer, though; they’re interested in the process.
Why Volcanic Ash Is So Terrible for Airplanes
The risk posed to aircraft by airborne
volcanic ash is as bad as ever, but airlines are better equipped to spot
and avoid trouble---and save money---than they were four years ago.
American Ebola Patients Released From Hospital
ATLANTA—Kent Brantly and Nancy Writebol
have recovered. The two American aid workers, who since early August had
been receiving treatment for Ebola at Emory University Hospital, are
being released—hospital officials in Atlanta cited multiple clean blood
tests for both. Standing in front of a press conference this morning,
Brantly simply said “I am thrilled to be […]
Science Graphic of the Week: Inside a Lizard’s Regenerating Tail
Researchers created visual and DNA analysis of how anoles regenerate their tails.
Cities Are Making Spiders Grow Bigger and Multiply Faster
A new study published today in PLOS One
shows that golden orb weaver spiders living near heavily urbanized areas
in Sydney, Australia tend to be bigger, better fed, and have more
babies than those living in places less touched by human hands.
Fantastically Wrong: Why People Were Terrified of Nighttime Air Until the 1900s
If you’re a millennial like me, you
remember the Nickelodeon show Are You Afraid of the Dark?, in which kids
sit around a campfire (or flickering stage lights or whatever), taking
turns giving each other anxiety disorders with scary stories. The title
is a bit of a silly question, though. Everyone is to some degree […]
What’s Up With That: How the Weather Forecaster Knows What It ‘Feels Like’ in Your City
How does the meteorologist know what the temperature feels like to me and you?
How Agriculture’s Growth Promoters Might Work: A Mouse Study Sheds Some Light
In a new study, researchers measured the
gut biomes and obesity levels of mice under various antibiotic regimes,
and found some compelling correlations.
Earthquakes Still Rocking Iceland’s Barðarbunga
The latest report from the Icelandic
Meteorological Office (IMO) says that over 2,600 earthquakes, most less
than magnitude 3, have occurred since the morning of August 16.
Measuring Inbreeding in the Greek Gods
In population genetics, there is a method
of measuring how inbred a certain individual is, known as the inbreeding
coefficient. Previously, I used to this technique to examine the amount
of inbreeding in the X-Men and was intrigued to find that there wasn’t
any. However, it’s an entirely different matter when it comes to
mythology. […]
How Long Would It Take the Whole World to Do the Ice Bucket Challenge?
It's not a straightforward equation.
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