Archive for the ‘History and Nature of Science’ Category

Internet: The fastest teacher? - Wednesday, October 21st, 2009

MRI scans of older people show major differences between searchers and non-searchers. After seven hours of Internet experience, those differences disappear. Honest? Could changing the brain be this easy?

Phony science - Thursday, June 4th, 2009

New study finds 2 percent of scientists admit faking data; 14 percent say colleagues have done it. Problems are most common in drug and other medical studies.

Economic stimulus = just pouring concrete? - Thursday, December 18th, 2008

Obama decides that current and new grant applications at the National Institutes of Health are an effective economic stimulus. People get jobs. Inventions get invented. What’s not to like?

Life during the “other” Big Bang! - Thursday, December 11th, 2008

Did the arrival of 4,000,000,000,000,000,000 tons of space junk start the formation of organic molecules roughly 4 billion years ago? “Could be,” says a new study from Japan…

Pacific migrations: New evidence on ancient human voyages - Thursday, September 27th, 2007

A stone tool discovered in Polynesia came from Hawaii — 2500 miles away. Modern analytical techniques show that Polynesians did sail thousands of miles across the ocean — without a compass.

Ancient cities: A new plan for sprawl? - Thursday, August 30th, 2007

Archeologists thought Middle-Eastern cities grew through remote “daughter” villages. But a new study of a big city in ancient Syria, shows that new settlements formed closer to town.

Scrapping Science: Do Facts Really Matter? - Thursday, October 19th, 2006

Obama: “…promoting science isn’t just about providing resources—it’s about protecting free and open inquiry. It’s about listening to what our scientists have to say, even when it’s inconvenient—especially when it’s inconvenient.” What science issues face his administration?

Universe: Measured by New Yardstick - Thursday, August 10th, 2006

Feeling cramped? New measurement says the universe is bigger than you thought. Meet the astronomers’ new yardstick.

India’s Red Rain: Aliens or Hype? - Thursday, June 22nd, 2006

Did red rain in India carry alien bacteria? One Indian scientist thinks so. Others say it was just spores of a common alga. Pay your money, take your choice!

Long-Distance Prayer Fails Trial - Thursday, April 20th, 2006

People pray for the health of friends and family. Can science prove these prayers work? Should it try? Random, double-blind studies tread the natural-supernatural schism.

Cool Science Images

SciMax Theater

Virtual Science!

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