Teach Your _____ Well

When I was a teenager, my dad installed a timer on my bedroom light. After 45 minutes, the light would flash a few times. Then, darkness. My dad was tired of me falling asleep with my light on. It was such a waste of energy. This, he said, was the perfect solution. I started thinking […]

The Adventures of Dr. Watson, Science Writer

Sherlock Holmes is having another cultural moment, and as usual, I’m all in. I was raised on the original stories — thanks to a family friend who was a Baker Street Irregular — and this winter, I’ve treated myself to another trip through the canon. This time, though, my sympathies aren’t so much with Sherlock […]

Why is falling so funny?

The other morning while we were walking our dogs, my husband slipped on some snow and fell down in front of me. One moment he was stepping over a log, and the next he was on his back, feet up in the air. I laughed hysterically. He wasn’t hurt. Nor was he amused. And his […]

Not Every Day Is A Good Day

On the best days, journalism is a roller coaster of excitement and possibility – a front row seat to the entire human endeavor. Science journalism, on a good day, is especially so. You never know if you will be interviewing a Nobel laureate about the universe’s stretch marks, inspecting boxes of lethal scorpions, or strapping […]

The Last Word

February 18 – 22 During the war, German anatomists who were university professors did research on bodies of people who died in the concentration camps.  I don’t know how Heather can even write about it. Guest Jill U. Adams talks to her son about driving rules and speed limits, has to figure out what to tell […]

Name that UFO (Unidentified Floating Object)

In which we ask our enlightened readers to solve a household mystery. Scene: The Check-Hayden kitchen. Erika (opens the refrigerator): Hm, this apple juice has been in here for a while. I should probably just finish it off.

Guest Post: Looking for Moderns in All the Wrong Places

  When the British Museum puts together an exhibition of more than 100 pieces of prehistoric art from all over Europe, stretching back nearly 40,000 years, you want to go. And so I did, making the rounds of this spectacular show the day after its opening on February 7. You’ve got until May 26 to […]

Review — Dene: A Journey

I have to admit, that very first episode of Survivor, oh so many years ago, held a certain wow factor for me. I was amazed they were allowed to do such a thing, back when it appeared as if they were truly going to leave a group of people to their own devices on a […]