Ben: OK, everyone. Forget Tesla. It’s time to start obsessing about Luis Alvarez. [That’s Luis Alvarez in the photo, standing in front of the Great Artiste. This post began, as so much in life does, with a Twitter conversation. Ben Lillie, a physicist and writer, began it; other people added to it. One of those […]
Month: November 2013
4- 8 November This week, Cassie started losing toenails. Helen pointed out that women have gone into space for decades. Can they finally start being women? Cameron enumerated the measurable health effects of Open Streets days have — plus unicycles. And conference bikes. Ever wonder where the fear of bugs comes from? No one better to […]
Fear of insects is so common that it’s hardly worth remarking on. It’s those of us who don’t fear bugs who can seem a little odd. Science and nature illustrator Maayan Harel told us recently that while she’s acquired an appreciative fascination with her insect subjects, acquaintances still ask, with a shudder of disgust: “Are […]
On Sunday I ran 26.2 miles through the streets of New York City. I giggled deliriously as I crossed the finish line. And then I held my medal aloft and beamed for the cameras. But long-distance running isn’t all glamour and glory. There’s a price to be paid, and I’m not talking about the entrance fee. […]
First, do no harm. It’s a commandment often incorrectly attributed to the Hippocratic oath yet it provides an ethical foundation for modern medicine. The American Medical Association’s principles of medical ethics begins, “A physician shall be dedicated to providing competent medical care, with compassion and respect for human dignity and rights.” But what happens when a […]
Astronaut Karen Nyberg arrived at the International Space Station on May 28. On Sunday, she’ll leave for home. In the five months she’s been up there, she’s worked on studies of the human microbiome and how combustion works in zero gravity. She’s helped move a Soyuz capsule from one dock to another and worked on […]
This is the game my older son and I played this weekend. He would bolt into a four-lane thoroughfare, and I would shout and jump around: “Get out of the street! It’s not safe! GetoutgetoutGETOUT!” Then I would dash into the street after him and we would laugh and laugh. And then he would pretend […]
October 28 – November 1 This week, Erik told us to eat the most delicious little bastards in the ocean. Why is the moose population dwindling? Roberta investigated. I wonder if we can ever agree on a single truth without paying the price. Ann showed why looking at the universe only in the optical wavelengths […]
