January 28 – February 1 The most urgent question of the week falls to Richard: what’s going to become of all his books? Time for you to pitch in with some advice, dear readers. Christie wonders how Facebook will irony-proof their new search feature. Erik makes a fairly solid case for the idea that “tools […]
January 21 – 25 This week, Eric showed us why no one does death quite like Mexico; Abstruse Goose does the math to tell us where in the universe our televised electromagnetic leaks have gotten to; Cassie examined the complex relationships between scientific breakthroughs, miracle drugs, and the government programs that allow them to save […]
January 7 -11 Erik wonders if canaries have musical taste. Guest poster Roberta Kwok tells the story of unusual evidence from a heartbreaking crime scene. Nausea — hyperemesis in particular — is a lot more interesting than you think it is, Michelle finds. Guest poster Erin Gettler demonstrates that there’s no shortage of wild things […]
31 December – 4 January Well, I guess we made it through 2012 without dying. So, drink up and get back to work. Heather wrote about the strange therapeutic, cultural, and linguistic history of the tattoo. Guest poster Emily Underwood examined a part of the body so complicated that it requires 10,000 processors to simulate. […]
December 24 – 28 This was Secret Satan week, in which we science writers confronted our secret fears; which subjects do we find most daunting? Why do they scare us? Ann got us off to a great start last week with an erudite explanation of why biology’s not for her. Richard goes into a cold […]
“Well, you know we only use about 10 per cent of our brain.” I don’t like when people tell me this. Someday, I hope to acquire the guts to issue the following rejoinder: “Which 10 per cent do you use?” But because I don’t like confrontation, I usually just make a face of mute disappointment […]
10 – 14 December Turbulent week here at LWON HQ. We started with a crushing loss: our Ginny decamped to National Geographic. We wish her, obviously, every success and all the happiness there — and we’re so proud that she was poached by a place with such an impeccable pedigree. But wow, will we miss […]
3 – 7 December 2012 This week, Richard Branson’s spaceflight-for-megabucks scheme might be the trending, but Heather is far more interested in the intriguing history of the Zambian space academy. It’s a great post – not least because of the utterly hypnotic video – but can I get a show of hands for anyone who […]