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May 2008 Archives
SIDS: a bacterial cause?
by SIDS is one of the leading causes of death for infants under the age of 1--and we know very little about why this happens. A bacterial cause has long been suspected, and new research appears to support this.
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The Cell Wars: Google's Android vs. Apple's iPhone
by So I thought I'd take a break from my obsessing about robots on Mars and turn my attention to some earthbound expert systems. It's time for your faithful blogger to upgrade his cell phone. Enter technophilic obsessive compulsive disorder.
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Safe to Proceed
After some tense moments involving a sniff test that identified a "short circuit," the Phoenix mission passed the "safe to proceed" review.
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Stephen Colbert bows to our microbe overlords
Finally, someone acknowledges the superiority of microbial life...
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The Martians Are Coming
The internets are abuzz today with word that Denver resident Jeff Peckman has video 'evidence' of an intelligent alien life form. All is to be revealed tomorrow during a press conference, but in the meantime, I can't help wondering, do I really care?
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World Science Festival!
by The World Science Festival is on in New York over the next few days. It looks like fun!
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Phoenix's Photo Finish
The Phoenix Mars Lander has begun its tour of the Martian polar region and already we've seen some amazing photos of the planet's surface, but my favorite images (thus far) were snapped right before the lander touched down.
Fate Of The Ocean
by Ocean acidification is intimately connected to our changing climate and as important as global warming...
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Aliens on Earth or Name that Creature 2
by Here's another batch of bizarre & beautiful planetary creatures for our 2nd edition of Aliens on Earth. Click the images below to enlarge them and see if your inner Animal Planet nerd can name them all.
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Big (Martian) Science Ahead
The Phoenix has landed! Congratulations to the team at JPL on the first powered landing in over 30 years. This plus the scientific surveying that lies ahead make yesterday's landing a remarkable achievement.
Will She Stick the Landing!?
It is almost time. The Phoenix craft (launched last year) is approaching Mars, and later today it is due to land. The landing is going to be scary since the craft has to slow down from 12500 miles per hour to make a soft landing using the atmosphere (friction of entry, then a parachute) and then blast rockets to slow itself down at the very end. All this in a matter of minutes! With any of these steps going wrong, the craft goes splat on the surface of Mars. Needless to say, everyone is nervous.
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Seven Minutes of Terror
Today is the day the NASA/JPL Phoenix Mars Lander Mission culminates in a terrifying seven minute descent to the red planet. Hence the title of this blog entry. Before you get on my case for indulging my Hollywood roots using words like "terror," let me remind you that JPL coined the phrase and they've put together a short video about the mission that plays like a summer blockbuster movie trailer.
The Black Mallet :: One before Zero
A few weeks ago we met Georg Cantor, a man so obsessed with seeking out mathematical proofs for his theories of infinity, that in the end he went a little bit batty. So on the flipside today, we'll be looking at one of humanity's more successful attempts at numerical conquest. Specifically, how the "discovery" of a seemingly simple & obvious number completely transformed the world that we live in.
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Jupiter's New Visitor
Jupiter has a new red spot! There's a lot to learn about planetary climate change here on earth, and so other examples are worth studying. Why are there new spots appearing on Jupiter of late?
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With Honors. Without Options?
In the 21st century, we're producing more Ph.D. graduates than ever while the traditional academic trajectory affords fewer and fewer options.
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Water, ice and stone: a love affair with Antarctica
Cool off this summer with a new book...
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Oh My God, It's Full of Stars!
Here's a video of some of the millions of starfish found forming a community on an underwater mountain at Macquarie Ridge, near New Zealand.
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Video Contest!
Don't forget to view the 20 semi-finalists in the WIRED Science Video Contest!
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Girls Sweep Intel's International Science and Engineering Fair!
It's that special time of year again when the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) gives high school students an opportunity to shine. This year, nearly 15,000 students from 47 countries competed in Atlanta for scholarships and prizes. And the winners are....
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What is "hand, foot, and mouth disease?"
As if natural disasters aren't bad enough, China is also suffering from an outbreak of an enterovirus that has killed dozens of children over the past few weeks...and it's spreading.
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Class : Order : Family : Genus : Rock Star
By now, you've probably heard that rocker Neil Young recently had a trapdoor spider named after him: the Myrmekiaphila neilyoungi. Young however isn't the only rock star who holds the honor of being a critter's namesake.
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The Art Of Science
Sure, Carl Zimmer's got his Science Tattoo Emporium, but I suspect I've just witnessed the creation of the coolest science tattoo this millennium...
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Tanning industry claims sun good for you; doctors just involved in "sunlight scam"
Tanning good, doctors bad? What's going on here?
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Super-Genius, Hard Work, and Science
Ziya's been discussing some of the celebrated "super-genius" types who are regarded as thinking about deep problems about the universe on behalf of the rest of us. Yes, we should celebrate these people, and I'm very pleased to see Ziya's posts highlighting that sort of work, but I'm a bit worried...
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The Black Mallet :: Vicarious Brain Explosion
I love the puzzles of the universe. How the simplest questions can drive us either completely bonkers or stretch our minds out toward greater enlightenment. The world's towering geniuses are those who have devoted their lives to questions like, "What is time?", "How fast is light?" and "How big is infinity?" For most of us, these "unsolvables" are put to rest at an early age. As Charles Lamb once quipped: "Nothing puzzles me more than time and space; and yet nothing troubles me less, as I never think about them."
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The Deadliest Storm This Millennium
Tropical Cyclone Nargis may be the world's deadliest storm since 1999's Orissa.
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Is an Elite Elitist?
by On matters of consequence, there are ideological predictors of who believes a particular piece of science. This can't be good news.
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Open House at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Ever wanted to see where those wonderful spaceships we send out there are designed and assembled? Wanted to talk to the scientists and engineers who do that? Well, this weekend you can do it quite easily. Go to JPL!
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