Blog RSS Feed
Correlations Archive
Time to Say Goodbye
by Is it time to say goodbye already?
> Read More
The Short Goodbye
by It seems like just yesterday I was making a science television show and writing a blog that would go the distance. Ah, my salad days, when I was green in judgment.
by Don't Be a Stranger
by Well, it's goodbye from me... and maybe hello elsewhere...
> Read More
Micro-Beauty
by I just came across these fantastic images from Lennart Nilsson's site and had to post them. Seriously, who would think subway scum and malaria could look this beautiful? Nilsson is one of the pioneers of medical photography, and was also the first person to ever capture images of the HIV and SARS virus.
> Read More
The Black Mallet :: Mathematical Pudding
Last night I watched what could oddly be described as a moving math documentary. It's the story of Andrew Wiles, a Princeton University professor who spent seven years of his life ploughing away at one of mathematics' last great unsolved puzzles
> Read More
Aliens on Earth or Name that Creature 2 :: Answers
More beautiful freaks from the animal kingdom.
> Read More
Aliens on Earth or Name that Creature 2
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.
> Read More
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.
> Read More
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.
> Read More
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."
> Read More
The Black Mallet :: Beyond the Supermarket
There are no words in this documentary, but the images speak volumes about the role that technology plays in modern agriculture. If you've ever wondered just where your food comes from then you owe it to yourself to watch Our Daily Bread. It documents a slice of life that we seldom get to see beyond the doors of the supermarket.
> Read More
The Black Mallet :: Animal Pharm
Zoopharmacognosy and Chemo-ornithology are both pretty big words. 7 syllable words in fact. (I counted). But don't let that scare you. These two scientific disciplines basically take a look at how birds & animals in the wild self-medicate. As we'll see in today's doc Peculiar Potions from the Weird Nature series, some animals appear to have a distinct knowledge of which plants, herbs and chemicals in their natural environment can treat & prevent disease. And some animals, well, they just do it for
> Read More
Science Doc Series :: God-men vs Scientists
I'm guessing I'm not the only one here with a crack-like documentary addiction. And with literally hundreds of docs popping up each day, trying to spot the good ones online feels a bit like playing Whack-A-Mole. So dear readers, since I've got the "habit", the blog and the wherewithal, I've decided to share some of my favorite online science documentaries in a brand new blog series called: The Black Mallet (after all, I have won a mini-stuffed toy ;>)
> Read More
Faith in Evolution?
'BC Tours' runs alternative tours of science museums and zoos for interested children and their parents. A private company involved in science education? Sounds so WIRED Science, right? Wrong. BC stands for "biblically correct" and their alternative is the denial of the evidence of evolution. Why should we care what some creationists have to say about science? A recent Gallup poll found that 66% of Americans believe Creationism is "probably or definitely true." Sweet cheeses! What century is this?
Four Degrees of Separation
The British Antarctic Survey reported that a 220 square mile ice shelf in Antarctica is “hanging by a thread.” The cause? Global warming they say. Also, this big melt is happening much faster than scientists’ original predictions. Just how concerned should we be?
Attacking the Clones
Just when you thought the champion bulls that challenge the celebrated Spanish toreadors would only live on as namesakes for Italian sports cars, the biotech company ViaGen has stepped in to promise the “preserving and multiplying” of these superior genetic specimens for generations of bullfighters to come (and kill).
Sad News
Legendary science fiction author and luminary Sir Arthur C. Clarke has died at age 90. The impact his work had on me personally certainly affords the motivation to use the word 'hero' when describing him, but it's his impact on society broadly that demands the use of heroic modifiers when remembering the man.
Reaching the Right Audience
by Science communication needs to convey that there is something cooler than breezy-cool. There is deep cool, a sort of cool that can be obtained only by careful contemplation, whose rewards are greater the deeper you go.
> Read More
Science and the Presidency
Tomorrow (March 4) is yet another super Tuesday in a line of Super Tuesdays. Why so super? Not just because it's my sister's birthday -- Happy Birthday Jacqui!), but also because people in Texas, Ohio, Vermont, and Rhode Island get to voice their opinions about who will get to spend millions of dollars to run fo the Presidency. Yay, America!
Junk Science
So when we left off in my last entry we were talking about shooting satellites out of orbit and the ulterior motives of our government. Oh, and we were trying to figure out what this all had to do with DIY month here on the WIRED Science website. I think I figured out the, umm, correlation.
Target Practice
So the other day the Pentagon made the decision to shoot down an ailing spy satellite. Why exactly would they go through all the trouble of firing a missile (that costs millions of dollars) at what amounted to a school bus-sized piece of space junk? And what does it have to do with DIY month? Answers and conspiracy theories abound after the jump.
A Buggy Perspective
When I was little, my concept of infinity was that our entire twinkling universe fit neatly inside of God's belt buckle. And standing next to God of course, was his Mum. From that world I'd zoom out again past their stars and suns and solar system, until all of that space fit inside a bigger God's belt buckle, who lived in a bigger world, with his bigger Mum. Infinity to my 5 year old mind, was essentially worlds existing endlessly & simultaneously within bigger worlds, and of course, bigger belt buckles.
> Read More
Paper Geniuses
Give me an A4 sheet of white paper and you might get a few doodles, a paper airplane, or a snowflake-cum-doily if I'm feeling particularly creative. But for some folks, a simple sheet of paper can evolve into a mind-melting trip into another dimension.
> Read More
DIY dinner
Seeing as it's DIY month here on Wired Science, I was thinking we could delve into a few Molecular Gastronomy recipes. After all, nothing perks up the taste buds like a scrumptious hydrocolloid dinner! That said, Khymos.org is a fantastic resource for those of you who'd like to experiment with the "science of cooking". Download the digital cookbook here, and try your hand at making everything from Frozen parmesan air to Spherical mango ravioli, to White sangria in suspension! 
> Read More
Science Fiction Friday: Paolo Bacigalupi Part III
In this final installment of my conversation with Paolo Bacigalupi, I find out some of the methods and motivations behind the author's stories in his new book PUMP SIX. Whether it's over-consumptive Southern Californians sucking the Western water supply dry, or neo-feudalists bioengineering their impoverished subjects into living musical instruments like a next-generation "American Idol", Paolo manages to fashion truly terrifying and dystopic landscapes into strangely credible visions of our future.
Science Fiction Friday: Paolo Bacigalupi - Part II
In this, the second installment of my conversation with Paolo Bacigalupi, we turn to the substance of his stories and the origins of his various muses. Paolo discusses his environmentalist tendencies, why it's good to believe in the project of science fiction, and why it's not always so good to believe in our technology.
Science Fiction Friday: Paolo Bacigalupi
In the last episode of Science Fiction Friday I had a conversation with one of science fiction's elite in Greg Bear and learned how we might all die from bioterrorism. This time around I've turned to SF's new guard in Paolo Bacigalupi and received an education about how we might all die from environmental disaster.
Coming Attraction
In a world where people read science fiction... That's right, Science Fiction Friday is just two days away and I'm already getting all anxious about it. You too? I've got just the thing for that anxiety: a little preview of what SFF has on offer this week. Paolo Bacigalupi is a sharp and distinctive new voice in science fiction who has a lot to say about our world and where it might be headed.
NC Science Blogging Conference Redux: Science Blogging and Ethics
I am still recovering from my marvelous (but snowy) trip to North Carolina for the awesome Science Blogging Conference. The first session I attended was entitled Science Blogging and Ethics. I don't believe this session was recorded, like many others, but there are other discussions about it online.
> Read More
The Political Climate
Last night CBS aired the news special "The Age of Warming." Scott Pelley, the "60 Minutes" correspondent did a very "60 Minutes"-like job reporting on the climate science. After the requisite standing at the feet of some receding glaciers, it was off to see some penguins so we could shudder at the thought that they might not have anywhere to march. While it was encouraging to see some mainstream media reportage on science, it wasn't until the investigation turned to the Bush administration's censorship of one of the world's leading climate scientists that I decided that the program warranted a mention here. The revelations are astounding.
New Blogger On The Blog: I Used to Love B.I.O.
Hello there, my name is Liz and I am the newest blogger on Correlations. A little known secret is, I am the editor for this blog, so I have been here since the beginning--but behind the scenes like those little mice that keep the wheels turning. Today, I finally come out as a regular blogger, and I'm pretty excited!
Where do our radio waves go?
I was reading on the internet that our oldest radio broadcasts of the 1930's have already traveled past 100,000 stars. Which got me to wondering...What happens to these radio waves? Do they degrade? Would it actually be possible to listen to these broadcasts if someone theoretically set up a massive receiver like the one at the National Radio Astronomy Observatory in The Quiet Zone segment?
Relating and Correlating
Michael celebrates the improved cohesion, energy and vision of the Correlations team and then messes it all up by foolishly starting an argument with the on-air talent.
> Read More
Correlations Correlation
The Correlations bloggers have now (almost) all met! We hung out and brainstormed on Friday in Los Angeles. Also, appropriately, there was a surprising correlation...
> Read More
Greg Bear Interview Part 3: Analogy Collisions
Science Fiction Friday has finally cooled its jet and settled into orbit around this holiday weekend. So comes to an end Mission: Ursa Major. In this third and final installment of my conversation with Greg Bear, we talk about: predicting the future, law enforcement as an immune response, and the kinds of complications - both real and fictional - science can create.
Greg Bear Interview Part 2: The Bullet You Don't Hear
Science Fiction Friday is so big this week that it can't be contained by just one day. As SFF expands beyond the day of Venus and into the weekend, Greg Bear opens up about his writing process, the longstanding tradition of science fiction writers consulting with the government, and how we better learn how to dodge the bullets we won't hear.
Science Fiction Friday: Greg Bear
Welcome to the very first installment of Science Fiction Friday! I am thrilled that we have one of the great SF writers of his generation, Greg Bear, for our conversation today. I've admired Greg's work for years and now, after having chatted with him, I can say that he's as interesting to talk to as he is to read.
> Read More
Science Fiction Friday Draws Nigh!
Hi everybody. I have a fun announcement. I am instituting a new, recurring feature on my blog. It's called Science Fiction Friday. On the third Friday of the month I will interview a different writer about his or her current work. The inaugural installment will be a chat with science fiction legend GREG BEAR!!! He's an author, illustrator, government advisor, and so much more. Dare I call him a polymath? I dare, I dare.
A Holiday Gift Guide for Science Geeks
If there's one thing that I've learned from working on this show, it's that science nerds truly are a diverse & colorful bunch. So this year, instead of re-gifting that "one-size-fits-all" pocket protector, here's a handy little guide to finding that perfect science-inspired present for geeks of all persuasions.
> Read More
Free To Be M.I.T.
Want to learn about statistical methods in the brain sciences? How about brush up on your single variable calculus? Well, you can do all of this and more without ever getting out of your pajamas. Sound too good to be true? How about if I throw in a bunch of M.I.T. professors to teach it all to you. . . for free!?!
> Read More
Sign of the Times
The Society of the German Language has chosen its word of the year. While there were numerous consonant-rich options, I think their choice (along with some other recent news) is reason for optimism. And the winner is. . .
> Read More
The Beauty of Old Science
Science of the 1800's always seems filtered to us through a sepia-colored imagination. There's a warmth & beauty to the feel of the time that is so different from the cold and clinical aesthetic of modern science. It's that whole romantic image of manuscripts, mechanical tinkering & taxidermied falcons, that you just don't get sitting in front of a laptop in a lab today.
The Morning After
So last night WIRED Science had its wrap party and, from what I'm told, I was in attendance. You see, the night is a little fuzzy in my memory. To be honest, the world is a little fuzzy today. I am nursing a hangover that I could sell to science. It's got me thinking - what exactly is a hangover?
> Read More
Opting In
So in the last entry I began a discussion of just how much more energy those of us living in the industrialized world use to eat what we want to eat, buy whatever we want to buy, live where we want to live, and go where we want to go. Considering the strain this lifestyle puts on global resources it seems it could better be described as eating too much, buying too often, living where we shouldn't, and just generally going too far.
> Read More
How to Say When
So I'm back from an extended Thanksgiving holiday and I've been thinking about overconsuming. The percentage of my wardrobe that I can wear without feeling as though it's an act of mortification seems to be decreasing at alarming rate, but that's just the beginning.
> Read More
Long Hair, Drano & Green Chemistry
I have long hair. Long hair that loves to bundle together and form a happy little party in the drain. At least that's what I try to imagine, since the alternative from The Ring is enough to keep me from showering altogether. But each time I get one of those scary Samara clogs, I also get Drano guilt. So today I decided to do some research and take a look - as my friend Chris does brilliantly every week - at what's inside that mystery product?
> Read More
How to become a Science Host, or Why I heart David Attenborough
I'm often asked how one becomes a Science Host or Presenter, and as I got a lovely email from a viewer named Gabe requesting advice, I figured maybe I could offer a few thoughts through ye olde blog here.
> Read More
Greetings, Correlations!
by Greetings, Correlations!
I am Chris Hardwick, one of Wired Science's plucky
hosts. The good folks at the Correlations Compound (several leagues
below the surface of the ocean) have graciously allowed me junior
blogging privileges.
> Read More
Climate, Chaos and Confusion
We climate scientists often hear the case made "If you can't predict the weather next week, how could you predict the climate in a hundred years?" The answer to the question is hidden in the question. The weather and the climate are not exactly the same thing, and so what you can say about the one and what you can say about the other are also different.
> Read More
The Making Of...
So I'm not a scientist and I've been feeling a little inadequate about it. To deal with the shame, I've devoted myself to making good, responsible television about them.
What I do here at WIRED Science is find and develop the ideas and stories that we turn into television and web content. Of course I don't do this on my own. There are a bunch of us working on this new project. It's a process. When things are going right, it's a creative process.
> Read More
Come In, Sit Down, Join In!
I'm a physicist, and you'll find me in Los Angeles most of the time. I work at the Physics and Astronomy Department of the University of Southern California. I'm a theorist and so I don't have a laboratory of my own that I go to
every day. When in research mode, I'm to be found in my office or
elsewhere, working at a white or black board (like the one on the
left), or in a notebook, or even on napkins and (paper) tablecloths
supplied by various cafes.
> Read More
Climate Science is the Most Important Science!
A scientist on the pilot of WIRED Science makes the claim that stem cell research is the most interesting and important of all possible questions. Of course, as a climate scientist, I think she is wrong!
The earth's climate system is important because it is just on the limits of complexity and understandability. It is exactly the point where the pure, cool rigors of physical sciences intersect with the deep unfathomable complexities of the biological science. It draws from both and contributes to both. I'm very pleased to be a participant in this important work.
> Read More
Epidemiology is Not the Study of Skin
Hi all, and welcome to Correlations. In contrast to many of my colleagues, I'm blogging from about the least exotic place on the planet--Iowa, where I wear a lot of hats. I'm an infectious disease epidemiologist (add "molecular" to the front of that if you want to
give me a *really* long title).
> Read More
Hello From Antarctica
by Welcome to the very snowy world of Halley Research Station. It's currently -30 degrees Fahrenheit outside but that doesn't stop us getting out and about in the name of science! It's springtime here in the southern hemisphere; days are getting longer, emperor penguin chicks are hatching and the busy spring science season is in full swing.
> Read More
Greetings Fellow Nerdfolk
Ziya here. Welcome to my inaugural web posting. This little corner of the site will be devoted to the weird wide world of science and technology. So I was thinking a la Letterman, that every once in a while I'll call up a random person from the web and have a little chat with them.
> Read More
'Is Anyone Here A Marine Biologist?'
by Hello folks and welcome to Correlations! I'm a marine biologist at Duke University's Nicholas
Institute for Environmental Policy Solutions and also share The Intersection
with Chris Mooney.
> Read More