…the science about this was considered settled before the new evidence came to light. Speaking of science and geology (and we were, weren’t we?), recently I was reading a book called Europe Between the Oceans: 9000 B.C.—AD 1000, and was … Continue reading →
Last night I was listening to Leonard Cohen’s “Going Home.” In that song he’s his usual lugubrious, hypnotic, philosophical, mystical self. The lyric could only have been written by a writer who’s no longer young. You may think the song … Continue reading →
Well, don’t bother: you’ll probably gain weight instead. Another myth shattered. And boy, what some people won’t do for science.
Continue reading →No, the poet Robert Frost didn’t write anything about the believers versus the deniers of anthropogenic global warming. After all, he died in 1963. When I started this blog (lo about nine long years ago!), I had some idea of … Continue reading →
…recognizes your face, not just your smell.
Continue reading →Some research has been published indicating that the offspring of same-sex couples may not be doing quite as well as other kids, and it has met with a firestorm of politically-correct disapproval. This should come as no surprise; politics is … Continue reading →
I think I’m winning. For now. It all started with an event so ordinary as to be unremarkable: a couple of fruit flies (or their larva) came in with some purchase or other. After I spotted them, I was very … Continue reading →
It’ll be the egg that will become obsolete (perhaps even illegal some day, like old-fashioned lightbulbs?) if Hampton Creek Foods (founded by Bill Gates) has anything to say about it: In its food lab, biochemists grind up beans and peer … Continue reading →
…the destruction of the human race by artificial intelligence: In 267 brisk pages, Barrat lays out just how the artificial intelligence (AI) that companies like Google and governments like our own are racing to perfect could — indeed, likely will … Continue reading →
Well, duh. It’s the connectivity, stupid: Researchers found that many of the connections in a typical male brain run between the front and the back of the same side of the brain, whereas in women the connections are more likely … Continue reading →
Fantasy? Soon-to-be reality? Then again, you could just go to a nearby store if you need something that quickly. Will people be tempted to shoot them down? How will Amazon avoid landing a drone on someone’s head? What about apartment-dwellers? … Continue reading →
Yesterday on the “Gravity” thread we were discussing that trailblazing (and, IMHO, superior) movie, “2001: A Space Odyssey.” Who can forget that memorable moment when astronaut Dave was forced to dismantle the malfunctioning and paranoid (hey, you’re not crazy if … Continue reading →