Uncategorized
- Earth
Invasive, Indeed
Some people may live lightly on the land, but the demands of the world's population as a whole consume nearly a quarter of Earth's total biological productivity.
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19889
The news is filled with observations of our species’ role in global warming and in the depletion of fisheries, arable land, fresh water, and fossil fuels. Yet I seldom hear the size of the human population cited as a driving force behind these problems. The easiest path to reducing our environmental footprint would be to […]
- Tech
Disappearing Ink
Coming to your tattoo parlor soon: New inks that allow clients to have their designs cleanly erased if embarrassment or regret sets in.
- Humans
From the October 2, 1937, issue
The mystery and magnificence of volcanoes, how bees dance to tell their hive-mates which flowers to visit, and the year's polio cases begin to decline.
- Health & Medicine
Yummy Bugs
Do you enjoy chocolate? You can make it more nutritious by bugging it—with crickets, for example. Or how about ant-fortified tacos? This site introduces Westerners to the idea that many commonly encountered insects are edible. Indeed, most are lower in fat—and higher in protein—than beef, lamb, pork, or chicken. The site’s author argues that “insects […]
- Math
A Prayer for Archimedes
A long-lost work by Archimedes shows his subtle grasp of the notion of infinity, and how close he was to developing calculus.
- Animals
Crowcam: Camera on bird’s tail captures bird ingenuity
Video cameras attached to tropical crows record the birds' use of plant stems as tools to dig out food.
- Health & Medicine
Shields Down: A cancer-fighting gene declines in old age
Decline of an important anti-cancer gene could contribute to increased cancer risk among the elderly.
- Astronomy
Match Made in Heaven: Nearby galaxies resemble faraway type
Several nearby galaxies seem nearly identical to some of the remotest galaxies known, offering a glimpse of the era when galaxies first formed.
- Health & Medicine
Fueling a Flu Debate: Do vaccinations save lives among the elderly?
Flu shots seem to prevent some deaths and limit hospitalizations for pneumonia in elderly people.
- Paleontology
Just a quick bite
Saber-toothed cats living in North America around 10,000 years ago had a much weaker bite than modern big cats.
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No Slippery Slope: Physician-aided deaths are rare among those presumed vulnerable
Vulnerable people such as the very old or the mentally ill do not seek out physician-assisted suicide in disproportionate numbers, as critics of the practice feared they would.
