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Out-of-Pocket Blog
Radiology, Residency, and Physician Tools with Henry Li | Out-Of-Pocket What's actually happening in the hospital?
a year ago
Casey Handmer's blog
Dittemore’s Law A quick note to formalize some observations on elite organization dysfunction. The Space Mirror...
5 months ago
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5 months ago
A quick note to formalize some observations on elite organization dysfunction. The Space Mirror Memorial at Kennedy Space Center in Florida commemorates the 25 US astronauts who have died in flight.  Ron Dittemore is the retired former Space Shuttle program manager who was...
Yale e360
Heat and Fire Making Pollution Worse Across Much of the U.S. By several measures, air pollution is getting worse in the U.S., a trend due in large part to more...
2 months ago
6
2 months ago
By several measures, air pollution is getting worse in the U.S., a trend due in large part to more severe heat and wildfires, according to a new report. Read more on E360 →
NeuroLogica Blog
Liquid Organic Hydrogen Carriers as Fuel The press release for a recent study declares: “New catalyst could provide liquid hydrogen fuel of...
a year ago
24
a year ago
The press release for a recent study declares: “New catalyst could provide liquid hydrogen fuel of the future.” But don’t get excited – the optimism is more than a bit gratuitous. I have written about hydrogen fuel before, and the reasons I am not optimistic about hydrogen as a...
Yale e360
Toxic Algae Spurs Sea Lion Attacks in Southern California A sea lion sickened by toxic algae attacked a teenage girl in Long Beach, California, on Sunday, the...
2 months ago
1
2 months ago
A sea lion sickened by toxic algae attacked a teenage girl in Long Beach, California, on Sunday, the latest episode of erratic behavior from affected animals. Read more on E360 →
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Weird issues in value-based care | Out-Of-Pocket Thoughts on value-based care from people actually building in it
9 months ago
Cremieux Recueil
The Value of Foreign Diplomas Is that immigrant high-skilled or do they just have a fancy degree?
5 months ago
NeuroLogica Blog
Eating Methane Methane is the forgotten greenhouse gas (sort of). Often, when discussing how best to reduce...
a year ago
17
a year ago
Methane is the forgotten greenhouse gas (sort of). Often, when discussing how best to reduce anthropogenic climate change, we talk about decarbonizing our electrical and transport sectors, and carbon removal. But methane is also a greenhouse gas, contributing to global warming,...
Yale e360
Return of Trees to Eastern U.S. Is Fueling a Surge in Wildfires Trees and shrubs have proliferated in unmanaged forests in the eastern U.S. This growth, which marks...
6 months ago
3
6 months ago
Trees and shrubs have proliferated in unmanaged forests in the eastern U.S. This growth, which marks a return of trees to the region after centuries of deforestation, is fueling a new surge in wildfires, a study finds. Read more on E360 →
Quanta Magazine
Novel Architecture Makes Neural Networks More Understandable By tapping into a decades-old mathematical principle, researchers are hoping that Kolmogorov-Arnold...
9 months ago
52
9 months ago
By tapping into a decades-old mathematical principle, researchers are hoping that Kolmogorov-Arnold networks will facilitate scientific discovery. The post Novel Architecture Makes Neural Networks More Understandable first appeared on Quanta Magazine
NeuroLogica Blog
Science Communication About Controversial Issues The world of science communication has changed dramatically over the last two decades, and it’s...
7 months ago
65
7 months ago
The world of science communication has changed dramatically over the last two decades, and it’s useful to think about those changes, both for people who generate and consume science communication. The big change, of course, is social media, which has disrupted journalism and...
Casey Handmer's blog
Long duration propellant stability in Starship Some ideas on preventing cryogenic propellant boiloff in Starship during long duration cruise or...
3 months ago
35
3 months ago
Some ideas on preventing cryogenic propellant boiloff in Starship during long duration cruise or while operating orbital fuel depots. The usual caveats apply! One of the major concerns with using Starship for the Human Landing System is that propellant (cryogenically liquid...
NeuroLogica Blog
Latest Starship Launch SpaceX has conducted their most successful test launch of a Starship system to date. The system they...
8 months ago
59
8 months ago
SpaceX has conducted their most successful test launch of a Starship system to date. The system they tested has three basic components – the Super Heavy first stage rocket booster, the Starship second stage (which is the actual space ship that will go places), and the...
Yale e360
In a First, California Tribe May Freely Burn Its Ancestral Lands In California, a state increasingly beset by devastating wildfires, the Karuk Tribe will be able to...
3 months ago
5
3 months ago
In California, a state increasingly beset by devastating wildfires, the Karuk Tribe will be able to freely set controlled burns, helping to clear the dense underbrush that fuels larger and more destructive fires. Read more on E360 →
Chris Grossack's...
Where Do Those Undergraduate Divisibility Problems Come From? Oftentimes in your “intro to proofs” class or your first “discrete math” class or something...
5 months ago
53
5 months ago
Oftentimes in your “intro to proofs” class or your first “discrete math” class or something similar, you’ll be shown problems of the form “prove that for $n^6 + n^3 + 2n^2 + 2n$ is a multiple of $6$ for every $n$”… But where do these problems come from? And have you ever...
Blog - Practical...
This Bridge Should Have Been Closed Years Before It Collapsed [Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.] On January 28, 2022, about an...
a year ago
98
a year ago
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.] On January 28, 2022, about an hour before dawn, the four-lane Fern Hollow Bridge in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, collapsed without warning. Five vehicles, including an articulating bus, fell with the bridge, and...
Asterisk
How Long Til We’re All on Ozempic? Over 100 million Americans, and possibly many more, could benefit from GLP-1 drugs. When can they...
11 months ago
18
11 months ago
Over 100 million Americans, and possibly many more, could benefit from GLP-1 drugs. When can they expect to get them?
Asterisk
Aperitif
over a year ago
Out-of-Pocket Blog
An update about Out-Of-Pocket | Out-Of-Pocket lemme sell some of your attention plz
a year ago
Quanta Magazine
Mathematicians Discover Novel Way to Predict Structure in Graphs In new work on graphs’ hidden structure, mathematicians probe the limits of randomness. ...
over a year ago
50
over a year ago
In new work on graphs’ hidden structure, mathematicians probe the limits of randomness. The post Mathematicians Discover Novel Way to Predict Structure in Graphs first appeared on Quanta Magazine
wadertales
Conservation beyond boundaries When an environmental impact assessment concludes that only a small number of shorebirds will be...
over a year ago
42
over a year ago
When an environmental impact assessment concludes that only a small number of shorebirds will be affected by a new airport, because relatively small flocks are counted during field surveys, is there an assumption that the birds encountered are always the same individuals? What if...
Quanta Magazine
How a Biofilm’s Strange Shape Emerges From Cellular Geometry Micro decisions can have macro consequences. A soft matter physicist reveals how interactions within...
2 months ago
25
2 months ago
Micro decisions can have macro consequences. A soft matter physicist reveals how interactions within simple cellular collectives can lead to emergent physical traits. The post How a Biofilm’s Strange Shape Emerges From Cellular Geometry first appeared on Quanta...
Quanta Magazine
How Selective Forgetting Can Help AI Learn Better Erasing key information during training results in machine learning models that can learn new...
a year ago
36
a year ago
Erasing key information during training results in machine learning models that can learn new languages faster and more easily. The post How Selective Forgetting Can Help AI Learn Better first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Casey Handmer's blog
Entrepreneurship changed the way I think A quick note with some self reflection on the eve of my 37th year and after nearly three years of...
9 months ago
26
9 months ago
A quick note with some self reflection on the eve of my 37th year and after nearly three years of running a hardware start up. I never saw myself as a founder. At some point a few years ago I realized nearly all my friends were founders or managers of their own business, but I...
Blog - Practical...
Why Construction Projects Always Go Over Budget [Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.] Boston, Massachusetts is one...
over a year ago
58
over a year ago
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.] Boston, Massachusetts is one of the oldest cities in America, founded in 1630, more than a few years before the advent of modern motor vehicles. In the 1980s, traffic in downtown Boston was nearly unbearable...
NeuroLogica Blog
Tong Test for Artificial General Intelligence Most readers are probably familiar with the Turing Test – a concept proposed by early computing...
a year ago
20
a year ago
Most readers are probably familiar with the Turing Test – a concept proposed by early computing expert Alan Turing in 1950, and originally called “The Imitation Game”. The original paper is enlightening to read. Turing was not trying to answer the question “can machines think”....
Yale e360
Entries Invited for Yale Environment 360 Film Contest The 12th annual Yale Environment 360 Film Contest is now accepting entries. Read more on E360 →
2 months ago
Quanta Magazine
Does Form Really Shape Function? From brain folds to insect architecture, L. Mahadevan explains how complex biological forms and...
2 weeks ago
9
2 weeks ago
From brain folds to insect architecture, L. Mahadevan explains how complex biological forms and behaviors emerge through the interplay of physical forces, environment and embodiment. The post Does Form Really Shape Function? first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Quanta Magazine
How Randomness Improves Algorithms Unpredictability can help computer scientists solve otherwise intractable problems. The...
over a year ago
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over a year ago
Unpredictability can help computer scientists solve otherwise intractable problems. The post How Randomness Improves Algorithms first appeared on Quanta Magazine
The Roots of...
What I’ve been reading, November 2023 A ~monthly feature. Recent blog posts and news stories are generally omitted; you can find them in...
a year ago
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a year ago
A ~monthly feature. Recent blog posts and news stories are generally omitted; you can find them in my links digests. All emphasis in bold in the quotes below was added by me. Books Finished Lynn White, Medieval Technology and Social Change (1962). Last time I talked about the...
Quantum Frontiers
The Book of Mark, Chapter 2 Late in the summer of 2021, I visited a physics paradise in a physical paradise: the Kavli Institute...
a year ago
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a year ago
Late in the summer of 2021, I visited a physics paradise in a physical paradise: the Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics (KITP). The KITP sits at the edge of the University of California, Santa Barbara like a bougainvillea bush at … Continue reading →
Many Worlds
After Seven Years Away Exploring an Asteroid, OSIRIS-REx is Landing Soon with Precious Samples Bits of pebbles and dust from the asteriod Bennu that were collected during the long journey of the...
a year ago
27
a year ago
Bits of pebbles and dust from the asteriod Bennu that were collected during the long journey of the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft should be landing in the Utah desert later this month. The delivery will be a first for NASA — its first sample return from an asteroid and one of a very...
Casey Handmer's blog
Salton Sea statistics I wanted to gain better insights into the Salton Sea level, evaporation, inflows and outflows. Step...
6 months ago
53
6 months ago
I wanted to gain better insights into the Salton Sea level, evaporation, inflows and outflows. Step one was to gather publicly available data about its level, and collate it into a single graph. Here we see that despite the continual formation of Salton Sea advisory committees,...
Asterisk
Emotional Intelligence Amplification Love in the time of chatbots.
over a year ago
Out-of-Pocket Blog
The College Health Opportunity | Out-Of-Pocket We can make college healthcare better! And honestly we have to
a year ago
Asterisk
Rat Traps Does the rationalist blogosphere need to update?
8 months ago
Quantum Frontiers
A peek inside Northrop Grumman’s subatomic endeavors As the weather turns colder and we trade outdoor pools for pumpkin spice and then Christmas carols,...
over a year ago
45
over a year ago
As the weather turns colder and we trade outdoor pools for pumpkin spice and then Christmas carols, perhaps you’re longing for summer’s warmth. For me, it is not just warmth I yearn for: This past summer, I worked as a … Continue reading →
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Emergent, Fringe Behaviors in Healthcare | Out-Of-Pocket tweeting out your labs, induced mental states, and more
a month ago
NeuroLogica Blog
Controlling the Narrative with AI There is an ongoing battle in our society to control the narrative, to influence the flow of...
a year ago
43
a year ago
There is an ongoing battle in our society to control the narrative, to influence the flow of information, and thereby move the needle on what people think and how they behave. This is nothing new, but the mechanisms for controlling the narrative are evolving as our communication...
The Works in...
Making american milk safe How good ideas spread
a month ago
Uncharted...
6 Questions You Asked Yourself about Solar How fast will it take over, how fast are costs shrinking, why is it so cheap, what industries will...
8 months ago
31
8 months ago
How fast will it take over, how fast are costs shrinking, why is it so cheap, what industries will it birth, how much surface will it take up, where will it appear first?
NeuroLogica Blog
Diamond Batteries Again Why does news reporting of science and technology have to be so terrible at baseline? I know the...
6 months ago
66
6 months ago
Why does news reporting of science and technology have to be so terrible at baseline? I know the answers to this question – lack of expertise, lack of a business model to support dedicated science news infrastructure, the desire for click-bait and sensationalism – but it is still...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
New Healthcare Crash Courses + Some Updates | Out-Of-Pocket learn stuff and also other things
a year ago
Quanta Magazine
Graduate Student Solves Classic Problem About the Limits of Addition A new proof illuminates the hidden patterns that emerge when addition becomes impossible. ...
a month ago
22
a month ago
A new proof illuminates the hidden patterns that emerge when addition becomes impossible. The post Graduate Student Solves Classic Problem About the Limits of Addition first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Quanta Magazine
Why Is This Shape So Terrible to Pack? Two mathematicians have proved a long-standing conjecture that is a step on the way toward finding...
a year ago
105
a year ago
Two mathematicians have proved a long-standing conjecture that is a step on the way toward finding the worst shape for packing the plane. The post Why Is This Shape So Terrible to Pack? first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Uncharted...
The Most Important Time in History Is Now AGI Is Coming Sooner Due to o3, DeepSeek, and Other Cutting-Edge AI Developments
5 months ago
Quantum Frontiers
I know I am but what are you? Mind and Matter in Quantum Mechanics Nowadays it is best to exercise caution when bringing the words “quantum” and “consciousness”...
a month ago
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a month ago
Nowadays it is best to exercise caution when bringing the words “quantum” and “consciousness” anywhere near each other, lest you be suspected of mysticism or quackery. Eugene Wigner did not concern himself with this when he wrote his “Remarks on … Continue reading →
Blog - Practical...
The Bizarre Paths of Groundwater Around Structures [Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.] In 2015, an unusual incident...
over a year ago
46
over a year ago
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.] In 2015, an unusual incident happened on the construction site for a sewage lift station in British Columbia, Canada. WorksafeBC, the provincial health and safety agency, posted a summary of the event on...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
What's The Deal With Telemedicine? | Out-Of-Pocket we're in the weird in-between stage of adoption
a year ago
NeuroLogica Blog
The Moon Race is On Back in the 1960 there was a race to land people on the Moon between the US and the Soviet Union....
a year ago
75
a year ago
Back in the 1960 there was a race to land people on the Moon between the US and the Soviet Union. This was very much a part of the cold war, with each country interested in showing off its technical prowess to the world with a technology closely related to that needed to deliver...
Melting Asphalt
A Nihilist's Guide to Meaning I've never been plagued by the big existential questions. You know, like What's my purpose? or What...
over a year ago
22
over a year ago
I've never been plagued by the big existential questions. You know, like What's my purpose? or What does it all mean? Growing up I was a very science-minded kid — still am — and from an early age I learned… Read more ›
Yale e360
Entries Invited for Yale Environment 360 Film Contest The 12th annual Yale Environment 360 Film Contest is now accepting entries. Read more on E360 →
2 months ago
NeuroLogica Blog
Antarctic Sea Ice Hits Record Low For decades scientists were confused by Antarctic sea ice. Climate models predict that it should be...
a year ago
116
a year ago
For decades scientists were confused by Antarctic sea ice. Climate models predict that it should be decreasing, and yet it has been steadily and slowly increasing. It also made for a great talking point for climate change deniers – superficially it seems like counter evidence to...
Quanta Magazine
When Data Is Missing, Scientists Guess. Then Guess Again. Across the social and biological sciences, statisticians use a technique that leverages randomness...
9 months ago
57
9 months ago
Across the social and biological sciences, statisticians use a technique that leverages randomness to deal with the unknown. The post When Data Is Missing, Scientists Guess. Then Guess Again. first appeared on Quanta Magazine
nanoscale views
What is multiferroicity? (A post summarizing recent US science-related events will be coming later.  For now, here is my...
2 months ago
26
2 months ago
(A post summarizing recent US science-related events will be coming later.  For now, here is my promised post about multiferroics, inspired in part by a recent visit to Rice by Yoshi Tokura.) Electrons carry spins and therefore magnetic moments (that is, they can act in some ways...
Wanderingspace
Venus from Earth (with Stacking) Image taken by @TheVastReaches. According to the photographer, “It takes just a few minutes to...
over a year ago
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over a year ago
Image taken by @TheVastReaches. According to the photographer, “It takes just a few minutes to collect all the frames. This started as 6 video files, 45,000 frames total. Then they are stacked and combined.”
Quanta Magazine
New Maps of the Bizarre, Chaotic Space-Time Inside Black Holes Physicists hope that understanding the churning region near singularities might help them reconcile...
4 months ago
38
4 months ago
Physicists hope that understanding the churning region near singularities might help them reconcile gravity and quantum mechanics. The post New Maps of the Bizarre, Chaotic Space-Time Inside Black Holes first appeared on Quanta Magazine
The Roots of...
What I’ve been reading, April 2023 A monthly feature. Note that I generally don’t include very recent writing here, such as the latest...
over a year ago
40
over a year ago
A monthly feature. Note that I generally don’t include very recent writing here, such as the latest blog posts (for those, see my Twitter digests); this is for my deeper research. AI First, various historical perspectives on AI, many of which were quite prescient: Alan Turing,...
Yale e360
Warmer, Greener Arctic Becoming a Source of Heat-Trapping Gas As the northern latitudes warm, ice is melting and vegetation is spreading. But instead of absorbing...
5 months ago
1
5 months ago
As the northern latitudes warm, ice is melting and vegetation is spreading. But instead of absorbing more carbon, the region is becoming a source of heat-trapping gas, a new study shows. Read more on E360 →
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Some More 2025 predictions | Out-Of-Pocket OOP readers always have some interesting ones
6 months ago
Yale e360
In Mexico’s ‘Avocado Belt,’ Villagers Stand Up to Protect Their Lands A boom in avocado production in Mexico has led to illegal deforestation and an influx of drug...
a month ago
9
a month ago
A boom in avocado production in Mexico has led to illegal deforestation and an influx of drug cartels dominating the lucrative trade. But Indigenous communities have fought back against the gangs and turned to traditional practices to grow avocados and save their forests.  Read...
NeuroLogica Blog
An Earth-like Climate is Fragile One of the biggest questions of exoplanet astronomy is how many potentially habitable planets are...
a year ago
25
a year ago
One of the biggest questions of exoplanet astronomy is how many potentially habitable planets are out there in the galaxy. By one estimate the answer is 6 billion Earth-like planets in the Milky Way. But of course we have to set parameters and make estimates, so this number can...
Quanta Magazine
Some Neural Networks Learn Language Like Humans Researchers uncover striking parallels in the ways that humans and machine learning models acquire...
over a year ago
83
over a year ago
Researchers uncover striking parallels in the ways that humans and machine learning models acquire language skills. The post Some Neural Networks Learn Language Like Humans first appeared on Quanta Magazine
brr
South Pole Arrival Flying to the bottom of the world!
over a year ago
Beautiful Public...
All of the 8,291 License Plates in America States now offer a vast menu of personalized plate options for a dizzying array of organizations,...
a year ago
65
a year ago
States now offer a vast menu of personalized plate options for a dizzying array of organizations, professions, sports teams, causes and other groups.
Cremieux Recueil
The Holistic Judgment Conceit Holistic evaluations are for machines, not people
2 months ago
Yale e360
In a First, California Tribe May Freely Burn Its Ancestral Lands In California, a state increasingly beset by devastating wildfires, the Karuk Tribe will be able to...
3 months ago
1
3 months ago
In California, a state increasingly beset by devastating wildfires, the Karuk Tribe will be able to freely set controlled burns, helping to clear the dense underbrush that fuels larger and more destructive fires. Read more on E360 →
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Weird health insurance concepts | Out-Of-Pocket Intercompany eliminations, copay shenanigans, and reference-based pricing
7 months ago
Uncharted...
Robotaxis Are Here Within 1-5 years, our daily transportation will be upended, and cities will be reshaped.
3 months ago
The Works in...
Two Assault Rifles A new section from Stewart Brand's Maintenance on Books in Progress
a year ago
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Food as medicine | Out-Of-Pocket The most cost-effective intervention we have
a year ago
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Some Thoughts On Startups Overpromising | Out-Of-Pocket the role RFPs play, how it's difficult to define patient harm, and more
a year ago
Yale e360
Despite Ukraine War, Europe Imported Even More Russian Gas Last Year The EU is getting further from its goal of weaning off Russian fossil fuels by 2027. Imports of...
3 months ago
3
3 months ago
The EU is getting further from its goal of weaning off Russian fossil fuels by 2027. Imports of Russian gas rose by 18 percent last year, a new analysis finds. Read more on E360 →
IEEE Spectrum
IEEE Recognizes Itaipu Dam’s Engineering Achievements Technology should benefit humanity. One of the most remarkable examples of technology’s potential to...
3 months ago
50
3 months ago
Technology should benefit humanity. One of the most remarkable examples of technology’s potential to provide enduring benefits is the Itaipu Hydroelectric Dam, a massive binational energy project between Brazil and Paraguay. Built on the Paraná River, which forms part of the...
Quantum Frontiers
Building a Visceral Understanding of Quantum Phenomena A great childhood memory that I have comes from first playing “The Incredible Machine” on PC in the...
10 months ago
88
10 months ago
A great childhood memory that I have comes from first playing “The Incredible Machine” on PC in the early 90’s. For those not in the know, this is a physics-based puzzle game about building Rube Goldberg style contraptions to achieve … Continue reading →
NeuroLogica Blog
Evidence of Ancient Solar Flares From time to time the Earth gets hit by a wave of energetic particles from the sun – solar flares or...
a year ago
63
a year ago
From time to time the Earth gets hit by a wave of energetic particles from the sun – solar flares or even coronal mass ejections (CMEs). In 1859 a large CME hit Earth (known as the Carrington Event), shorting out telegraphs, brightening the sky, and causing aurora deep into...
symmetry magazine
Creating the next 3D maps of the universe Scientists have proposed new instruments that would use spectroscopy to decode dark matter, dark...
over a year ago
48
over a year ago
Scientists have proposed new instruments that would use spectroscopy to decode dark matter, dark energy and cosmic inflation. Telescope images can tell us a whole lot about celestial objects: where they are located in the sky, how bright they are, how big they...
NeuroLogica Blog
Possible Biosignature on K2-18b Exoplanets are pretty exciting – in the last few decades we have gone from knowing absolutely...
2 months ago
20
2 months ago
Exoplanets are pretty exciting – in the last few decades we have gone from knowing absolutely nothing about planets beyond our solar system to having a catalogue of over 5,000 confirmed exoplanets. That’s still a small sample considering there are likely between 100 billion and 1...
Explorations of an...
A Quest Nature Tour To Borneo: Kota Kinabalu, Mount Kinabalu, Sepilok And The Kinabatangan River Our Quest Nature Tours group assembled in Kota Kinabalu on the evening of October 3 and the...
7 months ago
16
7 months ago
Our Quest Nature Tours group assembled in Kota Kinabalu on the evening of October 3 and the following morning we were off. Kota Kinabalu is situated on the coast, but is only a two hour drive from the mountains that form the spine of Borneo and its highest peak, Mount Kinabalu....
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Healthcare in India | Out-Of-Pocket From the eyes of someone on the ground
a year ago
Quanta Magazine
The Simple Geometry That Predicts Molecular Mosaics By treating molecules as geometric tessellations, scientists devised a new way to forecast how 2D...
over a year ago
41
over a year ago
By treating molecules as geometric tessellations, scientists devised a new way to forecast how 2D materials might self-assemble. The post The Simple Geometry That Predicts Molecular Mosaics first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Yale e360
Retreating Arctic Glaciers Have Exposed 1,500 Miles of Coastline Since 2000, the melting of Arctic glaciers has exposed some 1,500 miles of coastline, a study...
3 months ago
Tikalon Blog by Dev...
US Independence Day Tikalon is on a short holiday in celebration of US Independence Day, July 4, 2024. Our next article...
12 months ago
15
12 months ago
Tikalon is on a short holiday in celebration of US Independence Day, July 4, 2024. Our next article will be posted on Monday, July 15, 2024. View my version of the iconic image of George Washington's crossing of the Delaware River in which he encounters some unusually large...
Yale e360
Deadly Encounter: Mountain Lion Attacks Spark Controversy A mountain lion attack that killed a young California man last year has reignited a debate over how...
5 months ago
2
5 months ago
A mountain lion attack that killed a young California man last year has reignited a debate over how the big cats should be managed. Some are calling for renewed hunting of the animals, while others are advocating nonlethal methods of instilling a fear of humans in the big...
NeuroLogica Blog
The 80-20 Rule From the Topic Suggestions (Lal Mclennan): What is the 80/20 theory portrayed in Netflix’s...
3 months ago
26
3 months ago
From the Topic Suggestions (Lal Mclennan): What is the 80/20 theory portrayed in Netflix’s Adolescence? The 80/20 rule was first posed as a Pareto principle that suggests that approximately 80 per cent of outcomes stem from just 20 per cent of causes. This concept takes its name...
nanoscale views
This week in the arXiv: quantum geometry, fluid momentum "tunneling", and pasta sauce Three papers caught my eye the other day on the arXiv at the start of the new year: arXiv:2501.00098...
5 months ago
18
5 months ago
Three papers caught my eye the other day on the arXiv at the start of the new year: arXiv:2501.00098 - J. Yu et al., "Quantum geometry in quantum materials" - I hope to write up something about quantum geometry soon, but I wanted to point out this nice review even if I haven't...
Yale e360
Antarctic Ice Sheet May Be Less Vulnerable Than Previously Thought A new study reveals the massive West Antarctic ice sheet did not completely collapse during the last...
5 months ago
1
5 months ago
A new study reveals the massive West Antarctic ice sheet did not completely collapse during the last warm period, as prior modeling had suggested. The findings offer some hope for the future of the ice sheet as the planet heats up. Read more on E360 →
Asterisk
Oops
a year ago
Damn Interesting
The Traveler and His Baggage On 19 May 1943, a news report from Berlin deepened the already dreary gloom that clung to the people...
over a year ago
29
over a year ago
On 19 May 1943, a news report from Berlin deepened the already dreary gloom that clung to the people of Nazi-occupied Paris. Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels proudly announced to the world that the German capital of Berlin was officially judenfrei–free of all Jews. As this...
Quanta Magazine
Most Life on Earth is Dormant, After Pulling an ‘Emergency Brake’ Many microbes and cells are in deep sleep, waiting for the right moment to activate. Biologists...
a year ago
71
a year ago
Many microbes and cells are in deep sleep, waiting for the right moment to activate. Biologists discovered a widespread protein that abruptly shuts down a cell’s activity — and turns it back on just as fast. The post Most Life on Earth is Dormant, After Pulling an...
Asterisk
The Fault in Our Forecasts It’s impossible to predict when an earthquake will strike. This puts seismologists in a nearly...
a year ago
16
a year ago
It’s impossible to predict when an earthquake will strike. This puts seismologists in a nearly impossible bind: how can they convince the public to take earthquakes seriously without crying wolf?
NeuroLogica Blog
The Alzheimer’s Revolution Decades of complex research and persevering through repeated disappointment appears to be finally...
a year ago
21
a year ago
Decades of complex research and persevering through repeated disappointment appears to be finally paying off for the diagnosis and treatment of Alzheimer’s  disease (AD). In 2021 Aduhelm was the first drug approved by the FDA (granted contingent accelerated approval) that is...
Quanta Magazine
Maze Proof Establishes a ‘Backbone’ for Statistical Mechanics Four mathematicians have estimated the chances that there’s a clear path through a random maze. ...
a year ago
37
a year ago
Four mathematicians have estimated the chances that there’s a clear path through a random maze. The post Maze Proof Establishes a ‘Backbone’ for Statistical Mechanics first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Uncharted...
The Birth of German(y) Goods, Gods, and Guns
4 months ago
Yale e360
With the Great Mussel Die-Off, Scientists Scramble for Answers One of the most endangered animals in the world, freshwater mussels are threatened by pollution,...
2 months ago
1
2 months ago
One of the most endangered animals in the world, freshwater mussels are threatened by pollution, climate change, habitat loss, and invasive species. But in the epicenter of their diversity — the Southeastern U.S. — the root cause of a catastrophic die-off remains a mystery.  Read...
Drew Ex Machina
The Largest Launch Vehicles in Service – 1957 to the Present With the successful launch of NASA’s Artemis I test flight, we now have a new holder of the title...
over a year ago
35
over a year ago
With the successful launch of NASA’s Artemis I test flight, we now have a new holder of the title “the largest launch vehicle in service”: the […]
Inverted Passion
Review of 2023 Time is strange – 2023 simultaneously felt too long and too short. It was short because I remember...
a year ago
47
a year ago
Time is strange – 2023 simultaneously felt too long and too short. It was short because I remember recently writing my 2022 review, and it was long because I ended up packing a lot of stuff into it. ✅ Train 5 days a week (including Mixed Martial Arts) I did manage to train 5...
NeuroLogica Blog
Roleplaying Games May Help Autistic People Gotta love the title of this paper: “A critical hit: Dungeons and Dragons as a buff for autistic...
10 months ago
61
10 months ago
Gotta love the title of this paper: “A critical hit: Dungeons and Dragons as a buff for autistic people“. Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) is a tabletop roleplaying game where a small group of people each play characters adventuring in an imaginary world run by the dungeon master (DM)....
Uncharted...
Desalination: a Future of Infinite Water Desalination is finally cheap, and it’s only getting cheaper. Will this usher a world of plentiful...
7 months ago
30
7 months ago
Desalination is finally cheap, and it’s only getting cheaper. Will this usher a world of plentiful water everywhere? Will we be able to build in the Sahara?
Probably...
Confidence In the Press This is the fifth in a series of excerpts from Elements of Data Science, now available from Lulu.com...
5 months ago
13
5 months ago
This is the fifth in a series of excerpts from Elements of Data Science, now available from Lulu.com and online booksellers. It’s based on Chapter 16, which is part of the political alignment case study. You can read the complete example here, or run the Jupyter notebook on...
Quanta Magazine
JWST Spots Giant Black Holes All Over the Early Universe Giant black holes were supposed to be bit players in the early cosmic story. But recent James Webb...
a year ago
40
a year ago
Giant black holes were supposed to be bit players in the early cosmic story. But recent James Webb Space Telescope observations are finding an unexpected abundance of the beasts. The post JWST Spots Giant Black Holes All Over the Early Universe first appeared on...
NeuroLogica Blog
Betavoltaic Batteries In 1964 Isaac Asimov, asked to imagine the world 50 years in the future, wrote: “The appliances of...
a year ago
33
a year ago
In 1964 Isaac Asimov, asked to imagine the world 50 years in the future, wrote: “The appliances of 2014 will have no electric cords, of course, for they will be powered by long- lived batteries running on radioisotopes. The isotopes will not be expensive for they will be by-...
NeuroLogica Blog
Anxiety Biomarkers Psychiatry, psychology, and all aspects of mental health are a challenging area because the clinical...
over a year ago
47
over a year ago
Psychiatry, psychology, and all aspects of mental health are a challenging area because the clinical entities we are dealing with are complex and mostly subjective. Diagnoses are perhaps best understood as clinical constructs – a way of identifying and understanding a mental...
Damn Interesting
This is Dang Interesting Happy New Year! This has nothing to do with the new year. We at this website know, reluctantly, that...
over a year ago
30
over a year ago
Happy New Year! This has nothing to do with the new year. We at this website know, reluctantly, that “d*mn” is not always a welcome word. Additionally, we are aware that we have a few articles sporting even saltier vocabularies (settle down, Colonel Sanders!). Countless school...
Drew Ex Machina
The Promise of MIDAS: The First Experimental Early Warning Satellites Today in the United States we almost take for granted the military’s ability to detect missile...
a year ago
45
a year ago
Today in the United States we almost take for granted the military’s ability to detect missile launches anywhere on the planet and quickly determine whether it […]
Quanta Magazine
Mathematicians Uncover a New Way to Count Prime Numbers To make progress on one of number theory’s most elementary questions, two mathematicians turned to...
6 months ago
92
6 months ago
To make progress on one of number theory’s most elementary questions, two mathematicians turned to an unlikely source. The post Mathematicians Uncover a New Way to Count Prime Numbers first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Yale e360
Severe Cold Spells May Persist Because of Warming, Not in Spite of It Huge swaths of North America are facing subfreezing temperatures this week as cold Arctic air pushes...
5 months ago
1
5 months ago
Huge swaths of North America are facing subfreezing temperatures this week as cold Arctic air pushes southward. Paradoxically, such cold spells may persist or even become more common as the planet warms, scientists say. Read more on E360 →
Cremieux Recueil
2024 SAT Data Drop The College Board has just released the latest SAT data. Here's a review.
9 months ago
NeuroLogica Blog
The Science of Gift Giving There is a lot of social psychology out there providing information that can inform our everyday...
a year ago
18
a year ago
There is a lot of social psychology out there providing information that can inform our everyday lives, and most people are completely unaware of the research. Richard Wiseman makes this point in his book, 59 Seconds – we actually have useful scientific information, and yet we...
The Works in...
Rust never sleeps A new section from Stewart Brand's Maintenance on Books in Progress
a year ago
Yale e360
How Herbicide Drift from Farms Is Harming Trees in Midwest Researchers are starting to pay closer attention to the widespread damage wrought by agricultural...
2 months ago
6
2 months ago
Researchers are starting to pay closer attention to the widespread damage wrought by agricultural herbicides. Drifting sprays may not kill trees, shrubs, and other nontarget plants outright, but experts believe they are making them vulnerable to insects, fungi, and disease. Read...
Asterisk
How Not To Predict The Future Good forecasting thrives on a delicate balance of math, expertise, and…vibes.
a year ago
Uncharted...
100,000 Gifts What happened in 2024 and what will happen in 2025
6 months ago
Tikalon Blog by Dev...
Quantum Year 2025 Children decide early in life to become scientists when they find that topics such as the...
10 months ago
19
10 months ago
Children decide early in life to become scientists when they find that topics such as the Pythagorean theorem and the hydrological cycle are more interesting and more important than knowing which state is noted for corn. My childhood was notable for witnessing the launch of the...
NeuroLogica Blog
Evidence and the Nanny State One side benefit of our federalist system is that the US essentially has 50 experiments in...
a year ago
35
a year ago
One side benefit of our federalist system is that the US essentially has 50 experiments in democracy. States hold a lot of power, which provides an opportunity to compare the effects of different public policies. There are lots of other variables at play, such as economics, rural...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
"AI sucks", Quantifying EMR burden, and Loneliness | Out-Of-Pocket 3 interesting papers I like
a year ago
Quanta Magazine
It Might Be Possible to Detect Gravitons After All A new experimental proposal suggests detecting a particle of gravity is far easier than anyone...
8 months ago
58
8 months ago
A new experimental proposal suggests detecting a particle of gravity is far easier than anyone imagined. Now physicists are debating what it would really prove. The post It Might Be Possible to Detect Gravitons After All first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Yale e360
Push to Rewild in Wealthy Countries Fueling Destruction in Poorer Ones A new study details how, as wealthy countries rewild farmland, they are driving the destruction of...
4 months ago
1
4 months ago
A new study details how, as wealthy countries rewild farmland, they are driving the destruction of forests in poorer countries that are more abundant in wildlife. Read more on E360 →
IEEE Spectrum
Why L. Ron Hubbard Patented His E-Meter zombie mysteries, historical fiction, pirate adventure tales, and westerns. science fiction. The...
a year ago
127
a year ago
zombie mysteries, historical fiction, pirate adventure tales, and westerns. science fiction. The publishers of Astounding Science Fiction approached Hubbard to write stories that focused on people, rather than robots and machines. His first story, “The Dangerous Dimension,” was...
Breck's Blog
Information is the Easiest Job
2 months ago
Quantum Frontiers
The power of awe Mid-afternoon, one Saturday late in September, I forgot where I was. I forgot that I was visiting...
a year ago
37
a year ago
Mid-afternoon, one Saturday late in September, I forgot where I was. I forgot that I was visiting Seattle for the second time; I forgot that I’d just finished co-organizing a workshop partially about nuclear physics for the first time. I’d … Continue reading →
Eukaryote Writes...
Eukaryote in Asterisk Magazine + New Patreon Per-post setup Eukaryote elsewhere I have an article in the latest issue of Asterisk Magazine. After you get really...
over a year ago
86
over a year ago
Eukaryote elsewhere I have an article in the latest issue of Asterisk Magazine. After you get really deep into the weeds of invertebrate sentience and fish welfare and the scale of factory farming, what do you do with that information vis-a-vis what you feel comfortable eating?...
NeuroLogica Blog
Ghosts Are Not Real It’s Halloween, so there are a lot of fluff pieces about ghosts and similar phenomena circulating in...
a year ago
36
a year ago
It’s Halloween, so there are a lot of fluff pieces about ghosts and similar phenomena circulating in the media. There are some good skeptical pieces as well, which is always nice to see. For this piece I did not want to frame the headline as a question, which I think is...
Uncharted...
16 Most Surprising Facts About Korea As I research the country, these are the most interesting and surprising facts I gathered—and some...
2 months ago
38
2 months ago
As I research the country, these are the most interesting and surprising facts I gathered—and some beautiful images along the way.
Uncharted...
The Top 50 US Cities: Why Are They Where They Are? The geographic and historical reasons that have made some spots in the country the most populated...
5 months ago
Quanta Magazine
New Breakthrough Brings Matrix Multiplication Closer to Ideal By eliminating a hidden inefficiency, computer scientists have come up with a new way to multiply...
a year ago
71
a year ago
By eliminating a hidden inefficiency, computer scientists have come up with a new way to multiply large matrices that’s faster than ever. The post New Breakthrough Brings Matrix Multiplication Closer to Ideal first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Asterisk
How to Make a Great Government Website Do lots of user research, travel to every county in California, iterate constantly, and troubleshoot...
a year ago
14
a year ago
Do lots of user research, travel to every county in California, iterate constantly, and troubleshoot on Reddit. And maybe take Political Economy of Industrial Societies 100.
Yale e360
Facing High Tariffs in U.S., Chinese Solar Flows to Poorer Countries Facing high tariffs in the U.S. and Europe, Chinese solar and battery companies have been selling a...
2 months ago
7
2 months ago
Facing high tariffs in the U.S. and Europe, Chinese solar and battery companies have been selling a growing share of their products to poorer countries, a new analysis finds. Read more on E360 →
Yale e360
Entries Invited for Yale Environment 360 Film Contest The 12th annual Yale Environment 360 Film Contest is now accepting entries. Read more on E360 →
2 months ago
Eukaryote Writes...
Who invented knitting? The plot thickens Last time on Eukaryote Writes Blog: You learned about knitting history. You thought you were done...
over a year ago
44
over a year ago
Last time on Eukaryote Writes Blog: You learned about knitting history. You thought you were done learning about knitting history? You fool. You buffoon. I wanted to double check some things in the last post and found out that the origins of knitting are even weirder than I...
NeuroLogica Blog
What Policies Affect Climate Change? What is the potential for climate change policy to affect climate change? I often discuss, here and...
a year ago
27
a year ago
What is the potential for climate change policy to affect climate change? I often discuss, here and on the SGU, the science of climate change, and specifically focus on what we can do about it, mostly by reducing our CO2 emissions. Often I get push back explicitly promoting the...
The Roots of...
Why you, personally, should want a larger human population What is the ideal size of the human population? One common answer is “much smaller.” Paul Ehrlich,...
a year ago
56
a year ago
What is the ideal size of the human population? One common answer is “much smaller.” Paul Ehrlich, co-author of The Population Bomb (1968), has as recently as 2018 promoted the idea that “the world’s optimum population is less than two billion people,” a reduction of the current...
Quanta Magazine
How Metabolism Can Shape Cells’ Destinies A growing body of work suggests that cell metabolism — the chemical reactions that provide energy...
3 months ago
25
3 months ago
A growing body of work suggests that cell metabolism — the chemical reactions that provide energy and building materials — plays a vital, overlooked role in the first steps of life. The post How Metabolism Can Shape Cells’ Destinies first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Yale e360
Endangered Eels a Top Target for Traffickers in Europe Endangered eels are a top target for wildlife traffickers in Europe and generating billions in...
a week ago
6
a week ago
Endangered eels are a top target for wildlife traffickers in Europe and generating billions in profits for smugglers globally, according to two new reports. Read more on E360 →
Yale e360
A Win for Farmers and Tribes Brings New Hope to the Klamath In the long-contentious Klamath River watershed, an experiment that turned a barley field into a...
2 weeks ago
1
2 weeks ago
In the long-contentious Klamath River watershed, an experiment that turned a barley field into a wetland not only improved water quality. It also offered a path forward for restoring populations of two endangered fish species that are of cultural importance to Native tribes. Read...
Quantum Frontiers
Ten lessons I learned from John Preskill Last August, Toronto’s Centre for Quantum Information and Quantum Control (CQIQC) gave me 35 minutes...
5 months ago
63
5 months ago
Last August, Toronto’s Centre for Quantum Information and Quantum Control (CQIQC) gave me 35 minutes to make fun of John Preskill in public. CQIQC was hosting its biannual conference, also called CQIQC, in Toronto. The conference features the awarding of … Continue reading →
Quantum Frontiers
The Noncommuting-Charges World Tour (Part 1 of 4) Introduction: “Once Upon a Time”…with a twist Thermodynamics problems have surprisingly many...
a year ago
55
a year ago
Introduction: “Once Upon a Time”…with a twist Thermodynamics problems have surprisingly many similarities with fairy tales. For example, most of them begin with a familiar opening. In thermodynamics, the phrase “Consider an isolated box of particles” serves a similar purpose …...
Quanta Magazine
Andreas Wagner Pursues the Secrets to Evolutionary Success Why did mammals, grasses and some other groups of organisms explode in diversity only after millions...
a year ago
18
a year ago
Why did mammals, grasses and some other groups of organisms explode in diversity only after millions of years? The evolutionary biologist Andreas Wagner plumbs the secrets of those “sleeping beauties.” The post Andreas Wagner Pursues the Secrets to Evolutionary...
Yale e360
As U.S. Scientists Look Abroad, China Aims to Lure Top Talent Chinese locales are looking to lure top scientific talent from overseas by offering lavish sums for...
2 weeks ago
1
2 weeks ago
Chinese locales are looking to lure top scientific talent from overseas by offering lavish sums for resettling, as well as housing, health care, and other perks. The moves come as the Trump administration cuts funding for science and works to expel Chinese students. Read more on...
Drew Ex Machina
The Hurricane Hunter Satellites: A Weather Nanosatellite Constellation As part of ongoing outreach efforts by Tropical Weather Analytics (TWA) to the meteorological...
2 months ago
28
2 months ago
As part of ongoing outreach efforts by Tropical Weather Analytics (TWA) to the meteorological community, TWA’s Chief Scientist, Andrew LePage, attended the National Tropical Weather Conference […]
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Let’s Talk About Obesity Drugs | Out-Of-Pocket we're entering a new era for these treatments
a year ago
NeuroLogica Blog
RFK Jr., Joe Rogan, and Vaccines RFK Jr., who is now running for the Democratic presidential nomination, is anti-vaccine. He will...
over a year ago
37
over a year ago
RFK Jr., who is now running for the Democratic presidential nomination, is anti-vaccine. He will vehemently deny this, but I don’t buy it for a second. He is simply playing the, “I’m not anti-vaccine, I am pro-safe vaccine” gambit, which is disingenuous and always has been. We...
NeuroLogica Blog
For Movies – Animals Don’t Sound Real Enough What does a majestic eagle sound like, or the hoot of a spider monkey, or the roar of a bear? Unless...
a year ago
24
a year ago
What does a majestic eagle sound like, or the hoot of a spider monkey, or the roar of a bear? Unless you have an interest in movie tropes, or listen regularly to the SGU, you may have a complete misconception about the sounds these and many other animals make. Eagles, for...
The Works in...
New podcasts: Hard Drugs and the Works in Progress Podcast The miracle drug that could end AIDS. Plus: the Great Downzoning, coming soon.
2 weeks ago
Out-of-Pocket Blog
The Ro Breakdown | Out-Of-Pocket The idea of “goal oriented care” and the big questions around direct-to-patient care
a year ago
Bartosz Ciechanowski
Bicycle There is something delightful about riding a bicycle. Once mastered, the simple action of pedaling...
over a year ago
141
over a year ago
There is something delightful about riding a bicycle. Once mastered, the simple action of pedaling to move forward and turning the handlebars to steer makes bike riding an effortless activity. In the demonstration below, you can guide the rider with the slider, and you can also...
Light from Space
Elephant Trunk & IC 1396 A beautiful nebula in Cepheus. The middle bottom left of the image shows the “Elephant Trunk”,  but...
over a year ago
42
over a year ago
A beautiful nebula in Cepheus. The middle bottom left of the image shows the “Elephant Trunk”,  but the whole nebula IC 1396 shows much impressive detail. A whole layer of dark nebulas overlaps everything, looking like a giant explosion frozen in time. Total exposure time: 18h...
NeuroLogica Blog
Some Future Tech Possibilities It’s difficult to pick winners and losers in the future tech game. In reality you just have to see...
a year ago
37
a year ago
It’s difficult to pick winners and losers in the future tech game. In reality you just have to see what happens when you try out a new technology in the real world with actual people. Many technologies that look good on paper run into logistical problems, difficulty scaling, fall...
NeuroLogica Blog
The Potential of AI + CRISPR In my book, which I will now shamelessly promote – The Skeptics’ Guide to the Future – my coauthors...
9 months ago
85
9 months ago
In my book, which I will now shamelessly promote – The Skeptics’ Guide to the Future – my coauthors and I discuss the incredible potential of information-based technologies. As we increasingly transition to digital technology, we can leverage the increasing power of computer...
Asterisk
Moving Past Environmental Proceduralism The foundations of modern environmental legislation were laid in the early ‘70s. Some of these laws...
a year ago
17
a year ago
The foundations of modern environmental legislation were laid in the early ‘70s. Some of these laws helped fix the ozone layer, clean up DDT, and fight lead pollution — while others are delaying the necessary transition to green energy. If the activists of fifty years ago had...
Tikalon Blog by Dev...
Ice Formation In today's bigger is better world, you don't order a large coffee, you order a 20 fluid ounce Venti...
10 months ago
20
10 months ago
In today's bigger is better world, you don't order a large coffee, you order a 20 fluid ounce Venti coffee. From 1987 through 2004, McDonald's restaurants had a supersize option for larger than large portions of its French fries and soft drinks. The prefix, super, has been used...
NeuroLogica Blog
AI – Is It Time to Panic? I’m really excited about the recent developments in artificial intelligence (AI) and their potential...
over a year ago
45
over a year ago
I’m really excited about the recent developments in artificial intelligence (AI) and their potential as powerful tools. I am also concerned about unintended consequences. As with any really powerful tool, there is the potential for abuse and also disruption. But I also think that...
NeuroLogica Blog
The Lunar Cycle and Suicide Does the lunar cycle affect human behavior? This seems to be a question that refuses to die, no...
over a year ago
98
over a year ago
Does the lunar cycle affect human behavior? This seems to be a question that refuses to die, no matter how hard it is to confirm any actual effect. It’s now a cultural idea, deeply embedded and not going anywhere. A recent study, however, seems to show a correlation between...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
SWORD Health And Virtual Musculoskeletal Care | Out-Of-Pocket A first person account
a year ago
Quanta Magazine
Physicists Create Elusive Particles That Remember Their Pasts In two landmark experiments, researchers used quantum processors to engineer exotic particles that...
over a year ago
89
over a year ago
In two landmark experiments, researchers used quantum processors to engineer exotic particles that have captivated physicists for decades. The work is a step toward crash-proof quantum computers. The post Physicists Create Elusive Particles That Remember Their Pasts...
Chris Grossack's...
Some Doodles I'm Proud of -- The Capping Algorithm for Embedded Graphs This will be a really quick one! Over the last two weeks I’ve been finishing up a big project to...
3 months ago
24
3 months ago
This will be a really quick one! Over the last two weeks I’ve been finishing up a big project to make DOIs for all the papers published in TAC, and my code takes a while to run. So while testing I would hit “go” and have like 10 minutes to kill… which means it’s time to start...
Yale e360
Microplastics Block Blood Flow in Brains of Mice A new study finds microplastics can block the flow of blood in the brains of mice. The study comes...
5 months ago
4
5 months ago
A new study finds microplastics can block the flow of blood in the brains of mice. The study comes on the heels of other research showing, for the first time, that microplastics can lodge in human brains. Read more on E360 →
Asterisk
Get In, Weirdos
6 months ago
Casey Handmer's blog
Stuff you should have been taught in college but weren’t As part of my job running Terraform Industries, I get to build an amazing team of super smart...
4 months ago
58
4 months ago
As part of my job running Terraform Industries, I get to build an amazing team of super smart people, and that involves interviewing hundreds of people. Over time certain patterns have become obvious, but I remember when they weren’t obvious to me on the other side of the table!...
Probably...
What’s a Chartist? Recently I heard the word “chartist” for the first time in my life (that I recall). And then later...
7 months ago
7
7 months ago
Recently I heard the word “chartist” for the first time in my life (that I recall). And then later the same day, I heard it again. So that raises two questions: To answer the second question first, it’s someone who supported chartism, which was “a working-class movement for...
Beautiful Public...
Nuclear Weapon Test Films Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories has an archive of an estimated 10,000 films of nuclear...
a year ago
56
a year ago
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories has an archive of an estimated 10,000 films of nuclear weapons tests from the 1940's - 1960's.
Quanta Magazine
The Two Faces of Space-Time A mysterious phenomenon known as duality often leads to new discoveries in physics. This time,...
9 months ago
63
9 months ago
A mysterious phenomenon known as duality often leads to new discoveries in physics. This time, space-time itself can sometimes be two things at once. The post The Two Faces of Space-Time first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Blog - Practical...
Why Some Roadways Are Made of Styrofoam [Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.] If you’ve ever driven or...
over a year ago
47
over a year ago
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.] If you’ve ever driven or ridden in an automobile, there’s a near 100% chance you’ve hit a bump in the road as you transition onto or off of a bridge. In fact, some studies estimate that it happens on a quarter...
Marine Madness
Book Club: ‘Sea People: The Puzzle of Polynesia’ by Christina Thompson Who first settled the islands of the remote Pacific? Where did they come from? How did they get...
over a year ago
52
over a year ago
Who first settled the islands of the remote Pacific? Where did they come from? How did they get there, and how do we know? The answers to these and more questions are all explored in this mesmerizing novel by Pacific historian Christina Thompson.  For over a millennium,...
NeuroLogica Blog
RFK Jr.’s Attack on Vaccines RFK Jr. is an anti-vaxxer. He will protest that, but it’s a dodge. He basically lied (and it was...
4 days ago
5
4 days ago
RFK Jr. is an anti-vaxxer. He will protest that, but it’s a dodge. He basically lied (and it was quite transparent) to the senate confirmation committee, and I think Cassidy and others knew full well what they were getting when they approved him as HHS secretary. Those of us who...
Drew Ex Machina
Venera 8: The First Characterization of the Surface of Venus Recent years has seen a marked increase in the planetary community’s interest in Venus after decades...
over a year ago
53
over a year ago
Recent years has seen a marked increase in the planetary community’s interest in Venus after decades of near-neglect. Part of this renewed interest is to understand […]
Out-of-Pocket Blog
The New Price Transparency Laws And Turquoise Health | Out-Of-Pocket Are we actually moving to a healthcare shopping experience?
a year ago
Yale e360
Peatland Algae to Soak Up More Carbon as Planet Warms New research finds that microalgae in northern peat bogs will absorb more carbon dioxide as the...
3 months ago
3
3 months ago
New research finds that microalgae in northern peat bogs will absorb more carbon dioxide as the planet warms, helping to take a bite out of emissions. Read more on E360 →
IEEE Spectrum
How Engineers at Digital Equipment Corp. Saved Ethernet I’ve enjoyed reading magazine articles about Ethernet’s 50th anniversary, including one in the The...
a year ago
96
a year ago
I’ve enjoyed reading magazine articles about Ethernet’s 50th anniversary, including one in the The Institute. Invented by computer scientists Robert Metcalfe and David Boggs, Ethernet has been extraordinarily impactful. Metcalfe, an IEEE Fellow, received the 1996 IEEE Medal of...
Uncharted...
Reaction to Your Comments on German Elections Election results, german nuclear, slower maps, and more
4 months ago
Quantum Frontiers
The rain in Portugal My husband taught me how to pronounce the name of the city where I’d be presenting a talk late last...
a year ago
98
a year ago
My husband taught me how to pronounce the name of the city where I’d be presenting a talk late last July: Aveiro, Portugal. Having studied Spanish, I pronounced the name as Ah-VEH-roh, with a v partway to a hard b. … Continue reading →
Yale e360
Planned EV Battery Plant Threatens Uncontacted Tribe in Indonesia A planned EV battery factory in Indonesia poses a grave threat to an uncontacted tribe, a watchdog...
4 days ago
5
4 days ago
A planned EV battery factory in Indonesia poses a grave threat to an uncontacted tribe, a watchdog warns. Read more on E360 →
Yale e360
Deconstructing Buildings: The Quest for New Life for Old Wood A growing number of cities have launched initiatives to reuse the wood waste from construction and...
2 weeks ago
1
2 weeks ago
A growing number of cities have launched initiatives to reuse the wood waste from construction and demolition that now ends up in landfills. The challenge, proponents say, is to deploy new techniques for disassembling old buildings and markets for repurposing the salvaged...
brr
South Pole Topography The relentless accumulation (and management) of snow.
over a year ago
Casey Handmer's blog
Part 7 Senzeni Na Part of the Mars Trilogy Technical Commentary Series. Contains spoilers for this chapter and earlier...
6 months ago
70
6 months ago
Part of the Mars Trilogy Technical Commentary Series. Contains spoilers for this chapter and earlier chapters. Google Mars .kml. Literary commentary podcast. [Edit: If you enjoy this kind of thing, you may find a career at my company, Terraform Industries, rewarding. We’re hiring...
Quanta Magazine
Why Mathematicians Re-Prove What They Already Know It’s been known for thousands of years that the primes go on forever, but new proofs give fresh...
over a year ago
57
over a year ago
It’s been known for thousands of years that the primes go on forever, but new proofs give fresh insights into how theorems depend on one another. The post Why Mathematicians Re-Prove What They Already Know first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Transforming Healthcare Data with Tuva Health | Out-Of-Pocket The nitty, gritty, and shitty of working with health data
a year ago
Drew Ex Machina
Top Ten Posts of 2024 Now that we are at the end of 2024, it is time to look back at this year’s material published on...
6 months ago
71
6 months ago
Now that we are at the end of 2024, it is time to look back at this year’s material published on Drew Ex Machina and see […]
Drew Ex Machina
First Pictures: Color View of the Earth & A Tropical Depression from Space – October 5, 1954 While today we are inundated with color images of the Earth, our earliest views from space were...
8 months ago
71
8 months ago
While today we are inundated with color images of the Earth, our earliest views from space were confined to monochromatic or black and white images (see […]
Yale e360
A Craze for Tiny Plants Is Driving a Poaching Crisis in South Africa South Africa’s Succulent Karoo is the most biodiverse arid region on the planet, with thousands of...
3 months ago
1
3 months ago
South Africa’s Succulent Karoo is the most biodiverse arid region on the planet, with thousands of plants found nowhere else. But to meet a demand fueled by social media, criminal networks have been poaching these colorful succulents by the millions and smuggling them...
Yale e360
Despite Ukraine War, Europe Imported Even More Russian Gas Last Year The EU is getting further from its goal of weaning off Russian fossil fuels by 2027. Imports of...
3 months ago
1
3 months ago
The EU is getting further from its goal of weaning off Russian fossil fuels by 2027. Imports of Russian gas rose by 18 percent last year, a new analysis finds. Read more on E360 →
Quanta Magazine
The Mysterious Flow of Fluid in the Brain A popular hypothesis for how the brain clears molecular waste, which may help explain why sleep...
3 months ago
38
3 months ago
A popular hypothesis for how the brain clears molecular waste, which may help explain why sleep feels refreshing, is a subject of debate. The post The Mysterious Flow of Fluid in the Brain first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Yale e360
U.S. Wind and Solar Overtake Coal Power In a first, the U.S. saw wind and solar supply more power than coal last year, according to a new...
5 months ago
1
5 months ago
In a first, the U.S. saw wind and solar supply more power than coal last year, according to a new analysis. But even as renewables made gains, U.S. emissions stayed flat owing to rising demand for energy. Read more on E360 →
Bartosz Ciechanowski
Moon In the vastness of empty space surrounding Earth, the Moon is our closest celestial...
6 months ago
72
6 months ago
In the vastness of empty space surrounding Earth, the Moon is our closest celestial neighbor. Its face, periodically filled with light and devoured by darkness, has an ever-changing, but dependable presence in our skies. In this article, we’ll learn about the Moon and its path...
Asterisk
Cows vs. Chemists: The Health Debates Over Plant-Based Meat Everyone wants to know if plant-based meats are good for you. Despite what you might read, no one...
over a year ago
17
over a year ago
Everyone wants to know if plant-based meats are good for you. Despite what you might read, no one has a definitive answer.
Yale e360
The Year in Energy in Four Charts The global energy sector defied expectations this year, in ways both good and bad for the climate....
6 months ago
1
6 months ago
The global energy sector defied expectations this year, in ways both good and bad for the climate. Four charts highlight key trends in the transition to clean energy. Read more on E360 →
The Works in...
Pieces we would like to commission Write for Works in Progress
2 months ago
Eukaryote Writes...
Learn to write well BEFORE you have something worth saying Lessons learned from trip reports and journal articles.
6 months ago
Quanta Magazine
New Elliptic Curve Breaks 18-Year-Old Record Two mathematicians have renewed a debate about the fundamental nature of some of math’s most...
7 months ago
71
7 months ago
Two mathematicians have renewed a debate about the fundamental nature of some of math’s most important equations. The post New Elliptic Curve Breaks 18-Year-Old Record first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Quantum Frontiers
Lessons in frustration Assa Auerbach’s course was the most maddening course I’ve ever taken.  I was a master’s student in...
4 months ago
35
4 months ago
Assa Auerbach’s course was the most maddening course I’ve ever taken.  I was a master’s student in the Perimeter Scholars International program at the Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics. Perimeter trotted in world experts to lecture about modern physics. Many … Continue...
The Works in...
New York’s long road to congestion pricing The decades of work that went into getting the policy very, very close to the finish line
10 months ago
IEEE Spectrum
What It Takes To Let People Play With the Past Media Archaeology Lab is one of the largest public collections in the world of obsolete, yet...
9 months ago
79
9 months ago
Media Archaeology Lab is one of the largest public collections in the world of obsolete, yet functional, technology. Located on the University of Colorado Boulder campus, the MAL is where you can watch a magic lantern show, play Star Castle on a Vectrex games console, or check...
Yale e360
How a Former Herder Protected Mongolia's Vast Grasslands Batmunkh Luvsandash has fought to protect more than a million acres of steppe lands in his native...
2 months ago
7
2 months ago
Batmunkh Luvsandash has fought to protect more than a million acres of steppe lands in his native Mongolia. In an interview with Yale Environment 360, he explains how, by drawing on the knowledge of local herders, he was able to take on the powerful mining industry and win. Read...
Blog - Practical...
What’s the Deal with Base Plates? [Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.] A lot of engineering focuses...
6 months ago
106
6 months ago
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.] A lot of engineering focuses on structural members. How wide is this beam? How tall is this column? But some of the most important engineering decisions are in how to connect those members together. Take a...
Quanta Magazine
Swirling Forces, Crushing Pressures Measured in the Proton Long-anticipated experiments that use light to mimic gravity are revealing the distribution of...
a year ago
63
a year ago
Long-anticipated experiments that use light to mimic gravity are revealing the distribution of energies, forces and pressures inside a subatomic particle for the first time. The post Swirling Forces, Crushing Pressures Measured in the Proton first appeared on Quanta...
Yale e360
Out of the Wild: How A.I. Is Transforming Conservation Science Artificial intelligence is being called a game changer for enabling scientists and conservationists...
a month ago
5
a month ago
Artificial intelligence is being called a game changer for enabling scientists and conservationists to process vast troves of data collected remotely. But some warn its use could keep biologists from getting out in the field with the animals and ecosystems they are studying. Read...
Quanta Magazine
Plants Find Light Using Gaps Between Their Cells A mutant seedling revealed how plant tissues scatter incoming light, allowing plants to sense its...
a year ago
33
a year ago
A mutant seedling revealed how plant tissues scatter incoming light, allowing plants to sense its direction and move toward it. The post Plants Find Light Using Gaps Between Their Cells first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Quanta Magazine
The Computing Pioneer Helping AI See Alexei Efros has spent his career learning how machines see differently from humans. Now he’s...
a year ago
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a year ago
Alexei Efros has spent his career learning how machines see differently from humans. Now he’s helping to bridge the gap. The post The Computing Pioneer Helping AI See first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Out-of-Pocket Blog
What does Innovaccer actually do? A look under the hood | Out-Of-Pocket A conversation about EHRs, who their customers actually are, and building apps
3 weeks ago
Quanta Magazine
Pierre de Fermat’s Link to a High School Student’s Prime Math Proof How Fermat’s less famous ‘little theorem’ got mathematicians young and old to play with prime-like...
a year ago
46
a year ago
How Fermat’s less famous ‘little theorem’ got mathematicians young and old to play with prime-like Carmichael numbers. The post Pierre de Fermat’s Link to a High School Student’s Prime Math Proof first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Quanta Magazine
Matter vs. Force: Why There Are Exactly Two Types of Particles Every elementary particle falls into one of two categories. Collectivist bosons account for the...
a week ago
7
a week ago
Every elementary particle falls into one of two categories. Collectivist bosons account for the forces that move us while individualist fermions keep our atoms from collapsing. The post Matter vs. Force: Why There Are Exactly Two Types of Particles first appeared on...
Yale e360
Renewables Supplied Two-Thirds of Germany's Power Last Year Germany, the largest economy in Europe, got nearly two-thirds of its power from renewables last...
5 months ago
3
5 months ago
Germany, the largest economy in Europe, got nearly two-thirds of its power from renewables last year, an analysis shows. Read more on E360 →
Casey Handmer's blog
Maximizing electrical power output from a nuclear reactor delivered by Starship to a base on Mars This post is a follow on from Powering the Mars Base. It’s an extended riff on the following thought...
4 months ago
38
4 months ago
This post is a follow on from Powering the Mars Base. It’s an extended riff on the following thought experiment: What is the most electrical power you could extract from an integrated Starship-delivered nuclear reactor on Mars? The usual caveats apply. I have taught nuclear...
Quantum Frontiers
My experimental adventures in quantum thermodynamics Imagine a billiard ball bouncing around on a pool table. High-school level physics enables us to...
a year ago
109
a year ago
Imagine a billiard ball bouncing around on a pool table. High-school level physics enables us to predict its motion until the end of time using simple equations for energy and momentum conservation, as long as you know the initial conditions … Continue reading →
symmetry magazine
A different way of thinking Neurodivergent physicists face barriers in STEM, but there are also benefits to being who they are.
over a year ago
pcloadletter
Somewhere along the way we forgot about software craftsmanship "Ship it!" "We're agile now, baby. Move fast and break things!"" "We measure our engineers by the...
a year ago
36
a year ago
"Ship it!" "We're agile now, baby. Move fast and break things!"" "We measure our engineers by the impact they have!" Somewhere along the way, in the midst of the agilification of software, or the software engineer salary gold rush, we forgot about craftsmanship. I have been in...
IEEE Spectrum
The Pioneer Behind Electromagnetism Without an understanding of the fundamental relationship between electricity and magnetism, it would...
a year ago
38
a year ago
Without an understanding of the fundamental relationship between electricity and magnetism, it would not have been possible to invent motors, telecommunications equipment, kitchen appliances and more. A key part of our understanding of that relationship, known as classical...
Explorations of an...
A Month In Northern Peru, Part 17: White-sand Birding At RN Allpahuayo-Mishana and Muyuna Lodge... February 24, 2024 Just outside of the city of Iquitos lies an expansive area containing white-sand...
3 months ago
29
3 months ago
February 24, 2024 Just outside of the city of Iquitos lies an expansive area containing white-sand forest. The particular forest types that grow on white sand are somewhat uncommon in the Amazon, yet the stunted tree growth provides quite the contrast to "typical" Amazonian...
NeuroLogica Blog
Giant Eels, Loch Ness, and Probability At this point it is pretty clear that the Loch Ness Monster (Nessie) does not exist. I know,...
a year ago
20
a year ago
At this point it is pretty clear that the Loch Ness Monster (Nessie) does not exist. I know, logically it is impossible to prove a negative, so if we want to be technical we can say that the probability of a large creature similar to that believed to be Nessie approaches zero....
Quanta Magazine
To Move Fast, Quantum Maze Solvers Must Forget the Past Quantum algorithms can find their way out of mazes exponentially faster than classical ones, at the...
a year ago
18
a year ago
Quantum algorithms can find their way out of mazes exponentially faster than classical ones, at the cost of forgetting the path they took. A new result suggests that the trade-off may be inevitable. The post To Move Fast, Quantum Maze Solvers Must Forget the Past...
Quanta Magazine
The Colorful Problem That Has Long Frustrated Mathematicians The four-color problem is simple to explain, but its complex proof continues to be both celebrated...
over a year ago
75
over a year ago
The four-color problem is simple to explain, but its complex proof continues to be both celebrated and despised. The post The Colorful Problem That Has Long Frustrated Mathematicians first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Cremieux Recueil
Eliminating Distractions in Longevity Research Longevity maximizers should invest in biotechnology, not modifiable lifestyle factors
8 months ago
The Roots of...
What is progress? In one sense, the concept of progress is simple, straightforward, and uncontroversial. In another...
a year ago
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a year ago
In one sense, the concept of progress is simple, straightforward, and uncontroversial. In another sense, it contains an entire worldview. The most basic meaning of “progress” is simply advancement along a path, or more generally from one state to another that is considered more...
Quanta Magazine
What a Contest of Consciousness Theories Really Proved A five-year “adversarial collaboration” of consciousness theorists led to a stagy showdown in front...
a year ago
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a year ago
A five-year “adversarial collaboration” of consciousness theorists led to a stagy showdown in front of an audience. It crowned no winners — but it can still claim progress. The post What a Contest of Consciousness Theories Really Proved first appeared on Quanta...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
The New Wave of Concierge Medicine | Out-Of-Pocket This episode of Out-Of-Pocket is brought to you by…
11 months ago
Quanta Magazine
How Our Longest Nerve Orchestrates the Mind-Body Connection Like a highway system, the vagus nerve branches profusely from your brain through your organs to...
10 months ago
119
10 months ago
Like a highway system, the vagus nerve branches profusely from your brain through your organs to marshal bodily functions, including aspects of mind such as mood, pleasure and fear. The post How Our Longest Nerve Orchestrates the Mind-Body Connection first appeared on...
NeuroLogica Blog
AI Copilots Are Coming I’m going to do something I rarely do and make a straight-up prediction – I think we are close to...
8 months ago
70
8 months ago
I’m going to do something I rarely do and make a straight-up prediction – I think we are close to having AI apps that will function as our all-purpose digital assistants. That’s not really a tough call, we already have digital assistants and they are progressing rapidly. So I am...
NeuroLogica Blog
Being Trans Is Not A Mental Illness On the current episode of the SGU, because it is pride month, we expressed our general support for...
over a year ago
78
over a year ago
On the current episode of the SGU, because it is pride month, we expressed our general support for the LGBTQ community. I also opined about how important it is to respect individual liberty, the freedom to simply live your authentic life as you choose, and how ironic it is that...
Yale e360
Warming Doubled the Odds of Record Fires in South Korea Warming fueled the hot, dry, windy weather that gave rise to a spate of record-breaking fires in...
a month ago
7
a month ago
Warming fueled the hot, dry, windy weather that gave rise to a spate of record-breaking fires in South Korea in March, an analysis finds. Read more on E360 →
Yale e360
Peruvian Farmer Sues German Energy Giant Over Its Role in Climate Change Hearings began Monday in a landmark climate case in Hamm, Germany, where a Peruvian farmer is suing...
3 months ago
5
3 months ago
Hearings began Monday in a landmark climate case in Hamm, Germany, where a Peruvian farmer is suing energy giant RWE over its role in warming. Read more on E360 →
Beautiful Public...
Mapping the Sea Floor USGS research vessels equipped with cameras, sonar and scanners created a map of 125 square miles of...
over a year ago
72
over a year ago
USGS research vessels equipped with cameras, sonar and scanners created a map of 125 square miles of the sea floor off Cape Ann, MA.
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Ways to give power to the patients | Out-Of-Pocket can software give us agency?
a year ago
Out-of-Pocket Blog
What Do Hospitals Care About? | Out-Of-Pocket Let’s look at three big priorities and a real hospital
4 months ago
Asterisk
Fracking Eyeballs How an alliance between psychologists and advertisers at the turn of the 20th century taught us how...
a year ago
14
a year ago
How an alliance between psychologists and advertisers at the turn of the 20th century taught us how to measure (and monetize) human attention.
The Roots of...
The Commission for Stopping Further Improvements On May 24, 1847, a bridge over the Dee River in Chester, England, collapsed. A passenger train...
over a year ago
41
over a year ago
On May 24, 1847, a bridge over the Dee River in Chester, England, collapsed. A passenger train plunged into the river; five people were killed and nine seriously injured. The subsequent investigation blamed the bridge’s cast iron girders. Cast iron, like concrete but unlike...
Light from Space
Andromeda: Our Galactic Neighbor Many things have been said about the Andromeda Galaxy, arguably the most majestic galaxy that...
9 months ago
73
9 months ago
Many things have been said about the Andromeda Galaxy, arguably the most majestic galaxy that amateur astronomers can image due to it's sheer size in the sky—many times larger than the Moon appears to us, but also many times dimmer. With the naked eye, even in
Yale e360
Wildlife Returns to Site of Devastating Southern California Wildfire Four months after the Eaton Fire tore through Altadena, California, wildlife is making a...
2 months ago
Asterisk
Why Is Everyone Suddenly Furious About AI Regulation? Please tell us, because we're stumped.
a year ago
SubAnima
Can Biology Be Reduced To Physics? "Physics is the most fundamental and all-inclusive of the sciences." Or is it?
over a year ago
NeuroLogica Blog
Problems with the Institute Of Noetic Sciences I was interviewed recently for a Daily Beast article on recent research involving the Institute of...
over a year ago
60
over a year ago
I was interviewed recently for a Daily Beast article on recent research involving the Institute of Noetic Sciences (IONS). Overall the article is very good, and author Maddie Bender was fair and reasonable in how I was quoted. I can’t always take that as a given. No matter how...
Quanta Magazine
What Happens in a Mind That Can’t ‘See’ Mental Images Neuroscience research into people with aphantasia, who don’t experience mental imagery, is revealing...
11 months ago
73
11 months ago
Neuroscience research into people with aphantasia, who don’t experience mental imagery, is revealing how imagination works and demonstrating the sweeping variety in our subjective experiences. The post What Happens in a Mind That Can’t ‘See’ Mental Images first...
The Works in...
The first non-opioid painkiller Journavx was approved this year. Why did it take so long to develop?
4 days ago
The Works in...
The future of silk Silk is stronger than steel or kevlar. What could it be used for?
2 months ago
Uncharted...
What Is Happening in Syria? Assad’s regime has fallen, leaving a power vacuum. Why? Who are the winners and losers? What will...
6 months ago
38
6 months ago
Assad’s regime has fallen, leaving a power vacuum. Why? Who are the winners and losers? What will happen next?
Yale e360
Uncertain Future for Clean Tech Boom Underway in Republican Strongholds Government support for clean energy has spurred new projects across the U.S., with more than 80...
4 months ago
1
4 months ago
Government support for clean energy has spurred new projects across the U.S., with more than 80 percent of the spending flowing to Republican districts. But since President Trump took office, new project announcements have seen a precipitous drop. Read more on E360 →
Wanderingspace
New View of IO from JUNO! From processor Ted Styrk, “The Juno Jupiter orbiter flew by Io, Jupiter's super-volcanic moon, on...
a year ago
81
a year ago
From processor Ted Styrk, “The Juno Jupiter orbiter flew by Io, Jupiter's super-volcanic moon, on May 16, returning arguably the best imagery of the moon since the Galileo Orbiter around the beginning of this century. Definitely the best since New Horizons in 2006.”
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Malpractice, Expert Witnesses, and Lawsuits with Dr. Eric Funk | Out-Of-Pocket Suits and White Coats
a year ago
Eukaryote Writes...
Eukaryote Skips Town – why I’m leaving DC I’m hesitant to write this piece because it’s directly about my EA ambitions, and I’ve talked to a...
3 months ago
27
3 months ago
I’m hesitant to write this piece because it’s directly about my EA ambitions, and I’ve talked to a lot of EAs trying to get into biosecurity who want advice, and I have no idea what they should take away from my story or if any of this should be taken as any kind of advice.
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Scaling Organizations, Patient Payments, and Collections with Lora Rosenblum | Out-Of-Pocket Why am I getting bills 6 months later, Lora pls help
a year ago
Many Worlds
Webb Telescope Finds No Signs of a Thick Atmosphere Around a Second TRAPPIST-1 Planet Among the most eagerly awaited results from the early observations of the James Webb Space Telescope...
over a year ago
25
over a year ago
Among the most eagerly awaited results from the early observations of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is whether or not the seven rocky planets of the TRAPPIST-1 system have atmospheres. The TRAPPIST-1 planets are close to us (40 light-years away), are all solid rather than...
The Works in...
The value of family Traditional values don't deliver babies
a year ago
symmetry magazine
Muon g-2 doubles down with latest measurement, explores uncharted territory Fermilab's Muon g-2 experiment brings particle physics closer to a showdown between theory and...
a year ago
The Works in...
Notes on Progress: Thinking like a dog How dog brains could save us from dementia
over a year ago
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Canvas: A Bet On New EMRs | Out-Of-Pocket what if EMRs didn't totally suck?
a year ago
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Turning Conversations Into Documentation Automagically 🪄 with Abridge | Out-Of-Pocket How to get more value out of the rich data of patient-provider conversations
a year ago
Quanta Magazine
Perplexing the Web, One Probability Puzzle at a Time The mathematician Daniel Litt has driven social media users to distraction with a series of...
10 months ago
72
10 months ago
The mathematician Daniel Litt has driven social media users to distraction with a series of simple-seeming but counterintuitive probability puzzles. The post Perplexing the Web, One Probability Puzzle at a Time first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Out-of-Pocket Blog
My investing theses | Out-Of-Pocket Hit up ya boi
a year ago
Cremieux Recueil
Grading the World's Shortest Manifesto It gets an F and the student has earned the death penalty
6 months ago
Quanta Magazine
The Physics of Cold Water May Have Jump-Started Complex Life When seawater gets cold, it gets viscous. This fact could explain how single-celled ocean creatures...
11 months ago
76
11 months ago
When seawater gets cold, it gets viscous. This fact could explain how single-celled ocean creatures became multicellular when the planet was frozen during “Snowball Earth,” according to experiments. The post The Physics of Cold Water May Have Jump-Started Complex Life...
Asterisk
Golden States
a year ago
The Works in...
How New Zealand invented inflation targeting The political gamble that made modern central banking
a week ago
Stephen Wolfram...
Can AI Solve Science? Note: Click any diagram to get Wolfram Language code to reproduce it. Wolfram Language code for...
a year ago
62
a year ago
Note: Click any diagram to get Wolfram Language code to reproduce it. Wolfram Language code for training the neural nets used here is also available (requires GPU). Won’t AI Eventually Be Able to Do Everything? Particularly given its recent surprise successes, there’s a somewhat...
Quanta Magazine
Biophysicists Uncover Powerful Symmetries in Living Tissue After identifying interlocking symmetries in mammalian cells, scientists can describe some tissues...
a year ago
57
a year ago
After identifying interlocking symmetries in mammalian cells, scientists can describe some tissues as liquid crystals — an observation that lays the groundwork for a fluid-dynamic theory of how tissues move. The post Biophysicists Uncover Powerful Symmetries in Living...
Quanta Magazine
The Thought Experiments That Fray the Fabric of Space-Time These three imagined scenarios lead many physicists to doubt that space-time is fundamental. ...
9 months ago
39
9 months ago
These three imagined scenarios lead many physicists to doubt that space-time is fundamental. The post The Thought Experiments That Fray the Fabric of Space-Time first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Marine Madness
Culture Club: Time to let the cetaceans in? Up until recently, culture has been thought of as a primarily human characteristic. However, recent...
over a year ago
38
over a year ago
Up until recently, culture has been thought of as a primarily human characteristic. However, recent studies shine a light on the fact that non-human animals including Cetaceans (dolphins and whales), may also possess it. They live in tightly-knit social communities, exhibit...
Andrew Fraknoi –...
Caves on Mars Recently, in social media posts, Dr. Pascal Lee of the SETI Institute discussed the intriguing caves...
7 months ago
66
7 months ago
Recently, in social media posts, Dr. Pascal Lee of the SETI Institute discussed the intriguing caves on the side of the giant martian volcano called Arsia Mons as interesting places for future exploration and even human residences. As it happens, my very first published...
Explorations of an...
Monsoon Season In Arizona, Part 4: The Chiricahuas September 3, 2024 It was another beautiful day in paradise, and all of us were up early to watch the...
9 months ago
13
9 months ago
September 3, 2024 It was another beautiful day in paradise, and all of us were up early to watch the sun rise over the desert. The active bird feeders gave us something to study while we drank our coffee and ate our egg sandwiches that Nikki had crafted for us.  Black-throated...
Quanta Magazine
How Does Graph Theory Shape Our World? Maria Chudnovsky reflects on her journey in graph theory, her groundbreaking solution to the...
4 days ago
5
4 days ago
Maria Chudnovsky reflects on her journey in graph theory, her groundbreaking solution to the long-standing perfect graph problem, and the unexpected ways this abstract field intersects with everyday life. The post How Does Graph Theory Shape Our World? first appeared...
Quanta Magazine
He’s Gleaning the Design Rules of Life to Re-Create It Yizhi “Patrick” Cai is coordinating a global effort to write a complete synthetic yeast genome. If...
7 months ago
72
7 months ago
Yizhi “Patrick” Cai is coordinating a global effort to write a complete synthetic yeast genome. If he succeeds, the resulting cell will be the artificial life most closely related to humans to date. The post He’s Gleaning the Design Rules of Life to Re-Create It first...
Yale e360
With NOAA Cuts, a Proud Legacy and Vital Science Are at Risk For more than 50 years, NOAA has pioneered climate research and been instrumental in advancing...
3 months ago
5
3 months ago
For more than 50 years, NOAA has pioneered climate research and been instrumental in advancing modern weather forecasting. Now labeled by Project 2025 as part of the “climate alarm industry” and facing DOGE-driven cuts, the future of this valuable public asset is in...
NeuroLogica Blog
Non-Invasive Deep Brain Stimulation We are rapidly entering the era of neuromodulation – using electrical and magnetic fields in order...
a year ago
88
a year ago
We are rapidly entering the era of neuromodulation – using electrical and magnetic fields in order to increase or decrease the activity of specific regions and circuits in the brain. Such treatments are already shown to be effective in treating some Parkinson’s symptoms,...
NeuroLogica Blog
The Alef Flying Car The flying car is an icon of futuristic technology – in more ways than one. This is partly why I...
4 months ago
38
4 months ago
The flying car is an icon of futuristic technology – in more ways than one. This is partly why I can’t resist a good flying car story. I was recently sent this YouTube video on the Alef flying car. The company says his is a street-legal flying car, with vertical take off and...
Yale e360
A Third of Forests Lost This Century Will Likely Never Be Restored Of the forest lost so far this century, roughly a third was destroyed to make room for farms, a new...
2 weeks ago
1
2 weeks ago
Of the forest lost so far this century, roughly a third was destroyed to make room for farms, a new analysis finds. Those woodlands, which spanned an area larger than Mongolia, will likely never be restored, authors say. Read more on E360 →
NeuroLogica Blog
Will AI Make Work Redundant? Artificial Intelligence (AI) is coming for your job. This, at least, is increasingly conventional...
a year ago
42
a year ago
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is coming for your job. This, at least, is increasingly conventional wisdom, but I’m not so sure. In a recent interview, Elon Musk predicted that AI would “make paid work redundant.” I encountered the same opinion watching the latest season of...
Eukaryote Writes...
Internet Harvest (2020, 2) Internet Harvest is a selection of the most succulent links on the internet that I’ve recently...
over a year ago
46
over a year ago
Internet Harvest is a selection of the most succulent links on the internet that I’ve recently plucked from its fruitful boughs. Feel free to discuss the links in the comments. Also, semi-intentionally, none of the links in this harvest are COVID-19-related. If you want some...
Chris Grossack's...
Proving Another "Real Theorem" with Topos Theory Another day, another post that starts with “So I was on mse…”, lol. Somebody asked whether...
a year ago
48
a year ago
Another day, another post that starts with “So I was on mse…”, lol. Somebody asked whether maximizing over a compact set is a continuous thing to do. That is, given a continuous function $f : K \times X \to \mathbb{R}$ is the function $x \mapsto \max_{k \in K} f(k,x)$...
ToughSF
Nuclear Reactor Lasers: from Fission to Photon Nuclear reactor lasers are devices that can generate lasers from nuclear energy with little to no...
over a year ago
17
over a year ago
Nuclear reactor lasers are devices that can generate lasers from nuclear energy with little to no intermediate conversion steps.  We work out just how effective they can be, and how they stack up against conventional electrically-powered lasers. You might want to re-think your...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
The New Era Of Digital Therapeutics | Out-Of-Pocket Guess it's time to start defining the term again
a year ago
Yale e360
Chimps Found Treating Each Other's Wounds Chimpanzees in Uganda were found treating the injuries of other, unrelated chimps, including those...
a month ago
15
a month ago
Chimpanzees in Uganda were found treating the injuries of other, unrelated chimps, including those caught in hunting snares.  Read more on E360 →
Explorations of an...
A Month In Northern Peru, Part 19: More From Muyuna Lodge (February 27-28, 2024) February 27, 2024 The rains fell sometime after we went to bed and continued through the night,...
2 months ago
29
2 months ago
February 27, 2024 The rains fell sometime after we went to bed and continued through the night, infiltrating our dreams. Light rain was still dripping from the trees as we awoke, and the dawn chorus was proportionally muted.  We had a quick breakfast and by 6:30 were on the small...
Out-of-Pocket Blog
23andMe, a healthcare fund idea, and the NHS | Out-Of-Pocket Some random musings coming from London
8 months ago
NeuroLogica Blog
Power-To-X and Climate Change Policy What is Power-to-X (PtX)? It’s just a fancy marketing term for green hydrogen – using green energy,...
6 months ago
61
6 months ago
What is Power-to-X (PtX)? It’s just a fancy marketing term for green hydrogen – using green energy, like wind, solar, nuclear, or hydroelectric, to make hydrogen from water. This process does not release any CO2, just oxygen, and when the hydrogen is burned back with that oxygen...
NeuroLogica Blog
Intuitive and Analytical Thinking Here is a relatively simple math problem:  A bat and a ball cost $1.10 combined. The bat costs $1...
a year ago
85
a year ago
Here is a relatively simple math problem:  A bat and a ball cost $1.10 combined. The bat costs $1 more than the ball. How much does the ball cost? (I will provide the answer below the fold.) This problem is the basis of a large psychological literature on thinking systems in the...
symmetry magazine
Vera C. Rubin Observatory brings the universe to everyone The Rubin Observatory is making education and outreach a top priority.
a year ago
Quanta Magazine
Number of Distances Separating Points Has a New Bound Mathematicians have struggled to prove Falconer’s Conjecture, a simple, but far-reaching, hypothesis...
a year ago
105
a year ago
Mathematicians have struggled to prove Falconer’s Conjecture, a simple, but far-reaching, hypothesis about the distances between points. They’re finally getting close. The post Number of Distances Separating Points Has a New Bound first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Yale e360
As U.S. Scientists Look Abroad, China Aims to Lure Top Talent Chinese locales are looking to lure top scientific talent from overseas by offering lavish sums for...
2 weeks ago
9
2 weeks ago
Chinese locales are looking to lure top scientific talent from overseas by offering lavish sums for resettling, as well as housing, health care, and other perks. The moves come as the Trump administration cuts funding for science and works to expel Chinese students. Read more on...
NeuroLogica Blog
Using Genetic Engineering To Fight Malaria Despite robust efforts to fight it, malaria remains one of the most significant infectious diseases...
a year ago
22
a year ago
Despite robust efforts to fight it, malaria remains one of the most significant infectious diseases affecting humans. According to UNICEF – ” In 2021, there were 247 million malaria cases globally that led to 619,000 deaths in total. Of these deaths, 77 per cent were children...
Quanta Magazine
The Deep Link Equating Math Proofs and Computer Programs Mathematical logic and the code of computer programs are, in an exact way, mirror images of each...
a year ago
28
a year ago
Mathematical logic and the code of computer programs are, in an exact way, mirror images of each other. The post The Deep Link Equating Math Proofs and Computer Programs first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Asterisk
Methods Section
a year ago
Many Worlds
The Moon Rush Is On. Are We on Earth Ready For That? An Indian spacecraft landed on the moon this month and a pioneering Japanese lunar  lander is...
a year ago
29
a year ago
An Indian spacecraft landed on the moon this month and a pioneering Japanese lunar  lander is awaiting an imminent launch.  A Russian craft trying to land in the same area — the southern polar region — recently crashed, as did a private effort by a joint Japanese-United Arab...
Yale e360
Wildlife Returns to Site of Devastating Southern California Wildfire Four months after the Eaton Fire tore through Altadena, California, wildlife is making a...
2 months ago
Out-of-Pocket Blog
Breaking Down Electronic Data Interchange, X12, and Stedi | Out-Of-Pocket
a year ago
SubAnima
The Forgotten Piece of Evolutionary Theory What if we took the 'struggle for life' seriously again?
a year ago
wadertales
How successful are headstarted waders We know that headstarting (hatching eggs in captivity and rearing chicks through to fledging) can...
9 months ago
71
9 months ago
We know that headstarting (hatching eggs in captivity and rearing chicks through to fledging) can boost the number of young waders in a population. However, the sustainability of this intervention is dependent upon several factors that apply after the point of release. A paper in...
Asterisk
Reports of the Death of California High-Speed Rail Have Been Greatly Exaggerated Building a high-speed rail between Los Angeles and San Francisco was never going to be easy — but...
2 months ago
10
2 months ago
Building a high-speed rail between Los Angeles and San Francisco was never going to be easy — but the critics who write it off are missing the real source of the project’s struggles.
Quanta Magazine
Rational or Not? This Basic Math Question Took Decades to Answer. It’s surprisingly difficult to prove one of the most basic properties of a number: whether it can be...
5 months ago
73
5 months ago
It’s surprisingly difficult to prove one of the most basic properties of a number: whether it can be written as a fraction. A broad new method can help settle this ancient question. The post Rational or Not? This Basic Math Question Took Decades to Answer. first...
NeuroLogica Blog
Should You Get a Heat Pump? Starting around 1550 and lasting through the 1600s, England had an energy crisis. They were running...
over a year ago
72
over a year ago
Starting around 1550 and lasting through the 1600s, England had an energy crisis. They were running out of wood, which was the main source of fuel for residential and commercial heating. England also needed a lot of wood for their massive navy – it took about 2,000 trees to build...
NeuroLogica Blog
What Is a Grand Conspiracy? Ah, the categorization question again. This is an endless, but much needed, endeavor within human...
a year ago
58
a year ago
Ah, the categorization question again. This is an endless, but much needed, endeavor within human intellectual activity. We have the need to categorize things, if for no other reason than we need to communicate with each other about them. Often skeptics, like myself, talk about...
symmetry magazine
SAGE Journey program ignites interest in STEM Three SAGE alumni talk about their experiences with a program meant to broaden gender diversity in...
a year ago
Breck's Blog
Does 3D exist?
a month ago
Quanta Magazine
In Our Cellular Clocks, She’s Found a Lifetime of Discoveries For decades, Carrie Partch has led pioneering structural research on the protein clockwork that...
a year ago
25
a year ago
For decades, Carrie Partch has led pioneering structural research on the protein clockwork that keeps time for our circadian rhythm. Is time still on her side? The post In Our Cellular Clocks, She’s Found a Lifetime of Discoveries first appeared on Quanta Magazine
NeuroLogica Blog
The Neuroscience of Constructed Languages Language is an interesting neurological function to study. No animal other than humans has such a...
3 months ago
26
3 months ago
Language is an interesting neurological function to study. No animal other than humans has such a highly developed dedicated language processing area, or languages as complex and nuanced as humans. Although, whale language is more complex than we previously thought, but still not...
NeuroLogica Blog
Quiet Supersonic Aircraft Ready for Testing It was six years ago that I first wrote about NASA’s X-59 QueSST project, contracted to Lockheed...
a year ago
49
a year ago
It was six years ago that I first wrote about NASA’s X-59 QueSST project, contracted to Lockheed Martin. Now the plane has finally been built and is ready for testing. At the time it was reported that NASA “had a design” for a quiet supersonic jet, one that would not create a...
IEEE Spectrum
The Rise and Fall of 3M’s Floppy Disk A version of this post originally appeared on Tedium, Ernie Smith’s newsletter, which hunts for the...
a year ago
58
a year ago
A version of this post originally appeared on Tedium, Ernie Smith’s newsletter, which hunts for the end of the long tail. if you look on 3M’s own website, you will see no mention of this legacy—it’s a firm that sells abrasive materials, adhesive tapes, filters, films, personal...
IEEE Spectrum
Willie Hobbs Moore: STEM Trailblazer At a time in American history when even the most intelligent Black women were expected to become, at...
4 months ago
42
4 months ago
At a time in American history when even the most intelligent Black women were expected to become, at most, teachers or nurses, Willie Hobbs Moore broke with societal expectations to become a noted physicist and engineer. Moore probably is best known for being the first Black...
IEEE Spectrum
Bell Labs Turns 100, Plans to Leave Its Old Headquarters This year, Bell Labs celebrates its hundredth birthday. In a centennial celebration held last week...
2 months ago
29
2 months ago
This year, Bell Labs celebrates its hundredth birthday. In a centennial celebration held last week at the Murray Hill, New Jersey campus, the lab’s impressive technological history was celebrated with talks, panels, demos, and over a half dozen gracefully aging Nobel laureates....
Uncharted...
Why We Dress the Way We Dress The Four Layers of Fashion
2 months ago
Yale e360
A.I. Is Quietly Powering a Revolution in Weather Prediction Weather forecasts powered by artificial intelligence are usually more accurate — and require less...
2 months ago
1
2 months ago
Weather forecasts powered by artificial intelligence are usually more accurate — and require less computational energy and fewer human hours — than conventional predictions. But questions remain about A.I. systems’ reliability and their ability to forecast extreme weather...
Yale e360
Push to Rewild in Wealthy Countries Fueling Destruction in Poorer Ones A new study details how, as wealthy countries rewild farmland, they are driving the destruction of...
4 months ago
5
4 months ago
A new study details how, as wealthy countries rewild farmland, they are driving the destruction of forests in poorer countries that are more abundant in wildlife. Read more on E360 →
The Works in...
The evolution of psychiatry How to separate order from disorder
a month ago