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Eight highlights from publishing a science book for the general public What’s it like to publish a book? I’ve faced the question again and again this year, as my book...
19th Dec 2022
55

Eight highlights from publishing a science book for the general public

from Quantum Frontiers [alt+shift+b] in science

19th Dec 2022
What’s it like to publish a book? I’ve faced the question again and again this year, as my book Quantum Steampunk hit bookshelves in April. Two responses suggest themselves. On the one hand, I channel the Beatles: It’s a hard … Continue reading →
The New Wave of Concierge Medicine | Out-Of-Pocket This episode of Out-Of-Pocket is brought to you by…
9th Jul 2024
119

The New Wave of Concierge Medicine | Out-Of-Pocket

from Out-of-Pocket Blog [alt+shift+b] in science

9th Jul 2024
This episode of Out-Of-Pocket is brought to you by…
A young Oystercatcher’s first adventure I find it amazing that, when they depart on autumn migration, juvenile waders can be faced with a...
3rd Sep 2026
1

A young Oystercatcher’s first adventure

from wadertales [alt+shift+b] in science

3rd Sep 2026
I find it amazing that, when they depart on autumn migration, juvenile waders can be faced with a journey of hundreds or thousands of kilometres. In the latest phase of their Oystercatcher studies in Iceland, Verónica Méndez and colleagues have been tagging young birds, just at...
The Brain Has a 'Low-Power Mode' That Blunts Our Senses Neuroscientists uncovered an energy-saving mode in vision-system neurons that works at the cost of...
12th Oct 2022
1

The Brain Has a 'Low-Power Mode' That Blunts Our Senses

from The Quanta Podcast [alt+shift+b] in science

12th Oct 2022
Neuroscientists uncovered an energy-saving mode in vision-system neurons that works at the cost of being able to see fine-grained details. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Unanswered Questions” by Kevin MacLeod.
Minimum Viable Superorganism Originally published at Ribbonfarm. Of all the remarkable things about our species — and there are...
11th Feb 2016
34

Minimum Viable Superorganism

from Melting Asphalt [alt+shift+b] in science

11th Feb 2016
Originally published at Ribbonfarm. Of all the remarkable things about our species — and there are many — perhaps the most striking of all is our ability to band together and act as a united, coherent superorganism. E pluribus unum.… Read more ›
Philip K. Howard: Fixing Broken Government ### Government 4.0 Americans have made major adjustments to our government before, Howard declared....
19th Jan 2011
1

Philip K. Howard: Fixing Broken Government

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

19th Jan 2011
### Government 4.0 Americans have made major adjustments to our government before, Howard declared. At the beginning of the 20th century a Progressive era ended strict laissez-faire. The New Deal in the 1930s provided social safety nets. In the 1960s Civil Rights came to the...
Generative AI will probably make blogs better Generative AI will probably make blogs better. Have you ever searched for something on Google and...
30th May 2025
28

Generative AI will probably make blogs better

from pcloadletter [alt+shift+b] in science

30th May 2025
Generative AI will probably make blogs better. Have you ever searched for something on Google and found the first one, two, or three blog posts to be utter nonsense? That's because these blog posts have been optimized not for human consumption, but rather to entertain the search...
Larry Brilliant, Richard Rockefeller, & Katherine Fulton: The Deeper News About the New... ### Philanthropic stamina 10,000 families in the US, Katherine Fulton reported, have assets of $100...
4th Nov 2006
1
4th Nov 2006
### Philanthropic stamina 10,000 families in the US, Katherine Fulton reported, have assets of $100 million or more. That's up from 7,000 just a couple years ago. Most of that money is "on the sidelines." The poor and the middle class are far more generous in their philanthropy,...
Orville Schell: China Thinks Long-term, But Can It Relearn to Act Long-term? ### Giant contradictions “China is the most unresolved nation of consequence in the world,” Orville...
23rd Sep 2006
1
23rd Sep 2006
### Giant contradictions “China is the most unresolved nation of consequence in the world,” Orville Schell began. It is defined by its massive contradictions. And by its massiveness— China’s population is estimated to be 1.25 to 1.3 billion; the margin of error in the estimate...
Paul Hawken: The Long Green ### The long green The environmental movement has moved on. It has become so deep and wide that it...
16th Oct 2004
1

Paul Hawken: The Long Green

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

16th Oct 2004
### The long green The environmental movement has moved on. It has become so deep and wide that it adds up to something new entirely, still unnamed. Whatever it is, it is now the largest movement in the world and the least ideological. Driven by science and patience, it is...
Designing the First Apple Macintosh: The Engineers’ Story In 1979 the Macintosh personal computer existed only as the pet idea of Jef Raskin, a veteran of the...
2nd Jul 2023
44

Designing the First Apple Macintosh: The Engineers’ Story

from IEEE Spectrum [alt+shift+b] in science

2nd Jul 2023
In 1979 the Macintosh personal computer existed only as the pet idea of Jef Raskin, a veteran of the Apple II team, who had proposed that Apple Computer Inc. make a low-cost “appliance”-type computer that would be as easy to use as a toaster. Mr. Raskin believed the computer he...
The end of lead How a single taxi ride saved millions of lives
3rd Jul 2025
41

The end of lead

from The Works in Progress Newsletter [alt+shift+b] in science

3rd Jul 2025
How a single taxi ride saved millions of lives
Weekend trivia: your process' memory is a file The underappreciated gem of /proc/ /mem
1st Jun 2026
1

Weekend trivia: your process' memory is a file

from lcamtuf’s thing [alt+shift+b] in science

1st Jun 2026
The underappreciated gem of /proc/ /mem
Confidence In the Press This is the fifth in a series of excerpts from Elements of Data Science, now available from Lulu.com...
4th Jan 2025
28

Confidence In the Press

from Probably Overthinking It [alt+shift+b] in science

4th Jan 2025
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...
Can patients be good healthcare shoppers? | Out-Of-Pocket Should their be limits to patient agency?
8th Aug 2024
91

Can patients be good healthcare shoppers? | Out-Of-Pocket

from Out-of-Pocket Blog [alt+shift+b] in science

8th Aug 2024
Should their be limits to patient agency?
New Life Found That Lives Off Electricity Scientists have figured out how microbes can suck energy from rocks. Such lifeforms might be more...
7th Jul 2016
1

New Life Found That Lives Off Electricity

from The Quanta Podcast [alt+shift+b] in science

7th Jul 2016
Scientists have figured out how microbes can suck energy from rocks. Such lifeforms might be more widespread than anyone anticipated. The post New Life Found That Lives Off Electricity first appeared on Quanta Magazine
How Japan Redrew Asia Short article
3 weeks ago
1

How Japan Redrew Asia

from Uncharted Territories [alt+shift+b] in science

3 weeks ago
Short article
How to Cut Cake Fairly and Finally Eat It Too Computer scientists have come up with a bounded algorithm that can fairly divide a cake among any...
10th Nov 2016
1

How to Cut Cake Fairly and Finally Eat It Too

from The Quanta Podcast [alt+shift+b] in science

10th Nov 2016
Computer scientists have come up with a bounded algorithm that can fairly divide a cake among any number of people. The post How to Cut Cake Fairly and Finally Eat It Too first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Nuclear Conversion for Starship There has been much discussion about converting the SpaceX Starship to use nuclear propulsion. It...
14th Oct 2021
1

Nuclear Conversion for Starship

from ToughSF [alt+shift+b] in science

14th Oct 2021
There has been much discussion about converting the SpaceX Starship to use nuclear propulsion. It would allow for a great increase in specific impulse and a massive extension of mission capabilities. But is it actually worthwhile? The image above is modified from...
Edward Burtynsky: The 10,000-year Gallery ### Stone Ink Gallery Photographer Edward Burtynsky made a formal proposal for a permanent art...
24th Jul 2008
1

Edward Burtynsky: The 10,000-year Gallery

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

24th Jul 2008
### Stone Ink Gallery Photographer Edward Burtynsky made a formal proposal for a permanent art gallery in the chamber that encloses the 10,000-year Clock in its Nevada mountain. The gallery would consist of art in materials as durable as the alloy steel and jade of the Clock...
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...
6th Aug 2024
112

Building a Visceral Understanding of Quantum Phenomena

from Quantum Frontiers [alt+shift+b] in science

6th Aug 2024
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 →
Fresh X-Rays Reveal a Universe as Clumpy as Cosmology Predicts By mapping the largest structures in the universe in X-rays, cosmologists have found striking...
4th Mar 2024
60

Fresh X-Rays Reveal a Universe as Clumpy as Cosmology Predicts

from Quanta Magazine [alt+shift+b] in science

4th Mar 2024
By mapping the largest structures in the universe in X-rays, cosmologists have found striking agreement with their standard theoretical model of how the universe evolves. The post Fresh X-Rays Reveal a Universe as Clumpy as Cosmology Predicts first appeared on Quanta...
The Forgotten Piece of Evolutionary Theory What if we took the 'struggle for life' seriously again?
22nd Jul 2023
48

The Forgotten Piece of Evolutionary Theory

from SubAnima [alt+shift+b] in science

22nd Jul 2023
What if we took the 'struggle for life' seriously again?
No Retvrn An American tradition of embracing modernity.
4th Aug 2025
1

No Retvrn

from Asterisk [alt+shift+b] in science

4th Aug 2025
An American tradition of embracing modernity.
Kevin Kelly: The Next 30 Digital Years ## Digital is just getting started In Kevin Kelly’s view, a dozen “inevitable” trends will drive...
15th Jul 2016
1

Kevin Kelly: The Next 30 Digital Years

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

15th Jul 2016
## Digital is just getting started In Kevin Kelly’s view, a dozen “inevitable” trends will drive the next 30 years of digital progress. Artificial smartnesses, for example, will be added to everything, all quite different from human intelligence and from each other. We will tap...
Event, Feb 29: “Towards a New Philosophy of Progress” in Boston and on Zoom On Thursday, February 29, I’ll be giving my talk “Towards a New Philosophy of Progress” to the New...
21st Feb 2024
109

Event, Feb 29: “Towards a New Philosophy of Progress” in Boston and on Zoom

from The Roots of Progress | Articles [alt+shift+b] in science

21st Feb 2024
On Thursday, February 29, I’ll be giving my talk “Towards a New Philosophy of Progress” to the New England Legal Foundation, for their Economic Liberty Speaker Series. The talk will be held over breakfast at NELF’s offices in Boston, and will also be livestreamed over Zoom. See...
The Book of Mark Mark Srednicki doesn’t look like a high priest. He’s a professor of physics at the University of...
9th Jul 2023
54

The Book of Mark

from Quantum Frontiers [alt+shift+b] in science

9th Jul 2023
Mark Srednicki doesn’t look like a high priest. He’s a professor of physics at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB); and you’ll sooner find him in khakis than in sacred vestments. Humor suits his round face better than channeling … Continue reading →
Pit Bulls Part I: Identification Pit bull type dogs are readily identifiable
16th Jan 2026
1

Pit Bulls Part I: Identification

from Cremieux Recueil [alt+shift+b] in science

16th Jan 2026
Pit bull type dogs are readily identifiable
Tiny Galaxies Reveal Secrets of Supermassive Black Holes Dwarf galaxies weren’t supposed to have big black holes. Their surprise discovery has revealed clues...
8th Jun 2022
1

Tiny Galaxies Reveal Secrets of Supermassive Black Holes

from The Quanta Podcast [alt+shift+b] in science

8th Jun 2022
Dwarf galaxies weren’t supposed to have big black holes. Their surprise discovery has revealed clues about how the universe’s biggest black holes could have formed. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Light Gazing” by Andrew Langdon.
What I’ve been reading, March 2023 A new monthly feature, let me know what you think. Books Matt Ridley, How Innovation Works (2020)....
9th Mar 2023
61

What I’ve been reading, March 2023

from The Roots of Progress | Articles [alt+shift+b] in science

9th Mar 2023
A new monthly feature, let me know what you think. Books Matt Ridley, How Innovation Works (2020). About halfway through, lots of interesting case studies, very readable. Vaclav Smil, Creating the Twentieth Century (2005). I read the first chapter; saving the rest of it for when...
Interview: Ted Nordhaus on ecomodernism Are technology and the environment friends or foes? In this wide-ranging conversation, we discuss...
20th May 2021
1

Interview: Ted Nordhaus on ecomodernism

from Works in Progress RSS Feed [alt+shift+b] in science

20th May 2021
Are technology and the environment friends or foes? In this wide-ranging conversation, we discuss climate policy, activism and ecomodernism with Ted Nordhaus.
The seven vices of highly effective Victorians The biggest empire the world has ever seen was run by a small elite who partied all night, drank...
2 weeks ago
1

The seven vices of highly effective Victorians

from Works in Progress RSS Feed [alt+shift+b] in science

2 weeks ago
The biggest empire the world has ever seen was run by a small elite who partied all night, drank liters of port, and stayed in bed until the afternoon.
What is the Aharonov-Bohm effect? After seeing this latest extremely good video from Veritasium, and looking back through my posts, I...
1st Feb 2026
2

What is the Aharonov-Bohm effect?

from nanoscale views [alt+shift+b] in science

1st Feb 2026
After seeing this latest extremely good video from Veritasium, and looking back through my posts, I realized that while I've referenced it indirectly, I've never explicitly talked about the Aharonov-Bohm effect.  The video is excellent, and that wikipedia page is pretty good, but...
Why aren’t things changing faster? Been wondering lately that given everyone has a consultant with all the world’s knowledge in their...
4th May 2026
2

Why aren’t things changing faster?

from Inverted Passion [alt+shift+b] in science

4th May 2026
Been wondering lately that given everyone has a consultant with all the world’s knowledge in their pockets, we should be seeing efficiency rise across the board everywhere. Literally everyone can now get personalised advise on how to serve their customers better, improve quality...
Milestone Experiment Proves Quantum Communication Really Is Faster In a Paris lab, researchers have shown for the first time that quantum methods of transmitting...
7th Nov 2019
1

Milestone Experiment Proves Quantum Communication Really Is Faster

from The Quanta Podcast [alt+shift+b] in science

7th Nov 2019
In a Paris lab, researchers have shown for the first time that quantum methods of transmitting information are superior to classical ones. The post Milestone Experiment Proves Quantum Communication Really Is Faster first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Annalee Newitz: Science Needs Fiction Science fiction does more than predict future inventions. Stories are a testbed for exploring the...
14th Jul 2020
1

Annalee Newitz: Science Needs Fiction

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

14th Jul 2020
Science fiction does more than predict future inventions. Stories are a testbed for exploring the unexpected ways people could incorporate technology into their cultures. Science journalist and novelist [Annalee Newitz](http://techsploitation.com) discusses how scientists,...
Organisms Are Not Made Of Atoms Individuality is a process.
12th Feb 2022
23

Organisms Are Not Made Of Atoms

from SubAnima [alt+shift+b] in science

12th Feb 2022
Individuality is a process.
The eye of the tiger What makes tigers different from one another?
8th Jun 2023
69

The eye of the tiger

from The Works in Progress Newsletter [alt+shift+b] in science

8th Jun 2023
What makes tigers different from one another?
Which countries eat the most seafood per person? The top 10 seafood-consuming nations in the world, plus trends among the world’s richest countries....
11th Dec 2021
70

Which countries eat the most seafood per person?

from Marine Madness [alt+shift+b] in science

11th Dec 2021
The top 10 seafood-consuming nations in the world, plus trends among the world’s richest countries. Seafood is a vital food group and form of income for millions of people around the world. The seafood industry has more than quadrupled in the last 50 years and is estimated to be...
A Modest Proposal To Turn Canada Into a Narco State Americans want cheap drugs and Canadians wants loads of money. I smell a deal.
30th Jul 2025
1

A Modest Proposal To Turn Canada Into a Narco State

from Cremieux Recueil [alt+shift+b] in science

30th Jul 2025
Americans want cheap drugs and Canadians wants loads of money. I smell a deal.
You've Been Lied To About Genetics Should we give Mendel's peas a chance? Nah, we've moved on.
20th Jan 2023
39

You've Been Lied To About Genetics

from SubAnima [alt+shift+b] in science

20th Jan 2023
Should we give Mendel's peas a chance? Nah, we've moved on.
Dwarf Planet Ring Mystery Scientists love mysteries, because that is where new discoveries lay. It is nice to find evidence...
9th Feb 2023
57

Dwarf Planet Ring Mystery

from NeuroLogica Blog [alt+shift+b] in science

9th Feb 2023
Scientists love mysteries, because that is where new discoveries lay. It is nice to find evidence consistent with existing theories, providing further confirmation, but it’s exciting to find evidence that cannot be explained with existing theories. Astronomers may have found such...
The Dream: The First Probe to the Moon The past decade or so has seen a marked increase in interest to reach the Moon for exploration as...
2nd Jan 2024
47

The Dream: The First Probe to the Moon

from Drew Ex Machina [alt+shift+b] in science

2nd Jan 2024
The past decade or so has seen a marked increase in interest to reach the Moon for exploration as well as the potential exploitation of its […]
Phillip Longman: The Depopulation Problem ### The depopulation problem Full PDF of the talk...
14th Aug 2004
1

Phillip Longman: The Depopulation Problem

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

14th Aug 2004
### The depopulation problem Full PDF of the talk [here](http://static.longnow.org/seminars/020040813-longman/salt-020040813-longman.pdf "PDF"), slideshow [here](https://media.longnow.org/salt-slides/Longman.html "The Depopulation Problem"). No need to summarize this time....
Machine Learning’s ‘Amazing’ Ability to Predict Chaos In new computer experiments, artificial-intelligence algorithms can tell the future of chaotic...
14th Feb 2019
1

Machine Learning’s ‘Amazing’ Ability to Predict Chaos

from The Quanta Podcast [alt+shift+b] in science

14th Feb 2019
In new computer experiments, artificial-intelligence algorithms can tell the future of chaotic systems. The post Machine Learning’s ‘Amazing’ Ability to Predict Chaos first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Roads too! Another problem for Iceland’s waders The lowlands of Iceland are changing. Low-intensity farming is becoming economically challenging and...
2nd Dec 2025
1

Roads too! Another problem for Iceland’s waders

from wadertales [alt+shift+b] in science

2nd Dec 2025
The lowlands of Iceland are changing. Low-intensity farming is becoming economically challenging and marginal grazing land is increasingly being used for forestry, to provide summer cottages for city-dwelling Icelanders, for electricity generation and to expand tourist...
My Teaching Philosophy As mentioned previously, I need to complete a teaching portfolio over my year as a lecturing intern...
16th Apr 2013
70

My Teaching Philosophy

from Confessions of a Marine Ecologist [alt+shift+b] in science

16th Apr 2013
As mentioned previously, I need to complete a teaching portfolio over my year as a lecturing intern as part of the PTIS scheme.  Central to this portfolio is a personal teaching philosophy, detailing why teaching is important to me, what my objectives are as a teacher, what...
The last design you'll ever make Designing from cradle to grave is no longer good enough. We need to postpone that grave as long as...
7th Dec 2021
23

The last design you'll ever make

from Interaction Magic - George Cave [alt+shift+b] in science

7th Dec 2021
Designing from cradle to grave is no longer good enough. We need to postpone that grave as long as possible. This is how to design for a right to repair.
The UX of LEGO Interface Panels LEGO interface panels are beautiful, iconic, and great for learning interface design basics. I...
2nd Aug 2020
28

The UX of LEGO Interface Panels

from Interaction Magic - George Cave [alt+shift+b] in science

2nd Aug 2020
LEGO interface panels are beautiful, iconic, and great for learning interface design basics. I bought 52 of them from BrickLink to explore the design, layout and organisation of complex interfaces.
Ken Dychtwald: The Consequences of Human Life Extension ### What long life means Ken Dychtwald gave a terrific talk Friday evening to a standing-room...
4th Dec 2004
1

Ken Dychtwald: The Consequences of Human Life Extension

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

4th Dec 2004
### What long life means Ken Dychtwald gave a terrific talk Friday evening to a standing-room audience on "The Consequences of Human Life Extension." The growing--and soon overwhelming--prevalence of the old in developed nations is leading to a "new old." Ken described meeting...
Michael Tubbs: Upsetting the Setup: Creating a California for All Governance moves slow. The work of the politician and the public servant ought to inherently be...
16th Aug 2022
1

Michael Tubbs: Upsetting the Setup: Creating a California for All

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

16th Aug 2022
Governance moves slow. The work of the politician and the public servant ought to inherently be one of long-term thinking — of taking in concerns both urgent and longstanding and crafting solutions to them that will live on beyond any official’s term of office. As Mayor of...
Warm Countries’ Poverty & Mountains: Responses to Your Comments Geographic arguments against the theory: Switzerland, Austria, Colorado, India, Cambodia, Indonesia,...
1st Oct 2025
1

Warm Countries’ Poverty & Mountains: Responses to Your Comments

from Uncharted Territories [alt+shift+b] in science

1st Oct 2025
Geographic arguments against the theory: Switzerland, Austria, Colorado, India, Cambodia, Indonesia, China…Has race had any role in warm countries’ poverty?Does this disregard colonialism?
How to write for Works in Progress We’re looking for new authors and article pitches.
4th Apr 2025
1

How to write for Works in Progress

from Works in Progress RSS Feed [alt+shift+b] in science

4th Apr 2025
We’re looking for new authors and article pitches.
Telepathy Tapes Promotes Pseudoscience I was away on vacation the last week, hence no posts, but am now back to my usual schedule. In fact,...
2nd Jun 2025
31

Telepathy Tapes Promotes Pseudoscience

from NeuroLogica Blog [alt+shift+b] in science

2nd Jun 2025
I was away on vacation the last week, hence no posts, but am now back to my usual schedule. In fact, I hope to be a little more consistent starting this summer because (if you follow me on the SGU you already know this) I am retiring from my day job at Yale at the […] The post...
Michael Pollan: Deep Agriculture ### Making farmers cool again Farming has become an occupation and cultural force of the past....
6th May 2009
1

Michael Pollan: Deep Agriculture

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

6th May 2009
### Making farmers cool again Farming has become an occupation and cultural force of the past. Michael Pollan's talk promoted the premise - and hope - that farming can become an occupation and force of the future. In the past century American farmers were given the assignment to...
Happy 200th birthday, Carnot’s theorem! In Kenneth Grahame’s 1908 novel The Wind in the Willows, a Mole meets a Water Rat who lives on a...
28th Nov 2024
103

Happy 200th birthday, Carnot’s theorem!

from Quantum Frontiers [alt+shift+b] in science

28th Nov 2024
In Kenneth Grahame’s 1908 novel The Wind in the Willows, a Mole meets a Water Rat who lives on a River. The Rat explains how the River permeates his life: “It’s brother and sister to me, and aunts, and company, … Continue reading →
Arthur Ganson: Machines and the Breath of Time ### Dancing chairs "You follow the feeling of the piece," Ganson explained, "and then wrestle it...
15th Sep 2009
1

Arthur Ganson: Machines and the Breath of Time

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

15th Sep 2009
### Dancing chairs "You follow the feeling of the piece," Ganson explained, "and then wrestle it into physicality." As long as the idea is nonphysical, it is permanent; it becomes temporary as a physical device; and then it becomes permanent again in the mind of the viewer. As...
Simpson’s What? I like Simpson’s paradox so much I wrote three chapters about it in Probably Overthinking It. In...
16th Oct 2025
23

Simpson’s What?

from Probably Overthinking It [alt+shift+b] in science

16th Oct 2025
I like Simpson’s paradox so much I wrote three chapters about it in Probably Overthinking It. In fact, I like it so much I have a Google alert that notifies me when someone publishes a new example (or when the horse named Simpson’s Paradox wins a race). So I was initially excited...
Evolution Isn't Always For The Best Evolution is not, I repeat, NOT natural selection
17th Mar 2022
19

Evolution Isn't Always For The Best

from SubAnima [alt+shift+b] in science

17th Mar 2022
Evolution is not, I repeat, NOT natural selection
Priyamvada Natarajan: Solving Dark Matter and Dark Energy ## The darkness of dark matter and dark energy ALL THAT WE KNOW of the universe we get from...
12th Apr 2016
1

Priyamvada Natarajan: Solving Dark Matter and Dark Energy

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

12th Apr 2016
## The darkness of dark matter and dark energy ALL THAT WE KNOW of the universe we get from observing photons, Natarajan pointed out. But dark matter, which makes up 90 percent of the total mass in the universe, is called dark because it neither emits nor reflects photons — and...
South Pole Water Infrastructure Fresh water from snow, at 70 below!
8th Jun 2024
146

South Pole Water Infrastructure

from brr [alt+shift+b] in science

8th Jun 2024
Fresh water from snow, at 70 below!
Where is the YIMBY movement for healthcare? In the progress movement, some cause areas are about technical breakthroughs, such as fusion power...
10th May 2025
1

Where is the YIMBY movement for healthcare?

from The Roots of Progress [alt+shift+b] in science

10th May 2025
In the progress movement, some cause areas are about technical breakthroughs, such as fusion power or a cure for aging. In other areas, the problems are not technical, but social. Housing, for instance, is technologically a solved problem. We know how to build houses, but housing...
In Indonesia’s Rainforest, a Mega-Farm Project Is Plowing Ahead The Indonesian government is fast-tracking a massive agricultural project that is turning 7 million...
2nd Sep 2025
9

In Indonesia’s Rainforest, a Mega-Farm Project Is Plowing Ahead

from Yale E360 [alt+shift+b] in science

2nd Sep 2025
The Indonesian government is fast-tracking a massive agricultural project that is turning 7 million acres of tropical forest into rice and sugarcane farms. Critics say it is the world’s largest deforestation project and would upend the lives of thousands of Indigenous...
Modelling my brain A 22 hour medical experiment breathing 12% oxygen, and the 7000 images of my brain that came out of...
29th Mar 2021
31

Modelling my brain

from Interaction Magic - George Cave [alt+shift+b] in science

29th Mar 2021
A 22 hour medical experiment breathing 12% oxygen, and the 7000 images of my brain that came out of it.
Every grain of rice As climate change threatens crop yields, we need a second Green Revolution – one that, this time, is...
22nd May 2023
1

Every grain of rice

from Works in Progress RSS Feed [alt+shift+b] in science

22nd May 2023
As climate change threatens crop yields, we need a second Green Revolution – one that, this time, is driven by genetic engineering.
Can AI Predict the Quantum Universe? AI promises to revolutionize the way we do science, which raises a central technological question of...
11th Dec 2025
1

Can AI Predict the Quantum Universe?

from Quantum Frontiers [alt+shift+b] in science

11th Dec 2025
AI promises to revolutionize the way we do science, which raises a central technological question of our time: Can classical AI understand all natural phenomena, or are some fundamentally beyond its reach? Many proponents of artificial intelligence argue that any … Continue...
COVID-19 FAQ A lot of people have been asking me questions about the COVID-19 (novel coronavirus) outbreak, in my...
12th Mar 2020
58

COVID-19 FAQ

from Eukaryote Writes Blog [alt+shift+b] in science

12th Mar 2020
A lot of people have been asking me questions about the COVID-19 (novel coronavirus) outbreak, in my informal capacity as “local biodefense person”.
Total Eclipse of the Moon Coming Mar. 13-14 There will be a total eclipse of the Moon visible in the Americas the night of March 13-14 The post...
13th Feb 2025
64

Total Eclipse of the Moon Coming Mar. 13-14

from Andrew Fraknoi – Astronomy Lectures – Astronomy Education Resources [alt+shift+b] in science

13th Feb 2025
There will be a total eclipse of the Moon visible in the Americas the night of March 13-14 The post Total Eclipse of the Moon Coming Mar. 13-14 appeared first on Andrew Fraknoi - Astronomy Lectures - Astronomy Education Resources.
Accelerating science through evolvable institutions This is the written version of a talk presented to the Santa Fe Institute at a working group on...
4th Dec 2023
54

Accelerating science through evolvable institutions

from The Roots of Progress | Articles [alt+shift+b] in science

4th Dec 2023
This is the written version of a talk presented to the Santa Fe Institute at a working group on “Accelerating Science.” We’re here to discuss “accelerating science.” I like to start on topics like this by taking the historical view: When (if ever) has science accelerated in the...
China's Fossil Fuel Emissions Dropped Last Year as Solar Boomed In China, the world's leading carbon emitter, a massive buildout of solar power is beginning to push...
2nd Mar 2026
1

China's Fossil Fuel Emissions Dropped Last Year as Solar Boomed

from Yale E360 [alt+shift+b] in science

2nd Mar 2026
In China, the world's leading carbon emitter, a massive buildout of solar power is beginning to push fossil fuels into decline. Last year China saw its emissions drop, even as demand for energy rose.  Read more on E360 →
Neal Stephenson: Neal Stephenson - Fall, or Dodge in Hell Neal Stephenson author of _Fall, or Dodge in Hell_ in conversation with Long Now Board Member, Kevin...
14th Aug 2019
1

Neal Stephenson: Neal Stephenson - Fall, or Dodge in Hell

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

14th Aug 2019
Neal Stephenson author of _Fall, or Dodge in Hell_ in conversation with Long Now Board Member, Kevin Kelly. Tickets included a signed copy of _Fall, or Dodge in Hell_. [_Fall, or Dodge in Hell_](https://www.harpercollins.com/9780062458711/fall-or-dodge-in-hell/) is pure,...
Pregnancy taught me a lot about healthcare | Out-Of-Pocket A personal story and a patient journey
3rd Aug 2026
1

Pregnancy taught me a lot about healthcare | Out-Of-Pocket

from Out-of-Pocket Blog [alt+shift+b] in science

3rd Aug 2026
A personal story and a patient journey
Who Can Understand the Proof? A Window on Formalized Mathematics Related writings: “Logic, Explainability and the Future of Understanding” (2018) » “The...
9th Jan 2025
161

Who Can Understand the Proof? A Window on Formalized Mathematics

from Stephen Wolfram Writings [alt+shift+b] in science

9th Jan 2025
Related writings: “Logic, Explainability and the Future of Understanding” (2018) » “The Physicalization of Metamathematics and Its Implications for the Foundations of Mathematics” (2022) » “Computational Knowledge and the Future of Pure Mathematics” (2014) » The Simplest Axiom...
The ultra-selfish gene We now have the power to genetically modify entire species by inserting certain genes into them with...
3rd Sep 2024
1

The ultra-selfish gene

from Works in Progress RSS Feed [alt+shift+b] in science

3rd Sep 2024
We now have the power to genetically modify entire species by inserting certain genes into them with brute force. Doing this to malaria-carrying mosquitoes could allow us to wipe out humanity’s most deadly killer.
There’s no such thing as a tree (phylogenetically) Dendronization – Evolving into a tree-like morphology. (In the style of “carcinization".) From...
3rd May 2021
64

There’s no such thing as a tree (phylogenetically)

from Eukaryote Writes Blog [alt+shift+b] in science

3rd May 2021
Dendronization – Evolving into a tree-like morphology. (In the style of “carcinization".) From 'dendro', the ancient Greek root for tree.
How to share your data online with OSF The Open Science movement is here to stay. However, incorporating open practices like data sharing...
2nd Oct 2018
1

How to share your data online with OSF

from Peder M. Isager [alt+shift+b] in science

2nd Oct 2018
The Open Science movement is here to stay. However, incorporating open practices like data sharing into your work flow can seem like a challenging task. If you have never made data available online before, the process can feel a bit daunting. Where should I put the data? What...
Hacking the terrorist timepiece The hardest part of building hardware interfaces is not having the right tools to prototype, test...
15th Aug 2022
48

Hacking the terrorist timepiece

from Interaction Magic - George Cave [alt+shift+b] in science

15th Aug 2022
The hardest part of building hardware interfaces is not having the right tools to prototype, test and validate ideas. A behind the scenes look at my prototyping process, on a project to re-invent the famous Casio F-91W watch.
The Pilgrimage to Mecca Is Becoming More Dangerous as Mideast Warms Global heating has “fundamentally altered” the climate of Mecca, Saudi Arabia, and is exposing...
1st Jun 2026
1

The Pilgrimage to Mecca Is Becoming More Dangerous as Mideast Warms

from Yale E360 [alt+shift+b] in science

1st Jun 2026
Global heating has “fundamentally altered” the climate of Mecca, Saudi Arabia, and is exposing millions of hajj pilgrims to extreme and dangerous heat even in months outside summer, a new analysis has found. Read more on E360 →
How deep is Tulainyo Lake? Regular readers may recall that I put a visit to Tulainyo Lake on my bucket list a few years ago....
20th Sep 2026
1

How deep is Tulainyo Lake?

from Casey Handmer's blog [alt+shift+b] in science

20th Sep 2026
Regular readers may recall that I put a visit to Tulainyo Lake on my bucket list a few years ago. Last week I did it. Impossibly remote, otherworldly beauty, and an enduring mystery. Just how deep was this lake? Wikipedia claims not to know. Measuring it is non-trivial. A worthy...
Curlew nest survival The Eurasian Curlew is designated as ‘Near-Threatened’ by IUCN/BirdLife. It is Red-listed in the UK,...
4th Jan 2023
61

Curlew nest survival

from wadertales [alt+shift+b] in science

4th Jan 2023
The Eurasian Curlew is designated as ‘Near-Threatened’ by IUCN/BirdLife. It is Red-listed in the UK,  largely due to a rapid decline in breeding numbers. In this context, the fact that there are a few pink squares (indicating increased numbers) on the map showing breeding...
Kevin Kelly: Technium Unbound ## Holos Rising When Kevin Kelly looked up the definition of “superorganism” on Wikipedia, he found...
13th Nov 2014
1

Kevin Kelly: Technium Unbound

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

13th Nov 2014
## Holos Rising When Kevin Kelly looked up the definition of “superorganism” on Wikipedia, he found this: “A collection of agents which can act in concert to produce phenomena governed by the collective.” The source cited was Kevin Kelly, in his 01994 book, Out of Control. His...
What Happens When Lakes Stop Mixing Every summer since 1983, scientists at Crater Lake National Park have gathered data about the lake’s...
2nd Dec 2025
1

What Happens When Lakes Stop Mixing

from The Quanta Podcast [alt+shift+b] in science

2nd Dec 2025
Every summer since 1983, scientists at Crater Lake National Park have gathered data about the lake’s famous clarity. This past summer, Quanta contributing writer Rachel Nuwer journeyed with them as they conducted their annual tests. On this week’s episode, Nuwer and host Samir...
High-Temperature Superconductivity Understood at Last A new atomic-scale experiment all but settles the origin of the strong form of superconductivity...
1st Feb 2023
1

High-Temperature Superconductivity Understood at Last

from The Quanta Podcast [alt+shift+b] in science

1st Feb 2023
A new atomic-scale experiment all but settles the origin of the strong form of superconductivity seen in cuprate crystals, confirming a 35-year-old theory. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Quasi Motion” by Kevin MacLeod.
0.9999... ≊ 1 What is infinity, and why it's not trivial to show that 0.9999... is equal to 1.
1st Jun 2025
1

0.9999... ≊ 1

from lcamtuf’s thing [alt+shift+b] in science

1st Jun 2025
What is infinity, and why it's not trivial to show that 0.9999... is equal to 1.
Issue 12: Houston, we have a solution Plus: How Mexico built its state, the causes of the Baby Boom, and the 141-year quest for a malaria...
7th Sep 2023
75

Issue 12: Houston, we have a solution

from The Works in Progress Newsletter [alt+shift+b] in science

7th Sep 2023
Plus: How Mexico built its state, the causes of the Baby Boom, and the 141-year quest for a malaria vaccine.
What to Replicate? Justifications of study choice from 85 replication studies.
9th Jun 2018
1

What to Replicate?

from Peder M. Isager [alt+shift+b] in science

9th Jun 2018
Justifications of study choice from 85 replication studies.
Why America’s Racial Poverty Statistics Are a Lesson for Researchers What if a single government employee could tell you an entire literature was wrong?
26th Aug 2024
35

Why America’s Racial Poverty Statistics Are a Lesson for Researchers

from Cremieux Recueil [alt+shift+b] in science

26th Aug 2024
What if a single government employee could tell you an entire literature was wrong?
The Marimba Virtuoso’s Desktop Planetarium The United States was at the time approaching “peak space.” The previous year, cosmonaut Yuri...
1st Oct 2023
33

The Marimba Virtuoso’s Desktop Planetarium

from IEEE Spectrum [alt+shift+b] in science

1st Oct 2023
The United States was at the time approaching “peak space.” The previous year, cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin had become the first human to reach outer space, and on 12 September 1962 President Kennedy would announce the United States’ intention to put a man on the moon before the...
Just bury your trash What if everything we know about recycling is wrong?
1st Sep 2026
1

Just bury your trash

from Works in Progress RSS Feed [alt+shift+b] in science

1st Sep 2026
What if everything we know about recycling is wrong?
Huey Johnson: Green Planning at Nation Scale ### Green Plans Green Plans, said Johnson, are government-run environmental programs that rise to...
4th Oct 2008
1

Huey Johnson: Green Planning at Nation Scale

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

4th Oct 2008
### Green Plans Green Plans, said Johnson, are government-run environmental programs that rise to the scale and longevity of environmental problems. Instead of acting piecemeal, they are comprehensive, systemic, integrated, and accountable. Instead of pursuing an energy policy,...
Jenny Odell: Saving Time: Discovering a Life Beyond the Clock Jenny Odell describes _Saving Time_, her second book and the inspiration for her first Long Now...
14th Apr 2023
1

Jenny Odell: Saving Time: Discovering a Life Beyond the Clock

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

14th Apr 2023
Jenny Odell describes _Saving Time_, her second book and the inspiration for her first Long Now Talk, as a “panoramic assault on nihilism.” The particular nihilism that Odell confronts is rooted in what she calls “Clock Time.” While the rigid, regular progression of clock time...
The Real Risk of AI Artificial Intelligence (AI) is unavoidable. It’s now a part of our daily lives as it has been...
7th Jul 2025
38

The Real Risk of AI

from NeuroLogica Blog [alt+shift+b] in science

7th Jul 2025
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is unavoidable. It’s now a part of our daily lives as it has been steadily infiltrating the technology we use every day, whether you realize it or not. I remain somewhat in the middle in terms of the hype-to-technological-miracle spectrum. I don’t...
George Dyson, Freeman Dyson, & Esther Dyson: The Difficulty of Looking Far Ahead ### Finessing the future Instead of one podium there were four chairs on the stage of Wednesday's...
6th Oct 2005
1
6th Oct 2005
### Finessing the future Instead of one podium there were four chairs on the stage of Wednesday's seminar. In three seats, three Dysons: Esther, George and Freeman. They were appearing together on stage for the first time. The fourth held Stewart Brand who led the three through...
A Month In Northern Peru, Part 18: Wattled Curassows at Muyuna Lodge (February 26, 2024) February 26, 2024 As dawn broke, Laura, Moises and I slowly cruised along a quiet watercourse. The...
4th Apr 2025
52

A Month In Northern Peru, Part 18: Wattled Curassows at Muyuna Lodge (February 26, 2024)

from Explorations of an Ecologist [alt+shift+b] in science

4th Apr 2025
February 26, 2024 As dawn broke, Laura, Moises and I slowly cruised along a quiet watercourse. The dawn chorus was active and included species like Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl, Zimmer's Woodcreeper and Black-tailed Antbird, but I stayed focused on the treeline, hoping that a...
Social Status II: Cults and Loyalty So my previous post on social status was recently treated to a review/​critique by Scott Alexander...
2nd Nov 2015
37

Social Status II: Cults and Loyalty

from Melting Asphalt [alt+shift+b] in science

2nd Nov 2015
So my previous post on social status was recently treated to a review/​critique by Scott Alexander over at Slate Star Codex. I expect most of my readers are already big fans of Scott's blog (as am I). But for those… Read more ›
Where Geniuses Hide Today Where are today’s Michelangelos?
6th Dec 2024
49

Where Geniuses Hide Today

from Uncharted Territories [alt+shift+b] in science

6th Dec 2024
Where are today’s Michelangelos?
A Movie about a Galaxy Far, Far Away & Long, Long Ago (from Webb Telescope) Explains a new movie of distant galaxies and remote time from the Webb Telescope. The post A Movie...
19th Jul 2023
27

A Movie about a Galaxy Far, Far Away & Long, Long Ago (from Webb Telescope)

from Andrew Fraknoi – Astronomy Lectures – Astronomy Education Resources [alt+shift+b] in science

19th Jul 2023
Explains a new movie of distant galaxies and remote time from the Webb Telescope. The post A Movie about a Galaxy Far, Far Away & Long, Long Ago (from Webb Telescope) appeared first on Andrew Fraknoi - Astronomy Lectures - Astronomy Education Resources.
Rick Prelinger: Lost Landscapes of San Francisco ### Four Dimensional Cities Cities are designed and built in three dimensions. Watching...
20th Dec 2008
1

Rick Prelinger: Lost Landscapes of San Francisco

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

20th Dec 2008
### Four Dimensional Cities Cities are designed and built in three dimensions. Watching Prelinger's historic footage of San Francisco last night (to a more than overflowing crowd) reminds us however that one of the most compelling dimensions to a city is its fourth dimension -...
Adornment "Form follows function" is a maxim that an object's shape and appearance should be defined only by...
2nd Sep 2024
44

Adornment

from Tikalon Blog by Dev Gualtieri [alt+shift+b] in science

2nd Sep 2024
"Form follows function" is a maxim that an object's shape and appearance should be defined only by its purpose or function. A quick perusal of any antique shop will show that this maxim is generally ignored. Humans (Homo sapiens) have been called "naked apes," but we and our...
Euclid Space Telescope Delivers Great Images The first images are coming in from the new Euclid Space Telescope and they are spectacular. The...
8th Nov 2023
42

Euclid Space Telescope Delivers Great Images

from Andrew Fraknoi – Astronomy Lectures – Astronomy Education Resources [alt+shift+b] in science

8th Nov 2023
The first images are coming in from the new Euclid Space Telescope and they are spectacular. The post Euclid Space Telescope Delivers Great Images appeared first on Andrew Fraknoi - Astronomy Lectures - Astronomy Education Resources.
Chris D. Thomas: Are We Initiating The Great Anthropocene Speciation Event? The bad news (not news to most): Many wild species are under severe duress. The good news (total...
26th Jun 2018
1
26th Jun 2018
The bad news (not news to most): Many wild species are under severe duress. The good news (total news to most): “Nature is thriving in an age of extinction.” Ecologist and evolutionary biologist Chris Thomas has examined a little-noticed phenomenon around the world, that as an...
Progress for progressives I was invited to speak at the Festival of Progressive Abundance, a conference to rally around...
2nd Feb 2026
0

Progress for progressives

from The Roots of Progress [alt+shift+b] in science

2nd Feb 2026
I was invited to speak at the Festival of Progressive Abundance, a conference to rally around “abundance” as a new direction for the political left. This is a writeup of what I said: my message to the left. Thank you for having me—it’s great to be here. I’m the founder and...
The Boring Reason GDP is Inevitable GDP is a reviled metric, but it's highly correlated with everything we care about. I explain one...
17th Dec 2025
1

The Boring Reason GDP is Inevitable

from Cremieux Recueil [alt+shift+b] in science

17th Dec 2025
GDP is a reviled metric, but it's highly correlated with everything we care about. I explain one mathematical reason why.
Direct Current Data Centers Casey Handmer, Matt Weickert Originally posted at the Terraform Blog. This post explains our current...
30th Jan 2026
1

Direct Current Data Centers

from Casey Handmer's blog [alt+shift+b] in science

30th Jan 2026
Casey Handmer, Matt Weickert Originally posted at the Terraform Blog. This post explains our current views on how humanity will achieve Kardashev Level 1 status by exploiting the full energy resources of an entire planet. More specifically, how pure solar+batteries will power AI...
Fertility on demand Technology could allow women to have it all
1st May 2025
19

Fertility on demand

from The Works in Progress Newsletter [alt+shift+b] in science

1st May 2025
Technology could allow women to have it all
The Anticipated Future of the Moon When the Earth was young, shortly after the moon formed, our planet was spinning so fast that a day...
15th Feb 2021
31

The Anticipated Future of the Moon

from Damn Interesting [alt+shift+b] in science

15th Feb 2021
When the Earth was young, shortly after the moon formed, our planet was spinning so fast that a day was approximately five hours long. During the intervening billions of years, the dragging effect of the moon’s gravity slowed the Earth’s spin to the 24-hour day we now observe....
Australia will run an overt command economy by 2040 Australia’s Fiscal Point of No Return Last September I wrote about Australian economic stagnation —...
16th Apr 2026
1

Australia will run an overt command economy by 2040

from Casey Handmer's blog [alt+shift+b] in science

16th Apr 2026
Australia’s Fiscal Point of No Return Last September I wrote about Australian economic stagnation — how taxation past the Laffer curve’s point of peak growth, zero public sector productivity improvement since 2001, and the systematic eradication of manufacturing and ICT from the...
How To (Properly) Text Patients | Out-Of-Pocket Do’s and don’ts + tactical tips from an actual doctor
10th Apr 2024
81

How To (Properly) Text Patients | Out-Of-Pocket

from Out-of-Pocket Blog [alt+shift+b] in science

10th Apr 2024
Do’s and don’ts + tactical tips from an actual doctor
Niall Ferguson: Networks and Power “This time is different.” Historians: “Ha.” “The Net is net beneficial.” Historian Niall...
13th Dec 2018
1

Niall Ferguson: Networks and Power

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

13th Dec 2018
“This time is different.” Historians: “Ha.” “The Net is net beneficial.” Historian Niall Ferguson: “Globalization is in crisis. Populism is on the march. Authoritarian states are ascendant. Technology meanwhile marches inexorably ahead, threatening to render most human beings...
US Government UFO (UAP) Footage For decades, the public suspected that the US Government was hiding secret intelligence about UFOs —...
10th Feb 2025
72

US Government UFO (UAP) Footage

from Beautiful Public Data [alt+shift+b] in science

10th Feb 2025
For decades, the public suspected that the US Government was hiding secret intelligence about UFOs — (now known as UAPs). Turns out…it kind of was.
Mathematicians Tame Rogue Waves, Lighting Up Future of LEDs The mathematician Svitlana Mayboroda and collaborators have figured out how to predict the behavior...
1st Feb 2018
1

Mathematicians Tame Rogue Waves, Lighting Up Future of LEDs

from The Quanta Podcast [alt+shift+b] in science

1st Feb 2018
The mathematician Svitlana Mayboroda and collaborators have figured out how to predict the behavior of electrons — a mathematical discovery that could have immediate practical effects. The post Mathematicians Tame Rogue Waves, Lighting Up Future of LEDs first...
An Empty Product of Nonempty Sets A few days ago I saw a cute question on mse asking about a particularly non-intuitive failing of...
4th Jun 2025
43

An Empty Product of Nonempty Sets

from Chris Grossack's Blog [alt+shift+b] in science

4th Jun 2025
A few days ago I saw a cute question on mse asking about a particularly non-intuitive failing of the axiom of choice. I remember when I was an undergrad talking to a friend of mine about various statements equivalent to choice, and being particularly hung up on the same...
Weekend trivia: your process' memory is a file The underappreciated gem of /proc/ /mem
1st Jun 2026
1

Weekend trivia: your process' memory is a file

from lcamtuf’s thing [alt+shift+b] in science

1st Jun 2026
The underappreciated gem of /proc/ /mem
Ganging Up on Psychological Science Sometimes, the costs of doing good science outgrow the resources available to the individual...
31st Aug 2018
1

Ganging Up on Psychological Science

from Peder M. Isager [alt+shift+b] in science

31st Aug 2018
Sometimes, the costs of doing good science outgrow the resources available to the individual scientist. Large scale collaboration projects are quickly becoming our best tool for dealing with this problem in psychology.
A Month In Northern Peru, Part 8: Pale-billed Antpittas In The Elfin Forest (February 10, 2024) February 10, 2024 The Pale-billed Antpitta is a large, fancy-looking Grallaria antpitta only found...
8th Jun 2024
23

A Month In Northern Peru, Part 8: Pale-billed Antpittas In The Elfin Forest (February 10, 2024)

from Explorations of an Ecologist [alt+shift+b] in science

8th Jun 2024
February 10, 2024 The Pale-billed Antpitta is a large, fancy-looking Grallaria antpitta only found in the high Andes of northern Peru. Because of its proclivity towards dense forest with an abundance of bamboo, there are few places where this species can be easily found. These...
The Hidden Engineering of Liquid Dampers in Skyscrapers [Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.] There’s a new trend in...
1st Jul 2025
54

The Hidden Engineering of Liquid Dampers in Skyscrapers

from Blog - Practical Engineering [alt+shift+b] in science

1st Jul 2025
[Note that this article is a transcript of the video embedded above.] There’s a new trend in high-rise building design. Maybe you’ve seen this in your city. The best lots are all taken, so developers are stretching the limits to make use of space that isn’t always ideal for...
2023 Hottest Year on Record What everyone knew was coming is now official – 2023 was the warmest year on record. This means we...
2nd Jan 2024
50

2023 Hottest Year on Record

from NeuroLogica Blog [alt+shift+b] in science

2nd Jan 2024
What everyone knew was coming is now official – 2023 was the warmest year on record. This means we can also say that the last 10 years are the hottest decade on record. 2023 dethrones 2016 as the previous warmest year and bumps 2010 out of the top 10. Further, in the last half of...
Math’s ‘Bunkbed Conjecture’ Has Been Debunked It was intuitive, even obvious. It was also wrong. The post Math’s ‘Bunkbed Conjecture’...
1st Nov 2024
124

Math’s ‘Bunkbed Conjecture’ Has Been Debunked

from Quanta Magazine [alt+shift+b] in science

1st Nov 2024
It was intuitive, even obvious. It was also wrong. The post Math’s ‘Bunkbed Conjecture’ Has Been Debunked first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Don’t compete The Internet is full of people winning all the time. Someone is traveling to exotic locations,...
22nd Mar 2025
80

Don’t compete

from Inverted Passion [alt+shift+b] in science

22nd Mar 2025
The Internet is full of people winning all the time. Someone is traveling to exotic locations, someone else is raising funds, and another person is winning awards. Essentially, everyone around you is succeeding while you do spend your days as the nature intended – sleeping,...
Cursed circuits #5: capacitance multiplier Capacitor vendors don't want you to know this! Save money on capacitors by spending more on other...
5th Jul 2026
1

Cursed circuits #5: capacitance multiplier

from lcamtuf’s thing [alt+shift+b] in science

5th Jul 2026
Capacitor vendors don't want you to know this! Save money on capacitors by spending more on other components
Marmosets Call Each Other By Name Humans identify and call each other by specific names. So far this advanced cognitive behavior has...
3rd Sep 2024
80

Marmosets Call Each Other By Name

from NeuroLogica Blog [alt+shift+b] in science

3rd Sep 2024
Humans identify and call each other by specific names. So far this advanced cognitive behavior has only been identified in a few other species, dolphins, elephants, and some parrots. Interestingly, it has never been documented in our closest relatives, non-human primates – that...
Brief items - Static electricity, quantum geometry, Hubbard model, + news It's been a busy time that has cut into my blogging, but I wanted to point out some links from the...
8th Aug 2025
1

Brief items - Static electricity, quantum geometry, Hubbard model, + news

from nanoscale views [alt+shift+b] in science

8th Aug 2025
It's been a busy time that has cut into my blogging, but I wanted to point out some links from the past couple of weeks. Physics Today has a cover article this past issue about what is colloquially known as static electricity, but what is more technically described as...
Caves on Mars Recently, in social media posts, Dr. Pascal Lee of the SETI Institute discussed the intriguing caves...
24th Nov 2024
85

Caves on Mars

from Andrew Fraknoi – Astronomy Lectures – Astronomy Education Resources [alt+shift+b] in science

24th Nov 2024
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...
Do We Have Free Will? Let’s dive head first into one of the internet’s most contentious questions – do we have true free...
1st Dec 2023
32

Do We Have Free Will?

from NeuroLogica Blog [alt+shift+b] in science

1st Dec 2023
Let’s dive head first into one of the internet’s most contentious questions – do we have true free will? This comes up not infrequently whenever I write here about neuroscience, most recently when I wrote about hunger circuitry, because the notion of the brain as a physical...
Canada vs the 51st State How can Canada fight against an aggressive US?
7th May 2025
57

Canada vs the 51st State

from Uncharted Territories [alt+shift+b] in science

7th May 2025
How can Canada fight against an aggressive US?
Stephen Pyne: Fire Slow, Fire Fast, Fire Deep ### Ecological wildfire “We are uniquely fire creatures,” Pyne began, “on a uniquely fire planet.”...
10th Feb 2016
1

Stephen Pyne: Fire Slow, Fire Fast, Fire Deep

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

10th Feb 2016
### Ecological wildfire “We are uniquely fire creatures,” Pyne began, “on a uniquely fire planet.” Life itself is a form of slow metabolic combustion—which eventually created oxygen and burnable vegetation that allowed fast combustion, ignited by lightning. Humans came along and...
Daniel Janzen: Third World Conservation: It's ALL Gardening ### Mega gardening Big as life and twice as opinionated, the renowned preservation biologist Daniel...
10th Apr 2004
1

Daniel Janzen: Third World Conservation: It's ALL Gardening

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

10th Apr 2004
### Mega gardening Big as life and twice as opinionated, the renowned preservation biologist Daniel Janzen spoke for The Long Now on Friday, April 9, 2005. His perspective on preservation may be jarring to some: "It's ALL Gardening". Dan Janzen is most widely known for his...
Danny Hillis: Progress on the 10,000-year Clock "How's the Clock coming?" Everyone connected with The Long Now Foundation or with Danny Hillis hears...
11th Sep 2004
1

Danny Hillis: Progress on the 10,000-year Clock

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

11th Sep 2004
"How's the Clock coming?" Everyone connected with The Long Now Foundation or with Danny Hillis hears that question all the time. "Progress on the 10,000-Year Clock," Danny Hillis -- Friday, September 10, 7pm, Fort Mason Conference Center, San Francisco. Doors open for coffee and...
A Fully Renewable Grid? My long-stated position (although certainly modifiable in the face of any new evidence,...
2nd Feb 2026
0

A Fully Renewable Grid?

from NeuroLogica Blog [alt+shift+b] in science

2nd Feb 2026
My long-stated position (although certainly modifiable in the face of any new evidence, technological advance, or good arguments) is that the optimal pathway to most rapidly decarbonize our electrical infrastructure is to pursue all low-carbon options. I have not heard anything...
The Soul of the Heart Nebula A spectacular emission Nebula, the Heart Nebula is one of the classics of Northern Hemisphere...
5th Nov 2022
57

The Soul of the Heart Nebula

from Light from Space [alt+shift+b] in science

5th Nov 2022
A spectacular emission Nebula, the Heart Nebula is one of the classics of Northern Hemisphere amateury astronomy. In the gallery below, I've highlighted 3 very different areas of the image: Left: Planetary Nebula WeBo-1 Middle: Melotte 15 in the... heart of the Heart...
Landmark Algorithm Breaks 30-Year Impasse Computer scientists are abuzz over a fast new algorithm for solving one of the central problems in...
14th Jan 2016
1

Landmark Algorithm Breaks 30-Year Impasse

from The Quanta Podcast [alt+shift+b] in science

14th Jan 2016
Computer scientists are abuzz over a fast new algorithm for solving one of the central problems in the field. The post Landmark Algorithm Breaks 30-Year Impasse first appeared on Quanta Magazine
The Perplexing Appeal of <i>The Telepathy Tapes</i> The Telepathy Tapes claims that autistic children have the ability to read minds. Where do their...
6th Nov 2025
1

The Perplexing Appeal of <i>The Telepathy Tapes</i>

from Asterisk [alt+shift+b] in science

6th Nov 2025
The Telepathy Tapes claims that autistic children have the ability to read minds. Where do their claims come from — and why do so many people believe them?
Raoul Adamchak & Pamela Ronald: Organically Grown and Genetically Engineered: The Food of the Future ### Engineered organic Organic farming teacher Raoul began the joint presentation with a checklist...
29th Jul 2009
1
29th Jul 2009
### Engineered organic Organic farming teacher Raoul began the joint presentation with a checklist for truly sustainable agriculture in a global context. It must: Provide abundant safe and nutritious food…. Reduce environmentally harmful inputs…. Reduce energy use and...
The Hidden Magnetic Universe Begins to Come Into View Astronomers are discovering that magnetic fields permeate much of the cosmos. If these fields date...
3rd Dec 2020
1

The Hidden Magnetic Universe Begins to Come Into View

from The Quanta Podcast [alt+shift+b] in science

3rd Dec 2020
Astronomers are discovering that magnetic fields permeate much of the cosmos. If these fields date back to the Big Bang, they could solve a major cosmological mystery. The post The Hidden Magnetic Universe Begins to Come Into View first appeared on Quanta Magazine
How to tame a complex system I get a lot of pushback to the idea that humanity can “master” nature. Nature is a complex system, I...
6th Jan 2026
1

How to tame a complex system

from The Roots of Progress [alt+shift+b] in science

6th Jan 2026
I get a lot of pushback to the idea that humanity can “master” nature. Nature is a complex system, I am told, and therefore unpredictable, uncontrollable, unruly. I think this is true but irrelevant. Consider the weather, a prime example of a complex system. We can predict the...
23 lessons you will learn living in a very snowy place 6. Snow is heavier than you think. You might think physical strength is useful for lots of things,...
22nd Jan 2026
5

23 lessons you will learn living in a very snowy place

from Eukaryote Writes Blog [alt+shift+b] in science

22nd Jan 2026
6. Snow is heavier than you think. You might think physical strength is useful for lots of things, like overall health or familiar household tasks or picking up dudes (literally or metaphorically.) But actually, the main thing physical strength is useful for is letting you...
Tracing the Hidden Hand of Magnetism in the Galaxy Susan Clark is helping to unravel the mysterious workings of the Milky Way’s magnetic field, a...
1st Jul 2024
102

Tracing the Hidden Hand of Magnetism in the Galaxy

from Quanta Magazine [alt+shift+b] in science

1st Jul 2024
Susan Clark is helping to unravel the mysterious workings of the Milky Way’s magnetic field, a critical missing piece of the galactic puzzle. The post Tracing the Hidden Hand of Magnetism in the Galaxy first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Winter Solstice Arrives on Sunday Dec 21 Dec. 21 is the winter solstice. We explain what this means and how the seasons come about. The post...
19th Dec 2025
1

Winter Solstice Arrives on Sunday Dec 21

from Andrew Fraknoi – Astronomy Lectures – Astronomy Education Resources [alt+shift+b] in science

19th Dec 2025
Dec. 21 is the winter solstice. We explain what this means and how the seasons come about. The post Winter Solstice Arrives on Sunday Dec 21 appeared first on Andrew Fraknoi - Astronomy Lectures - Astronomy Education Resources.
Why does correlation not equal causation? In this blog post I will explain why it makes sense to think about causal explanations when we see...
24th Nov 2023
1

Why does correlation not equal causation?

from Peder M. Isager [alt+shift+b] in science

24th Nov 2023
In this blog post I will explain why it makes sense to think about causal explanations when we see correlation, why correlation does not always imply causation, and which alternative causal models to consider when you are trying to figure out why two variables in your data are...
When RAND Made Magic in Santa Monica RAND’s halcyon days lasted two decades, during which the corporation produced some of the most...
1st Jun 2024
27

When RAND Made Magic in Santa Monica

from Asterisk [alt+shift+b] in science

1st Jun 2024
RAND’s halcyon days lasted two decades, during which the corporation produced some of the most influential developments in science and American foreign policy. So how did it become just another think tank?
Brightest-Ever Space Explosion Reveals Possible Hints of Dark Matter A recent gamma-ray burst known as the BOAT — “brightest of all time” — appears to have produced a...
1st Mar 2023
1

Brightest-Ever Space Explosion Reveals Possible Hints of Dark Matter

from The Quanta Podcast [alt+shift+b] in science

1st Mar 2023
A recent gamma-ray burst known as the BOAT — “brightest of all time” — appears to have produced a high-energy particle that shouldn’t exist. For some, dark matter provides the explanation. Read more at QuantaMagazine.org. Music is “Pulse” by Geographer.
Engineering beneath the ice sheet Living in Greenland, deploying electronic beacons deep beneath the ice.
25th Nov 2024
59

Engineering beneath the ice sheet

from Interaction Magic - George Cave [alt+shift+b] in science

25th Nov 2024
Living in Greenland, deploying electronic beacons deep beneath the ice.
Was Jesus a Con Artist? Let me start out by saying that I think the answer to that question is no – but this requires lots...
1st Aug 2024
90

Was Jesus a Con Artist?

from NeuroLogica Blog [alt+shift+b] in science

1st Aug 2024
Let me start out by saying that I think the answer to that question is no – but this requires lots of clarification. This was, however, the discussion here, while although poorly informed, does raise some interesting questions. This is a Tik Tok video of a popular podcast which...
Book Club: ‘The Island of Sea Women’ by Lisa See Little is known about Jeju- a Korean island- occupied by brutal Japanese troops in the 1930s and...
1st Sep 2021
60

Book Club: ‘The Island of Sea Women’ by Lisa See

from Marine Madness [alt+shift+b] in science

1st Sep 2021
Little is known about Jeju- a Korean island- occupied by brutal Japanese troops in the 1930s and ’40s, later liberated by US forces and turned over to the even more barbarous Korean regime whose wrongdoings were overlooked by both American and U.N. occupiers. Lisa See travels...
Juvenile settlement in Black-tailed Godwits Adult waders tend to be exceptionally consistent in their use of time and space, with marked...
12th Sep 2024
103

Juvenile settlement in Black-tailed Godwits

from wadertales [alt+shift+b] in science

12th Sep 2024
Adult waders tend to be exceptionally consistent in their use of time and space, with marked individuals turning up on the same estuaries at the same time year after year, as discussed in the Whimbrel blog ‘Whimbrel: time to leave’. How do these patterns become established? Do...
Your Allergies Are Probably Fake You might be avoiding medications that don't do anything to you
4th Feb 2026
2

Your Allergies Are Probably Fake

from Cremieux Recueil [alt+shift+b] in science

4th Feb 2026
You might be avoiding medications that don't do anything to you
1
14th Mar 2017
## Doing Good Better [![](https://media.longnow.org/files/2/lomborghaiti520w.jpg)](https://media.longnow.org/files/2/lomborghaiti.jpg) **Lomborg opened with a photo from Haiti** , showing a young girl dressed for school wading through the muck and garbage of a slum, with pigs...
Paul Hawken: The New Great Transformation ### Humanity's immune system The title of Paul Hawken's talk, "The New Great Transformation," has...
9th Jun 2007
1

Paul Hawken: The New Great Transformation

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

9th Jun 2007
### Humanity's immune system The title of Paul Hawken's talk, "The New Great Transformation," has two referents, he explained. Economist Karl Polanyi's 1944 book, _The Great Transformation_ , said that the "market society" and modern nation state emerged together in Europe after...
Do AI Models Agree On How They Encode Reality? In the allegory of Plato’s cave, prisoners see the world only through shadows. Extending this...
3rd Feb 2026
1

Do AI Models Agree On How They Encode Reality?

from The Quanta Podcast [alt+shift+b] in science

3rd Feb 2026
In the allegory of Plato’s cave, prisoners see the world only through shadows. Extending this metaphor to AI, AI models are the prisoners and the shadows are streams of data. Are all models converging on a singular representation of reality? On this week’s episode of The Quanta...
Sylvia Earle & Tierney Thys: Oceanic ### Oceans alive Neither of them eats fish. Both marine biologists applaud the improved regulation...
21st May 2014
1

Sylvia Earle & Tierney Thys: Oceanic

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

21st May 2014
### Oceans alive Neither of them eats fish. Both marine biologists applaud the improved regulation of American fishing and the resulting recovery of important fisheries, but they note that 90% of our seafood is imported, and one-third of that is caught illegally. Two-thirds of...
Physicists Find a Way to See the ‘Grin’ of Quantum Gravity A recently proposed experiment would confirm that gravity is a quantum force. The post...
6th Dec 2018
1

Physicists Find a Way to See the ‘Grin’ of Quantum Gravity

from The Quanta Podcast [alt+shift+b] in science

6th Dec 2018
A recently proposed experiment would confirm that gravity is a quantum force. The post Physicists Find a Way to See the ‘Grin’ of Quantum Gravity first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Trust and Well-Being In a previous article, I claimed that Young adults are not very happy. Now the World Happiness...
3rd Apr 2026
1

Trust and Well-Being

from Probably Overthinking It [alt+shift+b] in science

3rd Apr 2026
In a previous article, I claimed that Young adults are not very happy. Now the World Happiness Report 2026 has confirmed that young people in North America and Western Europe are less happy than they were fifteen years ago, and less happy than previous generations. In this...
Sam Harris: The View from the End of the World ### On necessary heresy With gentle demeanor and tight argument, Sam Harris carried an overflow...
10th Dec 2005
1

Sam Harris: The View from the End of the World

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

10th Dec 2005
### On necessary heresy With gentle demeanor and tight argument, Sam Harris carried an overflow audience into the core of one of the crucial issues of our time: What makes some religions lethal? How do they employ aggressive irrationality to justify threatening and controlling...
It is our responsibility to develop a healthy relationship with our technology Many technologies can be used in both healthy and unhealthy ways. You can indulge in food to the...
6th Nov 2025
1

It is our responsibility to develop a healthy relationship with our technology

from The Roots of Progress [alt+shift+b] in science

6th Nov 2025
Many technologies can be used in both healthy and unhealthy ways. You can indulge in food to the point of obesity, or even make it the subject of anxiety. Media can keep us informed, but it can also steal our focus and drain our energy, especially social media. AI can help...
Why Japan has such good railways Japan’s railways are the finest in the world. Other countries can copy its formula.
7th Apr 2026
1

Why Japan has such good railways

from Works in Progress RSS Feed [alt+shift+b] in science

7th Apr 2026
Japan’s railways are the finest in the world. Other countries can copy its formula.
Silicon Valley’s Gold Rush Roots Silicon Valley, purveyor of disruptive technologies, likes to think of itself as sui generis. But...
1st Apr 2024
25

Silicon Valley’s Gold Rush Roots

from Asterisk [alt+shift+b] in science

1st Apr 2024
Silicon Valley, purveyor of disruptive technologies, likes to think of itself as sui generis. But there’s a clear line from tech’s knowledge economy to the Bay Area’s first economy: gold mining.
Maya Tudor: Can Nationalism be a Resource for Democracy? A political scientist examines how foundational nationalisms affect democracy globally, using...
6th May 2019
1

Maya Tudor: Can Nationalism be a Resource for Democracy?

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

6th May 2019
A political scientist examines how foundational nationalisms affect democracy globally, using countries like India and Myanmar to illustrate that some kinds of nationalism can be an essential resource for protecting democracy. Maya Tudor is a comparative political scientist...
4th Nov 2025
13

Readers from Canada, Australia and the EU can now subscribe to Works in Progress

from The Works in Progress Newsletter [alt+shift+b] in science

4th Nov 2025
Our first print edition ships in two weeks.
Mo’ heights mo’ challenges – Climbing mount grad school My wife’s love of mountain hiking and my interest in quantum thermodynamics collided in Telluride,...
4th Oct 2022
56

Mo’ heights mo’ challenges – Climbing mount grad school

from Quantum Frontiers [alt+shift+b] in science

4th Oct 2022
My wife’s love of mountain hiking and my interest in quantum thermodynamics collided in Telluride, Colorado. We spent ten days in Telluride, where I spoke at the Information Engines at the Frontiers of Nanoscale Thermodynamics workshop. Telluride is a gorgeous … Continue reading...
Machines for living in Buildings are not just art – they are the places people live in, work in, and experience every day....
5th Dec 2024
1

Machines for living in

from Works in Progress RSS Feed [alt+shift+b] in science

5th Dec 2024
Buildings are not just art – they are the places people live in, work in, and experience every day. True functionalism combines utility and beauty for the people who use it most.
Did photos of the 1917 Miracle of the Sun at Fatima prove the sun was at an impossible place in the... I do agree that if these photos showed that the sun was at an odd angle, that would be evidence for...
1st Oct 2025
24
1st Oct 2025
I do agree that if these photos showed that the sun was at an odd angle, that would be evidence for a miracle. But I read Dalleur (2021) and I’m really not sold that the photos indicate anything celestially weird going on.
NTER: Nuclear Thermal-Electric Rocket There is a type of nuclear propulsion that can have most of the acceleration of a nuclear thermal...
27th Sep 2019
1

NTER: Nuclear Thermal-Electric Rocket

from ToughSF [alt+shift+b] in science

27th Sep 2019
There is a type of nuclear propulsion that can have most of the acceleration of a nuclear thermal rocket but also the high Isp of an electric thruster.  Let’s have a look at nuclear ‘thermal-electric’ engines and their advantages. The title image is from 'dV: Rings of...
Drew Endy: The iGEM Revolution ## Massively collaborative synthetic biology Natural genomes are nearly impossible to figure out,...
17th Sep 2014
1

Drew Endy: The iGEM Revolution

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

17th Sep 2014
## Massively collaborative synthetic biology Natural genomes are nearly impossible to figure out, Endy began, because they were evolved, not designed. Everything is context dependent, tangled, and often unique. So most biotech efforts become herculean. It cost $25 million to...
Getting things done by not trying I recently finished a very short book with an intriguing title: Why Greatness Cannot be Planned....
20th Oct 2024
133

Getting things done by not trying

from Inverted Passion [alt+shift+b] in science

20th Oct 2024
I recently finished a very short book with an intriguing title: Why Greatness Cannot be Planned. It’s an unconventional self-help book disguised as a computer science research exposition (that’s why the publisher is Springer). I strongly recommend reading it. Here is a taste of...
My favorite rocket scientist Whenever someone protests, “I’m not a rocket scientist,” I think of my friend Jamie Rankin. Jamie is...
8th Jul 2024
113

My favorite rocket scientist

from Quantum Frontiers [alt+shift+b] in science

8th Jul 2024
Whenever someone protests, “I’m not a rocket scientist,” I think of my friend Jamie Rankin. Jamie is a researcher at Princeton University, and she showed me her lab this June. When I first met Jamie, she was testing instruments to … Continue reading →
Marine Ecology or Marine Biology….what’s the difference!?!?!? A few of you may be wondering why the blog is called ‘Confessions of a Marine Ecologist” and not...
22nd Jan 2013
60

Marine Ecology or Marine Biology….what’s the difference!?!?!?

from Confessions of a Marine Ecologist [alt+shift+b] in science

22nd Jan 2013
A few of you may be wondering why the blog is called ‘Confessions of a Marine Ecologist” and not ‘Confessions of a Marine Biologist”.  After all, if you ask a group of school kids what they want to be when they grow up, more than a handful would happily answer “marine biologist”,...
Dark Matter Recipe Calls for One Part Superfluid A different kind of dark matter could help to resolve an old celestial conundrum. The...
25th Aug 2017
1

Dark Matter Recipe Calls for One Part Superfluid

from The Quanta Podcast [alt+shift+b] in science

25th Aug 2017
A different kind of dark matter could help to resolve an old celestial conundrum. The post Dark Matter Recipe Calls for One Part Superfluid first appeared on Quanta Magazine
Hypervelocity Tether Rockets Rotating tethers can reach incredible velocities when they are built out of high strength materials....
10th Oct 2022
1

Hypervelocity Tether Rockets

from ToughSF [alt+shift+b] in science

10th Oct 2022
Rotating tethers can reach incredible velocities when they are built out of high strength materials. With some design features, they can greatly surpass the exhaust velocities of chemical or even nuclear rockets. They can become propulsion systems with impressive performance......
Mechanical Watch In the world of modern portable devices, it may be hard to believe that merely a few decades ago the...
4th May 2022
76

Mechanical Watch

from Bartosz Ciechanowski [alt+shift+b] in science

4th May 2022
In the world of modern portable devices, it may be hard to believe that merely a few decades ago the most convenient way to keep track of time was a mechanical watch. Unlike their quartz and smart siblings, mechanical watches can run without using any batteries or other...
Sound Invisible and relentless, sound is seemingly just there, traveling through our surroundings to carry...
18th Oct 2022
73

Sound

from Bartosz Ciechanowski [alt+shift+b] in science

18th Oct 2022
Invisible and relentless, sound is seemingly just there, traveling through our surroundings to carry beautiful music or annoying noises. In this article I’ll explain what sound is, how it’s created and propagated. Throughout this presentation you will be hearing different sounds,...
Saul Griffith: Infrastructure and Climate Change ## Green infrastructure Griffith began with an eyeroll at the first round of responses in the US...
22nd Sep 2015
1

Saul Griffith: Infrastructure and Climate Change

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

22nd Sep 2015
## Green infrastructure Griffith began with an eyeroll at the first round of responses in the US to reducing greenhouse gases, a program he calls “peak Al Gore.” Some activities feel virtuous —becoming vegetarian, installing LED lights, avoiding bottled water, reading news...
Tim O'Reilly: Birth of the Global Mind ### The global mind is us, augmented As a student of the classics at Harvard in the 1970s, O’Reilly...
6th Sep 2012
1

Tim O'Reilly: Birth of the Global Mind

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

6th Sep 2012
### The global mind is us, augmented As a student of the classics at Harvard in the 1970s, O’Reilly was impressed by a book titled _The Discovery of the Mind: In Greek Philosophy and Literature_ , by Bruno Snell. In the four centuries between Homer and classical Athens, wrote...
Sea Monkeys, Jupiter, and the Mystery of Turbulence Turbulence is all around us: bumping our planes, roiling our rivers, swirling milk into our coffee....
2 weeks ago
2

Sea Monkeys, Jupiter, and the Mystery of Turbulence

from The Quanta Podcast [alt+shift+b] in science

2 weeks ago
Turbulence is all around us: bumping our planes, roiling our rivers, swirling milk into our coffee. These systems quickly become extremely chaotic and complex. On this episode of The Quanta Podcast, host Samir Patel speaks with contributing writer Stephen Ornes about a recent...
Will Wright & Brian Eno: Playing with Time ### Generative play In a dazzling duet Will Wright and Brian Eno gave an intense clinic on the joys...
27th Jun 2006
1

Will Wright & Brian Eno: Playing with Time

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

27th Jun 2006
### Generative play In a dazzling duet Will Wright and Brian Eno gave an intense clinic on the joys and techniques of "generative" creation. Back in the 1970s both speakers got hooked by cellular automata such as Conway's "Game of Life," where just a few simple rules could...
what's happened since the human genome project When the human genome project was deemed “complete” in 2003, it was met with incredible fanfare. The...
17th May 2022
33

what's happened since the human genome project

from Apoorva Srinivasan [alt+shift+b] in science

17th May 2022
When the human genome project was deemed “complete” in 2003, it was met with incredible fanfare. The entire project leading up to that moment had all the drama to keep its audience enthralled. Fierce rivalry between a public and private institution, multiple countries involved,...
Why AI agents aren’t adopted widely Hint: managing someone is actually hard, and most times not worth it. Most people don’t use AI...
5th Aug 2026
1

Why AI agents aren’t adopted widely

from Inverted Passion [alt+shift+b] in science

5th Aug 2026
Hint: managing someone is actually hard, and most times not worth it. Most people don’t use AI agents daily because delegation (to another human) is a learned skill. Using AI agents is actually a lot like doing natural language programming: specifying requirements, verifying...
John Rendon: Long-term Policy to Make the War on Terror Short ### Only connect John Rendon, head of The Rendon Group, is a senior communications consultant to...
15th Jul 2006
1

John Rendon: Long-term Policy to Make the War on Terror Short

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

15th Jul 2006
### Only connect John Rendon, head of The Rendon Group, is a senior communications consultant to the White Houses and Departments of Defense. His subject in this talk is how to replace tactical, reactive response to terror with long-term strategic initative. I think that people...
Daniel Kahneman: Thinking Fast and Slow ### On taking thought Before a packed house, Kahneman began with the distinction between what he...
14th Aug 2013
1

Daniel Kahneman: Thinking Fast and Slow

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

14th Aug 2013
### On taking thought Before a packed house, Kahneman began with the distinction between what he calls mental “System 1”---fast thinking, intuition---and “System 2”---slow thinking, careful consideration and calculation. System 1 operates on the illusory principle: _What you see...
Mapping the Sea Floor USGS research vessels equipped with cameras, sonar and scanners created a map of 125 square miles of...
29th Dec 2022
87

Mapping the Sea Floor

from Beautiful Public Data [alt+shift+b] in science

29th Dec 2022
USGS research vessels equipped with cameras, sonar and scanners created a map of 125 square miles of the sea floor off Cape Ann, MA.
3rd Oct 2025
28

Google x Out-Of-Pocket!! | Out-Of-Pocket

from Out-of-Pocket Blog [alt+shift+b] in science

3rd Oct 2025
Plus other fun updates
Government Comic Books Government comics have taught Americans how to prevent forest fires, survive a nuclear blast, and...
27th Nov 2023
66

Government Comic Books

from Beautiful Public Data [alt+shift+b] in science

27th Nov 2023
Government comics have taught Americans how to prevent forest fires, survive a nuclear blast, and how soldiers should handle homosexuality in the military.
Common healthcare questions I get | Out-Of-Pocket Some of your FAQs finally answered
4th Dec 2024
88

Common healthcare questions I get | Out-Of-Pocket

from Out-of-Pocket Blog [alt+shift+b] in science

4th Dec 2024
Some of your FAQs finally answered
1,000 Photos of Dolphin Fins Scars, scratches and wounds abound in these photos as encounters with unknown creatures and boat...
10th Apr 2023
157

1,000 Photos of Dolphin Fins

from Beautiful Public Data [alt+shift+b] in science

10th Apr 2023
Scars, scratches and wounds abound in these photos as encounters with unknown creatures and boat propellers leave their marks, imprinting a story of close escapes and cheating death.
Martin Rees: Life's Future in the Cosmos ### Cosmic Life The pace of astronomic discovery, said the Astronomer Royal, keeps increasing with...
3rd Aug 2010
1

Martin Rees: Life's Future in the Cosmos

from Long Now [alt+shift+b] in science

3rd Aug 2010
### Cosmic Life The pace of astronomic discovery, said the Astronomer Royal, keeps increasing with the constant improvement in our sensing technology. The recent discovery of the accelerating expansion of the universe (dark energy) revolutionized cosmology, and with the launch...
A Whimbrel’s year There’s a lot to fit into twelve months if you’re a Whimbrel. In the last paper from his PhD, Camilo...
22nd Sep 2022
65

A Whimbrel’s year

from wadertales [alt+shift+b] in science

22nd Sep 2022
There’s a lot to fit into twelve months if you’re a Whimbrel. In the last paper from his PhD, Camilo Carneiro assesses whether Icelandic Whimbrel can always manage to complete the annual cycle of migrate-breed-fatten-migrate-moult-fatten in just 365 days. What happens if a pair...
Career Development Guide for Job Seekers Context October 2025: With the government shut down and NASA JPL business in apparent terminal...
3rd Oct 2025
1

Career Development Guide for Job Seekers

from Casey Handmer's blog [alt+shift+b] in science

3rd Oct 2025
Context October 2025: With the government shut down and NASA JPL business in apparent terminal decline, I have received numerous inbounds from former colleagues and friends asking for advice in post-NASA career development. At the same time, in my day job running Terraform...
Weird health insurance concepts | Out-Of-Pocket Intercompany eliminations, copay shenanigans, and reference-based pricing
6th Nov 2024
69

Weird health insurance concepts | Out-Of-Pocket

from Out-of-Pocket Blog [alt+shift+b] in science

6th Nov 2024
Intercompany eliminations, copay shenanigans, and reference-based pricing
A look at Britain’s new DARPA ARIA is the UK’s visionary new scientific funding body. It has £800m and the freedom to make big...
10th Feb 2023
1

A look at Britain’s new DARPA

from Works in Progress RSS Feed [alt+shift+b] in science

10th Feb 2023
ARIA is the UK’s visionary new scientific funding body. It has £800m and the freedom to make big bold bets on the scientific trajectories it thinks will benefit Britain – and change the future. We interviewed chief executive Ilan Gur and chairman Matt Clifford, to better...
Bayesian Decision Analysis At PyData Global 2025 I presented a workshop on Bayesian Decision Analysis with PyMC. The video is...
9th Jan 2026
1

Bayesian Decision Analysis

from Probably Overthinking It [alt+shift+b] in science

9th Jan 2026
At PyData Global 2025 I presented a workshop on Bayesian Decision Analysis with PyMC. The video is available now. This workshop is based on the first session of the Applied Bayesian Modeling Workshop I teach along with my colleagues at PyMC Labs. If you would like to learn more,...
Sunset Hunkering down for the winter!
9th Apr 2023
66

Sunset

from brr [alt+shift+b] in science

9th Apr 2023
Hunkering down for the winter!
2 weeks ago
1

A weird corner of healthcare: indemnity insurance | Out-Of-Pocket

from Out-of-Pocket Blog [alt+shift+b] in science

2 weeks ago
the economics are especially interesting
niceR code with functional programming At the end of this blog post, you will be able to: Describe functional programming concepts Write...
15th Oct 2020
34

niceR code with functional programming

from Apoorva Srinivasan [alt+shift+b] in science

15th Oct 2020
At the end of this blog post, you will be able to: Describe functional programming concepts Write functional programming code using purrr package in R If you are anything like me, you probably focused primarily on learning statistics, machine learning and programming on a...
The physicists of Florence A scientist in Florence can’t avoid bumping into colleagues.  When visiting the Renaissance’s...
29th Jun 2026
2

The physicists of Florence

from Quantum Frontiers [alt+shift+b] in science

29th Jun 2026
A scientist in Florence can’t avoid bumping into colleagues.  When visiting the Renaissance’s birthplace last summer, I ran into a fellow physicist even on a Saturday morning. I was wandering around the Uffizi Gallery, a museum blessed with some of … Continue reading →
A Month In Northern Peru, Part 15: More From Explorama Lodge (February 20 - 21, 2024) February 20, 2024 A Great Potoo was the first bird I heard this morning shortly after my alarm went...
1st Feb 2025
49

A Month In Northern Peru, Part 15: More From Explorama Lodge (February 20 - 21, 2024)

from Explorations of an Ecologist [alt+shift+b] in science

1st Feb 2025
February 20, 2024 A Great Potoo was the first bird I heard this morning shortly after my alarm went off at 5:00 AM. It was going to be a good day.  At dinner the previous night Luis, Laura and I had come up with a plan for our full day at Explorama Lodge. We would begin by taking...
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