Pretty deep. But actually, not as deep as I thought. There are lots of trenches that are much deeper.
Category Archives: General Science
Get Him Some Cleats
OK, not that it’s anything new, but Superman would seem to be defying him some physics here. You know, that basic Newton’s law thing?
Martin Gardner
RIP. I hadn’t realized that he’d retired so long ago.
[Update a few minutes later]
Some personal memories from John Derbyshire.
The Cambrian Die Off
…may not have happened. I regret not seeing the Burgess Shale when I was up in British Columbia twenty years ago. I don’t know if/when I’ll get back.
A Scientific Experiment
I can conclude, based on two samples, that cats don’t like refried beans.
This is actually good news, since at least one of them sleeps on a pillow by my head.
Where Is The Outrage?
Suppose that, a week before the Congress voted on whether or not to authorize military force, a document had been generated that showed there were no WMD in Iraq. Suppose further that it was reported that the Pentagon had sat on it, and not released it until weeks after the vote. And when asked why, the explanation was “we didn’t want to influence the vote.” Then, a Pentagon official comes out and denies that it was deliberately withheld, though the record clearly shows that the information was known by the defense secretary prior to the vote.
Imagine the howls from the Democrats and the press, and calls for firings and impeachment, and demands for a new vote.
Substitute health care reform for Iraq, HHS for Pentagon, and “will cost much more than advertised” for “no WMD,” and that’s exactly what has happened.
[crickets chirping…]
RNA Bootstrapping
Here’s an interesting theory that contributes to abiogenesis.
Animals
Pretty cool. What does this say about prospects for extraterrestrial life?
Ice Sculptures
Natural ones. Some very beautiful nature photography.
Human Ancestry
Gets more complicated. A very interesting article by Alan Boyle, on whether there were other Homos around besides Sapiens and Neanderthalensis.