The term 'ethnobotany' was first applied by Harshberger in 1895 to the study of plants used by primitive and aboriginal people.  The term is not new even to India, Kirtikar and Basu (1935)…

Eugenics, once discredited as part of the first wave of social authoritarian progressives that trampled free will for women, handicapped people and minorities, is attempting a 21st century comeback.…

Script stuff.

The only instrument that we have to achieve a comprehension of the environment and our selves as a part of it, is the prefrontal cortex.  The frontal lobes give us the voluntary movement, the…

When you think of modern conservation groups, you probably think of fundraising campaigns designed to scare people into giving money. They latch onto the latest doomsday cause, whether it has a…

Looking at suchlike: Can somebody explain "Black Friday" in scientifically satisfying ways (read: leave your party book out of it)?  What is this seemingly dramatic drop in prices that is…

"[...] Given the fact that the nil hypothesis is always false, the rate of Type-I errors is 0%, not 5%, and [...] only Type-II errors can be made, which run typically at about 50% [...] [T]ypically,…

I present you my personal view on the hierarchy of objects that occur in nature. I only treat the lowest levels. A-- The lowest level is space that is formed by the number system of the RATIONAL…

Gene Expression?–What is a Gene? A gene codes for a homogeneous ‘functional unit’ – classically a protein, or rRNA, tRNA (other RNAs are emerging). The DNA sequence defines the gene, along with…

What big trends can you expect to take hold in 2013?  THE WIRED WORLD IN 2013 is a new annual trend report that covers a broad range of topics across eight sections; from science to arts,…

Today I feel as American as I've ever felt. I've lived there for a while, and of course as a foreigner I have many things I love and many I hate about this remarkable country. But today, Americans…

    Pancreas is an organ situated between the stomach and the backbone. Pancreas secretes juices into the first part of the small intensitne and thereby helps in the digestion of…

Since it is almost the end of election season we will also see the end of the meme from Environmental Working Group and other anti-science organizations about genetically modified organisms. Okay, we…

If California Proposition 37 is really about a "Consumer Right To Know," then why is it talking about a few words in a tiny font on the back of a package? Why are we only talking about one question…

ViviTouch is a kind of 'artificial muscle' that seeks to make video games feel more real. The technology behind it is electroactive polymers, developed by Bayer subsidiary Artificial Muscle of…

Progress in developing genomic tools has been reflected in achievements in the field of biotechnology. Some of the tools come under category of - omics – Metabolic Pathways - Systems Biology –…

A new advocacy organization devoted to food and health issues and claiming to be nonpartisan gave 50 politicians perfect 100 scores - and all 50 of them were Democrats. At the bottom of their…

It's that time of year again - All Hallows Eve - and that means an upsurge in witch sightings which inevitably leads to impromptu witch trials. As much as we appreciate that the residents of Salem do…

Are you healthier if you eat cupcake from a mix you buy in a grocery store, which would be required to have a GMO label if California's Proposition 37 passes, or an 'organic' cupcake from Whole Foods…

Let me write here a short note -just for the record- to mention a proceedings paper I wrote for the ICFP 2012 conference. I spoke in Crete last June about the latest results of the CMS experiment,…