When we want to combine several estimates of a physical quantity into a more precise one that accounts for all in the correct way, we routinely rely to the weighted average: we take each of the N…

When we want to combine several estimates of a physical quantity into a more precise one that accounts for all in the correct way, we routinely rely to the weighted average: we take each of the N…

The water level in the Dead Sea has been dropping at an increasing rate since the 1960s, exceeding a meter per year during the past decade. This drop has triggered the formation of sinkholes and…

A few weeks ago, I made note of evolutionary psychologist Geoffrey Miller (Evolutionary Psychologist Geoffrey Miller Has His Own Grad Student Criteria - Weight) and his odd claims about what makes a…

In North America, the environmental segment of the conservation community regards humanity as the enemy. Not so in South America. They want you to visit - just don't ruin the place. A team of…

Shy? You may be less happy. Surveys say so. In its happy journey into becoming anthropology, epidemiology is increasingly tackling social issues like they are diseases and using surveys as…

Do looks matter in the work place? There are a lot more unattractive people running departments and entire companies than there are pretty ones - but a new paper by academics says just the opposite.…

It's a bizarre feeling, yet it’s one that we’ve all probably experienced, at one time or another.   Whether it’s the brush of a feather-duster, or a friend’s fingers under your chin, a great…

Despite the horrors of the Maoist regime, the Communist Party dictatorship in the People's Republic of China continues to exist and retain control, even though tens of millions of people suffered…

The idea that dogs tend to look like their owners is big news to no-one. Even before the days of Paris Hilton dressing her Chihuahua, ‘Tinkerbell’ in mini-me outfits, it has long been observed that…

Why do we value gold? It's not strong, it's not pretty, it's rare but in the 21st century, given enough energy we can turn lead into gold, the way alchemists once only dreamed about. It's not just…

Neutrinos are the second most abundant particles in the Universe, after photons, but when it comes to being elusive they can compete with anything. That's due to their having extremely weak…

A saying in the Old West was that God made men, but Sam Colt made them equal. Well, not completely equal, but his invention of the revolver certainly made life better for flintlock pistol owners.…

A group at the Bristol Robotics Laboratory have developed a novel way of charging mobile phones - using urine as the power source to generate electricity. Lead author Dr. Ioannis Ieropoulos from the…

This might come as a surprise, given everything Cracked has written about them, but they acknowledge that not every scientist is evil. Instead, they say, most are just lucky idiots.  Imagine…

This might come as a surprise, given everything Cracked has written about them, but they acknowledge that not every scientist is evil. Instead, they say, most are just lucky idiots.  Imagine…

The Earth has a violent history: About 4.5 billion years ago, a maelstrom of gas and dust circled in a massive disc around the sun, gathering in rocky clumps to form asteroids. These asteroids,…

On July 16th, 2013, at 12:09 a.m. EDT, the sun erupted with an Earth-directed coronal mass ejection, sending billions of tons of particles into space. These particles cannot travel through the…

90% of East Asian adolescents in British Columbia are not sexually active, so East Asian parents are doing something right, but the ones who do have sex engage in some risky behavior The paper in the…

In 2011 the Very Large Telescope (VLT) discovered a gas cloud with several times the mass of the Earth accelerating towards the black hole at the center of the Milky Way.   The cloud is now so…