One of my institute’s projects is gaining too little traction with its target city. No surprise: The project is expensive, heavy on newer smart infrastructure, and this U.S. city is in the middle of…

One key hallmark of being human is walking on two legs. It was a seismic shift seen in no other primates. Like much of evolution, it happened in fits and starts. The 4.4 million year-old…

I recently ran into a description of the Mu3e experiment, and got curious about it and the physics it studies. So after giving it a look, I am able to explain that shortly here - I think it is a…

Air India Crash: Update #5 - It's Dust, Not Smoke A few media content creators and commenters keep returning to the topic of the swirls of what they refer to as smoke which they claim can be seen in…

A guest on NPR’s Morning Edition (August 26) mis-characterized pioneering economist Adam Smith as a pure transactionalist. Smith’s metaphorical “invisible hand,” the guest asserted, suggested self-…

Health care is expensive. If you are convinced that donating blood is a community service and do it for free, the Red Cross sells it for up to $200 per pint. If you need a transfusion, each pint will…

Some sixty million years ago a fountain of hot rock that rises from Earth’s core-mantle boundary unleashed volcanic activity across a vast area of the North Atlantic, from Scotland to Greenland. We…

Advanced cancer often brings preparation for the worst and proponents of the modern health care system use terms like "advocate" and "empowered" when everyone who isn't part of the system knows…

"Knucklehead" and “Wimp” were the toss-up for titling today’s column. A few Democrat politicians are almost heroic as they respond to the current sh*tshow in Washington: Corey Booker, Elizabeth…

The neutron is a fascinating particle, and one which has kept experimental physicists busy for almost a century now. Discovered by James Chadwick in 1932 in a cunning experiment which deserves a…

Cocaine toxicosis in animals is a real thing. You shouldn't do cocaine, even during the Biden administration it didn't become legal and it's more dangerous than that kratom people buy in a gas…

Why did people think cannibalism was good for their health? The answer offers a glimpse into the zaniest crannies of European history, at a time when Europeans were obsessed with Egyptian mummies.…

Air India Crash: Update #4 - Lessons From The Past Lessons From Fact And Fiction. It is widely stated that those who do not learn from the mistakes of the past are doomed to repeat them.  This…

The French look at not owning air conditioning as a point of pride, and it may have made them so grumpy it explains why they passed laws saying no one can install it unless they get permission from…

There us something new to talk about around Uranus, the seventh planet from the Sun. Uranus is a “sideways planet” due to its extreme axial tilt, and the ice giant owes its cyan-color to a deep…

A new international, randomized clinical trial is evaluating a vaccine developed to protect against 21 strains of pneumococcus, up from the current 13 strains covered now. That means greater…

These days I am organizing a collaborative effort to write an article on holistic optimization of experiments and complex systems. "So what is the news," I could hear say by one of my twentythree…

A new computer simulation says that climate change may may ruin the tall beech trees common in Europe. Unfortunately, many other simulations already said it was too late to curb runaway emissions by…

We usually associate smell with bad things, like body odors or fire or a gas leak, but a keen sense of smell helps us enjoy food and other pleasures in life. Many things cause loss of smell; aging…

In all racket sports, a well-executed serve can establish a real advantage. Badminton is played by around 220 million people across the globe and a“spin serve” took badminton by storm when a Danish…