Brain, pelvis, hands and feet  don't lie - and five recent studies of Australopithecus sediba, a primitive hominin that existed around the same time early Homo species first began to appear on…

You can't read a book like the excellent Conversations on Consciousness (interviews with experts in the field of consciousness), by Susan Blackmore (not pictured above), without having…

Can we get three cheers for psychology?  The bulk of the quality researchers in the field have consistently been under fire because of researchers like Satoshi Kanazawa and Marc Hauser but have…

Unfortunate subsets of some militant environmental groups believe that anyone who uses the land, including quite responsibly, is an enemy.    That isn't the case.  Science advancements…

Jumping genes, or more technically, transposons (see figure 1), are sequences of DNA that can move around the genome and find themselves a new place. In eukaryotic DNA, these jumping genes can…

I was meandering around the internet during the holiday weekend, catching up on RSS feeds and the like, and found this comic by David Coverly: It reminded me of something from a few weeks ago - …

I know I keep talking about the incredible unpredictability of squids, but it's an endlessly fascinating topic! Every time you think you've got them figured out, they surprise you--and I'd say that…

In football, if you are a lineman, you are going to give and take a lot of hits - but running backs really get punished.   Concussions and other head injuries have become a source of elevated…

"Can neuroscience provide evidence for a liberal and conservative thinking style? It may seem like a stretch to say that one could predict whether you lean left or right by looking at a brain scan—no…

Whenever a popular television health claim makes its way into the media, some skepticism is in order.  A decade-long war on "trans fats", including outright bans in some areas, was not based on…

Yesterday, I enjoyed a stimulating tea that has been enjoyed all over the northern hemisphere for thousands of years. We prepared (see pictures below) and consumed early in the morning together with…

A fun update, Interorbital lists their filled manifest for their first N30 launch.  This is everyone who is building a Tubesat or Cubesat for their first private launch.  Put another way,…

Geobacter can clean up uranium but a new study documenting how microbes generate electricity while cleaning up nuclear waste and other toxic metals could mean a big benefit for contaminated sites in…

In 2009,  UK drugs advisor Dr. David Nutt was relieved of his duties due to controversial views on the harmfulness of different drugs and the lack of evidence behind current drug policy.…

Almost half of recreational runners drink too much fluid during races, showing many athletes hold unscientific views regarding the benefits of different hydration practices .Expert guidelines…

Some cultural activists like Hollywood director Rob Reiner believe smoking is so influential it should be the target of modern-day McCarthyism and banned from films and television. What about…

Clouds amplify climate change, says Texas A&M University atmospheric sciences professor Andrew Dessler, rebutting recent claims by some that clouds are a root cause of climate change (for an…

Postpartum pain management using the opioid codeine has been common and, until recently, it was considered safe to breastfeed - the death of an infant exposed to codeine through breast milk led…

Around 27 million Americans have arthritis, three million of which began with a joint injury that provokes slow and steady cartilage deterioration. A new study from MIT suggests that glucocorticoid…

Integrated pest management (IPM) is a proven, cost-effective strategy to combat pest problems without unnecessary pesticides. By correcting conditions that lead to pest problems and using least-toxic…