Females outnumber men in biology at the undergraduate and Ph.D. levels and have this entire century. Where do they still lag? Faculty positions. The issue is clearly not sexism, academia prides…

The Neglected Majority In every nation, state or county that I am aware of there is a tendency for lawmakers to discriminate against the poor, whether directly or indirectly. Some politicians favour…

As the 23 faithful readers of this blog already know, I recently wrote a book that describes the searches for new physics undertaken by a glorious particle physics experiment, CDF, during the…

In a world where individuals have ranked preferences, it is not possible to create a voting procedure that is guaranteed to yield a fair selection between more than two alternatives. This is a…

Researchers are exploring ways to help clinicians and investigators use and share routinely collected medical data (such as information in electronic health records) to improve care and advance…

Proximity is an important influence in consumer decisions on everyday purchases, according to a new survey. In the survey, 93.2 percent of respondents said they typically travel less than 20 minutes…

A paper by researchers at LSU Health New Orleans in a little known journal called Translational Cancer Research suggests that age is an important factor in the association between cancer and sugar…

According to a music researcher, discrimination of women is common in the club scene. Female DJs don’t get gigs because the music they play is “too feminine.” It's no secret that elite clubs are fast…

Scientists have measured the catastrophic genetic damage caused by smoking in different organs of the body and identified several different mechanisms by which tobacco smoking causes mutations in DNA…

In rare cases, someone who is thin could still end up with type 2 diabetes while an obese person may be surprisingly healthy. Some Asian countries have a higher diabetes rate than the United States…

As Hurricane Matthew dissipated and we all realized it was not as bad as predicted, we were relieved. Did we feel anger at the governor and the press for over-predicting the storm? No – how…

We power humanity mostly by burning fossil fuels, thereby turning chemical energy into heat that ultimately gets radiated into space. In doing so we achieve some results deemed useful: we cook food,…

Evolutionary biology long ago solved the philosophical conundrum 'what came first, the chicken or the egg?' by showing that eggs came long before chickens.  But more relevant to evolution is the…

Evidence-based medicine is a sensitive topic for naturopaths. They love to claim that naturopathic medicine is safe and effective. Yet, naturopaths are known to practice using treatments that have…

With the aid of a new immunosuppressive agent known as PIF (preimplantation factor), researchers at the World Health Organisation (WHO) Institute of Primate Research in Nairobi,  Kenya, have…

What is the reason for the steep decay of average intelligence in Germany? Is it the current immigration? What is the brain-drain’s contribution? It is none of these! But why not and what is the…

It would seem obvious that a diluted nicotine vapor is much less harmful than toxic chemicals in cigarette smoke - yet groups like the Centers for Disease Control and Tobacco Free Kids have instead…

"What area on Mars is the most interesting for us?". My answer to this question isn’t an impressive geological feature like Olympus Mons or Valles Marineres. For me, it’s a rather unremarkable…

The recent appearance of Hurricane Matthew prompted some harsh memories of hurricanes past. I went through Hurricane Andrew. I was living in Ft. Lauderdale with my youngest daughter, Lydia, and I…

Thanks, but no thanks, say British scientists about controversial British evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins, primarily known for his criticism of religion. A majority of those surveyed who…