We've all heard of the Wright Brothers, the father of flight, as it were.  But early in their day there was some understandable skepticism about what they claimed to have done. Here, from Feb.…

We've all heard of the Wright Brothers, the father of flight, as it were.  But early in their day there was some understandable skepticism about what they claimed to have done. Here, from Feb.…

Just that I was recovering from a tooth ache and being lectured upon dental anesthetics, that I came across an interesting experiment on understanding pain.  I hope this can alleviate the pain…

Kathy Weston's personal tale of how a promising academic career gradually went off the rails as her interests changed.   No discrimination, she has no white, male privilege to blame, the job…

Kathy Weston's personal tale of how a promising academic career gradually went off the rails as her interests changed.   No discrimination, she has no white, male privilege to blame, the job…

You may remember a short while ago the concerns about the metered Internet experiment in Canada, courtesy of the government.    Usage-Based Billing may be leaving as quickly as it came…

You may remember a short while ago the concerns about the metered Internet experiment in Canada, courtesy of the government.    Usage-Based Billing may be leaving as quickly as it came…

Metastasis is when tumor cells move from the primary tumor to distant tissues - it is metastasis of the primary tumor that kills most cancer patients. One of the least studied routes of metastasis is…

The early reviews of the iPhone on Verizon are that it's much better if you use the iPhone as a phone.    Data may be something else.    Solution: Wait for the iPhone 5 unless you…

The early reviews of the iPhone on Verizon are that it's much better if you use the iPhone as a phone.    Data may be something else.    Solution: Wait for the iPhone 5 unless you…

Some professional racers drive like crazy people on the streets but they are a special sort of crazy because they know what they are doing.   You never hear about professional racers getting…

Some professional racers drive like crazy people on the streets but they are a special sort of crazy because they know what they are doing.   You never hear about professional racers getting…

Government-sanctioned, drug-fueled raves?  Sure, if it makes sense to have elementary school children putting condoms on bananas, it certainly makes sense (this is L.A. we are talking about) to…

Government-sanctioned, drug-fueled raves?  Sure, if it makes sense to have elementary school children putting condoms on bananas, it certainly makes sense (this is L.A. we are talking about) to…

[I’m re-posting this, because the original, from Saturday, seems to have disappeared.] The big Internet tech news last week was that the last block of Internet addresses, for the version of the…

A milestone in the international Avogadro project coordinated by the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB) has been reached - with the aid of a single crystal of highly enriched 28Si, the…

I like coffee but I love coffee makers.  I currently own 14, though only four are allowed on the counter at any one time.   They're not all elaborate.  One is an electric percolator…

I like coffee but I love coffee makers.  I currently own 14, though only four are allowed on the counter at any one time.   They're not all elaborate.  One is an electric percolator…

Well, it's been six months and the news cycle has come around again to the same squiddy topics: a new TV show about giant squid, and the question of whether squid can hear. The giant squid…

Einstein’s relativity theory and quantum physics, in theory as well as experiment, are extremely concerned with light. This comes directly from the fact that light does not exist as an independent…