Understanding the Voynich Manuscript #1 Tom, Dick and Harry explain a statistical method. The mysterious Voynich Manuscript. A simple analysis of a sufficiently large text can reveal much about the topic of that text, if the language is known. If the text, as in the case of the Voynich Manuscript, is written in an unknown script, then the same simple analytical method can point the way to the underlying language, or language group.
Businessman Jim McCormick GuiltyFake Bomb Detector Vendor Convicted For Fraud - Assets SeizedFor some years now, scientists, science writers, bloggers and others have been writing about the bogus bomb detector scam perpetrated by Jim McCormick. Now, at last, Britain's Crown Prosecution Service has done what it should have done sooner: put on its best hobnail boots and jumped all over the guy.Image source: explosivedetectorfrauds.blogspot.co.uk
Widening The Net - The Capture of Dzhokhar TsarnaevWhenever there is a high profile criminal act like the Boston Marathon Attack, we usually hear from the media that "the net is closing" on a suspect. In this age of rapid communication, surely it is more often the widening of the net that leads law enforcement agencies to the suspects. Thanks to science, a communications net can be established very rapidly and globally. Thanks to science there can be no hiding place for a high profile fugitive from justice.The Dragnet
Ants and EarthquakesA recent paper linking red wood ant behaviour to earthquakes has been widely reported but not widely discussed. Such discussion and comment as there has been in the media has focused on the mechanism/s by which these ants might predict earthquakes. I believe that there is an important question to be addressed which may help explain the evolution of quake-detection mechanisms. Given that these ants seem to prefer to build their colonies along active faults, I suggest that the question to be addressed is: "why would any creature build its home on an active fault line?"
James Madison - A Prescient President.We are changing our planet's atmosphere.It is widely known that G.S. Callendar warned of this in 1938.It is virtually unknown that James Madison warned of it in 1818, in the form of a rhetorical question:
New Cracks In Pine Island GlacierA huge crack which was discovered last October in Pine Island Glacier has propagated into a series of cracks during the Antarctic Winter. The recent satellite image below shows the new cracks. Newer images will no doubt show these cracks more clearly as the sun rises higher in the Antarctic skies. The animation below helps to demonstrate the great advance of the glacier front and the propagation of the cracks since February 2012.Pine Island Glacier, September 11 2012.
Fire in Brazilian Antarctic Base.A fire has destroyed a major part of the Comandante Ferraz Antactic base, leaving two people dead and one injured.All of the scientists have been evacuated from the station.Some military personnel have been able to stay in Antarctica thanks to Chile's hospitality at their Eduardo Frei research base.Image source: BBC News.
Why I Am Peter GleickWhen your opponent has dipped his gloves in glue and glass and has kicked you in the nuts, most people would agree that if you depart somewhat from the Queensbury rules the other side has no right to complain about your ethics.
The Heartland Institute and Murdoch MediaThe Heartland Institute story broke on February 14th. The revelation that anti-science bunkum has been funded by corporate dollars was no surprise to those of us who have been investigating these propaganda mills. Peter H Gleik has confirmed that he was the one who obtained the secret documents. In confirming that he got them straight from the Heartland Institute he also confirms their authenticity.
When Electricians Were OpticiansUp until the late 19th century there were very few practical applications of experimental findings concerning electricity. Today, an electric circuit consists of a source of voltage or current, some connecting wires and a load. The purpose of the wires or cables is to convey the electricity to the load. The load can be something as simple as an ordinary light bulb. In the times of the early experimenters there were no loads as such, many of the things which might constitute a load not then having been invented. A circuit in the experimenters lab consisted of a voltage source, some wire and a galvanometer, with perhaps a cell containing fluid for electrolysis experiments.
The Genius Of Georg OhmMuch of the genius of Georg Ohm is forgotten. He is remembered mostly as the scientist who defined the relationship between electrical resistance, electric force and electric current. Not only do writers generally ignore Georg Ohm's many other contributions to physics: they give an all-too-brief outline of Ohm's law and then move on. Thus they miss the opportunity to explain the simplicity of the physical reality and the elegance of the mathematics behind Ohm's Law.
Ohm For ChristmasThe ohm is the unit of electrical resistance. It is named in honor of the genius of Georg Ohm, who figured out that the flow of electricity in materials from a 'hot' source might just resemble the flow of heat from a hot source. Ever since we started measuring electrical resistance in ohms, electricians and engineers have been making up atrocious puns based on that term. I decided not to make an exception here.
Freedom To Cheat?Do the laws and constitutional safeguards which guarantee freedom of speech grant a freedom to cheat? According to a basic principle of common law, freedom of speech ends where cheating begins.Xavier Alvarez of Pomona, California has falsely claimed amongst other things: “I’m a retired Marine of 25 years. I retired in the year 2001. Back in 1987, I was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor." That last statement was in direct contravention of the Stolen Valor Act, 2005, a federal law. Alvarez has challenged that Act as imposing an unconstitutional limit upon freedom of speech. The matter is to be determined by the U.S. Supreme Court.
