Food Trade Too Complex To Track Food Safety
- By Maryn McKenna |
- June 4, 2012 |
- Comments
The data-dense graphic above may be too reduced to read (here’s the really big version), but its intricacy masks a simple and fairly dire message: The global trade in food has become so complex that we have almost lost the ability to trace the path of any food sold into the network. And, as a [...]
Science Blogs, SuperbugThe Effect of Wind on the Stratos Space Jump
- By Rhett Allain |
- June 4, 2012 |
- Comments (1)
How much will wind affect the Red Bull Stratos Jump? Dot Physics blogger Rhett Allain dissects the physics of Felix Baumgartner’s upcoming stunt.
Dot Physics, Science BlogsEruption Update for June 4, 2012: Popocatépetl, Nevado del Ruiz, Kilauea and more
- By Erik Klemetti |
- June 4, 2012 |
- Comments (4)
There is a big anniversary this week (well, other than our first wedding anniversary) – but I’ll have more on that on Wednesday. Today, I thought I’d update a few bits of volcanic news from the past week or so. If you’re looking for even more details on the week’s volcanic events, check out the [...]
Eruptions, Science BlogsManned DIY Space Capsule Chute Jump — Step by Step Updates
- By Kristian von Bengtson |
- June 3, 2012 |
- Comments (11)
To test a parachute for a do-it-yourself space capsule, a skydiver jumped out of an airplane and pulled the ripcord. Rocket Shop blogger Kristian von Bengtson shows how the test went using photos and video.
Rocket Shop, Science Blogs2012 Venus Transit Special #3: Robot Probes for Piloted Venus Flybys (1967)
- By David S. F. Portree |
- June 2, 2012 |
- Comments (8)
On June 5/6, Venus will transit the disk of the Sun for the last time until 2117. To commemorate this astronomical rarity, Beyond Apollo blogger David S. F. Portree is highlighting Venus missions that were, are, and might-have-been. In the third and final installment in this special series, he describes robot probes that have actually explored Venus and unfulfilled plans for robot probes launched from piloted Venus flyby spacecraft.
Beyond Apollo, Science BlogsIs Arsenic the Worst Chemical in the World?
- By Deborah Blum |
- June 1, 2012 |
- Comments (29)
Is arsenic the worst chemical in the world? Elemental blogger Deborah Blum investigates the effects of lethal high doses, as well as chronic low doses of arsenic and reveals the frightening fact that even in this country, millions of people may be drinking arsenic-contaminated water and could be suffering health consequences because of it.
Elemental, Science BlogsSocial Networks Over Time and the Invariants of Interaction
- By Samuel Arbesman |
- June 1, 2012 |
- Comments
We’re all embedded within social networks, and studying those networks can help researchers quantify human behavior. Mathematician and Social Dimension blogger Samuel Arbesman describes a new study that probes the limits of our finite social attention.
Science Blogs, Social DimensionManned DIY Parachute Jump Test Sunday
- By Kristian von Bengtson |
- June 1, 2012 |
- Comments (1)
This coming Sunday, a do-it-yourself space program will test a parachute for its space capsule by strapping it to a person. Rocket Shop blogger and Copenhagen Suborbitals co-founder Kristian von Bengtson reports.
Rocket Shop, Science Blogs2012 Venus Transit Special #2: Humans in Venus Orbit (1967)
- By David S. F. Portree |
- June 1, 2012 |
- Comments (4)
For many years, astronomers assumed that Venus, which on June 5/6 will cross the Sun’s disk as viewed from Earth, was Earth’s twin. The first successful planetary probe, Mariner II, revealed it to be hellishly hot. That put an end to thoughts of piloted Venus landings, but not to plans for piloted Venus exploration. Beyond Apollo blogger David S. F. Portree looks at one such plan — a Venus orbiter — that was meant as a stepping stone to Mars.
Beyond Apollo, Science BlogsPluto-Killing Astronomer Wins Kavli Prize for Astrophysics
- By Jeffrey Marlow |
- May 31, 2012 |
- Comments (11)
Mike Brown began receiving lot of hate mail after he “killed” Pluto as a planet. But to his surprise this week, Brown was awoken with a prestigious Kavli Prize in Astrophysics. Astrobiologist and Extremo Files blogger Jeffrey Marlow asks Brown about his work, his passions and how it feels to be a winner.
Brown shares the award with Jane Luu of MIT and David Jewitt of UCLA. I caught Brown on his way to the airport to discuss his prize-winning work.everywhere.
Science Blogs, The Extremo FilesMermaids Embodies the Rotting Carcass of Science TV
- By Brian Switek |
- May 31, 2012 |
- Comments (47)
Animal Planet recently aired a science fiction-inspired special trumpeting pseudoscience about aquatic apes. Laelaps blogger Brian Switek argues that the show embodies the end of good science television.
Laelaps, Science BlogsVolcanic Crystal Forensics: What Minerals Tell Us About the Evolution of Mount St. Helens and Long Valley
- By Erik Klemetti |
- May 31, 2012 |
- Comments (78)
Two new studies are filling crucial gaps in the tumultuous, volcanic histories of the Mount St. Helens and Long Valley. Volcanologist and Eruptions blogger Erik Klemetti explains how small crystals helped reconcile hundreds of thousands of hidden history.
Eruptions, Science BlogsVideo Analysis of Bubble Wrap Jumps
- By Rhett Allain |
- May 31, 2012 |
- Comments (22)
Dot Physics blogger Rhett Allain analyzes a new video of a bubble-wrapped man leaping from a tall building. Is it real or fake and, in any case, could someone survive the drop?
Dot Physics, Science Blogs2012 Venus Transit Special #1: Piloted Single-Launch Venus Flyby (1967)
- By David S. F. Portree |
- May 31, 2012 |
- Comments (20)
On June 5 and 6, 2012, Venus will pass in front of the Sun as viewed from Earth for the last time until 2117. To commemorate this astronomical rarity, Beyond Apollo blogger David S. F. Portree describes three lost plans for Venus exploration over six days. The first: a piloted single-launch Venus flyby.
Beyond Apollo, Science BlogsInformation Overload Is Not a New Problem
- By Samuel Arbesman |
- May 30, 2012 |
- Comments (1)
Is the information age making us smart in some ways and stupid in others — or none of the above? Mathematician and Social Dimension blogger Samuel Arbesman highlights a new essay that argues information overload is nothing new.
Science Blogs, Social DimensionCarbon Found in Mars Meteorites (And Why It Has Nothing to Do With Martian Life)
- By Jeffrey Marlow |
- May 30, 2012 |
- Comments (3)
Geochemists recently found pristine carbon nestled inside of a meteorite that hails from Mars. Astrobiologist and Extremo Files blogger Samuel Arbesman explains why the discovery doesn’t signal the first well-cooked sample of Martian life.
Science Blogs, The Extremo FilesThe Hole in My Brain: Amnesia’s Lessons About Memory, Depression, and Love
- By David Dobbs |
- May 30, 2012 |
- Comments (2)
Neuron Culture blogger and science journalist David Dobbs recently learned there was a hole in the middle of his brain. Listen to him recount the story in a new podcast.
Neuron Culture, Science BlogsAsh Falls on Manizales as Colombia’s Ruiz Ramps Up Explosions [UPDATED]
- By Erik Klemetti |
- May 30, 2012 |
- Comments (66)
I might have guessed that just after reading an article about how USGS geologist left Colombia this week after helping set up monitoring for Nevado del Ruiz that the volcano do something. Sure enough, today the volcano experienced a series of explosions that produced ash that fell on the city of Manizales, ~30 km from [...]
Eruptions, Science BlogsChagas Disease: Poverty, Immigration, and the ‘New HIV/AIDS’
- By Maryn McKenna |
- May 30, 2012 |
- Comments (64)
What if a deadly epidemic was happening and almost nobody noticed? It’s no longer a hypothetical question, according to a new study of Chagas disease, a parasitic infection transmitted by blood-sucking insects. Superbug blogger Maryn McKenna explains how Chagas has become so widespread while remaining largely unrecognized.
Science Blogs, SuperbugRepost: Terror Birds Ain’t What They Used to Be – A Titanis Takedown
- By Brian Switek |
- May 29, 2012 |
- Comments
[This essay was originally posted on February 12, 2011.] You know a novel is going to be bad when the main endorsement on the jacket comes from the movie producer who is trying to turn the pulp horror story into a film. It’s the literary equivalent of saying “Well, my mom thinks I’m handsome.” All [...]
Laelaps, Science Blogs
