Posts

May 26, 2013

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10:47 PM | Esta semana en ciencia – 26 de mayo 2013

Seis noticias científicas cortas que ocurrieron esta semana...

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1:17 PM | Antropologie & Relativisme: Een pleidooi voor ontwrichtende wetenschap

Closer Blog: Lang leve de antropologie en haar cultureel-relativisme. En op naar meer ontwrichtende, gevaarlijke wetenschap!Read more: Antropologie & Relativisme: Een pleidooi voor ontwrichtende wetenschap

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7:27 AM | This is not science

We may have the answer to all of the big problems in physics! Or not. My money is on “not”. Marcus du Sautoy, a very smart mathematician and the fellow who occupies the chair for the public understanding of science at Oxford formerly held by Richard Dawkins, made a stunning announcement. Two years ago, a…

May 24, 2013

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6:55 PM | The “Russian Amish” – resisting the demographic decline of the former Soviet Union

For decades, the Russian population is declining due to low birth rates and (comparatively) low life expectancies. The communist regime of the Soviet Union suppressed and destroyed most religious traditions and communities - and family structures along the way. Although the Russian State recently tried to raise the fertility levels with money, there's a long way to go to stop the demographic implosion. But there's an interesting and telling exception from the perspective of evolutionary […]

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9:41 AM | Intact Dinosaur Skin

On Monday Brian Thomas wrote Scientist Stumped by Actual Dinosaur Skin. The topic is a sample of "intact" dinosaur skin - one of only three known worldwide - which is to be examined by the Canadian Light Source* (CLS) synchrotron.

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8:17 AM | Two Years

Wordpress tells me that I just passed the second anniversary of this blog.

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7:53 AM | CfP: Everyday Life Practices of Muslims in Europe: Consumption and Aesthetics

Closer Blog: Call for Papers:Practices of everyday life are central to discover the subjectivity of Muslims. This workshop seeks to explain the daily life choices and preferences in the context of subjectivity and self, looking at the questions concerning the religious-cultural-ethnic constructions of practices in which different perceptions are mediated on Muslims. Read more: CfP: Everyday Life Practices of Muslims in Europe: Consumption and Aesthetics

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6:39 AM | Friday Cephalopod: Super-powers!

Molluscs have amazing super-powers. But you know what? So do humans. We air-breathing terrestrial bipeds are able to enter strange alien worlds and return with a digital record of the events that even the lubbers among us can appreciate.

May 23, 2013

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11:20 PM | An eReader breakthrough?

This looks interesting. A 13.3 inch eReader. Ideal for pdfs and annotations or note-taking. Perhaps not suitable for the casual reader, reading in bed or for people who just read thrillers. It’s far too big. But it may be suitable … Continue reading →

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4:00 PM | Was ist Krebs? – Dem programmierten Zelltod entgehen

Zellen sind mit einem Selbstzerstörungsmechanismus ausgestattet. Dieser kann von außen aber auch von der Zelle selbst, also von innen betätigt werden, wenn irgendetwas mit dieser Zelle gerade gründlich schief läuft oder bereits gelaufen ist. Durch diesen Mechanismus, die sogenannte Apoptose, kann der Schaden für den Gesamtorganismus minimiert werden, indem die beschädigte Zelle gezielt zerstört und…

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4:23 AM | Singing about the periodic table

Most people here are probably familiar with Tom Lehrer‘s song – The Elements. Well, for chemists here’s a new song about the elements – and the periodic table. Actually, the video version – which depicts the elements in order on … Continue reading →

May 22, 2013

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10:11 PM | Inteligencia colectiva

Por Martín Bonfil Olivera Dirección General de Divulgación de la Ciencia, UNAM Publicado en Milenio Diario, 22 de mayo de 2013 En una democracia, la opinión del pueblo es soberana. Aunque no siempre las decisiones que se toman colectivamente son las mejores, se asume que muchas cabezas piensan mejor que una, y que llegan a las conclusiones, si no más sabias, sí más justas. Los jurados en las cortes estadounidenses se basan en el mismo principio: la mayoría decide mejor […]

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9:32 AM | Prime Numbered Cicadas

Right now, the northeastern US is experiencing a plague of 17-year cicadas. Noting this, Brian Thomas writes "Cicadas Make Great Mathematicians."

May 21, 2013

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7:38 AM | Defining and Understanding Islamophobia in Europe – A Review

Closer Blog: Islamophobia as a concept, and as a social phenomenon, is difficult to grasp. In writing Xenophobia and Islamophobia in Europe, Raymond Taras joins a growing number of writers who are making interesting contributions to this topic. My review of his book at H-Net.Read more: Defining and Understanding Islamophobia in Europe – A Review

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12:46 AM | Mary’s Monday Metazoan: How ladylike!

It’s the lovely Pink Dragon millipede — it’s bright enough to belong in the girl’s aisle at the toy store. It also squirts cyanide at you if you annoy it.

May 20, 2013

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11:13 PM | Black cat in a dark room – and the role of science

There are some really excellent quotes on social media – Facebook and Twitter. The one above really appeals to me. Sure the classifications are broad, and it would be interesting to break each one down. But the main message is … Continue reading →

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1:10 PM | Horóscopo escéptico

Horóscopo escéptico El Horóscopo para Capricornio, Acuario, Piscis, Aries, Tauro, Géminis, Cáncer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Escorpio y Sagitario es el siguiente: El próximo año es probable que presente desafíos; esos momentos harán que se muestre tu verdadero carácter. Los amigos confiables pueden asistirte en situaciones particularmente difíciles. Haz uso de las habilidades que posées para [...]

May 19, 2013

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10:00 PM | Heute ist es wieder soweit

Einen fröhlichen Alle-zeichnen-Mohammed-Tag allerseits Und? Auch schon was gemalt?

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8:58 PM | Religion is halfway between an fact and an opinion - according to kids and adults

Is it possible for two people to disagree, and for both to be right? Well it depends, of course, on what they're disagreeing about. If it's a matter of fact ('Dinosaurs are extinct'), then the answer is 'no'. On the other hand, if the discussion is about what flavour of ice cream is best then, well we are probably going to have to agree to differ. But is religion a fact or an opinion? And do kids draw the same distinction as adults? To find out, Larisa Heiphetz (a psychologist at Harvard […]

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2:41 PM | Esta semana en ciencia – 19 de mayo 2013

Seis noticias científicas cortas que ocurrieron esta semana...

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1:08 AM | Breaking Eggs

A new That's a Fact video has at last arrived: "Jurassic Omelette."The subject matter should be broadly familiar. The video starts off with asking "which came first - the chicken or the egg?" before moving on to the dinosaur egg protein issue from the other week.

May 18, 2013

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11:33 PM | Rohingya: A Hidden Genocide in a ‘racially tolerant’ country?

Closer Blog: In a racial tolerance map of the Washington Post Burma / Myanmar appears to be more 'racially tolerant' then India, Bangladesh, Thailand and China. Let's consider the genocide of the Rohingya Muslims.Read more: Rohingya: A Hidden Genocide in a ‘racially tolerant’ country?

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6:06 PM | ‘Is ‘cloning’ mad, bad and dangerous?’ – an argument revisited

Seven years ago, to mark the then tenth anniversary of the announcement of the birth of the folkloric Dolly the sheep, and in the still reverberating wake of the South Korean cloning scandal, I practiced my fledgling/intermittent/debatable/wanton science communication skills with the penning of an article on the issue of ‘cloning.’ It being an anniversary with a ’0′ on the end, combined with topical relevance, suggested I might be lucky enough to get it published. And I was thus very... […]

Tachibana, M., Amato, P., Sparman, M., Gutierrez, N., Tippner-Hedges, R., Ma, H., Kang, E., Fulati, A., Lee, H., Sritanaudomchai, H. & Masterson, K. (2013). Human Embryonic Stem Cells Derived by Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer, Cell, DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2013.05.006

Citation

May 17, 2013

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4:39 PM | Verkiezingen in Pakistan: ‘revolutie’ bleef uit

Closer Blog: Amer Morgahi over de recente verkiezingen in Pakistan gewonnen door Sharif die mikt op economische vooruitgang in het instabiele Pakistan.Read more: Verkiezingen in Pakistan: ‘revolutie’ bleef uit

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1:10 PM | Friday Cephalopod: The Great White Cuttle

(From TONMO, on a page about raising captive cuttlefish)

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9:49 AM | I Agree

Jeffrey Tomkins writes "Marketing Myostatin Inhibitors with Fake Science," about nutritional supplements being marketed to reduce the activity of a protein called Myostatin (literally "muscle stop") with the intent of increasing muscle mass. According to Tomkins, one claim made is that myostatin is somehow "vestigial."

May 16, 2013

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3:26 AM | Botanical Wednesday: Twisty

(via Australian Geographic)

May 15, 2013

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7:42 PM | Good times, good times. Wait, I meant bad times

Remember the good old days, when you could always trust a creationist to claim their theory was not religious, and then they’d turn around and neatly undermine their own claims for you? Think Bill Buckingham at the Dover trial, who completely won the case for the good guys by saying a lot of stupid stuff.…

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3:20 PM | Los pechos de Angelina Jolie

Por Martín Bonfil Olivera Dirección General de Divulgación de la Ciencia, UNAM Publicado en Milenio Diario, 15 de mayo de 2013 La actriz Angelina Jolie es, sin duda, una de las mujeres más bellas que existen. Recientemente anunció públicamente una decisión radical: someterse a un procedimiento quirúrgico preventivo de doble mastectomía (la extirpación de ambos pechos). ¿La razón? La guapa Angelina es portadora de una mutación en el gen BRCA1 (del […]

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9:39 AM | What are the odds?

Another "soft tissue preservation" article from Brian Thomas today: "Scientists Broom Challenging Discoveries Beneath 'Contamination' Rug." He means "sweep" there instead of "broom," which I don't think it supposed to be a verb. Thomas hasn't got a new find since last week's, but instead does a more general overview of the concept.