Justin Kitch: From Degenerate Art to the Mozart Effect: This Week's Curios

Every day of the year, Curious.com CEO Justin Kitch writes a quirky fact, known as the Daily Curio, intended to tickle the brains of lifelong learners everywhere. This is a weekly digest.


Last week’s Curios covered the history of neckties, dangerously pure water, and the myth of...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/justin-kitch-from-degenerate-art-to-the-mozart-effect-this-weeks-curios/

WATCH: Researchers Reveal Odd Way To Boost Your Vision

Want to boost your eyesight? There’s an app for that.


In a new baseball study, researchers have found that training your brain with a perceptual learning app just may improve your vision.


The researchers tested the vision of baseball players at the University of California in...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/watch-researchers-reveal-odd-way-to-boost-your-vision/

Flash Physics: Nuclear diamond battery, M G K Menon dies, four new elements named

Flash Physics is our daily pick of the latest need-to-know developments from the global physics community selected by Physics World‘s team of editors and reporters

Diamond batteries run on nuclear waste




Radioactive waste from nuclear reactors could be used to create tiny diamonds...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/flash-physics-nuclear-diamond-battery-m-g-k-menon-dies-four-new-elements-named/

Names for elements 113, 115, 117, and 118 finalized by IUPAC

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Nihonium, moscovium, tennessine, and oganesson complete the seventh row of the periodic table.
Credit: C&EN


 



Nihonium, moscovium, tennessine, and oganesson complete the seventh row of the periodic table.
Credit: ...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/names-for-elements-113-115-117-and-118-finalized-by-iupac/

Three-Parent IVF Advances

CENTER FOR EMBRYONIC CELL AND GENE THERAPY OF OREGON HEALTH & SCIENCE UNIVERSITY

In efforts to prevent women who have pathogenic mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) mutations from passing these on to their offspring, researchers have been developing so-called three-parent assisted...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/three-parent-ivf-advances/

Two miners dead, six missing after earthquake hits Polish mine

WARSAW At least six miners are missing and two died after an earthquake occurred at the Rudna mine in Polkowice in southwestern Poland, state news agency PAP reported on Tuesday.

An earthquake of magnitude 4.4 struck at 9:09 p.m. (3 p.m. ET), according to the U.S. Geological Survey. It...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/two-miners-dead-six-missing-after-earthquake-hits-polish-mine/

Kevin Kniffin: The Science of Momentum: Does a Win Today Predict a Win Tomorrow?

If your favorite team or player wins on a given day — especially if it’s a landslide win, then it’s likely that “momentum” gets thrown around by people previewing the next event. For better or worse, momentum is one of those concepts that’s sticky in our...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/kevin-kniffin-the-science-of-momentum-does-a-win-today-predict-a-win-tomorrow/

Flash Physics: Exotic cosmic rays have mundane origins, Swiss reactors keep running, programmable material

Flash Physics is our daily pick of the latest need-to-know developments from the global physics community selected by Physics World‘s team of editors and reporters

Exotic cosmic rays have mundane origins
In orbit: the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer
Measurements made by the Alpha...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/flash-physics-exotic-cosmic-rays-have-mundane-origins-swiss-reactors-keep-running-programmable-material/

A look at the explosives used in the New York bombing

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New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo stand over a dumpster mangled in the Sep. 17 bombing.
Credit: Justin Lane/Newscom







 



Initial reports about a device used in Saturday’s bombing in New Yor...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/a-look-at-the-explosives-used-in-the-new-york-bombing/

Proxima Centauri really does orbit its two bright neighbours

Red dwarf: Proxima Centauri on the right, next to its much brighter companions
Digitized Sky Survey 2/ Davide De Martin/Mahdi Zamani/ESO


By Ken Croswell
They’re a happy family after all. The three closest stars to the solar system all revolve around one another, astronomers say, r...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/proxima-centauri-really-does-orbit-its-two-bright-neighbours/

Vintage Floral X-Rays Show The True Beauty Of Our Favorite Flowers

You’ve never seen roses, daffodils, and calla lilies quite like this before.
A series of images taken in the late 1920s by Dr. Dain L. Tasker, chief radiologist at Wilshire Hospital in Los Angeles, show various floral species through the lens of an X-ray machine.
The images, on display ...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/vintage-floral-x-rays-show-the-true-beauty-of-our-favorite-flowers/

Girls Who Code: Hey Men: Just Wanting More Women in Tech Does Not Make You Their Ally

This week, we at Girls Who Code are celebrating the kick-off of our 2016 Summer Immersion Programs. More than 1,500 high school girls will spend seven weeks immersed in the tech world and learning computer science at 78 locations across the United States. This is especially important...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/girls-who-code-hey-men-just-wanting-more-women-in-tech-does-not-make-you-their-ally/

Scientists Look Inside A Concussion

LAB PHOTOS BY SIMON BRUTY/THE MMQB

BETHESDA, Md. – One of the most important recent developments in the treatment of brain trauma—and by extension, the future of football—may have been discovered by a clumsy intern. 

Theo Roth is a St. Louis-born, Alabama-raised Stanfo...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/scientists-look-inside-a-concussion/

Doing physics by ear

Nov 24, 2016

Aqil Sajjad recently finished his postdoc at Harvard University in the US, where he does particle physics research. But unlike most particle physicists, he does physics by ear. That’s because Sajjad – who will be celebrating his 37th birthday this month – lost his sight to...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/doing-physics-by-ear/

Sponge made of coffee grounds scrubs lead and mercury from water

Homes, restaurants, and the coffee industry collectively produce about 6 million tons of spent coffee grounds every year. Researchers have now come up with a practical way to use some of this waste. They have made a rubbery foam from used coffee powder and silicone that can pull lead and...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/sponge-made-of-coffee-grounds-scrubs-lead-and-mercury-from-water/

How Diet Influences Host-Microbiome Communication in Mice

WIKIMEDIA, CHRISTOPH BOCKShortly after we finish a good meal, our resident microbes spring into action. The bacteria, viruses, and fungi that inhabit our guts send out metabolites that prepare our organs for the incoming nutrients. But the details of this symbiotic communication remain a...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/how-diet-influences-host-microbiome-communication-in-mice/

Here's How The International Space Station Is Celebrating Thanksgiving

NASA astronaut Shane Kimbrough shows a pouch of turkey he will be preparing for his crew in celebration of the Thanksgiving holiday, aboard the International Space Station.

AP

hide caption
...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/heres-how-the-international-space-station-is-celebrating-thanksgiving/

Seven billion and counting

A look behind this month’s global population landmark reveals a world in transition.

What’s in a number? This month, the world’s attention turns to a big one: 7 billion, the latest milestone in humanity’s remarkable and worrying rise in population. According to a...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/seven-billion-and-counting/

Altar of Viking saint-king discovered in Norway

Archaeologists in Trondheim, Norway have unearthed the church where Viking King Olaf Haraldsson was first enshrined as a saint.
Experts working for the Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research (NIKU) uncovered the stone foundations of a wooden stave church where Haraldsson was...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/altar-of-viking-saint-king-discovered-in-norway/

Fijian ants began farming 3 million years ago

MUNICH, Germany, Nov. 27 (UPI) — Ants have been farming for at least 3 million years. New research suggests Fijian ants were the planet’s first plant farmers.
As detailed in a new paper published in the journal Nature, the ant species Philidris nagasau has been nurturing...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/fijian-ants-began-farming-3-million-years-ago/

What Medical Students Can Learn From Art Museums

A hospital is not just a laboratory. A patient is not simply a diagnosis. And medicine is often more than a science. 
“We are pretending to be accurate scientists but we’re really social scientists,” Alexandra Charrow, a resident in internal medicine and dermatology at Brigham an...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/what-medical-students-can-learn-from-art-museums/

Girls Who Code: Happy Father"s Day, Dad: I"m A Computer Scientist Because Of You

By Emily Reid, Director of Education at Girls Who Code.


The first time I visited New York City, I didn’t see the Empire State building or the Statue of Liberty. On my first visit to Manhattan I went to the Ancient Egypt Exhibit in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. When I was seven...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/girls-who-code-happy-fathers-day-dad-im-a-computer-scientist-because-of-you/

FOR SALE: Nobel Prize Of Neutron"s Discoverer

There’s more than one way to get your hands on a Nobel gold medal.


The 1935 Nobel Prize in Physics awarded to English physicist James Chadwick for his discovery of the neutron will be offered this morning (June 3).


Sotheby’s, which is handling the sale in New York, has...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/for-sale-nobel-prize-of-neutrons-discoverer/

Joey Savoie: What Makes the New Atheists So Charitable?

Co-authored by Tee Barnett, Programs and Educational Officer at Charity Science





Before getting to know your local atheist, it’s very much worth rehashing the ABCs of non-belief that run the risk of remaining little known, especially now that the skeptic community has become more...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/joey-savoie-what-makes-the-new-atheists-so-charitable/

Greg Cootsona: The Endorser

I used to hate this expression:



“We engage people with arguments, not arguments in abstraction.”


I hated that phrase because I believed that the truth of an argument ought to be enough to convince us. I wanted human beings to be the thinking machines that evaluate opinions...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/greg-cootsona-the-endorser/

Try To Find The 12 Dots In This Grid And You"ll Swear You"re Hallucinating

You’ll feel like you need an eye exam after you study this optical illusion. 
It’s officially called Ninio’s extinction illusion, and it features a grid of vertical, horizontal and diagonal lines with 12 black dots scattered throughout.
Viewers are then supposed to see if they can spot all 12...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/try-to-find-the-12-dots-in-this-grid-and-youll-swear-youre-hallucinating/

130-Million-Year Old Proteins Still Present in Dinosaur-Age Fossil

The newfound Cretaceous-age Eoconfuciusornis specimen from northern China has 130-million-year-old beta-keratin and melanosomes on it.
Credit: Wang Xiaoli




Microscopic pigment structures and proteins that graced the feathers of...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/130-million-year-old-proteins-still-present-in-dinosaur-age-fossil/

Scientists Left Scrambling

Health Canada scientists are so concerned about losing access to their research library that some are squirrelling away journals and books in their garages for colleagues to consult, says a report obtained by CBC News.
The draft report from a consultant hired by the department...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/scientists-left-scrambling/

Jason Saltmarsh: How To Run Your Best Race In The Rain

Bill Bowerman, co-founder of Nike, once said: “There’s no such thing as bad weather, just soft people.” The weather is beyond our control, so don’t fret about it too much. Instead, focus on what you can do to make it work in your favor. In adverse conditions, a...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/jason-saltmarsh-how-to-run-your-best-race-in-the-rain/

Delaying Kindergarten Could Benefit Kids" Mental Health

Academic studies can be fascinating … and totally confusing. So we decided to strip away all of the scientific jargon and break them down for you. 
The Background
American kids have customarily started kindergarten at the age of 5, but parents and school administrators across the globe ...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/delaying-kindergarten-could-benefit-kids-mental-health/

Flash Physics: Glitch crashed Mars lander, Microsoft hires quantum stars, cosmic speed test for light

Flash Physics is our daily pick of the latest need-to-know developments from the global physics community selected by Physics World‘s team of editors and reporters

European Mars lander doomed by computer glitch

Doomed descent: computer glitch may have caused Schiaparelli to crash
The...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/flash-physics-glitch-crashed-mars-lander-microsoft-hires-quantum-stars-cosmic-speed-test-for-light/

University of Hawaii fined $115,500 for lab explosion

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The explosion shattered fume hood sash windows and knocked over equipment.
Credit: Honolulu Fire Department



The University of Hawaii faces a total $115,500 fine for 15 workplace safety violations after a laboratory explosion in March on the ...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/university-of-hawaii-fined-115500-for-lab-explosion/

Speech synthesiser translates mouth movements into robot speech

Can you understand me?
Steve Read/The Image Bank/Getty


By Sam Wong
Vocoders just got a serious upgrade. A new speech synthesiser can translate mouth movements directly into intelligible speech, completely bypassing a person’s voicebox.
Although the synthesiser might not be immediately u...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/speech-synthesiser-translates-mouth-movements-into-robot-speech/

Simulated Mars mission 'returns' to Earth

Six crewmen survived 520 days of isolation, but experiment was limited in its realism.

The six Mars500 crewmen, shortly after ‘landing’ on 4 November.ESA
Early afternoon in Moscow today, 4 November, the hatch of a hermetically-sealed capsule opened for the first time in 520 days....

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/simulated-mars-mission-returns-to-earth/

Inside The Climate Change Dispute Between Exxon Mobil And Rockefeller Family

Exxon Mobil is accusing the Rockefeller family of masterminding a conspiracy against the company on climate change. New York Times reporter John Schwartz tells the story.


The above post is reprinted from materials provided by Website. Note: Content may be edited for style, length and...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/inside-the-climate-change-dispute-between-exxon-mobil-and-rockefeller-family/

Congress poised to pass sweeping biomedical innovation bill

Congress is poised to approve a massive piece of legislation that would provide the National Institutes of Health (NIH) with $4.8 billion over the next decade for a set of research initiatives, including brain and cancer research and efforts to develop so-called precision medicine treatments...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/congress-poised-to-pass-sweeping-biomedical-innovation-bill/

Destination Moon? Belgium joins the space race

BRUSSELS Belgian comic-strip hero Tintin helped popularize the 1950s Space Race with his iconic cartoon rocket; seven decades on from the boy reporter’s “Destination Moon”, his country is finally getting its own version of NASA.

The Interfederal Space Agency of Belgium...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/destination-moon-belgium-joins-the-space-race/

The Likely Mental Illnesses Of Some Of History"s Most Famous Figures

Marilyn Monroe lives in our cultural imagination as one of the most iconic actresses in Hollywood history. But underneath the famous blonde curls and sex-kitten voice, there’s a complex woman who likely suffered from borderline personality disorder, according to science journalist ...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/the-likely-mental-illnesses-of-some-of-historys-most-famous-figures/

Quora: What the Rapid Growth of Computer Science Means for the Future

What is next for Computer Science education in the next 10-20 years? originally appeared on Quora – the knowledge sharing network where compelling questions are answered by people with unique insights.


Answer by Bill Poucher, CS Professor at Baylor University and Executive Director...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/quora-what-the-rapid-growth-of-computer-science-means-for-the-future/

Radical New Theory Says Other Universes Affect Our Own

Parallel universes have long been a staple of science fiction. But according to a radical new theory of quantum mechanics published Oct. 23 in the journal Physical Review X, other universes are real–and they exist in vast numbers.


What’s more, the scientists behind the theory...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/radical-new-theory-says-other-universes-affect-our-own/

Wes Isley: Maintaining Faith in the Midst of Doubts

Late last week, I found myself in one of those proverbial dark nights of the soul. You know, those times where you question the existence of God, the meaning of life and even the motives of cute, fluffy kittens. It hit me unexpectedly, as these things always do. Maybe it was the dwindling...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/wes-isley-maintaining-faith-in-the-midst-of-doubts/

Mariano Lozano: Science and Religion

“Science is not only compatible with spirituality; it is a profound source of spirituality. When we recognize our place in an immensity of light-years and in the passage of ages, when we grasp the intricacy, beauty, and subtlety of life, then that soaring feeling, that sense of...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/mariano-lozano-science-and-religion/

Justin Kitch: From Marmosets to Musical Taste: This Week"s Curios

Every day of the year, Curious.com CEO Justin Kitch writes a quirky fact, known as the Daily Curio, intended to tickle the brains of lifelong learners everywhere. This is a weekly digest.


Last week’s Curios covered marmoset students, wasps in figs, and why your genes might be to...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/justin-kitch-from-marmosets-to-musical-taste-this-weeks-curios/

People with Alzheimer's Disease Can Still Have Sharp Memories

Some older people who have signs of Alzheimer’s disease in their brains may actually have pretty good memories, a small new study suggests.

In the study, researchers examined the brains of eight people who had died at ages 90 and older from various causes and found that some of...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/people-with-alzheimers-disease-can-still-have-sharp-memories/

It"s Costing The Harper Government Thousands To Get Rid Of Books

CP/Twitter




It’s costing the federal government more than $22,000 to dispose of books and research material from Fisheries and Oceans scientific libraries across the country, according to new documents.
The information comes from the office of Fisheries and Oceans...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/its-costing-the-harper-government-thousands-to-get-rid-of-books/

You Won"t BELIEVE These Catapult Trick Shots

Physicists use complex mathematics to calculate a projectile’s trajectory–lots of sines, cosines, and the like. But sometimes you just get lucky, as you can see in this fun new video showing the YouTube trick-shot artists known as the Legendary Shots, who reload their homemade...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/you-wont-believe-these-catapult-trick-shots/

People Reward Angry Men But Punish Angry Women, Study Suggests

Academic studies can be fascinating… and totally confusing. So we decided to strip away all of the scientific jargon and break them down for you. 
The Background
In this week’s Lenny Letter, Jennifer Lawrence described a scenario that many women can relate to: When she spoke her ...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/people-reward-angry-men-but-punish-angry-women-study-suggests/

New optical device absorbs just one photon

Lone photon: the new device will extract exactly one photon from a beam of light
Physicists in Germany have created a new optical device that can absorb exactly one photon. They say that this device, which exploits the physical properties of giant micron-sized atoms known as Rydberg atoms,...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/new-optical-device-absorbs-just-one-photon/

Potential diabetes treatment uses light-activated gel to release insulin

Injectable insulin-carrying polymer could offer a less invasive way to control blood sugar


Patients with type 1 diabetes rely on daily injections of insulin to help regulate their blood glucose in response to food, exercise, or other activities. Now, researchers have devised a potentially...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/potential-diabetes-treatment-uses-light-activated-gel-to-release-insulin/

Genome Digest

WIKIMEDIA, AELWYN

Mustard matters

Species: Hairy bittercress (Cardamine hirsuta)Genome size: 198 million base pairs

Researchers in Europe have published the first complete genome of Cardamine hirsuta, an unobtrusive herb in the mustard family that is partial to damp soil. Using a...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/genome-digest/

Trilobites: How Cassini Will Begin Its Date With Death on Saturn

The tan circle depicts the Cassini’s ring-grazing orbits of Saturn, which begin on Wednesday. The blue circles represent earlier orbits of the planet.


NASA/JPL






It’s the beginning of a spectacular, almost circuslike end for NASA’s C...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/trilobites-how-cassini-will-begin-its-date-with-death-on-saturn/

Canada plans new fuel rules, aims 30-megatonne emissions cut by 2030

TORONTO Canada will require reduced carbon footprints for all fuels so that the country can achieve a 30-megatonne cut in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, the country’s environment department said on Friday.

The government will not mandate specific changes to fuels and will focus...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/canada-plans-new-fuel-rules-aims-30-megatonne-emissions-cut-by-2030/

Huge underground ice deposit on Mars is bigger than New Mexico

A giant deposit of buried ice on Mars contains about as much water as Lake Superior does here on Earth, a new study reports.
The ice layer, which spans a greater area than the state of New Mexico, lies in Mars’ mid-northern latitudes and is covered by just 3 feet to 33 feet of soil. It...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/huge-underground-ice-deposit-on-mars-is-bigger-than-new-mexico/

How You Can Help Save The Bees -- Even In Winter

America’s bees haven’t had the best year.
Last month, seven species of Hawaiian bees were declared endangered in the United States — a first for the insect. There are fears that the rusty-patched bumble bee, endemic to North America, is also nearing extinction.
Researchers discovered earli...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/how-you-can-help-save-the-bees-even-in-winter/

As Vincent Van Gogh Grew Darker, His Works Did Too, Study Says

You probably know that Vincent van Gogh created a painting in the late 19th century called “Bedroom in Arles.” It depicts the Dutch artist’s electric blue quarters in what’s known as his Yellow House, located, yes, in Arles, France. 
You may also know that van Gogh a...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/as-vincent-van-gogh-grew-darker-his-works-did-too-study-says/

Sarah Granger: Hillary Clinton"s Tech Agenda Addresses Key Industry Weaknesses of Diversity, Pipeline

Hillary Clinton introduced an aggressive tech innovation agenda early this week intended to continue the Obama administration’s legacy of progress in government technology, open data, computer science education, research and development, tech jobs, broadband infrastructure, internet...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/sarah-granger-hillary-clintons-tech-agenda-addresses-key-industry-weaknesses-of-diversity-pipeline/

World"s Greatest Engineering Project Turns 100

One hundred years ago, on August 15, 1914, the Panama Canal officially opened when the S. S. Ancon steamed through from the Atlantic to the Pacific side. The debut was quieter than intended because it was overshadowed by the widescale war that had just erupted in Europe, where 16 million...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/worlds-greatest-engineering-project-turns-100/

J. H. McKenna, Ph.D.: The True Religion

Here’s yet another entry from my Opinionated Dictionary of Religion.The True Religion: noun. The religion that is true, however truth may be construed.


Which of ten thousand past, present, and future religions is The True Religion?


Here are the choices.Option one. Only one...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/j-h-mckenna-ph-d-the-true-religion/

Dragos Bratasanu: Bridging Science and Spirituality in the Real World

PS: If you enjoyed this video, join FREE my newsletter at www.drdragos.co. You will discover your passion and purpose in life, strengthen your courage…
Read more: Science and Spirituality, Entrepreneurs, Success, Motivation, Inspiration, Finding Meaning in Life, Life Purpose, GPS for...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/dragos-bratasanu-bridging-science-and-spirituality-in-the-real-world/

2-Headed Calf Makes Farmers Do A Double-Take

It’s safe to say Stan McCubbin had a cow on Friday ― in all senses of the expression.
The Kentucky farmer was walking around his property near Campbellsville when he noticed what looked like twin calves in the distance.
“I saw two noses. I thought it was twins and then when I saw her, I was ...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/2-headed-calf-makes-farmers-do-a-double-take/

Dogs Remember Even the Stupid Things We Do

Dogs pay more attention to us than previously thought, with new research showing that they remember our actions and other events even when the occurrences didn’t hold any particular importance at the time they happened.

The discovery, reported in Current Biology, adds dogs to the s...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/dogs-remember-even-the-stupid-things-we-do/

Feds Messing With Scientists" Jobs, New Study Suggests

AP




The government’s cuts to federal science budgets and its changes to policy are damaging scientists’ ability to serve and protect the public, according to a new survey.
The survey was commissioned by the union representing federal scientists.
As well, the...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/feds-messing-with-scientists-jobs-new-study-suggests/

Man Breaks World Record For Deepest Scuba Dive

Scuba organizations say recreational divers shouldn’t go below about 130 feet, but one Egyptian diver recently ventured a bit deeper — going more than 1,000 feet below the ocean surface and setting a world record in the process.


The record-breaking dive took place last week,...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/man-breaks-world-record-for-deepest-scuba-dive/

Birth Order Might Not Be Such An Important Indicator After All

Academic studies can be fascinating … and totally confusing. So we decided to strip away all of the scientific jargon and break them down for you. 
The Background
Parents and researchers have long speculated that birth order could determine kids’ personalities. Stereotypes say ...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/birth-order-might-not-be-such-an-important-indicator-after-all/

Do solar neutrinos affect nuclear decay on Earth?

Solar effect: do neutrinos from the Sun affect beta decay on Earth?
Further evidence that solar neutrinos affect radioactive decay rates on Earth has been put forth by a trio of physicists in the US. While previous research looked at annual fluctuations in decay rates, the new study presents...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/do-solar-neutrinos-affect-nuclear-decay-on-earth/

Novamont opens bio-BDO plant

Volume 94 Issue 40 | p. 13 | News of The WeekIssue Date: October 10, 2016 | Web Date: October 6, 2016


Italian polymer producer Novamont has opened what it calls the world’s first commercial plant for the biobased production of 1,4-butanediol (BDO), a major chemical intermediate. The $110 m...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/novamont-opens-bio-bdo-plant/

Language trends run in mysterious 14-year cycles

Words move in and out of favour over 14 years
Albert Llop/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images


By Sophia Chen
The media tends to interpret culture in yearly cycles. Critics publish end-of-year best-of lists and Oxford Dictionaries just selected “post-truth” as its word of the year. But the words w...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/language-trends-run-in-mysterious-14-year-cycles/

Vector Space Raises Additional Funds to Support 2017 First Launch

A full-sized “pathfinder” of Vector Space Systems’ Vector-R rocket undergoing tests in September in Tucson, Arizona.
Credit: Vector Space Systems




WASHINGTON — Vector Space Systems said Nov. 18 that it has ra...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/vector-space-raises-additional-funds-to-support-2017-first-launch/

Perils of Climate Change Could Swamp Coastal Real Estate

Virginia requires real estate agents to reveal whether a property is in a military airplane noise zone, has defective drywall or has ever been used to manufacture methamphetamine. After the flood maps were updated, the industry wondered what new disclosure rules would be mandated. Should...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/perils-of-climate-change-could-swamp-coastal-real-estate/

Climbing the social ladder can strengthen your immune system, monkey study suggests

Macaques grooming each other. 
Lauren Brent



It’s tough at the bottom of the totem pole. A low status isn’t just bad for your social life, it’s also bad for your immune system, raising your risk of infection and disease. But according to a new study in monkeys, this effect is rever...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/climbing-the-social-ladder-can-strengthen-your-immune-system-monkey-study-suggests/

Cannibal Bacteria Could Wipe Out Antibiotic-Resistant Superbugs, Study Finds

Scientists have discovered a novel way to fight deadly superbugs – cannibal bacteria. 
A fast-swimming bacterium called Bdellovibrio has been proven to clear potentially lethal infections by devouring bacteria from the inside out.
After feeding, the bacteria replicates and then bursts out of ...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/cannibal-bacteria-could-wipe-out-antibiotic-resistant-superbugs-study-finds/

8 Awesome Photos That Showcase The Wonders Of Underwater Life

A golden seahorse, a fishing bear and a wrecked ship never looked so stunning.
Those are just some of the winning images in this year’s Underwater Photographer of the Year contest. Italian photographer Davide Lopresti won the title of “Underwater Photographer of the Year 2...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/8-awesome-photos-that-showcase-the-wonders-of-underwater-life/

David Seaman: Bitcoin Halving: It Happened!

Well, the Bitcoin protocol survived its much awaited block halving event.


Since block halvings are programmed to happen so infrequently (once every 210,000 blocks, or roughly once every four years), they are a cause of trepidation.


Yet this one appears to have gone off without any...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/david-seaman-bitcoin-halving-it-happened/

8 Great Modern Innovations We Can Thank Muslims For

When thousands of “patriotic Europeans” took to the streets once again in Dresden to protest “the Islamisation of the West,” their actions were the result not only of resentment and fear, but also of ignorance.


Luckily for us, our central European culture has benefited from Islamic influen...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/8-great-modern-innovations-we-can-thank-muslims-for/

Michael Shammas: Outrage Culture Kills Important Conversation

President Obama took a lot of heat recently for criticizing college leftists who are offended by dissenting opinions. But he’s absolutely right: Productive discourse is dying, trampled over by closed minds who value comfortable opinion-holding over uncomfortable soul-searching. As...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/michael-shammas-outrage-culture-kills-important-conversation/

Stafford Betty: The New Science of Afterlife Research and Its Benefits to Society

One of the most revolutionary ideas ever conceived is that we are more than our bodies and that our true home lies beyond our physical planet. This idea, that we are or have souls that do not die at death, is found in all the earth’s religions. Under attack since the Enlightenment,...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/stafford-betty-the-new-science-of-afterlife-research-and-its-benefits-to-society/

Harvard Honors Strangest Discoveries In Science With Ig Nobels

Some scientists who make astonishing breakthroughs win a Nobel Prize.
But there are others whose discoveries make people think, “Wow, it’s astonishing someone actually thought to study that.”
Things like how polyester pants affect the sex life of rats, what it’s like for a human to live like ...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/harvard-honors-strangest-discoveries-in-science-with-ig-nobels/

The Clever Way Females Fend Off Male Fish with Big Genitals

A western mosquitofish (Gambusia affinis).
Credit: topimages / Shutterstock.com




Male mosquitofish with bigger genitals are typically best at coercing females into the “sack,” but now researchers have found that...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/the-clever-way-females-fend-off-male-fish-with-big-genitals/

And The Scientist Silencing Continues..

At an annual conference in Truro, N.S., that brings fishermen and scientists together to promote ocean research, some researchers declined to discuss their work with media because they did not have approval to do so.
Scientists across the country have been expressing growing alarm...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/and-the-scientist-silencing-continues/

What Weightlifting For Just 20 Minutes Does To Your Brain

You may be surprised by what a quick workout session can do for your brain.


It’s no secret that weightlifting is good for you — from building muscle tissue to relieving stress — but now a new study on brains and brawn suggests that going hard in the gym for as little as...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/what-weightlifting-for-just-20-minutes-does-to-your-brain/

Men May Like The Idea Of A Smart Woman, But They Don"t Want To Date One

Academic studies can be fascinating… and totally confusing. So we decided to strip away all of the scientific jargon and break them down for you. 
The Background
In general, most people like the idea of “dating up.” Isn’t it better to find someone more attractive, ...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/men-may-like-the-idea-of-a-smart-woman-but-they-dont-want-to-date-one/

Flash Physics: Room-temperature superconductor, well-known fundamental constants, photosynthesis in action

Flash Physics is our daily pick of the latest need-to-know developments from the global physics community selected by Physics World‘s team of editors and reporters

Superconducting transition spotted well above room temperature
An abrupt transition in the electrical resistance of...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/flash-physics-room-temperature-superconductor-well-known-fundamental-constants-photosynthesis-in-action/

Rotterdam eyed for waste-to-chemicals plant

Volume 94 Issue 41 | p. 13 | News of The WeekIssue Date: October 17, 2016 | Web Date: October 14, 2016


A group of companies calling itself the Waste-to-Chemicals Consortium has chosen the port of Rotterdam, the Netherlands, as the proposed site of a methanol plant that will use waste as...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/rotterdam-eyed-for-waste-to-chemicals-plant/

Next Generation: Super-Fast Tracking of Single Molecules

FLICKR, MILOSZ1The technique: The average charge-coupled device (CCD) camera mounted on a fluorescent microscope can take images every 100 milliseconds (ms). But what if a fluorescent protein being studied moves faster than that? A new phase-manipulation technique developed by a group of...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/next-generation-super-fast-tracking-of-single-molecules/

Indian lunar orbiter hit by heat rise

NEW DELHI, India (CNN) — Scientists have switched off several on-board instruments to halt rising temperatures inside India’s first unmanned lunar spacecraft.







The spacecraft carrying India’s first lunar probe, Chandrayaan-1, lifts off from...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/indian-lunar-orbiter-hit-by-heat-rise/

Angry words over East Asian seas

Published online 19 October 2011 |
Nature
478,
293-294
(2011)
| doi:10.1038/478293a
Corrected online: 21 October 2011

Chinese territorial claims propel science into choppy waters.

Mine, all mine: the rush to claim minerals and oil is driving...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/angry-words-over-east-asian-seas/

Did NASA Mars Rover find a signature of past life?

During its wheeled treks on the Red Planet, NASA’s Spirit rover may have encountered a potential signature of past life on Mars, report scientists at Arizona State University (ASU).
To help make their case, the researchers have contrasted Spirit’s study of “Home...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/did-nasa-mars-rover-find-a-signature-of-past-life/

NASA confirms new rocket engine that runs on NOTHING - but can get humans to Mars in days

The EmDrive prototype was revealed in a leaked report by the US space agency.
Using a resonant cavity thruster, the prototype can move through space without expelling matter to push against.
EmDrive is powered by particles of light and microwaves that ricochet inside a sealed cone-shaped...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/nasa-confirms-new-rocket-engine-that-runs-on-nothing-but-can-get-humans-to-mars-in-days/

Narcissists Make Better Artists, Study Says, Surprising No One

A pretty successful artist named Pablo Picasso once said to one of his friends: “God is really an artist, like me… I am God, I am God, I am God.”
Some people might qualify a statement like this as a sign of gratuitous and perhaps delusional self-obsession. In essence,...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/narcissists-make-better-artists-study-says-surprising-no-one/

Vivienne Mayer: 5 Ways to Empower Girls to Code

Part two of the Everyday Empowerment series for girls and women


Imagine a brand new language is replacing English as THE leading international means of communication — its vocabulary is growing exponentially, soon only those who speak it fluently will be able to fully participate...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/vivienne-mayer-5-ways-to-empower-girls-to-code/

Dog Spacesuit Up For Auction

According to the auction site, the suit was worn by the Soviet space dogs Belka and Strelka during the Sputnik 5 mission in 1960 — a mission that helped pave the way for the first manned spaceflight, made by cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin in 1961.


The suit was formerly owned by German pop...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/dog-spacesuit-up-for-auction/

How One Doctor Is Waging War On Bulls**t Science

We all know science is a fantastic tool for explaining our world. But as medical doctor-turned-editor Ivan Oransky knows all too well, it’s not perfect.
Oransky, global editorial director of the news site MedPage Today and co-founder of the website Retraction Watch, has made a career...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/how-one-doctor-is-waging-war-on-bullst-science/

Ali Z. Hussain: A Night"s Ascension Into Enchantment

The fate of our times is characterized by rationalization and intellectualization, and, above all, by the ‘disenchantment of the world.’ Precisely the ultimate and most sublime values have retreated from public life either into the transcendental realm of mystic life or into...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/ali-z-hussain-a-nights-ascension-into-enchantment/

Did Mickey Mouse"s Pants Wreck His Sex Life? We Have Science On This.

Ever wonder why Mickey Mouse never had any kids? Maybe it was those silly pants.
Let’s not even consider whether his lack of style turned Minnie off. Mickey may have failed to score because of the fabric of his red shorts.
Sound goofy? Well, that’s the finding of a 1993 study on the effect of...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/did-mickey-mouses-pants-wreck-his-sex-life-we-have-science-on-this/

Why Do People Get 'Bags' Under Their Eyes?

As any sleep-deprived person with a mirror knows, dark circles under the eyes are usually prominent after a bad night’s sleep.

But why do people get these dark, purplish eye bags in the first place? The answer is both genetic (that is, relating to your DNA) and environmental (a...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/why-do-people-get-bags-under-their-eyes/

Basic Canadian Research Threatened

The remodeling of the research council is one in a series of policy changes that have generated fierce pushback by Canadian academics in recent years. The Conservative government of Prime Minister Stephen Harper is also under fire for closing research libraries, shutting down research...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/basic-canadian-research-threatened/

This Scientist Has A Surprising Idea For Protecting Football Players

You don’t have to be a scientist to enjoy watching football, but being one certainly changes your perspective on the game.


As the materials-scientist-turned-science-evangelist makes clear in this wide-ranging interview with HuffPost Science editor David Freeman, football spotlights a...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/this-scientist-has-a-surprising-idea-for-protecting-football-players/

What Sexting Can Teach Us About Consent

Academic studies can be fascinating… and totally confusing. So we decided to strip away all of the scientific jargon and break them down for you. 
The Background
Sexting has gotten a bad rap. News stories about young people sending sexually explicit images and messages on their phones ...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/what-sexting-can-teach-us-about-consent/

Flash Physics: Huge Martian ice deposit, Trump sets back climate science, ultra-transparent metamaterial

Flash Physics is our daily pick of the latest need-to-know developments from the global physics community selected by Physics World‘s team of editors and reporters

Martian ice deposit holds as much water as Lake Superior
Water, water everywhere: surface features on Utopia Planitia...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/flash-physics-huge-martian-ice-deposit-trump-sets-back-climate-science-ultra-transparent-metamaterial/

Cement could be a helpful carbon sink

[+]Enlarge



 



Cement plants are major emitters of carbon dioxide.
Credit: Shutterstock



Making cement requires a lot of heat and releases large amounts of carbon dioxide. The heat helps transform limestone (calcium carbonate) into clinker, which is ...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/cement-could-be-a-helpful-carbon-sink/

Power of the Pentagon: The changing face of military science

Published online 21 September 2011 |
Nature
477,
386-387
(2011)
| doi:10.1038/477386a

Basic research funded by the Pentagon is facing an uncertain future.

In 2005, as roadside bomb attacks were claiming ever more lives in Iraq, senior Pentagon officials called on...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/power-of-the-pentagon-the-changing-face-of-military-science/

Hubble rounds up the first worlds we’ll check for alien life

By Joshua Sokol
 

The search for alien life is taking a shortcut. The Hubble Space Telescope is set to spend hundreds of hours over the next year running reconnaissance on a shortlist of worlds to identify those we should scour for life first.
This latest effort aims to take advantage of ...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/hubble-rounds-up-the-first-worlds-well-check-for-alien-life/

At 56, Peggy Whitson Becomes Oldest Female Astronaut

U.S. astronaut Peggy Whitson gestures before the launch of the Soyuz MS-03 spaceship to the International Space Station on Thursday.

Dmitri Lovetsky/AP

hide caption


...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/at-56-peggy-whitson-becomes-oldest-female-astronaut/

Eat It, Don't Leave It: How London Became A Leader In Anti-Food Waste

Junior Herbert, a volunteer with Olio, collects leftovers from vendors at London’s Camden Market. London has become a hub for apps and small-scale businesses that let restaurants and food vendors share leftovers with the public for free, and otherwise reduce...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/eat-it-dont-leave-it-how-london-became-a-leader-in-anti-food-waste/

Canadian researcher in legal battle to keep her interviews confidential

Marie-Ève Maillé worries that companies will try to deter researchers from testifying if the current ruling stands.
Hélène Bouffard



When Canadian graduate student Marie-Ève ​​Maillé held interviews with 93 people in 2010 about a massive wind farm being built in the Arthabaska regi...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/canadian-researcher-in-legal-battle-to-keep-her-interviews-confidential/

Tesla microgrid powers entire island with solar in American Samoa

TA’U, American Samoa, Nov. 22 (UPI) — Self-sufficiency isn’t easy on small Pacific islands, but the distant island of Ta’u in American Samoa can now supply nearly all of its inhabitants’ power needs using renewable energy.
The island now generates and stores...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/tesla-microgrid-powers-entire-island-with-solar-in-american-samoa/

Artist Paints With Bacteria, And It"s Oddly Beautiful

You’ve never seen bacteria quite like this before.
Mixed media artist Maria Peñil Cobo, who was born in Spain and currently resides in Massachusetts, told The Huffington Post on Thursday that she has often turned to nature as inspiration for her artwork. But instead of looking to vast ...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/artist-paints-with-bacteria-and-its-oddly-beautiful/

Jason Wingard: Building a Talent Pipeline for Girls in STEM

This past February, I spent time in San Francisco and Silicon Valley, meeting with several top tech firms, to explore how I could leverage my role as a Dean at Columbia University to support talent in the industry. My intention was not to talk about diversity, but it quickly became clear...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/jason-wingard-building-a-talent-pipeline-for-girls-in-stem/

Harry Red: From $0 to $13.3B: The Value of Great Communication

Forget about your great idea.


Sad fact: bad communication kills great ideas. So, in theory, you can have the greatest idea in the world. But if you can’t communicate in a clear, concise, and compelling manner? You can forget about it.


Take steel. Dick Teresi tells us in Lost...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/harry-red-from-0-to-13-3b-the-value-of-great-communication/

J. H. McKenna, Ph.D.: Trump Dabs Gall On Evangelical Lips*

Trump has distilled American Evangelicalism to a vinegary residue. He has stripped it to a hollow husk. An acidic shell is all that remains as The Cynical & Crafty Far Right Guides conclude their long, long manipulation of Evangelical churches.


Decades ago, The Cynical & Crafty...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/j-h-mckenna-ph-d-trump-dabs-gall-on-evangelical-lips/

Frank Fredericks: DEBATE: Is Religion the Opiate of the Masses?

I had the esteemed privilege of opening the Proposition in the Oxford Union debate: This House Believes that Religion Remains an Opiate of the Masses. Debating at the Oxford Union, a debating society with over 170 years of tradition, is a rare honor that few people may ever get in their...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/frank-fredericks-debate-is-religion-the-opiate-of-the-masses/

Justin Kitch: From Pumpkin Spice to Pill Colors: This Week"s Curios

Every day of the year, Curious.com CEO Justin Kitch writes a quirky fact, known as the Daily Curio, intended to tickle the brains of lifelong learners everywhere. This is a weekly digest.


Last week’s Curios covered the history of the PSL, why older siblings are smarter, and how...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/justin-kitch-from-pumpkin-spice-to-pill-colors-this-weeks-curios/

100 Years of Infectious Disease Deaths in US: Study Shows What's Changed

A 3D look at the HIV virus.
Credit: Sebastian Kaulitzki/Shutterstock




We’ve come a long way in treating infectious diseases over the last century, but in recent decades, the rates of death from some infectious diseases have...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/100-years-of-infectious-disease-deaths-in-us-study-shows-whats-changed/

Tories Accused Of Banning Meteorologists From Discussing Climate Change

Syncrude’s Mildred Lake Upgrader, part of The Syncrude Project complex for oil sands processing, is pictured Monday, March 8, 2006 in Fort McMurray, Alberta, Canada.



The Syncrude oil sands extraction facility is reflected in a lake reclaimed from an old mine near the...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/tories-accused-of-banning-meteorologists-from-discussing-climate-change/

Basketball "Flopping" Put To The Test By Researchers Overseas

The NBA’s regular season kicked off Tuesday night, and already players are being accused of “flopping” — with fingers pointing at Charlotte Hornets’ Lance Stephenson, San Antonio Spurs’ Tim Duncan and Indiana Pacers’ Roy Hibbert, among...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/basketball-flopping-put-to-the-test-by-researchers-overseas/

Women May Internalize Relationship Problems While Men Get Frustrated

Academic studies can be fascinating… and totally confusing. So we decided to strip away all of the scientific jargon and break them down for you. 
The Background
Marriage is generally considered to be good for people’s psyches — if the marriage is a good one, that is. Bad m...

Read full post here:
http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/women-may-internalize-relationship-problems-while-men-get-frustrated/

Flash Physics: Graphene-based loudspeaker, new schedule for ITER, India joins CERN

Flash Physics is our daily pick of the latest need-to-know developments from the global physics community selected by Physics World‘s team of editors and reporters

“Consumer-ready” loudspeaker is made from graphene oxide
On Q: this loudspeaker is made from graphene...

Read full post here:
http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/flash-physics-graphene-based-loudspeaker-new-schedule-for-iter-india-joins-cern/

Interruptores endocrinos: ¿cuál es el coste para los humanos?

[+]Enlarge



 



Plastificantes ftalatos, que se utilizan en una variedad de productos de plástico tales como éstos se muestra, han sido durante mucho tiempo objeto de escrutinio como disruptores endocrinos.
Credit: Shutterstock



La exposición prolongada de b...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/interruptores-endocrinos-cual-es-el-coste-para-los-humanos/

Chemicals track Fukushima meltdown

Radioactive sulphur signal adds to evidence of catastrophe.

Radiation from the damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station in Japan was detected in California not long after the accident.TEPCO
Scientists in California are reporting raised levels of radioactive chemicals in the atmosphere...

Read full post here:
http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/chemicals-track-fukushima-meltdown/

Particles break light-speed limit

Published online 22 September 2011 |
Nature
| doi:10.1038/news.2011.554
Updated online: 23 September 2011

Neutrino results challenge cornerstone of modern physics.

Has OPERA found super-speedy neutrinos?CERN
An Italian experiment has unveiled evidence that fundamental...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/particles-break-light-speed-limit/

Opinion: Repairing Peer Review

FLICKR, NEAL PATELThis year three Nobel Prize-winning biologists broke with tradition and published their research directly on the Internet as so-called preprints. Their motivation? Saving time.

Traditionally, scientific studies are published in peer-reviewed journals, which require...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/opinion-repairing-peer-review/

Russia takes aim at Phobos

Mission to Martian moon is the country’s first interplanetary attempt since 1996.

Phobos, as seen in 2008 by NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona
For the first time in 15 years, Russia is getting back into the business of interplanetary space...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/russia-takes-aim-at-phobos/

Tropical Storm Otto forms over Atlantic: NHC

Read full post here:
http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/tropical-storm-otto-forms-over-atlantic-nhc/

This state's 102M dead trees should worry you

In drought-stricken California, 36 million trees have died since May, the Los Angeles Times reports. They’re part of 62 million trees that have died in the state since 2016 and 102 million trees that have died over the past six years.
“It’s not beyond the pale to suggest...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/this-states-102m-dead-trees-should-worry-you/

U.S. weather satellite's launch promises 'quantum leap' in forecasts

By Irene Klotz
| CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla


CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla A U.S. weather satellite that will “revolutionize” forecasting blasted off from Florida’s Cape Canaveral on Saturday, promising to deliver continuous high-definition views of hurricanes and...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/u-s-weather-satellites-launch-promises-quantum-leap-in-forecasts/

These Awe-Inspiring Photos Show Just How Beautiful Insects Can Be

The mundane beetle is incredibly magnificent up close.
That’s evident in the latest work of British photographer Levon Biss, whose intricate images of insect specimens, from the tiger beetle to the marion flightless moth, will be on display in an exhibition called ...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/these-awe-inspiring-photos-show-just-how-beautiful-insects-can-be/

Craig Newmark: How Can We Get More Girls and Women in Tech?

Folks, it’s important to support women in tech. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 68% of women enroll in college (compared to 63% of men), and women increasingly outnumber men in college graduation rates. Despite these stats, women still make up only a quarter of the tech...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/craig-newmark-how-can-we-get-more-girls-and-women-in-tech/

Physicist Says She Has Proof Black Holes Simply Don"t Exist

Scientists have lots of bizarre theories about black holes. Black holes gobble up everything that gets too close, even light. They can cause time to slow. They contain entire universes.


But here’s something about black holes you might not have heard: they simply don’t...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/physicist-says-she-has-proof-black-holes-simply-dont-exist/

J. H. McKenna, Ph.D.: What Is Mysticism?

Mysticism. noun. A feeling of God’s presence — without media.
There are two types of theistic personnel.
One is intellectualist and grasps God t…
Read more: Mysticism, Theology, God, Skepticism, Atheism, Agnosticism, Religion News



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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/j-h-mckenna-ph-d-what-is-mysticism/

Laura Rediehs: Our Epistemological Crisis

Several essays ago, I mentioned that we are in an epistemological crisis, and I promised further discussion in future essays. In case you have been eagerly awaiting the further discussion, here it is!


“What is our epistemological crisis?” you may be wondering. “And...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/laura-rediehs-our-epistemological-crisis/

Everything You"ve Wondered About U.S. Pooping Habits In One Big Dump

When it comes to bowel movements, the night time is not always the right time.
Turns out, more than 61 percent of Americans prefer to poop in the morning, compared to 2.6 percent who do it at night.
That’s the straight dirt from a survey about the bathroom habits of 2,000 Americans by He...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/everything-youve-wondered-about-u-s-pooping-habits-in-one-big-dump/

Forget Politics: 7 Wacky Science Stories to Talk About This Thanksgiving

A heated election season is turning into a complicated transition as Donald Trump prepares to assume the U.S. presidency. The national mood is not conducive to peace and harmony around the Thanksgiving table, to say the least.

Some families will be able to discuss these political...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/forget-politics-7-wacky-science-stories-to-talk-about-this-thanksgiving/

Tory MP Denies That Climate Change Science Is "Settled"

Winegrowers in France’s Champagne region and scientists have already seen changes in the past 25 years, reported The New York Times last year. They have “noted major changes in their vineyards, including an increased sugar content in the grapes from which they make their...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/tory-mp-denies-that-climate-change-science-is-settled/

Amandine Aftalion : How to Improve Running -- With Mathematical Equations

Connected objects are everywhere in a sportsman’s life. Every day, new applications to improve fitness can be downloaded on your smartphone. They involve a lot of measurements and statistics but how reliable are they from a scientific point of view? How should we train to improve our...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/amandine-aftalion-how-to-improve-running-with-mathematical-equations/

No, Facelifts Probably Won"t Improve Your Self-Esteem

The most common procedure Dr. Andrew Jacono, a New York City-based plastic surgeon, performs is facelifts. After practicing for 14 years, Jacono started to notice that many patients were coming to him to fix what he calls “crises of low self-worth.” These patients were hoping...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/no-facelifts-probably-wont-improve-your-self-esteem/

Shell bids for cellulosic ethanol plant

Volume 94 Issue 42 | p. 13 | News of The WeekIssue Date: October 24, 2016 | Web Date: October 18, 2016


Shell has bid $26 million to buy a Kansas cellulosic ethanol plant owned by the Spanish energy firm Abengoa, according to a bankruptcy court filing. Abengoa idled the plant in December...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/shell-bids-for-cellulosic-ethanol-plant/

Virtual hunt for solar technology yields initial results

Theoretical screening method produces first sample molecule as researchers analyse 3.5 million candidates for solar cells.

Organic solar cells are less efficient than their silicon counterparts, but ccould be cheaper and more versatile.T. Wang/Shutterstock.com
US researchers have used...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/virtual-hunt-for-solar-technology-yields-initial-results/

Texas holds firm on physics closures

Undergraduate programmes face termination unless graduation rates improve.

The undergraduate physics programme at the University of Texas at Brownsville may soon dissolve.University of Texas at Brownsville
Texas higher-education officials delivered a stern message to physicists yesterday...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/texas-holds-firm-on-physics-closures/

Projected sprite makes Shakespeare’s The Tempest a messy triumph

The Tempest – with added motion capture
Alastair Muir/REX/Shutterstock


By Simon Ings
It should come as no surprise that the Royal Shakespeare Company’s projector and motion-capture-enhanced new production of Shakespeare’s last play is a triumph. For one thing, The Tempest is actually not ...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/projected-sprite-makes-shakespeares-the-tempest-a-messy-triumph/

David Bowie and Other Artists Lead Children on a Galactic Adventure

Photo


David Bowie in his Ziggy Stardust persona, photographed by Masayoshi Sukita. Portraits of Bowie and his “Space Oddity” video are part of the exhibition.

Credit
Masayoshi Sukita


‘Mission to Space...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/david-bowie-and-other-artists-lead-children-on-a-galactic-adventure/

Leon G. Billings, Architect of Clean Air and Clean Water Acts, Dies at 78

Photo


Leon G. Billings addressing an environmental law class at the University of Montana in April.

Credit
Kurt Wilson/Missoulian


Gretchen Garber grew up in Washington State but, afflicted with chronic lung...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/leon-g-billings-architect-of-clean-air-and-clean-water-acts-dies-at-78/

NIH director’s possible exit plan: Back to the lab

Francis Collins
Ernesto del Aguila III/NHGRI/Flickr (CC BY 2.0)



Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for the past 7 years, expects to go back to full-time research for a while if he’s not asked to stay on by President-elect Donald Trump, the p...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/nih-directors-possible-exit-plan-back-to-the-lab/

NASA Launches GOES-R Weather Satellite

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla, Nov 19 – A U.S. weather satellite that will “revolutionize” forecasting blasted off from Florida’s Cape Canaveral on Saturday, promising to deliver continuous high-definition views of hurricanes and other storms over the Western Hemisphere.
A detailed stream of imag...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/nasa-launches-goes-r-weather-satellite/

Artist Creates Sculptures From Bacteria Growing On Her Face

You see your face every day, reflected in the mirror, in random windows and sunglasses and screens. You know what you look like, down to the mole that sprouts hairs you have to keep an eye out for. But when it comes to bacteria, the microscopic intruders making a home between your cheek and...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/artist-creates-sculptures-from-bacteria-growing-on-her-face/

Sanjna Verma: What I Wish I Knew About Hackathons

Hackathon season is about to be well under way, with the fall semester especially notorious for the simultaneous job fairs and intensity of seasoned hackathon veterans. I remember my first hackathon: it was my sophomore year of college, just six months after I decided to study computer...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/sanjna-verma-what-i-wish-i-knew-about-hackathons/

Deborah Berebichez: Outrageous Acts of Thinking: The Misuse of Science

I met an installation artist at a dinner party a couple of months ago. When she asked what I did, I told her I was a physicist.


“I love physicists,” she gushed. “I work with a tribe in the Amazon and they are more quantum mechanical than us.”


“What do you...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/deborah-berebichez-outrageous-acts-of-thinking-the-misuse-of-science/

Ryan Phipps: Faitheism

Locke: “God—-it it, Morpheus! Not everyone believes what you believe!”
Morpheus: “My beliefs do not require them to.”
– The Matrix
SEASONS
I’ve …
Read more: Atheism, Skepticism, Partnerships, Religion, Christianity, Fundamentalism, Christian...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/ryan-phipps-faitheism/

Michael W. Austin: Freethinkers, Reason, and Religion

Freethinkers are often defined by their rejection of religion, or at least of any organized form of religion. For example, the Freedom from Religion Foundation describes a freethinker as someone “who forms opinions about religion on the basis of reason, independently of tradition,...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/michael-w-austin-freethinkers-reason-and-religion/

Artist Depicts The Theory Of Evolution In 1,250 Face Paintings

A London artist has managed to convey the entire history of life on our planet in less than two minutes ― and she only needed to paint her face 1,250 times.
Emma Allen has made a name for herself through an innovative combination of face painting and stop-motion animation. Her latest work, “S...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/artist-depicts-the-theory-of-evolution-in-1250-face-paintings/

400-Year-Old False Teeth Found in Italian Burial

Archaeologists excavating a monastery in the Tuscan town of Lucca have unearthed a unique 400-year-old dental prosthesis which appears to predate modern tooth bridges.

The appliance consists of five teeth — three central incisors and two lateral canines aligned in an incorrect anatomical ...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/400-year-old-false-teeth-found-in-italian-burial/

Government Memo Criticized Top Biologist For Oilsands Comments

Click through to see what travellers can expect from Maritime Bus Alberta, a company offering luxury coaches to the oilsands.



Work stations with free wi-fi.



Comfortable seating, with tables and leather chairs.



Bunks for sleeping.



An attendant to...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/government-memo-criticized-top-biologist-for-oilsands-comments/

Why We "Choke" Under Pressure, According To Neuroscience

During the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, all eyes were on the U.S. Women’s Gymnastics team, who won the team gold in gymnastics for America for the first time since 1996. But during the individual vault event, all eyes were on one U.S. gymnast in particular: McKayla Maroney. The...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/why-we-choke-under-pressure-according-to-neuroscience/

A Man"s Testosterone Levels Could Determine His Parenting Style

Academic studies can be fascinating… and totally confusing. So we decided to strip away all of the scientific jargon and break them down for you. 
The Background
It’s well-established that women experience hormonal shifts that switch their bodies into mommy mode during pregnancy, ...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/a-mans-testosterone-levels-could-determine-his-parenting-style/

Asthma patients could stop wheezing thanks to worm spit

Volume 94 Issue 43 | p. 7 | News of The WeekIssue Date: October 31, 2016 | Web Date: October 26, 2016
Protein secreted by hookworms helps block immune responses associated with asthma in mice


A bloodsucking parasitic worm that latches onto the lining of our gut doesn’t sound like a helpful o...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/asthma-patients-could-stop-wheezing-thanks-to-worm-spit/

Cell signalling: It's all about the structure

Published online 24 August 2011 |
Nature
476,
387-390
(2011)
| doi:10.1038/476387a

For more than 20 years, Brian Kobilka worked to create a portrait of a key cell receptor. Sometimes, the slow, steady approach wins.

Brian Kobilka was exhausted when he stepped off...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/cell-signalling-its-all-about-the-structure/

Speedy neutrinos challenge physicists

Published online 27 September 2011 |
Nature
477,
520
(2011)
| doi:10.1038/477520a

Experiment under scrutiny as teams prepare to test claim that particles can beat light speed.

The joke begins with the barman saying: “I’m sorry, we don’t serve...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/speedy-neutrinos-challenge-physicists/

Opinion: The Impact Factor, Re-envisioned

© ISTOCKPHOTO.COM/ELLICA_S Even as Eugene Garfield proposed the impact factor more than half a century ago, he had reservations. “I expected it to be used constructively while recognizing that in the wrong hands it might be abused,” he said in a presentation he gave at the International Con...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/opinion-the-impact-factor-re-envisioned/

New Space Station Crew Arrives as Weather Satellite Launches Today: Watch Live

A United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket, carrying the NASA/NOAA GOES-R weather satellite, is rolled from the Vertical Integration Facility to the launch pad at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station’s Space Launch Complex-41 ahead of a planned Nov. 19, 2016 launch.
...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/new-space-station-crew-arrives-as-weather-satellite-launches-today-watch-live/

Dam controversy: Remaking the Mekong

Published online 19 October 2011 |
Nature
478,
305-307
(2011)
| doi:10.1038/478305a

Scientists are hoping to stall plans to erect a string of dams along the Mekong River.

Damming the Mekong River could harm millions who rely on migratory fish, such as the...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/dam-controversy-remaking-the-mekong/

Newfound spider species masquerades as a dried-up leaf

In the animal kingdom, sometimes the best survival strategy is to pretend to be something you’re not — either to ambush unsuspecting prey or to convince predators that you’re not very tasty.
And scientists recently discovered a spider that uses a unique masquerade to hide in p...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/newfound-spider-species-masquerades-as-a-dried-up-leaf/

Dinosaur-Killing Asteroid Created A Mountain Higher Than Everest In Minutes

When the asteroid which wiped out the dinosaurs struck Earth, the surface of the planet rebounded so fast it formed a mountain higher than Everest in less than 10 minutes.
That’s one of the extraordinary findings of a new study which describes in unprecedented detail the impact the asteroid h...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/dinosaur-killing-asteroid-created-a-mountain-higher-than-everest-in-minutes/

An Artist Nano-Printed A Poem That Can Live Inside Your Body

If you could have a poem embedded in your very flesh, what would it say? This was the question on poet and artist Jen Bervin‘s mind, and it wasn’t just hypothetical. 
Through her research, Bervin has learned that silk, aside from its ridiculously touchable softness, is completely ...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/an-artist-nano-printed-a-poem-that-can-live-inside-your-body/

Pavita Singh, MPH: Computer Science Education Made Fun and Easy

Knowing how to code is the wave of the future. Being able to code helps you to break down problems procedurally and think of new ideas in terms of processes. If you see something in the world that’s inefficient, a knowledge of code allows you to come up with concrete...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/pavita-singh-mph-computer-science-education-made-fun-and-easy/

Here"s Why The Night Sky Is Dark Even Though Jillions Of Stars Are Shining Light Our Way

There are a lot of stars out there–an estimated 70 billion trillion. With so many stars beaming their light our way, it seems only logical that the night sky would be as bright as day.


This is the essence of the so-called dark night sky paradox, also known as Olbers’ paradox...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/heres-why-the-night-sky-is-dark-even-though-jillions-of-stars-are-shining-light-our-way/

J. H. McKenna, Ph.D.: What Are Letters From the Damned ?

From Cro-Magnon Woman in Hell:You always hear about Cro-Magnon Man, and I just want everyone to know there were women too amongst us Cromies.


All of us Cro-Magnons, the men, the women, and the children, are here in hell. Not a one made it elsewhere.


When I say ‘men’ and...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/j-h-mckenna-ph-d-what-are-letters-from-the-damned/

Nathan Gardels: Weekend Roundup: Being Is Not an Algorithm

Recently, The WorldPost published an interview with “Sapiens” author Yuval Harari in which he envisioned a future where “organisms become algorithms” as computer and biological sciences converge. In a response, Deepak Chopra writes this week that being cannot be...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/nathan-gardels-weekend-roundup-being-is-not-an-algorithm/

Woman Farts During Surgery, Setting Fire To Laser In Operating Room

A woman who went into a Tokyo hospital for surgery needed to be treated for burns after one of her farts apparently started a fire in the operating room.
The fire happened April 15 at the Tokyo Medical University Hospital when a doctor was using a laser on the cervix of a woman in her 30s,...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/woman-farts-during-surgery-setting-fire-to-laser-in-operating-room/

Yo-Yo Dieting May Pose Heart Risks in Women

Women whose weight fluctuates by more than 10 lbs. (4.5 kilograms) over the course of a decade, but who are not overweight, may have an increased risk of heart problems, a new study finds.

In the study, researchers looked at data from nearly 160,000 postmenopausal women who took part in ...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/yo-yo-dieting-may-pose-heart-risks-in-women/

16 Government Officials Involved In One Request To Interview Scientist

VANCOUVER – It was a story about rock snot.
And if there’s a person you want to talk to about the pervasive algae also known by the less-offensive, more scientific name of Didymo, it’s Fisheries and Oceans Canada scientist Max Bothwell.
Bothwell is, other...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/16-government-officials-involved-in-one-request-to-interview-scientist/

You Might As Well Flip A Coin To Fill In Your NCAA Brackets

Hey, basketball pundits, here’s something about March Madness that could make you really mad.


Flipping a coin to fill in your NCAA Tournament brackets may yield better results than making selections based on your personal assessment of the teams, a University of Michigan professor...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/you-might-as-well-flip-a-coin-to-fill-in-your-ncaa-brackets/

Why Weighing Yourself Every Day Could Be Messing With Your Mind

Academic studies can be fascinating… and totally confusing. So we decided to strip away all of the scientific jargon and break them down for you. 
The Background
Stepping onto the scale can be a pretty fraught task no matter how much you weigh. Obsessing over a number that fluctuates ...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/why-weighing-yourself-every-day-could-be-messing-with-your-mind/

Peter Dorhout is 2017 ACS President-Elect

Peter K. Dorhout, Vice President for Research at Kansas State University, has been elected the 2017 American Chemical Society president-elect by members of ACS. Dorhout will serve as president of the society in 2018 and immediate past-president in 2019; he will also serve on the board of...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/peter-dorhout-is-2017-acs-president-elect/

Chemical shortage hampers 'legal high' work

Identification of suspect substances depends on reference materials that are in short supply.

‘Legal highs’ such as mephedrone can be easily purchased over the Internet, but pure reference samples are hard to find.Andy Rain/EPA/Corbis
Attempts to understand and control new...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/chemical-shortage-hampers-legal-high-work/

The seven suns of Rome

A diagram lost for more than 350 years documents a spectacular sky of 1630.

A print of a diagram that was feared lost details the astonishing halo effects seen over Rome in 1630.Herzog August Bibliothek Wolfenbüttel: (Graph. C 707)
Around midday on 24 January 1630, seven suns seemed to blaze ...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/the-seven-suns-of-rome/

First ever lightning-mapping satellite set for take off

The GOES-R satellite will watch for lightning on Earth
Lockheed Martin


By Timothy Revell
It’s lightning like you’ve never seen it before: streamed, 24/7, from space.
On 19 November at 5:42 p.m. EST, an Atlas V rocket will launch the US’s most advanced weather satellite yet. The National O...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/first-ever-lightning-mapping-satellite-set-for-take-off/

Shuttle lands at California air base

(CNN) — Space shuttle Endeavour landed safely Sunday afternoon at California’s Edwards Air Force Base after NASA waved off two opportunities for a Florida landing because of poor weather.






Endeavour glides in for a landing Sunday at California’s Edwards Air Force...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/shuttle-lands-at-california-air-base/

How Has the American Diet Changed Over Time?

Food writer Mark Bittman says long before Pop Tarts, Americans ate simple food that was grown closer to home. He says we need to get back to that time by eating locally, seasonally, and sustainably.




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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/how-has-the-american-diet-changed-over-time/

Fracking can prime faults for subsequent quakes

Hydraulic fracturing in western Canada can prime faults for earthquakes that strike months after fracking ceases, reports a new study published this week in Science. While it’s long been known that the injection of wastewater into disposal wells can trigger earthquakes by increasing pore p...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/fracking-can-prime-faults-for-subsequent-quakes/

‘Super-Earth’ DISCOVERED drastically increasing chances of finding aliens

Heralded as a ‘super-Earth’, the giant celestial body is some 33 light years away and orbits a red-dwarf star.
The exoplanet – meaning it is outside of our solar system – has been scientifically dubbed GJ 536 b and has a mass roughly 5.4 times that of Earth.
An orbit for the giant planet, whi...

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http://skpsoft.com/view/science+news/super-earth-discovered-drastically-increasing-chances-of-finding-aliens/