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The mystery of dark matter just refuses to be solved [Astrophysics]
Dark matter almost certainly exists – otherwise, galaxy clusters wouldn’t have sufficient gravity to hold themselves together. It was hoped dwarf galaxies could confirm the leading dark matter theories. But a new study has drawn a big, frustrating blan… Continue reading
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Tagged Astronomy, astrophysics, Cold dark matter, cosmology, dark matter, dwarf galaxy, galaxy, science, syndicated, Top, Weakly interacting massive particle, wimp
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7 Must-Read Books on Time
What the second law of thermodynamics has to do with Saint Augustine, landscape art, and graphic novels.
Time is the most fundamental common denominator between our existence and that of everything else, it’s the yardstick by which we measure nearly … Continue reading
Posted in art, books, culture, philosophy, photography, syndicated
Tagged Psychology, science, syndicated
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10 Stubborn Food Myths That Just Won’t Die, Debunked by Science [Nutrition]
Every other week, new research claims one food is better than another, or that some ingredient yields incredible new health benefits. Couple that with a few old wives’ tales passed down from your pare… Continue reading
Can Relativity Explain Faster Than Light Particles?
gbrumfiel writes “Two weeks ago, researchers claimed particles called neutrinos were travelling faster-than-light and violating the laws of special relativity. But now it looks as though general relativity might be behind the experiment’s unusual resul… Continue reading
Feast your eyes on a complete quadruple rainbow [Optics]
What does it mean?! You’re looking at a picture of the first fourth-order rainbow ever reported in nature. Just don’t strain yourself looking for the other two bows; you won’t be able to see them in this picture.
And yet something about this photograph… Continue reading
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Tagged Double rainbow, Fourth order rainbow, germany, Michael theusner, Optics, Physics, Quadruple rainbow, Rainbows, science, syndicated, Third order rainbow, Top, Triple rainbow
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The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine has been awarded posthumously for the first time in history [Medicine]
Earlier today, the 2011 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine was awarded to Bruce A. Beutler and Jules A. Hoffmann (pictured left and center, respectively) “for their discoveries concerning the activation of innate immunity;” and to Ralph M. Steinman … Continue reading
Posted in health, syndicated
Tagged Bruce beutler, Cancer, immunology, Jules hoffman, medicine, Medicine or physiology, Nobel assembly, nobel prize, Pancreatic Cancer, Ralph steinman, science, syndicated
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Graphene and Quantum Hall Effect Could Help Redefine Metrics
eldavojohn writes “The National Physical Laboratory has published research in Nature that could lead to redefining two of our most commonly used metrics. There’s been a lot of trouble stemming from defining an exact Kilogram as some lump of platinum-ir… Continue reading
Faster-than-light neutrinos could be proof of extra dimensions [Physics]
The recent announcement that neutrinos had been observed seemingly going faster than the speed of light sent shockwaves through the physics community. But there’s one possible explanation that could keep Einstein’s relativity intact and open up a whole… Continue reading
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Tagged Brane, Bulk, CERN, Dimension, Einstein, Fb, Geneva, neutrino, Opera, Particle physics, Physics, science, String theory, syndicated, theoretical physics, tweet
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Yawning Cools Your Brain, Keeps You Alert [Brain Hacks]
Yawning is typically linked to tiredness, but a group of researchers from Princeton and the University of Arizona have found it may simply be a means to regulate brain temperature. More »
Posted in health, syndicated
Tagged Brain hacks, Medical, research, science, Sleep, syndicated, Top
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What’s so bad about sugar? [Debunkery]
We blame sugar for adding extra calories to almost anything we purchase in the grocery store, and call sugary snacks “junk food.” But is sugar really junk? Let’s take a look at some common myths about sugar, and find out why there are good reasons for… Continue reading
Posted in health, syndicated
Tagged biology, Debunkery, medicine, science, Sugar, syndicated, Top
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How big of a dose of radiation do you get when reading Playboy? [Mad Science]
Glossy magazines often contain a substance that has elevated levels of uranium and thorium. This means that reading one for various lengths of time slightly heightens your level of radiation exposure. Find out how much magazines like Playboy are poiso… Continue reading
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Tagged mad science, Magazines, Physics, Radiation, science, syndicated, Thorium, Top, Uranium
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The Higgs boson might explain the origins of the universe and dark energy [Mad Science]
We still haven’t found the Higgs boson, the hypothetical particle that explains why other particles possess mass. But that might not be the only cosmic mystery the Higgs can solve. It could also explain how the universe got its shape.
That’s the theor… Continue reading
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Tagged cosmology, dark energy, Dilaton, Expansion, Higgs boson, Inflation, mad science, Physics, science, syndicated, Top, Universe
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When autistic adults aren’t quirky geniuses
Cory posted earlier this week about Amy Harmon’s excellent profile of an autistic 20-year-old, trying to find a place in the adult world. At her Culturing Science blog, Hannah Waters adds some nice perspective to the praise for Harmon’s work, noting th… Continue reading
Posted in culture, syndicated
Tagged Autism, humanity, personal story, Post, science, syndicated
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Why Intuition Makes People More Likely to Believe in God [Psychology]
The nature of faith is often a thorny topic for psychology and other sciences to grapple with, but a new study indicates a powerful link between how we think and what we believe. It all goes back to intuition.
Harvard researchers have found that peopl… Continue reading
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Tagged belief, Cognition, God, Intuition, Psychology, reflection, religion, science, syndicated, thinking, Top
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The Shark Immunity Factor that Could Save Your Life [Medicine]
Scientists have known for some time that dogfish sharks, like the one pictured up top, naturally produce a broad-spectrum antibiotic called squalamine in their livers. Now, new research into the cellular function of squalamine reveals how it also confe… Continue reading
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Tagged Antiviral, biochemistry, Broad-spectrum antibiotic, Broad-spectrum antiviral, Cellular biology, Dogfish, Hepatic, Liver, medicine, Michael zasloff, molecular biology, science, shark, Squalamine, syndicated, Virus, Viruses
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The molecule "arsole" is named for exactly what you imagine it is [Chemistry]
Science yields many rewards. There’s the awed hush at nerd cocktail parties when you mention what you do, the sweet smell of urea in the morning, and the ability to name, or nickname, the things that you discover. Plenty of people name things after the… Continue reading
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Tagged Arsole, Chemistry, Fb, Molecules, science, syndicated, tweet
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Reconsidering The Moon
Throughout the ages, man has tried to better understand our closest celestial neighbor through myths and science. Our knowledge of the moon has changed over and over again as we learn more and more about the crater-covered satellite. And research is st… Continue reading
Posted in art, photography, syndicated
Tagged Art Installation, Moon, Night, Outdoor Illusions, Relative Sizes, science, space, syndicated
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What are the very punniest scientific names? [Taxonomy]
You've gotta give it up for creative taxonomists — the scientists responsible for naming, and thereby classifying, newly discovered species. Without them, we'd never have species with names like the ant pictured above, who is named after a sc… Continue reading
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Tagged Deep sea news, Fb, Miriam goldstein, Name, science, species, syndicated, taxonomy, tweet
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The Menger Sponge literally straddles the line between different dimensions [Maths]
A particular fractal, called Menger’s Sponge, is all about surface appearances. It’s a purely theoretical shape that has infinite surface area and no volume whatsoever. And because of that, it doesn’t occupy three dimensions. Or two. It manages to exis… Continue reading
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Tagged dimensions, fractals, Maths, Menger sponge, science, syndicated, Top
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Did the Earth’s lost moon create the Lunar Highlands?
The Moon’s far side, although not lacking for light, remained dark in the sense of hidden or obscured until the space race between the US and USSR took aim at the Moon. The Soviets’ Luna 3 probe returned the first images… Continue reading
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Tagged Astronomy, earth, Moon, News, planetaryscience, science, syndicated
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