[QUOTE=retina;373794]Totally agree. We should be using Capt. James T. Kirk's rest mass to power everything. Best use for it IMO. :evil:[/QUOTE]I know he put on mass in later years but he's still not worth much in energy terms. Human civilization already uses that much in about a week.

[QUOTE=xilman;373851]I know he put on mass in later years but he's still not worth much in energy terms. Human civilization already uses that much in about a week.[/QUOTE]

He would probably appreciate a flattering teleportational slimming, anyway. Just don't mess with the crucial "putting of smooth moves on the intergalactic babes" firmware (at his age, likely more software than firmware, but surely advanced tech can fix that, too), and all will be well.

[QUOTE=xilman;373851]I know he put on mass in later years but he's still not worth much in [b]any[/b] terms.[/QUOTE]Fixed that for you.

[url]http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/23/science/a-theory-on-how-flightless-birds-spread-across-the-world-they-flew-there.html[/url]

[QUOTE=Xyzzy;374011][url]http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/23/science/a-theory-on-how-flightless-birds-spread-across-the-world-they-flew-there.html[/url][/QUOTE]

Subscriber-only:

[URL="http://news.yahoo.com/whole-lotta-shakin-goin-busy-stretch-large-earthquakes-165008401.html"]Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On: Busy Stretch for Large Earthquakes[/URL]

[QUOTE]How about May? There were 17 magnitude-6 or larger earthquakes globally between May 1 and May 20, following a busy April that saw 26 temblors in that same magnitude range. By comparison, there were only six earthquakes this big in February, eight in January and just two in December.[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE=science_man_88;374016][URL="http://news.yahoo.com/whole-lotta-shakin-goin-busy-stretch-large-earthquakes-165008401.html"]Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On: Busy Stretch for Large Earthquakes[/URL][/QUOTE]

So?

What many people don't appreciate is you *want* earthquakes regularly.

One should start to get seriously nervous if there /hasn't/ been one for awhile....

[QUOTE=ewmayer;374014]Subscriber-only:[/QUOTE]

Strange. It worked for me. Do you have cookies disabled or blocked?

I thought that the Times allowed links from blogs etc. to display the page referenced, but maybe they've changed. In that case, I may be getting in on the "ten stories per month" quota. Thing is, I regularly read Krugman's column referenced from Reader Supported News. This would add up to a lot more than ten stories. :huh:

[QUOTE=kladner;374018]Strange. It worked for me. Do you have cookies disabled or blocked?[/QUOTE]

I thought I had NYT set to "allow" in my cookie site-specific-exceptions ... ah, I cleaned out a bunch of sites-I-no-longer-use from there over the weekend and must've gotten a little too quick on the select-and-delete. Now it works - thx. But...
[quote]“You can’t get from Madagascar to New Zealand without flying,” said Dr. Cooper. “There isn’t any other way.”[/quote]
Now admittedly, drifting across the ocean would seem a low-probability thing due to the long times involved, but still, 100% ruling it out?

[QUOTE=ewmayer;374039]Now admittedly, drifting across the ocean would seem a low-probability thing due to the long times involved, but still, 100% ruling it out?[/QUOTE]God did it. Can't prove she didn't.

In fact, there's a [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_Ocean_Gyre]dedicated conveyor belt[/url] between Madagascar and the oceanic currents around Australia, which boosts the odds of the seaborne scenario:
[quote]The Indian Ocean Gyre, located in the Indian Ocean, is one of the five major oceanic gyres, large systems of rotating ocean currents, which together form the backbone of the global conveyer belt.

Normally moving clockwise, in the winter the Indian Ocean gyre reverses direction due to the South Asian Monsoon.[/quote]

Smallest, fastest, and longest-running nanomotor yet
 

[url]http://www.gizmag.com/nanomotor-for-nanobot-drug-delivery/32160/[/url]

Small enough to fit inside a cell, up to 15 hour run-time, 18K RPM.

Not really news (though some of it was news to me) - but some fascinating physiological facts from the Wikipedia article on cats:
[i]
"As cats are familiar and easily kept animals, their physiology has been particularly well studied; it generally resembles that of other carnivorous mammals but displays several unusual features probably attributable to cats' descent from desert-dwelling species. For instance, cats are able to tolerate quite high temperatures: Humans generally start to feel uncomfortable when their skin temperature passes about 38 °C (100 °F), but cats show no discomfort until their skin reaches around 52 °C (126 °F), and can tolerate temperatures of up to 56 °C (133 °F) if they have access to water.

...Cats' feces are comparatively dry and their urine is highly concentrated, both of which are adaptations that allow cats to retain as much fluid as possible. Their kidneys are so efficient that cats can survive on a diet consisting only of meat, with no additional water, and can even rehydrate by drinking seawater."
[/i]
Another interesting factoid from the same page:
[i]
A group of cats is referred to as a "clowder" or a "glaring".
[/i]
I did not know that. :o

A final interesting factoid: The 2nd part of the Linnean species name for wildcats (and domestic cats, though there the S. part is often dropped to yield just [i]F. Catus[/i]), [i]Felis Silvestris[/i], does not derive from the Latin word for "forest" as is generally supposed, but rather is an homage to the famous cat from the Warner Brothers [i]Sylvester and Tweety[/i] cartoons.

[spoiler]OK, I admit I made up that last bit. Interestingly though, there is such an homage involved - but it's [url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sylvester_%28Looney_Tunes%29]the other way around[/url].[/spoiler]

[QUOTE=ewmayer;374145] For instance, cats are able to tolerate quite high temperatures: Humans generally start to feel uncomfortable when their skin temperature passes about 38 °C (100 °F), but cats show no discomfort until their skin reaches around 52 °C (126 °F), and can tolerate temperatures of up to 56 °C (133 °F) if they have access to water.[/QUOTE]One of our cats, an old lady of 16, loves to join SWMBO in the sauna. She (Brni, not SWMBO) sometimes asks for the sauna to be switched on for her.

My sister's "grey eminence" cat (think Russian-blue-looking, but this was a delightful mutt who ended up with an elegant coat) used to love to sit on the hearth so close to the fire that his fur was literally too hot to touch without significant pain. Obviosuly fur's insulative value works both ways; our main concern was a stray ember somehow getting through/over the steel mesh curtain. Never happened, thankfully.

I was most interested to read about the able-to-drink-seawater aspect of the physiology - apparently humankind's ancestors were sufficiently good at finding fresh water that we never underwent selection for such an adaptation.

[URL="http://www.theverge.com/2014/5/24/5747998/chelyabinsk-meteor-hit-another-asteroid-290-million-years-ago"]Asteroid crash 290 million years ago set Russian meteor on collision course with Earth[/URL]

[QUOTE]The findings come after scientists studied small fragments of the Chelyabinsk meteor that made it through the massive explosion in Earth's atmosphere and landed on the ground. Lead researcher Shin Ozawa, of Japan's University of Tohoku, and his team found a rare mineral called jadeite in glass-like veins inside the samples. That mineral could only be produced under massive pressure and heat, such as that from an impact with another asteroid. By studying the shape and structure of the jadeite crystals, they were able to estimate the size, temperature, and duration of the impact. The results were published this week in Scientific Reports. Previously, scientists had used video footage to determine the path of the meteor to Earth, and analysis of the impact found it to be the second largest explosion in recorded history.[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE=science_man_88;374224][URL="http://www.theverge.com/2014/5/24/5747998/chelyabinsk-meteor-hit-another-asteroid-290-million-years-ago"]Asteroid crash 290 million years ago set Russian meteor on collision course with Earth[/URL][/QUOTE]From another article linked from there:[quote="[url]http://www.theverge.com/2013/2/18/4003224/russian-meteor-was-biggest-in-100-years[/url]"]... "we would expect an event of this magnitude to occur once every 100 years on average," [b]which means we’re probably in the clear for a little while[/b].[/quote]Some people just don't understand statistics. I'd expect that reporter to lose big at the casino with sloppy thinking like that.

[URL="http://ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-1137095"]Giant asteroid possibly on collision course with Earth[/URL]

[QUOTE] If astronomers are right, all life on this planet could be extinguished in less than 30 years from now. Scientists at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory have detected a large object the size of Manhattan possibly on a collision course with Earth. Using their Near-Earth Object Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (NEOWISE), the 10-mile wide object was found approximately 51 million miles from Earth. Scientists believe that during a close encounter with Mars, the asteroid was nudged slightly off its usual orbit and may currently be on a high speed collision course with our fragile planet.

The asteroid is calculated to have a potentially lethal encounter with the Earth on March 35, 2041. Astronomers have placed the odds of an impact at 1 in 2.04, which is by far the most unprecedented risk ever faced to humanity, let alone from asteroids. Such an impact could potentially end civilization as we know it.

More information will be posted here as the story develops.[/QUOTE]

edit: oops I now see it's not vetted by CNN yet.

[QUOTE=science_man_88;374311][URL="http://ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-1137095"]Giant asteroid possibly on collision course with Earth[/URL]



edit: oops I now see it's not vetted by CNN yet.[/QUOTE]

Notice several issues:
1 First story by that author.
2 Author join date of March 25
3 Author has numbers in their "name"
4 Date of impact is March [COLOR="Red"][B]35[/B][/COLOR]th

... not to mention

5. [quote]. . .

TAGS: beiber, war, gaming, stocks, ... cyrus, ... obama, ... states

[/quote]

[QUOTE=science_man_88;374311][quote]Such an impact could potentially end civilization as we know it.[/quote][/QUOTE]That might not be such a bad thing.[QUOTE=Uncwilly;374318]Notice several issues:
1 First story by that author.
2 Author join date of March 25
3 Author has numbers in their "name"
4 Date of impact is March [COLOR="Red"][B]35[/B][/COLOR]th[/QUOTE]Seems legit to me.

[QUOTE=retina;374040]God did it. Can't prove she didn't.[/QUOTE]

God doesn't exist, so she can't have done it.

For proof I refer the reader to various publications of Dawkins, R.

[QUOTE=BudgieJane;374393]God doesn't exist, so she can't have done it.

For proof I refer the reader to various publications of Dawkins, R.[/QUOTE]I'll grant you that it is a strong argument but it is not proof.

New wind turbine design
 

[url]http://www.gizmag.com/the-archimedes-liam-f1-urban-wind-turbine/32263/[/url]

[QUOTE]Although it's getting increasingly common to see solar panels on the roofs of homes, [URL="http://www.gizmag.com/secret-energy-wind-turbine/14299/"]household wind turbines[/URL] are still a fairly rare sight. If Rotterdam-based tech firm The Archimedes has its way, however, that will soon change. Today the company officially introduced its Liam F1 Urban Wind Turbine, which is said to have an energy yield that is "80 percent of the maximum that is theoretically feasible." That's quite the assertion, given that most conventional wind turbines average around 25 to 50 percent.
The 75-kg (165-lb) 1.5-meter (5-ft)-wide Liam obviously doesn't look much like a typical turbine. It draws on the form of the nautilus shell, and the screw pump invented by ancient Greek mathematician Archimedes of Syracuse.
That form factor reportedly results in minimal mechanical resistance, allowing it to spin very freely [I]and[/I] to operate quietly – blade noise is one of the common complaints regarding rooftop wind turbines. Additionally, the design is claimed to keep it always pointing into the wind for maximum yield.
[/QUOTE]

Gamma ray burster in M31.
 

A gamma-ray burster went off right next door a few hours ago. It appears to have been in the globular cluster FMZ2005-7 which is part of the Andromeda spiral galaxy.

Twitter is full of it under the hashtag #GRBm31, from where I found many more details at [url]https://www.facebook.com/bob.rutledge/posts/10154206617205249[/url]

Relatively low energy compared with the big boys (only 1e-10 of brightest known) so probably collision between two neutron stars or the energy was very strongly beamed in our direction.

What a pity we don't have any operating gravity wave detectors of sufficient sensitivity right now

Paul

[QUOTE=xilman;374440]A gamma-ray burster went off right next door a few hours ago. It appears to have been in the globular cluster FMZ2005-7 which is part of the Andromeda spiral galaxy.

Twitter is full of it under the hashtag #GRBm31, from where I found many more details at [url]https://www.facebook.com/bob.rutledge/posts/10154206617205249[/url]

Relatively low energy compared with the big boys (only 1e-10 of brightest known) so probably collision between two neutron stars or the energy was very strongly beamed in our direction.

What a pity we don't have any operating gravity wave detectors of sufficient sensitivity right now

Paul[/QUOTE]Looks like it was a false alarm. The team responsible have issued a retraction. [url]http://gcn.gsfc.nasa.gov/gcn/gcn3/16336.gcn3[/url]

Here in the Netherlands, the TU Delft have "teleported" information over a distance of 3 metres, using quantum entanglement with qubits in diamond.
In the next experiment, they will try 1300 metres.


Brief description: [URL]http://www.tudelft.nl/en/current/latest-news/article/detail/beam-me-up-data/[/URL]

Full paper (behind a paywall): [URL]http://www.sciencemag.org/content/early/2014/05/28/science.1253512[/URL]

Some simplified pictures and videoclips are available here:
[URL]http://hansonlab.tudelft.nl/teleportation/[/URL]

[url=http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-06-04/camel-snot-blamed-for-transmission-of-deadly-mers-virus.html]Camel Snot Blamed for Transmission of Deadly MERS Virus - Bloomberg[/url]

Don't look at me - I didn't write the headline.

[URL="http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/05/140522073349.htm"]Top ten 10 new species of 2014[/URL]

[URL="http://business.financialpost.com/2014/05/20/the-first-u-s-indigenous-video-game-company-explains-how-their-game-never-alone-crosses-cultural-boundries/?__lsa=b5eb-c130"]The first U.S. indigenous video-game company explains how their game Never Alone crosses cultural boundaries[/URL]

[URL="http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/engineering/extreme-machines/gravity-waves-16754283"]It Takes a Huge Detector (and Plenty of Patience) to Chase Gravitational Waves[/URL]

[URL="http://www3.imperial.ac.uk/newsandeventspggrp/imperialcollege/newssummary/news_16-5-2014-15-32-44"]Scientists discover how to turn light into matter after 80-year quest[/URL]

[URL="http://www.wired.com/2014/05/quantum-computing-topological-qubit/"]The Future of Quantum Computing Could Depend on This Tricky Qubit[/URL]

[URL="http://www.forbes.com/sites/sarwantsingh/2014/05/12/the-top-10-mega-trends-of-the-decade/"]The 10 Social And Tech Trends That Could Shape The Next Decade[/URL]

[URL="http://www.latimes.com/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-exoplanet-8-hour-day-20140430-story.html"]Scientists discover world that spins so fast, a day is over in 8 hours[/URL]

[URL="http://www.wired.com/2014/05/newton-papers-q-and-a/"]The Strange, Secret History of Isaac Newton’s Papers[/URL]

[B]Scientists condemn 'crazy, dangerous' creation of deadly airborne flu virus[/B]

[QUOTE]Scientists have created a life-threatening virus that closely resembles the 1918 Spanish flu strain that killed an estimated 50m people in an experiment labelled as "crazy" by opponents.
US researchers said the experiments were crucial for understanding the public health risk posed by viruses currently circulating in wild birds, but critics condemned the studies as dangerous and called on funders to stop the work.
Scientists at the University of Wisconsin-Madison used a technique called reverse genetics to build the virus from fragments of wild bird flu strains. They then mutated the virus to make it airborne to spread more easily from one animal to another.
"The work they are doing is absolutely crazy. The whole thing is exceedingly dangerous," said Lord May, the former president of the Royal Society and one time chief science adviser to the UK government. "Yes, there is a danger, but it's not arising form the viruses out there in the animals, it's arising from the labs of grossly ambitious people."[/QUOTE]Press article: [URL]http://www.theguardian.com/science/2014/jun/11/crazy-dangerous-creation-deadly-airborne-flu-virus[/URL]

I think that the most important part is missed here. The article can be condensed in a single phrase:
[QUOTE]Follow-up experiments showed that the 2009 swine flu vaccine and the anti-viral drug tamiflu should be effective against the virus.[URL="http://www.theguardian.com/science/2014/jun/11/crazy-dangerous-creation-deadly-airborne-flu-virus"][/URL][/QUOTE]

Well, that is the idea! Create some panic following some common flu. Lots of money invested (read: stolen) to create a drug which is good for nothing. Its effectiveness is still disputed, but many agree that is placebo, or even worse, as the placebo doesn't have adverse effects. But the new drug is cheap to produce, so huge quantities were produced and partially sold for lots of money. People get clever and don't buy the drug anymore. Then, invest more money to create a virus which fits to the drug you have. Convince people to buy your (non movable) drug stocks. Profit!

Who owns the tamiflu? :smile:

[QUOTE=LaurV;375648]

Who owns the tamiflu? :smile:[/QUOTE]

Donald Rumsfeld
[URL="http://www.dailykos.com/story/2009/04/27/725102/-Tamiflu-Rumsfeld-and-Cheney"]http://www.dailykos.com/story/2009/04/27/725102/-Tamiflu-Rumsfeld-and-Cheney[/URL]

Another miscreant that keeps pillaging.

That was a rhetorical question, you needn't to answer it. But the link is interesting, nonetheless. Thanks.:smile:

[QUOTE=kladner;372528]I believe that the single most effective way to address the problem of resistant bacteria is to stop the reckless use of antibiotics in livestock feed for non-infected animals. This is one of the huge drivers of the development of resistant strains.

Of course, at this point, curtailing frivolous use may well be closing the barn door when the horse is miles down the road.[/QUOTE]
This coming week, the Netherlands is hosting an international conference in the The Hague to try and address the problems of antibiotic resistance.

Conference website: [URL]http://www.conferenceamr2014.com/[/URL]

I am glad that some body is trying to address the problem. For everyone's sake, I hope for great success in the endeavor.

[url]http://www.theguardian.com/education/2014/jun/17/studying-pippa-middleton-bottom-improbable-research[/url]

We definitely need to get to the bottom of this.

[QUOTE=chappy;376480][url]http://www.theguardian.com/education/2014/jun/17/studying-pippa-middleton-bottom-improbable-research[/url]

We definitely need to get to the bottom of this.[/QUOTE]

I suggest an academic conference to discuss the phenomenon in question. I shall, of course, volunteer to chair the rump session.

===============

[url=www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-27902611]Chilean mountaintop blasted to build huge telescope[/url]

My, that's a big one. (Or, will be). I'd like to also take this opportunity to claim the initialism FHT. (Short for frickin` huge telescope.)

These Andean desert peaks are more rubble piles than photogenic alps-style mountains, so no great loss in terms of scenery or environmental damage.

Amazing technology in the adaptive optics.

[QUOTE=ewmayer;376515]I suggest an academic conference to discuss the phenomenon in question. I shall, of course, volunteer to chair the rump session.
[/QUOTE]

I appreciate the enthusiasm! now if only we can keep the subject from being a Royal pain the [COLOR="White"][SPOILER]REDACTED[/SPOILER][/COLOR].

[QUOTE=ewmayer;376515][URL="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-27902611"]Chilean mountaintop blasted to build huge telescope[/URL]

My, that's a big one. (Or, will be). I'd like to also take this opportunity to claim the initialism FHT. (Short for frickin` huge telescope.)
[/QUOTE]Not HFP for half-football-pitch?
[quote]At its heart will lie a mirror that is half the size of a football pitch.[/quote]

Ebola outbreak
 

"Drastic action" is needed to contain the spread of deadly Ebola in West Africa, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
Nearly 400 people have died in the outbreak which started in Guinea and has spread to neighbouring Sierra Leone and Liberia.
It is the largest outbreak in terms of cases, deaths and geographical spread.
The WHO said it was "gravely concerned" and there was potential for "further international spread".
The outbreak started four months ago and is continuing to spread.
So far there have been more than 600 cases and around 60% of those infected with the virus have died.
Ebola, a haemorrhagic fever, has no cure and is spread by contact with the fluids of infected people or animals, such as urine, sweat and blood.

Full press article: [URL]http://www.bbc.com/news/health-28033027[/URL]

[URL="http://www.psmag.com/navigation/health-and-behavior/free-will-illusion-83861/"]Is Free Will an Illusion[/URL]

[URL="http://www.nature.com/news/quantum-method-closes-in-on-gravitational-constant-1.15427"]Quantum method closes in on gravitational constant[/URL]

[url]http://www.cdc.gov/pcd/issues/2014/pdf/13_0293.pdf[/url]

Soapbox: We spend so much money on the "War on Drugs", but this drug gets a pass.

:sad:

[QUOTE=Xyzzy;377001]Soapbox: We spend so much money on the "War on Drugs", but this drug gets a pass.[/QUOTE] You should study up on the period both before the war for Southern Independence and up until about 1920. Alcohol problems then were vastly worse than now (in the USA). Just imagine the drunk driving that would have been going on if cars were at all popular.

Personally I avoid the stuff. Slippery slope, addictive personality/gene, and all that.
:beer:

[url]http://www.webmd.com/alzheimers/news/20140714/study-1-3-alzheimers-cases-preventable[/url]

New USGS map of Mars released
 

[url]http://pubs.usgs.gov/sim/3292/[/url]

[url]http://darwin-online.org.uk/BeagleLibrary/Beagle_Library_Introduction.htm[/url]

[QUOTE=Xyzzy;378198][URL]http://www.webmd.com/alzheimers/news/20140714/study-1-3-alzheimers-cases-preventable[/URL][/QUOTE]

Follow up from a link in the article on the Mediterranean Diet. Many more links are in this one.

[url]http://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/guide/the-mediterranean-diet[/url]

I get the exercise abundantly at work. Now I just need to work on the smoking, limiting cheese intake (WAH!), and salt reduction.

[QUOTE=Xyzzy;378198][url]http://www.webmd.com/alzheimers/news/20140714/study-1-3-alzheimers-cases-preventable[/url][/QUOTE]

[URL="http://news.yahoo.com/brain-protein-tied-alzheimers-disease-135852899.html"]New brain protein tied to Alzheimer's disease[/URL]

[QUOTE]Dr. Keith Josephs of the Mayo Clinic led work on the new brain protein, called TDP-43. Everyone has it, but the abnormal form is found in different parts of the cell and in ball-like deposits in certain areas in the brain. It's already been linked to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or Lou Gehrig's disease, and frontotemporal dementia.[/QUOTE]

Conductivity image hints supervolcano plume is bigger than thought
 

[url]http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/04/110411083533.htm[/url]

[QUOTE]Geophysicists have made the first large-scale picture of the electrical conductivity of the gigantic underground plume of hot and partly molten rock that feeds the Yellowstone supervolcano. The image suggests the plume is even bigger than it appears in earlier images made with earthquake waves.[/QUOTE]

DIY 30m radio telescope
 

[url]http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/next/physics/build-radio-telescope/?utm_content=bufferf687d&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_campaign=buffer[/url]

:tu: Nice!

[URL="http://news.sciencemag.org/brain-behavior/2014/07/nanoparticles-may-harm-brain"]Nanoparticles may harm the brain[/URL]

[URL="http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/celebrity-doppelgangers-science-alike-24501548"]Celebrity Doppelgangers: The Science of Looking Alike[/URL]

[URL="http://www.chicagotribune.com/health/sns-rt-us-brain-aging-sleep-20140710,0,962425.story"]Shorter sleep may speed brain aging[/URL]

[URL="http://www.cbsnews.com/news/a-shortage-of-scientists-and-techies-think-again/"]A shortage of scientists and techies? Think again[/URL]

[URL="http://exclusive.multibriefs.com/content/who-wins-in-teslas-patent-move/transportation-technology-automotive/education"]Who wins in Tesla’s patent move?[/URL]

[URL="http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/jul/09/new-jane-austen-waxwork-forensic-science-model-real-jane#"]New Jane Austen waxwork uses forensic science to model 'the real Jane'[/URL]

[URL="http://mashable.com/2014/07/17/lucy-brain-activity-myth/"]Hollywood Myth, Busted: Humans Use Far More Than 10% of Their Brains[/URL]

This made me go "Hmmmm" but it is probably more at home here.

[url]http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/monkeys-use-researchers-as-human-shields-to-avoid-leopards-and-big-cats-in-the-wild-9626354.html[/url]

Lionfish - and the selfish
 

This theme had already come up a few times.
[URL="http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-28490099"]Why the internet is so taken by 'child prodigy' <insert the latest one>[/URL]

[URL="http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/news/local/girls-science-project-nets-international-recogniti/ngRbD/"]Girl’s science project nets international recognition
[/URL]
On this forum alone, we already had discussions about a child prodigy who found a cure for cancer, or another one who built cell phone battery prototypes that would run ten times longer... Some ask how did this get in the news, others insist that if it wasn't true it wouldn't have been in the news.

Who is to blame? The media is finely tuned to the public demand of "freak news" and "freak shows" -- these generate clicks and sell ads. The chicken and the egg. It is probably important to remember that these articles have entertainment value only (a.k.a. human angle), not scientific, and as such 1) are not vetted deep enough (there is no liability, there will be no need for retraction, or better yet, if public will get too heated, there is an opportunity to write five more follow-up articles!), 2) are written by the same people who write about fishing records or, say, a cow that wondered in the middle of a highway (and you get occasional gems like 'The largest know prime has 11 digits'), 3) are forgotten tomorrow.

[QUOTE=rogue;379158][URL="http://mashable.com/2014/07/17/lucy-brain-activity-myth/"]Hollywood Myth, Busted: Humans Use Far More Than 10% of Their Brains[/URL][/QUOTE]

From the article:
[i]
Of course, the idea that “you only use 10% of your brain” is, indeed, 100% bogus. Why has this myth persisted for so long, and when is it finally going to die?
[/i]
Um, "when it stops working as a vehicle to sell pop entertainment"?

I would guess that the persistence of this (and other) myths and delusions is strong evidence, however, that most folks use less than 10% of their reasoning faculties in terms of critical thinking. There are powerful vested interests helping to keep this so, of various stripes: religious, political, commercial, &c.


[QUOTE=Batalov;379161]and you get occasional gems like 'The largest know prime has 11 digits'[/QUOTE]

In a suitably large base with a correspondingly large digit set, that is indubitably true. (Admit it, you just H8 child prodigies!)

[URL="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960982214008392"]Asymmetric Predictability and Cognitive Competition in Football Penalty Shootouts[/URL]
[QUOTE]We examined all 361 kicks from the 37 penalty shootouts ... and show that goalkeepers displayed a clear sequential bias. Following repeated kicks in the same direction, [U]goalkeepers became increasingly likely to dive in the opposite direction on the next kick[/U]. Surprisingly, kickers failed to exploit these goalkeeper biases.[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE=Batalov;379536][URL="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960982214008392"]Asymmetric Predictability and Cognitive Competition in Football Penalty Shootouts[/URL][/QUOTE]

Didn't read beyond the above blurb (yet), but isn't the "repeated kicks in the same direction" bit an example of precisely such exploitation? Just keep kicking to one side, watch the goalie overthink himself and start diving the other way, "because I'm due for a heads on the next flip".

"Just 'cos it doesn't look like a strategy, don't mean it ain't."

[URL="http://aeon.co/magazine/nature-and-cosmos/why-is-einstein-the-poster-boy-for-genius/"]Why is Albert Einstein the Poster Boy for Genius?[/URL]

[URL="http://www.wired.com/2014/07/a-clever-maze-that-actually-gets-less-confusing-as-you-reach-the-center/"]A Clever Maze That Actually Gets Less Confusing as You Reach the Center[/URL]

[URL="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/27/magazine/why-do-americans-stink-at-math.html?_r=0"]Why do Americans Stink at Math?[/URL]

[URL="http://www.fastcodesign.com/3032886/innovation-by-design/this-is-the-physics-lesson-of-the-future-and-it-looks-insanely-fun"]This Is The Physics Lesson Of The Future, And It Looks Insanely Fun[/URL]

[URL="http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/07/140724141608.htm"]DNA mostly 'junk?' Only 8.2 percent of human DNA is 'functional', study finds[/URL]

[URL="http://news.yahoo.com/can-video-games-and-comics-clean-up-their-super-sexist-image-161839336.html"]Radical change to video games to target women[/URL]

[url=news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2014/07/new-treatment-for-depression-shows-immediate-results]New treatment for depression shows immediate results | Harvard Gazette[/url]

"Is it my magnetic personality?"

[url]http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/08/02/ebola-symptoms-infection-virus_n_5639456.html[/url]

[QUOTE=rogue;379582]
[URL="http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/07/140724141608.htm"]DNA mostly 'junk?' Only 8.2 percent of human DNA is 'functional', study finds[/URL]

[/QUOTE]OTOH, there's the [URL="http://www.gregbear.com/books/darwinsradio.cfm"][I]Darwin's[/I][/URL][I] [URL="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darwin%27s_Radio"]Radio[/URL][/I] premise ...

[QUOTE]
[URL="http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/07/140724141608.htm"]DNA mostly 'junk?' Only 8.2 percent of human DNA is 'functional', study finds[/URL]
[/QUOTE]

Well, if humans use only 10 percent of their brains,
and only 8.2 percent of their DNA,
there must be SOMETHING they use the other 81.8 percent of ...

:smile: (I know, it doesn't add up logically.)

[QUOTE=davar55;379745]Well, if humans use only 10 percent of their brains,[/QUOTE]It is amazing how that fallacy still has going power.[QUOTE=davar55;379745]and only 8.2 percent of their DNA,[/QUOTE]Perhaps the rest is lead-in and ECC information so the proper [strike]sector[/strike] gene boundaries can be found.

[QUOTE=rogue;379582] [URL="http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/07/140724141608.htm"]DNA mostly 'junk?' Only 8.2 percent of human DNA is 'functional', study finds[/URL]
[/QUOTE]

It should say that only 8.2% of human DNA is evolutionarily conserved. That approach omits functional DNA that has recently changed (eg the bits that make us human instead of apes). But I've no idea how much DNA that might be.

Chris

[QUOTE=davar55;379745]Well, if humans use only 10 percent of their brains,
and only 8.2 percent of their DNA,
there must be SOMETHING they use the other 81.8 percent of ...

:smile: (I know, it doesn't add up logically.)[/QUOTE]

then in theory since 8.2/0.1 = 82 82% is the most amount of genetics that should be related to the brain.

[url=www.theonion.com/articles/experts-ebola-vaccine-at-least-50-white-people-awa,36580/]Experts: Ebola Vaccine At Least 50 White People Away[/url]

[QUOTE=ewmayer;379977][URL="http://www.theonion.com/articles/experts-ebola-vaccine-at-least-50-white-people-awa,36580/"]Experts: Ebola Vaccine At Least 50 White People Away[/URL][/QUOTE]
[URL="http://www.theonion.com/articles/immunedeficient-realtor-forced-to-spend-entire-lif,9647/"]Immune-Deficient Realtor Forced To Spend Entire Life In Housing Bubble
[/URL]

:yucky::gah:

this is science, this is amazing, this is terrifying.
[youtube]FKXOucXB4a8[/youtube]

[url]http://arstechnica.com/gaming/2014/08/what-depression-quest-taught-me-about-dealing-with-mental-illness/[/url]

[url]http://arstechnica.com/science/2014/08/mystery-source-of-ozone-destroying-chemical-keeps-it-around/[/url]

Now that I'm back from an epic vacation in the American Southwest, I can post again.

[URL="http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2014/08/in-the-brain-memories-are-inextricably-tied-to-place/375969/"]In the Brain, Memories Are Inextricably Tied to Place[/URL]

[URL="http://phys.org/news/2014-08-artificial-retina-physicists-interface-optical.html"]Artificial retina: Physicists develop an interface to the optical nerve[/URL]

[URL="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/11/technology/-inside-apples-internal-training-program-.html?ref=technology&_r=0"]Simplifying the Bull: How Picasso Helps to Teach Apple’s Style[/URL]

[URL="http://www.npr.org/2014/08/09/339148819/glass-free-menagerie-new-zoo-concept-gets-rid-of-enclosures"]Glass-Free Menagerie: New Zoo Concept Gets Rid Of Enclosures[/URL]

[URL="http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2014/08/14/why-men-say-uh-and-women-say-um/"]Why men say ‘uh’ and women say ‘um’[/URL]

[URL="http://time.com/3105056/math-prize-woman/"]Top Mathematics Prize Awarded to a Woman for First Time[/URL]

[URL="http://exclusive.multibriefs.com/content/just-how-wide-is-the-world-wide-web/science-technology/education"]Just how wide is the World Wide Web?[/URL]

[URL="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/12/health/scientists-create-3d-model-that-mimics-brain-function.html?_r=1"]Scientists Create a 3-D Model That Mimics Brain Function[/URL]

[URL="http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/08/140812121839.htm"]Awake within a dream: Lucid dreamers show greater insight in waking life[/URL]

[URL="http://fortune.com/2014/07/24/can-big-data-cure-cancer/"]Can Big Data cure cancer?[/URL]

[URL="http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-28543990"]'Quantum Cheshire Cat' becomes reality[/URL]

[URL="http://time.com/3048559/brain-senses-dread/"]The Part of Your Brain That Senses Dread Has Been Discovered[/URL]

[URL="http://www.wired.com/2014/07/in-20-years-most-new-cars-wont-have-steering-wheels-or-pedals"]In 20 Years, Most New Cars Won’t Have Steering Wheels or Pedals[/URL]

[URL="http://time.com/3065485/color-changing-ice-cream/"]Ice Cream Genius Makes Treat That Changes Color When You Lick It[/URL]

[URL="http://www.jacobsschool.ucsd.edu/news/news_releases/release.sfe?id=1548"]Researchers discover cool-burning flames in space that could lead to better engines here on earth[/URL]

[URL="http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/07/140731102524.htm"]Effect of loud noises on brain revealed in study[/URL]

[url]http://www.natureworldnews.com/articles/8759/20140827/mystery-sailing-stones-unveiled-death-valley.htm[/url]

[URL="http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/14/arts/design/drones-are-used-to-patrol-endangered-archaeological-sites.html?smid=pl-share&_r=0"]New to the Archaeologist’s Tool Kit: The Drone[/URL]

[URL="http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/08/140822094240.htm"]In our digital world, are young people losing the ability to read emotions?[/URL]

[URL="http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/08/140820-antarctic-microbe-lake-astrobiology-science/"]Microbes Discovered in Subglacial Antarctic Lake May Hint at Life in Space[/URL]

[URL="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/08/21/how-brain-gets-wrinkles_n_5697394.html?ir=Science"]Here's How The Human Brain Gets Its Wrinkles[/URL]

[URL="http://www.slate.com/blogs/lexicon_valley/2014/08/21/origin_of_languages_tower_of_babel_proto_languages_and_the_brothers_grimm.html"]Do All Languages Derive from a Single Common Ancestor?[/URL]

[URL="http://www.theverge.com/2014/8/20/6046609/its-hard-out-there-for-an-interplanetary-robot"]Look at what two years on Mars did to the Curiosity Rover[/URL]

[URL="http://www.fastcodesign.com/3034130/asides/how-the-worlds-craziest-video-game-is-changing-moma"]How The World's Craziest Video Game Is Changing Museum of Modern Art[/URL]

[url]http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2014/08/flir-one-gives-your-iphone-infrared-predator-vision/[/url]

[url=www.nytimes.com/2014/09/02/health/low-carb-vs-low-fat-diet.html]A Call for a Low-Carb Diet That Embraces Fat[/url] | NYT
[quote]People who avoid carbohydrates and eat more fat, even saturated fat, lose more body fat and have fewer cardiovascular risks than people who follow the low-fat diet that health authorities have favored for decades, a major new study shows.

The findings are unlikely to be the final salvo in what has been a long and often contentious debate about what foods are best to eat for weight loss and overall health. The notion that dietary fat is harmful, particularly saturated fat, arose decades ago from comparisons of disease rates among large national populations. [i][EWM: It was later shown that the studies in question cherry-picked data and the "benefits" disappeared when the original data sets were used, but hey, never let facts get in the way of a good marketing campaign. Right, Dr. Atkins?][/i]

But more recent clinical studies in which individuals and their diets were assessed over time have produced a more complex picture. Some have provided strong evidence that people can sharply reduce their heart disease risk by eating fewer carbohydrates and more dietary fat, with the exception of trans fats. The new findings suggest that this strategy more effectively reduces body fat and also lowers overall weight.

The new study was financed by the National Institutes of Health and published in the Annals of Internal Medicine. It included a racially diverse group of 150 men and women — a rarity in clinical nutrition studies — who were assigned to follow diets for one year that limited either the amount of carbs or fat that they could eat, but not overall calories.

“To my knowledge, this is one of the first long-term trials [i][EWM: besides the long-term trial known as "human evolutionary history", that is][/i] that’s given these diets without calorie restrictions,” said Dariush Mozaffarian, the dean of the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University, who was not involved in the new study.[/quote]
Of course rampant sedentism also factors into the picture, but the fact that the effects manifest so strongly even in "soft" modern cohorts is striking.

The worst news for the low-fat acolytes:
[quote]While the low-fat group did lose weight, they appeared to lose more muscle than fat.

“They actually lost lean muscle mass, which is a bad thing,” Dr. Mozaffarian said. “Your balance of lean mass versus fat mass is much more important than weight. And that’s a very important finding that shows why the low-carb, high-fat group did so metabolically well.”[/quote]

AMD CEO Says More Time Needed Before New Chips Bolster Sales
 

[url]http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-09-04/amd-ceo-says-company-faces-bumps-in-road-before-new-chips-help.html[/url]

[url]http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/lost-franklin-expedition-ship-found-in-the-arctic-1.2760311[/url]

[URL="http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2014/08/27/342448774/science-crowns-mozzarella-the-king-of-pizza-cheese"]Science Crowns Mozzarella The King Of Pizza Cheese[/URL]

[URL="http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/2/82f41202-27f3-11e4-ae44-00144feabdc0.html#axzz3BmqQHgna"]The secret language of food[/URL]

A rather nice selfie
 

[url]http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-29044139[/url]

[URL="http://www.salon.com/2014/09/10/newly_discovered_species_defies_all_existing_classifications_of_life/"]Newly discovered species defies “all existing classifications of life”[/URL]

[QUOTE]The discovery of two new species of organisms off the coast of Southeast Australia has completely perplexed researchers, because, according to the New York Times, they “defy all existing classifications of life.” Although the organisms were technically pulled from the deep sea in 1986 by biologist Jean Just, they have not been scientifically described until Just published an article in the journal PLOS ONE this month:[/QUOTE]

[url=http://online.wsj.com/articles/obama-plans-major-ebola-offensive-1410738096]Obama briefed at CDC, plans $88 million offensive against Ebola[/url]
[quote]The US military is set to join the battle against an enemy other than ISIS: the Ebola outbreak that has killed thousands in West Africa. President Obama is expected to outline what officials describe as a “scaled-up” response to the outbreak this week, reports the Wall Street Journal, which notes that while the chances of the disease spreading to the US are considered low, the chances of the virus mutating to become more infectious increase with every new human infection. There are currently eight US military service members working to contain the outbreak, and the stepped-up military involvement is expected to include much-needed logistical help, though not hospital ships, which officials fear could end up being swept by infection. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, president of hard-hit Liberia, has appealed for American aid as the disease spreads exponentially, Reuters reports. “Without more direct help from your government, we will lose this battle against Ebola,” she wrote to Obama, warning that Ebola treatment centers are being forced to turn away patients and “at this rate, we will never break the transmission chain and the virus will overwhelm us.” In neighboring Sierra Leone, a fourth doctor has died of Ebola after a failed attempt to send her out of the country for treatment, reports the AP. The country, which was desperately short of doctors even before the outbreak, asked the World Health Organization for help evacuating Olivet Buck to Europe, but the request was declined.”[/quote]
But will we "follow the Ebola virus to the gates of hell"? Anything less sounds wishy-washy at this point.

computers that compute ( and don't just heat a room)
 

Hi Math People,

I found a nice article in Scientific American.

/[URL]http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-supercomputers-will-yield-a-golden-age-of-materials-science/[/URL]

Regards,
Matt

[URL="http://edition.cnn.com/2014/09/09/health/brain-training-apps/index.html?eref=edition"]10 best brain training apps[/URL]

[URL="http://www.npr.org/blogs/ed/2014/09/10/343681493/this-is-your-brain-this-is-your-brain-on-music"]This Is Your Brain. This Is Your Brain On Music[/URL]

[URL="http://time.com/3326565/the-power-of-sleep/"]The Power of Sleep[/URL]

[URL="http://time.com/3305272/viruses-spread-everywhere/"]It Only Takes a Few Hours for Viruses to Spread Everywhere[/URL]

[URL="http://www.npr.org/blogs/goatsandsoda/2014/09/05/342469699/cheap-drinking-water-from-the-sun-aided-by-a-pop-of-pencil-shavings"]Cheap Drinking Water From The Sun, Aided By A Pop Of Pencil Shavings[/URL]

[URL="http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg22329861.900-woman-of-24-found-to-have-no-cerebellum-in-her-brain.html#.VBgyB_QqX8t"]Woman of 24 found to have no cerebellum in her brain[/URL]

[URL="http://theconversation.com/most-birds-cant-taste-sugar-heres-why-the-hummingbird-can-31486"]Most birds can’t taste sugar – here’s why the hummingbird can[/URL]

[URL="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/09/11/naomi-elishuv-plays-violin-mozart-brain-surger_n_5804832.html?ir=GPS%20for%20the%20Soul"]Violinist Plays Mozart Through Her Own Brain Surgery[/URL]

NOAO: Half of all Exoplanet Host Stars are Binaries
[url]http://www.noao.edu/news/2014/pr1406.php[/url]

I moved a post (#1344 above) from MattcAnderson from SopaBox here.

I don't know if someone posted about this yet
 

[URL="http://phys.org/news/2014-09-solid-previously-unsolvable-problems.html"]'Solid' light could compute previously unsolvable problems[/URL]

[QUOTE]The researchers are not shining light through crystal – they are transforming light into crystal. As part of an effort to develop exotic materials such as room-temperature superconductors, the researchers have locked together photons, the basic element of light, so that they become fixed in place.[/QUOTE]

another version of it:


[URL="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/09/16/solid-light-created_n_5824268.html"]Scientists Say They've Created A Freaky New Form Of Light[/URL]

[QUOTE]New behavior is right. For generations, physics students have been taught that photons--the subatomic particles that make up light--don't interact with each other. But the researchers were able to make photons interact very strongly.[/QUOTE]

I also see:

[URL="http://phys.org/news/2014-09-physicists-zero-friction-quantum.html"]Physicists design zero-friction quantum engine[/URL]

[QUOTE](Phys.org) —In real physical processes, some energy is always lost any time work is produced. The lost energy almost always occurs due to friction, especially in processes that involve mechanical motion. But in a new study, physicists have designed an engine that operates with zero friction while still generating power by taking advantage of some quantum shortcuts.
[/QUOTE]

[url="http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/09/140916084819.htm"] 219 million star catalogue[/url] released.

Now on Netflix streaming video: [url]http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/particle_fever/[/url]

[QUOTE=ewmayer;383113][URL="http://online.wsj.com/articles/obama-plans-major-ebola-offensive-1410738096"]Obama briefed at CDC, plans $88 million offensive against Ebola[/URL]

But will we "follow the Ebola virus to the gates of hell"? Anything less sounds wishy-washy at this point.[/QUOTE]

A short paper modelling ebola:
[URL]http://elifesciences.org/content/elife/early/2014/09/12/eLife.03908.full.pdf[/URL]

[QUOTE]A short paper modelling ebola:
[URL]http://elifesciences.org/content/elife/early/2014/09/12/eLife.03908.full.pdf[/URL][/QUOTE]Is it safe to click the link? It could be a virus, right?

:jokedrum:

No, it is not safe.
The file itself is harmless, just a PDF, it can not infect your computer :smile: but the content of the file is dangerous for your brain. You better first finish the khanacademy math section first, with 100% mastered, then try to open the file. The author(s) use some differential math to try to model how the ebola virus (irrelevant, it could be about any other disease, he is just capitalizing on the ebola breakout, which is dishonest, in my opinion) spreads (or has spread).
Nothing important, nor easy to grasp.

[QUOTE=Xyzzy;383680]Is it safe to click the link? It could be a virus, right?

:jokedrum:[/QUOTE]
TL;DR version:
Ebola.
It's not lupus.
signed: Dr.House

BICEP2 results (gravitational wave 'evidence') have dust problem:
[URL]http://arstechnica.com/science/2014/09/gravity-wave-evidence-disappears-into-dust/[/URL]

Video:
[URL]http://www.sciencedaily.com/videos/69bcd06f9fe78ef27a763290ae778441.htm[/URL]

Bug in Bash shell creates big security hole on anything with *nix in it
 

[URL]http://arstechnica.com/security/2014/09/bug-in-bash-shell-creates-big-security-hole-on-anything-with-nix-in-it/[/URL]
[QUOTE][URL="http://web.nvd.nist.gov/view/vuln/detail?vulnId=CVE-2014-6271"]The bug[/URL], discovered by [URL="http://stephane.chazelas.free.fr/"]Stephane Schazelas[/URL], is related to how Bash processes environmental variables passed by the operating system or by a program calling a Bash-based script. If Bash has been configured as the default system shell, it can be used by network–based attackers against servers and other Unix and Linux devices via Web requests, secure shell, telnet sessions, or other programs that use Bash to execute scripts.[/QUOTE]

Thanks to the miracle of open source software and dedicated volunteer programmers, the fix for that bug was pushed out to our systems (Ubuntu) before we even read the news.

:tu:

[QUOTE=Xyzzy;383800]Thanks to the miracle of open source software and dedicated volunteer programmers, the fix for that bug was pushed out to our systems (Ubuntu) before we even read the news.

:tu:[/QUOTE]

Excellent response!