In the basement of the Ames Free Library in my town of Easton, out of public view, are 14 huge volumes that were among the first acquisitions of the library, and still, after almost a hundred years, remain the largest volumes in the collection.
Photo by natsuki on Unsplash
Our cousin, the sea squirt • Photo by Peter Southwood (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Our cousin the sea squirt
I have a friend, a marine biologist, who haunts the beaches, salt-water marshes, and tide pools of the New England shore collecting the gifts of the sea. Now and then she will find something special that she shares with me. This past weekend she presented me with one of the biggest and finest sea squirts she had ever found washed ashore.
The Thinker by Rodin • Photo by Ed Menendez (CC BY-SA 2.0)
The brain machine
It has been less than 50 years since Ernest Lawrence was awarded the Nobel Prize in physics for his invention of the cyclotron. Lawrence’s first particle accelerating machine was four inches in diameter and constructed from window pane, brass plate, and sealing wax. It was the sort of thing any clever fellow could build in his basement.
Microscopic marine animals • Gordon T. Taylor, Stony Brook University (Public Domain)
Traces of ice age in ocean debris
In recent years, geologists have made spectacular progress discovering the Earth’s past climate. In particular, they have established a reliable chronology for the ice ages.
The Ivory-billed woodpecker • By John James Audubon (1785–1851) (Public Domain)
Reports of this bird’s demise exaggerated
The ivory-billed woodpecker lives! That is the announcement made several weeks ago by ornithologist Lester Short of the American Museum of Natural History.
Model of a DNA molecule • Photo by CGP Grey (CC BY 2.0)
Designer genes — a joke no more
Ever since bioengineers learned how to tinker with DNA and turn out tailor-made living organisms we have been hearing jokes about “designer genes.”
Image by parameter_bond (Public Domain)
Everything theory
Let’s talk fashion in science. Let’s talk bandwagons. Let’s talk string.
The Red Queen addresses Alice • John Tenniel
The Red Queen and cosmic strings
“One can’t believe impossible things,” says Alice in Through the Looking-Glass. “I daresay you haven’t had much practice,” the Red Queen replies.
Artist's concept of a Space Laser Satellite Defense System • U.S.A.F. (Public Domain)
Star Wars — Is it science or fantasy?
The idea that science can confer invincibility is a stock theme of science fiction. It is also the theme of President Reagan’s Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI), a space-based anti-missile weapons system often called “Star Wars.” Supporters of SDI are determined to turn science fiction into science fact.
A seminar at CSICon 2018 • Photo by Brian D. Engler (CC BY-SA 4.0)
A skeptical look
Ten years ago [in 1976] a group of distinguished philosophers and scientists, disturbed by what they saw as a rising tide of interest in astrology and other pseudo-sciences, established the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal.