Where does the periodic table of elements end? The short answer is: no-one knows.
Category Archives: Stories
The bubble that could power the Earth
Sonoluminescence is a mysterious phenomenon that might provide a key to nuclear fusion.
Pause to Watch: Monkeys demand fair pay
What makes humans unique as a species? From consciousness to clothing to fire, one can name a bunch of things depending on how we want to carve up this whole uniqueness thing and how precisely we go about definitions.
Morality is one of the concepts caught in this discussion. And, judging by some super cute monkeys' … Continue Reading ››
6 reasons for science communication
"Public understanding of science is a passion of mine," writes David Eagleman, a neuroscientist and author who runs Eagleman Laboratory for Perception and Action in Houston.
This passion is echoed in one of his latest scientific publications, somewhat ambitiously dubbed as a manifesto. Appearing in the commentary section of The Journal of Neuroscience, Eagleman's … Continue Reading ››
Where no spacecraft has gone before
For a few years now NASA’s Voyager 1 spacecraft has been flirting with the edge of our Solar System. After nearly 36 years and over 18 billion kilometres of travel, the space probe is now way past Neptune (4.7 billion km from Earth[1. At its farthest. It's only 4.3 at its closest!]) and even Pluto (7.4 … Continue Reading ››
Pause to Watch: Ice finger of death
On sexy blue feet
Looks help with being famous in the animal world, too. Thanks to its blue feet, this goofy-looking sea bird is arguably one of the superstar species of the Galápagos Islands.
Its name is blue-footed booby (Sula nebouxii), and it can be found on the western coast of the Americas, ranging from north-west Mexico and Panama to … Continue Reading ››
Much ado about trivia
The Australian Academy of Science (AAS), an otherwise exemplary organisation, is upset because most Australians have a decent grasp of basic scientific facts.
Wait, let me start from the beginning.
A scientific literacy survey, recently carried out by Auspoll on behalf of the AAS, has found that science literacy of young Australian adults has fallen in the … Continue Reading ››
Science is not just an opinion
People often write heartfelt pieces about the personal history of a certain belief of theirs. Virginia Heffernan recently attempted just that on her blog, when she felt an urge to explain … Continue Reading ››"Isn't it enough to see that a garden is beautiful without having to believe that there are fairies at the bottom of it too?" —Douglas Adams