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My small attempt to celebrate science and to make it interesting and fun by giving jargon, confusion and elitism a solid beating with the stick of good writing.
Ed Yong is an award-winning science writer based in London. Not Exactly Rocket Science is his attempt to make the latest scientific discoveries interesting to everyone by beating jargon, confusion and elitism with the stick of good writing. He finds writing about himself in the third person strange and unsettling.
"One of the best sites for in-depth analysis of interesting scientific papers" - The Times
"A consistently illuminating home for long, thoughtful, and thorough explorations of science news" - National Association of Science Writers
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September 30, 2009
Category: Animals
Bdelloid rotifers have survived without sex for some 80 million years by uncoupling the fates of their pairs of genes, getting two for the price of one.
Posted by Ed Yong at 10:00 AM • 15 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
September 29, 2009
Category: Anthropology
Old texts like the Canterbury Tales are the English language's version of the fossil record, preserving the existence of words that used to be commonplace. Scientists can use this record to mathematically model how our verbs evolved and how they will change in the future. Now, Erez Lieberman, Martin Nowak and colleagues from Harvard University are looking at this record to mathematically model how our verbs evolved and how they will change in the future.
Posted by Ed Yong at 10:00 AM • 21 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
September 28, 2009
Category: Earth sciences
You don't normally hear continents described as speedy, but it's now clear that some are much faster than others. India, in particular, is the Ferrari of continents and now, scientists have discovered why.
Posted by Ed Yong at 10:00 AM • 5 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
September 27, 2009
Category: Animal behaviour
African elephants (Loxodonta africana) can tell the difference between different human ethnic groups by smell alone. They also react appropriately to the level of threat they pose.
Posted by Ed Yong at 10:00 AM • 6 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
September 26, 2009
Category: Animal behaviour
In your garden, there's a fair chance that a farmer is currently tranquilising her livestock with a chemical cocktail she secretes from her feet. Don't believe me? Look closer...
Posted by Ed Yong at 10:00 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
September 25, 2009
Category: Animal behaviour
Even though they fearlessly stand up to lions, the mere buzzing of bees is enough to send a herd of elephants running off. Armed with this knowledge, African farmers may soon be able to use strategically placed hives or recordings to minimise conflicts with elephants.
Posted by Ed Yong at 10:00 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
September 24, 2009
Category: Animals
Cycads use heat and a toxic stench to drive insects out of male cones in the afternoon, only to lure them into female cones in the evening with a more alluring scent.
Posted by Ed Yong at 10:00 AM • 5 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
September 23, 2009
Category: Neuroscience
A new study shows that experienced doctors learn to control the part of their brain that allows them to empathise with a patient's pain, and switch on another area that allows them to control their emotions.
Posted by Ed Yong at 10:00 AM • 5 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
September 22, 2009
Category: Cooperation
As a species, we value fair play. We're like it so much that we're willing to eschew material gains in order to punish cheaters who behave unjustly. Psychological games have set these maxims in stone, but new research shows us that this sense of justice is, to a large extent, influenced by our genes.
Posted by Ed Yong at 10:00 AM • 6 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
September 21, 2009
Category: Animals
Smilodon, the most iconic of the sabre-tooths, had a surprisingly weak bite. They were a precision weapon that were used to deliver a single, final wound to an already subdued victim - the equivalent of an assasin's stiletto rather than a swordsman's blade.
Posted by Ed Yong at 10:00 AM • 3 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
Neurophilosophy 11.19.2009
The Island of Doubt 11.20.2009
Greg Laden's Blog 11.20.2009
The World's Fair 11.19.2009
Laelaps 11.20.2009
