November 20, 2009
Category: Evolution • Genetics • Science & Religion • The Buzz
The pitched battle between evolutionary theory and Intelligent Design has become one of the signature conflicts of the decade. On Pharyngula, PZ Myers picks up the pieces after his debate with Jerry Bergman on whether ID should be taught in schools. Unambiguously he writes, "creationists are not the heralds of a coming paradigm shift; they are the rotting detritus of the old regime of unreason." Elsewhere, on Gene Expression, Razib Khan crunches some numbers which show that 10-20% of people in certain Muslim countries believe in evolution, versus 80% in certain European countries. The support for evolution in the U.S.? 40%. Finally, on The Primate Diaries, Eric Michael Johnson parses centuries of anthropocentric thought which placed man atop the "great chain of being," with other forms of life transitioning smoothly into the inanimate. As Johnson writes, "this vision of divinely ordered perfection was dramatically ripped apart, link-by-link, on November 24, 1859," a date we will observe next week on the sesquicentennial of Darwin's Origin of Species.
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Posted by Wes Dodson at 2:15 PM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
November 19, 2009
Category: Evolution • Genetics • The Buzz
Forget fashion; when it comes to expressing yourself, it's your genes that wear you! On Not Exactly Rocket Science, Ed Yong discusses the explosive evolution of AEM genes in humans and elephants—two long-lived, social animals with "very, very large brains." Big brains need more juice to function, and AEM genes, which govern how mitochondria metabolize food energy, may be a key to evolving intelligence. On Gene Expression, Razib Khan explores the links between gene transmission and language transmission, writing that "linguistic affinity" could modulate gene flow, and vice versa. On Mike the Mad Biologist, Mike flays proponents of "genetic conservatism," who believe that IQ is highly heritable and educating everyone is a waste of money. This attitude leads Mike to wonder, "What is the genetic heritability of being an ***hole?" Finally, Daniel MacArthur on Genetic Future reports the bankruptcy of deCODE Genetics and the revamped product lineup at 23andMe, suggesting that personal genomics may need a new business model.
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Posted by Wes Dodson at 10:40 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
November 18, 2009
Category: Health Care • Nutrition • The Buzz
We often hear that "you are what you eat," but the relationship between what goes in our bodies and what our bodies make of it is really quite complex. On Respectful Insolence, Orac laments that "diet does not have nearly as large an effect as we had hoped" on the prevention of cancer, and that by the time we reach adulthood, dietary interventions may be too late. Elsewhere, Joseph on Corpus Callosum examines a new study which suggests that drinking coffee lowers the risk of hepatitis C progression in afflicted individuals. Bucking the study's correlative conclusion, he says it's "not possible to generalize" about such a select population. On Guilty Planet, Jennifer Jacquet cautions against nutritional narcissism, saying that healthy eating is about more than "me and my body," it's about "my community, my country, my planet." In a separate post, she shows us the first photo taken of a coral eating a jellyfish, making that old adage sound more dubious than ever.
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Posted by Wes Dodson at 11:21 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
November 17, 2009
Category: Astronomy/Space • News • The Buzz • Water
On Friday, NASA scientists confirmed the discovery of water on the moon. Using spectral analysis to determine the composition of the plume resulting from last month's LCROSS rocket collision, they found more than 100 liters of water. Steinn Sigurðsson on Dynamics of Cats calls the presence of water on the moon "amazing," but cautions that at these concentrations, it's "dry by Earth standards." Razib Khan on Gene Expression considers the implications of water on the moon: "Since humans are mostly water by weight, this is very important when assessing the practical difficulties of colonization or settlement." In other NASA news, Greg Laden reports on his blog that after idling on the precipice of a Martian dust bowl since April 23, while engineers on Earth assessed the best way to make a break for it, the long-lived Spirit rover will risk movement again tomorrow, in a bid to continue its incredibly successful mission.
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Posted by Wes Dodson at 10:06 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
November 16, 2009
Category: Education • Things We Like
In the increasingly competitive and admissions-driven world of high school, learning doesn't always come cheap. SAT-prep programs and college admissions counselors charge a pretty penny for the advantages they (claim to) bestow upon anxious juniors and seniors, and even younger students, including those in middle school, are feeling the pressure. But what about families who can't afford exclusive prep courses?
Enter USAGraduate.com, a interactive online competition free to students in grades 6-12 that aims to engage students in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) subjects. The site tracks students' scores on weekly quizzes and offers prizes weekly over the course of the competition and at the culmination—prizes like laptops and iPods. It also provides information about possible STEM careers to students, including in-demand jobs in the green sector.
Registration is open now at www.usagraduate.com. The program will launch on January 10, 2010. Teachers and parents can also register, to keep up to date with what their students are doing. If you teach 6th-12th graders or have one of your own in school, check it out—it won't cost you a thing!
Posted by Erin Johnson at 12:44 PM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
November 15, 2009
Category: Astronomy/Space • Technology • The Buzz
In Ethan Siegel's ongoing treatment of dark energy on Starts With A Bang!, he considers a number of alternative explanations for the dimming of redshifted supernovae. Could photon-axion oscillations be to blame, or does a "grey dust" pervade our universe? In another post, Siegel appreciates that our galaxy smells like raspberries and rum, and not, for example, Uranus. His diss to Andromedans: "I bet you stink compared to us!" For more things unseen, Greg Laden on Collective Imagination points us to Kameraflage, a technology that writes secret messages and draw pictures only visible to a digital camera. Finally, open your eyes for a stellar image of our galactic center on Dynamics of Cats, courtesy of Steinn Sigurðsson.
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Posted by Wes Dodson at 10:50 AM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
November 14, 2009
Category: Geology • The Buzz • Volcanology
When it comes to geologic phenomena, the difference between renewal and cataclysm can walk a fine line. On All of My Faults Are Stress Related, Kim Hannula elucidates the distinction between causes and triggers. Citing an article about the Zipingpu Dam that concludes that the weight of the reservoir might have triggered an earthquake, Hannula notes that "the ultimate cause of the earthquake was the collision of India with Asia, and the resultant tectonic mess." Elsewhere, Erik Klemetti on Eruptions dresses down Popular Science alarmism, concluding that the chance of exploratory drilling causing a "game-ending eruption" in the Campei Flegrei is minimal. In another post, Klemetti reports that the Mayon volcano in the Philippines may be "headed towards a significant eruption," with evacuation of nearby villages already underway.
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Posted by Wes Dodson at 9:28 AM • 2 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
November 13, 2009
Category: Evolution • Paleontology • Silliness • The Buzz
Shakespeare wrote that "past is prologue," but it's not always that easy to read. Brian Switek on Laelaps tells the tale of P. H. Gosse, a man who tried to reconcile the fossil record with the Book of Genesis, at the same time Darwin was writing his Origin of Species. Convincing no one, Gosse estranged even the faithful with his image of God as "a trickster who planted gags to fool geologists." But given the ample evidence that dinosaurs were once alive, the debate continues: were they warm-blooded? On Not Exactly Rocket Science, Ed Yong shows us a new study which says yes, based on the "hip heights of 13 species of dinosaur including Tyrannosaurus, Velociraptor and Archaeopteryx." Finally, in the realm of sheer speculation, Richard Dawkins has thrown some weight behind the what-if evolutionary concept of a "humanoid dinosaur." As Darren Naish writes on Tetrapod Zoology, "our body shape clearly works well for an intelligent, tool-using, sentient animal, but where is the convincing evidence that it is the only possible body shape for such a creature?"
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Posted by Wes Dodson at 12:20 PM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
November 12, 2009
Category: Health Care • Psychology • The Buzz
Sometimes, present circumstances can belie the uncertainty of the future. On Not Exactly Rocket Science, Ed Yong discusses experiments on "restraint bias" which show that many people overestimate their powers of self-control. He notes that "we're generally bad at predicting the future," arguing that those who feel the strongest are the most likely to risk temptation and defeat. On Respectful Insolence, Orac critiques the latest "kerfuffle over screening for cancer," which questions the value of routine screening. While early detection may seem like a no-brainer for an improved prognosis, the equation is more complicated and the margins slimmer than one might think. Greg Laden also warns in his blog against mistaking the present trend for the bigger picture. While swine flu may be peaking, he says, it's no time to let down our guard. In other words, once the cop car passes, "don't just wander blissfully out into the middle of the street like it is all over, because you will be flattened by the firetruck that you illogically assume is not coming next."
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Posted by Wes Dodson at 12:16 PM • 0 Comments • 0 TrackBacks
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