clock | November 19, 2008And, while on the topic of "Science by press release", it struck me that announcing intentions of future research is a Good Thing. Isn't that what we are all talking about - Open Science?
If you signal in advance that you are working on something, you allow others to either move on to something else so as not to duplicate the effort, or to speed up their work in order to scoop you, or to give you a call and offer to collaborate. The second option is likely to be rare and localized in a few research fields that are hugely competitive (e.g., cancer research). The first and the third options…
clock | November 19, 2008There is an utterly confusing press release out today - Australian First: Kangaroo Genome Mapped:
Australian researchers are launching the world first detailed map of the kangaroo genome, completing the first phase of the kangaroo genomics project.
Why is it confusing?
Because we are used to seeing press officers and media botch the terms. They often use the words "map" and "sequence" interchangeably.
Mapping a genome means locating genes on chromosomes, i.e., you get to know where each gene is on each chromosome. For this, you do not need to know the sequences of any genes, and certainly…
clock | November 19, 2008We are in the final stretch! The submissions have been trickling in all year, and a little bit more frequently recently, and many more over the past couple of weeks, so, if you have not done it yet, it is high time now to dig through your Archives for your best posts since December 20th 2007 and submit them. Submit one, or two, or several - no problem. Or ask your readers to submit for you.
Only submissions received through this form are valid.
Then take a look at your favourite bloggers and pick some of their best posts - don't worry, we can deal with duplicate entries. Do not forget new…
clock | November 19, 2008Science Communicators of North Carolina:
Connect with SCONC in a cool Co-Working Environment!
Monday, November 24 at 6:30 p.m.
Join your fellow SCONC members for a casual evening in Carrboro on Nov. 24. Headlining this month's meeting -- remotely -- will be SCONC's ambassador to Norway. Tour the area's first co-working venture (and a great place for freelance folks!) - Carrboro Creative Co-working. Details: www.carrborocoworking.com
And if you can't wait five days, but only two, Carrboro Creative CoworkingOpening Party is this Friday:
We'll celebrate the opening of Carrboro Creative…
clock | November 19, 2008
How Cockroaches Keep Their Predators 'Guessing':
When cockroaches flee their predators, they choose, seemingly at random, amongst one of a handful of preferred escape routes, according to a report published on November 13th in Current Biology, a Cell Press publication.
Sleep Helps People Learn Complicated Tasks:
Sleep helps the mind learn complicated tasks and helps people recover learning they otherwise thought they had forgotten over the course of a day, research at the University of Chicago shows.
What Makes An Axon An Axon?:
Inside every axon is a dendrite waiting to get out. Hedstrom et…
clock | November 19, 2008Carnival of the Liberals #78 is up on Greg Laden's blog
The latest Carnival of Journalism is up on One Man and His Blog
The 151st edition of the Carnival of Homeschooling is up on Tami Fox's Thought and Views
clock | November 18, 2008One time I went to a museum where all the work in the museum had been done by children. They had all the paintings up on refrigerators.
- Steven Wright
clock | November 18, 2008...and the journalism that can help. Jay Rosen and Conor Friedersdorf on Blogginheads.tv:
clock | November 18, 2008There are 13 new articles in PLoS ONE today. As always, you should rate the articles, post notes and comments and send trackbacks when you blog about the papers. You can now also easily place articles on various social services (CiteULike, Connotea, Stumbleupon, Facebook and Digg) with just one click. Here are my own picks for the week - you go and look for your own favourites:
Mass Mortality of Adult Male Subantarctic Fur Seals: Are Alien Mice the Culprits?:
Mass mortalities of marine mammals due to infectious agents are increasingly reported. However, in contrast to previous die-offs,…
clock | November 18, 2008Malcolm Gladwell has a new book out and critics all home in on different aspects of it....
MICHIKO KAKUTANI:
Much of what Mr. Gladwell has to say about superstars is little more than common sense: that talent alone is not enough to ensure success, that opportunity, hard work, timing and luck play important roles as well. The problem is that he then tries to extrapolate these observations into broader hypotheses about success. These hypotheses not only rely heavily on suggestion and innuendo, but they also pivot deceptively around various anecdotes and studies that are selective in the extreme…
clock | November 18, 2008Chad Orzel and Jennifer Ouellette are chatting physics and stuff on Bloggingheads.tv:
clock | November 18, 2008
Men With Facial Scars Are More Attractive To Women Seeking Short-term Relationships:
Men with facial scars are more attractive to women seeking short-term relationships, scientists at the University of Liverpool have found. It was previously assumed that in Western cultures scarring was an unattractive facial feature and in non-Western cultures they were perceived as a sign of maturity and strength. Scientists at Liverpool and Stirling University, however, have found that Western women find scarring on men attractive and may associate it with health and bravery.
'Orphan' Genes Play An…
clock | November 18, 2008Carnival Of The Green #154 is up on Fake Plastic Fish
Grand Rounds: 5.9 are hosted by Dr.Deb
clock | November 18, 2008Specialization Does Not Predict Individual Efficiency in an Ant:
Social insects, including ants, bees, and termites, may make up 75% of the world's insect biomass. This success is often attributed to their complex colony organization. Each individual is thought to specialize in a particular task and thus become an "expert" for this task. Researchers have long assumed that the ecological success of social insects derives from division of labor, just as the increase in productivity achieved in human societies; however, this assumption has not been thoroughly tested. Here, I have measured task…
clock | November 18, 2008
Hmmm, who is coming from the wild, wild West?
Two from Washington state: Deepak Singh and John McKay.
Two from Oregon: Bill Hooker and Maureen Hoatlin.
From New Mexico: Sol Lederman.
And of course a bunch of Californians: Craig McClain, Erin Davis, Janet Stemwedel, Alex Lee, Rick MacPherson, Neeru Paharia, Miriam Goldstein, Peggy Kolm, Andrew Su, Peter Binfield and Aaron Rowe.
clock | November 18, 2008On the Seed Magazine site...:
ScienceBloggers discuss the advantages of open science and debate the necessity of the current peer-review system.
Nice! But of course I'd say that. Just to emphasize, in case the article does not make it clear enough, Open Access and changes in peer-review will both be a result of the Age of the Web, but the two are not necessarily tied to each other in each individual instance of a publishing venue. Different journals, pre-print sites, etc., are experimenting with OA and with changes in peer-review in different ways and at different rates, the two processes…
clock | November 17, 2008There is no man so good, who, were he to submit all his thoughts and actions to the laws, would not deserve hanging ten times in his life.
- Michel Eyquem de Montaigne
clock | November 17, 2008 How To Make A Barometer In Few Easy Steps With Household Items - Celebrity bloopers here
clock | November 17, 2008ObamaCTO (independent of the Obama transition team) is a site for recommending ideas to Obama's new Chief Technology Officer. You can go and suggest ideas or vote on ideas already there.
I just voted for this suggestion - "Require open access for publicly-funded research". You should vote for it as well and add a comment if you care about this issue (and I bet most of my readers do).
See also Moving Toward a 21st Century Right-to-Know Agenda: Recommendations to President-elect Obama and Congress, report (pdf)
(via)
clock | November 17, 2008
Each of the show-and-tell sessions now has its own wiki page so you can start discussions, ask questions from the presenters, etc.
We will also have more information about Friday events soon. The Lab Tours and Food Tours will be in the morning, and the WiSE event in the evening, but you can also use that same page to organize your own events, lunch, carpooling, late-night bar-hopping, etc.