Ask a ScienceBlogger

Earlier today, I had the pleasure of speaking via Skype with Dan Simons's graduate-level science writing class. We talked about the ins and outs of academic blogging, and the nature and ecosystem of science communication online, and the students asked some terrific questions. I had asked Dan to ask his students to compile some questions in advance, so that I might at least pretend to be prepared, and the questions they sent were so good, that I've decided to commit my answers to the relative permanence of the sciblogosphere. (Also, there was good feedback to a similar post that I wrote…

I've just gotten back from a conference, and I was blaming the travel and time zones for the fact that I feel like this: However, from the looks of things, it seems there is some kind of zombie epidemic on ScienceBlogs today. (I suppose this means I need to talk to the IT guys about internet security issues, if I got zombified through my browsing. Assuming they're still taking help tickets from zombies. I wonder if being a zombie with tenure makes a difference ...) Anyway, in the meantime I thought it might be useful to break out the workplace safety talk for new students. While I can't…

There are some great questions coming in to Ask a Scienceblogger! If you (or your kids?) have a question you want answered by a scienceblogger drop by Page 3.14 (the blog of the SB overlordz) and leave your question in the comments on this post. Tyler asked:It's said that the left hemisphere of the brain controls the right half of the body and vice versa. Does this apply to the processing of audio and visual stimulus of the ears and eyes as well? Does the left half of the brain process what the right eye sees and vice versa? There's actual a few questions in here, so let's break this apart…

Here is another question from Ask a ScienceBlogger. Reader Uday Panta asks: How does water evaporate in the seas? Doesn't water evaporate at 100 C? There were some very good responses in the comments where the question was, but I am going to answer it with some more details. Small Particle Model This is where we need to start - the small particle model of liquids and gases. This model treats the liquid as being made up of a lot of particles (well, obviously). If there is a gas (or liquid) at a certain temperature, then there are particles moving around at different speeds. Often it is…

As part of the Ask a ScienceBlogger series, reader Jim Swanson asks: When I open the dishwasher after washing and the contents are still hot, why do the glass and ceramic items dry off more quickly than the plastic items? This is a great question. Great because it is something most everyone can relate to and great because there is some good science. Really, this shows the difference between temperature and thermal energy. I think the common idea is that temperature is a measure of the energy something has - but this isn't quite true. Ok, let me first start with a sample case. Suppose you…

I am going to try to answer another Ask a ScienceBlogger question. This one is from George P. Burdell. He asks: "If the universe is expanding from the big bang, has anyone tried to reverse plot the galaxies to figure out the exact point where the big bang occurred?" Actually, he asked two questions, but I am just answering the first. Second, let me note that I am not really a cosmologist - so I am just making up answer. In short, the answer is that everywhere is the center of the universe. Think of it this way. Imagine that there are only two dimensions and these two dimension are the…

A reader writes: I was in a PhD program in materials science, in a group that did biomedical research (biomaterials end of the field) and was appalled at the level of misconduct I saw. Later, I entered an MD program. I witnessed some of the ugliest effects of ambition in the lab there. Do you think biomedical research is somehow "ethically worse" than other fields? I've always wanted to compare measurable instances of unethical behavior across different fields. As an undergraduate I remember never hearing or seeing anything strange with the folks that worked with metallurgy and it never…

A reader sends the following query: I've only recently begun teaching in a big state university, maybe tier C in the field I'm in. I'm in a quandary as to how to manage pressure to pass students who are under performing. The first semester, I had to lower the passing to a basically ridiculous level and the college still inquired why so many failed (10 %). Now, I'm again feeling pressure to pass students who do not deserve to pass. I'm getting very disillusioned by this type of practice. Grade inflation seems to be so common that I even have students who think that a 60 is a B. I'm…

Longtime readers of this blog may remember last year's orgy of pies on the run-up to Pi Day (March 14th, or 3-14). This March at Casa Free-Ride, there's been less pie making, in large part due to the fact that I'm no longer on sabbatical (either from my job or from coaching soccer). But the bake-off is on again, so I figured that I needed to feed you all one really good pie (or pie recipe, anyway). This pie melds three flavors that play very well together: rich chocolate, tart cherries, and almonds. As a bonus, it puts those flavors together in a pie that is rich but not heavy, one that…

I have, of late, received a number of emails asking advice on matters somewhere in the territory between ethics, etiquette, and effective communication with members of the tribe of science. While I'm no Ann Landers (as has been noted before), I'll do my best to answer these questions on the blog when I can, largely so my very insightful commentariat can chime in and make the resulting advice better than what I could generate on my own. Today we have a question from a reader struggling with the question of how to address one letter to two doctors. He writes: Hi Dr Free-Ride, I'm not sure if…

Here are my entries to the ScienceBlogs Pi Day Bake-off: End-of-winter fruit pie Apples and amaretto-soaked dried fruit in a nut crust. Dense and rich. 'I want to taste springtime!' violet custard pie Delicate, creamy, and a little bit fantastic (seeing as how it requires harvesting petals from a couple hundred violets). Schnockaschtettle Quick and easy, with the perfect balance of molasses and crumb topping. Tea-time cheesecake pie Tea-scented cheesecake topped with citrus-y marmalade. Foolish rhubarb pie Tart, sweet, and creamy, rich and yet light Lemon-berry pie Lemon curd in a…

Of all the Pi Day pies I have offered to you here, I'm pretty sure this one is my favorite. It has a fabulous mix of flavors (sparingly sweet chocolate, almonds, a hint of cinnamon) and textures (creamy custard in a crisp meringue shell). And, since people have been telling be that pi are squared, this one is, too. Meringue shell: Line an 8 inch square pan with parchment paper. Beat 6 egg whites and 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar until foamy. Continue beating at high speed while gradually adding 1 cup granulated sugar. Keep beating until the whites are glossy and form stiff peaks. Fold into…

Saturday is Pi Day, and I figure we need at least one dinner pie to precede the parade of dessert pies currently on hand. (It's the whole parental responsibility thing. I do not judge adults who eat dessert pie for breakfast, trust me!) Since the Free-Ride household is vegetarian, the pie Wilkins posted won't quite work. In lieu of an actual meat pie, we offer the vegetarian shepherd's pie. "Meat" layer that isn't really: Heat a tablespoon or so of vegetable oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 small onion, finely chopped, and saute until translucent. Add 12 ounces Yves…

Given that we have an enthusiastic lemon tree, a lemon pie for Pi Day was inevitable. The kind of berries you use will change the character of the finished pie. My recommendation is to go with berries that are fresh and as local as you can get them. Gingersnap crust: Pulverize 6-8 ounces of gingersnap cookies. In a butter pie pan, mix the crumbs with 6 tablespoons melted butter. Pat mixture into bottom and sides of pan. Chill for at least an hour. Lemon curd filling: Beat 3 egg yolks until lightened. Mix in a small saucepan with finely grated zest of 3 lemons, 1/2 cup lemon juice, and…

Rhubarb seems to be one of those foods that people either love or hate. I love it, but I didn't feel like using it for strawberry-rhubarb pie, the pie that introduced me to rhubarb. Instead, I decided to make a pie whose filling is essentially a rhubarb fool. The pie itself is easy to prepare, but because each of the components requires time to chill, it won't provide instant gratification. Some things, however, are worth the wait. Graham cracker crust: Mix 2 cups of graham cracker crumbs with 6 tablespoons melted butter. Press into a buttered pie pan and chill for at least an hour. (…

The wet weather in these parts led to an almost (but not quite) predictable cancellation of soccer games on the weekend that we were supposed to provide snacks. This means I ended up staring at a surplus of navel oranges and thinking, "What am I going to do with these?" Marmalade presented itself as an option, except I'm still in Pi Day pie (a la) mode, so I don't want to be distracted with canning. Then I thought, "I wonder whether a marmalade topping would work well on a tea-flavored cheesecake pie?" Let's find out, shall we? Marmalade topping. It takes some time to draw the pectin out of…

In the ScienceBlogs Pi Day bake-off, it would seem that Pastry Chef Free-Ride has a posse. Reader Jake emailed me to share a pie recipe for me to prepare with the sprogs. Writes Jake, "This is one member of the extended family of molasses crumb pies and a cousin to the Pennsylvania Dutch Shoo-fly Pie. This recipe comes from my Pennsylvania Dutch grandmother, and when it comes out right (tends to vary a bit with relative humidity and barometric pressure) it is nowhere near as gooey or sickly sweet as most shoo-fly pies I've had. A cooled slice can be picked up with the fingers and eaten out…

We're still a week away from Pi Day, but the break in the rain here has made me believe that spring may be on its way. What better way to celebrate spring (especially in the aftermath of a wintertime fruit pie) than a violet custard pie? The violet custard is based on a recipe from The Savory Way by Deborah Madison. The day before you're going to bake the pie: Go out to the garden and pick about 150 violets. Avoid the ones with little bitty slugs on them. Have a seat -- preferably a comfortable one. Carefully pluck the petals from the violets and put them into a small saucepan. Do it…

It's not Pi Day yet, but there's no reason to believe my first pie will be the one that hits the target. So, here's my opener in anticipation of March 14th, a dried cherry/dried apricot/apple pie in a nut crust. I'm calling it an end-of-winter fruit pie because it's made with what I have on hand as I wait for spring, summer, and fresh stone-fruits to arrive. The recipe follows. Filling: 1 cup dried Montmorency cherries 1 cup dried apricots, chopped 1/2 cup Amaretto (or substitute 1/2 c. apple juice or orange juice) Let the dried fruit soak in the Amaretto (or juice) for a few hours. 2…

Another "Ask a ScienceBlogger" question has been posed: What do you see as science fiction's role in promoting science, if any? For an answer to the question as asked, what Isis said. Also, what Scicurious said about a bunch of related questions. Myself, I think science fiction could do more than make non-scientists excited about science and the cool things science can (or might someday) do. I think science fiction has the potential to help us make better science. I don't mean that works of science fiction should create the wish-list of technologies for scientists and engineers to bring…