Homely Scientist

It seems that the mainstream media (MSM) aren’t the only ones looking down there noses at blogs are “legitimate” news outlets.  The venerable AAAS’ EurekAlert! news service turned down Hsien to recieve embargoed press releases.  Hmm, thought we had worked this out already.  Mark Evans told all us B5-ers that we qualify for press credentials (he would know, as a journalist himself), that should be good enough.  Oh wait she also has a Ph.D.  Gee that sounds like a nice match.  Lots of readers.  Yeah.  Great writer.  Okay.
It’s time for all of us Science bloggers to stand up an be …read more

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Hat tip to Darren for the link to this site:
By now, we’ve all heard the benefits of compact fluorescent lights (CFLs). Consuming roughly 30 percent of the power required for a similar incandescent bulb, CFLs are a no-brainer way to reduce home energy bills and slash greenhouse gas emissions.
Australia says it will be the first nation to adopt lighting energy standards which effectively ban traditional bulbs, and there are plenty of other initiatives to do the same elsewhere. The CFL is here to stay. In fact, it’s heading your way faster than anyone expected. Source: Lighter Footstep – How to …read more

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I have a friend named Toby so I could resist the title.  Anyway, this is rather cool.  It seems that for a small streatch of the ocean floor the Earth’s crust didn’t form!  Instead the mantle is exposed!
SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, Canary Islands (AP) — British scientists have embarked on a mission to study a huge area on the Atlantic seabed where the Earth’s crust is mysteriously missing and instead is covered with dark green rock from deep inside the planet.
The 12-member expedition to take an unprecedented peek at Earth’s mantle left the Canary Islands on Monday with a new …read more

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This is just so cool to watch.  A levatating magnet!  It isn’t magic or science fiction, it’s just basic physics and the wonder of superconductivity.
The resulting repulsion is counteracted by the downward force of gravity and the magnet hovers neatly above the superconductor, at least until it warms to above its critical temperature.
Just for completeness, I should also point out that the magnet is effectively pinned in position by an effect known as flux pinning, which is caused by magnetic field lines getting snarled up by impurities in the superconductor. But, if you set the magnet spinning it will spin …read more

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 I haven’t had time to start the downloading process, but Kids Domain offers a slew of free software for kids on just about every topic you can imagine.  Nice science and math section.  Some of these look just great.  Boy are the kids going to love this stuff!
 
Technorati tags: kids software, science education, free software

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You know all these great stuff we use online?  Google, this blog, your website, all of it is housed in data centres.  These are, essentially, giant computer warehouses.  Racks and racks and racks of serves live there connected to the Net and the power grid.  All of this computing uses a ton of power.  On GigaOm comes a simple suggestion that could help all of us:
To resolve this issue, I have been speaking with entrepreneurs that are working to solve the problem using solar energy. The theory is that if you can generate enough solar energy you can sufficiently supplement the …read more

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Hsien, always a source of cool links, pointed me to MyJove which lets you watch how scientists set up their experiements (and why).  I started watching the fighting fruit fly video.  To make fruit flies fight, you have make sure they hatch and live without knowing they aren’t the only fruit fly in the world.  I still have to get through it all, but since I tend to get sidetracked easily, I figured I should write this up first.  Enjoy!
Technorati tags: science education, science experiments, fruit flies, fighting fruit flies

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For this first pass, this is going to be more of a speed linking theme day post than deep, sage thoughts.  I promise I’m going to be more sage (with a little more thyme later) tonight.
 
In no particular order (okay it’s right to left in my IE7 tabs) …
Lively Women covers something that you don’t think about until it’s too late.  Who has the legal right to make decisions for you in an emergency?  Very important.  Usually a spouse can do this by default, but what if you live with a girlfriend or boyfriend?  Get the paperwork done!
Breastfeeding 1-2-3 talks …read more

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