It has been said that true science fiction requires a story in which the world is changed--and never goes back to the way it was (I don't remember the source of this definition). By this definition, techno-thrillers such as everything by Michael Crichton are not science fiction, since the world is returned to normal after some disaster strikes. You might notice that a lot of science fiction films, especially the more mainstream ones, conclude with humanity returning to business as usual. The knots are untied. Loose ends are taken care of. Of course, there's nothing wrong with that, as it is the normal way to adhere to standard dramatic structure. And the dynamics of the characters might outshine the background world anyway.

Rep. Randy Hultren(R) and Rep. Joseph Kennedy (D - but not the anti-science crackpot one, that one is Robert F.

A few days ago, I was watching an episode of the Antiques Roadshow.  People were bringing their treasured objects for expert examination to the grounds of a stately house in St Ives, Cambridgeshire.  The items included an early pocket calculator by Sinclair (made locally), and a traction engine arrived in full steam.  But my ears really pricked up when a valuable jug bought for a fiver (in today’s money, perhaps $50) was identified as a Bellarmine Jug. 

Applying the laws of men to murky facts is almost as hard as determining the laws of nature.   In science we have clear experimental and observational data and tease out the laws of science.   In the law the facts are in question the laws are known.  It was hard to decide but the guy clearly chopped up his wife, just kidding.  The case wasn't nearly that interesting.

Humanitarian research at the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) is geared toward various projects, among them saving millions of children from death and blindness due to Vitamin A deficiency.

12.00

A study released on Monday found a link between induced or augmented labor, that is, the use of Pitocin, and autism.

Women whose doctors decided to begin labor by administering Pitocin, an artificial form of oxytocin, or to speed up contractions with Pitocin were up to 23 percent more likely to have children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder.

Mars is a fascinating planet, the most like Earth of all the planets in the solar system, and may help us to understand much about the origins of life on Earth. Undoubtedly, it's a wonderful place to explore, especially with augmented reality vision. But though it was quite Earth-like in its first few hundred million years, it is not at all Earth like now. Earth remains by far the most habitable place in our solar system. The most inhospitable places on Earth, such as Antarctica, even in the depths of winter, and at the centre of the continent, are far more habitable than anywhere else in our solar system. Space colonies and the poles of the Moon, are both more easily habitable than Mars, and more easy to make self sufficient. Why is that? Read on to find out more.

Chipotle, the burrito restaurant chain, served more than 120 million pounds of beef, pork and chicken last year.  It now has a problem - sales continue to go up. Its "never ever" policy regarding the use of beef that has never been ill and must never have gotten antibiotics means it can't find enough meat. At least find enough and remain competitive.

So the company has floated the idea of buying beef that got antibiotics due to an illness. That means its "never ever" policy which, let's face it, was never evidence-based and solely a feel-good gimmick anyway, may be going away.

It's that, or raise prices a lot, or settle for lower-quality meat. 

I haven't seen Elysium yet, but Ryan Britt's article "Our Science Fiction Movies Hate Science Fiction" is interesting nonetheless:

Ripping off the heads of robots like a sweaty space-age cyberpunk Robin Hood, Matt Damon is delivering future-social-justice this week in Elysium.

Alright, so what does this have to do with anti-science-fiction? As Britt writes:

But the vast majority of science fiction films—even the very best of them--still see the SF, the tech, the speculative concept, as the antagonist of the film.

And that is the heart of the matter. As he says about Elysium:

I like the idea of "Shark Week" but I confess I am more of a reader than a television viewer. Still, when Discovery Channel whacked me as part of their "Shark Week" promotional campaign a few years back, it felt like a 'we have arrived' moment for Science 2.0.

"Shark Week" is big. And it may be a victim of its own success.

One writer at The Guardian says Discovery Channel is sinking to tabloid status because of this year's "Shark Week".