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My Two Dads - Literally

My Two Dads - Literally

Dec 09 2010 | comment(s)

"My two dads" is no longer just a lousy TV show.  Using induced pluripotent stem cell technology (controversy-free!) scientists have produced male and female mice from two fathers.

It isn't part of any cultural agenda, the intent was to preserve endangered species, but obviously it opens up the possibility of same-sex couples having their own genetic children.  The authors caution that the "generation of human iPS cells still requires significant refinements prior to their use for therapeutic purposes."
Nickel-Tin Nanowires May Mean New Micro-Batteries

Nickel-Tin Nanowires May Mean New Micro-Batteries

Dec 09 2010 | comment(s)

The race is on to replace lithium-ion batteries and Rice University research may put nickel-tin nanowires in the hunt.

The vertical arrays of nickel-tin nanowires are encased in PMMA, the polymer best known as Plexiglas.  The Rice laboratory of Pulickel Ajayan found a way to reliably coat single nanowires with a smooth layer of a PMMA-based gel electrolyte that insulates the wires from the counter electrode while allowing ions to pass through. 

"In a battery, you have two electrodes separated by a thick barrier," said Ajayan, professor in mechanical engineering and materials science and of chemistry. "The challenge is to bring everything into close proximity so this electrochemistry becomes much more efficient."
Test Article

Test Article

Dec 09 2010 | comment(s)

This should not go out in anything but my own personal feed. Please let that work? :D :D :D
Santorini, An Explosive History Written In The Cliffs

Santorini, An Explosive History Written In The Cliffs

Dec 08 2010 | comment(s)

A little while ago, I had the pleasure of working on the Aegean island of Santorini.  Santorini was the subject of my first blog post, and now I would like to go into a little more detail.  I had meant to do it earlier, but recently I have been busy moving to another country...
30 years later, John Lennon's final interview

30 years later, John Lennon's final interview

Dec 08 2010 | comment(s)

Three days before he was shot, John Lennon talked optimistically about his family and future, saying that he had "plenty of time" to accomplish some of his goals.

Lennon's final interview was released to The Associated Press by Rolling Stone on Wednesday, the 30th anniversary of the musician's death. The issue using the full interview will be on magazine stands Friday. Brief excerpts of Jonathan Cott's interview with Lennon were also released for a 1980 Rolling Stone cover story days after Lennon's death but this is the first time the entire interview has been published.

On his choices:
Cleaning your own pollutants may harm you

Cleaning your own pollutants may harm you

Dec 08 2010 | comment(s)

Many metals have special oxygen transfer properties which improve the utility of hydrogen peroxide. By far, the most common of these is iron which, when used in the prescribed manner, results in the generation of highly reactive hydroxyl radicals (. OH). The reactivity of this system was first observed in 1894 by its inventor H.J.H. Fenton, but its utility was not recognized until the 1930s once the mechanisms were identified.

So say US Peroxide, a company marketing ‘Technologies for a Clean Environment’.
3-D Movies Are Missing The Point...Of View

3-D Movies Are Missing The Point...Of View

Dec 08 2010 | comment(s)

Many of the films we love manage to put us in someone else’s shoes, whether it be the shoes of a social network tycoon or a zombie killer. After all, we don’t pay $15 to see on screen what we do all day. Writers and directors get us into the protagonist’s head in a variety of ways, including letting us hear his or her inner thoughts.

But a more direct route into the shoes of the protagonist is to make it appear as if the viewer is actually in the body of the protagonist.

WASP-12b Is The First Carbon Rich Exoplanet Discovered

WASP-12b Is The First Carbon Rich Exoplanet Discovered

Dec 08 2010 | comment(s)

WASP-12b, a 'hot Jupiter' (Jupiter-sized, extremely hot exoplanet) about 1.4 times the mass of Jupiter and located about 1,200 light years away from Earth, has a carbon-to-oxygen ratio greater than one, according to new measurements.

That makes WASP-12b the first-ever planetary atmosphere that is substantially enriched in carbon along with being the hottest known planet in the Milky Way galaxy.

The researchers contend this carbon-rich atmosphere supports the possibility that rocky exoplanets could be composed of pure carbon rocks like diamond or graphite rather than the silica-based rock found in Earth.
Poor Nations: Medieval England Had It Better Than You

Poor Nations: Medieval England Had It Better Than You

Dec 08 2010 | comment(s)

Economics is called the dismal science for a reason - things are never very good to economists.  Heck, economists have been over the moon about the economic downturn because it gives them something to talk about ("Economy booming, inflation low without any help from economic theory" is not exactly going to be a fun article for economists to write) and they get to be more optimistic than the people with no jobs again this year.

Poor nations aren't going to be thrilled about a new paper showing that even peasants under the feudal system had a better standard of living than they had.   Dismal, indeed.
New York Times: The Lost Puzzles - Answers And A Correction

New York Times: The Lost Puzzles - Answers And A Correction

Dec 08 2010 | comment(s)

First, I'm afraid I fell victim to one of the classic blunders—the most famous of which is never get in involved in a land war in Asia, but only slightly less well known is this: probability is not additive (as a couple astute Times readers have now pointed out--before going further, you might want to read my Frankie the Fixer puzzle in the left sidebar of THIS PAGE).

Photo Upload Dec 8 2010 09:39

Photo Upload Dec 8 2010 09:39

Dec 08 2010 | comment(s)

The atomic positive charge cloud is state-dependent: ~n2*2a0*(me/Mp).
This positive charge cloud is of about 16*2a0*(me/Mp) >>  2 fm!

HR 8799 Planetary System Gets A Fourth Planet - And Starts To Look Like Our Solar System

HR 8799 Planetary System Gets A Fourth Planet - And Starts To Look Like Our Solar System

Dec 08 2010 | comment(s)

A new fourth planet (known as HR 8799e) which orbits a bright star called HR 8799 some 129 light years from Earth (faintly visible to the naked eye) has been discovered, making it the fourth giant planet found outside our solar system.

Our four giant planets are Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.  Like our solar system, HR 8799 also contains two 'debris belts' composed of small rocky or icy objects, along with lots of tiny dust particles, ours being the asteroid belt between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter and the Kuiper Belt, beyond Neptune's orbit.
Autism Breakthrough? D-Cycloserine Treatment For Impaired Sociability

Autism Breakthrough? D-Cycloserine Treatment For Impaired Sociability

Dec 08 2010 | comment(s)

The social impairment of people with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) can have a profound impact on quality of life. 

As part of their research, Eastern Virginia Medical School scientists say they have verified that a specific mouse strain, known as the BALB/c mouse, is a valid animal model of the limited sociability seen in persons with Autism.   In the presence of another mouse, BALB/c mice move as far away as possible and do not interact as normal mice do,  they say in much the same way people with autism often avoid making social contact with other people.
Neurotic? Have More Sex!

Neurotic? Have More Sex!

Dec 08 2010 | comment(s)

As if neurotic people weren't already neurotic enough, they now have to be neurotic knowing their relationships and marriages have a lot more difficulty.

But a new study says if neurotic newlyweds have more sex, their marital satisfaction is as high as less neurotic counterparts.  That's a science result we can all get behind!

Neuroticism to eroticism

Neuroticism is the tendency to experience negative emotion and people who are high in it get upset easily, change their mood often and worry frequently. People who score high in neuroticism are also less satisfied in romance and relationships, and when they get married they are more likely to divorce.
Sonic Screwdriver - From Doctor Who To Reality?

Sonic Screwdriver - From Doctor Who To Reality?

Dec 08 2010 | comment(s)

Doctor Who is always getting into some pickle or another.  Luckily he has advanced technology (and a time traveling police box/telephone booth) to help solve problems.

If defeating Daleks and keeping a temperamental TARDIS functional is in your future, we have good news;  Doctor Who's trusty sonic screwdriver gadget could become a reality for DIY types, according to Bristol University engineers who are out to show how a real life version of the fictional screwdriver, which uses sonic technology to open locks and undo screws, could be created.

"Is There A Mirror In Your Pocket? Cause I See Myself In Your Genes."

Dec 08 2010 | comment(s)

Does science really need to give Tiger Woods/Brett Favre an excuse?

"Sorry, sweetheart, I didn't mean to bang anything with a hole and a heart beat that came my way/text that chick pictures of my junk. But you have to forgive me because it's in my DNA. Oh look, it's tee time/game time again."
Smolin Vs Susskind: Part 3 Ripping On Lenny

Smolin Vs Susskind: Part 3 Ripping On Lenny

Dec 08 2010 | comment(s)

This is PART III of the four part series about the Edge discussion between Lee Smolin and Leonard Susskind. After criticizing Smolin the last time in PART II, it is now time to turn on Susskind.

Leonard Susskind is well read, certainly enough to know about the measure (not “measurement”) problem in modern quantum physics (introduced in PART I).

Another Search For Fourth Generation Quarks

Another Search For Fourth Generation Quarks

Dec 07 2010 | comment(s)

Our present understanding of fundamental physics implies the existence of three generation of matter particles, which we consider structureless and "elementary", both in the sense that they cannot be divided into smaller entities, and in the sense that they are the building blocks of all observed manifestations of matter.
Save the date - December 20th will be best American view of a lunar eclipse until 2014

Save the date - December 20th will be best American view of a lunar eclipse until 2014

Dec 07 2010 | comment(s)

December's total lunar eclipse is the only total eclipse of the moon of this year and in the Western Hemisphere it will begin on Dec. 21 at 12:29 a.m. EST (9:29 p.m. PST on Dec. 20) as the moon begins to enter Earth's penumbral shadow.    

Skywatchers won't notice any changes in the moon's appearance until about 45 minutes later when shading will become evident on the upper left portion of the moon's disk.   

The 72 minutes of the total lunar eclipse will be visible from North and South America, northern and western Europe, and northeast Asia, including Korea and much of Japan. Totality will also be visible from the North Island of New Zealand and Hawaii. 
Spirits From The Vasty Deep

Spirits From The Vasty Deep

Dec 07 2010 | comment(s)

Back in October I wrote on the subject of the Kraken, stating rather emphatically and cantankerously that
whales eat squid. It is a unidirectional ecological interaction.
I received a very thoughtful response from one Daniel Rolph, who commented