The schedule 1 illicit drug known as ecstasy has been used by up to 12 million people in the United States  and millions more worldwide. 

Past research has suggested that ecstasy users perform worse than others on some tests of mental ability but there have been concerns that the methods used to conduct that research were flawed, and the experiments overstated the cognitive differences between ecstasy users and non-users. 

A short while ago, SciFest 2010, the International Science Festival, was held in St. Louis.   Making the trip was a group from Jersey Shore, PA and they were invited because a teacher, Slater Harrison, is really good at 'air surfing'.

If you have never seen the term air surfing, it was invented in the 1970s by Dr. Tyler MacCready, a fellow who studied philosophy at Yale and then geology at the University of Wyoming and Monash before becoming famous in amateur aerodynamics for the 'walkalong glider' - which looks like magic to many a young person's eyes, at least the way Harrison and his team of students do it.   First, here is a diagram of a walkalong glider.   MacCready no longer makes these so you'd have to find it on Ebay or make your own:

When you were young you may have heard something about a dog like, "Fido is 10 years old, that is 70 in people years" and wondered what that meant.

It's a rule of thumb but there is a science basis to it, yet current methods of comparing patterns of aging are limited because they confound two different elements of aging – pace and shape.   And it can be confusing for non-biologists.

Around the pink- and red-hued madness of overpriced flowers and heart-shaped everything that is Valentine's Day, even a rocket man¹ needs a little love.² Unfortunately for NASA, the Stardust spacecraft beamed down an unexpected photo of its intended Valentine, the potato-shaped comet Tempel 1. (And no wonder - what girl wants to be photographed if she's told she has the figure of a potato?)

Instead of a space age love song³, scientists received the a photo of a tiny speck:

The lure of the far-off land, the thrill of crossing the seven seas, the dream of studying in a foreign university is still the most sought after by many Indian students and scientists. Indian students who pursue their academic dreams overseas need to be mentally prepared to rough it up.

Most importantly, they need to follow a legitimate path in pursuit of money, excellence, and exercise necessary precaution to avoid getting duped, lest they have their wings clipped, their beaks bent, claws tagged, ankles radio-tagged and their flight monitored by immigration authorities.

Recently, the news of the Trivalley University hit headlines and most prominently the Indian students looking up to brighter opportunities abroad felt the heat.