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Katherine Johnson’s Story Is A Reminder Societal Progress Is Not Inevitable.

Katherine Johnson’s Story Is A Reminder Societal Progress Is Not Inevitable.

Feb 24 2020 | comment(s)

Katherine Johnson, a Mathematician doing a job known as being a “computer” for NASA in the movie “Hidden Figures” died today at the age of 101.  She started out at a time where being such a human computer was looked about as lowly clerical work fit for women.  It was one of the few outlets for a woman of intelligence.  Computer programming and computer science for the up coming digital computers which she also worked on were looked at the same way.

Mediterranean Diet Claims Are Bordering On Supernatural - Now It May Increase Longevity

Mediterranean Diet Claims Are Bordering On Supernatural - Now It May Increase Longevity

Feb 24 2020 | comment(s)

A new paper claims that the Mediterranean diet may increase "longevity" and it created its mystical conclusion using the favored magic wand of food studies, epidemiological correlation, sprinkled with biological speculation.

You may be old enough to remember other claims using similar kernels of scientific truth that became popular diet fads; cigarettes, grapefruit, cabbage. the Adkins diet, Paleo. 
Optimizing The Geometry Of A Muon-Electron Scattering Experiment

Optimizing The Geometry Of A Muon-Electron Scattering Experiment

Feb 24 2020 | comment(s)

Tomorrow morning the Cornell arXiv will publish the preprint of a long scientific article, the result of 4.5 months of painstaking work by yours truly. So I thought I would give you a preview of its contents. Of course, it will take more than a single post to do a good job - I guess I can describe the generalities here, and leave it to another time the plunging into technical details that may only be interesting to insiders.

First of all, what experiment are we talking about? It is called "MUonE", and it aims at measuring with the utmost precision the rate at which muons scatter elastically off electrons, as a function of the transferred energy of the scattering reaction. 
Merge: Did Human Language Evolve Due To A Mutation?

Merge: Did Human Language Evolve Due To A Mutation?

Feb 21 2020 | comment(s)

Merge is a controversial belief by some that human language faculty arose in humans through a single gene mutation, rather the evolving gradually.

This human burst of genetic exceptionalism is embraced by some linguists, such as Noam Chomsky, but the science community has doubts. The basis for Merge is that humans are genetically equipped with a unique cognitive capacity that specifically allows us to implement computations over hierarchically structured symbolic representations.
If You Want People To Read Your Science, Get Them To Read You - By Making Your Stories Personal

If You Want People To Read Your Science, Get Them To Read You - By Making Your Stories Personal

Feb 21 2020 | comment(s)

A new paper says scientists can make their work more appealing to the public by making it more personal. I learned of it through a paid university PIO but few scientists will see the irony in that.

I certainly agree with the point. I have been part of two communities, science and the military, that in defiance of public perception are filled with hilarious people who have great stories. But when the recorder comes on, it's often like talking to someone in marketing who hasn't been cleared for media by their boss. They clam up or give canned answers.
What Endangered Means To Scientists And What It Means To Environmental Lawyers Are Much Different Things

What Endangered Means To Scientists And What It Means To Environmental Lawyers Are Much Different Things

Feb 19 2020 | comment(s)

You might know blue whales are an endangered species while pandas are not. Yet there are 25,000 blue whales and only 2,000 pandas.  There are 100,000 sea otters yet they are still classified as endangered. Who drew that line between endangered and not endangered? And why are there suddenly so many more endangered species? A new tiny species might be discovered and someone is immediately petitioning government to declare it endangered, even though there may be lots of them and western ecologists just don't know it.
Meanwhile in Florida, The Annual Lake Hollingsworth Snake Orgy Is Happening

Meanwhile in Florida, The Annual Lake Hollingsworth Snake Orgy Is Happening

Feb 19 2020 | comment(s)

After Valentine's Day, two important things happen in Florida: baseball spring training and snake orgy season.

Nerodia fasciata fasciata, the banded water snake, doesn't want to bite you, and they have no venom - they are lovers, not fighters. And they love. A lot, at this time of year.  Along with lots of other Floridians, brown watersnakes, et al. 


When The Blue Pill Causes Red Green Color Blindness

When The Blue Pill Causes Red Green Color Blindness

Feb 19 2020 | comment(s)

Sildenafil (viagra) is used to treat erectile dysfunction and is safe, with known side effects, but a few people have experienced light sensitivity and color vision impairment at the highest recommended dose.

That doesn't mean men who need it should stop taking it, the psychological consequences of erectile dysfunction are of more concern than side effects, which can include headache and blurred vision that disappear quickly. These occur because sildenafil was originally developed as a treatment for high blood pressure, and it also dilates blood vessels and relaxes smooth muscle in the penis, making it easier to achieve and maintain an erection. 
Coronavirus Genome Has Been Sequenced

Coronavirus Genome Has Been Sequenced

Feb 19 2020 | comment(s)

A recent study identified the coronavirus responsible for the pneumonia epidemic in the Hubei province of China and finds the bat-origin virus is related to other known pathogenic coronaviruses.

The 2019 coronavirus (CoV) causes fatal pneumonia that has claimed over 1,300 lives, with more than 52,000 confirmed cases of infection by mid-February, along with various impacts to the lives of the scholars who revealed the virus against the wishes of the Chinese government. 
Misinformation And Disinformation Are Diseases And Both Social Media And Journalism Are Vectors

Misinformation And Disinformation Are Diseases And Both Social Media And Journalism Are Vectors

Feb 17 2020 | comment(s)

A recent paper finds that vaccine disinformation is common on social media while a few years ago I had employees watch food documentaries on Netflix and write about their impression and the results in both cases are startling for people who don't realize the extent of the problem. 

Those with conspiracy theories about the modern world can now gain a worldwide audience, using social media and free markets.
Afraid Of GMOs? Thank Money-Driven Activism Leveraging Social Media

Afraid Of GMOs? Thank Money-Driven Activism Leveraging Social Media

Feb 16 2020 | comment(s)

If you were long concerned about Russians exploiting American media for their gain, you turned out to be right. But before they were meddling in American elections, they were meddling in American science. The Obama administration Director of National Intelligence warned that Russians were using offshore "donor advised" funds to launder dark money anonymous donations to activists opposing natural gas - Russia's top export. And they did the same thing with food, their second largest export.
Jargon Tells The Public They're Not In The Tribe, And That Is Bad If You're A Government Funded Scientist

Jargon Tells The Public They're Not In The Tribe, And That Is Bad If You're A Government Funded Scientist

Feb 16 2020 | comment(s)

A new study shows there is a reason USA Today is the most popular newspaper in America - they won't specify "laparoscopy" when "minimally invasive surgery" gets the point across to more people.

While America leads the world in adult science literacy, that is still with under 30 percent of the population. To really reach the public, we need to use language that won't be a turn-off. Jargon may make us feel smarter, but it makes people who lack the vocabulary feel dumber, and that is a violation of smart journalism.
Folk Wisdom Is Not Right About Left Brains

Folk Wisdom Is Not Right About Left Brains

Feb 16 2020 | comment(s)

We know the left and right side of our brain are specialized for cognitive abilities like language (left hemisphere) and the right hand. That functional lateralization is reflected by morphological asymmetry too. The left and right hemispheres differ subtly in brain anatomy, distribution of nerve cells, connectivity and even neurochemistry.

It can be seen on endocasts. Most humans have a combination of a more projecting left occipital lobe (located in the back of the brain) with a more projecting right frontal lobe.

What Are Gravitational Waves and Why Do They Matter?

What Are Gravitational Waves and Why Do They Matter?

Feb 15 2020 | comment(s)

Waves of geometry in four-dimensional space-time, that is what gravitational waves are.  The very definition of distance between points in space-time changes as these waves pass.   The objects in the space do not move but space itself changes momentarily.  The scale at which these changes can be measured right now are on the order of a few dozen widths of a proton.  Smaller than the average distance between the electron and proton in a hydrogen atom.   Yet, with laser light shining through interferometers, we can measure these changes.  From these we can learn about the fundamental nature of the universe.  Not by studying the matter and energy content of it but by studying the space that connects it

Correlation Hype: Your Car Seats Are Not Giving You Cancer

Correlation Hype: Your Car Seats Are Not Giving You Cancer

Feb 15 2020 | comment(s)

A U.C. Riverside environmentalist is sounding the alarm about your commute. 

Professor David Volz and colleagues hand-picked 90 commuter students who were given silicone wristbands to wear for five days. The goal was to find organophosphate esters on the wristbands, because some papers link those to harm in zebrafish and some epidemiologists will link anything to anything in humans.  They found one, TDCIPP - chlorinated tris - at higher levels and speculate that it is oozing out of car seat foam and into our bodies.

Just correlation, no testing
How Bird Flocks With Multiple Species Behave Like BTS And Other K-Pop Groups

How Bird Flocks With Multiple Species Behave Like BTS And Other K-Pop Groups

Feb 15 2020 | comment(s)

Despite what you've heard, birds of a feather often don't flock together. In the real world, multiple bird species are often flying and feeding together. In the Amazon, 50 species may travel as a unit.

But are birds in these mixed flocks cooperating with one another or competing?

A new study suggests both. Just like a K-pop band such as BTS, Blackpink, or Red Velvet.
It's Reducing Calories, Not The 10,000 Steps A Day, That Prevent Weight Gain

It's Reducing Calories, Not The 10,000 Steps A Day, That Prevent Weight Gain

Feb 14 2020 | comment(s)

In a world of New York Times best-selling diet books and epidemiological claims about food and chemicals - even that if your mother used cosmetics it may have made you fat - it can be difficult for the public to know what to trust.

It won't be intermittent fasting, juice cleanses, or 10,000 steps, it will always be the calories. Energy balance matters, no matter how many times Center for Science in the Public Interest claims it's conspiracy to claim calories are why we gain weight.
If The American West Moves East, It May Not Be Taxes, It May Be Water

If The American West Moves East, It May Not Be Taxes, It May Be Water

Feb 14 2020 | comment(s)

After the 2020 census, it is expected that California will lose a seat in Congress and Texas will gain it. Texans tout greater personal freedom and lower taxes but a new study says it may be water.

California is mostly desert and gets the bulk of its water from other states. After another drought a few years ago the pubic demanded new water infrastructure, noting that California hasn't undertaken a major program since the 1960s while the population is over 100 percent greater. Housing costs are high because new construction can't take place without a water contract, forcing people to stay in coastal cities.
Are Travel Bans During Infectious Disease Outbreaks Effective?

Are Travel Bans During Infectious Disease Outbreaks Effective?

Feb 14 2020 | comment(s)

Smallpox was wiped out by using mathematical containment rings coupled with vaccines and it makes sense that one way to contain an infectious disease outbreak is to limit travel.

Unless travel bans are only bans for some people. In communist China, elites are still going on vacation, they are still traveling for business, they are still going to foreign colleges. The novel coronavirus in Wuhan, China, now known as COVID-19, has infected tens of thousands and killing hundreds while spreading to at least 24 other countries. That led many governments, including the United States, to restrict travel to and from China.
Three And A Half Muons

Three And A Half Muons

Feb 14 2020 | comment(s)

A few days ago I received from my esteemed colleague Massimo Passera, a theorist and an INFN director of research in the Padova section where I also work, a draft of a new article he produced with his colleagues Antonio Masiero and Paride Paradisi, which is relevant to my present interests. The paper discusses what new physics effects could be accessible by the precision measurement of elastic scattering of energetic muons off electrons, in a setup which is being considered at the CERN north area for the determination of the hadronic contribution to the effective electromagnetic coupling (the article has meanwhile being published in the arXiv).