There is such a thing as 'too precise' when it comes to numbers. So what's appropriate? Erik Olsson, CC BY-NC-SA

By Jonathan Borwein (Jon), University of Newcastle and David H. Bailey, University of California, Davis

This has as much in common with actual paleolithic culture as the paleolithic diet does. Flickr/George , CC BY-NC-SA

By Darren Curnoe

The golden ratio is known as the divine proportion because it is found so often in nature. It has fascinated mathematicians since Euclid. A golden ratio is when the ratio of two numbers is the same as the ratio of their sum to the larger of the two quantities.


Credit: Wikipedia

Represented by the Greek letter phi (φ), its value is 1.61803399.

Fantasies shouldn't be confused with wishes or behaviors. conrado/Shutterstock

By Christian Joyal, Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières (UQTR)

Can we use unusual sexual fantasies to identify sexual deviancy?

Is there a link between what people fantasize about and how they actually behave?

We're being overrun with Big Data and that has created a need to increase computing and networking power to make it possible to manage the vast amount of information available.

Toward that goal, a new generation of Information and communications technology (ICT) systems has been inspired by the operating principles of the brain.

Stemming from the premise that the brain is an ideal model for information processing, in recent years there have been multiple attempts at bio-inspired systems. Some examples are neuronal networks for learning systems or ant algorithms used to trace optimal paths in communication networks.

Drinking 3-5 cups of coffee per day has been linked to protection against Alzheimer's Disease, according to a new review of studies.

The number of people in Europe aged over 65 is predicted to rise from 15.4% of the population to 22.4% by 2025 and, with an aging population, neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's Disease are of increasing concern.  Alzheimer's Disease affects one person in twenty over the age of 65, amounting to 26 million people world-wide.

Epidemiologists have linked regular, moderate coffee consumption with a possible reduced risk of developing Alzheimer's Disease. An overview of the findings were presented during a satellite symposium at the 2014 Alzhemier Europe Annual Congress.

The van der Waals force, named after Dutch chemist Johannes Diderik van der Waals, is the total forces between molecules not due due to covalent bonds. The famous sticking power of the geckos is thanks to the van der Waals force. 

Although it was discovered in the 19th century, it is still difficult to quantify when predicting the behavior of solids, liquids, and molecules because precise measurements were only possible for single atoms. That won't do for understanding biomolecules and proteins. They are also responsible for the functioning of certain adhesives and are the reason why geckos can adhere so amazingly well to surfaces, even allowing them to climb smooth walls.