Random Thoughts

"Sharknado"- Mother Jones Hasn't Been This Excited Since "The Day After Tomorrow"

"Sharknado" Is Pure Liberal Propaganda. But Is It Also Scientifically Possible?" went the title of a Mother Jones article before a sensible editor considered the possibility that there might be 5 people in the world who aren't aware tha ...

Article - Hank Campbell - Jul 13 2013 - 11:01pm

Big Data: Bigger Is Not Necessarily Better

Big data is the current trendy phrase that covers many different areas.   Big data describes equally well having a huge volume of data generated in a short period of time (like molecular simulations of DNA), having a huge volume of data that needs to be i ...

Article - Joanne Budzien - Jul 12 2013 - 11:58pm

Perfect Rebuttal

Perfect Rebuttal   Wouldn't it be nice if you could find a perfect rebuttal, a perfect test of truth, a piece of evidence which perfectly, completely and utterly negates what a witness has said in court.  I have found such a rebuttal.  It is a litmus ...

Article - Patrick Lockerby - Jul 12 2013 - 9:13pm

The Precautionary Principle Review

There is an interesting series of articles published by the Guardian discussing various aspects and opinions regarding the precautionary principle.  It has certainly been invoked sufficiently on this site to warrant some independent reading, so have a look ...

Blog Post - Gerhard Adam - Jul 12 2013 - 9:36pm

Doing it backwards

Backwards is a nicely fitting description for how I have come to be who and what I am. This is my story. Many scientists go the traditional route of undergrad > master's/TA > Ph.D. > postdoc/adjunct > TT > tenured > retired, all the ...

Blog Post - Shannon Rapp - Jul 16 2013 - 3:23pm

Transplant Twist: Woman Donates One Kidney, Saves Both Husband And Father

Last year, Julie Stitt offered to donate a kidney to her husband, Chuck, who was in kidney failure. Julie wasn't a match for Chuck but they entered the Paired Kidney Exchange (PKE) program at the University of Maryland Medical Center, which would move ...

Article - News Staff - Jul 25 2013 - 11:35am

Congratulations Carissa Yip, Youngest Female Chess Expert In The US

9-year-old Carissa Yip is probably better at chess than you. She is certainly better than me and already better than 93 percent of the 51,000 plus players registered with the U.S. Chess Federation. She has set a goal to reach 2,100 this year; an Expert is ...

Blog Post - Hank Campbell - Jul 29 2013 - 10:23am

Trekking in the Dolomites

The Dolomites are a mountain range in north-eastern Italy. They take their name from the mineral called dolomite, a carbonate rock which gives these mountains a characteristic pale pink colour, especially notable at sunset. Their composition is also respon ...

Blog Post - Tommaso Dorigo - Jul 29 2013 - 10:31am

That Didn't Take Long: "Orange Is The New Black" Reaches A Psychology Journal

It didn't take long before the Netflix dramedy hit "Orange Is The New Black" made its way into Psychology of Women Quarterly, a publication devoted to peer-reviewing the feminist science. With all that humor and girl kissing and talk of bea ...

Article - Hank Campbell - Aug 3 2013 - 1:28pm

Babes Against Biotech: We'll Exploit Women Until You Hate Science

What do anti-science groups do that science never seems to do? Trot out naked women. PETA- constantly, Greenpeace- sure, using cheescake to raise money for their corporate agenda is nothing new for groups that have neither data nor reason nor ethics. But B ...

Article - Hank Campbell - Aug 7 2013 - 4:45pm