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Stop eating your pet's food

Apparently people are eating their pet's food, and they're getting salmonella poisoning in return...

A scientific reference manual for US judges

Science and our legal system intersect frequently and everywhere - climate, health care, intellectual...

Rainbow connection

On the way to work this morning, I noticed people pointing out the train window and smiling. From...

Neutrinos on espresso

Maybe they stopped by Starbucks for a little faster-than-the-speed-of-light pick me up....

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Becky JungbauerRSS Feed of this column.

A scientist and journalist by training, I enjoy all things science, especially science-related humor. My column title is a throwback to Jane Austen's famous first line in Pride and Prejudice

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Who's to blame - pharma or academia? Both? Neither?

Who's to blame - pharma or academia? Both? Neither?

Jun 23 2009 | comment(s)

From bench to bedside - who is the catalyst? Academics? Pharma? Everybody? Nobody? From this recent spate of articles on progesterone and brain trauma, it's tough to say.
IQ And The Values Of Nations: Part II

IQ And The Values Of Nations: Part II

Jun 18 2009 | comment(s)

In the first article on this topic, I suggested that we can measure what people prefer and value, but we don’t know the “why” behind those preferences and values.

An evolutionary psychologist from the London School of Economics, Satoshi Kanazawa, wrote a paper on the origin of individual values and preferences that suggests values are tied to IQ, and you can theoretically predict the values of a nation based on its average intelligence.

If only we all saw things like Hank...

If only we all saw things like Hank...

Jun 17 2009 | comment(s)


My apologies, Kim...
A jewel in the rough: for Bente

A jewel in the rough: for Bente

Jun 17 2009 | comment(s)

Given the thousands of years of modern human history, all the brilliant minds that have popped up in science during that time, and especially advances in the last half century or so in computers, how many Mersenne prime numbers do you think we've discovered?

Turns out, only 46 - until recently, when the 47th was discovered by a "prime hunter" in Norway. (This one's for you, Bente, since I failed you in the thunder article.)

Bear with me, even if you aren't a math wizard, as the story is a quirky testament to the power of the media and the ability of anyone to contribute to science, amateur or expert.