Simanaitis Says

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Category Archives: Sci-Tech

BABYLONIAN CALCULUS?

IT’S RARE THAT calculus makes the cover of Science, the weekly magazine of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Nor is ancient Babylon an expected Science cover subject. … Continue reading

February 10, 2016 · 1 Comment

IS IT THE GOOD TURTLE SOUP OR MERELY THE SLOTH?

A WONDERFUL HOAX was played on members of New York City’s exclusive Explorer’s Club back in 1951. To paraphrase Cole Porter’s “At Long Last Love,” a legendary meal at the … Continue reading

February 7, 2016 · Leave a comment

QUICK, THE MOSQUITO SPRAY! NO, THE UNDERARM DEODORANT!

WHAT WITH the horrible Zika virus being mosquito-borne, an item in AAAS Science, January 4, 2016, caught my attention. Elizabeth Pennisi’s article “Orchids Give Off Human ‘Body Odor’ to Attract … Continue reading

February 4, 2016 · Leave a comment

HAVE I BEEN UNCERTAIN OF ENTANGLEMENTS?

THIS ITEM began with my trying to learn about quantum entanglement. This physics term describes the way particles can interact from afar, something that Albert Einstein referred to as “spooky … Continue reading

February 3, 2016 · 1 Comment

THIS JUST IN, FROM THE SCIENCE DESK

SCIENCE IS never over, be it climate science, planetary science or even basic physics. Two items coming across my science desk resonated, one with national news of a record blizzard, … Continue reading

January 24, 2016 · Leave a comment

AN ACTUAL PLANET VULCAN??

FOLLOWERS OF Star Trek recognize planet Vulcan as the birthplace of Spock’s father Sarek (his mother Amanda was an Earthling). What’s more, there was a respected mathematician who believed he … Continue reading

January 18, 2016 · Leave a comment

LIFE SPANS IN THE ANIMAL WORLD

DISCUSSIONS OF animal life spans include us too. There’s a Special Section on this topic in the December 4, 2015, issue of Science, published by the American Association for the … Continue reading

January 13, 2016 · 3 Comments

ON THINKING

BEING RETIRED and all, I’m not much into organizational research. Nor have I usually found attraction to the Harvard School of Business. Its graduates always seemed to be cutting quarter-inches … Continue reading

January 2, 2016 · 1 Comment

RATS! TECH-FOILED AGAIN

GENERALLY, WE SAVOR our world of high technology. However, there are those who rue it. Schadenfreude, literally harm-joy, is the German word for our pleasure derived from the tough times … Continue reading

January 1, 2016 · Leave a comment

AUTOMOTIVE HEADLIGHTS, PART 2

THE BOSCH AUTOMOTIVE HANDBOOK devotes 37 pages of fine print to the subject of Lighting Equipment. Wikipedia’s Headlamp entry is also extensive, with 116 references. Here I offer highlights, with … Continue reading

December 30, 2015 · 3 Comments