DIFFERENT HORSES—BUT FOR DIFFERENT ERAS?
A COLLEAGUE asked about horsepower measurement, specifically for classic cars like the Duesenberg Model J built between 1928 and 1937. As I happen not to have a Model J in … Continue reading
CAN YOU SEE ME NOW?
SCIENCE IS moving forward to match fiction. In Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, J.K. Rowling’s hero receives an invisibility cloak, a silky garment that makes him disappear. Now, Science … Continue reading
AN EXCESS OF RESOURCE
THE WATER MAINS of Paris burst in August. This sounds like the title of a Hemingway pastiche, but actually it’s a truism of infrastructure. What’s more, it has implications in … Continue reading
PUPILS—VERTICAL, HORIZONTAL OR OTHERWISE
THE PUPILS I have in mind here aren’t kids in a classroom, they’re the openings in eyeballs, adjustable for different lighting conditions through many evolutionary variations. I learned about these … Continue reading
A RESURGENCE OF WARMTH AND TACTILITY?
VINYL IS making a comeback. It’s a fascinating cultural phenomenon, perhaps in part expressing a preference for warmth and tactility over digital accuracy and efficiency. Or is it simply a … Continue reading
IS URBAN LIFE TOO HYGIENIC?
CHLDREN WHO grow up on dairy farms are considerably less likely to develop allergies or asthma than their urban counterparts. This finding, published in Science, September 4, 2015, offers new … Continue reading
FUN WITH CHEMISTRY—FIVE DECADES AGO
HOW TIMES change. Fun with Chemistry: Easy Experiments for Young People was originally published in 1944. A revised edition appeared in 1962, with additional printings up through 1973. However, were … Continue reading
HELLO, CAN WE HEAR YOU NOW?
NASA’s RECENT announcement that there are signs of water on Mars is a long, long way from any chance that it has life as we know it. However, this news … Continue reading
AFRICA COUNTS
EARLIEST MAN arose on the African continent, and with evolving culture came mathematics. There’s a standard book on this subject, now in its third edition, Africa Counts by Claudia Zaslavsky. … Continue reading
CUTTING FUEL CELL COSTS
AN ADVANCE at Argonne National Laboratory of the U.S. Department of Energy may significantly lower the cost of fuel cell propulsion. Briefly, Argonne researchers have developed a less costly replacement … Continue reading
