The Guild of Scientific Troubadours

The Guild of Scientific Troubadours

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Month: April 2020

Insects are dying off – except those living in fresh water.

29 April 2020 grant 0

The Guardian has grim news for bugs (which include critters like the bees that pollinate our crops) with a little flash of hope. Insect populations have dropped by 25% over the last 30 years,… Read the rest “Insects are dying off – except those living in fresh water.”

Scientific illustration of two nebulae in the Large Magellanic Cloud imaged by the Hubble Space Telescope

Science Art: Cosmic Reef, by the Hubble Space Telescope

27 April 2020 grant 0

Scientific illustration of two nebulae in the Large Magellanic Cloud imaged by the Hubble Space TelescopeClick to embiggen

Astronomers are marking the 30th anniversary of the Hubble Space Telescope with a “ portrait of a firestorm of starbirth in a neighboring galaxy” –… Read the rest “Science Art: Cosmic Reef, by the Hubble Space Telescope”

SONG: In the Sounding Deep

24 April 2020 grant 0

SONG: “In the Sounding Deep”.

ARTIST: grant.

SOURCE: Scientific American, April 2020, “Undersea Telescopes Scan the Sky from Below,” as used in the post “… Read the rest “SONG: In the Sounding Deep”

Flattening the curve of misinformation.

23 April 2020 grant 0

Nature takes time out from COVID-19 news to inveigh against another kind of epidemic – of online viral content that’s, shall we say, too often less than accurate:

In times of

… Read the rest “Flattening the curve of misinformation.”

On behalf of America’s southeastern quadrant: Oh, GREAT! Early hurricane predictions are in. And big.

21 April 2020 grant 0

It’s going to be a rough season again, Science News lets us know. Tropical weather forecasters are predicting 18 named storms and at least four major hurricanes for the 2020 season… Read the rest “On behalf of America’s southeastern quadrant: Oh, GREAT! Early hurricane predictions are in. And big.”

scientific illustration of a railgun projectile fired during a US Navy test run.

Science Art: Photograph taken from a high-speed video camera during a record-setting firing of an electromagnetic railgun (EMRG)…, 2008.

20 April 2020 grant 0

scientific illustration of a railgun projectile fired during a US Navy test run. Click to embiggen

No gunpowder was harmed in the making of this photograph. That’s just the power of a lot of magnetism making a hunk of metal go really, really fast through the air. … Read the rest “Science Art: Photograph taken from a high-speed video camera during a record-setting firing of an electromagnetic railgun (EMRG)…, 2008.”

Medieval Blue is Remade

17 April 2020 grant 0

Science News opens a new book on an old pigment, reconstructing a botanical purple-blue hue that had puzzled medievalists for ages:

The pigment, called folium, graced the pages of medieval

… Read the rest “Medieval Blue is Remade”

There are nuclear-bomb layers in whale sharks’ bones.

15 April 2020 grant 0

Science News has what’s practically a Godzilla story: the discovery that residue from Cold War-era nuclear bomb tests can be found inside the bodies of the world’s largest… Read the rest “There are nuclear-bomb layers in whale sharks’ bones.”

Neanderthal yarn proves math skills in prehistoric culture.

14 April 2020 grant 0

Ars Technica looks at the world’s oldest bit of string and find it tells a profound story about Neanderthal life:

The 6.2mm (0.24 inch) long bit of thread, spun from plant fibers, is

… Read the rest “Neanderthal yarn proves math skills in prehistoric culture.”
scientific illustration of metal under a microscope

Science Art: 3D Printed Copper Surface, vol. 1, by David Pervan, 2018.

12 April 2020 grant 0

scientific illustration of metal under a microscopeClick to embiggen

Not a landscape, nor a texture, but an electrical conductor.

From Mr. Pervan’s explanation on Wikimedia Commons:

My research is on using 3D printing to make conductive

… Read the rest “Science Art: 3D Printed Copper Surface, vol. 1, by David Pervan, 2018.”

New York’s coronavirus outbreak came from Europe, not China.

9 April 2020 grant 0

The New York Times looks at two different batches of genetic data which both indicate that shutting down travel from China didn’t actually affect the spread of the virus in New York,… Read the rest “New York’s coronavirus outbreak came from Europe, not China.”

Stanford’s butt-reading toilet knows how healthy you are.

7 April 2020 grant 0

CNET (among others) has brought us news at the confluence of two contemporary concerns: Are we carrying germs we don’t know about? and … Just how private is *anything* we do … Read the rest “Stanford’s butt-reading toilet knows how healthy you are.”

Scientific illustration of Florida lakes, using imagery derived from satellites and aerial photographs

Science Art: Aerial image and satellite derived image of Florida lakes, by Richard P. Stumpf, U.S. Geological Survey.

5 April 2020 grant 0

Scientific illustration of Florida lakes, using imagery derived from satellites and aerial photographsClick to embiggen

From the USGS:

This image is a cropped rendition of two aerial images that demonstrate satellite-derived cyanobacteria concentrations in surface waters from an area

… Read the rest “Science Art: Aerial image and satellite derived image of Florida lakes, by Richard P. Stumpf, U.S. Geological Survey.”

There were a bunch of different humans hanging out in southern Africa

5 April 2020 grant 0

That’s before Homo sapiens came on the scene. Science News looks at new evidence that three different species of human ancestors were present in the same area:

Excavations at Drimolen,

… Read the rest “There were a bunch of different humans hanging out in southern Africa”

Bored with hanging out at home? Count some penguins (or spot some galaxies) for science.

4 April 2020 grant 0

Scientific American has some suggestions for your self-isolation. There are a few ways you can help researchers out without ever leaving home:

“I think where we can tap into people’s enthusiasm

… Read the rest “Bored with hanging out at home? Count some penguins (or spot some galaxies) for science.”

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Honorary Troubadours
  • Jonathan Coulton, Contributing Troubadour for Popular Science.
  • Laura Veirs, who knows her way around a polysyllable.
  • Thomas Dolby, godfather of scientific pop.
  • Squeaky, fact-based rock about fusion containment & rocket science.
  • Cosmos II, a.k.a. Boston University astronomer Alan Marscher.
  • Dr. Fiorella Terenzi, astrophysicist who makes music from cosmic radio sources.
  • Dr. Jim Webb, astronomy professor and acoustic guitarist.
  • Artichoke, the band behind 26 Scientists, Vols. I and II.
  • They Might Be Giants, unrelenting proponents of scientific popular song.
  • Symphonies of Science, the people who make Carl Sagan and others sing.
  • Giant Squid, doom metal about the sublime horrors of marine biology.
  • Gethan Dick,6 scientists, 6 musicians, 1 great album
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