Science Art: Braunfische oder Balenen (Plate 98), Johann Saur (after Lakas Schan), Fischbuch, das ist, aussführliche Beschreibung und lebendige…, 1598

8 January 2012 grant 0

A medieval hunt for the “brownfish, or baleen.” Centuries before we got our light and energy by burning petroleum, we got it from whales.

This illustration comes from a series… Read the rest “Science Art: Braunfische oder Balenen (Plate 98), Johann Saur (after Lakas Schan), Fischbuch, das ist, aussführliche Beschreibung und lebendige…, 1598”

The first church of file-sharing: Kopimism.

6 January 2012 grant 0

The Swedes *really* like their torrents. They revere them. It’s not just entertainment any more – file-sharing is a religion. Literally.

BBC News:

The Church of Kopimism

… Read the rest

Wearing the senior citizen suit.

6 January 2012 grant 0

That’s what designers will be doing to make stores and furniture and *everything else* comfortable for aging Baby Boomer consumers. Discover looks at the way MIT is putting young… Read the rest “Wearing the senior citizen suit.”

More wolves, more trees.

5 January 2012 grant 0

File this Washington Post story under “unintended consequences,” maybe. Researchers in Yellowstone Park are noting that as wolf populations are rebounding, the number… Read the rest “More wolves, more trees.”

Electricity vs. depression.

4 January 2012 grant 0

Medical Xpress seems quite excited over the prospect of using “deep brain stimulation” to cure depression:

The study was led by Helen S. Mayberg, MD, professor in the Departments

… Read the rest

A closer look at fish feet.

2 January 2012 grant 0

Oh, tetrapod. How Science Daily says you’ve changed. The first walkers, they’re saying, may have had more to do with floods than droughts:

University of Oregon scientist

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Science Art: Chlamyphore tronque, Chlamyphorus truncatus, Harlan, by René Primevère Lesson

31 December 2011 grant 0

^{Click to embiggen}

The pink fairy armadillo wishes you a happy New Year.

So, I am sure, would R.P. Lesson.

[via Scientific Illustration]

Creatures of the Dragon Vent.

30 December 2011 grant 1

Guardian is taking a closer look at some of the strangest living things from one of the most peculiar places on Earth:

In the first ever expedition to explore and take samples from the “Dragon

… Read the rest

Airplane profits – when “average” means “most dangerous.”

29 December 2011 grant 0

PhysOrg has something new for fearful flyers to obsess over. The further an airline is from its break-even point – either losing money or making a healthy profit – the safer … Read the rest “Airplane profits – when “average” means “most dangerous.””