The Guild of Scientific Troubadours

The Guild of Scientific Troubadours

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Articles by grant

We just discovered a reef taller than a skyscraper.

14 November 2020 grant 0

How could it stay hidden? Science magazine celebrates the first big reef discovery in 120 years… and it really is big:

At 500 meters tall, the reef surpasses the height of the Empire

… Read the rest “We just discovered a reef taller than a skyscraper.”

The mystery of sand.

10 November 2020 grant 0

XKCD’s Randall Munroe, writing now for The New York Times, explores a scientific mystery more baffling than quantum physics – what makes sand feel softer or harder:

If you

… Read the rest “The mystery of sand.”

Molecular ring on Titan could be key to life on Earth.

10 November 2020 grant 0

New Scientist looks at the origins of life – which may be revealed by a ring-shaped molecule we just found on Saturn’s moon Titan:

The molecule is called cyclopropenylidene

… Read the rest “Molecular ring on Titan could be key to life on Earth.”
Scientific illustration of a seed sprouting.

Science Art: Germinating squash seed, 1908

8 November 2020 grant 0

Scientific illustration of a seed sprouting.

A new beginning, from Elements of Philippine Agriculture on archive.org (though I found it on Flickr Commons).

A Finnish company is making food out of air – CO2 & water, to be precise.

8 November 2020 grant 0

Big Think has a piece on a NASA concept to convert atmosphere – and specifically, the gases we animals exhale – into protein powder like folks put in their smoothies:

A company

… Read the rest “A Finnish company is making food out of air – CO2 & water, to be precise.”

Puzzling pair of Polish pigs from 3,500 years ago.

6 November 2020 grant 0

Archaeology wonders about the original purpose of a pair of snub-nosed figurines excavated from a Bronze Age hillfort in northern Europe. Were they religious relics or children’s… Read the rest “Puzzling pair of Polish pigs from 3,500 years ago.”

The UK has powered up an unusual fusion reactor.

5 November 2020 grant 0

Science magazine takes us inside the Mega Amp Spherical Tokamak (MAST) Upgrade, an experimental fusion reactor which has been switched on after a 7-year build and revamping. Ultimately,… Read the rest “The UK has powered up an unusual fusion reactor.”

Scientific illustration of some rock-cutting equipment from the 1920s. Dieselpunk machinery.

Science Art: Close-up view of a rock cutter in the Everglades Drainage District, c. 1920

1 November 2020 grant 0

Scientific illustration of some rock-cutting equipment from the 1920s. Dieselpunk machinery.Click to embiggen

This is a machine for cutting through rock in a swamp. Or really, in a very broad, very shallow river – which is what the Everglades really is. The rock in question would… Read the rest “Science Art: Close-up view of a rock cutter in the Everglades Drainage District, c. 1920”

Birdies with the big, cute eyes are in the most danger from deforestation.

30 October 2020 grant 0

Science explains the odd irony behind the fact that the cutest birds – the ones gazing out at you with those big eyes – are also the ones in the most imminent danger from chopping… Read the rest “Birdies with the big, cute eyes are in the most danger from deforestation.”

Our spaceship just grabbed a piece of asteroid.

27 October 2020 grant 0

Science News celebrates a long-shot success in space, as NASA’s OSIRIS-REx probe is steered close enough to the asteroid Bennu to grab a piece to take home:

“The spacecraft did everything

… Read the rest “Our spaceship just grabbed a piece of asteroid.”
Scientific illustration of prehistoric fish from the Devonian period.

Science Art: Hyneria, by ABelov2014

25 October 2020 grant 0

Scientific illustration of prehistoric fish from the Devonian period. Click to embiggen
A scene from the Devonian period, before dinosaurs ever emerged to rumble the earth. This lobe-finned fish measured between 8 and 15 feet long, and swam in freshwater rivers… Read the rest “Science Art: Hyneria, by ABelov2014”

SONG: Bang, You’re Misled

25 October 2020 grant 0

SONG: “Bang, You’re Misled”

ARTIST: grant.

SOURCE: Based on Defense One, 2 Oct 2020, “Can AI Detect Disinformation? A New Special Operations Program May Find… Read the rest “SONG: Bang, You’re Misled”

Tasmanian devils are being reintroduced to mainland Australia

22 October 2020 grant 0

CNN and other outlets are covering some good news about the cutest of marsupial carnivores. Tasmanian devils are doing well enough (and so is their erstwhile environment) that ecologists… Read the rest “Tasmanian devils are being reintroduced to mainland Australia”

Sonifications turn telescope images of deep space into music.

22 October 2020 grant 0

Science News listens to astronomical data in a way that’s helping vision-impaired people and scientists find new ways to understand what our deep-space telescopes are showing … Read the rest “Sonifications turn telescope images of deep space into music.”

Scientific illustration of a space shuttle satellite payload from NASA's Technical Reports Server

Science Art: Astro-2 Observavory in STS-67 Payload Bay, 1995

18 October 2020 grant 0

Scientific illustration of a space shuttle satellite payload from NASA's Technical Reports Server

A space telescope inside a space shuttle, from the STS-67 mission.

The mission summary, from archive.org, is:

The Space Shuttle Endeavor, scheduled to launch March 2, 1995 from NASA’s

… Read the rest “Science Art: Astro-2 Observavory in STS-67 Payload Bay, 1995”

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GRANT: something to believe in

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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
Related Projects
  • Squid Pro Crow
  • Grant Bandcamp
  • Grant Soundcloud
  • Penitential Originals Playlist
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"Is it a fact—or have I dreamt it—that, by means of electricity, the world of matter has become a great nerve, vibrating thousands of miles in a breathless point of time?"
— Nathaniel Hawthorne, The House of the Seven Gables, 1851

grant balfour made this website.

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