A mind blowing piece by One Minute Physics.
Why Is The Sky Dark At Night?
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Category Archives: The Wonders of Science
Doomsday Datapoints
It’s not even lunchtime and we’ve listened to presentations by Craig Venter on his plans to create biofuels made by microalgae: an acre, he believes, will be able to produce 10,000 litres of oil per year, as opposed to corn, which can produce just 18. He’s just received $300m of investment from Exxon to make it a reality.
I’m amazed by how many of my friends think that the world is rapidly coming to an end. Granted, our progress thus far isn’t workable but as a species we’re getting it figured out.
:: Great Article on Singularity University via Email (Thanks Lana!) ::
It’s worth noting that this article is a tad starstruck and isn’t quite as critical as it should be of Mr. Kurzweil. Also, I think that asteroid mining, while exceptionally cool, is a sexy vanity project for nerdy billionaires. If the goal is resources the answer is the ocean. It’s much easier to visit and we have barely even touched on the resources available there. Except fish, we’ve really fucked that scene up. Sorry dolphins!
++ Update ++
I forwarded this quote to my friend and she replied:
I visited a guy who is working on it at UC San Diego. He said that basically when humans were evolving agriculture we spent 10,000 years breeding wheat from a random grass to the fat stalks we have today, something capable of becoming a staple crop and supporting huge populations, cities, kings, armies, and all that civilization stuff.
Now we have to perform that same genetic engineering feat with generations of algae to get the stuff that will grow petroleum. WE have far more powerful tools to do it like supercomputers. But we only have like 10 years.
here is a crazy picture of a starfish
Empiricism Confirms the Obvious [Today in Science]
New study adds rigor to what would otherwise be stunningly obvious using basic logic: When women were given free contraceptives the abortion rate was cut in half.
:: Quick Writeup in SinTef ::
This most recent study is part of an ongoing project. Earlier studies are also interesting.
In 2002, Norwegian women aged between 16 and 19 were offered free hormone-based contraception. Abortion rates fell dramatically and reached their lowest level in 2005.
In 2006, after the authorities modified the scheme and introduced part-payment for hormonal contraception, the number of terminations among this age-group began to rise once more. Since then, the abortion rate among 16- to 19-year-olds has risen every year.
Women aged 20 to 24 have the highest number of abortions, and this rate has risen steadily in the course of the past few years. The study demonstrates that when women in this age-group are offered gratis contraception, their abortion rate also falls.
So the issue here is clear: The abortion rate is going to depend on access to birth control.
There are a lot of negative externalities to having unwanted children. The rest of society ends up paying unfairly if this isn’t controlled. Some of my taxes can be used to pay for universal contraceptives now or way way more of my taxes can be used for prisons, crime fighting and other social services later. This is very, very straight forward.
The main reason that our society doesn’t see this as an obvious call is because there are still a lot of people in government positions who think that having sex is inherently bad. They probably need to get laid…
From the "Things You Didn't Know Were A Felony" File
MARCH 2–In a bold and bizarre attempt to destroy evidence seized during a federal raid, a New York City man grabbed a flash drive and swallowed the data storage device while in the custody of Secret Service agents, records show. ….. Necula and several codefendants had been transported to a Secret Service office in Brooklyn, where they were to be questioned and processed. While there, and in the view of investigators, Necula “grabbed Subject Flash Drive 2, which had been on his person at the time of his arrest, and swallowed,” Agent Joseph Borger noted in the below February 25 search warrant affidavit. When Necula was unable to pass the item after about four days, doctors–concerned that the drive was not compatible with the suspect’s GI tract–concluded he “would be injured if they allowed the flash drive to remain inside of him,” reported Borger. Necula eventually agreed to allow doctors at New York Downtown Hospital to remove the item, according to a source familiar with the incident. A Kingston executive said it was unclear if stomach acid could damage one of their drives. “As you might imagine, we have no actual experience with someone swallowing a USB,” Mike Sager wrote in an e-mail to TSG. In return for swallowing the storage device, Necula was charged with obstruction of justice, one of four felonies detailed in an indictment returned in late-January. Prosecutors allege that Necula and three other men placed card readers over ATM slots to “skim” magnetic strip information off cards inserted in those machines.
:: via The Smoking Gun via Fred’s Twitter @Mecredis (which is almost always delightful) ::
While I’m not an electronics expert or a biologist, I’m pretty sure that stomach acid (mostly hydrochloric acid) would fuck a thumb drive up pretty bad. According to my guesses, which are based mostly on wild conjecture, it would take about 20 minutes in the stomach to make the drive unreadable in a regular usb drive. However, I think it would take closer to two hours until the data itself was actually destroyed.
Monsonto GM Crops Causing Organ Failure in Rats
In a study released by the International Journal of Biological Sciences, analyzing the effects of genetically modified foods on mammalian health, researchers found that agricultural giant Monsanto’s GM corn is linked to organ damage in rats.
According to the study, which was summarized by Adam Shake at Twilight Earth, “Three varieties of Monsanto’s GM corn – Mon 863, insecticide-producing Mon 810, and Roundup® herbicide-absorbing NK 603 – were approved for consumption by US, European and several other national food safety authorities.”
Monsanto gathered its own crude statistical data after conducting a 90-day study, even though chronic problems can rarely be found after 90 days, and concluded that the corn was safe for consumption. The stamp of approval may have been premature, however.
In the conclusion of the IJBS study, researchers wrote:
“Effects were mostly concentrated in kidney and liver function, the two major diet detoxification organs, but in detail differed with each GM type. In addition, some effects on heart, adrenal, spleen and blood cells were also frequently noted. As there normally exists sex differences in liver and kidney metabolism, the highly statistically significant disturbances in the function of these organs, seen between male and female rats, cannot be dismissed as biologically insignificant as has been proposed by others. We therefore conclude that our data strongly suggests that these GM maize varieties induce a state of hepatorenal toxicity….These substances have never before been an integral part of the human or animal diet and therefore their health consequences for those who consume them, especially over long time periods are currently unknown.”
Monsanto has immediately responded to the study, stating that the research is “based on faulty analytical methods and reasoning and do not call into question the safety findings for these products.”
The IJBS study’s author Gilles-Eric Séralini responded to the Monsanto statement on the blog, Food Freedom, “Our study contradicts Monsanto conclusions because Monsanto systematically neglects significant health effects in mammals that are different in males and females eating GMOs, or not proportional to the dose. This is a very serious mistake, dramatic for public health. This is the major conclusion revealed by our work, the only careful reanalysis of Monsanto crude statistical data.”
:: Huffpost via Email {Thanks Dennis!} ::
As the article states Monsanto gets to gather it’s own data about toxicity in a particularly way.
Honestly, I’m exhausted and I would like to read the actual study but I’m just trying to jam through email right now.
Anti-Quote of the Day: Richard Feynman
There are 10^11 stars in the galaxy. That used to be a huge number. But it’s only a hundred billion. It’s less than the national deficit! We used to call them astronomical numbers. Now we should call them economical numbers. -Richard Feynman
This quote has long been bandied about by science-minded conservatives begging for an air of credibility in a backhanded critique of government. I cringe every time I hear it. Of course, it was an offhand joke by Feynman at the time, but it’s an obviously inept comparison that lacks even the legitimacy of apples to oranges. Armchair pundits ought to note that A DOLLAR BILL IS SUBSTANTIALLY SMALLER THAN A FUCKING STAR. Furthermore, new images from the Hubble Deep Field show that there are at least 100 billion galaxies in the universe and each galaxy containing around 1 trillion stars. That’s 1 x 10^23 or 100 sextillion stars in the universe.
My point here isn’t to rag on Feynman, but instead on people who use ham-fisted, inaccurate, and illogical comparisons about the size of the national deficit. There are a lot of valid critiques available about the depth, breadth and methodology of government spending, none of them are buttressed effectively by cross referencing the size of the universe.
Also, wallstats has some pretty cool visualizations about just how big 1 billion dollars is. There is also a cool visualization out there of the physical size of 1 billion dollars but I wasn’t able to successfully google for it. Also, consider checking out that Hubble Article I linked to earlier.
[UPDATE]
Mr. Atman Writes:
1 trillion stars per galaxy, 100 sextillion in the known universe
which would give us about 11 galaxies worth of national debt
which is still quite a bit fewer dollars than, say, the number of
kilograms of mass present in the Moon.keep the faith!
cheers,
-@
I Know A Few People Like This
Inflame-Broiled [Death By Food]
Red Meat Spurs Cancer Progression
…a non-human cellular molecule called N-glycolylneuraminic acid (Neu5Gc). Neu5Gc is a type of glycan, or sugar molecule, that humans don’t naturally produce, but that can be incorporated into human tissues as a result of eating red meat. The body then develops anti-Neu5Gc antibodies – an immune response that could potentially lead to chronic inflammation, as first suggested in a 2003 PNAS paper by Varki.
“We’ve shown that tumor tissues contain much more Neu5Gc than is usually found in normal human tissues,” said Varki. “We therefore surmised that Neu5Gc must somehow benefit tumors.” It has been recognized by scientists for some time that chronic inflammation can actually stimulate cancer, Varki explained. So the researchers wondered if this was why tumors containing the non-human molecule grew even in the presence of Neu5Gc antibodies.
“The paradox of Neu5Gc accumulating in human tumors in the face of circulating antibodies suggested that a low-grade, chronic inflammation actually facilitated the tumor growth
:: via Science Daily ::
Sandwich filled with ground beef, bacon, corn dogs, ham, pastrami, roast beef, bratwurst, braunschweiger and turkey, topped with fried mushrooms, onion rings, swiss/provolone/cheddar/feta/parmesan cheeses, lettuce and butter on a loaf white bread.
:: via ThisIsWhyYoureFat.com ::
On Swamp Crack
It turns out that Alligators are hopelessly enamored with marshmallows. There are even tours through Louisiana and Florida where people can purportedly feed alligators by hand. Coming from a guy with only nine fingers, that is probably one of the dumbest fucking things I’ve heard of in months.
This actually makes a lot of sense if you know a little something about sugar:
“[W]hen rats were allowed to choose mutually-exclusively between water sweetened with saccharin-an intense calorie-free sweetener-and intravenous cocaine-a highly addictive and harmful substance-the large majority of animals (94%) preferred the sweet taste of saccharin. The preference for saccharin was not attributable to its unnatural ability to induce sweetness without calories because the same preference was also observed with sucrose, a natural sugar. Finally, the preference for saccharin was not surmountable by increasing doses of cocaine and was observed despite either cocaine intoxication, sensitization or intake escalation-the latter being a hallmark of drug addiction.”, wrote the researchers.
“Our findings clearly demonstrate that intense sweetness can surpass cocaine reward, even in drug-sensitized and -addicted individuals.” they concluded. Still, some researchers point out that these conclusions could not be applied directly to humans. Humans are generally aware that something they’re ingesting could get them “hooked” and that the effects could harm them. Rats, on the other hand, lack this awareness and are driven only by the sensations produced by a chemical.
Another issue: sugar, with all its potential cavity-inducing and obesity havoc, is still a nutrient, whereas cocaine’s benefits for the body are non existent. Still, refined sugars (like, sucrose, fructose) did not enter in the human diet until very recently in our history. The overconsumption of diets rich in refined sugars, combined with other factors, is the main cause that determines the current obesity epidemic. Overconsumption of refined sugar rich foods or beverages is initially determined by the pleasure of feeling that sweet taste, and which acts like a drug addiction.
I found an interesting and strangely touching article in the NYtimes on an alligator trapper in the everglades. Lots of fun fackts.
-In 1977 alligators were endangered, now there are over 15 million of them in Florida alone.
Neolithic Sweepstakes [WTF Department]
Scientists are talking for the first time about the old idea of resurrecting extinct species as if this staple of science fiction is a realistic possibility, saying that a living mammoth could perhaps be regenerated for as little as $10 million.
blah blah blah, Jurassic park, etc etc
If the genome of an extinct species can be reconstructed, biologists can work out the exact DNA differences with the genome of its nearest living relative. There are talks on how to modify the DNA in an elephant’s egg so that after each round of changes it would progressively resemble the DNA in a mammoth egg. The final-stage egg could then be brought to term in an elephant mother, and mammoths might once again roam the Siberian steppes.
yes yes, michael crichton lives on through his books yada yada
The same would be technically possible with Neanderthals, whose full genome is expected to be recovered shortly
WTF!?!?!?!?! then the article just drops the subject and talks about mammoths for a while until the end. get this
Dr. Church said there might be an alternative approach that would “alarm a minimal number of people.” The workaround would be to modify not a human genome but that of the chimpanzee, which is some 98 percent similar to that of people. The chimp’s genome would be progressively modified until close enough to that of Neanderthals, and the embryo brought to term in a chimpanzee.
whuh? that is fucking crazy.
:: NYTimes article via Email (thanks Mr. Gordon!!!) ::
Interesting Study: I'd like Cream w/ That [Humans as Robots]
The student volunteers didn’t realize when the experiment started. They showed up at Yale University’s psychology building and met their contact near the elevators. She was holding some textbooks and a cup of coffee. The woman with the coffee was [part of the experiment]. She knew what she was supposed to do, but she didn’t know why. One by one, she took the students up to the fourth floor in an elevator. As they rode up, the woman asked students, “in a pretty innocuous way, if they wouldn’t mind holding her coffee cup while she wrote down some information,” Williams explained.
Half the students got to hold hot coffee; half got iced coffee. They held the cup for only a few seconds. But that short experience must have changed something in their brains. When they arrived at the fourth floor, they filled out questionnaires. They read a short description of a hypothetical person — Person A — and they had to evaluate this stranger’s personality.
Here’s where the coffee’s influence became apparent. “Participants who held the hot coffee cup rated this Person A as more generous, more social, happier, better natured” than participants who held the iced coffee cup, Williams said. Williams thinks it’s no coincidence that we use the same word — warmth — to describe both a physical and an emotional experience. Somewhere in the brain, those two sensations are linked, he says. And you can imagine why: Think of a baby held in its mother’s arms. The child is experiencing love, affection, comfort.
“But you also have, at the same time, an experience with a warm object, in that case a warm human being,” Williams said.
:: Full Article via A Real Live Conversation (Thanks Amy!!) ::
Now get off the internet and go give someone a hug.
First Psychedelic Research at Harvard since 1966!
On Saturday, February 23, 2008, after more than a decade of hard work, Dr. John Halpern conducted the first experimental session in his study of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy in twelve subjects with treatment-resistant anxiety associated with advanced-stage cancer (or PDF). Dr. Halpern is also conducting a major five-year NIDA-funded study into the neurocognitive risks of heavy use of Ecstasy, enhancing his ability to balance the risks and benefits of MDMA. This historic start of the MDMA/cancer anxiety study would not have been possible without the contributions of many people, including his co-investigators, the members of Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) at both the Lahey Clinic Medical Center and McLean Hospital, both institutions’ administrators and staff, and federal regulatory officials at FDA and even DEA. The study’s $250,000 budget is funded by Mr. Peter Lewis through a direct grant to McLean Hospital. MAPS assisted Dr. Halpern in the protocol design and approval process.
This experimental session was the first time in 42 years that a psychedelic was administered to a research subject at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Walter Pahnke, who conducted the classic Good Friday experiment in 1962, reported on the conclusion of his psilocybin research at Harvard in an unpublished paper written in 1966 (PDF).
The renaissance in psychedelic research has begun. It is now time to prove what we have been claiming for decades, that psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy can be beneficial to some patients in carefully controlled clinical settings. The promising results from MAPS’ US MDMA/PTSD research, and the start of Dr. Halpern’s MDMA/cancer anxiety study, suggest that the eventual approval of psychedelic psychotherapy is becoming more than a dream.
Cool Moving Stuff Video
this is redonkulous
uuuhhh, WHAT?
The claim has the ring of a myth. But environmental scientists say it is real. The reason is that hot water dissolves contaminants more quickly than cold water, and many pipes in homes contain lead that can leach into water. And lead can damage the brain and nervous system, especially in young children.
Lead is rarely found in source water, but can enter it through corroded plumbing. The Environmental Protection Agency says that older homes are more likely to have lead pipes and fixtures, but that even newer plumbing advertised as “lead-free” can still contain as much as 8 percent lead. A study published in The Journal of Environmental Health in 2002 found that tap water represented 14 to 20 percent of total lead exposure. Scientists emphasize that the risk is small. But to minimize it, the E.P.A. says cold tap water should always be used for preparing baby formula, cooking and drinking. It also warns that boiling water does not remove lead but can actually increase its concentration. More information is at www.epa.gov/lead or (800) 424-5323 (LEAD).
THE BOTTOM LINE
Hot water from the tap should never be used for cooking or drinking.
Dear Everyone,
Please get it together and stop poisoning everything.
Thanks,
Me
"New" DNA
Romesberg notes that DNA and RNA are now being used for hundreds of purposes: for example, to build complex shapes, build complex nanostructures, silence disease genes, or even perform calculations. A new, unnatural, base pair could multiply and diversify these applications. The most challenging goal, says Romesberg, will be to incorporate unnatural base pairs into the genetic code of organisms. “We want to import these into a cell, study RNA trafficking, and in the longest term, expand the genetic code and ‘evolvability’ of an organism.”
Stanford University chemist Eric Kool, has studied the fundamental chemistry of base-pair bonding. He foresees challenges, but great potential in the unnatural bases. “It requires a long effort by multiple laboratories, but I think ultimately it will lead to some important tools,” he says. “The ability to encode amino acids with unnatural base pairs will be quite powerful when it comes.”
Jay aptly notes: “Uh oh…”
Experimentation is good. I’m dubious about experiments that you can’t take back. GMO foods, cloned meat.
:: via New Scientist {thanks Jay!} ::