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Saturday Citations: Sweaty, remarkable humans; ocean level rise projections; closeup of a star in another galaxy
Since we last spoke, researchers at the University of Birmingham have defined the precise shape of a single photon (spoiler: roundish). Economists worry that Trump's grandiose deportation plans could lead to a recession. ...
Curiosity, images, and scientific exploration: New book by physicist explores remarkable phenomena
When we gaze at nature's remarkable phenomena, we might feel a mix of awe, curiosity, and determination to understand what we are looking at. That is certainly a common response for MIT's Alan Lightman, a trained physicist ...
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Nov 20, 2024
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Early modern history expert shares concerns with gaps and emptiness in 17th century calendars
How well can we recall the last 24 hours? And how much more difficult does it get when it comes to the last 10, 100 or 500 years? According to early modern historian Achim Landwehr, gaps are the norm for times that are no ...
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Nov 19, 2024
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Deducing commonality from complexity: Scientist explores 'Mesoscience' to address global issues
Two topics are now drawing great attention from the global scientific community: shifting or advancing paradigms in science, and tackling global challenges such as the UN Sustainable Development Goals, climate change, and ...
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Nov 19, 2024
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Saturday Citations: Cold dark matter takes a hit; a new paradigm for biology; those fracking earthquakes
This week, researchers formulated a new method to calculate the probability of generating intelligent life in the universe. Investigations of a meteorite that originated on Mars revealed that it once interacted with liquid ...
Hundreds of 19th-century skulls collected in the name of medical science tell a story of who mattered and who didn't
When I started my research on the Samuel George Morton Cranial Collection, a librarian leaned over my laptop one day to share some lore. "Legend has it," she said, "John James Audubon really collected the skulls Morton claimed ...
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Nov 14, 2024
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The critical need to align climate and nutrition global agendas at COP29
In the face of the climate crisis, we often overlook one of its critical consequences: malnutrition. The connection between climate change and nutrition extends beyond health and food concerns; it is integral to overall sustainable ...
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Nov 14, 2024
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Why is the oboe used to tune an orchestra? And other questions about tuning, answered
The iconic sound of an orchestra tuning is highly recognizable, even for those who've never set foot in a concert hall. Many of us first heard it while watching a Looney Tunes cartoon.
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Nov 11, 2024
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Saturday Citations: Color vision created demand for colorful animals; observing black hole light echoes; deadlines!
This week, researchers hypothesized that human culture is distinguished from cultures of other species like whales by unique open-endedness—the ability to communicate and understand an infinite number of possibilities. ...
History book looks at Brazil's longest-lasting maroon society and its influence today
The largest and longest-lasting society formed by people who escaped slavery and their descendants endured for a century in northeastern Brazil, and it continues to be a potent political symbol of Black pride today. University ...
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Nov 7, 2024
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From compliance to conversation: New guidelines push for ethical reflection in research reporting
A new study highlights key challenges and tensions in research ethics, particularly in light of emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, and calls for the adoption of new research ethics policies.
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Nov 4, 2024
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Saturday Citations: On chimpanzee playwrights; the nature of dark energy; deep-diving Antarctic seals
This week, researchers reported the world's second-tiniest toad, winning the silver in the Brachycephalus contest. Chemists at UCLA disproved a 100-year-old organic chemistry rule. And researchers in Kenya report that elephants ...
African publishing is being revolutionized. Report explores trends in six countries
African book publishing is in a rare moment of transformation, according to a new report. It's an industry that has historically survived at the mercy of multinational publishing houses and donor funding. These arrangements, ...
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Oct 31, 2024
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Why ancient Mesopotamians would have used a sheep's liver to predict Donald Trump's election odds
I'm standing in a basement kitchen prodding at a sheep's liver, looking for marks on its smooth surface. People crowd around to film the proceedings, since I'm here to ask a question that everyone wants to know the answer ...
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Oct 31, 2024
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Moles, birthmarks, red hair: The anatomical features used to accuse women of witchcraft in the 17th century
Throughout accounts of 17th-century witch trials in Europe and North America, physical features alone were considered undeniable proof of witchcraft. The belief was that the devil branded witches' bodies with symbolic, material ...
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Oct 31, 2024
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Nightmare fuel: Researchers name the scariest thing you should worry about
What keeps you up at night? Bank account woes? An impending work presentation? Analyzing that embarrassing thing you said in the seventh grade?
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Oct 30, 2024
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Examining the supernatural beliefs of medieval people, from elves and fairies to abductions and the undead
Medieval people have a reputation for being superstitious—and many of the supernatural phenomena found in the pages of medieval chronicles, miracle stories and romances are still alive in modern culture. Think ghosts, werewolves, ...
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Oct 29, 2024
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Opinion: The ancient Irish get way too much credit for Halloween
This time of year, I often run across articles proclaiming Halloween a modern form of the pagan Irish holiday of Samhain—pronounced SAW-en. But as a historian of Ireland and its medieval literature, I can tell you: Samhain ...
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Oct 29, 2024
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Saturday Citations: Reading comprehension; revisiting tardigrade orthodoxy; restoring universal symmetry
This week, physicists suggested that quantum entanglement may be really, really fast rather than instantaneous, and could be measured at an attosecond scale. Paleontologists discovered a fossilized mammal in Colorado that ...
Saturday Citations: Brown dwarf actually brown dwarfs; the adaptability of ice-age humans; archaeologists excited
This week, researchers discovered a near-Earth microquasar that sheds new light on sources of relativistic outflows. Doctors reported finding a triphallic gentleman. And neuroscientists reported on modest cognitive boosts ...
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Framework uncovers what makes large numbers of 'squishy' grains start flowing in biological processes
New mechanism in bacterial DNA enzyme opens pathways for antibiotic development
Long-term study reveals warming climates threaten Florida scrub-jay
More comprehensive search for sterile neutrinos comes up empty
Fuji apple study finds genetic mechanisms behind high-yield trees
Earth-bound asteroids 'could be tracked more precisely' with new equation
