sciencepunk | May 14, 2009
From CrazyMonkey, the powerhouse of internet Flash fun, comes Cosmic Crush, a deceptively simple game of meteor might. The rules are straightforward: propel your sentient lump of rock through space, absorbing smaller asteroids whilst avoiding the gravity wells of larger planets. If this sounds fun, you've been conned. It is fun, but it's also fiendishly difficult.
Unfortunately for you, large planets wield a gravitational pull that extends far beyond the visible screen, meaning that by the time you see them, it's too late. Driving blind, you must be sensitive to the minor tugs and drifts…
sciencepunk | May 14, 2009I love to see new and inventive ways of measuring the passing of time, and especially I love this fabulous "Digital Calendar" (haha) that Bre Pettis laser-etched onto his fingernails.
sciencepunk | May 14, 2009
Despite what everyone will say about the boggle-eyed madness contained in the video below the fold, you have to admit science is never more fun than with a ex-Playboy model explaining how Iran and Iraq will turn your chef cells into Rambo. I'm begging for some remixes of this - get to work, people!
Hat Tip Skeptobot.
sciencepunk | May 13, 2009
David Green says:
I understand that Simon Singh will announce whether he will appeal on Monday 18 May 2009 at a public support meeting to take place in London at 6.30pm.The venue will be the Penderels Oak, the usual meeting place of London Skeptics in the Pub. As well as Simon Singh, the leading UK journalist Nick Cohen will be speaking. Other speakers are currently being confirmed. For more, see Jack of Kent's blog.I also have an article in this week's New Scientist, see here.Many thanks for your support!
Sadly I'll be in London a day too late to attend, but if you're in the area you should…
sciencepunk | May 12, 2009Here's a little something I made for a project I'm working on. A blend of science and surreal humour. Tell me what you think. Yay or nay?
Cordyceps unilateralis is a parasitic fungus of ants. It really does exhibit mind-control capabilities.
sciencepunk | May 11, 2009Talking to submarines is a very a tricky business - most communication systems are based on radio or acoustic signals, but neither travel very far in water. This means that to pick up radio signals, submarines must surface or raise communication buoys very close to the surface, neither of which are appropriate for nuclear-powered stealth submarines that remain deep underwater for months at a time.
Radio operators can overcome the problem of poor signal penetration by using giant arrays broadcasting in extremely-low frequency ranges, but these are expensive, difficult to build, and…
sciencepunk | May 8, 2009
Not content with sapping our productivity with the Space Game, Armor Games have released another little science-themed gem in Microbe Kombat. The premise is simple - guide your microbe through the primordial ooze, eat proteins, and engulf smaller microbes. There are two broad strategies: keep eating protein until you're the biggest bully on the block, or keep dividing until you swarm out the enemy. Both have their pros and cons - dividing will make you and your daughter cells more vulnerable to macrophages, but many small microbes will out-compete a single large one in scavenging proteins…
sciencepunk | May 6, 2009
If you're free in the capital today, head to the Royal Courts of Justice for the preliminary hearing of the British Chiropractic Association's libel case against science writer, journalist and broadcaster Simon Singh. The hearing will clear up some legal grey areas and decide what the judge requires as a valid defence for the full trial in autumn.
The case stems from comments made by Simon in his book Trick or Treatment, and an article published in Guardian entitled "Beware the spinal trap" (mirror). The BCA seem to consider it defamatory to tell people there is no evidence that the…
sciencepunk | May 5, 2009This post is written in response to the contest I posted on my Twitter feed earlier today:
SciencePunk challenge: give me two unrelated topics and I will attempt to write a blog post combining them. Your time starts now.
Of several excellent and perplexing replies, I decided to seize the gauntlet thrown down by Martin of The Lay Scientist blog:
@SciencePunk Pigs, and the flu. No? Oh alright... erm... Mars and cheese.
So here it is Martin!
* * *
If you heard the words "time reversal technology" you'd be forgiven for thinking it was a plot point from the new Star Trek movie. Yet across the…
sciencepunk | May 1, 2009Thanks to Ian for this classic advert, seemingly dating to around the flu pandemic 1918. Just like the classic "Guinness is good for you" ads, Bovril tried to get in on the action by claiming their beef stock drink has prophylactic powers:
It seems to be a whole campaign, appearing everywhere, from pubs to plates, to magazines.
Thanks to the Advertising Standards Authority, private companies can no longer make unfounded medical claims for their products. It's not like anyone is profiteering from the current swine flu panic is it?
Oh wait, except chiropractors. And homeopaths. And…
sciencepunk | April 30, 2009
Sex is fun, but it's nothing compared to the thrilling life-or-death struggle spawned by passionate, unprotected lovemaking. Thankfully, to promote Channel 4's The Great Sperm Race, Flash game maestro Johnny Two Shoes has conceived a game that puts you in the cockpit of a humble gamete struggling to become whole again.
Like a super-fecund cage match, 250 million enter, but only one leaves. Can you safely navigate the acid-filled folds of the vagina and outwit the hungry leukocytes to bury yourself into the egg in an explosion of zygotic glory? Find out now!
sciencepunk | April 27, 2009
Or, to give the full title: "How to brew beer in a coffee maker, using only materials commonly found on a modestly sized oceanographic research vessel". The marine scientists at Southern Fried Science have this handy guide to any scientist unfortunate enough to find themselves high and dry whilst out collecting data:
You're six days into a 2 month expedition, and if you were lucky enough to not be on a dry ship, it's de facto dry by now anyway. You're eying the ethanol stores, the crew is eying each other, and all hell will break loose if y'all don't get some sweet water soon. This is no…
sciencepunk | April 26, 2009
Thanks to Sandy for letting me know about the Center for Disease Control's Twitter Feed, which will keep you up to date with the current swine flu outbreak. Latest news is 20 confirmed cases in the US, with one hospitalisation, and clear human-to-human spread. Over at Effect Measure, Paul Revere has a well-informed running commentary of the emerging virus.
sciencepunk | April 26, 2009
Kathy Sykes, Professor of Sciences and Society at Bristol University has written a provocative article in the latest New Scientist entitled "Science in the media: Put up or shut up"
The star of Rough Science argues that while science communication often leaves a lot to be desired, scientists themselves need to be less rabid in their attacks on the media:
Does ranting do any good? In some cases it does, especially if science is being carelessly mangled or deliberately distorted. But in many cases communicators are passionate about science and are simply trying to communicate it as clearly as…
sciencepunk | April 24, 2009
The alternative medicine industry has been complaining that regulations demanding they prove their products are safe before being granted a licence resemble "a sledgehammer to crack a walnut".
Global Regulatory Services reports from a keynote debate at the Natural & Organic Products Europe Show held in London earlier this month. A panel of speakers from across the herbal remedies industry stated that while they supported the MHRA's Herbal Directive in principle, some felt it was too stringent and expensive in requiring companies to prove their products were safe, effective and…
sciencepunk | April 20, 2009
Tune in to Richard Bacon's talk radio show on BBC 5 Live tonight, where I'll be fighting the skeptic's corner for the evening's debate: Should we all be looking for our inner self?:
Some therapists claim the key to a fulfilling life is finding your 'inner self'.But is it all just nonsense? Is our inner self a powerful healer that can give us peace and confidence in life?Or is it just a load of hocus pocus?We'd love to hear from you: call 0500 909 693, text 85058 or email bacon@bbc.co.uk
I suspect I'll be up against someone from the bizarre InnerSelf website, which seems to be a mix of bland…
sciencepunk | April 17, 2009Has the head of the Catholic Church been meddling in your politics? Perhaps you'd like to be the one pulling his strings? Live out your God fantasies with your own Pope Benedict XVI puppet, courtesy of artist Rob Nance.
sciencepunk | April 16, 2009Scientists have discovered new species of iron-breathing microbes that have lived isolated under an Antarctic glacier for millions of years. The microbes are responsible for the landmark blood-red frozen waterfall at Taylor Glacier.
Researchers theorise that the microbes were trapped by the advancing glacier which eventually sealed them inside their habitat. The microbes have persisted in an extreme environment with no light, no oxygen, extreme cold, and high salinity. They are able to survive by liberating iron from the bedrock with the aid of a sulphur catalyst .
The trapped pool is…
sciencepunk | April 12, 2009What if you found yourself thrown back in time to a pre-technological age? Could you stand on the shoulders of giants not-yet-born and bring your 21st century science to these ancient times, like Bruce Campbell in Army of Darkness? Or would you wish you'd spent less time watching Battlestar Galactica and more time learning the fundamentals of science? If it's the latter, worry not! TopatoCo.com has just the thing you need: a cheat sheet of every bit of important science you need to know! Just keep this folded in your pocket or worn under your sweater and you'll never have to worry about…