Category: Science
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On ‘The Science’ and dedication to reality
Alan Jacobs: There are many reasons why millions of America don’t trust The Science, including belligerence and ignorance, but if you ask me, I would say that the most important reason is illustrated by the stories above: Scientists are sometimes untrustworthy. If they want to rebuild our trust in them, then they should start with […]
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The Rockefeller theory of time travel
Morgan Housel: Charlie Munger was born in 1924. The richest man in the world that year was John D. Rockefeller, whose net worth equaled about 3% of GDP, which would be something like $700 billion in today’s world. Seven hundred billion dollars. OK. But make a short list of things that did not exist in […]
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The Ghost Map
When I learned Steven Johnson (my favorite author) has a new book out, it prompted me to finally read one of his previous books that’s been on my list for a while. The Ghost Map: The Story of London’s Most Terrifying Epidemic—and How It Changed Science, Cities, and the Modern World was a timely read, […]
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Laboratories of theology
Here’s two quotes I re-encountered while going through my reading notes. From Lab Girl by Hope Jahren: My laboratory is like a church because it is where I figure out what I believe. The machines drone a gathering hymn as I enter. I know whom I’ll probably see, and I know how they’ll probably act. […]
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We’re in this together
Via Kottke, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom’s opening remarks at today’s media briefing on COVID-19 officially declared COVID-19 a pandemic. Despite the alarm that word may raise raises, Adhanom concluded his remarks with some wise words: Let me give you some other words that matter much more, and that are much more actionable. Prevention. Preparedness. Public […]
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Black hole stun from backwater bipeds
In case you haven’t been following the news (and who can blame you?), that’s the first-ever image of a black hole: There’s plenty of writing out there on what it means, much of it going over my head, but here’s some grounding perspective from Scientific American: It is also worth noting that in the two […]
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Atlas of a Lost World
We think of ourselves as different from other animals. We extol our own tool use, congratulate our sentience, but our needs are the same. We are creatures on a planet looking for a way ahead. Why do we like vistas? Why are pullouts drawn on the sides of highways, signs with arrows showing where to […]
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My Birthday Planets
Thanks to Fourmilab (via kottke), I discovered exactly how the planets were aligned on the day of my birth: You can find your own here.
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The Kelloggs: The Battling Brothers of Battle Creek
In the summer of 2013 I interned at the Leo Burnett advertising agency’s corporate library and archives. In the course of my work I came upon boxes of original conceptual artwork and copy from the 1950s and ’60s of the famous brands Leo Burnett created: the Marlboro Man, the Jolly Green Giant, the Pillsbury Doughboy. […]
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Ötzi-quel
This ongoing saga of Ötzi the Iceman fascinates me. I first learned of him from Radiolab a few years ago, but turns out we keep learning more about this mythic Italian mummy: The more scientists learn, the more recognizable the Iceman becomes. He was 5 feet 5 inches tall (about average height for his time), […]