Now on ScienceBlogs: Microbial Landscapes
What We're Talking About Friday, February 4, 2011
On Life at the SETI Institute, Dr. Franck Marchis shares the latest results from Kepler, a telescope in an Earth-trailing heliocentric orbit which keeps a distant eye on 156,453 stars. Kepler watches for tell-tale reductions in brightness, which "could be due to the transit of an exoplanet passing between its star and us." As of Tuesday, Kepler has identified 1202 likely new exoplanets, tripling the number of known worlds beyond our solar system. These results suggest that out of the 200 billion stars in our galaxy, "several hundred million of them could have an exoplanet with a surface temperature adequate to sustain liquid water." Great, now where's our hyperdrive? Ethan Siegel also reports that Hubble has detected a galaxy at a record-breaking redshift of 10.3, making it the most distant galaxy ever observed. If it still exists, it's probably full of planets too.
Life at the SETI InstituteFebruary 2, 2011
"Several exoplanets orbit around M- and F- type stars, which have lower temperatures than our Sun. Consequently, the surface temperature of the exoplanets could permit the presence of liquid water. In their paper, the Kepler team lists ~60 candidates with sizes ranging from Earth-size to larger than that of Jupiter which are in the Habitability Zone of their host star."
Starts With a Bang!January 27, 2011
"Completely invisible in ultraviolet and visible light, the light that was emitted in the ultraviolet (UV) from this galaxy is so severely redshifted that it appears at the far edge of what Hubble can see in the infrared (IR)! In fact, this galaxy—at a redshift of 10.3—is a record breaker, and the only one known of its kind (although there are other candidates out that far)."
10,000 times dimmer than usual, the moon looks red during a total lunar eclipse on Starts With a Bang!
“Just as regular floods once fertilized the plains along the Nile and fed one of history's greatest empires, this flood of democratic sentiment pouring through Egypt's cities can only be to the nation's (and the world's) greater good, and can only do harm to those who stand in its way.”
The Harvard Microbial Sciences Initiative Graduate Consortium hosted a fun workshop during the January term where students learned...
The Superbowl of Birding is out, and by that I mean I and the Bird Web Carnival number...
No, we are not talking about mating habits here. We are talking about the ability of some...
The Life Science Channel RSS FeedNicely done: Ethan Siegel explains how we know that stuff is getting spontaneously created all the time. It's...
I make an effort to say nice things about pop-science books that I read, whether for book research...
There will be a before and after Kepler Era in astronomy. Today, with the release of 1,202 exoplanet candidates from data collected with the Kepler spacecraft over 140 days of observation, we have just entered in a new age of astronomy.
The Physical Science Channel RSS Feed
I suppose I could have made him a tosser, but I decided the the traditional rhyming slang...
One day last month, the White House made decisions on two Labor Department proposals to address flaws in our worker health and safety system. One was approved, the other rejected. Why did the Administration cave to business interests on minor revision to an OSHA recordkeeping rule, but forge ahead with a tough mine safety rule?
The Environment Channel RSS FeedTeacher Writes on Blackboard: "The Method of Guessing" Student: "What! There's a method???????" Teacher: "Yeah, there's even a...
A lengthy comment on the new blog of the head of the Office of Extramural Research at the...
An anti-GMO group has taken a page from anti-evolutionists on how to prevent children from learning science in schools.
The Education Channel RSS FeedDispatches from the Culture Wars
Sens. Joe Lieberman and Susan Collins released a statement earlier this week about Egypt cutting off the internet...
How can you increase the total number of teachers when you're simultaneously promoting policies that eliminate teaching positions?
Dispatches from the Culture Wars
The old saw is that it is unfair to have a battle of wits with an unarmed person,...
The Politics Channel RSS FeedSay what? For example, Paul would slash funding for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention by 28...
Surrounded by blood-red crochet, like a metastasizing, angry menstrual doily, the f-word mutates through various fonts, sizes and intensities until it almost loses meaning. I think we can conclude Laurel Roth isn't afraid to raise a few eyebrows with her art.
Yesterday, in the course of applying a heapin' helpin' of not-so-Respectful Insolence to a particularly brain dead exercise...
The Medicine & Health Channel RSS FeedHere are my Research Blogging Editor's Selections for this week. So much good stuff this week, it was...
In chess news, Hikaru Nakamura took clear first place at the annual chess extravaganza in Wijk aan Zee...
What's the best way for a lonely guy to get a date? If you're a Splendid Fairy-Wren (Malurus...
The Brain & Behavior Channel RSS FeedConfessions of a Science Librarian
YASBC. But this time an engineering blog community. This is a fantastic new development if you ask me,...
The advise I'm about to give you is something I've figured out my own and seems to work,...
I'm white. I'm a nerd. I live in Minnesota. I have no rhythm at all — dancing for...
The Technology Channel RSS FeedConfessions of a Science Librarian
Every year for the last few years I've collected lists of notable science books from various media sources....
Confessions of a Science Librarian
The women science bloggers conversation is getting so long and elongated, I thought it would be interesting and,...
Production on Open Lab 2010 is proceeding apace, thanks to the valiant assistance of Blake Stacey. While we...
The Information Science Channel RSS FeedA lengthy comment on the new blog of the head of the Office of Extramural Research at the...
Scientists aren't known for their fashion sense, but they do have their own unique charm, as you can...
We live in interesting times, those of us in NIH-funded science careers, do we not? I'm sure there...
The Jobs Channel RSS Feed
PZ Myers 02.03.2011
PZ Myers 02.04.2011
Orac 02.04.2011
Orac 02.03.2011
Orac 02.04.2011
Dean's Corner 02.03.2011
SciencePunk 02.02.2011
Life at the SETI Institute02.02.2011
Starts With a Bang! 02.02.2011
Thoughts from Kansas 02.02.2011
Latest science stories | More at nytimes.com
Humanities & Soc. Sciences
The Pump Handle
Football, Journalism, and Public Health
Alan Schwarz's extensive reporting on brain injuries among football players spurred the NFL to action - but the reporting probably wouldn't have happened without some other important inputs.
Uncertain Principles
People Dancing
I've been watching the Al Jazeera English livestream off and on this week to keep up with events...
Aardvarchaeology
Halland Archaeology Journal
There's a lot of interesting stuff being done by smart and capable people in Halland's archaeology. I look forward to reading the next issue of their journal Utskrift.
The Social Sciences Channel RSS Feed