Brutally Honest (Free subscription) | 05/10/2008 | Sciences
I kid you not: At least one of Britain's birds appears to be coping well as climate change alters the availability of a key food. Researchers found that great tits are laying eggs earlier in the spring than they used...
Pharyngula (Free subscription) | 05/10/2008 | Sciences
Finals week is upon me, and I should be working on piles of paper work right now, but I need a break … and I have to vent some frustration with the popular press coverage of an important scientific event this week, the publication of a draft of the platypus genome. Over and over again, the newspaper lead is that the platypus is "weird" or "odd" or worse, they imply that the animal is a chimera — "the...
Pharyngula (Free subscription) | 05/09/2008 | Sciences
The town of Frankenmuth, Michigan likes to flaunt their crosses — they've put them up on signs, and they've got one on the city logo. I suspect the town contains a Christian majority, so their local news probably felt safe putting up an online poll asking, Should Frankenmuth remove its cross from the city shield? They don't expect a horde of ravening godless atheists to descend on them and vote "YES!"...
Climate Progress (Free subscription) | 05/08/2008 | Sciences
The fading hopes for the Lieberman-Warner climate bill have all but ended (see E&E News, “Sponsors lower expectations for Lieberman-Warner bill,” subs. req’d, reprinted below). Serious climate legislation had been in critical condition for some months (see “Boucher lets conservatives block House climate bill” and “
PALAEOBLOG (Free subscription) | 05/08/2008 | Sciences
Genome analysis of the platypus reveals unique signatures of evolution . 2008. Everyone and their dog. Nature 453: 175-183. Zina Deretsky, National Science Foundation Platypus DNA reveals its shared history with bird, reptilian and mammalian lineages. From the press release : The first genome sequencing project of a mammal that lays eggs, confirms that platypus DNA looks like something of a patchwork....
Watts Up With That? (Free subscription) | 05/10/2008 | Sciences
Never mind that in 2006 it was reported that levels of the second most important greenhouse gas, methane, have stabilized. Scientists are now working to create a new “tootless” grass for bovine enjoyment which will help cut methane emissions from the bovine tailpipes. What next? A moratorium on baked beans at BBQs? Editing out that scene from Blazing Saddles so that [...]
Cognitive Daily (Free subscription) | 05/08/2008 | Sciences
Anton races home at speeds well in excess of the speed limit. He's rushing to beat his parents home so that he can hide their anniversary present so it will be a surprise. Suddenly, he hits a slick patch and runs his car off the road an into a tree. He's okay, but the car is totaled and his parent's surprise anniversary party is ruined. How much is Anton to blame for the accident? If you had to rate...
Wired Science (Free subscription) | 05/07/2008 | Sciences
Need a break from the working, walking, and standing required by the demanding and stressful life you lead? Well, pack your bags for Houston because NASA wants to pay you $17,000 to stay in bed for 90 straight days. The...
Gristmill (Free subscription) | 05/07/2008 | Sciences
By David Roberts Senate Democrats have just proposed a new energy bill: the Consumer-First Energy Act . It is meant as a response to the Republican bill introduced last week, which R's are currently trying to pass as an amendment to the flood insurance bill. Now, the Republican bill -- the Drill, Drill, Drill Bill -- would be incredibly destructive and do nothing to solve short- or long-term energy...
Greenpeace - Making Waves (Free subscription) | 05/07/2008 | Sciences
[Photo copyright Jiri Rezac / Greenpeace] This morning, the crew of the Arctic Sunrise found an illegal drift net in the Mediterranean. Our crew went into action, seizing the net and releasing the sea life trapped in it. Now our ship's followed the fishing boat back to Sicily, where it's being met by the coast guard. ( Full story with video. ) Lisa's posted here a few days ago about the Esperanza...
AutoblogGreen (Free subscription) | 05/08/2008 | Sciences
Filed under: Ethanol Last week, Mascoma and GM announced that the automaker would invest an undisclosed amount in the cellulosic ethanol process being developed by Mascoma Corporation. Perhaps its a sign of the times that Marathon Oil Corporation has also ponied up a $10 million equity investment in research and development for the second-gen biofuel process. As part of the Marathon deal, Marathon...
A Blog Around The Clock (Free subscription) | 05/07/2008 | Sciences
The challenge from skullsinthestars is up - pick up a very old, classic science paper and write a blog post about it. Put it in a proper historical, theoretical, methodological and philosophical context. You can always go back to blogging about the latest research or latest creationist idiocy tomorrow. Read the comments on this post...
Boing Boing (Free subscription) | 05/06/2008 | Sciences
Every time I put a book online for free, readers ask me how they can "tip" me for the download. The problem is, I'm not actually interested in tips, since these cut my publisher out of the loop, putting us on opposite sides of the free download equation. My publisher is extremely valuable to me, providing editorial and marketing and distribution services that I couldn't possibly provide on my own without...
Moonbattery (Free subscription) | 05/07/2008 | Sciences
Just last Christmas, Congress passed another bill ramming more ethanol down our throats. But already some pols are trying to reduce the new requirements in light of the skyrocketing food prices that unsurprisingly resulted from forcing us to give our...
The Loom (Free subscription) | 05/06/2008 | Sciences
I'm in a celebratory mood. Microcosm is published today. In my mind, I can see the books moving out of warehouses onto trucks, off to book stores and front door steps. This morning I read a great review from Mykola Bilokonsky at Newsvine. ( "What are you waiting for?" he asks.) And tonight I'll be having a little get-together, with the weather cooperating in splendid fashion. To spread the cheer,...
