Notebook

Humans

From the July 17, 1937, issue

Tung trees from China make their mark in the southeastern United States, early concerns about oil shortages, and a suggestion that telescopes might already be seeing almost to the edge of the universe.

Health & Medicine

Phytochemical Beauty

Our Food For Thought column recently published two offerings on health-related findings about genistein, a soybean constituent. Ever wonder what that chemical looks like? Or how about capsaicin—the spicy agent in hot chilies being explored as a painkiller, lycopene—the red pigment in watermelons that may protect our skin against harmful ultraviolet rays, or sulforaphane—a trace […]

Astronomy

Help Spot Galaxies

Although computer programs can be written to sort galaxies into general categories, they would inevitably throw out the unusual, the weird and the wonderful, astronomers say. Because the human brain is much better at recognizing patterns, astronomers launched a site this week recruiting the public to help identify spiral galaxies on sky photos. Instructions are […]

Humans

From the July 10, 1937, issue

Photographing the earliest developmental stages of opossum eggs, a 'heavy electron' in cosmic rays, and teaching chimpanzees to use sign language.

Humans

From the July 3, 1937, issue

A spectacular freak photograph of a solar eclipse, meteorites as the remnants of lost planets, and inducing dropsy in animals.

Ecosystems

Sawfish Central

Sawfish will soon be getting United Nations protection from exploitation. Right now, the only U.S. state where these ancient fish can generally be found—and then, only rarely—is Florida. Here’s a site to view the fish, a member of the shark family, and link to research aimed at rescuing populations of its seven beleaguered species worldwide. […]

Humans

Bad Science

Ben Goldacre, M.D., a columnist for the British newspaper The Guardian, looks at science and medicine through a skeptical lens in this popular blog. Go to: http://www.badscience.net

Humans

From the June 26, 1937, issue

Fur fashions from Ethiopian monkeys, the Big Bang as the source of cosmic rays, and ensuring airline pilots get enough oxygen.

Humans

From the June 19, 1937, issue

Raindrop disruption as the cause of lightning, phonograph recordings of the language of wild gibbons, and a possible connection between jaundice and arthritis.

Humans

From the June 12, 1937, issue

Waterflow downstream of a dam, the shape of an asteroid, and connections between wallpaper patterns and crystal structures.