Uncategorized
- Math
Staying in Step
Late in the winter of 1665, an ailing Christiaan Huygens (1629–1695) was confined to his room for a few days. The Dutch physicist whiled away the hours of his confinement by closely observing and pondering the odd behavior of two pendulum clocks he had recently constructed. Huygens had obtained a patent on the first pendulum […]
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Discovery of bitter-taste gene is sweet
Scientists have found that variations in a gene explain why people differ in their ability to taste bitterness.
- Physics
In orbit, water makes the stretch
An astronaut-at-play stumbled upon an unexpected behavior of water in near-zero gravity: The formation of durable films—some as wide as saucers—that would instantly break here on Earth.
- Math
Planes of Budapest
Nearly every Sunday during the winter of 1933 in Budapest, a small group of students would meet somewhere in the city at a park or cafe to discuss mathematics. The gathering typically included Paul Erdös (1913–1996), who was attending the University of Budapest, György (George) Szekeres, a recent chemical engineering graduate of the Technical University […]
- Math
Plato’s Molecule
In his dialogue Timaeus, the Greek philosopher Plato (427–347 B.C.) carefully laid out his reasoning for ascribing certain geometric shapes to the minuscule particles that constituted the four elements of matter. In his view, these elements–fire, air, water, and earth–were all aggregates of tiny solids, each one having the shape of one of the regular […]
- Math
Plato’s Molecule
In his dialogue Timaeus, the Greek philosopher Plato (427–347 B.C.) carefully laid out his reasoning for ascribing certain geometric shapes to the minuscule particles that constituted the four elements of matter. In his view, these elements–fire, air, water, and earth–were all aggregates of tiny solids, each one having the shape of one of the regular […]
- Tech
Refueling Rockets
Hybrid-rocket fuels—part solid, part liquid—have been around for a half-century, and they may just now be taking off.
- Math
Defending the Roman Empire
Years ago, when I was in high school and college, the board games Risk and Diplomacy served as wonderful playing fields where I could develop and exercise my tactical and negotiating skills. One issue that often came up in my forays into international intrigue was how to deploy my limited forces to defend far-flung territories […]
- Health & Medicine
More than a Kick
Nicotine ramps up activity throughout the body, making the drug a suspect in many tobacco-related ailments.
- Math
Möbius at Fermilab
Fermilab’s Wilson Hall. Courtesy of Fermilab. Soaring into the sky like a medieval cathedral, the twin towers of the structure known as Wilson Hall dominate the flat countryside surrounding the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab) in Batavia, Ill. Named for physicist and accelerator builder Robert Rathbun Wilson (1914-2000), the building celebrates Wilson’s vision and skill, […]
- Humans
From the October 11, 1930, issue
alt=”Click to view larger image”> $5,000 PRIZE TO PROF. BABCOCK FOR 40-YEAR-OLD INVENTION This week a senator gave a professor $5,000. There was in the transaction no hint of any cause for other senators to start an investigation, fond as senators have become of doing that sort of thing. On the contrary, everybody knew why […]
- Humans
From the October 4, 1930, issue
alt=”Click to view larger image”> BORNEO MONKEYS IMITATE MEN WITH BOTH NOSE AND VOICE One of nature’s most striking living caricatures is the proboscis monkey that lives in the deep forests of Borneo. A group of these creatures shown as they appear in their home among the branches of a pongyet tree is on exhibition […]
