December 11th, 2012
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Water On Mercury, LHC New Matters, Finding Waves, Vaccines Without Virus, Mantis Shrimp Mess, Life Abounds, This Week in The End Of The World, Horizontal Gene Transfer, And Much More…
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This Week in Science… coming up next!
Water Found on Mmm… Mercury?
LHC Spawns New Matter
Finding Gravitational Waves
Vaccines Without Virus
BLair’s Animal Corner
Don’t Mess with a Mantis Shrimp
Mantis Shrimp, previously mentioned in episode 373 as a critter with some amazing body armor, has another reason to be feared. The shrimp that employ a large club-like smashing mechanism actually have spring-loaded motion like a catapult, performing at a whopping 10-23 m/s, whereas those that spear their prey use shear muscle force at perform at 2-6 m/s. Watch out, little fishes!
Isolated Bacteria Found!
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End of the World!
Melting Glaciers
Acid Butterflies
Fish Ear Climate
Who Needs Sex?!
Bdelloid rotifers have reproduced asexually for millions of years. How are they still around? By stealing genes from other organisms. Around 10% of their DNA is acquired through horizontal gene transfer. 39% of the DNA that codes for enzymes are from a foreign source. Who needs sex, indeed?
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Posted in animals, anthropology, astrobiology, astronomy, astronomy, astrophysics, astrophysics, biology, biotechnology, cognitive science, conservationism, cosmology, crustaceans, deep space, ecology, emergent behavior, end of the world, endangered animals, energy, engineering, evolution, genetics, geology, global warming, KDVS, mammals, marine biology, medicine, microbiology, molecular biology, nanotechnology, NASA, particle physics, physicists, physics, podcast, quantum physics, science, science and politics, science history, Science Music, sexy scientists, space, space exploration, technology, theoretical physics, therapies, z-Broadcasts | 1 Comment »
November 26th, 2012
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SUSY Loses Support, Mice Sniffing Bombs, Fairy Wren Secrets, Total Solar Eclipse, A Wandering Planet, No Mo Cow Pee, Rocket Legs, And Much More…
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Punching the Physics Heavy Bag
BLair’s Animal Corner
Israeli mice sniffing bombs
Mice in Israel have been trained to sniff out potential security threats. A blast of air blows a person’s scent to a chamber with trained mice inside. If the mice smell something suspicious, they congregate in the “reporting compartment.” Now that’s an upgrade from a bomb sniffing dog – isn’t it?
Fairy-wren chicks have to pass a test for food
A fairy-wren is taught a single note from their mother that functions like a password for food. Cuckoos will attempt to act as parasites, but this system works as a fail-safe so the mother doesn’t feed the invading chicks. Now that’s fitness!
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A Wandering Planet
No Cow Pee For Me
World Robot domination
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Posted in alternative energy, animals, anthropology, astronomy, astronomy, astrophysics, australia bashing, bioethics, biology, biotechnology, birds, chemistry, civilian space travel, cognitive science, conservationism, eclipses, ecology, emergent behavior, end of the world, endangered animals, energy, energy conservation, engineering, evolution, exploration, genetics, KDVS, mammals, medicine, microbiology, molecular biology, particle physics, physicists, physics, planets, podcast, psychobiology, psychology, relativity, robots, science, science and politics, science history, Science Music, sexuality, sexy scientists, solar power, space, space exploration, stars, technology, theoretical physics, therapies, world robot domination, z-Broadcasts | No Comments »
November 15th, 2012
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Other Earths, Good Old Days, Touchy Crocs, Caffeine For Good!, Navel Gazing, Mucus Toothpaste, The End of India, And Much More…
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This Week in Science… coming up next!
An Earth Not Like Ours
The Good Old Days
BLair’s Animal Corner
Touchy Crocodilians
Despite their heavy armored skin, crocs can be very sensitive to touch along their jaws. Scientists have often wondered what the tiny raised black dots along the jawline of crocodilians are used for, and new research indicated it is not to detect oil, salinity or magnetism, but the are extremely delicate touch receptors, more sensitive than human fingertips. So, when that crocodile bites you, he knows exactly what he’s biting and how hard – comforting? Maybe not…
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Caffeine – the new antidepressant?
Caffeine enhances the processing of positive words, but not neutral or negative ones. So it makes you more productive AND gives you a better self-image. Sign me up!
Navel gazing
The End of The World
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Posted in agriculture, alternative energy, animals, anthropology, astrobiology, astronomy, astronomy, bioethics, biology, biotechnology, chemistry, cognitive science, cosmology, deep sky, deep space, ecology, emergent behavior, end of the world, endangered animals, energy, engineering, evolution, exploration, extrasolar planets, genetics, geology, global warming, KDVS, medicine, microbiology, NASA, nutrition, physics, planets, podcast, psychology, reptiles, science, science and politics, science history, Science Music, sexuality, sexy scientists, space, space exploration, spacecraft, stars, technology, therapies, z-Broadcasts | 5 Comments »
November 13th, 2012
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Population Explosion, Sneaky Macaque Sex, Tough Crabs, Penis Worms, Lasers Break Habits, Space News Bits, And Much More…
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This Week in Science… coming up next!
Population Explosion! and related Reddit Discussion
BLair’s Animal Corner
Macaque sex can be sneaky…
Alpha-male and female macaques do their best to keep lower-ranking monkeys from anything fun, including sex. However, when they aren’t looking, those low-ranking monkeys take advantage, big time. New research out of the Netherlands suggest that this behavior is not tactical for premeditated, but instead these horny monkeys are just capitalizing on an opportunity that presents itself.
It’s tough out there for a crab…
Some animals form social groups for protection, others to improve food collection, but land-based hermit crabs do it so they can take advantage of each-other. These hermit crabs “remodel” the empty snail shells they live in by hollowing them out, but they are often evicted by other crabs when their remodel is complete by another crab who fancies it, leaving them vulnerable to predators.
Penis Worms
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Breaking Habits With Lasers
Balancing Empathy and Logic
SPACE!!!
Curiosity Analyzes Chemicals
Dust Mote in Sauron’s Eye Returns
Voyager Gets Wacky
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Posted in alternative energy, animals, anthropology, archeology, astrobiology, astronomy, astrophysics, bioethics, biology, biotechnology, cell biology, chemistry, cognitive science, computer science, conservationism, crustaceans, ecology, emergent behavior, end of the world, energy, energy conservation, engineering, evolution, exploration, extrasolar planets, genetics, geology, global warming, KDVS, mammals, marine biology, molecular biology, NASA, neuroscience, nutrition, paleontology, particle physics, physics, planets, podcast, psychology, robots, science, science and politics, science history, Science Music, sexuality, sexy scientists, space, space exploration, spacecraft, technology, therapies, world robot domination, worms, z-Broadcasts | 1 Comment »
November 8th, 2012
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Science On Trial, Really Cool Poop, Yawning At Puppies, Electrical Diagnosis, Making Tractor Beams, Brain Food Cooks, Grandma Did It, And Much More…
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Science On Trial
BLair’s Animal Corner
Dung Beetles – the poop makes them extra cool!
Sure, there are lots of good reasons to push around a giant ball of feces, but scientists just found another one. Dung beetles use the natural cooling atributes of dung balls (evaporative cooling – they are moist) to cool down their feet when walking on soil that can reach up to 60* C (140* F).
Dogs are impressionable, but puppies aren’t
Dogs above 7 months will catch a yawn as if it is contagious from humans, but puppies under 7 months will not. This is surprisingly similar to the finding that human children reach full responsiveness to yawning around age four.
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Making A Tractor… Beam
Brains And Lifespan
Cook It And Grow
Grandma Did It
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Posted in animals, anthropology, arthropods, bioethics, biology, biotechnology, cell biology, civilian space travel, cognitive psychology, cognitive science, conservationism, earthquakes, ecology, emergent behavior, end of the world, energy, engineering, evolution, exploration, genetics, geology, global warming, KDVS, linguistics, mammals, medicine, microbiology, molecular biology, neuroscience, nutrition, physicists, physics, podcast, psychology, robots, science, science and politics, science history, Science Music, sexuality, sexy scientists, space, spacecraft, technology, theoretical physics, z-Broadcasts | 1 Comment »
November 7th, 2012
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A New Neighbor, Cosmic Energy Finding, Big Lake Bottoms, Housework Might Kill, Sounds You Hate, Catch The Sun, Rogue Canadian Dumping, The Quick And Dirty, And Much More…
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We have a new neighbor
New cosmic find
BLair’s Animal Corner
Hey Ladies, that housework MAY kill you!
Female Komodo Dragons live half as long as males, most likely due to energy expended on egg production and parental care, as well as what scientists deem “housework.” So next time you go to do those dishes, ladies, maybe let the men have a chance…
Sounds your brain hates
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Rogue Dumping in Canada
Pulsars Vs. Gravity Waves
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Posted in alternative energy, animals, anthropology, archeology, astrobiology, astronomy, astronomy, bioethics, biology, biotechnology, birds, cognitive science, cosmology, ecology, emergent behavior, end of the world, endangered animals, energy, energy conservation, engineering, evolution, exploration, extrasolar planets, genetics, global warming, KDVS, mammals, marine biology, NASA, paleontology, penguins, physics, planets, podcast, psychology, reptiles, robots, science, science and politics, science history, Science Music, sexy scientists, solar power, space, space exploration, stars, technology, z-Broadcasts | 3 Comments »
November 1st, 2012
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Caffeine and Alzheimers, Pee-mouthed Turtles, Animal Hands, Slime Mold Memories, Bacterial Gut Viruses, And Much More…
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This Week in Science… coming up next!
Caffeine – now we know why it slows down Alzheimers.
Blair’s Animal Corner
A turtle pees out of it’s mouth: you’re welcome.
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We’re not the only animal with handedness
Slime moulds can remember how to find their way around without a brain
Bacterium create their own bacteriophages within our gut
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Posted in agriculture, animals, anthropology, astronomy, bioethics, biology, biotechnology, cell biology, chemistry, cognitive psychology, cognitive science, ecology, emergent behavior, engineering, evolution, exploration, genetics, KDVS, linguistics, mammals, marine biology, medicine, microbiology, molecular biology, NASA, neuroscience, nutrition, pharmacology, physics, physiology, planets, podcast, psychology, reptiles, robots, science, science and politics, science history, Science Music, sexy scientists, space, space exploration, technology, therapies, z-Broadcasts | 3 Comments »
October 23rd, 2012
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Babies From Scratch, Dino Talk, Sneaky Banker Squirrels, Homeland Security Tech, Vitamin D Update, Neanderthal Dating Habits, TWIWRD, Some Quick News, And Much More…
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This Week in Science… coming up next!
Babies from stem cells!
Duck Billed Dinosaurs had teeth more effective than horses
Tiny Bird Dino
BLair’s Animal Corner
Sneaky Banker Squirrels
Squirrels are excellent bankers, according to new research out of UC Berkeley. Squirrels on their campus have over 1000 hiding places for nuts, and prioritize different stashes for different reasons. Maybe we should put our retirement in the furry hands of a bushy-tailed economist?
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Homeland Security Think Tank Decides which non-existent technology will be most useful in the future
MS and Vitamin D
Humans last got down and dirty with Neanderthals around 47,000 years ago
TWIWRD
More human than human
50 hour genome sequencing
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Posted in animals, archeology, artificial intelligence, bioethics, biology, biotechnology, birds, cell biology, chemistry, cognitive science, computer science, ecology, emergent behavior, end of the world, evolution, genetics, geology, KDVS, mammals, medicine, microbiology, molecular biology, neuroscience, nutrition, paleontology, pharmacology, physiology, podcast, psychology, robots, science, science and politics, science history, Science Music, sexuality, sexy scientists, technology, therapies, world robot domination, z-Broadcasts | No Comments »
