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Top 5 Stocking Stuffers for Scientists: Stem Cell Lines
by Allison Loudermilk | December 22, 2009
Up until now, our holiday gift suggestions have been catering to the physics fanatics and the space geeks. It’s time to turn to the biologists toiling amid the scientific ranks and contemplate what might make a good gift for them. I’m thinking a holiday tin full of stem cells. 2009 was a banner year for stem cell research in the United States, with President Obama issuing Executive Order (EO) 13505, which essentially removed barriers to responsible scientific research involving human stem cells.
Before the executive order was issued, U.S. scientists doing federally funded research could access 21 lines created before Aug. 9, 2001, according to NPR. That number was blown to bits just within the past month. The U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) has approved 40 new lines that are eligible for use in federally funded research. At least 11 of them are compliments of one George Q. Daley, an M.D., Ph.D. and stem cell scientist at Harvard.
Are we to blame for beached whales and dolphins?
by Robert Lamb | December 22, 2009
In my last post, I talked about the two varieties of whale stranding and Dr. Gregory D. Bossart ‘s Science on Tap lecture on the topic at the Georgia Aquarium. This time around, I’m going to run through some of what Bossart had to say about the possible causes behind mass strandings. Sadly, a number of the cases point back to human alteration of the environment.
New Year’s Resolution: See the Northern Lights
by Amanda Arnold | December 22, 2009
Here’s what I’m thinking for 2010:
I rent one of those little glass igloos at Hotel Kakslauttanen in Lapland, Finland, about 155 miles (250 kilometers) north of the Arctic Circle. When I arrive, snow is on the ground — the pure, untouched, new kind of snow. I find my way through the dark up to my little igloo, curl up under the covers in my warm bed with some hot chocolate, look up through the glass ceiling at the night sky and — oh my goodness — the Northern Lights begin to flash and swirl.
It looks a lot like the beneficent and subversive spirit of Hugo Chavez’s annual donation of 100 million gallons of heating oil to impoverished families in the United States for the last four year has spread to Venezuela’s neighbors. Some nations of Latin America are growing increasingly unified in their progressive drug policies recently, and it appears that the changes are, in part, a means of pulling down the pants of the common bully of the region, the United States.
Last night I had the privilege to attend another Science on Tap lecture at the Georgia Aquarium, this time featuring Dr. Gregory D. Bossart, the aquarium’s chief veterinary officer. Bossart discussed a subject that he’s devoted much of his career to: the mysteries surrounding stranded marine life.
Invention – Head-mounted camera records all police interactions
by Marshall Brain | December 22, 2009
Taser has introduced a new head-mounted camera system for police, and they are trying it out in San Jose: San Jose police test head-mounted cameras for officers San Jose police, under fire for interactions with the public that have turned violent, on Friday launched a pilot project equipping officers with head-mounted cameras to record contacts [...]
We’re down to the home stretch here, folks. Soon the jolly fat guy in the red suit will be handing out the presents left and right. Remember, he’s a stickler on that whole naughty/nice thing. It turns out watching TechStuff Live, the show in which Chris and I give you the latest news in technology, is a very nice thing to do. We won’t have a show next week — you’ll have to wait until 2010 to see us again if you miss today’s show.
Make sure you catch the show right here or grab our handy-dandy Facebook application and demand that all your friends subscribe to it, too.
The latest research indicates that people who text while they drive are significantly impaired: Study: Drivers who text are 6 times more likely to crash Drivers who text behind the wheel are six times more likely to crash, and texting is riskier than talking on a cell phone or to a passenger, researchers in Utah [...]
How to Buy a Laptop, Period – “Shopping for a laptop, but completely baffled by the myriad options available on the market? We clear through the clutter to guide you to your perfect laptop…” Feathered Dinosaurs Were Venomous Predators – “Early dinosaurs weren’t just covered in feathers. They were also poisonous. Analysis of skulls belonging [...]
Test your geography skills and see how well you know our world
by Marshall Brain | December 22, 2009
A very nice geography quiz for you to try: Globetrotter XL If you find you are always stuck on level 1 or level 2, it means you are not getting a good enough score to advance to the next level. If you need to cheat, this can help [[[Jump to previous test - Test – [...]
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