I’ve got our missing links right here (18 August 2012)
Top picks
Post of the month! Summer Ash blogs her heart surgery, with pics of her own heart on the operating table
Yes our ancestors did have sex with Neanderthals, and no, that new paper doesn’t prove otherwise. John Hawks has the best account of the story. Ewen Callaway
NASA just patched a piece of software on another planet.
Dolphins adopt a torpedo. Beautiful.
Have there been modern-day virgin births? A great historical tale, from the pre-genomic era.
Wait, whale sharks can ungrow?! Awesome. And I learned that even before the bit about lasers
World’s oceans score 60 out of 100 on new health index. Not terrible; could do much better, by Virginia Gewin.
The Maya didn’t believe the world would end in 2012. That’s those other folks.
“Our Rover is safe” – a video about Curiosity’s landing by the people who built it
Maggie Koerth-Baker is a new columnist for the NYT magazine. This is good news for everyone, and I love it when excellent writers end up in the right places.
“I think people who sell fake cancer cures are murderers,” says Xeni Jardin. Correctly, too.
Flamingos: they’re pink, they stand on one leg, and they have erectile tissue in their mouths. Wait, what?
Parasites suck toxins from sharks!
Some cool developments in the field of vision-restoring retinal prostheses. Could drastically improve the tech
Author Fights For His Book On The Internet After Slacking Student Pleads For Quick Summary
“No humanmade robot is designed with the loose skin of a labrador. But why not?” The physics of wet dogs, and other wet shaking animals.
Science/news/writing
So, NASA, what’s up with all the peanuts? Amy Shira Teitel gives a fascinating & surprisingly historical answer
The BMJ argues that pharma’s innovation crisis is a fiction. Derek Lowe piledrives that argument into the mat
“Where have all the cults gone?” wonders NeuroSkeptic
“What Seasoning Is Essential for Life, Deadly at High Doses & Confusing to Neuroscientists?” asks Veronique Greenwood
Gorilla brothers reunite. Awwww
A beautifully-preserved fossil provides scientists with an in-depth look at ankylosaur armor
Has the time come to try geoengineering?
STOP THE PRESSES! Heroin addiction cured! Or not.
Reddit IAmA: We are engineers and scientists on the Mars Curiosity Rover Mission
How the brain keeps clean. As in physically clean, not mentally clean. Which never happens.
Self-proclaimed dolphin-lovers most likely to be dolphin harassers. We beg you not to help.
So, you can look around another planet using your handheld computer
In Fragmented Brazilian Forest, Few Species Survive
New virus makes pythons stare at the stars and tie themselves in knots
Gnnnh Bee-rotica: insect sting fetishes.
Protecting a reef with a submarine art installation of hundreds of statues
Ugandan lab proves its mettle during recent Ebola outbreak
Carl Zimmer on the intriguing Reproducibility Initiative – a project to incentivise replication attempts for previous results.
On butterflies and balloons at Fukushima
Why are there blue rocks in the latest photos from Mars?
Fareed Zakaria’s ludicrous defence of his plagiarism is: “No one else has standards, so why should I?”
Hyenas that think outside the box solve problems faster
“Don’t put that Save the Whales t-shirt on eBay yet…” Wired on green behaviour change
Maths is part of what makes us human. Don’t withhold it from kids just because it’s hard
WTFNASA: a site that auto-generates things that NASA has done for you.
An Antarctic State of Mind
Woman’s missing digits grow back in phantom form
So, did a guy actually ever question a severed head?
10 newly discovered amphibians. No 2 is especially great
“I understand there is a special mohawk guy working on the mission…” – Obama
Mouse eyes have built-in raptor detectors
Illustrations make information more believable. Which must be true, cos I saw it in an infographic
Device seeks & neutralises epileptic brain activity (in rats)
There is great beauty in mundanity – why Maggie Koerth-Baker loves boring pictures of Mars
A new intelligent textbook helps students learn by constructing new pages to answer their queries
Your body is like a rotting log, a beautifully complex ecosystem.
The weird science of telling time on Mars
Heh/wow/huh
Coworker With Two Computer Screens Not F**king Around
Awesome sculpture of giant crumpled cartoon paper, landing on a New Zealand hill
I’m a big fan of this press release headline
“It’s still unclear what the HuffPo’s thing actually is but apparently it’s like the future of journalism or something”
Pattern resulting from a lightning strike to a sidewalk.
Angler photographs humpback whale that almost jumps into boat. With video!
Internet/journalism/society
Christ. Jonah Lehrer in more “just making quotes up” madness. This time, from Teller of Penn-and- fame.
Why snark and linking can save you from a defamation suit.
NOOOOO! “Nissan: parroting two different Sohos and getting both wrong” – London & NY to have same taxis!
Tidal Pools: Nature’s Putrid Sewers – Horrifying Planet
“Users have decided they want streams, but most media companies are insisting on publishing more and more pages.”
Ebay Bans Sale Of Magic Potions And Spells. Insert homeopathy joke here.
Go Further
Animals
- This ‘saber-toothed’ salmon wasn’t quite what we thoughtThis ‘saber-toothed’ salmon wasn’t quite what we thought
- Why this rhino-zebra friendship makes perfect senseWhy this rhino-zebra friendship makes perfect sense
- When did bioluminescence evolve? It’s older than we thought.When did bioluminescence evolve? It’s older than we thought.
- Soy, skim … spider. Are any of these technically milk?Soy, skim … spider. Are any of these technically milk?
- This pristine piece of the Amazon shows nature’s resilienceThis pristine piece of the Amazon shows nature’s resilience
Environment
- This pristine piece of the Amazon shows nature’s resilienceThis pristine piece of the Amazon shows nature’s resilience
- Listen to 30 years of climate change transformed into haunting musicListen to 30 years of climate change transformed into haunting music
- This ancient society tried to stop El Niño—with child sacrificeThis ancient society tried to stop El Niño—with child sacrifice
- U.S. plans to clean its drinking water. What does that mean?U.S. plans to clean its drinking water. What does that mean?
History & Culture
- Meet the original members of the tortured poets departmentMeet the original members of the tortured poets department
- Séances at the White House? Why these first ladies turned to the occultSéances at the White House? Why these first ladies turned to the occult
- Gambling is everywhere now. When is that a problem?Gambling is everywhere now. When is that a problem?
- Beauty is pain—at least it was in 17th-century SpainBeauty is pain—at least it was in 17th-century Spain
- The real spies who inspired ‘The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare’The real spies who inspired ‘The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare’
Science
- Here's how astronomers found one of the rarest phenomenons in spaceHere's how astronomers found one of the rarest phenomenons in space
- Not an extrovert or introvert? There’s a word for that.Not an extrovert or introvert? There’s a word for that.
- NASA has a plan to clean up space junk—but is going green enough?NASA has a plan to clean up space junk—but is going green enough?
- Soy, skim … spider. Are any of these technically milk?Soy, skim … spider. Are any of these technically milk?
- Can aspirin help protect against colorectal cancers?Can aspirin help protect against colorectal cancers?
Travel
- What it's like to hike the Camino del Mayab in MexicoWhat it's like to hike the Camino del Mayab in Mexico
- Is this small English town Yorkshire's culinary capital?Is this small English town Yorkshire's culinary capital?
- This chef is taking Indian cuisine in a bold new directionThis chef is taking Indian cuisine in a bold new direction
- Follow in the footsteps of Robin Hood in Sherwood ForestFollow in the footsteps of Robin Hood in Sherwood Forest