I’ve got your missing links right here (11 May 2013)
Top picks
“I was swallowed by a hippo.” A hungry, hungry hippo.
Beating parasites with parasites – Wolbachia bacteria makes mosquitoes resistant to malaria parasite
Lord have MERS. New coronavirus gets a name, inspiring a funny rant from Crawford Killian and a powerful piece from Helen Branswell on a Canadian SARS survivor who has gone to help with the new virus.
What you do is who you are – great piece by Virginia Hughes on twins, rats & the emergence of individuality
In the NYT, a new weekly Carl Zimmer column. The first one is on the imminent cicada invasion. The second one will follow in 17 years.
This moth completely smashes the record for highest frequency that animals can hear. My piece for Nature.
The Luckiest Village in the World – a beautiful tale of the small village where almost everyone won the lottery.
An exquisite, refreshing evisceration of The Great Gatsby, by Kathryn Schultz
Some English words have staying power, may go back 15,000 years to an Ice Age language.
Killer whale rams dolphin into the air with its head
“Any two Europeans are likely to have many common ancestors who lived around 1,000 years ago” – very cool research from Peter Ralph. And more from Carl Zimmer, who is unimpressed by your links to Charlemagne.
Our Solar System turns out to be deeply weird. By Robert Krulwich
With these advances, killer robots will be able to feel you trembling beneath their cold yet sensitive fingers
“An arcane & eldritch item of fashionable nonsense in the shuddering slush-pile of human evolutionary rubbish” – on the aquatic ape theory, by Henry Gee.
Wonder if we’ll survive an eventual global disaster? Check out Annalee Newitz’s new book – Scatter, Adapt, and Remember: How Humans Will Survive a Mass Extinction.
Amazing macro shots of animal eyes. Beautiful. Can you work out which ones are human?
Mind-boggling footage of a falcon killing a duck in mid-air, from the falcon’s perspective.
Science/news/writing
Mercury rising, foxes descending
This is what a meaningless study looks like.
How Poachers Stole 10% of an Entire Tortoise Species…and What Happened Next
“The anthrax was the result of aural terrorism… earlier the patient had attended a drum circle”
SciCurious talks about WEIRD studies. Especially as regards…your virginity.
Research team fishes the DNA of ancient unfossilized creatures from the sea floor
Nice art project, but the science is utter bollocks. You cannot actually do this. We can barely tell someone’s eye colour from their DNA, let alone facial structure.
Whoa, red flag! The Guardian’s breathless piece says bacteria cause 20-40% of chronic back pain, and that antibiotics could cure these. A surgeon says the discovery is worth a Nobel Prize. But the Indy reveals that the surgeon runs a private spinal surgery clinic & paid for the launch? HMMM.
Mental Health Researchers Reject Psychiatry’s New Diagnostic ‘Bible’, by Maia Szalavitz. But, hang on, says Ferris Jabr. Contrary to recent headlines, NIMH is not abandoning or rejecting the DSM.
Symmetry study deemed fraud. “Few researchers tried harder than Robert Trivers to retract one of their own papers.”
“Who’re you calling a Neanderthal?”
200 million years of feather evolution in 3 minutes
Neuroscientists from Obama’s BRAIN initiative meet to say “we’ve got the cash, now what?” And a white paper with their views on the challenges facing neuroscience.
Bristly nectar-nabbing bat tongue in super slow-mo
The Atacama “alien” is a human foetus, aborted under horrific circumstances.
Huh/wow/heh
Astronauts reflect on seeing Earth from space
A really long blog post…
Bishop’s Knife Trick – Directors Cut
Google uses NASA+USGS satellite pics to show how Earth has changed since 1980s
Antarctica’s last sunset until August
Break through 2 months of Antarctic ice in 5 mins
A visit to the lab of one of the world’s leading electron microscope photographers.
“They look like upside-down cacti that are blown from glass” – on Antarctica’s icy death-fingers
Wonderful. The Onion’s guide to preventing Twitter hacks.
XKCD What If? answers the question “how high can a human throw something” in giraffe units
“Boob plate” armour: a poor choice for the safety-conscious female warrior
Bioluminescent leaves as art
Journalism/internet/society
Medium launched a tech section aimed entirely at women, edited by Arikia Millikan. It’s called Ladybits.
Nicholas Hytner’s “Othello” at London’s National Theatre, with Adrian Lester and Rory Kinnear, is the best Shakespeare production I’ve ever seen. The Economist lays out why it’s great.
I talk with the Knight Science Journalism fellows on the nature and history of science blogging
Everything I thought I knew about the origins of the QWERTY keyboard was a filthy lie
“The writer’s first job is to help me understand, not to dazzle me… The lead sometimes belongs buried.”
Two fantastic pieces on a new Science Writers’ Handbook.
What a week of groceries looks like around the world — a fascinating photo essay.
Go Further
Animals
- Octopuses have a lot of secrets. Can you guess 8 of them?
- Animals
- Feature
Octopuses have a lot of secrets. Can you guess 8 of them? - This biologist and her rescue dog help protect bears in the AndesThis biologist and her rescue dog help protect bears in the Andes
- An octopus invited this writer into her tank—and her secret worldAn octopus invited this writer into her tank—and her secret world
- Peace-loving bonobos are more aggressive than we thoughtPeace-loving bonobos are more aggressive than we thought
Environment
- 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?
- Food systems: supporting the triangle of food security, Video Story
- Paid Content
Food systems: supporting the triangle of food security - Will we ever solve the mystery of the Mima mounds?Will we ever solve the mystery of the Mima mounds?
History & Culture
- Strange clues in a Maya temple reveal a fiery political dramaStrange clues in a Maya temple reveal a fiery political drama
- How technology is revealing secrets in these ancient scrollsHow technology is revealing secrets in these ancient scrolls
- Pilgrimages aren’t just spiritual anymore. They’re a workout.Pilgrimages aren’t just spiritual anymore. They’re a workout.
- This ancient society tried to stop El Niño—with child sacrificeThis ancient society tried to stop El Niño—with child sacrifice
- This ancient cure was just revived in a lab. Does it work?This ancient cure was just revived in a lab. Does it work?
Science
- The unexpected health benefits of Ozempic and MounjaroThe unexpected health benefits of Ozempic and Mounjaro
- Do you have an inner monologue? Here’s what it reveals about you.Do you have an inner monologue? Here’s what it reveals about you.
- Jupiter’s volcanic moon Io has been erupting for billions of yearsJupiter’s volcanic moon Io has been erupting for billions of years
- This 80-foot-long sea monster was the killer whale of its timeThis 80-foot-long sea monster was the killer whale of its time
Travel
- Spend a night at the museum at these 7 spots around the worldSpend a night at the museum at these 7 spots around the world
- How nanobreweries are shaking up Portland's beer sceneHow nanobreweries are shaking up Portland's beer scene
- How to plan an epic summer trip to a national parkHow to plan an epic summer trip to a national park
- This town is the Alps' first European Capital of CultureThis town is the Alps' first European Capital of Culture