I like optical illusions, such as the Ponzo Illusion, which is one of the better explanations of why the full moon on the horizon seems so big. They provide nice examples of the complex interplay of visual sensations and brain activity and cautions us that what we ‘see’ may not be really what is out there. [Read more…]
Victor Stenger has had a long career in experimental high-energy physics. He has become a prolific writer on the intersection of science and religion and I have referred to him frequently in past blog posts, especially to material in his 2007 book God: The Failed Hypothesis. Stenger is an unabashed ‘new atheist’ who thinks that science and religion are fundamentally incompatible and does not shy away from saying so bluntly. The title of his latest book (and its subtitle The Incompatibility of Science and Religion) leaves the reader with no doubt as to where he stands. The book was released this month and I have just had the pleasure of reading it. It essentially updates and expands on the arguments of that earlier one. [Read more…]
Cosmologist Mark Trodden has an excellent post where he disentangles three questions that most people are interested in knowing about the universe: What is its shape? Is it finite or infinite? Will it expand forever or eventually collapse back into itself? [Read more…]
Men can be reassured that it looks like the Y-chromosome is not going extinct after all.
The Colbert Report
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(This clip appeared on March 26, 2012. To get suggestions on how to view clips of The Daily Show and The Colbert Report outside the US, please see this earlier post.)
In general, questions such as “Is (subject X) a science?” are not very useful. After all, what does it matter what label you assign to something? In certain situations though, the label matters quite a lot. In the US, because of the Establishment Clause, the answer to the question of whether a theory is scientific or religious can determine if it can be taught in public schools. This is why religious people constantly seek to either label their religious beliefs (creationism and intelligent design) as science or seek to have those theories that threaten religion (like evolution) be classified as something other than science. [Read more…]
[Update below]
One of the biggest ethical dilemmas facing science is that between their desire for free and open access to information and their desire to not cause harm.
Back in 2003, I assigned this essay prompt to my class to help them grapple with some of ethical issues that scientists face [Read more…]
In addition to invisible cars, we now also have at least two prototypes of flying cars. [Read more…]
The pressure to be the first with a new discovery is resulting in an increasing number of authors rushing to print with results that later turn out to be not true. In most cases, this is due to cutting corners, sloppiness, or not exercising sufficient skepticism about one’s own work. In a few cases, it is because of outright fraud. [Read more…]