If you like science and want to read more about it, you should be reading Nautilus. And if you like Nautilus, you should subscribe to its quarterly for more unique writing. I’m spending my Saturday morning flipping through it and there’s a beautiful essay by Caspar Henderson on the current frontiers of our knowledge. Here… Continue reading Great Science Writing
Category: Science
Best Metaphor Ever?
Wendy is currently reading Bill Bryson‘s A Short History of Nearly Everything . From it comes the following passage, with possibly the best metaphor ever for the slow pace of geological time: …If you imagine the 4.5 billion odd years of Earth’s history compressed into a normal earthly day, then life begins very early, about… Continue reading Best Metaphor Ever?
Two Interesting Thoughts
I was reading the most recent issue of Technology Review and two things popped out at me. The first, was the difference in energy density (measured in MJ/kg) between gasoline, ethanol and batteries: This, in a nutshell, highlights the reason why you don’t see very many electric cars on the road today. They either weigh… Continue reading Two Interesting Thoughts
Today’s Big Idea
There are big ideas and then there are big ideas. Reading this blog entry on Ford’s electric vehicles is mind expanding. Imagine an America with lots of electric cars. Now imagine a smart electric grid with variable pricing. Your car charges at night (when power cheap and interestingly most winds are strong enough). During the… Continue reading Today’s Big Idea
More Human Than Human
I love reading about behavioural economics and how human nature limits our ability to make rational decisions. I love it even more when I find myself behaving irrationally despite being aware of it (this is all very meta). Here are two recent examples: 1) On Sunday I went for a run. In the crazy heat.… Continue reading More Human Than Human