It’s been quite a while since I last found a parrot article for Shadows.
- Stonehenge update (link now fixed): After more than 20 years of argument over what to do about disgraceful surrounding conditions, a leading expert has proposed a ‘radical solution’ – do nothing. Meanwhile, when Geoff Wainwright and Tim Darvill proposed that bronze-age builders believed bluestone had healing powers, and suggested that Stonehenge should be seen as a prehistoric Lourdes, archaeologists attending their lecture reacted with dropped jaws and outright laughter.
- Scholars gather in Rome to discuss the theory that Sardinia is the lost island of Atlantis.
- Fossil remains show the merging of Neandertals and modern humans.
- If humanity were to suddenly vanish from the face of the Earth, it would only take 200,000 years for all traces of human existence to be wiped away.
- For the first time, astronomers have measured the day and night temperatures of a planet outside our solar system.
- First detailed images of a binary asteroid system reveal a bizarre world.
- Rising ocean temperatures and pollution have put oysters in hot water.
- Chemists reinvent the making of plastics. These guys should be nominated for a Nobel.
- Scientists find molecular signature which protects cells from viruses, opening up completely new perspectives for the treatment of viral infections and cancer.
- David Grinspoon, author of the excellent book Lonely Planets: The Natural Philosophy of Alien Life (Amazon US & UK), has won the Sagan Medal for 2006.
- Citing concerns about possible damage to the ancient site, Yahoo cancels ‘time capsule ceremony’ at Mexican pyramid. Actually, it wasn’t Yahoo that was concerned…
- Mexican officials to Yahoo: Get off our pyramid.
- Pregnant women infected by cat parasite more likely to give birth to boys.
- Cellular organism with only 182 genes could revise ideas about what’s needed for a cell to work.
- Neuroscientist claims he can unleash creativity by boosting low-frequency brainwaves.
- Neurofeedback training (pdf) may correct abnormal brain wave patterns associated with several medical conditions. The technical aspects are way over my head, but the essence is understandable.
- Sophisticated Toy Robot to Get Mind-Altering Software.
- Teenager plays video games just by thinking.
- The longest-living rodents, naked mole-rats, are unfazed by oxidative stress, which flies in the face of the oxidative stress theory of aging. Love that photo.
- Human brain relies on eye movements to identify partially obscured or moving objects.
- The future isn’t what it used to be: A review of Eric and Jonathan Dregni’s new book Follies of Science: 20th Century Visions of Our Fantastic Future. Amazon US & UK.
- ‘A living fossil’: Mighty mouse discovered in mountainous area of Cyprus.
- Mouse-eating carnivorous plant in Lyon’s Botanical Gardens is the first to actually prove that plants can indeed eat small mammals.
- 500-billion-year-old embryos give up their secrets. The text gets it right, but Greg points out that, for the article’s title to be correct, these embryos would have to be 30 times older than the Universe itself.
- Results reported from double-blind test of the effects of ‘distant intention’ on water crystal formation.
- Hiding secrets in optical noise: CDMA encoder will allow secret messages to be sent over existing public fiber-optic networks.
- Worth repeating: New research highlights what classical economic theory fails to take into account – emotion is nature’s way of letting people know that if you’re treated badly you’ll do something about it.
- Happy 25th Birthday, PC.
- IM Misconduct: Foley may be the current poster boy for IM bad judgement, but with 60% of US corporations saying it’s a problem for them, this article is actually about the clash between generations in the workplace.
- Canadian troops fighting Taliban militants in Afghanistan have stumbled across an unexpected and potent enemy – impenetrable forests of marijuana plants 10 feet tall.
- Tempting Faith: Former White House official David Kuo, whose ‘conservative Christian credentials are impeccable’, has written a scathing account of how the Bush administration used evangelical Christians for their votes – while consistently giving them nothing in return. Amazon US & UK.
Big thanks to Greg!
Quote of the Day:
It is no accident that the rise of so many democracies took place in a time when the world’s most influential nation was itself a democracy.
George W. Bush, 2003
