Science Etcetera Moonday, 20080310

March 10th, 2008

Coolest diagram ever! D&D as a Gateway to other geeky activities. I was actually able to trace my way from D&D all the way to writing this blog post!!! (Hint: I went from D&D into SF, but cut over to computers via Neuromancer)

Despite doing better in school (statistically), and being much more socially well-adjusted (statistically), why are women are so underrepresented in management? Susan Pinker believes they are wired for more important things.

Taxonomists like Gustavo Hormiga, are working overtime Naming Species Before They Disappear. I like that he named one species of spider Orsonwelles (and can tell the difference between them by the size of their sex organs), and intends to name the next he discovers after Pink Floyd.

Male copulatory organ of Orsonwelles ventus

Male Copulatory Organ of Orsonwelles ventus

Sometimes they do come back. Thought extinct for 80-years, a Beck’s petrel has been spotted in New Guinea.

Well you can just rock me to sleep tonight pondering this ethical conundrum. The British Parliament is considering legislation that would require discarding defective IVF embryos, but what if a deaf couple wants to have a deaf child?

And another brain-bender in ethics, with an era of doping looming in academia, does something need to be done? We prohibit steroids in sports, why not riddlin in academia? Why is plastic surgery acceptable, despite also using medical science to gain a competitive edge?

And after pondering those tough questions, take a moment to look forward to Super High Me, a documentary claiming to do with marijuana what Super-Size Me did with McDonalds.

For today’s Moment of Science, check out Perimeter Explorations, a teachers aid in teaching theoretical physics that will be putting up videos for teachers to use. I downloaded the half-hour show on The Mystery of Dark Matter, and it was AWESOME!!! High-production values, computer animation, ambient music, and top-notch! If you like documentaries, check it out.

The Mystery of Dark Matter

The Mystery of Dark Matter

No comments yet to “Science Etcetera Moonday, 20080310”

Fantastic diagram. I didn’t realize it was from the NYT. (last time I trust JWZ as a source).

-BMF
by BMF March 10th, 2008 at 8:31 am
Flow charts rule!
by Clint March 10th, 2008 at 9:28 am