General Science

Africa should invest in GMOs for small farmers

2008-06-26T16:07:01Z

Source: SciDev.net Date: June 26, 2008 Africa needs a Green Revolution based on public investment in agricultural science and technology, including local research into genetically engineered crops, says Robert Paarlberg, in the Harvard International Review. Read more…....(read more)

Amphibious Robot Snake (video)

2008-06-26T12:49:28Z

Amphibious robot snake. Info here. That is all. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ct5xe2Vnp6c...(read more)

Official: urine is worth more than champagne

2008-06-26T12:11:50Z

Have you ever heard the phrase (usually directed at some very recently-single lady) “he’s not worth your tears”? Well, how much are tears worth, really? How much are any of your bodily fluids worth? Thankfully the good people at Innovative Research have just the answer! See below for my handy graph showing the value of [...]...(read more)

As far as I understand thinktanks….

2008-06-07T20:33:18Z

Ben Goldacre The Guardian, Saturday June 7 2008 It is with deep regret that I must alert you to a frightening decline in the quality of maths in reports complaining about the frightening decline in the quality of maths in Britain. “The value of mathematics”, by thinktank Reform, has received a huge amount of flattering media coverage this [...]...(read more)

DNA Video: Illumina on Wallstrip

2008-06-07T08:00:00Z

Interesting little summary on the history of Illumina. They look through your DNA and discover your genetic code. via business|bytes|genes|molecules...(read more)

DNA Excerpt: Fermat’s Last Theorem

2008-06-06T08:05:00Z

From Fermat’s Last Theorem (also titled as Fermat’s Enigma) by Simon Singh: “In mathematical terms the final proof is the equivalent of splitting the atom or finding the structure of DNA,” announced John Coates....(read more)

Seed's Daily Zeitgeist: 6/6/2008

2008-06-05T22:39:43Z

How the Web Was Won The history of the internet, as told by its creators. Open-source Self-replicating Machine, er, Self-replicates The best part about this self-replicating robot? It's open source, so you can make your own. The Iraq War Suicides and the Material Basis of Consciousness Tom Levenson discusses the changing landscape of mind-body dualism. None of my Science Piñatas are Appropriate for Children. Dave Ng contributes a hilarious list to McSweeney's. Top 10 Scientists Killed...(read more)

Friday Flash Fun: Epsilon

2008-06-05T20:54:59Z

Bizarrely claiming to be based on something to do with the Large Hadron Collider, Epsilon is nonetheless a nice little distraction involving portals, wormholes, gravity bombs and time warps. Even more bizarrely, you will use all these monumental powers to move a tiny ball into a tiny hole. Something tells me the Russians [...]...(read more)

Seed's Daily Zeitgeist: 6/5/2008

2008-06-04T23:11:00Z

Make a Mad, Mad, Mad Neuron Ever wanted to be a mad scientist? Now you can build a neuron in this flash game. (via Vaughan ) What's more convincing than talking about brains? Pictures of brains! Further evidence that people find brain scans unreasonably convincing. Scoping Out the Moon Telescopes made out of Moon, coming soon to a store near you. Stockholm Syndrome for Moths Carl Zimmer investigates parasitic wasps that turn caterpillars into their bodyguards. Power Q&A: Jamie Hyneman Jamie...(read more)

Badasses of Science

2008-06-04T22:23:40Z

Over at Cracked, Luke McKinney has written a round-up of the 6 most badass stunts ever pulled in the name of science. It’s really rather good. I’m sure you people can think of some notable examples that missed the cut....(read more)

Monsanto Offers a Plan to Increase Food Supply

2008-06-04T19:41:14Z

Source: New York Times Date: June 4, 2008 Monsanto, the leader in agricultural biotechnology, pledged Wednesday to develop seeds that would double the yields of corn, soybeans and cotton by 2030 and would require 30 percent less water, land and energy to grow. Read more…....(read more)

The Reality Tests

2008-06-04T16:10:07Z

Anton Zeilinger heads up the IQOQI lab in Vienna. Photograph by Mark Mahaney. To enter the somewhat formidable Neo-Renaissance building at Boltzmanngasse 3 in Vienna, you must pass through a small door sawed from the original cathedrallike entrance. When I first visited this past March, it was chilly and overcast in the late afternoon. Atop several tall stories of scaffolding there were two men who would hardly have been visible from the street were it not for their sunrise-orange jumpsuits. As I...(read more)

Chemistry student offends teacher, aces test

2008-06-04T15:16:48Z

We’ve seen a lot of ’stupid exam answers’ in the past, but I like this one best. Click the image for the full picture. Why do I love it so? Because even though he managed to leave snide comments for every question, he still aced the test. 100/100. Nothing says “understimulated” quite [...]...(read more)

What does DNA mean to you? #8

2008-06-04T08:02:00Z

Reader Doug tells us what he thinks of DNA: DNA is our chance to pop open the hood and tinker around a bit. Surgeons get to slice things up and sew them back together a bit but genetic engineers can really mix things up. Once you’ve got the DNA, you’ve got it all. The trick is figuring [...]...(read more)

Seed's Daily Zeitgeist: 6/4/2008

2008-06-03T22:41:04Z

The Singularity IEEE explores the future of human-computer integration. (via Mo ) Dark, Perhaps Forever Will we ever know what dark energy really is? Pass the Land Shrimp Mmmm...bugs. A New Step in Evolution Carl Zimmer discusses new research implicating history in evolution. Magnetic Movie See the shape of magnetic fields through the magic of CGI. (via today and tomorrow ) Got something for Seed 's Daily Zeitgeist? Email the Zeitgeister . Read the entire article...(read more)