The idea of a living fossil is rather intuitive. We think that a kind of organism deserves that denomination if it has been living in the planet during a very large period of time apparently without any change. A well known example of living fossil is the Ginkgo tree (Ginkgo biloba) because, although it is […]
… if you want to want to be alive. The rock band Wilco already said it back in 2002 when they released the much-acclaimed album Yankee Hotel Foxtrot. This simple statement found in one of the songs of that LP was able to summarise the paradoxical essence of life: death. But leaving any philosophical meaning […]
Humanities & Social Sciences • Science • Technology • Weekly Selection
Common traits in tame animals may be due to neural crest changes Genetic changes that may affect a group of embryonic stem cells known as the neural crest may produce a specific set of features in animals bred for tameness. Common features and behaviors in domesticated animals include patches of white fur, floppy ears, youthful […]
Of all the seven wonders of ancient times, only the pyramids of Egypt remain on their feet. The technical means Egyptians had that many years ago for building these huge structures were extremely limited, and that is the main reason for them being so fascinating: they could build them despite the huge technical difficulties they […]
Slonim et al . (2014) discuss the problems of blood allocation in different countries and suggest a mechanism that can improve it. The present article is a summary of their main ideas. In the wealthy countries blood is mostly supplied via voluntary donations. The way blood is collected varies from country to country. Some have […]
Although we assume evolution of complex life forms as a matter of fact, we must admit that our brains are not ready for such an odd concept. Even though we can slightly imagine what a million year means, when we finally stare at some amazing life beings, we cannot fully comprehend the changes needed over […]
Humanities & Social Sciences • Science • Technology • Weekly Selection
The role of turbulence in the formation of stars A pair of recent studies sheds new light on turbulence, a factor in the formation of stars when galaxies collide. In one study, researchers simulated the collision of two Antennae Galaxies and found that the collision produced “compressive turbulence,” which could get fusion started by pushing […]
[You can read the first part of the manifesto here, and the second here] (5) In this last entry we will consider three main objections that have been levied against positivism in various of its brands: the epistemological objection that science –and human knowledge in general– cannot be reduced to a combination of a neutral […]
A human body harbors around 37 trillion [1012] cells that came from a single fertilized egg by a process known as mitotic division or mitosis. While the first cellular divisions of an embryo occur without gaining mass, most of the following ones are linked to cell growth and are required for the correct development and […]
When was the last time you used a postage stamp? Even if it was a long time ago, you may have hold in your hands a strip of stamps. Maybe you have even tried to fold it into a stack, one stamp wide, so that the strip was easier to store. Have you ever wondered […]