fun facts

The oldest forest in the world.

“Van Straeten is a paleobotanist at the New York State Museum, and in 2018, he and his team made a remarkable discovery right here in our region: a 385-million-year-old forest, the oldest in the world. Fossils of the forest’s root […]

fun facts

Waymo’s insurer feels really good about their safety.

“Today, we’re sharing our new cutting-edge research with Swiss Re, one of the world’s leading reinsurers, analyzing liability claims related to collisions from 25.3 million fully autonomous miles driven by Waymo. … It demonstrates that … the Waymo Driver significantly […]

fun facts

UK beer baron keeps a collection of vacant historic pubs.

“Founded in 1758, Samuel Smith Old Brewery is one of the largest family-owned brewery and pub operations in the UK.” … and … “Since the 1970s, Humphrey Smith has acquired scores of pubs and historic properties around the UK. But […]

fun facts

How language shapes the way we think.

“There are about 7,000 languages spoken around the world — and they all have different sounds, vocabularies and structures. But do they shape the way we think? Cognitive scientist Lera Boroditsky shares examples of language — from an Aboriginal community […]

big ideas

Lying for a climate crusade.

“The Consumer Product Safety Commission is on a mission that has nothing to do with safety… This was a clear-cut case of science being brandished for activism, and judging by the paper’s reception in the popular press and on social […]

under the microscope

How much faith should you put into light therapy?

I am generally slow to come around on newfangled popular wellness fads, which include infrared/red light therapy. “In this study we present the up-to-dated evidence about the effects of PBMT, i.e., low-intensity laser therapy and red and/or infrared low-intensity light-emitting […]

under the microscope

Don’t throw away your printed books.

“Although the current results suggest that paper-based reading should be favoured over digital-based reading, it is unrealistic to recommend avoiding digital devices. Nevertheless, ignoring the evidence of a robust screen inferiority effect may mislead political and educational decisions, and even […]

under the microscope

Fish have a brain microbiome.

“Recently, a study published in Science Advances provided the strongest evidence yet that a brain microbiome can and does exist in healthy vertebrates — fish, specifically. Researchers at the University of New Mexico discovered communities of bacteria thriving in salmon […]