http://seedmagazine.com SEEDMAGAZINE.COM aims to provide our readers with the most relevant, insightful and entertaining original science content on the web. en greenwood@seedmediagroup.com Copyright 2009 2009-11-20T15:10:32+00:00 http://seedmagazine.com/ http://seedmagazine.com/ Seed's Daily Zeitgeist

1. The ultimate moral dilemma (source: NPR)
   Radiolab's hosts ask Harvard moral psychologist Joshua Greene to discuss moral puzzles—including the classic challenge of whether you would kill your child to save a village. As it turns out, about half of subjects say they would.
2. Here, try the Relaxacisor (source: MuseumofQuackery.com)
   The physical headquarters of the Museum of Questionable Medical Devices may have closed down when its founder retired and donated the materials to the Science Museum of Minnesota, but the collection's site is alive and well—unlike many of those who indulged in these "scientific" medical devices. The Battle Creek Vibratory Chair, invented by the Kellogg brothers of cereal fame, opens the catalog, and the Relaxacisor from Season 1 of Mad Men is here too.
3. Birds up close and personal, with not a feather out of place (source: Inkling Magazine)
   Photographer Andrew Zuckerman, author of the stunning 2007 book Creature, is releasing a new compilation that focuses on birds. He releases the wild animals—macaws, emus, and falcons and others—in his studio for the photo shoots, and sometimes invents customized shutters so the animals trigger the exposure with their movement.
4. Arab science still has a long way to go (source: Scidev.net)
   A new report shows that despite recent spending--including the founding of KAUST last year in Saudi Arabia--there are still gaping holes in Arab research. Arab nations spend an average of just 0.2 percent of GDP on science, while the global average hovers around 1.7 percent. As a result, the Arab world produces less than 40 patent registrations per year.
5. Undoing Obama's stem cell policy? (source: ScienceInsider)
   The regents of the University of Nebraska object to Obama's relaxed restrictions on stem cell research. Today, they vote on whether to return their institution to the Bush Administration policy that kept researchers from using new cell lines, which would make them the first institution to regulate such research below the state or national level.

]]> 2009-11-20T15:10:32+00:00 http://seedmagazine.com/content/article/hair_raiser/ http://seedmagazine.com/content/article/hair_raiser/ Malcolm Gladwell and Steven Pinker duel over balancing scientific rigor with relatable narrative, while the future of personal genomics goes under the microscope. World 2009-11-20T14:53:30+00:00 http://seedmagazine.com/ http://seedmagazine.com/ Seed's Daily Zeitgeist

1. Where did the science stimulus money go? (source: Scienceworksforus.org)
   More than $20 billion in stimulus money has poured into the nation’s universities, according to a trio of research consortia that recently gathered data from most of the major science institutions across the US. The information is posted to the new ScienceWorksforUs.org, where viewers can search data state by state, including number and size of grants. Though the site may not be visually stunning, what it represents—the largest cash influx into scientific R&D in half a century—is truly remarkable.
2. Arctic photography as extreme sport (source: NPR)
   Photojournalist Paul Nicklen's new book, Polar Obsession, dazzles with images of a pristine world beneath the Canadian Arctic ice—the place, he says, where he feels most at home. View a slideshow of Nicklen's finest work and listen as he talks with NPR's Melissa Block about a surreal encounter with bowhead whales, chasing down a leopard seal, and whether he'd rather have experience or the picture.
3. Artist renders fanciful portraits from myth and microbiology (source: Brushwithscience.com)
   Torn between a career in science and one in art, Julie Newdoll wound up with degrees in both. After working for the University of California San Francisco as a scientific visualization specialist, and dabbling for a few years in film special effects, she started her own company, "Brush with Science." See Newdoll's Chagall-like take on the cell cycle, DNA, the origins of life, and more in her online portfolio.
4. Meet the scientists who will Wikify healthcare (source: MIT Media Lab)
   Technology has revolutionized drug discovery and medical devices, but it hasn't changed the fundamental relationship between the physician and patient, or between doctors and the community as a whole. MIT’s “New Media Medicine” research group thinks it’s time for a massive change. In this series of micro interviews, Media Lab director Frank Moss and his team discuss how IT will leverage the power of ordinary citizens to monitor their own health, contribute to public databases, aid in drug discovery, and ultimately help solve massive global health challenges.
5. Senator fights to keep green energy red, white, and blue (source: GreenInc)
   The Obama Administration is betting big on clean energy to generate American jobs, putting more than a billion dollars of economic stimulus cash toward renewable energy projects. So when two companies proposed to build wind farms in Texas with Chinese-made turbines, New York Senator Charles Schumer vowed to block the stimulus spending. Here’s how the conflict between Chuck and the windmills was resolved.

]]> 2009-11-19T15:57:47+00:00 http://seedmagazine.com/content/article/our_adapting_future/ http://seedmagazine.com/content/article/our_adapting_future/ Current developments in autonomous, biological, and evolutionary robotics will have a profound impact on the future of interactive and dynamic architectural space. Innovation, Design 2009-11-19T13:20:34+00:00 http://seedmagazine.com/ http://seedmagazine.com/ Seed's Daily Zeitgeist

1. Scientists examine the aching hearts of ancient Egypt (source: LiveScience)
   We often think of heart disease as a modern ailment, brought on by things like smoking, diets high in processed foods, or sedentary lifestyles. But researchers recently found evidence for the disease in 3,500-year-old mummies, suggesting it may have much more ancient origins.
2. Watch 200 years of colonialism in less than 4 minutes (source: 3 Quarks Daily)
   A new visualization shows the expansion and decline of the French, British, Portuguese, and Spanish empires over the last 200 years.
3. An artist gives new meaning to the word Biodiversity (source: Abstract City Blog)
   Christopher Neimann uses foliage to create images of pop culture icons, fads, and fashions.
4. Why does Argentina love Freud so much? (source: Mind Hacks)
   Mind Hacks examines why psychoanalysis remains popular in countries where practicing “scientifically oriented, evidence-based psychology” is difficult.
5. The world braces for swine flu outbreak (source: The Big Picture)
   Stunning photographs from around the world capture international preparations for the H1N1 pandemic.

]]> 2009-11-18T17:58:54+00:00 http://seedmagazine.com/content/article/industrial-strength_bias/ http://seedmagazine.com/content/article/industrial-strength_bias/ The pharmaceutical industry spends millions of dollars developing drugs and millions more swaying the opinions of physicians and the public. Can this imperfect system be reformed? Ideas, Findings 2009-11-18T13:34:27+00:00 http://seedmagazine.com/ http://seedmagazine.com/ Seed's Daily Zeitgeist

1. Those pesky long-lasting radioactive isotopes (source: Slate)
   Nuclear power is great—except for the problem of safeguarding radioactive waste. General consensus is to bury it in geologically stable locations. But if the site will be dangerous for millennia, how do you warn far-future civilizations about the threat? The proposed solutions are fascinating, and reveal the difficulties our own society faces in dealing with “deep time.”
2. Citizen scientists, National Public Radio needs your help! (source: NPR)
   NPR is launching a new project called “The Wonderscope.” The idea is simple: Anyone can create short videos explaining various aspects of fundamental science and submit them on NPR’s YouTube channel. Then, NPR selects the cream of the crop and posts them on its website. Thus, NPR gets free ready-made content, and aspiring video journalists get a potential audience of millions. What could go wrong? Hopefully none of the merry pranksters at 4chan.org get wind of this.
3. You, too, can become a fabulously wealthy meat popsicle! (source: H+ Magazine)
   Cryonic preservation—freezing yourself at the end of life to be thawed out in a future where your ills will be treated—seems like a pipe dream, but some people take it very seriously. Seriously enough, in fact, to set up “cryonic estate plans” so that when they are revived in the distant future, they will be extremely rich due to insurance payoffs or accrued interest. Science writer Stephen Cobb ventured into this strange subculture, and came back with the facts.
4. Uranium shortage may hammer swords into plowshares (source: Technology Review)
   According to a new analysis by Michael Dittmar of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, we may run out of nuclear fuel much sooner than policymakers realize. Dittmar dismisses commercial nuclear fusion, and says hopes for “fast breeder” reactors that produce more nuclear fuel are overblown. He concludes with a hopeful warning: The western world may run short of fissile material by 2013—unless military sources like nuclear missiles are dismantled and used.
5. How to make the definitive molecular gastronomy cookbook (source: NY Times)
   Nathan Myhrvold, the eccentric former chief technology officer of Microsoft, is on a mission: to create the standard text for molecular gastronomy, a culinary movement that adapts industrial technology to home and restaurant cooking. The New York Times reporter Ken Chang visited Myhrvold’s production warehouse in Bellevue, Washington to investigate, discovering oodles of gee-whiz science behind the seemingly simple act of producing a cookbook.

]]> 2009-11-17T17:08:29+00:00 http://seedmagazine.com/content/article/let_there_be_light/ http://seedmagazine.com/content/article/let_there_be_light/ Astronomers will soon find scores of Earth-sized exoplanets, but imaging them may be decades away. That is, unless NASA decides to build a starshade. Innovation, Technology 2009-11-17T13:30:43+00:00 http://seedmagazine.com/ http://seedmagazine.com/ Seed's Daily Zeitgeist

1. UK’s most famous sex blogger is actually a bench scientist (source: The Times UK)
   For more than six years, the erudite, pseudonymous blogger “Belle de Jour” has written “The Dairy of a London Call Girl,” which chronicled her experiences as a high-end escort. After much speculation, Belle has revealed her identity and her day job: neurotoxicologist.
2. Genentech ghostwriters infiltrated the Congressional Record (source: New York Times)
   Genentech, one of the world’s largest biotech companies and a subsidiary of pharmaceutical giant Roche, has been literally writing congressional talking points for both sides of the aisle. Their aim: squash competition from generics.
3. The 2D Mandelbrot set becomes the 3D “Mandelbulb” (source: Skytopia)
   A team of computer scientists has given the famous fractal set a new dimension, transforming its infinite coastlines into infinite caverns of spooky, otherworldly beauty.
4. Crunching the numbers on fourth down (source: New York Times)
   When the Colts topped the Patriots last night in a come-from-behind win, much of the blame was laid at the feat of Pats coach Bill Belichick, and his decision to go for it on 4th and 2 with two minutes left in the game. It seemed like a boneheaded move, but statistically, it was likely the right call.
5. Hippo vs. Croc: Not a fair fight (source: Daily Mail)
   In this series of amazing photographs, watch what happens when a crocodile tries to make a dash over the backs of 50 wading hippopotami. Suffice it to say, the hippos win.

]]> 2009-11-16T17:09:51+00:00 http://seedmagazine.com/content/article/uncanny_valley/ http://seedmagazine.com/content/article/uncanny_valley/ New findings shed light on a century’s worth of bizarre explanations for the eerie feeling we get around lifelike robots. Ideas, Theory 2009-11-16T13:30:46+00:00 http://seedmagazine.com/content/article/perfect_strangers/ http://seedmagazine.com/content/article/perfect_strangers/ The eerie emotional response brought on by near-duplicates of our selves raises interesting questions about perception and expectations. Ideas 2009-11-16T13:30:35+00:00 http://seedmagazine.com/ http://seedmagazine.com/ Seed's Daily Zeitgeist

1. Beware the fat-making germs (source: NPR)
   The trillions of bacteria happily churning away in our guts are invaluable helpers in the process of digesting food. Specific types of gut microbes, however, may be linked to obesity, according to recent research.
2. Malcolm Gladwell explains Christmas (source: Vanity Fair)
   A light-hearted spoof of New Yorker behavioral science guru Gladwell hits all the buttons: the exhilarating tone, the quirky experiments, and the occasional hilarious hyperbole.
3. Multitaskers get distracted in the mid— (source: American Scientist)
   The ability to juggle many tasks may not be such an asset after all. A new report says all information looks equally important to multitaskers, which means that the head-phoned web surfer and cell phone handler is much worse at filtering out extraneous information than the person who takes things one step at a time.
4. Are we in Denial, or are we Unscientific? (source: Slate)
   Denialism's Michael Specter and Unscientific America's Chris Mooney face off at Slate's Book Club on what, exactly, is wrong with Americans' attitudes about science.
5. Pseudopysch: Taking evolutionary psychology to task (source: BBC)
   Has the mind evolved as much as the body? Professor Steve Jones investigates what science can tell us—and more importantly, what science cannot tell us—about the evolution of cognition.

]]> 2009-11-13T15:13:11+00:00 http://seedmagazine.com/content/article/signs_from_above/ http://seedmagazine.com/content/article/signs_from_above/ The release of an apocalyptic movie prompts NASA to debunk planetary rumors, fowl play shuts down the LHC, and the Catholic Church discusses alien life. World 2009-11-13T13:12:15+00:00 http://seedmagazine.com/ http://seedmagazine.com/ Seed's Daily Zeitgeist

1. New “Orchid Hypothesis” suggests a startling view of human strength (source: The Atlantic)
   For decades, behavioral scientists have hewn to the “vulnerability hypothesis,” which holds that certain genes make people more vulnerable to psychiatric disorders. Now, as David Dobbs reports, some researchers believe that these troublesome genes play a critical role in our species’ astounding success.
2. Size up progress on our collective carbon footprint (source: Good)
   With the Copenhagen Climate Summit fast approaching, it's time to assess how the world is doing on its greenhouse gas emissions. In this infographic, see the five top emitters in each region of the world, their recent changes in carbon output, and where they fall on the list of top global polluters.
3. Here Comes the Sun... Achoo! (source: Scienceline.org)
   Do you sneeze when you look at the Sun? This phenomenon, knows as the "photic sneeze reflex," has largely eluded our attempts to understand it. But genes, brainstems, and mixed-up signals are likely all involved, attracting the interest of the personal genomics company 23andMe and researchers from UC San Francisco who want you to help them out.
4. Chinese scientists reboot African agriculture (source: SciDev.net)
   In a bid to save Africa's languishing farms, China is planning to open a network of 10 agricultural technology centers across the continent. The first center, scheduled to open in Mozambique in 2010, will also benefit China by giving it access to plenty of low-cost African produce.
5. Rain puddles will never look the same again (source: 3quarksdaily)
   In this video, water droplets falling at normal speed look fairly ordinary. But slowed to 2,000 frames per second, H20 reveals something astonishing. Mathematician John Bush explains what‘s going on.

]]> 2009-11-12T16:46:12+00:00 http://seedmagazine.com/content/article/fire_water_acid_and_stone/ http://seedmagazine.com/content/article/fire_water_acid_and_stone/ In Bernhard Edmaier’s photographs, glowing rivers of lava and scarred volcanic plains share the stage with more obscure markers of tectonic activity—sulfurous crystals, eerily hued lakes, and pools of bubbling mud. Books 2009-11-12T13:08:04+00:00 http://seedmagazine.com/ http://seedmagazine.com/ Seed's Daily Zeitgeist

1. Sickness haunts a former Soviet nuclear test site (source: The Big Picture)
   For 40 years, the Soviets detonated nuclear weapons at Semipalatinsk Polygon in Kazakhstan. In all, the site saw 456 atomic explosions. The Big Picture Blog captures the contemporary aftermath.
2. Are PhDs the new bachelor’s degree? (source: DrugMonkey)
   What would happen if more people were required to do graduate-level science work? DrugMonkey weighs the pros and cons of awarding more PhDs.
3. A life spent behind concrete has its downsides (source: Somatosphere)
   A little more than two decades after Gorbachev tore down the wall between East and West Berlin, questions remain as to the psychological and social after-effects of life in a walled-in city.
4. What’s so bad about human-animal hybrids? (source: LiveScience)
   Putting human DNA in animals could someday provide us with a new way to study diseases and potentially allow us to grow and harvest human organs in animal hosts. But is it ethical? Can it be regulated? The UK Academy of Medical Sciences has announced a new project that seeks to answer these questions.
5. Scientists dig up a new dinosaur species in South Africa (source: Physorg.com)
   Paleontologists announce the discovery of a new, 200 million-year-old dinosaur, Aardonyx celestae.

]]> 2009-11-11T17:18:40+00:00 http://seedmagazine.com/content/article/probing_into_depression/ http://seedmagazine.com/content/article/probing_into_depression/ Deep brain stimulation, already established as a treatment for stubborn Parkinson’s disease, may also be useful as a therapy for drug-resistant clinical depression. Ideas, Findings 2009-11-11T13:30:01+00:00 http://seedmagazine.com/ http://seedmagazine.com/ Seed's Daily Zeitgeist

1. A spacecraft that sets sail on waves of light (source: Nytimes.com)
   Yesterday, the Planetary Society, an advocacy organization for space exploration co-founded by the late Carl Sagan, announced plans to test multiple “solar sails” in outer space over the next three years. Solar sails are gossamer-thin membranous spacecraft that use the slight pressure from pure starlight to propel themselves. Since they require no onboard fuel, solar sails could ultimately make interplanetary—even interstellar—travel cheaper and more practical.
2. Why do leaves fall? (source: Npr.org)
   NPR science correspondent Robert Krulwich investigates the science behind one of the simplest questions of autumn: Why do leaves fall off trees? The answer may surprise you.
3. ET and the Pope walk into a bar... (source: Washingtonpost.com)
   This week, the Vatican is holding its first major conference on astrobiology. As this burgeoning field of science brings humanity closer to what seems the nigh-inevitable discovery of extraterrestrial life, thoughtful religious leaders are beginning to grapple with questions such discoveries would raise for their faiths.
4. Bioengineered genitalia make rabbits even more randy (source: Wired.com)
   The art and science of creating replacement body parts through bioengineering has shown amazing progress over the years. First it was soft tissue like ears, then bladders, and now... penises. Using collagen scaffolds and tissue samples, researchers have successfully grown fully functional penises for rabbits. Interestingly, the bioengineered rabbits seemed even more eager than their all-natural counterparts to copulate when given the opportunity. It’s hoped the technique may eventually be useful in humans.
5. Carl Sagan meets Sigur Rós (source: Scienceblogs.com)
   If the late, great astronomer Carl Sagan were still alive, yesterday he would have celebrated his 75th birthday. Though he died in 1996, Sagan’s legacy endures today, not only through his multiple contributions to science, but also through his inspirational, humbling appeals for the entire planet. This goosebump-giving mash-up combines Sagan’s narration of his famous “pale blue dot” soliloquy with haunting images of world news events and the sound of the Icelandic post-rock band Sigur Rós.

]]> 2009-11-10T17:44:34+00:00 http://seedmagazine.com/content/article/bioplastics_man/ http://seedmagazine.com/content/article/bioplastics_man/ Biochemist Oliver Peoples explains how his polymer-producing microbes could transform the plastics industry and why both oceans and landfills will benefit. Innovation, Business 2009-11-10T13:30:24+00:00 http://seedmagazine.com/ http://seedmagazine.com/ Seed's Daily Zeitgeist

1. Happy Carl Sagan Day! (source: Neatorama)
   Carl Sagan was born on November 9, 1934, and to honor the great champion of science, Neatorama has compiled ten interesting tidbits about his illustrious career and fascinating life.
2. Giant stingray captured on film for the first time (source: BBC Earth)
   Though the smalleye stingray was discovered over a century ago, no specimen of this largest variety have ever been documented like this before.
3. With a nudge, better behavior can be fun (source: Volkswagen)
   In a clever combination of behavioral economics and public art, Volkswagen Sweden documents what happens when you inject a little fun into healthier, more sustainable alternatives.
4. Finding the intersection of Interesting, Easy, Beautiful, and True (source: Information is Beautiful )
   David McCandless plots the intersections of four key components of successful visualization—interestingness, integrity, form, and function —and satisfies all four in the process.
5. A Martian request from the US Navy, 1924 (source: Letters of Note)
   When the Earth and Mars neared each other in 1924 (they were a mere 55 million kilometers apart), the Navy sent out a request to astronomers to help them pick up any transmission that might be coming from their Martian counterparts.

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