Monthly Archives: September, 2010
How to Learn
We have discussed in the past how the educational system seems headed for a serious shake-up to say the least, an idea shared by a guest contributor. The fact remains that the exorbitant costs, coupled with the tenure system and the misplaced priorities (professors gain tenure by publishing articles rather than supporting their students) risks [...]
Why your Hybrids won’t make any difference
No, this isn’t referring back to our Eco-friendliness of Hybrids article, but to why, even assuming you did your homework and your hybrid consumes fewer BTU’s, chances are you won’t make the environment better. In fact, you may be making it worse. It is called The Rebound Effect, and it concerns not only hybrids, but [...]
The Rational Optimist
Matt Ridley’s new book, The Rational Optimist, is a book telling us that the future won’t be all that bad, and it is a book that ought to be read by all. As a warning, if you think progress has brought nothing but corruption and a worsening of what we hold near and dear you’re [...]
In a Confusing World, how to keep up with Current Events
These days it can be difficult to know what you’re getting with Current Events. Is your main source biased? Is it too regional? Is it too leftist? Too rightist? Does a US news outlet really understand what is happening in India? Does your European outlet really understand the Arab world? As much as your local [...]
The Dumb Scientist Theory
Proteins are organic compounds made of amino acids, the so-called “building blocks of life”. The structure of proteins is quite well understood, as is how they are encoded into DNA. What is less understood, however, is how they become 3 dimensional structures, or how they “fold”. The calculations to determine this can be very time [...]
