Remembering A Great Science Educator
Seventeen years ago, Phil Yam, then news editor (now managing editor, online), was looking for a rent-a-kid to test out the newly opening physics playground at the New York Hall of Science.
Stop Lecturing Me (In College Science)!
College lecture classes have been around for more than 900 years. Lately, a handful of science and engineering professors have been experimenting with a more innovative way of teaching science, especially at the introductory level.
Strong Wind Science: The Power of a Pinwheel
An energy exploration from Science Buddies
For Admirers of Audubon and Sibley, Two Recurring Art Exhibits
If you appreciate John J. Audubon’s exacting detail and beautiful compositions and you marvel at the encyclopedic knowledge and delicate illustrations in the famous Sibley Bird Guides you may be interested to know that there are many contemporary masters following in their footsteps today.
Science in the Abstract: Don't Judge a Study by its Cover
A competition for attention lies at the heart of the scientific enterprise. And the abstract is its “blurb.” A scientific abstract is a summary used to attract readers to an article and to get a piece of research accepted for a conference presentation.
What Makes Congress’s Latest Effort to Curb Science Funding So Dangerous?
A bill making its way through the House Science, Space and Technology Committee would set the country’s science agenda by favoring certain disciplines
Bill Bryson: A Champion of Science and Science Communication
The popular author embarked a decade ago on his eye-opening journey of research for the acclaimed science book A Short History of Nearly Everything. At that time, he could never have envisaged the popularity and esteem his book would be held in today
Reflections of a Fourth Year Medical Student
"We pass through the present with our eyes blindfolded. We are permitted merely to sense and guess at what we are actually experiencing. Only later when the cloth is untied can we glance at the past and find out what we have experienced and what meaning it has." - Milan Kundera Two weeks ago, I [...]
Creativity and Technology: Closing the Perception Gap
So many people are stifled by their own preconceived beliefs about what they can and can't do. That's a shame and in our household we try hard to remove "can't" from our vocabulary. The biggest tragedy is when someone is afraid of, or steered away from, trying by stereotypes and social norms that are in a large [...]
The Quest: Get the Lowdown on the Pills You're Popping
Looking up information about prescription medications used to mean thumbing through the pages of the big blue Physicians' Desk Reference (PDR), or more recently, searching the PDR website.
Surface Science: Where Does a Basketball Bounce Best?
A physics problem from Science Buddies
Books Roundup: Creating Convictions
Three books explore why we believe and how to become a skeptic