What would you think if a third of the world’s population were infected with a bacterium? And if this was one that caused a deadly disease—one that was becoming resistant to all known drugs? Science fiction, maybe? In fact, a third of the world is infected with just such a thing. Two billion people are … Continue reading »
When it comes to spaceships, who does the rebuilding? And how much does it cost? Looking at stars costs billions and billions…have a look at an engineer’s view on space news, in Mike Macartney’s new post. Sick Satellites and Occam’s Razor by Mike Macartney The huge ENVISAT spacecraft is failing according to the BBC. But, did … Continue reading »
For some of us, skepticism has almost become a religion. After I read each new science report, I often find myself wondering what I believe. Engineer Mike Macartney’s new article plays with the two ideas that I sometimes think of as fighting siblings, belief and science. Carl Sagan said, “Science is a way of thinking much … Continue reading »
Who is responsible for outer-space litter? And if you drop something when your out there in orbit, does it just float around? Or is it a loose cannon? Engineer Mike Macartney takes a look at technology to clean the heavens in this new article. Trash Day on Thursdays by Mike Macartney They make so much noise, the … Continue reading »
Freedom of information sharing is a right we take for granted in science. And in biomedical research we felt secure about that right, until this year. This is the year everything changed. Information sharing is the subject of a new National Academies Press publication, just out and freely available at the link: http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=13295 . The experts debate the best … Continue reading »
Being a lightweight is not necessarily a compliment. Unless you are a computer or phone, or maybe a bicycle, car or plane. A new report, on “Application of Lightweighting Technology to Military Vehicles, Vessels, and Aircraft” is just out. It is available free online at the National Academies Press, at: http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=13277 . There, you can … Continue reading »
Are men and women different? When it comes to the body, yes. Aside from the obvious, we have differences in diseases. For example, the H1N1 flu affected pregnant women more than other people during the pandemic. And women have more cases of lupus and osteoporosis than men. The health and disease of our heart, muscles, … Continue reading »
In science experiments, you do it once and it works, maybe you were lucky. You do it twice, it might be a real result. But when you describe how to do it, and someone else successfully repeats it – that’s a paper. Making it clear enough for someone else to get it, is a requirement of science journal publication. … Continue reading »
What is the largest part of the healthcare workforce in the U.S.? Nursing is. With over 3 million workers, nursing leads the healthcare workforce in numbers. But nurses’ roles will have to change with healthcare reform. Nurse training has evolved with the times. Has it changed enough? The top read report in the past year, of … Continue reading »
