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Are Cities Alive?

September 3, 2009
James Lovelock first coined the term Gaia, a word that means viewing the Earth as a single living, breathing organism. A new scientific trend views the world's biggest cities the same way. More than half the world's population today lives... continued

Placebos Working Better Than Ever

September 2, 2009
But why? - Nobody can figure out why, but placebos are working better than ever. Are people more gullible than they used to be? In Wired.com, Steve Silberman reports on a major drug company that was losing money because it... continued

War Games

September 2, 2009
The military often uses special "games" to play out scenarios about whether or not it would be wise to undertake a certain military exercise (but do they pay attention to the results? That's another topic!) It turns out that this... continued

If it’s HOT Where You Are

September 1, 2009
Here's why - What's going on with the weather?More extremely hot summer days are projected for every part of the country. While the data show indisputable warming over the past several decades, cooler-than-average temperatures across the Midwest and Northeast this... continued

Some Moon Rocks are Fake

September 1, 2009
It's like a bad dream: A piece of moon rock given to the Dutch Rijksmuseum in 1969 by the three Apollo astronauts has been revealed to be fossilized wood. This is certainly fuel for conspiracy theories! At the time, fragments... continued

Surprising Hangover Cure

August 31, 2009
News Year's isn't the only time you're likely to drink too much. There are lots of clever hangover cures, most of which don't work. But here's a new one: asparagus. The amino acids and minerals found in asparagus extract may... continued

Smell Study

August 31, 2009
Is smell influenced by our culture or are genes? As part of a year-long recreation of Darwin's epic voyage on the HMS Beagle, olfactory scientist Sanne Boesveldt will explore how people respond to smell at each of the ship's ports... continued

Fake Trees are Fine

August 31, 2009
For some things - Living trees are a vital part of the earth but fake ones can be important too. Engineers want to plant a forest of 100,000 "artificial trees" within the next 10 to 20 years to help soak... continued

Why Do We Sleep?

August 28, 2009
In order to dream, we first have to sleep. Humans spend about one-third of their lives asleep, but sleep researchers still don't know why we do it. The function of sleep is one of the 125 greatest unsolved mysteries in... continued

Anne’s Diary: Two Birthdays

August 28, 2009
In Anne's new diary, she writes: "We were recently in Texas for Whitley's uncle's 90th birthday party. My birthday came around while we were there, and MY celebration was MUCH MORE staid than his!" You can come meet Anne in... continued