The genetic mutation that drives evolution is random. But here’s a list of some beneficial mutations that are known to exist in human beings
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Take two strapping young men. Give one of them a job as a lifeguard from May until September. For the same period, pay the other one to “farm gold” in […]
Oil leaked from an Exxon Mobile pipeline near Laurel, Montana, has spread fifteen miles from its source, five miles further than previously thought, contaminating the Yellowstone River.
BY JASON SILVA “We are enraptured prose-beings raised to the highest power”. – Walter Benjamin, On Hashish Timothy Leary and Buckminster Fuller called themselves “performing philosophers”, using the power of […]
There may be renewed interest in whether we can sense the Earth’s magnetic field after a finding that a light-sensitive protein in our eyes can act as a “compass” in a fly’s eye.
More than 1,000 new species have been discovered in New Guinea in a 10-year span, according to a new report from the conservation organization World Wildlife Fund.
For its central and seemingly endless role in the history of the Western world, Rome more than earns the nickname of “Eternal City.” For centuries that history has sparked the […]
Six months out of the year I try to spend as much time as possible on the roof of my building in Brooklyn, where I’m cooled by a non-air-conditioned breeze, […]
In his new book, 1493, Charles Mann gives us a rich, nuanced account of how the Columbian Exchange continues to reunite the continents and globalize the world.
Airbus says in 40 years time we’ll be able to take night flights, 30,000 feet in the air, and be able to stargaze thanks to the plane’s nature-inspired transparent fuselage.
Robin Chin Roemer, assistant librarian at American University, has launched a new blog focused on library resources related to communication and the media. Given the strong focus among AU communication […]
The other day, the commercial where a cartoon turtle wondered how many licks it took to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop crossed my mind. Maybe this popped […]
As our political and media systems rapidly evolve, social scientists are revisiting and updating existing models, theories, and methods for investigating the effects of the media on political attitudes and […]
Click here to read the Ukrainian language version of this article. Many scientists believe that a rock about 6 miles across plowed into Mexico 65 million years ago, killing the […]
Is it true that deep, sustained reading is an experience only a small minority of people “naturally” enjoy? And if so, does it follow that since “some current college students […]
When arrested in 1936 during a protest over the dismissal of 500 artists from the WPAFederal Art Project, Lee Krasner told the unsuspecting police officer processing her that her name […]
Our famous novelist Jonathan Franzen gave quite the challenging commencement address at Kenyon. Here’s what he said about technology and eros: Let me toss out the idea that, as our […]
Chinese authorities have detained Ai Weiwei, an outspoken critic of China’s government and one of its most famous contemporary artists—he is one among dozens recently held by the state.
In a guest post today, Samantha Miller digs deeper into understanding the nature of labeling in the organic food market. Miller is a graduate student in Journalism at American University. […]
The startup Kiip offers a relatively simple but radical step forward in mobile advertising: why not attach brand interactions to moments of achievement/greatness where we feel elated—namely during video gameplay?
Speaking of the evolution of industries, I couldn’t pass up this example of the upside-down flying goose. This is what innovation looks like in the wild. In this case, the […]
The other day I asked for examples of practical post-rationality—changes in law or policy that happened because institutions have stopped assuming that people behave rationally. A number of people wrote […]
Ever wanted to travel back in time to your favorite city and imagine how it actually existed hundreds of years ago? Or hear the stories of a city’s residents in […]
Sailors used to struggle with it but migratory sea turtles have now proved capable of sensing longitude, using almost imperceptible gradients in Earth’s magnetic field.
Everybody, meet Kergolus. This little furry thing is a geo-mascot, shaped like the territory it symbolises. Top marks if you’re able to guess which territory that is, either by the […]
Bird droppings, snail slime, excreted coffee beans—there’s no substance so vile that it can’t be a must-have product. The Independent explores a world of very gross profits.
In the midst of another April’s Poetry Month, it’s worth considering how closely the sister arts of verbal poetry and visual poetry can be. The almost symbiotic relationship of British […]
Chinese artist Ai Weiwei’s recent abduction is a testament to how powerfully the Chinese government fears the combination of art and communication technology.
There’s been a pretty bizarre spate of mass animal deaths reported around the world. What the hell is going on? Unfortunately, there’s no good answer.
Brilliance in the morning: The New York Times had an absolutely wonderful op-ed today (some of you may have noticed that I have been strongly disagreeing with Victoria Clark’s piece […]