Throughout Africa and southern Asia, farmers are using pumps and other small-scale methods to irrigate their crops.
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In the past, the leading cause of injury deaths in America has consistently been car crashes but a new study has found that there are now more deaths each year from suicide.
Over 90% of respondents around the world said that the War on Drugs has failed — and it’s no surprise why.
How do we understand the rate of technological change and how can we develop the tools to best adapt to this change?
It is frightening to observe how persistently people reject evidence that presents some truth inconvenient to their deeper beliefs and self identities; excessive fear of vaccines, or fluoride, or nuclear […]
Argentinians have been using Paypal to circumvent the devaluation of the peso, but new government restrictions are making it much harder.
While there are many ways in which pundits are gauging economic recovery, some light can be shed from the Red Lobster’s tasty cheddar biscuits.
Scientists combating the effects of climate change, such as rising water levels and eroding coastlines, have found natural ally in the mangrove.
“They always say time changes things,” Andy Warhol once said, “but you actually have to change them yourself.” Warhol simultaneously embodied and changed his time—a combination that continues to work […]
What type of ethics training do both individuals and organizations need to navigate through the ethical minefields of business in the 21st century?
Urban noise pollution is associated with increased risk factors for fatal diseases, says the World Health Organization. But sound can also be employed to make cities better places.
In laboratory conditions, scientists successfully created a fearful memory in the minds of volunteers, then erased it. The findings could aid in the treatment of anxiety disorders.
Just a brief announcement: The weekend of November 9, I’ll be in Springfield, Missouri for Skepticon 5. Since I had such a blast at Skepticon 4 last year, there’s no […]
The idea of getting eight hours sleep at night is a modern invention, one that is ironically no longer sustainable because of technological advances. But a better schedule is possible…
This is part 4 of my review of Steven Pinker’s “The Better Angels of Our Nature”. Read Part 1 here, part 2 here and part 3 here. In my last […]
Over the last few years, researchers have scanned brains while they are at rest. They have found that the brain continues to function at a very high rate even when not occupied with tasks.
I want to put an end to this argument, since I’m seeing it frequently touted and pointed to and nodded at like a mantra. Phrase it however you want: “it’s […]
So, a few of you have asked, why have you stopped talking about movies? It’s not that I’ve stopped seeing them. The truth is that movies have gotten so much […]
So Romney is taking a big and deserved hit for his stupid and arrogant remark that 47% of Americans won’t vote for him because they don’t pay income taxes and, […]
Researchers have successfully modified nanoparticles to make them more effective at delivering medication directly to specific organelles within the body’s cells, opening new treatment options.
Public health experts generally agree that policies which encourage positive lifestyle changes will improve the economy by increasing worker productivity and reducing health care costs.
Monsanto’s Roundup-resistant corn causes tumors and liver problems in rats, says a team of French researchers. Proponents of California’s ballot initiative to label GMOs have seized on the results.
Today, I had the dubious pleasure of discovering that one of the research associates working at the MIT AgeLab has 1392 unread messages in his primary email inbox. 1392! As in, […]
Government authorities now claim that certain foods contain the same addictive properties as certain drugs. Recent advances in neuroscience seem to support their conclusions.
Facial symmetry, long known to help form our concept of beauty, is also a good indicator of general health, say American and Scottish scientists who have completed a study on macaques.
I’ll be posting another actual ATNT post tomorrow. For now, I just want to indicate other posts I’ve written recently. 1. MAKING MONSTERS [link] At my friend Martin Pribble’s blog, […]
Arguments on both sides of this question were aired at a thought-provoking colloquium sponsored by the Hannah Arendt Center at Bard College on September 21-22: “Does the President Matter? A […]
Data gathered for a new study suggests that some parents’ beliefs on children and alcohol exposure are dangerously misguided.
A new study shows that, contrary to expectations, people are much better at intuiting others’ emotional states when there’s no financial incentive involved.