Surprising Science — February 4, 2009

Guangzhou Is Looking A Lot Like Lagos

Here’s one demographic that’s been lurking under the surface of the new China: Nigerians living in Guangzhou. Apparently with nothing more than a few yuan in their pockets, Nigerians with a head for business have been buying one-way tickets from Lagos and turning up in Chinese cities to enter the textile trade.

As The New Yorker reports, the profit margins are limited and the living conditions are grim, but Nigerian merchants are finding more success than they would back home and are increasingly adding to China’s cultural soup by intermarriage and permanent residency. Will Guangzhou become that shining city on a hill for 21st century migrants?

Strange Maps

America’s news deserts are spreading

Most counties in the U.S. have only one local newspaper, often one that publishes weekly instead of daily.

Two people walking past a dark brick wall with numerous security cameras pointing in various directions.

The Present

Are smart cities a wise idea?

When Google runs a smart city, who owns the data?

Illustration of a young woman with closed eyes, smiling, next to a large, detailed eye and surrounded by vibrant, abstract elements and smiley faces.

Neuropsych

Eyes wide shut: Why psychedelic trips intensify when you close your eyes

A recent study suggests that exposure to visual stimuli diminishes the effects of psychedelic drugs.

Starts With A Bang

The big idea of Grand Unified Theories of physics

If the electromagnetic and weak forces unify to make the electroweak force, maybe, at higher energies, something even grander happens?

Microscopic image of a small electronic component with clear details of its structure and connections against a gray background.

The Future

Making microbots smart

What would it take to create a truly intelligent microbot, one that can operate independently?

Up Next

Politics & Current Affairs

Change Has Come to the Dry Martini

In these economic times, it’s hard to imagine anyone who doesn’t long for a dry martini. But Jason Wilson in the Washington Post today asserts that the “post-war era dry […]