Today's post is a new contribution to our new poetry section. We would like to widen the geographical scope of this section and invite readers to submit their work in any European language. This week's poem is a second submission by Peter Davis on the theme of Chaos. Enjoy! Read more [...]
EuroScientist is opening a new section dedicated to poetry related to science. Readers are invited to submit their work to the editor. We will select the most relevant work, which will feature in our new Poetry sub-section, under the Lifestyle heading of the magazine. We hope to give all poets inspired by science an opportunity to share their vision of the world with the community. Read more [...]
The science of Christmas has become one of the most popular angles adopted in recent news stories in the mainstream press. The Euroscientist team has made a selection from the restricted pool of publications available in English, for your greatest entertainment. You will find stories related to Christmas trees, the science of eating, an unconventional study on the disappearance of chocolates in hospital wards, questions regarding the sustainability of Christmas, as well as scientifically accurate versions of the original Christmas story. The last part of this review will, of course, focus on Santa Claus, the man himself, and is superhuman capabilities. Read more [...]
The Deceived Wisdom: The classic Stradivarius violin has a unique sound that justifies the reverence with which these instruments are held and the million-pound price tags. That's as may be, but scientific analysis of Stradivarius violins reveals there was actually no secret sauce in the wood nor the varnish used by the luthier ClassicFM's Tim Lihoreau refers to as the Cremonese Creator. Indeed, repeated blind tests with expert listeners and virtuoso players has shown that they really cannot distinguish between the absolute top-quality modern instrument and a classic Strad. Read more [...]
It's a moot point that perhaps only one of Einstein's papers went through the modern scientific peer review process and I often wonder whether an email received from him today suggesting that he's overturned Newton's work with talk of warped space-time and wormholes wouldn't simply fail at the first or second step of my "Fraudulent Invention Debunkifier" flowchart mentioned around this time last year on the Pivot Points column. Read more [...]
We all worry about passwords although some people are at the "all-for-one and one-for-all" end of the spectrum where a pet's name or even "password1" is fine and others use only unique, multiple complex, randomized alphanumeric strings with mixed case character sets and symbols. Either way, your password can be cracked. Read more [...]
As the last remnants of holiday dinners, lunches, high-teas, suppers and celebratory breakfasts are collated and one last binge with myriad mixed flavors indulged, thoughts turn to taste. Specifically flavor and the combinations thereof. We all know that celebrity chefs are gluttons for an odd mix: sweet and sour is nothing to the TV cook who garnishes peppered okra with crème Anglaise washed down with a curried champagne spritzer with a hint of flint. And there are those who wouldn't think of leaving the supermarket without a good selection of cheese and wine. Read more [...]
In the West, it's relatively easy to get caught up in the euphoria of Christmas, isn't it? Regardless of one's beliefs in the origins of the Universe and humanity's place in it, countless millions of us succumb to the fake snow and the artificial sentimentality. The twinkling lights, the shops full cotton polymer resin reindeer, the children's (and adult toys), chocolate goodies, the interminable loops of festive songs on the radio, the TV shows you just know were recorded in July but have jolly tinsel and baubles nevertheless. Then there are the parties, the lunchtime "Christmas" drinks, Secret Santa, the bustling shopping centres, the ubiquitous sound of a Jingle Bells sample in every muzak track. Oh isn't it all so wonderful? Read more [...]
In his latest book, Harnessed, cognitive scientist Mark Changizi, reveals how and why language, speech and music exist, and why they are apparently uniquely human attributes that separate us, as a species, from the rest of life on Earth. A fact that also gives us special responsibility for the Earth, you might say. According to Changizi, the "lower" parts of the brain, the bits that recognise the sounds of nature, the scuffs, cracks and bangs, were hijacked by the "upper" parts of our brain and give us speech as we evolved from our ape-like hominid ancestors. Read more [...]
Pivot Points is a monthly column by EuroScientist writer David Bradley. The tabloid media seems to be hooked on addiction, there is no more inane opportunity than to climb aboard the soapbox gravy train or flog the old, dead sawhorses. But, there's Read more [...]
European science conversations by the community, for the community
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