Philippe Matthews Show Guru Advice, Author Reviews, Tech Reviews, Entertainment News

1 How Did Life Begin? The moment when the first living beings arose from inanimate matter almost four billion years ago is still shrouded in mystery. How did relatively simple molecules in the primordial broth give rise to more and more complex compounds

The popular idea that chemistry is now conceptually understood and that all we have to do is use it is false. Sure, most of the products we use in our daily lives were made possible by modern chemistry. But producing useful compounds is far from all chemists do.

For years, ripples at the surface of the Dead Sea hinted there was something mysterious going on beneath its salt-laden waters. But in a lake where accidentally swallowing the water while diving could lead to near-instant asphyxiation, no one was in a hurry to find out what it might be. This year, some intrepid divers changed that, stumbling onto a geological and biological treasure and capturing it on video

Like others, I learned of Jobs’ passing on an Apple device. S and I were just on our way out the door to pick up dinner when I hit the Facebook app on my iPhone.

I owe this 60-Second Earth gig to Steve Jobs. Without the iPod there's no podcast. But our collective lust for iPod-like gadgets has some outsized impacts on the planet

MINE! That word appears early in life. Toddlers have an idea of ownership. They also have an idea of what can be owned, and what can’t.

During 2011’s deadly onslaught of earthquakes, floods and tornadoes, countless buildings had to be evacuated while workers checked to make sure they were stable. The events served as a reminder that most structures are still inspected by a decidedly low-tech method: the naked eye.

A few years ago the renowned chef Ferran Adri

How much can the brain recover from years of excessive alcohol consumption? --Paul Howlen, London [More]

At first glance the mammoth screen running down a former parking ramp at Lincoln Center looks like something on loan from Times Square, about a dozen blocks to the south.

By Meredith Wadman of Nature magazine The recent finding that women in seven sub-Saharan Africa countries are nearly twice as likely to acquire HIV if they use a popular, long-acting injectable contraceptive, has incensed AIDS researchers. [More]

By Meredith Wadman of Nature magazine The recent finding that women in seven sub-Saharan Africa countries are nearly twice as likely to acquire HIV if they use a popular, long-acting injectable contraceptive, has incensed AIDS researchers. [More]

PCR--the polymerase chain reaction--is a crucial tool. The DNA amplification technique is used in genome sequencing, forensics and the diagnosis of various diseases. To give researchers more genetic material to work with, a PCR instrument repeatedly heats and cools an original biological sample

PCR--the polymerase chain reaction--is a crucial tool. The DNA amplification technique is used in genome sequencing, forensics and the diagnosis of various diseases.

Ada Lovelace Day allows us an opportunity to highlight the work of women in science.