There has been quite a lot of discussion (again, groan, I know) about pseudonymity and anonymity online, due to Google Plus decision to delete accounts that seem (to them, within their cultural frames) to be pseudonymous. [More]
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Feed SubscriptionHimalaya glaciers shrinking on global warming, some may disappear
By Tan Ee Lyn HONG KONG (Reuters) - Three Himalaya glaciers have been shrinking over the last 40 years due to global warming and two of them, located in humid regions and on lower altitudes in central and east Nepal, may disappear in time to come, researchers in Japan said on Tuesday. [More]
Read More »Depression Study in China Reveals Some Surprises Compared with the West
By David Cyranoski of Nature magazine The largest-ever study of the genetics of depression is set to go ahead in China, after a major survey found that the condition largely has the same triggers and symptoms there as in the West -- albeit with a few startling exceptions. Previous studies on twins in Sweden have shown that genetics explains about 40% of a woman's risk of depression, and about 30% of a man's. [More]
Read More »Syrians Upload Ramadan Massacre Footage Onto YouTube With Pen Cameras And Smuggled Tech
After Syrian troops began shelling civilian targets in the city of Hama, brave activists used smuggled phones and sympathetic allies abroad to upload grainy, graphic warfare footage onto YouTube. On Sunday Syrian tanks assaulted Hama and shelled civilian targets; at least 70 are confirmed dead and hundreds more seriously injured. Observers are calling it the " Ramadan Massacre " since it occurred on the eve of the Muslim holiday.
Read More »NASA Spacecraft Shows Giant Asteroid Vesta Like Never Before
A NASA spacecraft orbiting the huge asteroid Vesta is beaming home images that reveal the giant space rock like never before, showing its battered and pockmarked surface in stunning detail. [More]
Read More »How Saving Energy Means Conserving Water in U.S. West
California likes to think of itself as being ahead of the curve. So when the state set out to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, regulators did all the right things - stringent tailpipe standards for cars, tighter codes for buildings, higher renewable energy standards for utilities. Then they took one of the most aggressive energy-saving steps of all.
Read More »MTV’s 30th Anniversary
Monday, August 01 MTV's allergy to nostalgia isn't a pose but a savvy strategy for a channel whose median viewer just stopped having to ask his older brother to buy him beer. Since MTV's 30th anniversary is likely to pass like its 25th, which barely earned an on-air nod, we've traced the brand from its colicky infancy through its earnest preteen years and wayward adolescence to its present as a Snooki-faced memento mori for anyone old enough to remember Dan Cortese's bandannas.
Read More »Heat, thunderstorms on tap in U.S. as tropical storm watch eyed
By Molly O'Toole WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Overnight thunderstorms peppered the Northeast on Monday and threatened to return with damaging wind gusts and hail as record-breaking heat tightened its grip on the Southern and Central Plains. [More]
Read More »Introducing #SciAmBlogs bloggers: Charles Q. Choi
Every week I post a quick Q&A with one of our bloggers on the network, so you can get to know them better.
Read More »Painful Pessimism: Our Expectations Influence How Well Drugs Work
An upbeat attitude can do more than put a spring in your step; it can also improve medical outcomes. Although the power of positive thinking is clear, little is known about how negative mind-sets affect the success of therapies. Now cognitive neuroscientist Irene Tracey of the Uni
Read More »A Signal for Solitude: Monkeys Create Their Own Rudimentary Language Sign
The Colchester Zoo in England is home to a community of mandrills, the largest of the monkeys. One of these mandrills, a female named Milly, began covering her eyes with her hand when she was three. A dozen years later Milly and her zoo mates continue to perform this gesture, which appears to mean “do not disturb.” The signal is the first gesture with cultural roots reported in monkeys
Read More »Robot seals help heal Japan’s tsunami victims
By Chris Meyers TOKYO, Aug 1 (Reuters Life!) - For some elderly survivors of [More]
Read More »Bombarded: Electromagnetic Radiation of Our Own Making Fills the "Empty" Air
You cannot see them, but radio waves pervade your peaceful living space. They emanate from an increasingly large menagerie of electronic gadgets, appliances and satellites. FM radio and broadcast television have been around for years; more recently, cell phones and Wi-Fi routers have added their high frequencies to the mix
Read More »Japanese rice to be tested for radioactive cesium
By Yuko Takeo TOKYO (Reuters) - More than a dozen regional governments in Japan will conduct tests to determine whether locally grown rice contains too much radioactive cesium, farm ministry officials said on Monday, as food safety worries spill into the country's traditional staple.
Read More »What Do You Mean, the Universe Is Flat? Part II: In Which We Actually Answer the Question
Stand up.
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