From the category archives:

science

Whole Lotta Umami

January 5, 2010
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The cooking buzzword last year was umami, the “fifth taste” responsible for our sensing “meatiness.” Before that taste had a name, however, cooks in the know had a pantry full of components they could add to boost a dish’s savory notes. A quick look through the Belm Research Kitchen turned up these (not including the [...]

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The iTerrarium

November 25, 2009
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I thought that my Macquarium was the finest example of what could be done with a Macintosh that had reached the end of its useful life. Then I saw the iTerrarium constructed by Paul Riddell of the Texas Triffid Ranch, and knew that I had another example to add to my collection. When Paul announced [...]

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The Botany of Desire

November 3, 2009
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The first time I saw the title of Michale Pollan’s novel about “a plant’s-eye view of the world,” I couldn’t help but think of the Either/Orchestra, a local jazz ensemble that had released albums titled The Half-Life of Desire and The Calculus of Lust. But The Botany of Desire isn’t about what goes on between [...]

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Chocolate, or Shinola?

October 21, 2009
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Taza Chocolate sent me an email today announcing the availability of this year’s Special Edition Stone Ground Chiapan Chocolate. I’ve tasted last year’s edition (is “edition” really the appropriate description for a short-run foodstuff?), it’s definitely good chocolate, but the stuff costs $9.50 for a three-ounce bar. I’ll buy a bar or two this year [...]

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Science and the Deity

October 20, 2009
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Not the Deity, Mr. Deity. If you haven’t heard of him, visit his web site and get caught up on his doings. Recently he’s been looking for a science advisor, and may have found one in PZ Meyers, biologist and writer of the blog Pharyngula: “Evolution, development, and random biological ejaculations from a godless liberal.” [...]

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Mahlon Hoagland: 1921-2009

September 25, 2009
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He worked with James Watson and Francis Crick. He discovered transfer RNA and amino acid activation. He was twice nominated for the Nobel Prize. His name was Mahlon Hoagland, he passed away last week, and you have never heard of him. I had never heard of him until a series of unlikely circumstances brought us [...]

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Primordial Soup

September 24, 2009
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I found this video of Julia Child explaining the Miller-Urey experiment, and thought I’d share it with you. I don’t know about you, but I wish more of my science teachers had been as enthusiastic about their subject as Julia is. When I first read about this experiment, I got all fired up and was [...]

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five-five-FIVE

September 22, 2009
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Today’s post is about music and science. In this video, a lecture from the World Science Festival, singer Bobby McFerrin demonstrates how humans seem to be hardwired to generate a pentatonic scale. The great thing about the presentation is that it’s not passive. I’m sure you found yourself anticipating the next interval just as the [...]

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Meet a Real Scientist

September 15, 2009
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Before my career path diverged toward web design, multimedia, and other computer-related geekery, I was a biologist. It was something I knew I wanted to be from an early age. When I read about the discovery of the genetic code at MIT, I knew where I wanted to go to college to learn biology. And [...]

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He Fed the World

September 14, 2009
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Norman Borlaug, father of the Green Revolution, died this past weekend at the age of 95. I had written about him not to long ago, and now he’s gone, one of the greatest  – and virtually unknown – benefactors of humanity. My headline isn’t hyperbole, it’s fact. Borlaug is singlehandedly responsible for preventing mass famines [...]

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