Even though the press coined the nickname “Typhoid Mary” over a century ago, the sad story of Mary Mallon has become acutely relevant again over the past few months. As an asymptomatic typhoid carrier, Mallon became infamous for infecting at least 51 people — though some estimates put the tally at more than 122 — […]
On March 8th, 1994, civilians in western Michigan on the edge of Lake Michigan called 911 en masse about strange lights in the sky, described as mostly cylindrical, moving up and down in altitude, and having a vertical row of lights on them. They appeared to be coordinated, as one caller described them as moving […]
Inspired by an essay by Barjavel, the 70-year-old documentary proposes the evolution of television in transportable pocket format, and the way in which humans will interact with the objects. Today, parallels are drawn between the objects, like smartphones, described in the short documentary. People using miniature-television devices in public places; professional meetings conducted via picture-phones; […]
SARS-CoV-2 might soon become the 26th pathogen that U.S. health officials can immunize against. And while none of us will soon forget the coronavirus pandemic, widespread vaccinations throughout time have helped the public forget the threats that other pathogens carry. As the COVID-19 pandemic persists in the U.S., some caregivers have put off bringing children in […]
When America first dreamed of sending astronauts to another world, German-American rocket engineer Wernher von Braun didn’t want to go to the moon. He wanted to send dozens of people to Mars. He envisioned a winged craft soaring through the Red Planet’s atmosphere, landing gently on the rust-colored surface. And though earthlings quickly learned that […]
The first IQ test wasn’t invented to measure IQ. In 1905, French psychologists developed the Binet-Simon test to identify children who needed individualized help outside of school. Yet, as time went on, psychologists refined the Binet-Simon test and developed many more — and started to attribute performance to someone’s “general intelligence.” But are IQ tests […]
Eric who? — the Admiral The admiral at the center of controversial notes describing his inability to access a classified UFO research program says the documents are bogus. Furthermore, he says the alleged author of those notes, physicist Dr. Eric Davis, never interviewed him. “It’s all fiction,” says former Defense Intelligence Agency Director […]
On March 8th, 1994, civilians in western Michigan on the edge of Lake Michigan called 911 en masse about strange lights in the sky, described as mostly cylindrical, moving up and down in altitude, and having a vertical row of lights on them. They appeared to be coordinated, as one caller described them as moving […]
Let’s face it, we’re not going anywhere, at least not anytime soon. Anyone who grew up on a diet of science fiction—often Star Trek or Star Wars of one generation or another—has at some point felt the longing for actual, real-world interstellar travel. Then come the hard doses of adult reality. We have no remotely […]
Baker Perry is a man at the top of his field. That’s not a professional judgement, it’s a simple statement of fact. Perry studies weather and climate at extreme high altitudes at Appalachian State University in North Carolina. As part of his field work, he has installed meteorology stations in some truly rarefied locations, including […]
Developing fetuses in the womb can be incredibly sensitive to both stressful environments and toxic assaults on their mother’s health. Infections with viruses like Zika or varicella, the culprit behind chickenpox, can cause serious birth defects — and lead to devastating cognitive difficulties and visual impairment. But will exposure to COVID-19 wreak the same kind […]
After sustained declines in the number of COVID-19 cases over recent months, restrictions are starting to ease across the U.S. Numbers of new cases are falling or stable at low numbers in some states, but they are surging in many others. Overall, the U.S. is experiencing a sharp increase in the number of new cases a day, […]
In the contemporary moment of sex-positive feminism, praises for the orgasmic capacity of the vibrator abound. “They’re all-encompassing, a blanket of electricity, that’ll course through your veins, producing orgasms you didn’t know you were physically capable of having,” wrote Erica Moen in her web comic “Oh Joy Sex Toy.” Vibrators today go hand in hand with […]
A recent retraction of a paper in the International Journal of Impotence Research leads down a rabbit-hole of pseudoscience. The paper in question was published in 2013. In this article, authors Chu et al. studied the effectiveness of a compound called “Impaza,” which they hoped would enhance erectile function in male rats. They reported that […]
Sometimes, old drugs find a new purpose. A widely available steroid called dexamethasone might hold the potential to save a lot of lives that otherwise would be lost to coronavirus. Preliminary results released from a randomized and controlled clinical trial involving more than 6,000 patients found that administering dexamethasone significantly reduced deaths among those with […]