Category Archives: Science

Theory Evolution is Not Obvious

Main point: Learn first. Make up your mind later. I personally think that the theory of evolution is one of the most beautiful and world-changing ideas ever discovered and formulated by man. But I don’t agree with a commonly stated … Continue reading

Posted in Science | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Storing DNA At Birth

Concerns over violations of privacy can too easily fall into a fear spiral of worst case scenarios. I think privacy is a very important staple of a free society, but we have to keep it in perspective, and weigh both … Continue reading

Posted in Philosophy, Politics, Science | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

John McCarthy: Father of Artificial Intelligence

John McCarthy died today at the age of 84. He coined the term Artificial Intelligence and invented LISP: the programming language that every computer scientist interested in A.I. considers to be his first love (as far as programming languages go). … Continue reading

Posted in Science, Technology | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The “Predictive Power” of Biblical Numerics

Harold Camping predicted Judgement Day will be on May 21, 2011. That day has come and gone. The prediction proved to be incorrect. Being an engineer myself, I was embarrassed and saddened to learn that Harold Camping received a B.S. … Continue reading

Posted in Philosophy, Science | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Polyphasic Sleep: A Look at Sleeping Patterns

Sleep is fundamentally a social phenomena in that when (and how long) you sleep is often determined by the social norms, personal responsibilities, and the people in your life. The more freedom you have in this regard, the more freedom … Continue reading

Posted in Health, Psychology, Science | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Plants Having Sex With You Without Consent

Every spring, one in five Americans (including myself) suffer from some kind of allergy symptoms. 35 million have an allergy to pollen: hay fever. As the title of this content-free post suggests, pollen is a powder that plants spread around … Continue reading

Posted in Health, Science, Statistics | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Balanced Energy Diet: Nuclear Dessert

A balanced diet of macro-nutrients (carbs, protein, fat) is good for you. Why? Don’t make me bring the stupid broccoli analogy out again… The point is that balance, in general, is a good idea. It’s good for reducing risk through … Continue reading

Posted in Politics, Science | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

State of the Union: Winner of the Science Fair

I wrote the State of the Union Speech that the President delivered yesterday. I know this because he said everything that I wanted him to say: “We need to teach our kids that it’s not just the winner of the … Continue reading

Posted in Politics, Science | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Metric System Adoption in the United States

The United States is one of only 3 countries that has not adopted a metric system of measurement. The SI (international system of units) is the most popular standard: Meter, Kilogram, Second, Ampere, Kelvin, Candela, Mole. Given that SI is a standard system of measurement in science, … Continue reading

Posted in Politics, Science | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment