SCIENCE

EARLY MEN OF SCIENCE

Tom Chatfield — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 16:56:40 +0000

Efforts to comprehend the universe were once the preserve of art, philosophy and religion. Tom Chatfield reviews a book that considers the lives of nascent scientists ... read more »

WORKING STIFFS

Natasha Lennard — Fri, 08 Oct 2010 20:36:09 +0000

Funerals for medical cadavers have become increasingly common of late. Natasha Lennard investigates the practice ... read more »

THE LIMITS OF SCIENCE

Anthony Gottlieb — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 14:48:20 +0000

Plenty of today’s scientific theories will one day be discredited. So should we be sceptical of science itself? Anthony Gottlieb explains ... read more »

7 WONDERS: STEVE JONES

Rebecca Willis — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 16:05:00 +0000

Steve Jones, an award-winning writer and broadcaster on evolution, talks to Rebecca Willis about the seven wonders of his world ... read more »

WHO'S THE DADDY?

Catherine Nixey — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 18:20:11 +0000

Studies suggest that many people cannot be the child of the man they know as their father. Now they can get a paternity test over the counter. Catherine Nixey talks to a man who took one ... read more »

USAIN BOLT WRECKED MY THEORY

Ed Smith — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 20:39:39 +0000

Ed Smith had a theory that sprinters—like greyhounds and racehorses—were not getting any faster. But then came Bolt ... read more »

THE SCIENCE OF @#$%&!

Emily Bobrow — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 18:12:23 +0000

Thanks to Lexington for highlighting this article about the relationship between pain and cursing. According to a study published in the current issue of NeuroReport, swearing helps to alleviate pain:

"Swearing has been around for centuries and is an almost universal human linguistic phenomenon," said Richard Stephens of Keele University in England and one of the authors of the new study. "It taps into emotional brain centers and appears to arise in the right brain, whereas most language production occurs in the left cerebral hemisphere of the brain."

Stephens and his fellow researchers proved the neurological efficacy of swearing with the help of 64 undergraduate volunteers. Amusingly, these undergraduates (lured with pocket-change, surely) had to submerge their hands in a tub of ice water for as long as possible while repeating a swear word of their choice; they then repeated the experiment without cursing. (It's hard not to giggle at the image of men in labcoats with clipboards monitoring the blue-mouthed pain of financially insolvent students.) When volunteers swore like sailors, they could keep their hands in the frigid water for longer. read more »

GOING GREEN: MAKING ENERGY PERSONAL

Robert Butler — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 16:38:43 +0000

How much energy do we consume? Does it matter? Robert Butler considers the numbers in his latest Going Green column ... read more »

REDISCOVERING TONY ALLISON

Laura Spinney — Wed, 20 May 2009 17:19:34 +0000

Over 60 years, Tony Allison has made two major breakthroughs. Laura Spinney meets a scientist who should be better known ... read more »

THIS WEEK: A SELECTIVE GUIDE

Jessica Gallucci — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 18:53:28 +0000

TURNER, JEROME ROBBINS, AND THE EYES HAVE IT, TWICE | July 23rd 2008

andereart

Special to MORE INTELLIGENT LIFE

Our guide to what's on around the world, compiled by Jessica Gallucci and Ariel Ramchandani read more »