I am particularly interested in the ground squirrels described because simple regional differences are enough to make members of the same species react differently to the rattlesnake venom.  This is such a strong case for the current occurence of evolutionary selection.  Life wants to survive and if there is a specific regional risk life will do what it can to avoid falling prey to it.

Really fascinating stuff.  Oh, and for anyone who has never gottena chance to see a king cobra in a zoo or elsewhere, it is totally worth it.  It really is amazing how large they are.  Furthermore, I have found that elapid snakes seem to be more active and intelligent appearing than the other serpent families.

Now, just considering smallpox alone, which could have upwards of 60% mortality rate (80% for children), we can say that its elimination alone constitutes a pretty great thing.  Furthermore, rinderpest was not a nice disease to deal with either.  So while that might only be two viruses down, it certainly isn’t any small accomplishment.

I know that there are a lot of debates about vaccinations and the potential pros and cons of being vaccinated and I am not here to take one side or the other (mostly becuase I am not nearly as well educated in the science or medical practice as I think one should be to making these kind of arguments) but I will say that if being able to live in a word without smallpox is any degree of a measure then I think vaccination has achieved some very real good.

If you can’t get your hands on the book right away, I recommend Mr. Gray’s website periodictable.com which gives you a good idea of the informationy ou’ll find in the book.  Enjoy!

“[A] sheet of it stretched over a coffee cup could support the weight of a truck bearing down on a pencil point.” ~ The New York Times, Oct. 5th, 2010

Congratulations to Konstantin Novoselov and Andre Geim on winning the Nobel Prize in Physics this year for there work on carbon graphene.  While it is a pleasure to honor these two scientists, what I really want to say is, “Graphene, holy shit you are a cool thing!”

Really, all the various advancements in carbon nano-materials (buckyballs and nanotubes along with the graphene of the prize) is amazing.  This is stuff of dreams.  Incredibly strong, great conductors of heat and electricity, light weight, etc. etc.  I have no doubts, whatsoever, that we will continue to hear more and more about these various carbon nano-materials in the years to come, as they have the potential to revolutionize any number of industries.

But in the meantime, congrats again to Mr. Novoselov and Mr. Geim on their Nobel Prize win.  Good work fellows!

What is more is the future scientific implications.  Could such experiments provide us with a better understand on how we might cultivate a living ecosystem in the hostile environments of other planets?  Planet terraforming (especially of Mars) has long been a staple of science fiction, but if humanity desires to establish lasting colonies on other worlds it may someday require to be science reality.  The idea of using life forms to enact change on lifeless environments is thrilling and provocative.  How might humans go about turning Mars into a habitable world?  Hard to say, but kind of fun to think about anyway.

I, myself, have long found the various elements, that make up the entirety of our universe, very interesting.  However, I admit, that my personal knowledge is limited, at best, to some basic textbook knowledge on the better known members of the table.  I always love reading different perspectives and further information science subjects, and it looks like Mr. Kean is offering a great opportunity here.

Also, just for a fair plug, Mr. Kean’s book The Disappearing Spoon: And Other True Tales of Madness, Love, and the History of the World from the Periodic Table of the Elements, besides being a mouthful of a title, sounds like a wholly fascinating read.  I intend to look for it, as I am sure I’ll enjoy the read.

Okay sure, it is all a bit grim and depressing.  I mean basically you can sum these 10 points up with a simple, “we’re all just a bunch of monkeys, and guess what, the universe is out to get us.”  But really I prefer to take the optimistic swing at things that says “this is why we continue to pursue scientific studies.”

Yes, there is a lot that we do not understand, and there is a lot that is beyond our control, but that is why we keep working at it.  This is why we keep learning and experimenting and asking ourselves the big questions about life, the universe and everything.  Sure we might just be a bunch of super smart, mostly hairless apes, but that is better than nothing.  And hell, the pursuit of all this knowledge is so enjoyable.

So yeah, you might end up catching a super bug, the world may warm up a ton, the sun migt explode and ultimately the universe is probably going to be ripped apart by a completely unknown force called dark energy, but heck, we’re here and now so why not make the most of it?

While it may still be too early to determine what discoveries will be made with the LHC, it is very likely that the giant particle collider will provide for studying all sorts of aspects of the most micro-parts of existence.  Scientists are hedging bets on increasing knowledge on such elusive realms as dark matter and particles like the higgs boson. Personally I am just excited that the thing is finally up and running as it was intended to.

I find great joy in the pursuit of increasing our understanding of the universe and how it all works, and I think the LHC represents one of human kinds most ambitious attempts at expanding discovery.  Now to see what is learned from it.

31,000 FT: Average cruising altitude for a commercial airliner.  For those that have viewed the height out of an airplane window, let this be a scale reference.

Yeah, just absorb that for a moment.  There are parts of the ocean that are deeper than a plane flies high.  It is almost absurd.  add to that the fact that only about 10% of the ocean has been mapped and just let the thought settle in.  Who said the Age of Exploration is over with?  I would say it is still just beginning.