Monthly Archives: February 2011

You’re multi-lingual. Maybe you didn’t know that! But you are. It turns out, according to Gary Chapman’s best selling book of a decade ago, that love has five languages. And love is so important (it makes the world go ‘round, … Continue reading →

Yesterday morning I got an e-mail from a colleague and good friend, a hazards geologist. He mentioned in passing that today, Friday, February 11, he would be in St. Louis, for a kickoff to a year of bicentennial commemorations of the … Continue reading →

Back in 1998 Robert Redford produced, directed, and starred in a remarkable film entitled The Horse Whisperer. [With those three roles, he must have been busy!] The combination of Montana scenery and Robert Redford proved too powerful for moviegoers to … Continue reading →

Scientists are understandably concerned that their work be evaluated by their peers – not by those who lack the education or experience to distinguish between fact and surmise, between nuanced understanding and misleading sleight of hand, between credible analysis and … Continue reading →

Once upon a time, giants walked the Earth…or at least scientists version 2.0. Two of these were Isaac Newton (1643-1727) and his contemporary Robert Hooke (1635-1703). Want some gripping reading? Pick up any of the excellent biographies of these two … Continue reading →

We’re entering a time when the process of scientific peer review will likely undergo a careful scrutiny from all sides. For example, the UK Parliament has just launched one such inquiry. This is serious business, and merits considered thought, from … Continue reading →

You know the drill. If a groundhog comes out of its burrow on this day and sees its shadow, it retreats back inside and we can expect six more weeks of winter. On the other hand, if the groundhog comes … Continue reading →

There’s no escaping the hype, is there? This week, the Super Bowl is on many minds, at least in this hemisphere. But before we turn to football, let’s consider Thetis. There’s a lot to this sea nymph, the daughter of … Continue reading →