ريتشارد دوكنز's Blog, page 609

British Medical Journal Releases Study Revealing How To Stop A Zombie Virus Outbreak

Plants and Animals





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You've got some red on you. O Kumpol Chuansakul/Shutterstock

The British Medical Journal has released an informative, peer-reviewed study on zombies as part of their Christmas 2015 edition. These undead troublemakers are complex creatures, with variable methods of infection. As the report states, they have become a “dominant part of the medical landscape,” and so have to be considered carefully. It's probably worth pointing out that this study is decidedly tongue-in-cheek, and references both zombie fiction and real-life pathogens.

How Ignorant Is Your Country?

Editor's Blog





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Ipsos Mori

We’re often pretty wrong about many of the key social issues in our countries, as many of the misanthropes and sceptics among you may already know.

This Mind-Bending Optical Illusion Will Completely Mess With Your Sense Of Perspective

The Brain





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brusspup/YouTube

This video from the YouTube channel Brusspup shows a mind-melting optical illusion that will get you thinking about the limits of your perception.

Scientist Scans His Brain Twice A Week For 18 Months

The Brain





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An artistic illustration of a neural network. Kheng Guan Toh/Shutterstock

In most scientific studies involving our own species, a specific group of people is chosen and assessed by the scientists leading the study. It’s particularly rare that it’s the scientists themselves being examined, but one Stanford psychologist decided to do just that by monitoring his own brain activity for a year and a half. His results are published in Nature Communications, and reveal that the brain, as many suspected, is incredibly adaptable to changing external conditions.

These Earthquake-Proof Beds Are Absolutely Freaking Terrifying

Technology





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A Chinese inventor has designed an earthquake-proof bed. Youtube/Dan Arrow

Being such squishy creatures, humans are not particularly well built to thrive in earthquakes. Fortunately, our mighty brains have enabled us to devise a range of clever defence strategies and technologies, such as buildings designed to sway at the same frequency as tremors, in order to minimize damage.

3D Virtual Fossil Reveals Our Last Common Ancestor With Neanderthals

Plants and Animals





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The "virtual fossil" of the last common ancestor between the two species. Dr. Aurélien Mounier

At some point during the Pleistocene epoch, 2.6 million to 11,700 years ago, the common ancestor between humans and Neanderthals walked the Earth. Although we have no decent, fossilized remains of this creature, researchers from the University of Cambridge have circumvented this problem by using novel algorithms to simulate what its skull would have looked like.

Meteorite Strikes Affect Lunar Exosphere

Space





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Full Moon shot by the Apollo 11 astronauts. NASA

Meteor showers not only produce spectacular shows in the night sky; they might also be responsible for freeing sodium and potassium from Moon rocks. The results are published this week in Science.

Arctic Temperatures Are Rising Twice As Fast As The Rest Of The World

Environment





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The average temperature in the Arctic has warmed by 3°C above the 1900s average. NOAA Photo Library/Flickr CC BY 2.0

Things aren’t looking good for the Arctic. This year was the warmest on record for the region, with the peak ice extent occurring 15 days earlier than average – the lowest extent since records began. In addition to the rising air temperatures and decreased ice cover (not just of sea ice, but also of Greenland’s ice sheets), there have also been observable changes in animal behavior and plant cover in the region.

Most Sensitive Search For Dark Matter Ever Has Begun

Physics





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A view inside the LUX detector, by Matthew Kapust/Sanford Underground Research Facility

Dark matter accounts for most of the matter in the universe, and yet we know very little about it. Scientists around the world are inching closer and closer to a discovery, and although we are yet to directly observe it, we are shrinking the pool of possible masses these particles can have.

Astronomers Discover “Habitable” Exoplanet Just 14 Light-Years Away

Space





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While b is too hot and d too cold, Wolf 1061c might be the closest planet in a habitable zone (green) outside our Solar System. Credit: universesandbox.com

Three planets have been found 14 light-years away, circling the red dwarf Wolf 1061. One has an orbit compatible with liquid water – and potentially life – making it the closest undisputed planet to Earth in this category.

An M-type star with a quarter the Sun's mass and less than a hundredth its light, Wolf 1061 requires a small telescope to see. Even though the outermost planet has an orbit lasting 67.3 days (shorter than Mercury's), it receives less warmth than Mars. The innermost planet orbits in 4.9 days, and is far too hot for life.