Archive for December 2008

Special Bonus Dear Science: Why is My Car Shit in Snow?

Dec 21st, 2008 | By | Category: Dear Science Column

This just in to the Dear Science SNOWPOCALYPSE 2008 ™ (Hannukah eve again, bitches) crisis center war room control: Dear Science, Do AWD or 4WD help me STOP my vehicle faster in inclement weather? I’ve always assumed that even with my extra weight and wider tires this was true… hence my absent mindedness when tailgating […]



New Milk Knowledge

Dec 4th, 2008 | By | Category: Dear Science Column

First, Science Magazine is both impressed and disgusted by the clever chemistry behind melamine finding its way into infant formula: A weeks-long investigation into China’s tainted milk scandal has left scientists astonished by the technical sophistication of those who used melamine to adulterate food products. Chinese investigators, meanwhile, are puzzling over the precise mechanisms of […]



Mark Roth, Spontaneous Combustion and Hibernation

Dec 3rd, 2008 | By | Category: Lit Round-up

In this month’s Esquire meet Mark Roth—certified genius, a fellow Seattleite and one of the more innovative scientists on the planet. Back when I was a fresh and new graduate student, I took a course co-chaired by him and fellow Hutch professor Dan Gottschling—on the chromosome—that propelled me forward to my thesis project. At the […]



Mutating: The Results

Dec 2nd, 2008 | By | Category: Dear Science Column

I asked you to help me with an experiment as a follow up to a recent column on mutation. Here are the results: (Click on the image for a full-sized version.) Ultimately, I decided to not filter out all of the noise comments (including my own) that weren’t attempts to copy the original. Almost all […]