Minute Physics: Why Do Mirrors Flip Left & Right (but not up & down)? (Youtube, 3:23min) “This video is about why words flip left & right (aka horizontally) in a mirror but not up & down (aka vertically). The answer has to do with specular reflection, mirrors being like windows into another world (alternate universes, just with in and out flipped!), and transparency of the things we write on.”
Probably the best explanations I’ve seen/heard about mirrors so far.
The Atavist Magazine: The Wild Ones. “People said that women had no place in the Grand Canyon and would likely die trying to run the Colorado River. In 1938, two female scientists set out to prove them wrong.”
“Not least among the journey’s many dangers, according to “experienced river men“ who refused to give their names to the national newspapers covering the expedition, was the presence of women in the party. Only one woman had ever attempted the trip through the Grand Canyon. Her name was Bessie Hyde, and she’d vanished with her husband, Glen, on their honeymoon in 1928. Their boat was found empty. Their bodies were never recovered.
Unnamed sources told reporters that the two women in the crew were “one of the hazards, as they are ‘so much baggage’ and would probably need help in an emergency.“ They were scientists—botanists, to be precise. “So they’re looking for flowers and Indian caves,“ a river runner said. “Well, I don’t know about that, but I do know they’ll find a peck of trouble before they get through.“
In fact, Elzada Clover and Lois Jotter had come from Michigan with much hardier plants in mind. Tucked into side canyons, braving what Jotter called “barren and hellish“ conditions, were tough, spiny things: species of cactus that no one had ever catalogued before. Clover and Jotter would become the first people to do so—if they survived.”
Link via MetaFilter.
NPR Science: 50 Years Ago, Americans Made The 2nd Moon Landing… Why Doesn’t Anyone Remember?
“Fifty years ago, astronaut Pete Conrad stepped out of the lunar module onto the surface of the moon.
His first words were: “Whoopie! Man, that may have been a small one for Neil, but that’s a long one for me.”
Conrad, who stood at just 5 feet 6 inches tall, was only the third human to set foot on the lunar surface. He did it on November 19, 1969, just four months after Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin made the first lunar landing. However, unlike Armstrong and Aldrin, Conrad and fellow astronaut Alan Bean are not household names.”
Deutsche Welle: Masern-Impfpflicht für Kitas und Schulen. “Kein Zugang ohne Impfpass: Ab März 2020 müssen Eltern nachweisen, dass ihre Kinder gegen Masern geschützt sind, so hat es der Bundestag beschlossen. Lange war über die Impfpflicht gestritten worden.”
“In Deutschland sollen Kinder rund um den 1. Geburtstag zum ersten Mal und mit etwas Abstand ein zweites Mal gegen Masern geimpft werden. Die Ständige Impfkommission (STIKO) beim RKI erarbeitet die Empfehlungen für alle Schutzimpfungen. In Deutschland gab es bisher keine Impfpflicht, man setzte auf Freiwilligkeit. Nicht ohne Erfolg: Untersuchungen zeigten, dass von den Schulanfängern 97 Prozent die erste Impfung gegen Masern haben, 93 Prozent auch die zweite, betont Glasmacher.
Um Masern-frei zu werden, wie es die Weltgesundheitsorganisation (WHO) fordert, müssten 95 Prozent der Gesamtbevölkerung immun sein – durch Impfung oder durchgemachte Erkrankung. Bis 1970, als die Impfung eingeführt wurde, erkrankten fast alle. “Es gab in den Sechziger Jahren deutlich mehr als einhundert Todesfälle durch Masern pro Jahr”, sagt die RKI-Sprecherin.”
NPR: Math Looks The Same In The Brains Of Boys And Girls, Study Finds.
“There’s new evidence that girls start out with the same math abilities as boys.
A study of 104 children from ages 3 to 10 found similar patterns of brain activity in boys and girls as they engaged in basic math tasks, researchers reported Friday in the journal Science of Learning.
“They are indistinguishable,” says Jessica Cantlon, an author of the study and professor of developmental neuroscience at Carnegie Mellon University.
The finding challenges the idea that more boys than girls end up in STEM fields (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) because they are inherently better at the sort of thinking those fields require. It also backs other studies that found similar math abilities in males and females early in life.”
NPR: New Study Challenges The Assumption That Math Is Harder For Girls. “Research shows that when boys and girls as old as 10 do math, their patterns of brain activity are indistinguishable. The finding is the latest challenge to the idea that math is harder for girls.”
“Geary says differences seem to show up later and involve very high-level math tasks. His own research has found that in most countries, female students perform just as well as male students in science-related subjects. Yet paradoxically, Geary says, females are less likely to get degrees in fields like math and computer science if they live in wealthier countries with greater gender equality.”
By continuing to use the site, you agree to the use of cookies. more information
The cookie settings on this website are set to "allow cookies" to give you the best browsing experience possible. If you continue to use this website without changing your cookie settings or you click "Accept" below then you are consenting to this.