The term \”pseudoscience\” gets thrown around quite a bit these days, most notably in debates about the dominant consensus on anthropogenic climate change. Say \”pseudoscience,\” and immediately a bunch of doctrines leap to mind: astrology, phrenology, eugenics, ufology, and so on. Do they have anything in common? Some posit unknown forces of nature, others don\’t. […] … learn more→

What has been the impact of the invention of the telescope? What has been the impact of Einstein’s Theory of General Relativity, or the splitting of the atom? Yes, that’s right: the idea of measuring the “impact” of research is back in a big way. Within the research community and within government, plenty of people […] … learn more→

The MIT Graduate Program in Science Writing turns 10 this year, and this Saturday saw many of the program’s 61 alumni back on campus to catch up and reminisce with fellow graduates, professors and mentors. A daylong symposium, titled “Telling the Stories of Science,” was a celebration of the past 10 years of science writing […] … learn more→

Communities of species previously unknown to science have been discovered on the seafloor near Antarctica, clustered in the hot, dark environment surrounding hydrothermal vents. The discoveries, made by teams led by the University of Oxford, University of Southampton, the National Oceanography Centre, and British Antarctic Survey, include new species of yeti crab, starfish, barnacles, and […] … learn more→

Evidence is key to many topical debates such as global warming, evolution, the search for weapons of mass destruction, DNA profiling, and advances in science and medicine. A new book asks whether, considering the importance of evidence for so many disciplines, a general ‘science of evidence’ is possible – or even desirable. Evidence, Inference and […] … learn more→

Could we have found the first artist’s studio in human history? We may well have. We all recognise the material signs of wealth. Fast cars, large yachts and sparkling bling all tell us who has more. Crowns, insignia, mayoral gowns are material signs of rank or status. Archaeologists have long pondered when these public displays […] … learn more→

No one is in a better position to monitor environmental conditions in remote areas of the natural world than the people living there. But many scientists believe the cultural and educational gulf between trained scientists and indigenous cultures is simply too great to bridge – that native peoples cannot be relied on to collect reliable […] … learn more→

An initiative aimed at ensuring South Yorkshire leads the way in supporting women to succeed in science, engineering and technology, was launched recently at the University of Sheffield’s Advanced Research Manufacturing Centre (AMRC). Female engineers, universities and businesses gathered at the event which marked the South Yorkshire launch of the Smith Institute report, which highlights […] … learn more→

“Everyone is entitled to his own opinions, but not to his own facts” – Australian Senator Daniel Moynihan Science is a systematic, evidence-based, testable and self-correcting way of investigating the world. This is done through empirical observation, by experimentation and mathematics. Ideologically dominated or totalitarian societies – such as George Orwell’s famous “1984” Ingsoc – […] … learn more→

Moving toward productivity, stability, sustainability, and equitabilty. … learn more→