Beauty, the old saying goes, is only skin deep. Unfortunately, so are pimples. The difference is that while very few of us can claim to be beautiful (certainly not I, as a glance at my column photo will attest), almost all of us have had pimples. Our skin contains two kinds of glands: sweat glands …
Category: Blog
Three fathers of technology
This month, we celebrate the birthdays of three important scientists, each a “father” of a technology that has shaped this century. First up: April 9, the 75th birthday of John Presper Eckert, the father (well, one of the fathers) of the digital computer. While a research associate at the University of Pennsylvania in the mid-1940s, …
Memory
What’s the biggest single difference between you and a dandelion? Think about that for a moment. You both take in nutrients, air and water; you both grow, you both age. So what’s the difference? Remember the last time you saw a dandelion? An argument could be made (and in fact I’m going to make it) …
Flowers
It’s a warm, it’s sunny, it’s spring, and the ’60s musical Hair is coming to town. What better time to celebrate flower power? The use of flowers for gifts and decoration has a long, long history (the ancient Romans and the ancient Chinese were both wild about roses, for example), but to a plant our infatuation might …
Snoring and yawning
A couple of weeks ago I wrote about dandruff, bad breath, growling stomachs and body odor. Aside from the fact that none of these things are ever likely to be the subject of a blockbuster TV movie, they have something else in common: they’re all likely to embarrass us. That segues nicely into this …
March 1994 science anniversaries
This March seems to be a month for important scientific birthdays, beginning with March 4, the 600th birthday of Prince Henry the Navigator of Portugal. Prince Henry began sending out expeditions along the Atlantic coast of Africa in 1418, motivated as much by hatred of the Muslims and a lust for gold as by a …
Fertilizer
Just so I’m not operating under false pretenses, let’s get one thing straight: I don’t garden. I don’t seed, I don’t weed, I don’t plant, I don’t compost, and I don’t spread manure (this column excepted). My one connection with the plant world is mowing the grass, and I wouldn’t do that if I had …
Erosion
As water starts to run this time of year, it takes away more than the memory of winter’s snows: it also carries away a lot of soil, dumping it in the nearest ditch, which carries it to the nearest river, which carries some of it eventually to the sea. Sometimes the water also finds its …
Heredity
“She’s got her father’s eyes.” “He’s got his mother’s nose.” From the moment a baby is born, expect children to look like their parents. But how does it happen? An Austrian monk named Gregor Mendel took the first step toward our modern understanding of heredity in 1866, when he published a theory of inheritance based …
Glue
Since I only wear glasses late at night when I take out my contacts, for the past couple of years I’ve been making do with an old pair of frames broken in two places: the nose piece and the right earpiece. I must have glued them back together a dozen times, but the repairs never …
The science of love
could be considered the worst possible person to tell anybody anything about love, being a 34-year-old single male whose only claim to romantic fame is an apparently unerring ability to be attracted to women who immediately thereafter fall head over heels for someone else, sometimes during our first (and only) date. On the other hand, …
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Episode 168: Dan Flanigan – An American Tragedy
A chat with novelist, playwright, poet (and practicing lawyer) Dan Flanigan about An American Tragedy, third book in his Peter O’Keefe crime-fiction series. Websitedanflaniganbooks.com Facebook@eAuthorDanFlanigan X@_DanFlanigan Dan Flanigan’s Amazon Page Amazon Links for An American TragedyAmazon.comAmazon.ca About the Book No good deed goes unpublished In the scorching summer of 1988, amidst the frenzy of the… -
Episode 167: E.C. Hibbs – The Shade Between Shadows
A chat with author, artist, and storyteller E.C. Hibbs about the first book in her new Nightland Quartet, The Shade Between Shadows. Websiteechibbs.weebly.com Facebook@echibbs Instagram@e_c_hibbs TikTok@e_c_hibbs YouTube@echibbs E.C. Hibbs’s Amazon Page Amazon Links for The Shade Between ShadowsAmazon.comAmazon.ca About the Book I didn’t think myself truly silent. I possessed a voice, as sure as any… -
Episode 166: Jennifer Anne Gordon – The Japanese Box and Other Stories
A chat with award-winning horror author Jennifer Anne Gordon about her new short story collection, The Japanese Box and Other Stories. Websitejenniferannegordon.com Facebook@JenniferAnneGordonAuthor Instagram@jennifergenevievegordon X@JenniferAnneGo5 Jennifer Anne Gordon’s Amazon Page Amazon Links for The Japanese Box and Other StoriesAmazon.comAmazon.ca About the Book A collection of short stories contemplating horror, grief, and trauma. Simulacrum: A dark comedic… -
Episode 165: Dr. Katherine Hutchinson-Hayes – A Fifth of the Story
A chat with author, podcaster, and blogger Dr. Katherine Hutchinson-Hayes about her new spy thriller, A Fifth of the Story Websitedrkatherinehayes.com Facebook@authordrkatherinehayes Instagram@authordrkatherine X@khutch0767 Dr. Katherine Huthcinson-Hayes’s Amazon Page Amazon Links for A Fifth of the StoryAmazon.comAmazon.ca About the Book A fascinating thriller of espionage that takes you into the secretive world of the CIA… -
Episode 164: Kristen Ciccarelli – Heartless Hunter
A chat with New York Times bestselling YA author Kristen Cicarelli about Heartless Hunter, The Crimson Moth Book 1, a “dangerously romantic Scarlet Pimpernel-inspired fantasy.” Websitekristenciccarelli.com Facebook@AuthorKristenCiccarelli Instagram@kristenciccarelli Pinterest@kciccarelli Kristen Ciccarelli’s Amazon Page Amazon Links for Heartless HunterAmazon.comAmazon.ca About the Book Enemies-to-lovers doesn’t get more high stakes than a witch and a witch hunter falling… -
Episode 163: Sebastien de Castell – Play of Shadows
A chat with award-winning fantasy author Sebastien de Castell about Play of Shadows, Book 1 of Court of Shadows, set in the world of his popular Greatcoats series. Websitedecastell.com X@decastell Facebook@decastell Sebastien de Castell’s Amazon Page Amazon Links for Play of ShadowsAmazon.comAmazon.ca About the Book Swordplay, magic, intrigue and friendships stronger than iron: the first… -
Episode 162: Lyn McGinnis – Amarel Mountain
A chat with author Lyn McGinnis about Anu Awakes, an epic fantasy series, and the most recent release in that series, Book 2, Amarel Mountain. Websiteanuawakesseries.com Bluesky@anuawakes Goodreads Instagram@anuawakes Lyn McGinnis’s Amazon Page Amazon Links for Amarel MountainAmazon.comAmazon.ca About the Book Descendants of the Tolku of the Primary Epoch, the Koru, Yakku and Yelda, now… -
Episode 161: Jared N. Michaud – Brightstar
A chat with new author Jared N. Michaud about his upcoming YA science fiction novel Brightstar, first book in the Energematric6 space adventure series. Websiteenergematrice6.com Facebook@Energematrice6 X@Energematrice6 Instagram@jarednmichaud Jared N. Michaud’s Amazon Page Amazon Links for BrightstarAmazon.comAmazon.ca About the Book Brightstar is the beginning of an epic space-adventure series that introduces readers to Nate, a… -
Episode 160: Breakfield & Burkey – Enigma Tracer
A chat with the writing team of Charles Breakfield and Rox Burkey about their long-running techno-thriller series, Enigma, and Enigma Tracer, first book in their new Enigma Heirs trilogy. Websiteenigmabookseries.com Facebook@TheEnigmaSeries X@EnigmaSeries@1rburkey Instagram@enigmabookseries YouTube Amazon Links for Engima TracerAmazon.comAmazon.ca About the Book The clock is ticking … can Gracie uncover the truth? Phillip Pliant is… -
Episode 159: Steve Truitt – The Mindset Chronicles
A chat with author and former television host Steve Truitt about his new science fiction novel series, The Mindset Chronicles. Websitestevetruitt.com Facebook@AuthorSteveTruitt Amazon Links for The DeletionAmazon.comAmazon.ca Steve Truitt’s Amazon Page About the Book In a world where artificial intelligence has become an integral part of daily life, the sudden death of all AI sends…
