Another potential solution to the mystery of mammalian extinctions has been proposed – they may have been caused by perturbations in the Earth’s orbit and axial tilt. The theory is that these changes of position relative to the sun would have caused climatic changes that would have thrown previously stable habitats into fiercely competitive environments. I’m no scientist, but I’m always a bit leery of single-cause explanations for events of this magnitude, and so I am encouraged to see the researcher in question describe this as “a crucial missing piece in the puzzle”.
Category Archives: Blog
Toxoplasma Needs More Boys
Readers with long memories may recall us mentioning research on the cat parasite toxoplasma that suggested it could be influencing human behaviour. You probably dismissed it as a classic silly-season science story straight out of the pulp age of science fiction, too. Well, don’t rest too comfortably, for new research indicates that toxoplasma may also be influencing the gender of human children! Who knows how else this insidious parasite may be affecting civilisation as we know it?
The Real Deal
More good news for exoplanet fans – researchers have announced their confirmation that perturbations of the light from the star Epsilon Eridani are, as predicted, caused by a planet. The body in question is one and a half times as massive as our own Jupiter and orbits its parent star in a little less than seven (Earth) years. The extra-exciting bit for space buffs is that next year we have a good chance of getting a closer look at it, using a whole selection of telescopes including the (recently rebooted) Hubble.
Snake Oil On Tap?
Yet another dubious alternative power source – this has been a good year for them so far. The latest arrival is a variation on the old ‘splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen and using them for combustion’ idea, allegedly from a company called Xogen. My skepticism is somewhat enhanced by the fact the the link to their ‘corporate site’ actually leads to a domain that’s up for sale. Obviously I’d be overjoyed to be proved wrong, but I’m confident I won’t be, at least not this century.
Return Of The Space Cowboy
Hey, the new US National Space policy is out! Oh, you hadn’t heard? Well, that’s no surprise, because the incumbent administration didn’t make much of a song and dance over it, choosing instead to slip it out quietly last Friday (October 6th). Analysis seems to suggest it is a fairly hawkish piece of work, which is unsurprising. The telling parts are the ones that lay out the classic “don’t tread on me” attitude – for example: “Proposed arms control agreements or restrictions must not impair the rights of the United States to conduce research, development, testing and operations or other activities in space for U.S. national interests.” Plenty of scope for ‘creative interpretation’ in there.