Clik here to view.
The classification of finite simple groups
A group is a collection of elements that obey to certain rules. For every group we can construct some subgroups, in particular the normal subgroups. Given a group $G$, a subgroup $K$ is normal if, for...
View ArticleClik here to view.
On Michael Dewar, Robin Collingwood and models in chemistry
If you want to read memoirs by famous organic chemists that describe the pleasures and pains of doing real science, you can do no better than reach for historian Jeff Seeman's marvelous and unique set...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Friday Fabulous Flower - Bleeding Hearts
Oh, April is such a pretty time for our gardens! Wait, it's still only March! In another day, when the tally for March is complete the Phactor will reveal some stunning data that promises for a...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The Plus Side of Eating Placenta
He's not suggesting new parents pause in the delivery room to whip up a placenta sandwich. But neuroscientist Mark Kristal says human mothers might be missing out on the benefits other mammals receive...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The Story of Fixing Hubble
I can't tell if Charles Pellerin, the director of NASA astrophysics at the time the Hubble Space Telescope was launched in 1990, is a really honest person or a really lucky person. He was able to get a...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Finding a new translation factor, and verifying it with help from my...
Joy of joys my most recent paper has just been published in Nucleic Acids Research! Nucleic Acids Res. 2012 Mar 28. [Epub ahead of print] Evolutionary and genetic analyses of mitochondrial translation...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Vegetation History and Climate Change Across the Tr/J Boundary
Bonis, N. R., and W. M. Kürschner. 2012. Vegetation history, diversity patterns, and climate change across the Triassic/Jurassic boundary. Paleobiology 38:240-264. doi:...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Paleohistological Estimation of Bone Growth Rate in Extinct Archosaurs
Cubo, J., LeRoy, N., Martinez-Maza, C., and L. Montes. 2012. Paleohistological estimation of bone growth rate in extinct archosaurs. Paleobiology 38:335-339. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1666/08093.1...
View ArticleClik here to view.
A Bizarre New Shark
Live goblin shark Mitsukurina owstoni, from here. It's a bit unusual for me to be posting anything on a Sunday, but I've just received notice of something so incredibly cool that I couldn't wait to...
View ArticleClik here to view.
First Multi-taxic Multi-component Ornithischian and Sauropodomorph Dinosaur...
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ---REMAINDER OF MESSAGE TRUNCATED--- * * This post contains a forbidden message format * * (such as an...
View ArticleClik here to view.
March is over, no fooling! Here's the data.
After this year's March, the Phactor wonders what May will bring. What's that old saying, "April showers bring May flowers." That won't happen this year because as best can be determined, nothing...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The case of the Jiggly Wires
Video by Gavin Wince shared by the auhor in the comments of this complete and ultimate post about OPERA's neutrinos by Matt Strassler. On of the most interesting observation in the post was resumed in...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Using UBC's open-access archive
I was just reading about the Wellcome Trust's open-access policy; only about 55% of grantees are complying with it. One of the commentors suggested making academic institutions (e.g. universities)...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Hard habit to kick
As the Phactor sits here reading science news and getting bits and pieces together for today's classes, here's a not very surprising scientific finding, nicotine addiction is really old. For how ever...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Ian Stewart and the Black-Scholes equation
The Black-Scholes equation is an economical tool used in financial contracts. Following Ian Stewart (via Alexandre Borovik), this equation caused the economic crash and crisis. We can immediatly say...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Impact factor - Treemendous!
This won't mean much to most of you, but this is a very nice article about the accomplishments of Dr. Alex Shigo, a guy who actually single-handedly revolutionized tree care and urban forestry. He did...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The Most Astounding Fact
We are part of this Universe, but perhaps more important is that the Universe is in us. You may have even heard it stated as a fact that we are made of stardust. What does this mean? Well in the early...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Religion, but not spirituality, helps protect against post-earthquake trauma
On the 6th of April 2009, a 6.3-magnitude earthquake struck the town of L'Aquila, in central Italy. The result was at least 309 deaths, with more than 1,000 people injured and 66,000 displaced. (After...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Another reason to become a botanist
Here's an interview with one of my colleagues at the New York Botanical Garden about what he does and why he does it. Unfortunately, universities find doing this type of research much less desireable...
View ArticleClik here to view.
On physics envy and drug discovery
In a recent New York Times article, two prominent social scientists lament the epidemic of physics envy that has infected their ranks, and they implore their colleagues to take a more...
View Article