2018 Science Limericks

"2018 in limericks: The highs and lows from the life sciences"

Hsieh Forbes Column: So You Got A Consumer DNA Test For Christmas -- Now What?

My latest Forbes piece: "So You Got A Consumer DNA Test For Christmas -- Now What?"

How The USPS Handles Bad Handwriting

"Have Bad Handwriting? The U.S. Postal Service Has Your Back"

15 Years Ago

Jon Erlichman:  Things that didn't exist on Christmas 15 years ago:

iPhone
Facebook
YouTube
Twitter
Instagram
iPad
Netflix streaming
Google Maps
Snapchat
Spotify
Android
Uber
Lyft
Alexa
Airbnb
App Store
Google Chrome
WhatsApp
Fitbit
Waze
Slack
Square
Dropbox
Pinterest
Venmo
Bitcoin
Hulu
Kindle

FBI Interview

"Why Doesn’t the FBI Videotape Interviews?" (Via G.F.)

GPS Wars

"The GPS Wars Are Here"

AI Threats

"The case for taking AI seriously as a threat to humanity"

Light Posting Notice

Admin note: Posting may be lighter than usual this week and next week because of the holiday season. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

New Largest Known Prime

"GIMPS Discovers Largest Known Prime Number: 2^82,589,933-1". (Via H.R.)

FedEx Christmas

"Inside FedEx’s Christmas Miracle". (Via H.R.)

A People's Guide to AI

"A People's Guide to AI". Free downloadable PDF.

Beautiful Bonsai

"Taikan Ten Exhibition 2018"

Saturn's Rings

"Saturn is losing its iconic planetary rings"

Machine Image Recognition

"How computers got shockingly good at recognizing images". (Via H.R.)

The Titanic And The Hunt For Two Nuclear Submarines

"The Story of the Titanic Keeps Getting Weirder"

Lab-Made Whiskey

"An Exclusive First Taste of Lab-Made Whiskey"

Laser-Powered Interstellar Probe

"Laser-Powered Probe Might Make It To Alpha Centauri In 100 Years"

Space Beer

"How To Make Beer With Only What You Can Grow On A Generation Ship"

Fake Faces

"These incredibly realistic fake faces show how algorithms can now mess with us"

Parrot Uses Alexa To Order Online Goods

"Parrot Uses Alexa to Order Watermelon, Lightbulbs While Owner Is Out"