Enraptured by the stars
I remember arguing long and hard with a friend at a campsite in deepest Bavaria about how many stars one can see in the night sky with the unaided human eye. The answer, according to this charming new...
How to build your own rocket
When I was first asked to review A Tribble’s Guide To Space, I thought – wrongly as it turned out – that the book was a send-up. Star Trek enthusiasts may recall that in one episode,...
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Welcome to 2001
Indeed, it is now possible to study for a degree in science and science fiction. Rest assured that this degree course at the University of Glamorgan in the UK does not involve watching videos and read...
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Science and The Simpsons
What, asks Robert P Crease, does a cartoon that parodies nuclear safety and space exploration have to say about science?
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A maverick’s quest for quantum gravity
There is one central quandary to 21st-century physics. It is that the two main pillars of 20th-century physics – quantum mechanics and Einstein’s general theory of relativity – are m...
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Pack your cherries to perfection
A burning issue for fatties like me is whether you can make a low-fat Black Forest gateau. The answer, surprisingly, can be found in two new science books. The Pursuit of Perfect Packing by Tomaso Ast...
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Stringy stuff ties up best-seller lists
Columbia University string theorist Brian Greene can put his feet up this Christmas, safe in the knowledge that his popular-science title The Elegant Universe is this year’s best-selling physics...
No more lectures any more?
Try this introspective experiment. Think about your favourite quiz show and ask yourself how many questions you can remember after the programme ends (never mind the answers). You’ll find that y...
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A top ten for science and society
Robert P Crease lists 10 issues facing science and society that must be addressed first
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Not the right stuff
Almost 40 years later, as the International Space Station takes shape, history is repeating itself. Of course, the space station has never been a scientific mission – its main purpose has always...
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