Technology and society: The “maker” movement could change how science is taught and boost innovation. It may even herald a new industrial revolution
In state legislatures and on the campaign trail, the debate over evolution is about more than science. Legislatures in several states have introduced or are planning to introduce bills that would mandate the teaching of Bible-based theories of the origin of the world and human beings – such as creationism or intelligent design. Other bills would require teachers to include materials that call evolution into question. Surveys also continue to show that a significant portion of the American public embraces religious or supernatural theories on the origin of man over purely scientific explanations, and those views are also being reinforced in the political arena, especially in the Republican nominating contest. This edition of ReligionLink provides resources and experts for reporters covering these hot-button issues.
Loneliness can send a person down a path toward bad health, and even more intense loneliness, studies have shown. But while some have assumed the culprit was a dearth of others to remind a person to take care of himself or herself, new research suggests there’s a direct biological link between being lonely and ill…
Studies suggest that cumulative culture is unique to people, and that collaborative learning may be the key to human advancement. But precisely where to draw the lines for culture remains unclear
Until quite recently we knew of only one life-harbouring planet in a single planetary system — adrift within a universe of more than a billion trillion stars. Our home was that single speck, the lone bulb in a great cosmic garden, and it raised essentially the same question: is this all? Or are there more?…
Traumatic events are well known for producing a sense of unreality as we watch a disaster unfold. Most of us can also produce this state far more pleasurably, by getting drunk, for example. For the less fortunate, though, it is also a known, if quite controversial, psychiatric diagnosis of dissociation. This comes in two main…
Alpha Centauri—the star system closest to our sun and the inspiration for legions of science fiction writers—harbors at least one planet and probably more, astronomers announced. The planet orbits very close to Alpha Centauri B—the smaller of two paired stars—and likely has a lava-like consistency to show for it, scientists said. As such, the new…