Even though the wiring of the human brain evolved in an exceptional way, if novelty had remained below a certain threshold, early humans may not have received a sufficient trigger to begin forming the concept of reasons. My accepted manuscript for the Proceedings of the International Astronomical Union Symposium No. 367, 2021, is available underContinue reading “Eclipses: a pump of curiosity?”
Category Archives: Articles
Earth in a spin
The Earth … has been spinning unusually fast lately. 2020 included the 28 shortest days since 1960. Image: timeanddate.com Our timeanddate.com story on the Earth’s quickening rotation is generating a lot of interest, from the Daily Express to Live Science to USA Today. Update (17 January): There’s also coverage of the story in Spanish-language media,Continue reading “Earth in a spin”
Visualizing the music of the spheres
We have known for thousands of years that the sky is full of harmonies and rhythms. Pythagoras called it the “music of the spheres.” As part of the build-up to next week’s great conjunction, Steffen Thorsen (CEO of timeanddate.com) and I have written a piece for Sky & Telescope on the pattern of closer-than-usual approachesContinue reading “Visualizing the music of the spheres”
Predicting solar flares
“The distribution of solar flares is similar to earthquakes: we have many small solar flares, and a big one is very rare. However, when a big flare occurs, the impact on our economy and society may be enormous. Satellites may be damaged, and the electrical power grid may be damaged over a very wide area.Continue reading “Predicting solar flares”
Where did our sense of curiosity come from?
My recent article for I-M on solar eclipses and the Fermi paradox is now available online. As Daniel C Dennett, a philosopher and cognitive scientist, has observed, searching for explanations is a central feature of our species. Where does our sense of curiosity come from? As an exercise in fun speculation, I propose it couldContinue reading “Where did our sense of curiosity come from?”
The pump of curiosity
The summer 2020 issue of I-M Intelligent Magazine… … includes “an exercise in fun speculation” by me on a potential link between solar eclipses and the Fermi paradox. According to the Copernican principle, there is nothing special about the earth’s place in the universe. Except for the awkward fact that — on current evidence —Continue reading “The pump of curiosity”
Cosmic inflation, 40 years on
“It is very natural for scientists to come up with the same idea at the same time. Researchers read articles from around the world and from this, new ideas are born.” My latest piece for Physics World is an interview with Katsuhiko Sato. Forty years ago, Sato was one of a small number of physicistsContinue reading “Cosmic inflation, 40 years on”
Galileo: work-from-home wizard (and other tales from lockdown)
My latest piece for Sky & Telescope looks at six moments in history when astronomers found themselves locked down with nowhere to go… https://skyandtelescope.org/astronomy-news/galileo-work-from-home-wizard-and-other-tales-from-lockdown/ Thank you to the inimitable Neil Pitts for the Galileo cartoon ^_^
Can you solve this logical-thinking puzzle?
Image: NASA/JPL/Space Science Institute For anyone locked down and in need of some mental exercise, here’s a quick Japanese challenge. If you only speak English, the puzzle is impossible to solve. If, however, you speak Spanish — or one of a number of other languages, including French, Welsh or Hindi — it becomes an exerciseContinue reading “Can you solve this logical-thinking puzzle?”
Helping African children become radio astronomers, and other stories
Image: NASA/EOS/GSFC I’ve written a piece for EarthSky about last month’s International Astronomical Union Symposium on Astronomy for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion: https://earthsky.org/human-world/iau-symposium-diversity-inclusion-astronomy The article focusses on two stories from two continents. Ikechukwu Anthony Obi — from the Center for Basic Space Science at Nigeria’s National Space Research and Development Agency — is finding cleverContinue reading “Helping African children become radio astronomers, and other stories”
