I knew I needed Botox, now I know why

Who doesn't like a good batch of Botox every now and again. Going numb is fun and beautiful, right? Well, now you can add to that, it can make you happy.
If one numbs the muscles that cause frowning, preventing the sad face...happiness prevails! According to a University of Wisconsin Madison study, the link between emotion and physical gesture goes both ways: happiness can cause smiling AND smiling can cause happiness. Likewise, sadness can cause frowing AND frowning can cause sadness. So get some shots, make yourself pretty and make yourself happy. Vanity for mental health- alright! Dolly Parton, I know why you are sweet as pie!

wacky way to connect to aliens

Poll please!!!

Do you agree with Joe Davis, of MIT, who transmitted the sounds of vaginal contractions towards neighboring star systems in the mid-1980s, because he became concerned that no image of humans had been sent into space representing the details of human genitals or reproduction?

“To my mind,” Dr. Porco said, “most people go through life recoiling from its best parts. They miss the enrichment that just a basic knowledge of the physical world can bring to the most ordinary experiences. It’s like there’s a pulsating, hidden world, governed by ancient laws and principles, underlying everything around us — from the movements of electrical charges to the motions of the planets."

A romantic comedy, brought to you by the government and a scientist

Oh, the power of science! All because of science, today I'm looking forward to the release of a romantic comedy movie AND wanting to pat the Pentagon on the back. Yep.

All of this time I was bitching about the decline of science in America and thinking that no one was doing anything about it. Turns out the Pentagon launched a program to make movies about science! Some scientists have been united with screenwriters and directors, but others have even been FUNDED to learn how to write screenplays. The idea is that they will represent real scientists and make them look cool.

Case in point:Valerie Weiss has spent the last five years, in addition to being a biophysicist, tweaking her movie script, "Losing Control." Now she's set to direct it.

It's about a woman who wants "scientific proof" that "the man she loves is the one."

"[It's] about the limitations of what we can actually know before doing something," says Weiss. "That's science, art . . . love. They're all the same. It's all about taking a big risk. It still ultimately requires a leap of faith."

Read the rest here.

The organic debate continues

So did you hear about that big study that said there are no nutritional benefits to eating organic food?

Turns out they did a pretty shoddy job of research, according to Peter Melchett of the Soil Association.

He says there'll be another batch of research coming out next spring, this time by the EU. Watch out, Food Standards Agency.

I mean come on, how could eating organic not be healthier?

Science for the masses-- we need it!!!

There is a great interview in the LA Times with science journalist Chris Mooney (pictured). This man is on our wavelength.

His new book talks about how both the conservative religious community AND the scientific community are out of touch with each other. It's not just the religious zealouts' fault-- scientists need to peep out of their intellectual bubbles and connect with the people.

Great quotes:

If I read ScienceBlogs, what I see are endless eloquent refutations of the creationists based on science. It's been done to death. Obviously, that doesn't convince anybody. And that's because people who don't believe in evolution are not driven by scientific considerations.

The media needs to get over the "I'm-a-pissed-off-middle-school-student-and-science-isn't-for-me" kind of mind set. Science coverage should be high-standard, it should be entertaining.

Read the rest here.

'The Empire' is 'lost in space.' Star Wars or politics?

Over the weekend, Hugo Chavez went into specifics about Obama, Latin America and astronomy. About the (alleged) U.S. role in the Honduran coup and unwillingness to close Guantanamo, Chavez spewed:

"We are asking that the empire get its hands off Honduras and get its claws out of Latin America ... President Obama is lost in the Andromeda Nebula ... he doesn't get it."

Thank you Mr. Chavez for your specifics, you have crafted a clear image. It involves Obama's claws reaching from the Andromeda galaxy back to Earth and grabbing at Latin American countries.

Hmm, that image isn't very clear at all! I couldn't make it in photoshop so that's my criteria, Hugo.

Also: I'm not an Obama defender, but I'm going to have to say that YOU don't get it either-- Andromeda is a galaxy, not a nebula.

I'll respond in the role of Obama and call this a "teachable moment." Unfortunately, me, Obama, Hugo, and the galaxy can't have a beer together. But let's all try to learn the difference between a nebula and a galaxy anyway.


GALAXY: What we live in! Ours is called the Milky Way, and Andromeda is our nearest neighbor. Our sun is one of about 200 billion stars in the spiral-shaped Milky Way galaxy.

Wikipedia: A massive, gravitationally bound system that consists of stars and stellar remnants, an interstellar medium of gas and dust, and dark matter.


NEBULA: A big cloud of mess! The gas floating around in it can condense and form stars, and then solar systems can form around the stars. There is one in Orion's belt.

Wikipedia: An interstellar cloud of dust, hydrogen gas, helium gas and plasma. Originally nebula was a general name for any extended astronomical object, including galaxies beyond the Milky Way (some examples of the older usage survive; for example, the Andromeda Galaxy was referred to as the Andromeda Nebula before galaxies were discovered by Hubble).