today i learned (til)
AI and VR: A New Reality
Reality is defined by the world we live in and the rules it is bound by. Physics, time, societal norms—these are all things that...
“When” to Do Things by Daniel H. Pink
Nowadays, I "read" books mostly by listening to them. When you have to read textbooks and research papers all day, it's easier on the...
Janna Levin’s Black Hole Survival Guide
What would happen if you fell into a black hole? It’s a question that you want answered fast. After reading verbose academic articles all...
Penitentes
If you wander over to the high-altitude regions of the Andes, you might spot fields of white figures, kneeling as if in prayer. Known...
Cultural Collisions with Gringo Perdido
In case you’ve ever wondered what happens to the items that are too lame to re-sell in thrift stores in our culture, they eventually...
Varicella-Zoster Strikes Again
I had chicken pox when I was 8 years old. This was before there was a vaccine for varicella zoster, the virus that causes...
Why Does Hot Water Freeze Faster?
PROFESSOR: Hello class! Welcome to “Advanced Application of Math and Logic in Natural Philosophy” class. Look to your left and look to your right....
Badass Biology: Toxoplasma gondii
Look, we humans are awesome. We own this planet. If we really wanted to, we could spill every barrel of oil we have into...
Ain’t No Sunshine When She’s Gone
Before I moved away from Florida I never realized how much I depended on good weather to motivate me. I’d always believed that optimism...
Berkeley grads grow mushrooms for cash – legally!
Imagine you are in your last semester at college. You’ve done well academically, studied business, and you have a job offer lined up....