Introduction The last half of the 20th century has witnessed enormous breakthroughs in the life sciences. We have found a way to eradicate polio and smallpox, developed the means to transplant a fully-functional artificial heart, engineered CT scan technology that can peer into the human body, and sequenced the entire human genome (essentially the blueprint of life) just to name a few. These and countless other advancements, some would argue, are nothing short of miracles; miracles that have immensely transformed our quality of life as well as the society we live in. More and more people are beginning to believe…
The Science Creative Quarterly
From December, 2005
DANCE WITH ME SEYMOUR: G.M.O. TESTING & ANAMCHARA
Her darkened complexion and calloused hands reveal a great affinity to working the land. Once I discovered her wrestling with a piece of wire mesh to build a domed cover for her lettuce stock. Sweet faced and kind – you trust her on sight. Long before she became an organic farmer, Cathy McKeown traveled to Madras, in the South of India, where she met T.C. Singh, a botanist at Annamalai University. A trip meant to emulate the spiritual meanderings of John, Paul, George, and Ringo…Singh’s work would forever change the life of this native West Virginian. Singh’s work revolved around…
DANCE WITH ME SEYMOUR: G.M.O. TESTING & ANAMCHARA
Her darkened complexion and calloused hands reveal a great affinity to working the land. Once I discovered her wrestling with a piece of wire mesh to build a domed cover for her lettuce stock. Sweet faced and kind – you trust her on sight. Long before she became an organic farmer, Cathy McKeown traveled to Madras, in the South of India, where she met T.C. Singh, a botanist at Annamalai University. A trip meant to emulate the spiritual meanderings of John, Paul, George, and Ringo…Singh’s work would forever change the life of this native West Virginian. Singh’s work revolved around…
UNTITLED
If you found the equation making sense of the creeping of vines along the ground, calculating future distance, depth and strength You could then connect it to the segmentation of musical stalactite scales or the spreading of the physiology of stars or fingers some kind of golden rule between creeping and spreading that only you would know and that would help you daily in your construction of the world’s largest hoard of sounds and spires
THINGS TO CONSIDER SHOULD YOU HAPPEN UPON YOUR DOPPELGANGER ON THE STREET
Do not panic. Remain calm. A level head is key in any doppelganger situation. There’s no reason to assume that your doppelganger is harboring nefarious intentions without first considering all the possibilities. Is it possible that your doppelganger is simply a dead ringer? A good three out of five doppelgangers are nothing more than harmless people who, due to the random nature of genetics, resemble you exactly. If this is the case, perhaps the two of you can come to some sort of mutually beneficial agreement. (For example: Have you any need for an alibi while hiding a body in…
LIMERICKS OF EVOLUTION
In thanks for all the submissions recieved for our evolution contest, the SCQ is happy to present a few lines of verse to you. Hopefully, we’ll be able to showcase the best of the submissions shortly, but for now, be cautioned that recitation of the following limericks during courting rituals may actually decrease reproductive fitness. – – – There once was a young man named Darwin Who spent five years tossed to the far wind He wrote a book for his peers After only twenty short years And now he’s as pop as George Carlin. They say we all came…
THE KYOTO PROTOCOL F.A.Q (POOLE REMIX)
(this is one of many FAQ files found at Terry) There is a general consensus that global warming is underway, but what should we do about it? The Kyoto Protocol has proven to be a hotbed of contention amongst scientists, policymakers, environmentalists and industry. Is it an exciting and groundbreaking development in the fight against global warming and the broader problem of climate change, or an ineffective and economically harmful attempt to win political kudos? What is the Kyoto Protocol and how is it supposed to address global warming? The Kyoto Protocol, an international and legally binding agreement to reduce…
CLIMATE MODELING F.A.Q. (BANKS REMIX)
(this is one of many FAQ files found at Terry) The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released its third assessment report back in 2001. The report concluded that the panel of prominent scientists expected the earth’s average temperature to rise from anywhere between 1.4 to 5.8% by 2100. This is a significant conclusion, even at the lower level of the scale, not only for the future havoc this would wreak on the earth’s biosphere but as well the political and economic influence such a statement could have in the here and now. So where do these numbers come from? What…
HIV/AIDS F.A.Q. (RIVERS-BOWERMAN REMIX)
(this is one of many FAQ files found at Terry) What is HIV/AIDS? Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a retrovirus that attacks white blood cells known as T4 (CD4) lymphocytes . The function of the T4 cells is to determine if foreign matter such as bacteria or viruses has entered the human body . Upon interaction with a bacterial or viral cell, a T4 cell will alert the immune system to its presence . The immune system responds by attacking and eliminating the foreign matter and any infected cells using an array of white blood cells (both B and T…