Science Blog

http://colinpurrington.com/tips/academic/posterdesign

"Gratuitous advice on how to prepare posters for scientific meetings, research conferences, and similar gatherings of nerds who want to share their stuff on really big pieces of paper.  With apologies, this page is really long, but should give you the basics on how to make your poster and how to present it without embarrassing yourself.  Feedback always appreciated via Contact button.  Happy posterizing! "

 

"We believe that the traditional text resume is boring, lengthy and long overdue for a makeover. We are creating an online resume format that is beautiful, relevant and fun. We want to enable people to express their professional accomplishments in a simple yet compelling personal visualization. Our vision is to become the future of resumes. We live and breathe our work and love our jobs." Visualize.me

Visitors can sign up here to create an interactive and graphically exciting version of their resume that is quite novel. First-time visitors should watch the introductory video on the site, and then look over a few of the sample resumes. The tool is quite a find, and this version of the application is compatible with computers running Windows 2000 and newer and Mac OS X 10.3 and newer.

From scout report

WHO has released the Guidelines for Drinking Water Quality. This fourth edition of the World Health Organization’s Guidelines for Drinking-water Quality builds on over 50 years of guidance by WHO on drinking-water quality, which has formed an authoritative basis for the setting of national regulations and standards for water safety in support of public health.You can download the full document here.

This digital project created by the Biodiversity Heritage Library offers interested parties a virtual reconstruction of the surviving books owned by Darwin, and it includes over 330 titles. First-time visitors will want to read the introductory essay titled "Darwin's Virtual Library: History & Scope" before jumping into the items here. After this excellent introduction, they should feel welcome to browse through the available titles in the "Current Book List" area. The real treat here is the fact that they have included the books that were most heavily annotated in Darwin's own hand, and visitors can look at all of his notes at their leisure. The site also includes a detailed bibliography and a link to the most recent additions. From Scout Report July 08 2011

"JOHANNESBURG, South Africa, February 17, 2011 (ENS) - More than 350 Johannesburg taxis were scrapped last week, when the owners handed over their operating licenses and officially bought their shares in PioTrans, the company contracted to run the city's bus rapid transit system, Rea Vaya." Read more......

Prizes go to IVF, graphene and ‘carbon chemistry at its best’

Read the full article from ScienceNews

 

"The report from the Food and Agriculture Organisation and the World Food Programme, states that although the number of hungry people in the world has fallen to 925-million thanks to renewed economic growth, it remains "unacceptably" high and hampers the achievement of the . Download the article from Creamer Media Reporter

 David Colquhoun considers how a university can achieve the best research and teaching, and the most efficient administration – the aim of every university vice-chancellor (president, rector or provost) in the country. Read the article.....

Physiology News | No. 69 | Winter 2007 | www.physoc.org

"With coverageof food science, the Neanderthal genome, and oil extraction via algae, theScience multimedia page has something for just about everyone. At the top ofthe page, visitors will find the "Science Podcast". Visitors areencouraged to sign up to the podcast's RSS feed, and they can also listen in toprevious installments. The "Images and Slide Shows" area is a delightfor the senses, as it features photo essays with audio commentary on HIV/AIDSin Eastern Europe and "How Astronomers Have Fun (and Nearly DieTrying)". If that isn't enough, head on over to the"Interactives" area, where one can learn about plant genomes via aseries of video clips, illustrations, and scientific drawings. The otherinteractive features here cover sea urchins and the human gut. Scienceeducators and writers will find the site particularly useful, though everyonewith a curious spirit will appreciate it." Go to Science Multimedia page

Reported from the Scout report 

http://www.teebweb.org/ 

The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) study is a major international initiative to draw attention to the global economic benefits of biodiversity, to highlight the growing costs of biodiversity loss and ecosystem degradation, and to draw together expertise from the fields of science, economics and policy to enable practical actions moving forward.

http://www.nsf.gov/news/special_reports/science_nation/ 

"Billed as "The Online Magazine That's All About Science for the People", the online magazine Science Nation reports on important science breakthroughs. Created by the National Science Foundation, the site reports on scientific and technological developments by using video clips, first-hand reporting, and well-written articles. On the homepage, visitors can take in their latest report, and then move on down to the "Science Nation Topics" area. Here they will find reports on tornadoes, new technologies for the visually handicapped, and the effect that climate change will have on Emperor penguin populations in Antarctica. Each topic is accompanied by related images and links to additional websites of note. Finally, visitors can also sign up to receive updates from the site via email and they are welcome to send along their feedback." Information and description from Scout Report at http://scout.wisc.edu/Reports/ScoutReport/2010/scout-bestof.php

http://www.nature.com/milestones/index.html

Nature Milestones highlights key discoveries that have shaped different scientific fields and enables the wider recognition of these classic findings that are often recognized only by those in the field.

"What were the most important advances in cutaneous biology of the past 100 years? The Nature Milestones website provides a detailed answer to that question, along with similar responses regarding light microscopy, cancer, and gene expression. All told there are ten special features on the site, and each feature includes an interactive timeline, scientific commentaries, and a selection of articles from Nature magazine and other peer-reviewed publications. Additionally, each feature includes a list of academic advisors, sponsors, and links to external resources on the subject. Visitors may wish to use these resources in the classroom setting, as they provide basic and advanced materials that can be used by a number of introductory courses. Finally, a number of the materials are also available in the pdf format for easy printing." Website description and information from http://scout.wisc.edu/Reports/ScoutReport/2010/scout-bestof.php 

From BBC News: 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/8688781.stm 

"For the past year - about a million miles from Earth - the infrared cameras on the Herschel Space Observatory have been capturing images of giant swirling clouds of cosmic dust. 

Take a look with one of the Herschel mission's co-investigators, and former president of the Royal Astronomical Society, Professor Michael Rowan-Robinson".

 

From BBC News:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science_and_environment/10132762.stm 

"The researchers constructed a bacterium's "genetic software" and transplanted it into a host cell.

The resulting microbe then looked and behaved like the species "dictated" by the synthetic DNA.

The advance, published in Science, has been hailed as a scientific landmark, but critics say there are dangers posed by synthetic organisms."

The rise and demise of South Africa’s Pebble Bed Modular Reactor. by David Fig