TOP 100 SCIENCE SITES
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| Starvation 'wiped out' giant deer A study of ancient teeth provides new clues as to what caused the demise of one of the largest ever species of deer. news.bbc.co.uk |
Global warming may require higher dams, stilts With the world losing the battle against global warming so far, experts are warning that humans need to follow nature's example: Adapt or die.... hosted.ap.org |
Darwin stood on the shoulders of giants Why express surprise that this year we have been celebrating Charles Darwin and his Origin of Species, but little about Alfred Russel Wallace (Letters, 3 December)? The simple answer is that this has been Darwin's year, not Wallace's. It is Darwin's 200th birthday, and the 150th anniversary of the first publication of the Origin. There will be due celebrations of Wallace's work when his turn comes. But it is not true that Wallace has been neglected. On 1 July last year, the Linnean Society of London celebrated its original hosting of the first Darwin-Wallace joint reading in 1858 of their theory of evolution by natural selection.Moreover, 2009 has successfully provided numerous specialists with high-profile opportunities to reassess the individual contributions of both scientists as well as the (well-worn) conspiracy theory. It is also relevant that our Darwin celebrations have not been restricted to the Origin, but have also paid extended tribute to his fundamental contributions to many other aspects of biology, as well as anthropology, social science and geology – subjects for which no one has ever suggested anti-Wallace conspiracies. The root of the problem lies with our apparent obsession with identifying the role of the individual in the history of science. But as Darwin's prolific letter-writing testifies, and as Newton famously acknowledged ("on ye shoulders of giants"), science is a space-time continuum of extended collaborations and interactions embedded in the "invisible college" of the science community at large.Brian Rosen London • The Charlesworths (Letters, 7 December) are right that Darwin had formulated the theory of evolution by natural selection 20 years before Wallace. But they don't point out that Patrick Matthew had beaten Darwin to it by seven years, and there is evidence that Darwin knew about Matthew by 1838.Hugh DowerYorkCharles DarwinBiologyAnthropologySocial sciencesGeologyguardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2009 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds guardian.co.uk |
Rare New Year's Eve 'blue moon' to ring in 2010 Once in a blue moon there is one on New Year's Eve. Revelers ringing in 2010 will be treated to a so-called blue moon. According to popular definition, a blue moon is the second full moon in a month. But don't expect it to be blue the name has nothing to do with the color of our closest celestial neighbor. rssfeeds.usatoday.com |
Sunflower DNA map could produce plants for fuel SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) -- A $10.5 million research project aimed at mapping the DNA sequence of sunflowers could one day yield a towering new variety for both food and fuel.... hosted.ap.org |