A photographer and appearances
Our photographer draws our attention to how differently the same objects appear in different light. It’s a lesson easily generalized.
The angle of the light
Articles Tagged with perception
Science and the long shot
Why new discoveries are over-hyped
We often hear of new scientific results that promise great things, especially in the health field, but then hear no more of them. Most scientific ideas don’t work out. Why, then, do we still hear the hype?
It doesn’t look like that
The universe is photoshopped
Our astronomer points out that that pictures of outer space don’t actually show what you’d see if you went there.
The scientific cult of personality
Do electrons care about Feynman?
Our chief consultant explores an unexpected feature of scientific magazines.
Why an f-stop?
It’s all the astronomers’ fault
Our photographic consultant is reminded how complicated things are for beginners, no matter how straightforward it all seems to the professionals.
Thinking in stories
The limits of doing your science in metaphors
It’s vital not to confuse an illuminating explanation of science with the science itself.
Business books
A different form of literature
Our consultants encounter a type of writing that seems terribly strange, until they realize what it’s for.
Life is nonlinear
Changing something changes everything
Tomorrow is a lot like today, but not always. Beware the law of unintended consequences.
Not dangerous enough
Probable perils of new technology
Using mobile phones, especially smartphones, while driving is dangerous. Yet our chief consultant concludes it’s not dangerous enough!
Scientists and doublethink
Using different theories at the same time
Scientists, especially astronomers, use several incompatible theories in their calculations. How? And why?