Nature and Science | Keys Corner

Duck dialects

By John, on February 8th, 2005

It seems that ducks, like people, have regional accents: While cockney ducks make a rough “shouting” quack so that their mates can hear them above the din of urban life, their laid-back counterparts in the west country give off a Cornish burr of a quack, rather like a “giggle”

. . . → Read More: Duck dialects

West Antarctic ice melting at rate of 250 cubic km / year

By John, on February 2nd, 2005

Members of the British Antarctic Survey have discovered that a huge sheet of ice, resting on land in the area of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet (WAIS), is disintegrating and flowing into the sea.

The sea level is rising world-wide by 0.2 mm / year as a result and it will raise the . . . → Read More: West Antarctic ice melting at rate of 250 cubic km / year

Roll those tweels

By John, on February 1st, 2005

A Michelin TWEEL (Tyre/WhEEL) Michelin has unveiled some revolutionary (pun intended) wheels, which run without pneumatic tyres and potentially handle better than the best conventional tyres available today.

(via BoingBoing)

Now you see it, now you don’t

By John, on December 15th, 2004

Reports that travellers and even vehicles have been suddenly swallowed up in the desert, to vanish without trace, have been dismissed as fantasy in the past. But fluid physics research at the University of Twente in Holland with fine, aerated sand suggests this is quite possible.

(Seen at . . . → Read More: Now you see it, now you don’t

Thank you, Mr. Putin

By John, on November 18th, 2004

It’s good to see that the Kyoto Protocol is to come into effect on February 16th next year, despite the American government’s decision not to back it.

America decided not to back the treaty in 2001, because the cost of meeting its targets would be too high for the US economy, which is . . . → Read More: Thank you, Mr. Putin

Stressed-out cats

By John, on October 31st, 2004

Cats suffering from stress often suffer from bladder infections.

What should you give such a cat? Continue reading Stressed-out cats

Laser printer fingerprints

By John, on October 31st, 2004

Researchers at Perdue University can identify what model of laser printer produced a particular printout. The researchers have discovered that the intensity of the print produced by a particular printer varies in a unique manner (banding) as the page is printed. This is because printers are made from parts manufactured to a relatively low . . . → Read More: Laser printer fingerprints

Mount St. Helens

By John, on September 30th, 2004

As the chance of a new eruption at Mount St. Helens increases today, Shelley Powers has posted her recollection of living downwind of the previous eruption on May 18th 1980. Makes interesting reading – and makes you wonder what on earth it will be like if Yellowstone Park erupts (the last eruption there was . . . → Read More: Mount St. Helens

Modelling impossible Escher pictures in 3D

By John, on September 28th, 2004

Most people will be familiar with Escher’s impossible pictures depicting water perpetually flowing downhill in a closed loop or triangles which appear to join up opposite sides. Gershon Elber has discovered that some of these impossible figures can be made as 3D objects – the optical illusion only works from a specific angle, however. . . . → Read More: Modelling impossible Escher pictures in 3D

The effect of an eruption at Cumbre Vieja

By John, on August 14th, 2004

The BBC reported on criticism of lack of government action by the Benfield Grieg Hazard Research Centre earlier this week. If Cumbre Vieja volcano on La Palma (in the Canary Islands) erupts, 500 cubic kilometers of rock (approximately twice the volume of the Isle of Man) are likely to slide into the sea, causing . . . → Read More: The effect of an eruption at Cumbre Vieja