Science writer, editor, and presenter
My question is about taste: why can some people tolerate chilli and some not? Chilli tolerance seems to improve when you eat more, but what’s happening in your mouth and brain? - Andrew Beale The perception of taste is much more complicated than most people assume at first.  When you bite into an apple, for …
Boil 'em, mash 'em, stick 'em in a stew. They're versatile! No, I'm not talking about taters.  I'm talking about tardigrades: quite possibly the most durable creatures on Earth. They might also be the strangest combination of cute and terrifying anybody has ever seen looking through a microscope. Tardigrades, also known as water bears, evolved 500 million …
While I am here, posting about websites I have created, I figured I might as well tell you about this past summer's endeavour. I worked with the McMaster Centre for Climate Change to create an interactive map of community actions to address climate change. Â The site can be found here: mapclimatechange.ca. Â Building the site was …
What kind of bed do you sleep in? Personally, my bed is a double. Â It is about 1.4m (4.5ft) wide and 1.90m (6.25ft) long . Â Two people can sleep comfortably on it, hence the name "double". Â With the matress, boxspring and frame, it probably weighs about 20 kg (~40lbs). Now, imagine fastening two of these …
Life on Earth wouldn't be possible without Earth and the Sun. The Sun only exists as a product of galaxy formation. You probably guessed what's next: the galaxy [...]
Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin’s footprints on the moon will never fade. Until they get struck by a meteor or the sun expands.  Well, we know the sun will expand to engulf the Earth’s current orbit in approximately 5 billion years, but how likely is it that a meteor will wipe one of these footprints …
Continue reading "About As Likely As A Lunar Footprint Getting Hit By Space Debris"
Jon Farrow 