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The author of Skulls in the Stars is a professor of physics, specializing in optical science, at UNC Charlotte. The blog covers topics in physics and optics, the history of science, classic pulp fantasy and horror fiction, and the surprising intersections between these areas. -
Category Archives: General science
We’ve moved… to Scientopia!
********************* And now, for some big news — this blog is moving! Skulls in the Stars is relocating to be a part of a new blog collective, Scientopia.org! This collective consists of a number of ex-Sciencebloggers and a number of … Continue reading
Posted in General science, Personal
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Weird science facts, March 14-March 27
Several months ago, I started a “tag” on Twitter called #weirdscifacts, in which I am chronicling in short form various little oddities about the people, events, and phenomena of science. I’ve vowed to do these facts daily for a full … Continue reading
ResearchBlogging editor’s selections: WEIRD science, copycat suicides, square quantum mechanics, nanophobia and Mars’ oceans
Are most experimental subjects in behavioral science WEIRD? “Weird” here is an acronym, but also reflects the idea that the representative samples in behavioral science aren’t really that representative of humanity as a whole. Michael Meadon of Ionian Enchantment discusses … Continue reading
Posted in General science, Science news
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Release the kraken! (1790)
This is a science topic that isn’t really my field, but it’s just so charming that I had to post about it. While browsing through the Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh from 1790, I found a note titled, … Continue reading
Posted in General science, History of science
6 Comments
ResearchBlogging editor’s selections: why no wheels?, GADZOOKS!, butterfly faces and gravity’s existence
Why no wheels? At Gambler’s House, teofilo endeavors to explain why ancient cultures throughout the Americas didn’t make use of the wheel — even when they understood its principles! Acro-tastic! (with additional GADZOOKS!). Over at we are all in the … Continue reading
Posted in General science, Science news
9 Comments
The Giant’s Shoulders #25, 2nd anniversary edition, is out!
The Giant’s Shoulders #25 is officially out at The Dispersal of Darwin, and it marks the two year anniversary since the first carnival! In honor of it, Michael has put together a truly massive list of posts for the month, … Continue reading
Posted in General science, Science news
3 Comments
ResearchBlogging editor’s selections: International romance, sluggish T-rex, double rainbows and World Cup excuses
It was, perhaps not surprisingly, a relatively quiet week in research blogging, but there were still lots of great posts! Men, English, and international romance. We begin this week with a post about international relationships, specifically of Japanese folks with … Continue reading
Posted in General science, Science news
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7 days until The Giant’s Shoulders #25!
In spite of all the craziness in the blogosphere right now (or perhaps because of it), this seemed like a good time to remind people that there are 7 days left until the deadline for The Giant’s Shoulders #25, to … Continue reading
Posted in General science, Science news
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ResearchBlogging editor’s selections: Eclipse in the Odyssey, photons still bosons, and soccer GPS
Eclipse in The Odyssey: Science Meets Mythology. It has been long suspected that one passage in Homer’s Odyssey describes an actual solar eclipse, but has been mostly speculation. A recent investigation, described by agoldstein at Beyond the Bench, provides tantalizing … Continue reading
Posted in General science, Science news
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ResearchBlogging editor’s selections: Soothing troubled waters, zombie stars, risky business with oil, visual recognition, and time and power
Pouring oil on ‘troubled waters’. Historically, sailors believed they could calm choppy water by pouring oil on it, and small-scale tests indicate at least a partial truth to this. Could the Gulf oil spill have a similar effect? In a … Continue reading
Posted in General science, Science news
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