Skulls in the Stars

• A Bonobo in the Hand or Two Chimps in the Bush? Do different species of primates have the same perception of risk, or does it depend on their feeding habits and environment?  With some clever imagery, Jason at The Thoughtful Animal describes some research that shows how different species make very different choices, and suggests why.
• The media finds life on titan.  Sort of… OMG we’ve found life on Saturn’s moon Titan??!!  Well, not exactly.  Greg at Weird Things discusses the research on Titan and explains that, while the measurements made suggest the possibility of life, there are lots of other possibilities and the jury is still out on this one.
• ‘As We May Think’ at 65. In 1945, Vannevar Bush published a visionary article in The Atlantic Magazine that discussed the efficient recording of information and the use of mechanical mathematics machines, an article that is credited as being an inspiration for the creation of the World Wide Web.  Simon at Thinking Out Loud discusses the influence this article had on a generation of computer scientists.

Posted this a little later in the day than usual, but still on Monday!  Check back next Monday for more miscellaneous suggestions!

• Atlatls to Bows: A Serendipitous Lion Hunt. Continuing his series of posts on the transition of the ancient North Americans from atlatls to bows, teofilo of Gambler’s House talks about a fortuitous discovery of a cache of bows that lead to increased understanding of ancient bow technology.
• Perception of volcanic hazards in Iceland. The world’s attention was recently focused on Iceland due to the eruption there that paralyzed air travel for days throughout Europe, but Iceland has always been a geothermally active region.  How well-prepared are Icelanders in general to deal with volcanic emergencies?  Jessica at Magma Cum Laude looks at the evidence.
• Relativity on a human scale. This one will be hard for the relativity denialists to explain!  Chad at Uncertain Principles describes research with atomic clocks that has demonstrated Einstein’s special and general relativity in a tabletop experiment!
• The assessment of emotional expression in dogs. Everybody seems to agree that dogs are very emotive animals, but do we all see the same emotions in a particular animal?  At her eponymous blog, The Dog Zombie looks at an attempt to apply statistics to understanding how much we agree on a dog’s emotional state.

Check back next week for more “miscellaneous” suggestions!

I’ve  been very distracted by the addition of a new dog to our household, but I wanted to be sure and remind people that there’s 9 days until the deadline for The Giant’s Shoulders #24, to be hosted at Jost a mon!  Entries can be submitted through blogcarnival.com or directly to the host blog, as usual.

• Prestigious Chimps and the Emergence of Cultural Innovation. In society, some individuals are natural “trend-setters”, developing new styles and fashions that others follow.  One might be tempted to call this a distinctly human trait, but Eric Michael Johnson at The Primate Diaries describes research on chimps that suggests that they have their own cultural pressures.
• Eye Color Predicts and Doesn’t Predict Perceived Dominance. Research can sometimes take more unexpected twists and turns than a good thriller!  Daniel Hawes at Ingenious Monkey describes research on whether eye color influences a human’s perceived dominance.  It does, but it doesn’t, but it does!
• Synthesising Soufflés. Can cooking be considered a science?  Akshat Rathi at Contemplation explains the emerging field of molecular gastronomy, and how it can help you understand the rise of your Soufflés!

For those commemorating Memorial Day in the States, I hope you have a good one!  Check back next week for more “miscellaneous” selections!

• Varieties of Oceanographic Experience. Sam at Oceanographer’s Choice looks at a classic paper that considers how the scale of a measurement influences — or distorts — the results.
• The majestic Megatherium. When people think of paleontology these days, they think of dinosaurs; however, this wasn’t always the case.  Brian at Laelaps looks at the original “great beast” of the public’s imagination, Megatherium, and how perceptions of it have changed throughout the years since its discovery.
• Atlatls to Bows: A Very Strange Atlatl from California. Continuing a fascinating series on the history of atlatls in the New World, teofilo at Gambler’s House looks at an unusual specimen that was acquired in California and the implications of the find.  (Don’t know what an atlatl is?  Read the introductory post by teofilo here.)
• A virtual slap in the face (isn’t there an iPhone app for that?) Finally, NeuroKüz discusses recent research that highlights how real a virtual body in a first-person simulation can feel — through the experience of a virtual slap!

Check back next week for more miscellaneous selections!