SciShow

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, Sept 23-29, 2018

/ Melanie Marttila

Welcome to thoughty Thursday where the goal is to get your mental corn popping!

That Phoenix debacle that keeps popping up from time to time in my social media feeds or these curations? Yeah, that one. Here’s a video that may help explain things:

 

Sarah DiGiulio explains why your weird dreams actually make a lot of sense (according to neuroscience and psychology). NBC News

Megan Feldman Bettencourt: how forgiveness has been weaponized against women. In other words, to truly forgive someone, they have to be held accountable. Harper’s Bazaar

Linda Rodriguez McRobbie reports on the dead beneath London’s streets. Smithsonian Magazine

SciShow introduces us to the incredible biodiversity of Lake Baikal—plus, extremophiles!

 

Matt Reynolds examines the almighty tussle over whether we should talk to aliens or not. SETI, METI, and the arguments for and against. Wired

Stephanie Pappas: humans contribute to the Earth’s wobble. Scientific American

SciShow Space looks at the Dark Matter vs. MOND debate.

 

Eric Mack: NASA turns 60 and it’s reinventing itself for the SpaceX era. Cnet

Adrien Mauduit shares his time-lapse video of the skies over Tenerife:

 

Florence + the Machine cover Tori Amos’s “Cornflake Girl.”

 

Beck: Colours

 

I hope you found something interesting in this edutainment mix.

This weekend, I’ll be posting my next chapter update for September.

Until then, be well, my writerly friends 🙂

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Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, Sept 16-22, 2018

/ Melanie Marttila

It’s time to pop your mental corn. Get those creative connections ping-ponging around that skull of yours!

Jim C. Hines shares lessons from a viral #metoo tweet.

Michael Hobbes: everything you know about obesity is wrong. The Huffington Post

ASAP science teams up with Gigi Gorgeous to explore the science of being transgender.

 

Marie Heinen: Doug Ford, no power grab is worth undermining Canada’s solid foundation. The Globe and Mail

The Ottawa Citizen provides an update on the tornadoes that touched down in Ottawa and Gatineau: it’s devastating.

SciShow explains why the weak nuclear force ruins everything.

 

In SciShow Space news: cryovolcanoes on Ceres and Iridium flares.

 

Ryan F. Mandelbaum reports that scientists gave MDMA (ecstasy) to octopi … and learned something profound. Gizmodo

True facts about the cuttlefish. Ze Frank

 

And that was your edutainment for the week.

Until next Tipsday, be well, be kind, and stay strong. The world needs your stories 🙂

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Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, July 8-14, 2018

/ Melanie Marttila

I’ve been a little short on the thoughty, lately. Heat kind of melts my brain. That’s my story, and I’m sticking to it.

Helen Thomson: strange stories of extraordinary brains and what we can learn from them. The Wall Street Journal

Lauren Sharkey: why don’t we know more about migraines? BBC

Richard Hollingham reports on the rocket scientists mixing up a giant firework. BBC

Kate Brown reports on a female-led art restoration movement in Florence and how it’s reshaping the canon. Art Net News

Do animals like music? SciShow

 

Enjoy your Friday and your weekend.

Until next Tipsday, be well, be kind, and stay strong. The world needs your stories.

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Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, July 1-7, 2018

/ Melanie Marttila

A few items to get your mental corn popping.

Gloria Galloway reports: Anishinaabe territory straddling Manitoba and Ontario named Canada’s first mixed UNESCO World Heritage site. The Globe and Mail

A bunch of posts about maps arrived in my inbox this week:

Dalmeet Singh Chawla says, scientists rarely admit their mistakes, but a new project wants to change that. UnDark

We might be totally wrong about Alzheimers Disease – SciShow

 

Alex Johnstone: how your age affects your appetite. BBC

SciShow Psych – why does nature make you feel better?

 

Have a happy Friday and an awesome weekend.

Until next week, be well, be kind, and stay strong. The world needs your stories.

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Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, May 6-12, 2018

/ Melanie Marttila

A few links to get your mental corn popping 🙂

Brian Resnick: Stephen Hawking’s final paper makes a hopeful case for the limits of existence. Vox

A super-massive black hole is hurtling toward Earth, but don’t worry, it’ll take about four billion years to get here. Sci-Tech Universe

Wil Wheaton shares his keynote speech for the NAMI Ohio’s statewide conference, Fulfilling the Promise: I live with chronic depression and I’m not ashamed.

SciShow: the strange (but true) history of hysteria.

 

Inverse: your brain on sugar with Shannon Odell.

 

Inverse: your brain on music with Shannon Odell.

 

Alfredo Carpineti: fasting for just one day can regenerate your stem cells. I wonder if the stomach flu counts? IFLS

Maggie posts about the history of our most common vegetables. The Plant Guide

Rosie McCall reports on a crow that steals a credit card, attempts to use it to buy a train ticket, and, after it fails, returns the card to its owner. Corvids rock my world. IFLS

I hope you found something in the mix to inspire.

Be well until next Tipsday!

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Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, Feb 11-17, 2018

/ Melanie Marttila

Happy Friday Eve! Here’s a little something to get the mental corn popping.

Sad stuff first …

Kyle Edwards: the Gerald Stanley verdict is a terrifying blow to reconciliation. McLean’s

Rachel Giese wonders why Colton Boushie’s mother has had to work so hard to prove her son’s humanity? Chatelaine

Tage Rai: the myth that mental illness causes mass shootings. Behavioral Scientist

Max Fisher and Josh Keller examine the reason there are so many mass shootings in the US. The New York Times

Sean Illing interviews Steven Pinker for Vox: the case for optimism.

Katherine Ellen Foley explains why we cringe when someone else embarrasses themselves. It’s all about empathy. Quartzy

Chuck Wendig offers some quick thoughts on managing anxiety. Terribleminds

Emily Hartridge gives us an update on her anxiety and how she deals.

 

SciShow Psych: myths about schizophrenia.

 

SciShow Psych: dissociative identity disorder.

 

How Tim Lomas discovered there are (at least) 14 different kinds of love by analysing the world’s languages. The Conversation

Mireia Movellán Luis profiles the rise and fall of the mighty Minoans. National Geographic

SciShow: thunder snow. We have that up here 😉

 

Katherine Zuckerman thinks that if birds left tracks in the sky, they’d look like these amazing photos by Xavi Bou. National Gerographic

Check out this collection of leaf insects—love the ones that look like little flowers! Daily Motion

The BBC News reports on the fall of a 1,000-year-old tree in Wales.

Zoey Peresman reviews Kate Bush’s The Kick inside on its 40th anniversary. Stereo Gum

Be well until the weekend!

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Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, Jan 7-13, 2018

/ Melanie Marttila

This week was thoughtier than usual 🙂

Dana Goodyear: can Hollywood change its ways? The New Yorker

Joseph Shapiro exposes the sexual assault epidemic that no one talks about. NPR

Zdravko Cvijetic lists 13 things you must give up to live the life you want. Uplift

Judith Graham says that good friends might be your best brain booster as you age. Scientific American

Ed Yong pays tribute to the transgender scientist who changed how we understand the brain. The Atlantic

The benefits of deep sleep and how we can get more of it. Dan Gartenberg’s TED Talk.

 

Holly Butcher was diagnosed with Ewings sarcoma and posted an inspirational message on the eve of her death. BoredPanda

Mya Fourstar aims for college basketball and life beyond the reserve. Jesse Dougherty for The Washington Post.

Arthur C. Clarke predicts the internet in 1962.

 

Dave Mosher reports on the Jupiter probe’s latest mind-bending images of the gas giant. The Business Insider

Andrew Fazekas shares his top eight must-see sky events of 2018. National Geographic

NPR’s Skunk Bear explores the sci-fi sound of singing ice.

 

SciShow: Egyptian Blue. Modern applications for an ancient pigment.

 

Shake your silk-maker: the dance of the peacock spider.

 

The firefly experience.

 

I hope something in this curation got your mental corn popping.

Be well until the weekend.

Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, Dec 24-30, 2017

/ Melanie Marttila

Here’s hoping this first instalment of Thoughty Thursday for 2018 gets your mental corn popping.

Erin Bunch suggests eight anti-resolutions that will make 2018 a happier year. Well + Good

It wasn’t all bad, says K.G Orphanides of Wired. Here’s a list of 17 things that made the world a better place in 2017.

Katherine Ellen Foley reviews where the major scientific discoveries from five years ago are now. Quartz

Michael Baumann: who gets to own outer space? The Ringer

Nicholas Casey profiles a Peruvian man who is the last speaker of his language. Heartbreaking. The New York Times

Nadra Kareem Nittle: what you should know about Kwanzaa and why it’s celebrated. Thought Co.

Harriet A. Washington thinks Hugh Jackman’s role as P.T. Barnum erased the showman’s violent racism. NBC

Olivia Goldhill: 30 years after the introduction of Prozac, we’re still buying the lie that depression is caused by a chemical imbalance. Quartz

Serena Daniari offers an immersive look into the transgender experience: walking while trans. Mic

Why we should celebrate the winter woodland, not just the Christmas tree. Robert Penn for The Guardian.

Wendy Berliner: why there’s no such thing as a gifted child. The Guardian

SciShow: why do we get colds when it’s cold?

 

Be well until the weekend, folks!

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Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, Oct 22-28, 2017

/ Melanie Marttila

It’s time to get your mental corn popping, my friends.

Phil Plait reports on our first interstellar visitor: an asteroid from another star. Did you go out and look at the moon on Saturday? You should have. October 28 was International Observe the Moon Night. Of course, it was overcast here in the Sudz 😦 SyFy

NASA releases its findings from its study of the Kelly twins. IFLS

SciShow: hypnagogia.

 

And in SciShow news, the Alphago AI and how volcanoes may have influenced ancient Egypt.

 

This is amazing. Russell Powell makes paintings with his hand prints. You just have to see it to appreciate it.

 

Livia Albeck-Ripka: for an endangered animal, a hurricane or a wildfire can mean the end. The New York Times

Kulning – an ancient herdingcall – a farewell song to the cows (and it actually works!)

 

For Hallowe’en, Sonya Vatomsky shares the origins of 25 monsters, ghosts, and spooky things. Buzzfeed

We’ll meet again, come December.

Be well until then 🙂

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Thoughty Thursday: Things that made me go hmmmm on the interwebz, Oct 8-14, 2017

/ Melanie Marttila

Something in this grab bag should get your mental corn popping 😉

Julie Ireton continues her investigation: chaos inside the Phoenix pay centres—is anyone’s pay right? CBC

Shaun King: the airport bomber from last week you never heard about. The Intercept

Phil Plait shares Juno’s latest images: Jovian chaos. SyFy

SciSchow news: new confirmation for the “warm little pond” theory of life; helpful tumours.

 

ASAP Science presents scientific tips for surviving the apocalypse.

 

Living with high functioning anxiety. Jordan Raskopoulos TEDxSydney.

 

Benoit Denizet-Lewis: why are more American teenagers than ever suffering from severe anxiety? The New York Times Magazine

Ashley Rogers: consent, intent, and problematic convention behaviour. Nerd Caliber

Karla Lant reports on a new drug that fixes cavities and regrows teeth. Futurism

Ancient Egyptian treasures found at the bottom of the ocean. Daily Berries

Claudia Roth Pierpont exposes the secret lives of Leonardo da Vinci. The New Yorker

Kelly Faircloth shares an oddly compelling video about how medieval people used to walk. Jezebel

Hannah Rose-Yee: Swedish death cleaning is the morbid new way to de-clutter your life. New York Post

Jane Carr reports on female code breakers for CNN.

And that was your Thoughty Thursday for the week.

Be well until the weekend!

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