Category Archives: Science

“Who are you?” Forensic anthropology and human rights.

Posted on January 15, 2012 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

From Arts & Letter Daily  comes a fascinating article,  Mengele’s Skull, that details “…the value of forensic anthropology to human rights…”  An excerpt: It was during the Mengele investigation that the procedures and techniques of forensic identification of human remains … Continue reading →

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Fear of flying: the Air France 447 Flight disaster…

Posted on December 18, 2011 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

I hate to fly.  Because of it, or in spite of it, I read anything to do with flight disasters…  Remember the plane that left Brazil and disappeared in the Atlantic 2 years or so ago?  Well, there is a … Continue reading →

Posted in France, Technology, Travel | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

The dignity of death ~ how doctors die.

Posted on December 8, 2011 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

Doctors die “gently”: They want to be sure, when the time comes, that no heroic measures will happen—that they will never experience, during their last moments on earth, someone breaking their ribs in an attempt to resuscitate them with CPR … Continue reading →

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From the BBC’s Frozen Planet: a brinicle.

Posted on November 28, 2011 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

I had never heard of a brinicle, but the BBC video below presents a stunning description:

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Synesthesia and tasting words.

Posted on November 28, 2011 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

From the National Geographic:  “A neural condition that tangles the senses so that people hear colors and taste words could yield important clues to understanding how the brain is organized, according to a new review study.” Here’s more on synesthesia.

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“…mathematical models beyond our human comprehension…” – visualizing conception through birth.

Posted on November 20, 2011 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

Alexander Tsiaras: Conception to birth — visualized (I’m awed by science!): (Via The Anchoress).

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Medical History: “Building a National Library on a Shoestring…”

Posted on November 17, 2011 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

A gem from the US National Health Institute:  Building a National Library on a Shoestring:  1872 – the First Year. (Thanks to BibliOdyssey, a site that never disappoints!  Check it out).

Posted in Culture, Science, United States | Leave a comment

The seed that multiplied.

Posted on November 16, 2011 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

The following quote from the article “All His Children – A sperm donor discovers his rich, unsettling legacy.” by Robin Romm in The Atlantic is unsettling: Describing the sensation of first seeing the biological children he’d never known, Raul told … Continue reading →

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Navy SEAL Chinook Water Extraction = helicopter gets down in water to retrieve an inflatable boat!

Posted on November 12, 2011 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

When I first read the title “Navy SEAL Chinook Water Extraction”, I thought it meant a helicopter extracting water via a hose, for putting out fires or spraying fields. To my amazement, it really means bringing the helicopter down to … Continue reading →

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Meditation improves the immune system and reduces stress.

Posted on November 2, 2011 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

When I read this in The Telegraph this morning: Meditation improves the immune system, reduces blood pressure and even sharpens the mind, according to research. The practice – an essential part of Buddhist and Indian Yoga traditions – has entered … Continue reading →

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Art restoration and mathematics: “Circular Harmonic Decomposition”.

Posted on October 20, 2011 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

From Der Spiegel: In 1944, a bombing raid almost completely destroyed an enormous Padua church fresco that dated back to the Renaissance and had once been admired by Goethe. Some 88,000 tiny pieces of plaster were rescued from the rubble, and … Continue reading →

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The Sybil curse of multiple personalities disorder.

Posted on October 17, 2011 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

38 years later, dishonesty in the psychiatric profession comes to light: “Sybil Exposed”: Memory, lies and therapy.  How three women fabricated the most famous case of multiple personality disorder and damaged thousands of lives.

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When a whale dies.

Posted on October 15, 2011 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

I did not realize that a whale carcass in the ocean lasts between 50-70 years, about the same length of a whale’s life span.  Below is a charming video that illustrates the process of decomposition: Whale Fall (after life of … Continue reading →

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The McGurk Effect: when your ears lie to you.

Posted on September 30, 2011 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

Professor Lawrence Rosenblum of University of California, Riverside, explains the McGurk effect: what we hear may not always be the truth.

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Cervical cancer and household vinegar.

Posted on September 27, 2011 by Barbara Dillon Hillas

Ask any member of my family as to what I think of vinegar and all that it does, and they will tell you that I am a nut when it comes to vinegar.   They make fun of me and I … Continue reading →

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