The ultimate goal of the scientific method is to falsify the closest approximations to reality. There are no absolute truths in science because all theories are liable to perpetual refinement and revision. In science, plausibility is established not by proving things true but in fact, but by demonstrating that they have not yet been shown […]
Read more "How do we know what is true?"In science, negative results, all too often, never see the light of day. Indeed, that is quite a problem because biasing results towards positive findings means missing out on a potential information source that could have otherwise been obtained through the negative findings. Such a case is often the result of a drive to squeeze […]
Read more "Failure in Science: The Story of William Perkin"Advancements in science have undoubtedly always been a driver for financial gain. But despite science’s primordial role in catapulting countries into economic preeminence, science has not had its fair share of spending. Most countries tend to spend 1-3 % of their GDP on R&D, the majority of which is constituted by private non-federal contributions. This is indeed […]
Read more "Why do we spend very little on science?"Last Sunday on May 22nd, Mars reached its opposition, an astronomical phenomenon which happens every 2 years. Since the orbit of Mars is located outside the orbit of Earth, the Earth, Mars, and the Sun periodically occur in a straight line leading to opposition of Mars, wherewith it lies on the opposite side of the […]
Read more "Mars Closest to Earth in a Decade"Mark your calendars! An astronomical phenomenon of great significance will occur this Monday on May 9th. Mercury will cross the sun for the first time since 2006. The transit of Mercury occurs when Mercury passes between the sun and the Earth (inferior conjunction), since of course Mercury is closer to the sun than we are. […]
Read more "Transit of Mercury On May 9th"It is that time of year again where those “once in a lifetime” kind of astronomy hoaxes begin circulating on social media and wow an uninformed crowd. Here’s a hoax which I came across today purporting that Saturn will appear closer to Earth than the moon to offer an spectacular sight. Anyone with a basic understanding […]
Read more "Yet Another Facebook Hoax"“What a delightful irony it will be if the real age of sail has yet to dawn – not only on the oceans of Earth, but also in the far wider seas of space” This is how Arthur C. Clarke envisioned the future of interstellar exploration in the great anthology of essays, poems, and essays […]
Read more "A Sail Through the Cosmos"In the 18th Century, navigating across the seas was fraught with danger and error. With no practical method of determining longitude, sailors had no accurate means of pinpointing their position at sea. Ships had sailed forth only to blunder off course and never return. Sailors had died by the thousands. And, mistakes had jeopardized trade […]
Read more "The Clock That Changed the World"The Industrial revolution can perhaps be characterized as a transition from humanised handicraft to mechanized manufacture, as actuated by a complex structure of successive and interweaving technological innovations. But, what spurred such technological advancement remains contentious. What is it about the 18th Century that made it distinctively amenable to such technical change? And, importantly, what […]
Read more "Ideas That Propelled the Industrial Revolution"The mere happenstance of a coincidental sequence of events, put together by the blind works of nature, has serendipitously manifested itself in this fascinating complexity around us today, that only appears to bear the illusion of an orderly calibration of deliberate design. This happenstance of undirected natural processes has led to self-directed sentient beings, pondering […]
Read more "The Happenstance of Existence"
The BLOG of the cosmos 