09 NOV 2015 by ideonexus
Non-English Languages Lack the Words for Talking About Te...
By the early 19th century, just three—French, English, and German—accounted for the bulk of scientists’ communication and published research; by the second half of the 20th century, only English remained dominant as the U.S. strengthened its place in the world, and its influence in the global scientific community has continued to increase ever since.
As a consequence, the scientific vocabularies of many languages have failed to keep pace with new developments and discoveries. In many l...Folksonomies: culture technology
Folksonomies: culture technology
1 
notes
notes24 JAN 2015 by ideonexus
Pure Understanding of Nature is the Primary Aim of Science
Pupin believed with passionate intensity that the primary aim of science is the pure understanding of nature, and that useful applications must be considered of secondary importance. The prestige and influence which he derived from his inventions he used in an unceasing campaign to improve the standing of fundamental science in America. In this way the paradoxical situation arose, that it was Pupin the practical inventor who did more than any other man of his time to convince the American pub... 1 notes
notesFrom the preface.
21 JAN 2014 by ideonexus
The Tyranny of Public Opinion
You may talk of the tyranny of Nero and Tiberias, but the real tyranny is the tyranny of your next-door neighbour. What espionage of despotism comes to your door so effectively as the eye of the man who lives at your door? Public opinion is a permeating influence. It requires us to think other men's thoughts, to speak other men's words, to follow other men's habits. Folksonomies: public opinion
Folksonomies: public opinion
1 notes
notesIt influences our thoughts more than any individual.
19 JAN 2013 by ideonexus
Climate Change Science is Based on an 1896 Paper
Our understanding that increasing carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere could change the climate is not new. The relationship between carbon dioxide, water vapor, and climate was first laid out in detail in 1896 by the Swedish physicist Svante Arrhenius, who estimated that a doubling of carbon dioxide levels would cause global warming of 4.9° to 6.1°C. In his landmark paper, Arrhenius reported that "a simple calculation shows that the temperature in the arctic regions would rise about 8°...
1 Reference to the original paper that started Climate Change Science.
20 JUN 2012 by ideonexus
Learning About Forestry
How to start on my adventure—how to become a forester—was not so simple. There were no schools of Forestry in America. ... Whoever turned his mind toward Forestry in those days thought little about the forest itself and more about its influences, and about its influence on rainfall first of all. So I took a course in meteorology, which has to do with weather and climate. and another in botany, which has to do with the vegetable kingdom—trees are unquestionably vegetable. And another in ... 1 notes
notesHow Pinchot studied forestry, a subject that did not exist in his time, so he studied meteorology, geology, and botany.
29 MAY 2012 by ideonexus
Science Fiction Inspires
Not only is science fiction an idea of tremendous import, but it is to be an important factor in making the world a better place to live in, through educating the public to the possibilities of science and the influence of science on life which, even today, are not appreciated byu the man on the street. ... If every man, woman, boy and girl, could be induced to read science fiction right along, there would certainly be a great resulting benefit to the community, in that the educational standa...Folksonomies: science fiction
Folksonomies: science fiction
Quote from Hugo Gernsback.
18 MAY 2012 by ideonexus
The Importance of Studying the Brain
Whoever would not remain in complete ignorance of the resources which cause him to act; whoever would seize, at a single philosophical glance, the nature of man and animals, and their relations to external objects; whoever would establish, on the intellectual and moral functions, a solid doctrine of mental diseases, of the general and governing influence of the brain in the states of health and disease, should know, that it is indispensable, that the study of the organization of the brain sho... 1 notes
notesIt is the only way to understand ourselves and many of the diseases that afflict us.
12 JUN 2011 by ideonexus
Looking One's Imminent Death with Curiosity
I like to remember the distinguished Swedish oceanographer, Otto Pettersson, who died a few years ago at the age of ninety-three, in full possession of his keen mental powers. His son has related in a recent book how intensely his father enjoyed every new experience, every new discovery concerning the world about him.
"He was an incurable romantic," the son wrote, "intensely in love with life and with the mysteries of the universe." When he realized he had not much longer to enjoy the earthl... 1 notes
notesAn oceanographer is curious as to what it will be like.
28 MAY 2011 by ideonexus
Science is Self-Isolating
Still, it is undeniable that the troubling disconnect between the i scientific community and society stems partly from the nature of scientific training today, and from scientific culture generally. ). some ways science has become self-isolating. The habits of specialization that have ensured so many research successes have also made it harder to connect outside the laboratory and the ivory tower. As a result, the scientific community simultaneously generates ever more valuable knowledge and ...Folksonomies: memetics science communication
Folksonomies: memetics science communication
1 notes
notesThe nature of science is quiet isolation; therefore, its memes are less capable of venturing into other minds.
