IBM has recently announced an ambitious project to build an entirely autonomous research ship that will cross the Atlantic Ocean in 2020, called the “Mayflower”. The ship will set sail in September, on the 400-year anniversary of the original Mayflower’s voyage from Plymouth, England to Plymouth, USA, and will follow a similar course. The main …
Category Archives: Uncategorized
Psychological Influences on Decision Making
We like to think that when faced with an important decision, that intuition or the so called ‘gut feeling’ will help aid us in making the right decision. Research into decision making and statistical reasoning by Kahneman and Tversky has suggested that decisions made by individuals are predictable and often misguided. Consider this scenario: You …
Continue reading “Psychological Influences on Decision Making”
Study has found that drinking coffee can prevent Parkinson’s Disease Development
A study conducted in Hawaii has found that drinking more coffee could reduce middle aged Japanese men’s risk of developing Parkinson’s Disease. This came following increasing Parkinson’s prevalence in the United States, and the lack of treatment to help prevent it’s onset. Researcher G. Webster Ross from the Veterans Affairs Pacific Island Health Care system …
Continue reading “Study has found that drinking coffee can prevent Parkinson’s Disease Development”
Fiery Grapes
The humble grape. This fruit has so many positive qualities including: Easy to eat Can be made into wine Contains melatonin (helpful for sleep) Great sharing fruit Comes in a variety of colours, shapes and sizes Creates plasma Yes… you read that last one right! Grapes really do form plasma. Plasma is said to be …
Why does Mentos and Coke react?
You probably saw this kind of video online. A person put Mentos into a bottle full of coke. Then a huge amount of bubble form and push the all coke out of the bottle. It is really fun and could be a good prank on your friend ;). But how does it work?? Is there …
Formalising Informal Mathematics
This blog is mostly based on the video below, which is about a mathematicians vision to formalise modern mathematics. If you’re interested at all in mathematics I’d recommend giving it a watch, but if not, the speaker’s deadpan and sarcasm make it interesting to listen to alone. If you have taken a mathematics course this …
Coffee without the Caffeine?
The removal of caffeine is something most coffee drinkers would scoff at, however for someone that likes to drink the beverage for the taste, and not the caffeine, finding a good decaf is a never-ending journey. But before I answer how come it’s so hard to find a good decaf, how does the coffee become …
The Science of Superheroes: Part I
Although superheroes have always been popular, in recent years their cinematic interpretations have broken through into the mainstream. But sometimes the mystical powers these heroes possess truly exploit the suspension of disbelief and this blog trilogy will explore whether we could one day have costumed vigilantes swooping from the sky, or if comic book writers need …
How to cook a perfect steak?
Since I’m reducing my meat consumption for the planet, on those rare times where I get to bite into a juicy steak, I want my steak to be top quality. Firstly, it starts with your choice of meat chosen: Tenderness of the Steak: This is controlled through what area of the cow is selected, avoiding …
The Birthday Problem
Look around. Do you see any people? If you answered yes, then please proceed. If not, then go find some friends. Found some? Good. Do they all have birthdays? Great, we’ll need those. There’s an interesting “paradox” in probability theory called the “Birthday Problem”, and I’m going to tell you about it. If you go …
Science Scholars 2019 