Category Archives: Science

The Age of Re-Engineering: How Science Is Rewriting the Limits of Human Life

Just a century ago, the average human life expectancy in the United States hovered around 65 years. When the Social Security Act was signed into law in 1935, that exact age was chosen as the baseline for eligibility. The choice … Continue reading

Posted in Science | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Beyond Plastic: Rediscovering the Materials That Served Humanity for Millennia

When I recently wrote about our civilization quietly poisoning itself with microplastics, one reader asked a perfectly reasonable question: “If not plastic, then what?” It’s the right question. We’ve become so accustomed to plastic that many people can’t imagine life … Continue reading

Posted in Science, Society, Technology | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

A Civilization Poisoned by Progress: From Lead Pipes to Microplastics

History rarely repeats itself perfectly, but it often rhymes in chilling ways. We often look back at the giants of the past and wonder how a civilization so advanced, so structured and so dominant could simply dissolve. No collapse comes … Continue reading

Posted in Science, Society | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

These Aren’t the Aliens You’re Looking For

On a recent visit, my mother asked me what my thoughts were on those declassified UFO videos the United States government released. You know the ones, grainy, green-tinted, dramatic and supposedly the definitive proof that E.T. is playing tag with … Continue reading

Posted in Science | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Why Leave Earth? (An Earth Day Reflection on Going Beyond It)

This Earth Day, while we celebrate the only home we’ve ever known, it might seem strange to talk about leaving it, but after my recent post on the Artemis II mission, a reader asked a question that stopped me in … Continue reading

Posted in Science, Technology | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Happy World Quantum Day! Or Is It?

(April 14: The Day We Celebrate Planck’s Constant: 4.14 x 10-15 eV*s) Today is World Quantum Day, a concept that probably ranks somewhere between “International Paperclip Appreciation Day” and “Bring Your Houseplant to Work Day”. After all, unless you’re a … Continue reading

Posted in Science | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Riding the Invisible Currents of Gravity

After exploring why gravity doesn’t “turn off” and why astronauts in low Earth orbit are really just falling forever, we can finally follow that idea to its natural conclusion: what happens when you keep falling all the way to the … Continue reading

Posted in Science, Technology | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Falling Forever: Why 200 Miles Up Feels Like Zero Gravity

After I wrote about losing gravity, I was asked a great follow-up question: if the Earth is a massive object warping the fabric of spacetime and pulling everything toward it, why do astronauts appear like they’re floating in a giant … Continue reading

Posted in Science | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Cheeseburger Constituency: Why Your Bathroom Scale Doesn’t Care How You Vote

I dread talking politics. In the current climate, saying “good morning” can feel like a partisan statement. No matter what I say, I risk offending half the room, and in a world where we’ve forgotten how to bridge the “Space … Continue reading

Posted in Culture, Science, Society | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Science Whiplash: When Science Fights Itself

If you’ve lived long enough to read headlines, you’ve probably experienced nutritional whiplash. You wake up, pour a cup of coffee, and open your phone only to see a headline screaming that caffeine is the secret to eternal youth. You … Continue reading

Posted in Science | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment