Great discoveries in medicine

  Sickness and health, birth and death, disease and cure: medicine and our understanding of the workings of our bodies and minds are an important part of how we know who we are. Great Discoveries in Medicine is a fascinating account of the evolution of medical knowledge and practice from ancient Egypt, India, and China […]

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Because we are bipeds

I’m the worst kind of scientist, because I’m not one. A little knowledge and all that… When someone is behaving in an irritable way, it is quite reasonable to think of the experience as an emotional one, not as a biochemical crisis (leaving aside whether emotions are just biochemical processes anyway). But we shouldn’t rule […]

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10% human

For every single cell that makes up the human body, there are nine cells of microbes living both on and within our bodies. This rather shocking fact, is revealed by the title of one of the latest additions to our catalogue: “10% Human : How Your Body’s Microbes Hold the Key to Health and Happiness”. […]

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The most human human

(Photo credit: The most human human written by Brian Christian, published by Penguin) (Image shows the title of the book and a cartoon picture of a robot) Telling the difference between humans and computers used to be easy. But artificial intelligence is now so advanced that it is capable of behaving, and even thinking, in […]

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The story of astronomy

(Photo credit: Quercus. Image above shows two men in period dress next to a large telescope in front of a large image of a globe) From the ancient origins of astronomy to Dark Matter and Dark Energy, The Story of Astronomy charts the discoveries of some of the greatest minds in human history, and their attempts […]

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