science

anything related to science from the lab to the everyday

research

everything and anything to do with research

MotW

Molecule of the Week – recent from the chemical literature

opinion

like something else, everybody has them, we’re no different

media

science reports from ‘big’ media… tv, newspapers, etc…

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Articles by Scott Kassel

Friday Science Spree 09/30/11
September 30, 2011 – 1:16 pm | No Comment

As America’s Top Atom Smasher Closes, Fermilab Searches for New Relevance
How Climate Change Could Hurt Yellowstone National Park
Princeton goes open access to stop staff handing all copyright to journals – unless waiver granted
Is Thorium the …

Basic Newswriting Tips
September 23, 2011 – 11:24 am | No Comment
Basic Newswriting Tips

From Prof. Ksiazek‘s visit on W 09/21/11 (and the annotated pdf of his example from yahoo news.):
Audience analysis

Who is your audience?
What sources of information can I use to better understand my audience?
What is their prior …

Friday Science Spree 09/23/11
September 23, 2011 – 10:22 am | No Comment

UC Santa Cruz Science Notes 2011 via ksjtracker
Gamers solve retrovirus structure via slashdot
Hydrogen production using microbial reverse-electrodialysis electrolysis cells via are technica
Bioinspired self-repairing slippery surfaces via Not Exactly Rocket Science
History of the Tevatron, which is …

Friday Science Spree 09/16/11
September 16, 2011 – 5:29 pm | No Comment

Climate Quitters: Sorry You Lose
Efficient Excited Energy Transfer Reaction in Clay/Porphyrin Complex toward an Artificial Light-Harvesting System via Next Big Future
Trusting Experts and Why rejecting expertise has become a campaign strategy
Why natural gas may hardly …

Friday Science Spree 09/09/11
September 9, 2011 – 1:24 pm | No Comment

Directly comparing Fukushima to Chernobyl via slashdot
Views Differ on Shape of Earth, Climate Edition & Reckonings; Bait and Switch via Daring Fireball
New Superconductor Wires Could Give Renewable Energy More Charge via slashdot
Simplified model in recent …

Some examples to help you find topics for your writing assignments
September 6, 2011 – 4:30 pm | No Comment

Obviously, these examples are off-limits…
Example of a MotW paper/topic

Manganese(II)-Containing MRI Contrast Agent Employing a Neutral and Non-Macrocyclic Ligand

Examples of “Science in the News”

Superconductors: how do they work? Better with magnets, apparently
Electrified Bacterial Filaments Remove Uranium …

Friday Science Spree 09/02/11
September 2, 2011 – 8:48 am | No Comment

Lots of blather: Was Irene a global warming storm? (wrong question. Answer is yes but it’s still meaningless)
A Mix of spider silk, Goats milk and human skin can stop a reduced speed 22 caliber bullet …

Google Reader and my current science feeds
September 1, 2011 – 1:21 pm | No Comment

As I mentioned in class, I use Google Reader to keep up with chemistry journals and many science (and non-science) websites. This is infinitely easier than visiting each individual website as the majority of the …

Recommended reading
August 30, 2011 – 5:53 pm | No Comment

Here is a collection of posts that may be useful as you work on your first writing assignment:
Writing

So you’re writing your first post…
Chemical Information?
A few of my favorite books on writing
Quick tips to improve your …

Chemical Information?
August 30, 2011 – 3:41 pm | No Comment

“A month in the laboratory can often save an hour in the library.”
— Frank H. Westheimer
A wealth of information exists outside of Google, although both Google and Google Scholar are powerful tools. How …

If you are struggling with your Molecule of the Week topics…
September 1, 2010 – 6:08 pm | No Comment

Updated F 09.03.10 – As a reminder, you need to find three examples from the chemical literature (full papers, 2009 to present) that minimally include a molecular metal-ligand complex and a crystal structure. Send me …

Friday Science Spree 08/27/10
August 27, 2010 – 5:09 pm | No Comment

Discussion of the BP oil plume in context with a New York Times article and a Science Magazine research paper concerning Plume Transport and Biodegradation at Deepwater Horizon – See also Ars, the Knight Science …

All right, break’s over…
August 24, 2010 – 10:43 pm | No Comment
All right, break’s over…

I don’t know about you, but I generally have a difficult time refocusing after an extended time away from the classroom. And while there are differences in expectations from the perspective of both the student …

Friday Science Spree 02/05/10
February 5, 2010 – 4:42 pm | No Comment

Complex biological networks in leaves via wired
Energy-harvesting rubber sheets could power pacemakers, mobile phones via next big future
Fuel from plant biomass via C&EN
Hubble detects mysterious X-shaped debris pattern via gizmodo
Study linking autism to vaccine retracted …

Friday Science Spree 01/29/10
January 29, 2010 – 10:20 am | No Comment

Generation of functional blood vessels from stem cells via Next Big Future and Nature
Altered microbe makes biofuel – naturenews
Rules for Biologically Inspired Adaptive Network Design – Science
FDA Raises Flag On Bisphenol A – C&EN
The Neural …

Will research journals going web 2.0 really matter?
January 25, 2010 – 5:07 pm | No Comment

Cell published their first ‘Article of the Future‘ a couple of weeks ago; arstechnica has a good summary. The format, while new to scientific publishing, utilizes some of the better technologies that have been available …

Friday Science Spree 01/22/10
January 21, 2010 – 10:42 pm | No Comment

UVa engineers find significant environmental impacts with algae-based biofuel via Slashdot
Using acid/base chemistry to solve a maze via Nature
Lab accident under investigation
11-year-old’s science project leads to school evacuation via Techdirt via Slashdot
Fixing carbon dioxide as …

Just an incredible picture
October 21, 2009 – 10:54 pm | One Comment
Just an incredible picture

[nasa via gizmodo]