Selected Science Stories Are Silly

But still informative

By M. Farbman

February 24, 2009

Yes, she's still in the news. This time it's a battle over protecting beluga whales. Erstwhile VP candidate Sarah Palin has filed a notice of intent to sue the federal government over protection for the belugas of Cook Inlet. Her chief of staff wrote the fabulously titled op-ed for the Anchorage Daily News, "Protection Requirements for Cook Inlet Belugas Are Silly."

Also in today's links: lighting the earth's farts, wearing out your brain on Facebook and more.

I'm prone to falling in love with any interesting creature I read about, so maybe it won't carry much weight when I say this is the most fascinating ever: a fish with a transparent head. But it is.
British psychologists are warning that social-networking sites are "infantilizing" young people's brains. And yes, I'm sure somebody will now mock this on their Facebook wall.
As the Arctic temperature increases, thawing the permafrost, bubbles of methane can be released, further contributing to warming. (Be sure to watch the video -- the scientist interviewed describes lighting these escaping methane pockets on fire as fun AND informative. The holy grail!)
Every year I debate whether or not to get a flu shot -- I kind of like the idea of lying at home, watching a lot of TV and drinking ginger ale and eating soup. (Yes, I realize this is a luxury.) Every year, scientists debate how the flu vaccine might have mutated, and how it might appear in that season. However, researchers are closer to a universal flu vaccine, having identified an antibody that combats all strains of the virus. That doesn't necessarily help me out, though.