Loh Down Staff – Page 15 – The Loh Down On Science

Apes in the Kitchen

January 26, 2018 Loh Down Staff

Can you teach a chimp to cook? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science, saying: Chimps probably won’t be whipping up souffles anytime soon. But there is evidence they might want to. Meet Alexandra Rosati and Felix Warneken of Harvard University. They’ve been conducting some intriguing

Your Cheatin’ Hormones

January 24, 2018 Loh Down Staff

Can our hormones make us cheaters? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Most discussions about cheating focus on ethics. But psychologist Robert Josephs, of the University of Texas at Austin, wondered: Are hormones involved? Because goodness knows hormones impact other decisions. If you know what

50 Shades of Yellow

January 22, 2018 Loh Down Staff

A rose is a rose is a rose, right? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science, saying: Except when it’s yellow! Roses aside, University of York researchers have discovered something very strange about that color. People’s perception of it changes from winter to summer! As part

Virtually Sexist

January 17, 2018 Loh Down Staff

Are sexist men less evolved? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Meet biologist Michael Kasumovic. He studies evolution in various contexts. Like online. For example, when male gamers, hiding behind Internet anonymity, harass female gamers. Kasumovic’s team participated anonymously in the multiplayer shoot-em-up game, Halo-Three.

Starfish Wars

January 12, 2018 Loh Down Staff

Where’s the Terminator when you really need him? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science, and an ecosystem under attack. Australia’s Great Barrier Reef is truly a wonder of the natural world. But it faces a dangerous interloper: The Crown of Thorns starfish, or “COT” for

Origami Engineering

January 9, 2018 Loh Down Staff

Would you drive across a paper bridge? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Engineers in Japan and the United States are intrigued by origami. That’s the Japanese art of paper folding. Picture those paper cranes we made as children. Why would origami interest engineers? Think

In a Spin

January 5, 2018 Loh Down Staff

When physicists get bored, curious things happen. This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Meet Mir Abbas Jalali of the University of California, Berkeley. He was playing with his wedding ring on his desk one day. Like you do. The ring wobbled and spun like a

Holiday Snaps

January 2, 2018 Loh Down Staff

What now? Family vacation photos . . . for science? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Time-lapse videos that span years or decades can tell us a lot about the world. They show cities growing, ecosystems drying, and even geologic changes. But who’s going to

Night Owls

January 1, 2018 Loh Down Staff

Who stays more alert the day after a late night? Early birds? Or night owls? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Occasionally, we all stay up late, then have to get up early. When we’re sleep deprived like this, who’s more alert the next day?

Worm Dinner

December 29, 2017 Loh Down Staff

Worms have a taste for coffee cups? Who knew? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Styrofoam and other plastics can take over hundreds of years to degrade. Yeesh! Is there a way to make them go away faster? Stanford researchers may have a solution –