Democracy is all about civility… right? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Conflict happens. Kids pull hair, spouses fight, politicians declare war. But democracies have voting power! Does that make us nicer than dictatorships? Meet political scientists Michael Gilbilisco, from Caltech, and Casey Crisman-Cox from
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Hey kids – tattoos have ALWAYS been cool – even before you were born! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Ancient humans tattooed themselves both as a means of self expression, and to fit in with the gang. It was a permanent way of demonstrating
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Is your babbling baby the next Shakespeare? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Baby babble… it’s sooooo cute! But it’s also an important part of brain development. Infancy is when babies hear and try to mimic the sounds around them. This exercise lays down the
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Hate crowds? Need your “personal space?” Negatively charged electrons do too! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. To understand electrons, scientists have developed a special technique called density functional theory – D-F-T for short. D-F-T is used to predict how electron crowds move in an
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Problems — do we get what we look for? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Maybe you’ve heard THIS story: a neighborhood watch lowers crime in an area. But once the burglaries stop, the watch doesn’t relax. Instead, people start calling in jaywalkers! It’s called
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Windmills taking the wind out of your sails? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. More and more cities around the world are committing to renewable energy. Coal plants produce carbon dioxide which can lead to global warming. But other options aren’t perfect either! Meet Lee
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Man’s new best friend. . . the humble goat? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Humans and animals have a long history together. Goats, horses and other domesticated animals have helped develop society. Dogs have become our best friends! But do any of them think
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You are special – yes you are! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Animals evolved to specialize for life in their environment. For example, polar bear fur is designed for life in the Arctic. Those warm coats would be sweltering in the desert! But we
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The good news is…the BAD news? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. We LOVE good news and tend to filter out bad news. This could be why some folks ignore warnings to leave disaster areas. Is there any hope for us cheesy optimists? Tali Sharot
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Pandas! Black, white…and loaded with green? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. As of 2016, giant pandas are no longer an endangered species! Conservation efforts are clearly paying off. But maintaining panda sanctuaries costs China two to three hundred million dollars a year. Is it
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