Learning
Mary K. Gaillard: One Woman's Journey In Physics
Gaillard writes about the slights and frustrations that gradually raised her consciousness as she rose to the top among theoretical physicists trying to understand the complexities of the universe's fundamental particles. The wife of a physicist, she mothered three young children while simultaneously laying the theoretical groundwork for key experiments that proved the validity of the Standard Model, now accepted as the best description of three of the four forces of nature. more »
States to Colleges: Prove You’re Worth It
The idea of using outcomes — not enrollments — to guide public funding of higher education has so much bipartisan backing that both President Barack Obama and Florida's Republican Gov. Rick Scott support it. Just last week, the Florida Board of Education approved a performance-funding system for state colleges, adding to its existing system for state universities. more »
An Invisible Barn Materializes; A Thought-provoking Folly
Take a forest stroll at the National Reserve System's Sagehen Creek Field Station, and you will encounter an Invisible Barn. The structure's edges fade into the open air, until angled glimpses of tree trunks reveal a roof or wall. Surprise, then amusement tickle your brain as it wrestles with the sight of a building disappearing into the forest. more »
4th of July Scout Report: Retraction Watch, Slate's Audio Book Club, Plant Lovers, Genealogists Resources, Boston Massacre Perspectives and Poughkeepsie Regatta
25 Years of Hubble Space Telescope; finding and using health statistics has become requisite for a number of careers; biographies of women who have made contributions to fields as diverse as chemistry, primatology, biophysics, and astronomy; distinctive literary titles with expert book lovers from around the country; retracted papers in a wide variety of fields, some due to fraud, others just to mistakes in experiments or the publishing process; "Start Your Family Research" section; 1940s knitting patterns and other interesting sites. more »