Mark Strauss

Why The U.S. Government Is Purchasing Water Guns

America is fighting a war against a formidable foe. After years of looking for a weapon to achieve victory, researchers have decided to repel the invaders with powerful water guns. Photo by Chris Reid The enemies in our crosshairs? Invasive species of carp that are consuming algae at an alarming rate. Silver carp and bighead…

The Healthiest Corals Are Also the Fattest

The survival of many ocean species depends on the survival of coral reefs. But with many species of coral threatened by climate change, some scientists believe we should focus our preservation efforts on those most able to adapt—the fattest ones. Corals are essentially colorless; the brilliant greens, yellows and browns that we associate with them…

Gas-Guzzling Galaxies May Reveal Clues About The Early Universe

In a galaxy more than 12 billion light years from Earth, stars are being created at a rate 500 times faster than in our Milky Way. That cosmic fertility comes at a price: the galaxy is quickly running out of fuel. But it’s also teaching us more about galaxy formation in the early universe. The…

Climate Change-Denying Politicians Rant About Fluoride And Mars

The week began weird and then got weirder. First, it was reported that a Kentucky state senator said climate change is implausible because Earth and Mars share the exact same temperature. And then a U.S. congressman linked the climate change debate to the ozone hole “hoax” and the fluorination of water. So, let’s begin with…

That Feeling When You Walk Down a Dark Street and Meet a Jellyfish

Every night, at 10 pm, something mystical happens at a derelict building in Liverpool. The storefront shutter opens, revealing a massive, ethereal water tank filled with live jellyfish. The installation, created by the artistic duo Walter Hugo & Zoniel, is called “The Physical Possibility of Inspiring Imagination in the Mind of Someone Living.” Although it’s…

New Website Can Tell Whether That War Footage Is Fake or Not

We often get news about conflict zones directly from video uploaded by onlookers who aren’t journalists. But are those images real scenes or faked propaganda? Amnesty International now has a site to help viewers do the detective work to find out. The ongoing civil war in Syria is the latest example of how frequently—and convincingly—fake…

​The Morbid Messages Hidden in Beloved Nursery Rhymes

Many of us can probably recite, “Pop! Goes The Weasel” by heart. Passed down across the centuries, the anachronisms in the lyrics sound like playful nonsense words. In truth, this and other rhymes were practical lessons for children, trying to survive amid death, plague, crime and poverty. The Londonist explores the origins of several popular…

Republicans Believe Uber Will Help Them Win Back America’s Cities

With each passing year, the population of urban areas is growing — and most of those cities are run by Democrats. But a key Republican believes the ride-sharing service Uber is the killer app that can create a future wedge between labor unions and Democratic politicians, driving them from power. The theory comes from the…

Physicists Have Created A Tractor Beam Using Water

In recent years, scientists have used lasers to construct crude tractor beams that, one day, might be used as grappling hooks in space. Now, for the first time, physicists have succeeded in creating the same effect using water. Thanks to Star Trek and Star Wars, the term “tractor beam” immediately conjures up images of spacecraft…

Stunning Landscapes of Salt Look Like Images of An Alien World

If not for the occasional tire tread marks or glimpses of a wire fence, one could easily mistake Emma Phillips’ photos of a salt mine in Western Australia for images sent back to Earth from a probe on the surface of a distant moon or planet. Phillips, a Melbourne-based photographer, stumbled upon the abandoned salt…

That Time a Newspaper Published a Guide to Hunting Dinosaurs

What would happen if the gargantuan creatures of Earth’s prehistoric past came back to life? And, more important, how would they provide good sport for hunters? That was the subject of a front-page article appearing in the May 6, 1896 edition of The Columbus Journal. In a prescient nod to Jurassic Park, the unnamed author…

The Military Has Hired Hollywood To Help Build An Actual Iron Man Suit

Since Tony Stark is unavailable to advise the military on its robotic exoskeleton project, officials have turned to the next best thing: the special effects team that made the Iron Man costume. “It’s daunting,” says Lindsay MacGowan, co-founder of Legacy Effects, “because somebody’s life eventually is in your hands.” The Wall Street Journal reports that…

Watch Engineers Test Their New Martian Dropship

Inspired by the Skycrane that NASA devised to safely land Curiosity on the surface of Mars, the European Space Agency has unveiled its own version of the rover-on-a-rope concept: the Dropter. An engineering team spent eight months developing the quadcopter dropship, which is designed to deliver rovers to their target landing sites while avoiding rock…

A New Class Of Stars Is Made Entirely Of Metal

One in every 10,000 stars may be composed of metal. It’s likely the result of a phenomenon called “preferential concentration,” which plays an important role in everything from aerosol production to the creation of raindrops. The research that led to this conclusion, just published by CalTech astrophysicist Philip Hopkins, is based upon chaotic changes in…

Carbon dioxide levels recently reached an 800,000-year high, according to data gathered at the Mauna Loa Observatory. While concentrations of carbon dioxide have begun their seasonal decline from their May peak (which was just shy of 402 parts per million), the daily averages have stayed consistently above 400 ppm.

Now You Can Print 3D Models of Your Internal Organs

The National Institutes of Health has joined the Maker movement with the launch of its 3D Print Exchange, a website that allows users to download, edit and share models of anatomy, bacteria and lab equipment. The goal is to provide a creative commons where people from all walks of life can advance medical research. For…

Stunning Aerial Images of Hill Forts from Britain’s Iron Age

Some 3,000 “hill forts” or “defended enclosures” are scattered across Britain. The elevated land provided a defensive advantage, with lines of fortifications—such as walls and ditches—erected around the hills’ contours. Seen from the ground, they must have been imposing; seen from the sky, they’re exquisite. The site, Heritage Daily, has compiled several images of the…

If Medical Marijuana Is Legalized, You Can Thank The Tea Party

Politics makes strange bedfellows—except for the Tea Party, which doesn’t sleep with anyone. The Conservative movement has defined itself by its “no compromise” approach toward politics. So, why did Tea Party members of Congress support Democrats on a key vote on medical marijuana? A total of 49 Republicans joined Democrats in supporting legislation, co-sponsored by…

This Lamp Creates a Personalized Thundercloud in Your Home

Designer Richard Clarkson breaks down the barrier between indoors and outdoors with “The Cloud”— an interactive lamp, designed to look like a thundercloud. Using motion sensors, The Cloud detects a user’s presence and creates a unique lightning and thunder show dictated by their movement. It can be yours for a mere $3,360. We’ve come a…

A Fascinating Study of How Creationists Understand Early Human Fossils

Young-earth creationists don’t ignore science. Instead, they reinterpret it to fit their belief system. One paleontologist was curious to find out what they teach about human ancestry, and how they interpret early human fossils. Here’s what he found out. Prior to the Bill Nye/Ken Ham debate, BuzzFeed invited creationists to submit questions, and a couple…