Over lunch, Bob and I disagreed on several aspects of the English language and its origins. According to Bob, English has fewer irregular verbs than ‘typical’ languages (and is generally more regular) is predominantly influenced by Latin and Greek I … Continue reading →

My lovely wife sent me this: Mr. Whitson taught sixth-grade science. On the first day of class, he gave us a lecture about a creature called the cattywampus, an ill-adapted nocturnal animal that was wiped out during the Ice Age. … Continue reading →

Affect or effect quiz? Question Your Answer The Correct Answer Your Response is: Question 1 affect affect Correct Question 2 effects effects Correct Question 3 effect effect Correct Question 4 affect affect Correct Question 5 affect affect Correct Question 6 … Continue reading →

What is Parentism? Many traditionalists have become concerned about the growing influence of the so-called New Parentists. This militant group believes that most Christmas presents are purchased and given to children by parents or other family members. What is External … Continue reading →

The BBC is awesome. This is the kind of programme that only the BBC can make and is likely to cause me to say something that will merit the response “Why don’t you go back to your own country then?”. … Continue reading →

Seed Magazine has just announced the winners of a competition that invited contestants to answer the question:  What does it mean to be scientifically literate in the 21st Century? One of the winning essays, Camelot is only a model, praised … Continue reading →

The New York Times picked up the torch that Richard and I were carrying on Friday: Some experts on science education also point to the typical sequence of high school science instruction: biology, chemistry and then physics. It would make … Continue reading →

When I was at grammar school, I used to rank the subjects according to how ‘like maths‘ they were. We were taught chemistry, physics and biology as separate subjects and, while I enjoyed all the sciences, I enjoyed physics the … Continue reading →

What would it be like to learn maths with other people who like maths? Continue reading →

I have been going to the weekly presentations at Xerox Parc on and off for several years. This one – next Thursday – looks like the best one yet. Brewing is the original biotechnology. For 6-8,000 years it has been … Continue reading →