Here you
have an ordered list of science stories classified by topics and with
a brief description of their contents.
Science, Technology and Society
-
The flight of Daedalus. The flight of Technology
. Old as well as modern mythology
warns us against the power derived from knowledge; but when it comes to
story-telling we can always see the other side of the story.
-
Mad scientists never die.
Or so it seems
when we analyze characters like Frankenstein and Dr. Jeckyll. They aren't
isolated examples born in gothic novels.
-
Darwinless
. The trip of
Charles Darwin around the world was the result of many lucky coincidences.
Things could have been quite different from what they turned out to be.
How would it be living in a Darwinless society?.
-
Serendipi..WHAT?
. Serendipity
is a rare word for a very common occurence in science. Find out amazing
examples of what and how things were discovered by accident.
[NEW]
Nature
-
Hexagons Forever !
. Honeycomb shaped
beehives were a sure bet. When I searched for examples of hexagonal close
packing arrays in nature I was not expecting the many surprises now collected
in this story.
-
Snow Crystals in Snow Flakes
. An invariable symmetry combined
with an endless variation of shapes lead to the unique beauty of snow crystals.
Find out the origin of this symmetry.
Evolution
-
Evolution never sleeps
. Evolution is
not only a matter of the past, taking place over huge periods of time. There
are interesting examples of its working here and now.
- Metaevolution.
The very word of evolution sparks our memories of animal species hanging
on a tree of life. But evolution has not always been working on living systems.
This story tells you about the evolution of evolution.
[NEW]
- qwerty: evolution
at your fingertips. Did you
know why in the world your keyboard (or typewriter) has the letters arranged
as they are?. Neither did I, but I found out. This is a great story about
social evolution.
[NEW]
-
Darwinless
. The trip of
Charles Darwin around the world was the result of many lucky coincidences.
Things could have been quite different from what they turned out to be.
How would it be living in a Darwinless society?.
Molecules
& Materials
-
HOT Molecules: Fullerenes
. A new form of
carbon, prepared at high temperatures was discovered in 1985, a highly symmetrical
cluster of 60 carbon atoms in the shape of a soccer ball. Since then the
family has grown and applications are being found for these molecules born
from basic research. Includes a view in 3-D.
-
COOL Materials: High-Tc Superconductors
. These oxides
started a revolution in physics and engineering thanks to their remarkable
magnetic and electrical properties. They are made hot but their superconductivity
is only maintained at still pretty cool temperatures.
-
Is this a molecule?. Frontiers between molecules and extended solids
. Benzene is a
molecule with 6 carbon atoms arranged as an hexagon and graphite has billions
of those hexagons fused together. What is in between and what properties could
be expected for nanosized materials?.
Energy
-
Rechargeable Lithium Batteries. An alternative to toxic Lead and Cadmium.
Lithium technology
is the newest and most promising in the field of rechargeable batteries.
It provides more charge and energy (longer duration) in a lighter battery.
And contrary to present lead or nickel-cadmium batteries, lithium batteries
do not contain toxic metals. This article includes an animation of the working
mechanism of these batteries.
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En español
