This is a good book by Nick Wade which covers human prehistory as seen mostly from the study of genetics.
Category: Science and Technology
The First Human
The First Human is a good and readable book about the search for the oldest hominin fossils. It describes the science, the fieldwork as well as the disputes in the field of paleoanthropology.
Islamic Calendar
Fiqh Council of North America has decided to use astronomical calculations for the Islamic lunar calendar. I like the idea, but it is very controversial in the community. Let’s take a look at the blogosphere’s reaction. Ramazan Mubarak!
The Ancestor’s Tale
A good book for the layman about evolutionary history despite some forced organization of topics and the author’s few digressions into politics.
Litmus Test for Telecom Meetings
The Bush administration has litmus tests for everything. If you don’t support them, then you don’t count. The latest is the news that Kerry supporters were nixed from a telecom standards meeting.
Fourier Transform Song
Now, you can enjoy music and learn signal processing concepts at the same time. Here are the lyrics to the song Table 4.1: Properties of the Fourier Transform. Integrate your function times a complex exponential It’s really not so hard you can do it with your pencil And when you’re done with this calculation You’ve… Continue reading Fourier Transform Song
No More Editing Embargo
It seems that the embargo on editing scientific and technical papers from countries on which the US has imposed economic sanctions (Iran, Cuba, Libya and Sudan) has been lifted. According to IEEE, they can now publish papers from the embargoed countries. IEEE scored a victory for freedom of the press and the scholarly publishing community… Continue reading No More Editing Embargo
Facial Expression
Via Gene Expression, I came across an old article in Monitor on Psychology about facial expressions. Joseph Campos, PhD, of the University of California at Berkeley […] says, “there is profound agreement that the face, along with the voice, body posture and hand gestures, forecast to outside observers what people will do next.” The point… Continue reading Facial Expression
Embargo on Editing
Via Through the Looking Glass, I found out some news about my own backyard (IEEE). I know the news is old (October/November timeframe), but this is my weblog and I never promised timely coverage of news and events. As you might know, the US has sanctions in place against several countries and organizations. Among the… Continue reading Embargo on Editing
Thermodynamics and Evolution
I got suspicious when I found out that Harun Yahya was not a scientist. People who have not studied science can sometimes misinterpret scientific laws and ideas. Still, I was interested in reading his book “Darwinism Refuted”. After printing, I was perusing it when I found out that he thinks that the theory of evolution… Continue reading Thermodynamics and Evolution