Yet again we get to the end of a month (how?) and it’s time for the usual collection of links to items you may have missed earlier. There seems to be a lot in this month so let’s not waste time …
Science, Technology, Natural World
Science doesn’t always get things right. Here are arguably science’s top 10 erroneous results. [LONG READ]
Believe it or not there are unaccompanied planets wandering the cosmos; they’re mystery worlds and hard to find.
There is now DNA evidence that dogs and ancient humans migrated together.
One of the scientists responsible for destroying the nest of so-called murder hornets in USA talks about the experience.
Once feared to be extinct in the UK, the great fox-spider has been rediscovered on MoD land in Surrey.
The platypus is a mysterious creature, the more so because its fur is bioluminescent.
Still in the animal kingdom, the Popa Langur is a lithe tree-dweller living primate with a mask-like face and a shock of unruly grey hair which lives in Myanmar – and it is new to science.
And not quite so animal, there is a fleet of small green robots driving around Hounslow in west London.
Health, Medicine
As in previous months I’m leaving all things Covid out of these posts, but there are a number of items elsewhere on my blog, mostly about vaccine development and logistics.
MPs have criticised NHS England’s IT plan, saying it is expensive and risky. And no wonder; government (and especially the NHS) know nothing about IT, won’t take advice from people who do know, don’t learn from past mistakes, always choose the cheapest supplier, and then keep changing the requirements.
Sexuality
The clitoris has but one function: female orgasm. Which is probably why medical science ignores it: it isn’t an essential medical feature or problem. [LONG READ]
An archive of two centuries of handmade erotic objects is witness to overlooked and hidden desire.
Environment
Why the wolf should be an essential part of our landscape and not an object of fear and loathing. [LONG READ]
I’m always amazed at how long seeds can remain viable. A scientist has discovered the grass-poly a rare plant which has reappeared from buried seed after conservationists restored an almost disappeared pond in Norfolk.
Social Sciences, Business, Law
No, you can’t use Magna Carta to avoid Covid lockdown restrictions, and here’s why. [LONG READ]
Which takes us nicely on to …
History, Archaeology, Anthropology
Experimental archaeologists are making craft beer from yeast recovered from ancient artefacts.
Meanwhile British archaeologists are investigating a huge “mega henge” in Dorset.
Beds have a bizarre social history and are older than we might think.
In fourteenth-century England, one of the only ways a woman could get a divorce was if her husband was impotent. But first, she had to prove it in court. That’s a job for the medieval penis investigators. [LONG READ]
Food, Drink
So tell me about the difference between cognac and armagnac. [LONG READ]
Lifestyle, Personal Development, Beliefs
And finally …
What was invented by American, John J Loud and changed a lot about writing? Yes, the humble ballpoint pen.