Global Shortage

Insensible governmental response to the covid pandemic had scant benefit but many negative repercussions, ranging from public health to culture to economic malaise. The economic anarchy called capitalism is struggling back to its feet, crippled by its own inadequacies.

Drooping Albedo

The warmth of a planet partly depends on its albedo: how much of its starlight is reflected back into space (as opposed to absorbed). The higher the albedo, the cooler the planet. Earth’s albedo has been dropping.

Plant Incentive

Acacia trees are famous for their symbiotic relationship with ants. Managing different ant species with distinct work ethics presents a challenge to these trees, which is met with sweetness.

Crying Wolf, Squawking Chicken

For a half century, doomsters have predicted the end of the world. On the opposite pole, climate change deniers increasingly seem psychotic. But optimists still hold sway: that human ingenuity can solve what selfsame ingenuity created. When does a cliffhanger become a tragic fall – or a last-minute miracle salvation?

Slippery Bonds

Atoms merge into molecules by sharing electrons. Chemists have categorized the ways these relationships are managed. The reality of chemistry is not so neat.

Fractional Charges

An electron is an elementary particle with a negative elementary charge. That supposed integral negativity is positively compensated by protons, thereby providing the balancing incentive for atomic matter. This fundamental physical charge constant is now known to be violated in everyday matter. Fractional charges have been found.