60 Seconds Second time lucky Japan successfully tested a prototype supersonic aircraft over the Woomera Test Range in Australia on Monday. The unmanned craft, the Scaled Experimental Supersonic Transport, was launched from a rocket. It flew for 15 minutes and 22 seconds, reached twice the speed of sound and rose to an altitude of 19 kilometres. The … 51¶¯Âþ
Ask a silly question, the answer may surprise THE Ig Nobel awards are a wonderful send-up of science's most prestigious prizes. Winners pay their own way to the event, held annually at Harvard University, then have to endure riotous laughter as their work is "recognised" in public. This year's Ig Nobels celebrate such dubious achievements as artificial testicles for dogs and an experiment … Opinion
Space Smash and grab raid on an asteroid FOR millions of space rocks endlessly circling the sun, life is distinctly dull. Apart from the occasional jolt when a meteor hits, little has disturbed many of these asteroids since the solar system formed more than 4 billion years ago. But one unsuspecting rock is in for a big surprise. It's a tiny world roughly … Features
Life Monkeyluv: And other lessons on our lives as animals, by Robert Sapolsky WHAT is the connection between Jonathan the lovesick baboon and an admin assistant called Paul? For starters, they both appear in Robert Sapolsky's new book, Monkeyluv , a collection of essays about human (and other primate) behaviour and biology. Sapolsky is a behavioural biologist, and very broad-ranging. Most of these essays have been published before, … Books & Arts
Feedback The 2005 Ig Nobel prize awards THIS has been a rich year for Feedback's favourite awards, the Ig Nobels, which honour achievements that make people laugh, then think. The awards were given out on 6 October in a ceremony at Harvard University sponsored by the Annals of Improbable Research . This year's Ig Nobel literature … Regulars