Facts of the Matter: Numerous factors contribute to timing of celestial events
This year, the June solstice occurs today at 4:43 p.m. Hawaii time. Read more
Latest Stories by Richard Brill
Facts of the Matter: Discredited vaccine study reverberates 27 years later
In 1998, a paper appeared in the respected medical journal The Lancet that sent shock waves through the public health world. The paper suggested a link between the MMR vaccine — measles, mumps and rubella — and autism. Read more
Facts of the Matter: Grandmas may have been key in shaping our species
One of the great puzzles in evolutionary biology is why humans live so long after they stop having children. Most animals reproduce until late in life, and their biological usefulness fades when they can no longer reproduce. But human women typically live decades after menopause. Why? Read more
Facts of the Matter: Fleeting virtual particles are reality’s invisible helpers
You might think space is empty. But in the mysterious world of physics, things aren’t always as they seem. Empty space is anything but empty. Read more
Facts of the Matter: Self-awareness is antidote to Dunning-Kruger effect
In our daily lives we often encounter people who confidently assert their knowledge on subjects they barely understand. Read more
Facts of the Matter: Minuscule tardigrades show amazing resilience
Tardigrades boast an impressive tolerance for radiation. In lab experiments, they have been subjected to doses of ionizing radiation that would be lethal to humans. Read more
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Facts of the Matter: Scientists still stymied by matter-antimatter asymmetry conundrum
The concept of matter-antimatter asymmetry has captivated the scientific community for decades. Read more
Facts of the Matter: Latitude helps determine how we see sunrise, sunset
A word from Captain Obvious: The sun rises in the east and sets in the west. Read more
Facts of the Matter: Gemstones’ color relies on interaction with light
Some minerals have color because of what they do to light that passes through them or reflects from their surfaces. Read more
Facts of the Matter: Earth’s timeline is marked by several mass extinctions
When speaking of mass extinctions, we evoke a seriousness that transcends anything that we have experienced in human history. Read more
Facts of the Matter: Benefits of popular painkiller, blood thinner balance risks
For more than 100 years the safest, most effective, least expensive and widest-ranging drug known to man has been available to ease headaches, stop inflammation and lower fever. Read more
Facts of the Matter: Ocean-atmosphere interplay affects weather and climate
We have understood for a long time that the oceans play a significant role in transferring heat from the equator to the poles, but only in recent years have we begun to understand the importance of the link between ocean and atmosphere. Read more
Facts of the Matter: Earth’s unique atmosphere lets water exist in all 3 phases
Earth is the water planet, but perhaps it is equally appropriate to call Earth the water cloud planet. Although liquid water is a distinctive feature of planet Earth, water clouds are even more so. Read more
Facts of the Matter: Mitochondria hard at work creating energy within cells
Feeling tired today? Most of us grow more weary as the day goes on and as the years pass. We say we are out of energy or getting low on energy, which is a fact. Read more
Facts of the Matter: Systems in nature never reach equilibrium, but can get close
Equilibrium is a state of balance of opposing actions that is central in virtually everything that happens, from basic physics to dance and the arts, economics and social ideologies. Read more
Facts of the Matter: MRI machines seek hydrogen atoms to analyze soft tissue
Before the development of magnetic resonance imaging, X-rays were the only way to image inside the body. But X-rays are too energetic and show hard structures such as bones while they penetrate connective tissue and organs that show only as ghostly images. Read more
Facts of the Matter: Search for superconductor that doesn’t require frigid conditions continues
There are two ways that a substance can respond to an electric field. Read more
Facts of the Matter: Input-output system is key to beaches’ sand quantity
A beach seems constant from day to day, yet it is an ever-changing river of sand. On a geologic time scale the life of a beach is like a fruit fly in our human time. Read more
Facts of the Matter: Silicon atoms better suited for creating rocks, not life
Searching for water on Mars and looking for other distant planets that may be Earth-like recalls that it is not only water, but also carbon that is necessary for life. Read more
Facts of the Matter: Arsenic’s well-known dangers are felt through water and crops
Today’s chemical measurements are 1,000 times more sensitive than in the 1970s. Analyses at the parts per billion range — about one drop in a swimming pool — are commonplace. Read more
Facts of the Matter: Sugar remains unregulated despite well-known dangers
Folk wisdom has recognized the role of empty calories in weight gain and obesity for years, but there has not been much public discussion about the addictive qualities of sugar. Read more
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