STEM

Juggernaut Amazon is striking another blow at the traditional textbook industry by offering semester-long rentals of physical books. The listings for a number of textbooks now include a “rent” option that’s usually around $50 for a title that sells for $170. According to Amazon’s FAQ, the books are rented out by the semester (counted as Continue Reading →

At 1:31 a.m. Eastern time on Monday, NASA’s Mars Curiosity rover completed its eight-and-a-half-month journey from Earth to land on the surface of Mars. The Times is reporting the news as it unfolds directly from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and covering events and reaction from people tuning in around the globe. There are several transmitters on Continue Reading →

Do you want legs that let you jump 10 feet high? Or a body that “impresses chicks”? Or a brain that can be electronically pulled back from extreme depression? Computer experts of today think that the day will be coming when human cyborgs will be possible? Two computer-savvy medical students, who noted they were not Continue Reading →

Scientists at Stanford University and the J. Craig Venter Institute have developed the first software simulation of an entire organism, a humble single-cell bacterium that lives in the human genital and respiratory tracts. – NY Times article 7/20/2012 When you are done reading below, take a minute or two to read the NY Times article on Continue Reading →

Apple’s online educational catalog, iTunes U, updated its app and website on Wednesday by adding enhanced features to make it even more convenient for students and educators. Now, educators have the ability to distribute courses privately and invite students to take them. Any teacher can signup to offer courses via iTunes U. Launched in 2007, Continue Reading →

An artificial “brain” built by a 17-year-old whiz kid from Florida is able to accurately assess tissue samples for signs of breast cancer, providing more confidence to a minimally invasive procedure. The cloud-based neural network took top prize in this year’s Google Science Fair. “I taught the computer how to diagnose breast cancer,” Brittany Wenger, Continue Reading →

News Corp. on Monday named its grade school education business Amplify and said it and AT&T would fund a pilot project that aims to put tablet computers in students’ hands in the coming school year. AT&T will provide tablet computers that work on its 4G network and Wi-Fi network. None of the schools selected to Continue Reading →

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos frequently uses the e-commerce site’s front page as a place to announce changes in service or major new initiatives. As one of the most-trafficked sites on the web, it’s the perfect place to make a big splash. And today, he is using that space to announce its new Career Choice Program, Continue Reading →

Looking at her picture, you may think that Earth is a water world. But the fact is that she is 99-percent dry rock. According to our current solar system formation model, this is impossible—a mystery that has puzzled scientists until now. Rebecca Martin and Mario Livio—of the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, Maryland—may have Continue Reading →

NASA has already made it clear that the Curiosity’s touchdown on Mars is a nerve-wracking experience, what with the seven minutes of radio silence, zero margin of error and all. To drive that point home, the organization partnered with Microsoft to offer Xbox Live players the experience of controlling the nerve-wracking descent. Starting Monday, you’ll Continue Reading →