The idea that flying insects might be naturally electrified – and that electric charges could be a significant factor in the pollination of plants – goes back nearly a century. (ref. Heuschmann, O. (1929), Über die elektrischen Eigenschaften der Insekten Haare, Journal of Comparative Physiology A: Neuroethology, Sensory, Neural, and Behavioral Physiology, 10(4), 594- 664.) […]
About: Martin Gardiner
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Posts by Martin Gardiner:
Associations: Penrose Tiling and toilet paper
Why would London’s Science Museum permanently archive four rolls of Kleenex toilet paper from 1997? The answer lies in the design of its embossed cushioning pattern . . . The tiled design is a version of Penrose Tiling – a mathematically repeating pattern which was devised (or if you prefer discovered) by Nobel Prize winner Sir […]
Dual Wiggle/Wriggle Nominative Determinism Corrections
It should be noted that the author of ‘The Physiology of Insect Metamorphosis’ (1954) was Sir Vincent Brian Wigglesworth CBE MD FRS [pictured] . . . . . . and not V. B. Wrigglesworth, as Cambridge University Press might suggest. (Neither was he V. P. Wigglesworth, as Google Books might have you believe) Research research […]
Musical instruments – masculine or feminine? [study]
If you’re wondering whether musical instruments can be graded according to whether they’re perceived as masculine or feminine, the answer is yes (such perceptions can be graded). For an example study, look no further than the Journal of Research in Music Education, Volume: 29 issue: 1, page(s): 57-62, Issue published: April 1, 1981, where you’ll […]