“A Picture Is Worth a Thousand Words”: Highlights from the 2013 Britannica Book of the Year
In the upcoming Britannica Book of the Year, a number of images fulfill the adage “A picture is worth a thousand words.” In this year’s volume, photos give life to such topics as self-healing materials, the Higgs boson, the social networking site Instagram, an unusual archaeological find, and a scene from an adventure-racing competition. Read the rest of this entry »
The First Placental Mammal
Humans are one of almost 4,000 known species of placental mammals, all of which, according to a recent study published in the journal Science, may have originated from a tiny, rodent-like critter that weighed perhaps no more than several ounces, had a furry tail, and climbed trees. Read the rest of this entry »
Black History Spotlight: Popular Music
Throughout February, the Britannica Blog will spotlight significant people, places, and events in African American history. Since Monday marks the one-year anniversary of the death of singer Whitney Houston, this week we will examine the contribution that black performers have made to the world of popular music. Read the rest of this entry »
Of Freedom, Slavery, and Dignity: Eight Books on African American History
Behind the library of classic works of African American history lies a larger, supporting collection of books of history, sociology, biography, and literature that are not as well known. Here are eight that merit attention. Read the rest of this entry »
Performing Arts Photo Highlights from the 2013 Britannica Book of the Year
In the forthcoming Britannica Book of the Year, an assortment of engaging images presents some of the more offbeat productions and acts to grace the stage in 2012. We preview some of those images here. Read the rest of this entry »
New Cancer Therapies: Magic Bullets Aimed at the Guardian of the Genome
No single chemical capable of curing all types of cancer has been discovered. But drugs targeted specifically at mutated forms of a protein known as p53—what some scientists have dubbed "the guardian of the genome"—are being tested in patients. And scientists recently identified a new drug target on this molecule, along with a compound that could serve as a lead for the development of a new "magic p53 bullet." Read the rest of this entry »
Black History Spotlight: The Civil Rights Movement
Today marks the start of Black History Month. Throughout February, the Britannica Blog will spotlight significant people, places, and events in African American history. This week, we will explore the personalities that emerged from American civil rights movement in the 1950s and ’60s. (Appropriately enough, today is the 53rd anniversary of the beginning of the Greensboro sit-in.) Read the rest of this entry »
Catching “Honey Pounding” on Camera
Last February, a producer and two cameramen from the Natural History unit of the British Broadcasting Corporation arrived at the Goualougo basecamp [in the Republic of Congo] ready to shoot one of the last sequences of the six-part epic series Africa. Initial inquiries about filming in Goualougo had started long before, in late 2010, and now the time had finally come to get down to work and show the world why Goualougo chimpanzees and their forest home are so special.
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Evolutionary Conflict: HIV-Like Viruses and the Primate Immune System
Tracking down the evolutionary origin of HIV is an important part of AIDS research, particularly because of its potential to shed light on how the virus so effectively weakens the human immune system. That ability, it turns out, is the product of at least five million years of evolutionary conflict between HIV-related viruses and the primate genome. Read the rest of this entry »
2012 in Review: Exporting Education
Since 1938 Britannica’s annual Book of the Year has offered in-depth coverage of the events of the previous year. While the book is not yet in print, some of its outstanding content is already available online. Here, we feature this article by Britannica contributor Dr. William J. Mathis, which examines the international market for American university education. Read the rest of this entry »
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