it's not rocket science.

| On
October 17, 2013
it's not rocket science

I feel like most people have a skewed view of science. For instance, the majority of you probably believe that blog posts should not be about science and you're already done reading this. But if you haven't already clicked [x], let me explain to you why we should have blog posts about science.

What should we blog about? Our lives and our passions, right? For me, science is both. I know that science might not be what everyone wants to read about, but I've decided to truly embrace every blogger's motto--"I blog for myself." 

I consider one of my main goals in having this blog recklessly owning my own quirks in order to inspire other women (like you!) to embrace their own individuality. Quirks are good. They aren't something we keep to ourselves. Because that's borderline shame, and that's so not okay.

So to transition into what (I hope) will be a regularish post on science, I'd like to show you that science really is for normal people! In order to do that, I'd like to share with you some articles on science of all kinds that I've found interesting lately.

Has DNA Really Solved the Mystery of the Yeti? // The Guardian. Hint: it hasn't. Basically a geneticist named Bryan Sykes got ahold of a piece of hair that has been claimed to be from a yeti, founded in the Himalayan Mountains. After doing some testing, it seems to be related to an 40,000 year old polar bear jaw found in Sweden. This led him to think there may be an undiscovered bear population in the Himalayas.

Fat May Be Linked to Memory Loss // Life Science Network. Yet another reason to work on losing a little weight. "People with high amounts of abdominal fat in their middle age are 3.6 times as likely to develop memory loss and dementia later in their life."

Fishermen in Peru slaughter dolphins to use as bait for shark fishing // The Guardian. In an underground investigation, Ecostorm (an environmental agency) has discovered a ring of Peruvian fisherman killing dolphins for bait (which is illegal, as it happens).


Neanderthals Used Toothpicks to Alleviate the Pain of Diseases Related to Teeth, Such as Inflammation of the Gums // Science Daily. I mean the article title's kind of long enough that I think you get the gist without me summarizing it...


Sleep allows brain to wash out junk // Science News Magazine. A new study shows that sleep can clean out unnecessary particles from our brains, including proteins that can lead to Alzheimer's. So it's possible that sleep is linked to the next step in preventing Alzheimer's, how about that?!

Well friends, thanks for sticking with me. Listen, I'd love some feedback on a post like this. I know it's different, but I hope maybe some of you liked it. And if you didn't, please don't be mean and stop reading this blog altogether. I understand that you might not like everything I post. But I hope that my blog brings you something of value. Back on point, let me know how you liked this post and if you didn't (really!).

What kinds of science do you find interesting? What do you blog about that's a little unique, just because you're you?
23 comments on "it's not rocket science."
  1. Hi Allie! I *love* that you're doing science on your blog! I guess part of the problem of why we "don't like science" is that maybe we didn't have teachers who encouraged us to do science, or taught boring lessons or something. I know I did have a few of those! But including articles like this makes science, in any field, interesting and attractive. I'm really looking forward to your future science-y posts :)

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  2. I feel like I didn't even need to read the full articles you posted to learn something! This was cool and I hope you do it again!

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  3. Love that! I was just bemoaning the lack of "article" type blogs today, after reading a lot of fun and life stuff. I'm totally nerdy. A lot of my posts are rants inspired by articles on culture, feminism, language, and linguistics. Not science, though I like it; totally a culture/language geek. Own your quirks!

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  4. So don't knock me because I'm not commenting on anything on your post - which is actually kind of rude - but I just don't have the patience to go on twitter or email to tell you that I LOVE this new design!!!

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  5. I totally enjoyed this post, Allie! I love science-y things and good on you for loving science. We need more geeks out there. I'm more of a history geek.

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  6. I love this. I'm not much of a science person, but even when you post about academic topics you do it in a very relatable way. What you said about our quirks is so true, and you always remind me to appreciate my mind :)

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  7. I'm not exactly a fan of science (actually I'm pretty sure I skipped most of my science classes in school one way or another), but I really liked this post. Just like Cat, I feel like I didn't have to click on those links to learn something new (although I might later). And I really like this idea of bringing science into your blog. You make it sound so interesting and fun. Who knows, maybe you can get a somewhat anti-science person like me fascinated about some of these things as well.

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  8. Yay for science! :P I was a chem major so I can definitely appreciate this.. although I've never tried blogging about it.

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  9. I've been thinking about it for a long time and finally decided that I'm tired of saying "I blog about what I want" but ignoring something I really love. Thanks for your kind words!

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  10. Thank you Sarah! That is such a great compliment. I'm blessed to have you as a reader.

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  11. Thank you Pinja! You're so nice. I know not everyone is into science but I hope to at least show people that science doesn't have to mean scary looking equations and dissections--it's just real life, examined carefully.

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  12. Aww I'm so glad you liked it. You know who else is a history geek is Katherine of Duchess of Plumewood and Mel at Lazy Boleyn blog (you can tell from the name!(

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  13. Aww that's okay--thanks girl! The css is driving me insane though so I'm actually considering switching to blogger.

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  14. How do I not read your blog?! I want to read about all those things...I want to strike a balance in my own blog so that it can be a place where I talk about design and girly fun things but I also want it to be a place where I can nerd out a bit. So I'm trying to make science more relatable to "non-science" people. Thank you for reading and leaving your thoughts!

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  15. I definitely agree! I've been blessed with some really great teachers but also some not great teachers that have taught me to appreciate the good ones. Thanks for reading and your support. I hope to write more of these in the future!!

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  16. I heart nerding out. I write for myself, but lately I've been peeping out into the blogosphere and checking out other bloggers. I'd love to read your science stuff! As for balance, well, that's whatever you want it to be :) I just try not to do the same thing two days in a row - not organized enough to have a weekly series on something yet.

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  17. Quirks are awesome and should be embraced! Thanks for sharing!

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  18. Okay, that finding about sleep washing metabolite junk out of brain cells is AMAZING. I was so dubious about it until I read the actual paper. (Love having a university account so I can read endless scientific papers for free :D). Please please please keep doing this on a regular basis, Allie! A little summary of quirky science stories like this is AWESOME.

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  19. AHHH so jealous!! I just kind of assume it's true because I want it to be haha...probably not the best way of looking at things!! And thank you so much for your support--your blog majorly inspired me to post about science!

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  20. I loved this! I'm not big into science, but I found this to be so approachable and I loved seeing your passion come through the screen for this! You've definitely found your niche, Allie! :) I really love how your blog has come together over the past few months since I first started visiting... I feel like your voice is so strong now and you've got a lot of great projects in the works! :) And you're so adorable on top of it, too! :)

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  21. Oh you're so nice!! I'm falling more in love with blogging and all the people that come along with it! I love that I can post something like this and absolutely no one is mean about it, even if they hate it! I'm honored to have you as a reader, dear!

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  22. That is really interesting! I love science and all, but there is no really a reason for me to dig deeper into that^^
    But I am interested in medicine and might going to study more in this direction, maybe I'll put something on my blog about that as well in the future :)

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