The Future of Cardiology Will Be Shown In 3D

"How can you tell ­the difference between a good surgeon and an exceptional one?"

"You could start by looking for the one who has the rare ability to visualize a human organ in three dimensions from little more than a scan."

"'The handful of the top surgeons in the world are like sculptors,' said Dr. Deepak Srivastava, a director at the Gladstone Institute of Cardiovascular Disease in San Francisco."

"'When cardiovascular surgeons go in to repair a defect in the heart, their success is so often dependent on an ability to see the anatomy in 3-D in their minds," said Srivastava. 'That's more difficult for younger, less experienced surgeons.'"

Clean Your Grill and Other Hot Holiday Tips From Alton Brown

"If there's one grilling tip to remember this Memorial Day weekend, it should be this: Flame is bad."

"Flame does nasty things to food," food historian and science guy Alton Brown tells NPR's Scott Simon."

"[Flame] makes soot, and it makes deposits of various chemicals that are not too good for us. The last thing you really want to see licking at your food while it's on a grill is an actual flame," says Brown, who is known for kicking up the science on various Food Network shows." 

"Brown is also a grilling enthusiast ('I grill, therefore I am,' he says), with seven grills at home. So when you're talking about backyard cookouts with Brown, make sure you know the difference between grilling and barbecuing. Barbecue, Brown notes, is 'a meat product produced by long, slow cooking and exposure to a good deal of smoke, and is usually some part of a pig.'"

Census Reveals Universe of Marine Microbes At Bottom of the Food Chain

"What's at the bottom of the bottom of the food chain? Well, think small ... smaller than you can see."

"Microbes in the ocean!"

"There are (and scientists have done the math) trillions of microorganisms in the ocean: plankton, bacteria, krill (they're maybe bigger than 'micro,' but not by much), viruses, protists and archaea (they're like bacteria, but they aren't bacteria)."

"The Earth as we know it wouldn't exist without the trillions of microorganisms that live in the oceans. They're food for most everything that floats or swims, and they make oxygen that we need to breathe."

Filthy Lucre Is A Modern Remix of the Peacock Rooms Wretched Excess

"An artist has just converted a legendary piece of 19th century art into an utter ruin. And two Smithsonian institutions — the Freer and Sackler Asian Art galleries — have given their blessings."

"The Peacock Room at the Freer Gallery is an actual dining room from London, decorated by James McNeill Whistler in 1876. Its blue-green walls are covered with golden designs and painted peacocks. Gilded shelves hold priceless Asian ceramics. It's an expensive, lavish cocoon, rich in beauty and a dab of menace."

"Freer security guard Shaquan Harper spends hours at a time in the Peacock Room — and says it's a peaceful, meditative experience. 'Blue is my favorite color and whenever I wear jewelry it's gold,' he says. 'So I kind of make a personal connection with the room. This is one of my favorite galleries in the Smithsonian.'"

At 50 years Old the Challenge To Keep Up With Moore's Law

"Fifty years ago this week, a chemist in what is now Silicon Valley published a  paper that set the groundwork for the digital revolution."

"You may never have heard of Moore's law, but it has a lot do with why you will pay about the same price for your next computer, smartphone or tablet, even though it will be faster and have better screen resolution than the last one."

"Most of us are used to the cycle of technology. I visited a Best Buy in San Francisco to find shelves stacked with the latest digital gear, and asked a few customers about what they expect from their new devices — whether it's a laptop, a smart phone or tablet."

"'Thinner, lighter, faster,' says Zeplin Lui."

"'I want better resolution,' Josie Meng tells me."

Mellow Pastimes Can Be Good For Your Health Too

"This makes total sense: When you're engaged in an activity you truly enjoy, you're happy. And, when you're happy you're not dwelling on all the negative things in life, nor are you stressed about obligations or problems. Certainly this is a good thing from an emotional point of view, but it also has physical benefits."

"We know exercise reduces stress, but it turns out that more simple stationary things, like doing puzzles, painting or sewing can help, too."

"To find that out, Matthew Zawadzki, an assistant professor of psychology with the University of California, Merced, looked at how the body reacts to leisure activities, defined as anything a person does in his or her free time."

This Robot Chef Has Mastered Crab Bisque

"Step aside, home chefs! The kitchen of the future draws near."

"No, there's no hydrator from Marty McFly's kitchen in Back to the Future II. Right now, the chef of the future looks like a pair of robotic arms that descend from the ceiling of a very organized kitchen. And it makes a mean crab bisque."

"As well it should: The robot has been studying under Tim Anderson, a freelance chef who won the BBC's MasterChef competition in 2011. With a few demonstrations from Anderson — and a lot of help from the programmers and technicians at U.K.-based Moley Robotics, the company that is building it — the robot chef is really cooking."

How Iconic, A Word Is Worth Thousands of Pictures

"Picture a dictionary that doesn't need words to get the point across."

"It started after Edward Boatman read the book The Professor and the Madman by Simon Winchester. The book is about Professor James Murray, the man who compiled the first Oxford English Dictionary. But Murray didn't do it alone. He had an army of people ready to help define every word in the English language."

"So Boatman thought he'd do something similar: use crowdsourcing to gather an army of people to define words, but instead of using other words to do it, they'd use icons."

"Thus the Noun Project was born."

Tylenol Might Dull Emotional Pain Too

"A common pain medication might make you go from "so cute!" to "so what?" when you look at a photo of a kitten. And it might make you less sensitive to horrifying things, too. It's acetaminophen, the active ingredient in Tylenol. Researchers say the drug might be taking the edge off emotions — not just pain."

"'It seems to take the highs off your daily highs and the lows off your daily lows,' says Baldwin Way, a psychologist at Ohio State University and the principal investigator on the study. 'It kind of flattens out the vicissitudes of your life.'"

"The idea that over-the-counter pain pills might affect emotions has been circulating since 2010, when two psychologists, Naomi Eisenberger and Nathan DeWall, led a study showing that acetaminophen seemed to be having both a psychological and a neurological effect on people. They asked volunteers to play a rigged game that simulated social rejection. Not only did the acetaminophen appear to be deflecting social anxieties, but it also seemed to be dimming activity in the insula, a region of the brain involved in processing emotional pain."

Einstein's Universe Turns 100

"One hundred years ago, a 36-year-old Albert Einstein presented the complete formulation of the General Theory of Relativity to the Prussian Academy of Sciences. Across the world, events and conferences will be celebrating what is considered, without hyperbole, the most beautiful of physical theories, marrying mathematics with physical concepts in deeply meaningful and elegant ways. Some consider it the highest intellectual achievement in history."

"Whatever your take, it is undeniable that Einstein's theory is a magnificent example of the power of the human imagination as it attempts to decipher nature's most hidden secrets: Welcome to the universe of curved spaces, black holes, the Big Bang, wormholes and even multiple universes."

No Rest For Your Sleeping Brain

"There's new evidence that the brain's activity during sleep isn't random. And the findings could help explain why the brain consumes so much energy even when it appears to be resting."

"'There is something that's going on in a very structured manner during rest and during sleep,' says Stanford neurologist Dr. Josef Parvizi, 'and that will, of course, require energy consumption.'"

"For a long time, scientists dismissed the brain's electrical activity during rest and sleep as meaningless 'noise.' But then studies using fMRI began to reveal patterns suggesting coordinated activity."

Alan Turing Notebook Sells For More Than 1 Million At Auction

"A handwritten notebook by Alan Turing, the British mathematician credited with breaking German codes during World War II, sold for more than $1 million at auction Monday in New York. It is the first time a manuscript by Turing, a pioneer in computer science, has come to public market, according to Bonhams."

"Bonhams says it is currently unable to reveal the identity of the buyer."

"The 56-page manuscript, with the original cloth-backed covers, details complex mathematical and computer science notations Turing made while at Bletchley Park, the British government's code-breaking site. It dates to 1942, when Turing and other cryptologists worked to break the Enigma code used by Nazi Germany's military."

Are Scientific & Religious Explanations Incompatible

"Last week, I participated in a workshop on the science-religion dialogue during which I was asked: Are scientific and religious explanations philosophically incompatible?"

"I've been thinking about the question ever since. The simple answers — 'yes' or 'no' — have advocates, but they don't seem to do the issues justice."

"For someone like evolutionary theorist Stephen Jay Gould, the answer would likely have been "yes." He saw science and religion as occupying distinct spheres, or "non-overlapping magisteria." If science is concerned exclusively with facts and religion exclusively with values, for example, then they might avoid direct conflict by explaining different things."

Eating To Break 100 Longevity Diet Tips From Blue Zones

"Want to live to be 100? It's tempting to think that with enough omega-3s, kale and blueberries, you could eat your way there."

"But one of the key takeaways from a new book on how to eat and live like "the world's healthiest people" is that longevity is not just about food."

"The people who live in the Blue Zones — five regions in Europe, Latin America, Asia and the U.S. researchers have identified as having the highest concentrations of centenarians in the world — move their bodies a lot. They have social circles that reinforce healthy behaviors. They take time to de-stress. They're part of communities, often religious ones. And they're committed to their families."

Plagued By Smog Krakow Struggles To Break Its Coal-Burning Habit

"Krakow is one of Europe's top tourist destinations and attracts millions of visitors each year to soak up its history, culture and architecture. But its appeal wanes during colder months when another prominent feature of the Polish city is on display: air pollution."

"Environmental officials say Krakow's air is among the most polluted in Poland, which in turn, has the most polluted air in the European Union."

"And what's the source of the smog hanging over the city during colder months? It's not Polish industry, but rather residents who burn coal to keep warm."

Link Between Heart Disease & Height Hidden In Our Genes

"Shorter people are more likely than taller folks to have clogged heart arteries, and a new study says part of the reason lies in the genes."

"Doctors have known since the 1950s about the link between short stature and coronary artery disease, "but the reason behind this really hasn't been completely clear," says Nilesh Samani, a cardiologist at the University of Leicester in the U.K."

"One thought was that smaller people have smaller arteries, which are easier to clog. Another possibility is that short stature can be a result of poor nutrition and health while growing up, and that could also be linked to health problems later in life."

Doctors Test Tumor Paint In People

"A promising technique for making brain tumors glow so they'll be easier for surgeons to remove is now being tested in cancer patients."

"Eighteen months ago, Shots first told readers about tumor paint, an experimental substance derived from scorpion venom. Inject tumor paint into a patient's vein, and it will actually cross the blood-brain barrier and find its way to a brain tumor. Shine near-infrared light on a tumor coated with tumor paint, and the tumor will glow."

"The main architect of the tumor paint idea is a pediatric oncologist named Dr. Jim Olson. As a physician who treats kids with brain cancer, Olson knows that removing a tumor is tricky."

When Did Humans Start Shaping Earth's Fate An Epoch Debate

"Humans have had such a huge impact on the Earth that some geologists think the human era should be enshrined in the official timeline of our planet."

"They want to give the age of humans a formal name, just as scientists use terms like the Jurassic or the Cretaceous to talk about the age of dinosaurs."

"But some researchers think that formally establishing an "Anthropocene" — as many call it — as part of the geologic time scale would be a big mistake."

"The debate is heating up as a working group is getting closer to making recommendations to the scientific organization that decides such things — the International Union of Geological Sciences. The working group's interim report is expected by next year."

Maybe You Should Skip That Annual Physical

"It's a warm afternoon in Miami, and 35-year-old Emanuel Vega has come to Baptist Health Primary Care for a physical exam. Dr. Mark Caruso shakes his hand with a welcoming smile."

"Vega, a strapping man with a thick black beard, is feeling good, but he came to see the doctor today because his wife thought he should. She even made the appointment. It is free to him under his insurance policy with no copay, as most preventive care is under the Affordable Care Act."

"Vega is one of more than 44 million Americans who is taking part in a medical ritual — visiting the doctor for an annual physical exam. But there's little evidence that these visits actually do any good for healthy adults."

Way More College Students Are Studying Korean. Is 'Hallyu' Why?

"A recent study found that in general, college students aren't taking foreign language classes as much as they used to — a slowdown of nearly 7 percent since 2009. But for one language in particular, there's actually been a pretty amazing jump in the rate of enrollment: Korean."

"The Modern Language Association says there was a 45 percent increase in university-level enrollment in Korean language classes between 2009 and 2013, from 8,449 students to 12,229. Though the raw numbers are still quite small, a look at why any sort of jump might be happening is interesting. Larry Gordon, a reporter for theLos Angeles Times, thinks the wave of international fascination with Korean pop culture — hallyu — is partially responsible."