New Things To See And Read – Boundaries and Master Classes

Two items of note for those looking for some new things to help broaden their horizons.

Boundaries is the first issue of Method Quarterly, a new journal focused on the scientific method.  (H/T to Alexis Madrigal and his 5 Intriguing Things newsletter.)  A mixture of interviews, fiction, reporting and essays, Method Quarterly strikes me as more of a kind with a literary journal or the magazine for an institute like the Wilson Center or the National Academies.  From the About page:

“The scientific method is much more than the technical details of experiments: it’s the culture of the lab, the politics of science funding, the art of experimental design, and the science of telling a good story. What gets left out of scientific publications? What don’t we hear about in popular articles about scientific discovery and technological innovation?

“Method features stories about science in the making. Rather than focus on discovery or futuristic potential, we want to think critically about process—how science actually gets done. We want to ask questions that open new conversations about science in the popular media”

I think that’s a good thing, and I encourage you to see if I’m right.

There are also more Master Classes available from the World Science University.  In addition to the three that started last month, you can now take more short courses on various elements of cosmological theory.  As is the case for the other courses, no formal training in mathematics and physics is necessary.  And the material will be covered in a few hours.