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18/08/2025

17/08/2025

Could the greatest threat to humanity be a trap of our own making?

In this wide-ranging interview, science communicator and poker champion Liv Boeree introduces the concept of Moloch: a metaphorical deity representing destructive, runaway competition between individuals.

From the perverse incentives of social media to the “race to the bottom” dynamics in business and AI, Boeree explores how individually rational actions can lead to collectively irrational outcomes.

Why do we keep choosing short-term gains that harm the long-term good? Why does it feel impossible to stop?

Drawing on insights from game theory, behavioural psychology, and technology, Boeree paints a picture of a world locked in a high-stakes coordination problem. She reflects on the addictive dopamine cycles of virality, the hidden cognitive costs of over-reliance on technology, and the sacrificing of some human values over others under capitalism.

Escaping the grip of Moloch, Boeree argues, will require not just better tech, but better collective wisdom. Tap the link to watch the full interview now: https://iai.tv/video/competition-destroys-collective-intelligence

04/08/2025

Can we make better coffee using less coffee? A team of physicists at the University of Pennsylvania says yes—by tapping into fluid dynamics.

In a new study, researchers used pour-over setups, laser imaging, and transparent particles to model how water interacts with coffee grounds. They discovered that the way you pour—height, flow rate, and smoothness—dramatically affects how flavor is extracted.

Pouring from just the right height creates tiny “avalanches” that stir the grounds and maximize contact between water and coffee. This boosts extraction, even when fewer beans are used. But pour too high, and the water breaks into droplets, reducing efficiency.

The secret? Laminar flow. That’s why gooseneck kettles outperform regular ones—smooth, controlled pours lead to better brews. The team confirmed their physics models by testing real coffee and measuring taste and extraction yields.

Beyond better coffee, this experiment is a case study in applied physics, with implications for filtration, granular flow, and sustainable brewing. With coffee prices rising and climate change threatening global supply, brewing smarter might just be science’s gift to caffeine lovers.

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RESEARCH PAPER 📄

Ernest Park et al, "Pour-over coffee: Mixing by a water jet impinging on a granular bed with avalanche dynamics.", Physics of Fluids (2025)

14/07/2025

Donc

01/07/2025

20/06/2025

Donc

30/05/2025

08/05/2025

03/04/2025

14/03/2025

The M28/M29 Davy Crockett Weapon System was a tactical nuclear recoilless smoothbore gun designed to fire the M388 nuclear projectile, which was equipped with the W54 nuclear warhead. Deployed by the United States during the Cold War, it was the first project assigned to the United States Army Weapon Command in Rock Island, Illinois.

06/03/2025

With Pancake Day just around the corner, we thought you’d be interested to know that Lee Miller loved to make French crêpes on a regular basis. Crepes Suzette was a favourite recipe of hers, and so we thought we would share it with you. Do let us know how it turns out if you make it!

I N G R E D I E N T S
PANCAKE MIXTURE:
4 large eggs
700ml / 3 cups full fat milk
½ tsp salt
300g / 3 cups sifted plain flour
2 tblsp melted butter
1 tblsp cooking oil (soybean or rapeseed)
ORANGE BUTTER:
3 large oranges
8 lumps brown sugar
8 tblsp unsalted butter
5 tblsp caster sugar
2 ½ tblsp orange juice
3 tblsp orange Curacao
8 tblsp brown rum or cognac

TO MAKE PANCAKES:
Break the eggs into a blender and add 600ml / 2 ½ cups of milk and salt. Turn on the blender and gradually drop the flour through the hole in the lid. When well blended, add the rest of the milk with butter and oil. Beat until smooth and let stand for several hours for flour to swell.
It may well require more milk to make pancakes lacey thin. Make 24 pancakes in a light buttered thick cast-iron frying pan and stack them between layers of baking paper. Unfilled pancakes can be frozen for about 2 months.
TO MAKE ORANGE BUTTER:
Wash and dry oranges and rub the sugar lumps on the skin until they are soaked in the orange oil. Crush the lumps in the bowl of an electric mixer and add butter and sugar. Beat until creamed and then slowly beat in the orange juice and Curacao, a bit at a time. Reserve half of the butter and butter the rest onto the pancakes. Butter half of each pancake and fold the pancake in half and then quarters.
The pancakes can be frozen ready buttered and put also the remaining butter to freeze.
When ready to serve: place the frozen crepes in a greased flameproof serving platter. Scrape the reserved butter into bits and distribute on crepes. Cover with foil and put in a 200C / 400F oven for ½ hour. Keep warm until serving and then heat rum or brandy in a small pan. Ignite and pour over the dish while it is flaming.
Recipe excerpt taken from the book, ‘A Life with Food, Friends and Recipes’ by Ami Bouhassane, available to buy from our Farleys House & Garden shop (link in bio).

Image: 📷 Lee Miller her herb garden, Farleys Garden, Muddles Green, Chiddingly, East Sussex, England c1952 by Roland Penrose© Lee Miller Archives, England 2025. All rights reserved. www.leemiller.co.uk

05/03/2025

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