NYT: Eleanor Maguire, Memory Expert Who Studied London Cabbies, Dies at 54
Dr. Maguire kept digging. Using M.R.I. machines, she measured different regions in the brains of 16 drivers, comparing their dimensions with those in the brains of people who weren’t taxi drivers.
“The posterior hippocampi of taxi drivers were significantly larger relative to those of control subjects,” she wrote in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. And the size, she found, correlated with the length of a cabby’s career: The longer the cabby had driven, the bigger the hippocampus.
Dr. Maguire’s study, published in March 2000, generated headlines around the world and turned London taxi drivers into unlikely scientific stars.
“I never noticed part of my brain growing,” David Cohen, a member of the London Cab Drivers Club, told the BBC. “It makes you wonder what happened to the rest of it.”
NYT: The Best Way to Cook Rice and Grains
Of course, there are a few exceptions: If you want your grains to stick together (as with sushi rice), to cook the grains in fat first (as with pilaf) or to have a soupy consistency (as with congee and risotto), you might want to use the absorption method, in which grains soak up a measured amount of water in a covered pot. But in all other cases, the boiling method is less finicky and more forgiving.
So how do I boil grains?
Add grains to a saucepan or pot of lightly salted boiling water, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until they’re tender and chewy. They should be the texture of al dente pasta — not soft or mushy — and may also be split at the ends. Use the cook times that follow as a guide for some common grains, and start tasting five minutes before because grains vary greatly based on producer. …
TechCrunch: Can sim drivers make the shift to F1? Max Verstappen thinks so
Motorsports have long been a pay-to-play arena, with young drivers spending thousands of dollars just to get started in karting. Four-time Formula One champion Max Verstappen knows this all too well, but he also sees a way to change it through sim racing, a virtual form of car racing that closely replicates real-world racing.
It’s maybe less crazy than it sounds. The sport has evolved into a serious proving ground for talent, with detailed setups and tire management — minus the crushing financial barrier. In fact, Verstappen, a passionate sim racer himself, believes the best virtual drivers deserve a shot in real cars.
TechCrunch: Broadcom, TSMC reportedly exploring deals that would split up Intel
Broadcom and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) are separately exploring deals to take over parts of Intel, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal.
Broadcom is reportedly considering an acquisition of Intel’s chip-design and marketing business, and would want a partner for the company’s manufacturing business, while TSMC is reportedly looking at controlling some or all of Intel’s chip plants, potentially as part of an investor consortium.
Last Updated: 16.Feb.2025 21:56 EST
