Science & Nature

Sometimes my heart hath shaken with great joy
To see a leaping squirrel in a tree,
Or a red lady-bird upon a...

If you still happen to be so young that you have children looking forward to Santa, then you won't want to tell them about Stefán Magnússon. Any child discovering Stefán's occupation will want you to call the police immediately.

Stefán is a hardworking farmer. He farms Rudolfs. He has 3,000 of them on his reindeer farm in Greenland. Some of them are used to make reindeer sausages or salami; the better quality cuts end up as Christmas joints.

Northsiders especially appreciate the National Botanic Gardens, which attract many visitors from Ireland and abroad. The Office of Public Works (OPW) diligently manages the gardens which Dubliners term "the botanics".

Meteor shower has sparked reports of UFO sightings.

Light and Time, an exhibition currently at the National Museum of Ireland Collins Barracks, is the Museum's contribution to Hamilton Year 2005: Celebrating Irish Science, the bicentenary of the birth of William Rowan Hamilton, Ireland's greatest scientist. The exhibition examines questions of light and time, their measurement, meaning, relevance and significance. It draws on the scientific instrument collection of the National Museum and other institutions to illustrate these issues and in so doing to focus on the work of Irish scientists and instrument makers.

The copper beech provides good shade against the scorching sun. And if you hide underneath its thick foliage, in the most aggressive downpour, you will remain dry.

A Mars hoax has been circulating the internet, claiming that Mars and Earth will be in close proximity and that Mars will appear a similar size to a full moon. The hoax has been circulating on an email that reads: "the Red Planet is about to be spectacular… earth is catching up with Mars [for] the closest approach between the two planets in recorded history… on 27 August … Mars will look as large as the full moon".

After the Columbia shuttle tragedy it is essential that NASA get the Discovery trip right. It is also important for the future of the space programme in the United States writes Emma Browne

Two of Ireland's digital companies have come together to create a mobile phone channel to bring Irish and international short films to the global market.

Podcasting could challenge traditional broadcasters in the same way blogs did journalists – Valerie Vetter on those who are making their voices heard