Why Rudolph has a shiny red proboscis: Scientific Christmas

William Atkins
Friday, 24 December 2010 00:28

Science - Biology

Did you know that Santa has two ten-thousandths of a second to deliver presents to 842 million homes on Christmas Eve? British journalist Roger Highfield explains this magnificent feat of super-duper-sonic travel, and other scientific explanations, in his book 'Can Reindeer Fly?'

We all know about the traditions of Christmas, but do we know where they came from and how they came to be?

Mr. Highfield is a columnist with the Daily Telegraph newspaper in London, England, and the editor of the magazine New Scientist.

One of his more recent Christmas Daily Telegraph articles is the December 21, 2010 'The science of Christmas: we could grow our own fairy lights, say the tree wise men.'

Highfield talks about the centuries old tradition of placing lights on trees, and wonders if in the future scientists can find a way to make an extremely high-tech Christmas tree.

Find out more by reading Mr. Highfield's story.

And, to learn more about the science behind Christmas, Highfield has written a book called 'Can Reindeer Fly?'

According to the SimonSingh.net book review, 'Each year, science journalist Roger Highfield searches for stories with a Christmas angle; the evolutionary origin of gift giving, the mystery of the Star of Bethlehem, how reindeer fly, cloned Christmas trees, and anything else that might add a festive flavour to his weekly column in London's Daily Telegraph newspaper.'

Page two continues with more on "Can Reindeer Fly?"