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Microbes make up the vast majority of Earth's species but we're still clueless when it comes to identifying them
The best way to keep your sponges clean is to microwave them.
A few days ago, India's Energy Minister Piyush Goyal announced that solar energy became cheaper to produce than coal-powered, costing roughly 6 US cents/kWh. Now, it's become even cheaper: the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) received the lowest ever asking price for solar energy, at US 2.99 cents/kWh.
Will widespread use of smart cars make roads safer or actually more dangerous? One Canadian expert is raising concerns that as automated systems take up the bulk of navigating tasks, drivers will keep their hands less on the driving wheel...and more on the person (persons?) next to them.
It's a paradigm shift.
In April, the United States hit an important milestone in the quest for full renewable energy transition after the one-millionth solar system was installed.
Climate refugees may become more and more common.
Gentlemanly rules for an ancient sport.
Animals have evolved all sorts of gimmicks for either attack or defence. Some are really over the top, but that doesn't make it less effective. Take the bombardier beetle, for instance, which sprays a deadly mix of boiling chemicals from its butt. This is one insect you don't want to mess with.
Many people believe math is boring, but in reality - it's anything but.
A rocky body that's neither exactly a comet nor an asteroid, may hold some interesting clues about how the planets in the solar system formed, including Earth. The tailless so-called Manx comet, named so after a breed of cats without tails, originates from the Oort cloud -- a shell of icy objects that exist in the outermost reaches of the solar system. Although it's more than a trillion miles away, this Manx comet is likely made of the same stuff that eventually coalesced to form Venus, Mars or even Earth.
This beast is called GE9X -- the largest jet engine ever built. Standing at 13 feet in diameter, it's wider than a Boeing 737's fuselage.
A team of engineers piggy-backed photosynthesis using a nifty pot called the Bioo Lite. Just place almost any plant inside, add water and plenty of sunlight and you'll be able to charge your phone via the provided USB port up to three times a day. Or so they claim.
If you're old enough, you might remember how some flowers around where you live blossom earlier or that summers and winters are unusually harsh. In short, freak weather is more common to the point it's becoming the new norm. Human memory is fallible, which is why we keep records of things like temperature, humidity, concentration of gases in the atmosphere and so on. These record don't go back that long though -- maybe only a century. Some, however, go way back and scientists are using these to keep track of climate change over the centuries.
Wastewater spills from hydraulic fracking in North Dakota caused widespread water and soil contamination, a new Duke University study finds. Hydraulic fracking involves injecting highly pressurized fluids into subsurface rocks, creating a system of fissures through which the hydrocarbons can escape. There are many environmental issues associated with this technique, one of them being that the entire […]
As anyone who grows plants in an apartment will tell you, it can be quite a challenge. Space is limited, as is light and it’s so easy to make a mess – this is why I love this new project. It’s really easy to set up a small, cute garden in only minutes. It’s called Livi. […]
There's good bacteria and bad bacteria, but the gut seems to be so diverse in its bacterial offering from person to person that scientists have always found it difficult to say "hey, this is what a healthy microbiome should look like." Analyzing thousands of bacteria species in your guy is challenging and we're still not there, but a recent effort involving 4,000 participants has some good hints as to what makes a healthy gut.
The visual effect was extremely strong, and everything was completely safe, activists say.
Solar is becoming cheaper - fast.
A deep, low pitch voice is often sought after in a man, but a new study suggests this characteristic might have evolved to intimidate other males, not attract females.
How can some people actually like a serial killer, like Dexter from the eponymous TV show ? What about a meth dealer like Walter White from Breaking Bad or Tony Soprano, the gangster from HBO's The Sopranos?
Lions previously held by circuses across South America were rescued and will be flown back to Africa, where they will spend the rest of their days in a safe sanctuary. It almost seems like a fairy-tale ending – after spending most or all of their life trapped in circuses in appalling conditions, these lions will […]
All aboard the hype train!
Scientists have also quantified the effects of climate change as they relate to oxygen depletion. Their analysis suggests that by 2030 oxygen dissolved due to climate change will overpower the natural variability in the ocean, putting further stress on marine life.
Cutting our meat consumption is crucial for a sustainable future.
For the amateur physicists out there, I have some great news: CERN just made the biggest data dump in the history of particle physics, sharing 300 TB of Large Hadron Collider (LHC) data online. It’s completely free, and it’s high quality data too, from the Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) experiment at the LHC. Anyone can access it, and […]
This remarkable research could open the doors for biological thermometers at the nanoscale which might tell us a thing or two about how our bodies function at the smallest level.
Six convoys of semi-automated, smart trucks drove across Europe, arriving at Rotterdam, in the Netherlands.
A new study from the University of Toulouse found that intelligence and learning aren't limited to organisms with brains. By studying the mold P. polycephalum they found it can, over time, learn to navigate even irritating environments.
A new research investigated various light intensity scenarios and reported their findings. For optimal learning performance, "cool" light is better while "yellow" or "warm" light is the most relaxing.
Venezuela's public workers will only work on Mondays and Tuesdays as the country falls deeper into crisis.
Thousands of junior doctors (the rough equivalent of a resident in the US) walked out of hospitals and emergency wards to protest against borderline inhuman measures implemented by the government. It’s the first time in English history since an all-out strike was carried out. The NHS said “military level” contingency planning had been carried out […]
Spanking was associated with a high risk of children defying their parents, becoming aggressive and anti-social. In the long run, mental health issues and cognitive difficulties may arise.
The GIF was first posted by Dr. Christina Hibbert, a clinical psychologist and author of several books. I’m not sure if it helps with anxiety, but it’s quite satisfying to watch – over and over again. It starts out as a simple line, then blooms into a triangle, then a square, pentagon, hexagon, heptagon and […]
“How do you do very high-level science or engineering with very little?” Asks Martin Thuo, an assistant professor of materials science and engineering at Iowa State. With a little help from science and lots of innovation, Thuo and colleagues found an elegant solution to a complex problem.
Ikea made it much easier for British people to green their homes – for a while. Then, after the government reduced subsidies for renewable energy, the company quietly stopped selling the panels, and now they’ve resumed them again. Why Ikea selling solar panels matters When Ikea starts selling something, it’s safe to say it’s become mainstream. […]
Physicists have crammed water inside extremely small cracks about ten-billionth of a metre and found the molecules entered a never before seen state. In this brand new state, the water molecules don't adhere to strict laws of classical physics anymore, nor do they behave like a liquid, gas or solid.
As CO2 builds up in the atmosphere, this warms the planet, acidifies the ocean and melts glaciers. It also promotes plant growth -- after all, that's why it's called the "greenhouse gas effect". A huge collaborative effort spanning 32 authors from 24 institutions in eight countries found that in the last 33 years the area occupied by vegetation has significantly increased.
We now have shark vision.
Sad news comes from African wildlife parks again: three rangers were killed in Democratic Republic of Congo’s Garamba wildlife park. Two others were wounded, including the park manager. Just yesterday we were writing that African park rangers risk their life on a day-to-day basis to protect animals in natural parks, and now this tragedy was reported […]
Just don't do it.
If you don't want bed bugs biting you, then changing your sheet's colour might help. A recent study found bed bugs love red and black, but keep away from surfaces coloured in yellow or green.
Polar bears are forced to undertake more marathon, life-threatening swims to find food
During a meeting with Norway’s Minister of Transport and Communications, Tesla's CEO Elon Musk claimed that since 'autopilot' was rolled out, there have been 50% fewer car accidents.
Elon Musk is one of the most influential entrepreneurs in the tech industry. Here's his one-page resume.
Park rangers risk their lives on a daily basis to protect wildlife from poachers. They're also underfunded and understaffed, so allocating resources as efficiently as possible is critical. This is where artificial intelligence, big data, machine learning, and game theory come in. The A.I. can identify and predict poaching patterns, and adapts in time so that park patrols can transition from "reactive" to "proactive" control. Pilot programs launched in Uganda and Malaysia have so far been successful, and a similar system is currently being developed for illegal logging.
British astronaut Tim Peake ran the London Marathon on a treadmill aboard the International Space Station.
At a high-level signing ceremony in New York, more than 170 countries signed up to the landmark COP21 climate changed deal first adopted last December in Paris. Many media outlets praised the signing event, where 60 heads of state were in attendance as well as celebrities, like Leonardo DiCaprio. It is indeed a great achievement in fighting climate change on a global level, but only a small step in many yet to come.
According to the most comprehensive set of data, almost no diesel cars respect pollution limits.
When a species almost one hundred times bigger than you, who has access to nukes and can go to space, discovers your remains a few million years after you die and still decides to call you "monstrosus" you must be doing something very right survival-wise.
