Strong winds and stormy seas have helped turn the Shetland Islands in the North Atlantic into a European renewable energy giant. https://youtu.be/YHexh3FdMqY
Sci-Tech
Oil-soaking sponge could help clean up serious spills
(Reuters) — The Oleo Sponge can soak up oil in water super quick. It could one day help clean up major spills like the one at Deepwater Horizon seven years ago. Developed at Argonne National Laboratory, it’s made of a polyurethane foam like that used in mattresses. The foam’s interior surfaces are covered with oleophilic, or oil-attracted, molecules that draw oil from the water. The material can be wrung out in order to be reused. […]
Fruit fuelled evolution of a bigger brain: study
by Joshua MELVIN Agence France Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — Humans likely developed large and powerful brains, researchers said Monday, with the help of what is today the simplest of snacks: fruit. Eating fruit was a key step up from the most basic of foodstuffs, such as leaves, and provided the energy needed to grow bulkier brains, the scientists argued. “That’s how we got these crazy huge brains,” said the study’s corresponding author Alex Decasien, […]
Tech world debate on robots and jobs heats up
by Rob Lever Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Are robots coming for your job? Although technology has long affected the labor force, recent advances in artificial intelligence and robotics are heightening concerns about automation replacing a growing number of occupations, including highly skilled or “knowledge-based” jobs. Just a few examples: self-driving technology may eliminate the need for taxi, Uber and truck drivers, algorithms are playing a growing role in journalism, robots are […]
China’s surface ozone pollution damaging rice yields, threatens global food security – study
KARAWANG, Indonesia (Reuters) — A new study paints an alarming picture for the future of the rice industry. Researchers found that a high level of surface ozone pollution is wreaking havoc on a stage of the rice plant’s development in China – the world’s largest producer of the staple crop. “Peaks in ozone when you have 2 or 3 really bad days of high surface ozone which is like air pollution can have huge impact […]
Scientists launch campaign to restore Pluto to the planet club
Reuters — A team of scientists seeking to restore Pluto to planet hood launched a campaign on Tuesday (March 21) to broaden the astronomical classifications which led to its demotion to a “dwarf planet” a decade ago. Six scientists from institutions across the United States argued that Pluto deserves to be a full planet, along with some 110 other bodies in the solar system, including Earth’s moon. In a paper presented at an international planetary […]
SpaceX cargo craft released from space station to return to Earth
Reuters — The SpaceX Dragon spacecraft left the International Space Station on Sunday (March 19) to begin its journey back to Earth The resupply cargo craft was released from the ISS at 0411EDT (0911GMT) and was set to splash down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Baja California after a five-hour journey, according to NASA. NASA says the cargo shift was carrying some 5,400 pounds (2,450 kilos) of gear and scientific samples for […]
First fluorescent frog found in Argentina
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AFP) — The first naturally fluorescent frog was discovered recently in Argentina — almost by chance, a member of the team of researchers told AFP Thursday. Argentine and Brazilian scientists at the Bernardino Rivadaiva Natural Sciences Museum made the discovery while studying the metabolic origin of pigments in a tree-frog species common to South America. Under normal light the frog’s translucent skin is a muted yellowish-brown color with red dots, but when the […]
Scientists spin artificial spider silk
(Reuters) — A team of Swedish researchers from the University of Agricultural Sciences and the Karolinska Institute has discovered a way to artificially create one of the strongest, most tensile natural substances known to man – spider silk. Stronger than steel, weight for weight, spider silk also possesses properties which make it ideal for a wide variety of medical uses, but previous attempts to use captive spiders or to make it artificially have not produced […]
Miniature lab begins science experiments in outer space
HERZLIYA, Israel (Reuters) — Orbiting the earth at more than 500 kilometers (300 miles) per hour, a tiny satellite with a laboratory shrunk to the size of a tissue box is helping scientists carry out experiments that take gravity out of the equation. It was launched into orbit last month by India’s national space agency. Dubbed DIDO, the mini-lab was constructed by Swiss-Israeli firm SpacePharma, a Swiss-Israeli company, which on Thursday (March 16) announced that […]
Take a look! The digital age and the effects of digital devices on the brain
Today’s teens are digital natives— a generation of children that has grown up with video games, computers, touch-screen tablets, mobile phones and virtual reality. Even if their brains have adapted to this ultra-high-tech environment, they might still find it harder to resist impulsive behavior and to engage in free and independent thinking because of these digital devices. https://youtu.be/hgYbQJm9dSM
Common gene explains why some people’s brains age faster
MIAMI, United States (AFP) — A common gene variant has been discovered in about one-third of the population that may explain why some people’s brains age faster than others, United States researchers said Wednesday. The gene, known as TMEM106B, accelerates normal brain aging in older people by up to 12 years, said the report in the journal Cell Systems. The gene generally starts to affect people around 65, particularly in the frontal cortex, which is responsible for higher […]
