Some of you reading this are young enough to get a realistic chance to travel into space sometime in the future. When you look down on Earth, what do you expect to see? Yes, there will be oceans and continents, and even large lakes, but will there be any signs of human handiwork? This question
We know that summer produces the longest days. But for one day, can 99% of the Earth’s population be in sunlight, at least for a moment? That was the premise of an article published on TimeandDate.com — “Fact Check: 99% of the World’s Population Gets Sunlight at the Same Moment on July 8” by Konstantin
I hope you had a happy Fourth of July (or as I like to say, Disloyalty to Royalty Day). Did you watch any fireworks displays? I’ve been hearing news reports about communities having to cancel their programs due to a shortage of trained explosives technicians. But assuming you were able to see some fireworks somewhere,
Harvester ants are very industrious. They build mounds that last for decades, protecting them with a half-inch-thick layer of small rocks about the size of beads, then clear the surrounding area of vegetation by as much as 30 feet. But in gathering up all those rocks, they also collect tiny fossils and archaeological artifacts. Don’t
On the night of Aug. 15, 1977, during a SETI search, the Ohio State University’s Big Ear telescope picked up an unknown signal that was incredibly strong but very brief, lasting a mere 1 minute and 12 seconds. It was so unexpected that its discoverer, astronomer Jerry Ehman, wrote “Wow” on the printout, thus giving this
Homo Sapiens have always had the ability to walk upright. The key to this biological ability is our foot’s remarkable design. For example, short toes give us the ability to run long distances. Surprisingly, another critical design feature appears to be the transverse tarsal arch — the horizontal curve that runs across the top of
I have read that the world’s largest animal is a blue whale, and the largest living organism is a fungus (https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/strange-but-true-largest-organism-is-fungus/). But what is the largest plant? Whatever it was before, we have a new winner. Scientists have determined a 110-mile-long meadow of seagrass in Shark Bay, Western Australia is actually a single plant. It has
Granted that the Star Wars universe is in a galaxy far, far away, just how realistic are the technological advances from that world? According to the article “May the 4th be with you: 7 Wild ‘Star Wars’ Technologies Scientists Are Building Right Now” by Brandon Specktor, they may be more realistic than you think. The
Zombies aren’t the only ones looking for brains. Used brains of all kinds are needed for medical research to advance the discovery of better treatments and cures for brain diseases, disorders, and injuries. If this interests you, check out the Brain Donor Project at https://braindonorproject.org/. This topic is especially timely because there is a campaign
Clouds can form some imaginative formations, but a new one on me is a cloud street. A cloud street, or more technically a horizontal convective roll, is actually a long row of cumulus clouds that is aligned parallel to the direction of the wind. They usually form straight rows, but when the wind hits an obstacle,