Uncategorized
- Planetary Science
Martian rovers survive storm
Three months after being stymied by a planet-wide dust storm, NASA's twin Mars rovers are back in action.
- Humans
It’s About Time
What’s a year? Why do we measure it in days and weeks? How do calendars differ? What’s the earliest known date? (Hint: It’s the year Egyptians invented the calendar.) Learn answers to these and other timely questions at Calendars from the Sky, a site developed in part with support from the National Institute for Standards […]
- Humans
Letters from the October 13, 2007, issue of Science News
Another idea blown . . . Conservation by America is not going to decrease global warming (“Asian Forecast: Hazy, Warmer—Clouds of pollution heat lower atmosphere,” SN: 8/4/07, p. 68). We need to imitate known global-cooling events, such as the Krakatoa volcano explosion, which spread sunlight-reflecting dust into the stratosphere in 1883. A hydrogen bomb exploded […]
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19889
The news is filled with observations of our species’ role in global warming and in the depletion of fisheries, arable land, fresh water, and fossil fuels. Yet I seldom hear the size of the human population cited as a driving force behind these problems. The easiest path to reducing our environmental footprint would be to […]
- Earth
Invasive, Indeed
Some people may live lightly on the land, but the demands of the world's population as a whole consume nearly a quarter of Earth's total biological productivity.
- Tech
Disappearing Ink
Coming to your tattoo parlor soon: New inks that allow clients to have their designs cleanly erased if embarrassment or regret sets in.
- Humans
From the October 2, 1937, issue
The mystery and magnificence of volcanoes, how bees dance to tell their hive-mates which flowers to visit, and the year's polio cases begin to decline.
- Health & Medicine
Yummy Bugs
Do you enjoy chocolate? You can make it more nutritious by bugging it—with crickets, for example. Or how about ant-fortified tacos? This site introduces Westerners to the idea that many commonly encountered insects are edible. Indeed, most are lower in fat—and higher in protein—than beef, lamb, pork, or chicken. The site’s author argues that “insects […]
- Math
A Prayer for Archimedes
A long-lost work by Archimedes shows his subtle grasp of the notion of infinity, and how close he was to developing calculus.
- Animals
Crowcam: Camera on bird’s tail captures bird ingenuity
Video cameras attached to tropical crows record the birds' use of plant stems as tools to dig out food.
- Health & Medicine
Shields Down: A cancer-fighting gene declines in old age
Decline of an important anti-cancer gene could contribute to increased cancer risk among the elderly.
- Astronomy
Match Made in Heaven: Nearby galaxies resemble faraway type
Several nearby galaxies seem nearly identical to some of the remotest galaxies known, offering a glimpse of the era when galaxies first formed.
