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<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss version="2.0" xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/" xmlns:wfw="http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/" xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/" xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" xmlns:sy="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/syndication/" xmlns:slash="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/" xmlns:media="http://search.yahoo.com/mrss/" xmlns:itunes="http://www.itunes.com/dtds/podcast-1.0.dtd" > <channel> <title>Cosmos</title> <atom:link href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/feed/" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" /> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com</link> <description>The Science of Everything</description> <lastBuildDate>Fri, 22 Nov 2024 06:31:14 +0000</lastBuildDate> <language>en-AU</language> <sy:updatePeriod> hourly </sy:updatePeriod> <sy:updateFrequency> 1 </sy:updateFrequency> <itunes:subtitle>Cosmos</itunes:subtitle> <itunes:summary>The Science of Everything</itunes:summary> <itunes:explicit>clean</itunes:explicit> <item> <title>A stronger voice for Pacific science</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/news/a-stronger-voice-for-pacific-science/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[360info]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Sat, 23 Nov 2024 00:37:33 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316751</guid> <description><![CDATA[By Patila AmosaNational University of Samoa Until late last month, the Pacific has stood as the only region globally without an academy of science, a gap that has left it vulnerable to external activities impacting its vast oceans. Due to its size, isolation and unique geographical, economic and cultural characteristics, the Pacific is particularly susceptible to these challenges. […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[ By Patila Amosa National University of Samoa Until late last month, the Pacific has stood as the only region globally without an academy of science, a gap that has left it vulnerable to external activities <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2023-09-12/ocean-acidification-pacific-marine-environment-climate-change/102630998" target="_blank" rel="noopener">impacting its vast oceans</a>. Due to its size, isolation and unique geographical, economic and cultural characteristics, the Pacific is <a href="https://new.nsf.gov/science-matters/pacific-islands-front-line-battle-against-climate" target="_blank" rel="noopener">particularly susceptible</a> to these challenges. The launch of the <a href="https://council.science/our-work/pacific-academy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Pacific Academy of Sciences</a> marks a turning point. As nations on <a href="https://reporter.anu.edu.au/all-stories/pacific-islands-are-holding-the-front-line-of-climate-change-but-this-is-a-global-fight" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the frontline of climate change</a>, establishing a science academy will amplify our voices, advocating for urgent climate action on regional and global platforms to safeguard our future generations. <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Climate change challenges in the Pacific</h3> The Pacific region, heavily reliant on land and sea for livelihoods, faces numerous climate change challenges. Atolls are at risk of submergence due to rising sea levels, and Pacific Island nations are <a href="https://www.undp.org/pacific/blog/ipcc-report-and-climate-crisis-pacific" target="_blank" rel="noopener">disproportionately affected by climate change</a> due to their small size and geographical isolation. Warming seas are causing sea levels to rise, significantly impacting small atoll islands such as Tuvalu and Kiribati, which are <a href="https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/article/tuvalu-islands-sea-level-rise-climate-change" target="_blank" rel="noopener">expected to be mostly submerged</a> if current carbon dioxide emission trends continue without effective mitigation strategies. Volcanic islands like Samoa are experiencing <a href="https://samoa-data.sprep.org/system/files/4-sea-level-inundation.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">rapid coastal inundation</a>, leading to flooding, land loss and inland migration. <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022169421012154" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Seawater intrusion</a> is turning coastal freshwater systems salty, affecting water supplies and agriculture. Beyond physical impacts, relocation will also have <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/344542353_Climate_Relocation_and_Indigenous_Culture_Preservation_in_the_Pacific_Islands" target="_blank" rel="noopener">cultural and emotional effects on communities</a>. The Pacific is also witnessing more severe Category 4 and 5 cyclones than ever before. <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-31912305" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Cyclones Pam</a> and <a href="https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/a-year-after-cyclone-winston-fiji-calls-for-global-action-on-climate-change/gwy7bqqay" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Winston</a> caused devastating damage in Vanuatu in 2015 and Fiji in 2016, respectively. Increasing temperatures and warming oceans have led to <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352485524002810" target="_blank" rel="noopener">coral bleaching episodes throughout the Pacific</a>, threatening the reef resources that Indigenous communities rely on for food, coastal protection, and income. Bleached coral skeletons weaken reef structures, reducing available resources for our people. <h3 class="wp-block-heading">What can a science academy do?</h3> The Pacific Academy of Sciences can play a crucial coordinating and leadership role by implementing solutions to help Pacific Island nations better prepare for and respond to these challenges. Strategies will include researching climate change impacts in Pacific nations, exploring innovative solutions, strengthening education to raise climate change awareness and adaptation, developing technological tools to predict and manage extreme weather events and collaborating with local governments and international partners for human capacity development and financial support. Evidence-based decision-making is essential to inform policymakers and develop appropriate solutions to address the Pacific’s challenges. Researchers at the academy can collaborate to conduct relevant research and share findings with Pacific and global communities. By leveraging compiled data, they can strengthen a collective Pacific voice when advocating for Pacific matters at global forums like <a href="https://360info.org/midway-between-cops-the-heat-is-on/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the Conference of the Parties (COP)</a>. <h3 class="wp-block-heading">What’s next for Pacific science?</h3> Having Pacific scholars lead the academy will ensure they become the stewards of the organisation, fostering a strong sense of ownership and commitment to its success. Additionally, the Pacific Academy of Sciences can foster regional collaboration through partnerships with universities and research institutions, focus on sustainable development through interdisciplinary research on climate change and other critical issues, <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/pacific/programs/pacificbeat/pacific-science-acadmy/103525752" target="_blank" rel="noopener">decolonise research</a> by integrating Indigenous knowledge, influence policy with scientific advice, engage the public through outreach programs, and establish global networks to share knowledge and tackle global challenges. These initiatives aim to unify and amplify the voices of Pacific scholars, promote sustainable development and elevate the academy’s profile on the world stage. Professor Patila Amosa is the first female Vice Chancellor and President of the National University of Samoa and a Foundation Fellow of the Pacific Academy of Sciences. Her research focuses on the biosecurity of Samoa’s freshwater resources, rainwater chemistry and ocean acidification. Originally published under <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Creative Commons</a> by <a href="https://360info.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">360info</a>™. div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/JP4n"><img decoding="async" fetchpriority="high" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Cosmos-Catch-Up-embed_728x150-1.jpg?x75256" alt="Sign up to our weekly newsletter" width="600" height="154" title="A stronger voice for Pacific science 2"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Make it green: Australian chemists put industry in their sights</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/chemistry/green-chemistry-2024-conference/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Ellen Phiddian]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Fri, 22 Nov 2024 23:21:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Chemistry]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Australia]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Core Sciences]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Earth]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Engineering]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[People]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Sustainability]]></category> <category><![CDATA[chemistry]]></category> <category><![CDATA[compost]]></category> <category><![CDATA[sustainability]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316816</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-96277954-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="green chemical equipment" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-96277954-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-96277954-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-96277954-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-96277954.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Make it green: Australian chemists put industry in their sights 4"></div>Everything is made of molecules. But who makes the molecules? For most of the things around you, the answer can probably be traced back to “chemists”. “When we look at everything around us in our world – the food, the medicines, the plastics and polymers, our computers, our vehicles … some sort of chemical manufacturing […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-96277954-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="green chemical equipment" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-96277954-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-96277954-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-96277954-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-96277954.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Make it green: Australian chemists put industry in their sights 6"></div> Everything is made of molecules. But who makes the molecules? For most of the things around you, the answer can probably be traced back to “chemists”. “When we look at everything around us in our world – the food, the medicines, the plastics and polymers, our computers, our vehicles … some sort of chemical manufacturing is involved in all of it,” says Associate Professor Tony Patti, a chemist at Monash University. These “things that we just take for granted” have altered the environment in dramatic and often damaging ways. But the growing <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/chemistry/green-chemistry-conference/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">green chemistry</a> movement seeks to rectify some of the harms. “Green and sustainable chemistry is really about: how do we how do we go forward in the future and avoid the problems of the past?” says Patti. In its strictest sense, green chemistry refers to a movement started in the late 1990s by US chemists <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/chemistry/green-chemistry-warner-anastas/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Dr John Warner and Professor Paul Anastas</a>. They outlined 12 principles which, considered before a chemist starts a process, should make the molecules they design better for the environment and human health. “Those principles now employed and taken on into chemical manufacturing will ultimately give us a better world,” says Patti, who is co-chairing the <a href="https://greenchemistryengineeringconf2024.com.au/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">2024 Australian Conference on Green and Sustainable Chemical Engineering</a>, being held in Melbourne in mid-December. “And, arguably, they also can help address pretty well all the UN Sustainable Development Goals.” Patti’s interest in green chemistry first stemmed from his research in compost. “I started to question: well, making compost is great, and that’s important, but are we potentially also discarding or disregarding important components?” he says. Food waste, it turns out, can be a valuable source of important feedstocks – such as antioxidants, pectin, and lignin. While green and sustainable chemistry is becoming well-established in academia, and has led to a number of successful commercial products, it can be difficult to translate research to <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/global-chemical-industry-decarbonisation-video/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">industry</a>. Part of the goal of the conference is to firm the connections between industry and research chemists. “I think all industries nowadays are very conscious of being more sustainable in sourcing their feedstocks from renewable [resources] wherever possible,” says Patti. “But of course, ‘wherever possible’ is a big limitation, because supply chains just don’t necessarily have that quantities that they need.” Another problem is that ‘green’ and ‘sustainable’ can sometimes work at cross-purposes. “Not everything that is green is sustainable. And conversely, not everything that’s sustainable is necessarily green,” says Patti. Benign-by-design green molecules are created with the intention of causing no harm, in their making, use, and disposal. But they don’t necessarily operate in the right quantities for sustainable industries. “The input materials you need, the energy to make it and so forth – that may not be sustainable, or may not produce a product that is affordable for its function in society. And that’s part of the challenge,” says Patti. Industries that are well-established often have the hardest time changing their practices with sustainability in mind. “I think one of the exciting things about green chemistry development is the opportunities for new industries, new work, and economic benefits,” says Patti. “Newer companies setting up today potentially have some advantage, because they can start out with the better, more improved way to do things. They don’t have to use, necessarily, the old technologies of the past.” Green chemists have also been working to change public perceptions of chemistry – a science that has long held a reputation for being at least indifferent, and often damaging, to the environment and human health. Part of this involves <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/chemistry/green-chemistry-education/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">changing chemistry education</a> to include green principles – but Patti says that public outreach is important too. “Chemical manufacturing is really giving us the lifestyles we’ve become comfortably accustomed to in our societies today,” he says. “After all, chemistry is a creative activity. It’s creating new materials, and new things for us to have viable societies.” <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="Make it green: Australian chemists put industry in their sights 5"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>CSIRO unveils new white fish for aquaculture</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/agriculture/csiro-unveils-new-fish-for-aquaculture/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Cosmos]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Fri, 22 Nov 2024 22:30:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Agriculture]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Australia]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316458</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="400" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/The-Pompano-is-suitable-for-Australian-aquaculture-600x400.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="The Pompano is ready for aquaculture (CSIRO)" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/The-Pompano-is-suitable-for-Australian-aquaculture-600x400.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/The-Pompano-is-suitable-for-Australian-aquaculture-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/The-Pompano-is-suitable-for-Australian-aquaculture-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/The-Pompano-is-suitable-for-Australian-aquaculture.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="CSIRO unveils new white fish for aquaculture 7"></div>A new white-flesh fish variety called Pompano could add more than $1 billion to the economy, following successful aquaculture trials and promising initial market testing with chefs and consumers. The Pompano (Trachinotus anak), mostly known as a prized sports fish, has been identified as the ideal white-flesh fish for developing in northern Australia’s tropical climate. […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="400" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/The-Pompano-is-suitable-for-Australian-aquaculture-600x400.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="The Pompano is ready for aquaculture (CSIRO)" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/The-Pompano-is-suitable-for-Australian-aquaculture-600x400.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/The-Pompano-is-suitable-for-Australian-aquaculture-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/The-Pompano-is-suitable-for-Australian-aquaculture-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/The-Pompano-is-suitable-for-Australian-aquaculture.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="CSIRO unveils new white fish for aquaculture 9"></div> A new white-flesh fish variety called Pompano could add more than $1 billion to the economy, following successful aquaculture trials and promising initial market testing with chefs and consumers. The Pompano (Trachinotus anak), mostly known as a prized sports fish, has been identified as the ideal white-flesh fish for developing in northern Australia’s tropical climate. CSIRO, Australia’s national science agency, says a new Pompano industry would help Australian aquaculture reduce its reliance on around 100,000 tonnes of white-flesh fish imports, while helping to sustainably meet growing demand for seafood. Despite huge consumer demand, Australian white flesh fish produced by aquaculture has not reached the same levels as salmon. The current industry is considerably smaller, with around 11,000t of production compared to Tasmanian Atlantic salmon with around 70,000t. Of the 150,000t consumed annually across Australia, more than 50 per cent is imported. Barramundi is <a href="https://www.csiro.au/en/news/All/Articles/2022/May/white-flesh-fish-aquaculture" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the success story</a> for Australian farmed white flesh fish. It comfortably leads the sector’s production totals. However, emerging industries including yellowtail kingfish, grouper, Murray cod and cobia are also contributing to the diversity of Australia’s home-grown product line-up. The Pompano is also fast growing, with appetising white flesh, and great eating qualities. It is also suited to a wide range of Australian environmental and farming conditions. Importantly, they are successfully farmed overseas, opening a pathway for rapid technology transfer. Lead scientist, Dr Polly Hilder, who presented at this week’s “CSIRO AgCatalyst2024” event, highlighted the goal to produce a highly nutritious protein source while prioritising sustainability and welfare. “The Pompano is a robust, sociable fish endemic to northern Australia that grows really quickly and tastes great, making it an ideal candidate for adapting to our aquaculture environments,” Hilder says. “We’re bringing a new species to Australian plates to give consumers more options, while opening up new export opportunities to strengthen Australia’s white-flesh fish industry. “We’re now working to scale production processes in commercial trials with industry.” <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="aligncenter size-full"><img decoding="async" width="650" height="488" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Pompano-dead.jpg?x75256" alt="Aquaculture opportunity - the Pompano (CSIRO)" class="wp-image-316464" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Pompano-dead.jpg 650w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Pompano-dead-600x450.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Pompano-dead-300x225.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 650px) 100vw, 650px" title="CSIRO unveils new white fish for aquaculture 8"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Aquaculture opportunity – the Pompano (CSIRO)</figcaption></figure></div> An initial market study, conducted by Fishtales, involving chefs, found the Pompano is versatile, easy to prepare and tastes great. MasterChef Australia judge and co-owner and chef at Three Blue Ducks, Andy Allen, highlighted the Pompano’s culinary qualities in a live cooking demonstration at AgCatalyst2024. “I’ve had some time to work with this fish in my kitchen at home and it tastes great as a mildly sweet, high quality white meat that is firm but finely flaked,” Allen says. “I’ve been able to use the whole fish in a variety of ways – from simply cooking the fillets in olive oil, salt, pepper and lemon, to getting a bit wilder by crisping up the wings and using the head in a couple of different ways too. “It’s awesome to think we can breed this fish here in Australia sustainably and supply it to consumers in the future.” By partnering with industry to bring Pompano to the mainstream market, CSIRO says it aims to create a new, sustainable Australian <a href="https://www.csiro.au/en/work-with-us/services/consultancy-strategic-advice-services/CSIRO-futures/Agriculture-and-Food/Australias-Protein-Roadmap?utm_source=miragenews&utm_medium=miragenews&utm_campaign=news" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">white-flesh fish industry</a> “in the near future.” “We’re applying innovative circular economy approaches designed around welfare that make use of resources end-to-end – from capturing value from production processes, through to utilising the whole fish at the consumer end,” Hilder says. “For example, fish waste is high in phosphorous and nitrogen nutrients and can be turned into valuable byproducts such as fertiliser capsules.” CSIRO’s <a href="https://www.csiro.au/en/work-with-us/services/consultancy-strategic-advice-services/CSIRO-futures/Agriculture-and-Food/Australias-Protein-Roadmap?utm_source=miragenews&utm_medium=miragenews&utm_campaign=news" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">National Protein Roadmap</a>  says that industry ambitions to produce 50,000 tonnes of white-flesh fish could create more than 1000 jobs for Australia. It’s one of a suite of future protein solutions CSIRO is working on to meet growing global protein demand, sustainably. <a href="https://research.csiro.au/aquaculture/?utm_source=miragenews&utm_medium=miragenews&utm_campaign=news" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CSIRO’s aquaculture research and development</a> spans breeding and genomics through to health, nutrition, and production processes <h3 class="wp-block-heading"><a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/agriculture/startup-develops-sustainable-aquaculture/">More on aquaculture</a></h3> <a href="https://www.miragenews.com/csiro-unveils-new-white-fish-for-aussie-1360902/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">This article is from CSIRO News</a> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Hot water on ancient Mars may have been habitable</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/astrobiology/ancient-mars-hot-water-meteorite-habitable/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Evrim Yazgin]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Fri, 22 Nov 2024 19:02:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Astrobiology]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Astronomy]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Astrophysics]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Australia]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Chemistry]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Core Sciences]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Earth]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Earth Sciences]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Space]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Space Exploration]]></category> <category><![CDATA[astronomy]]></category> <category><![CDATA[geochemistry]]></category> <category><![CDATA[life on Mars]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Mars]]></category> <category><![CDATA[meteorite]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316764</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="337" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Mars_image-1200x675_small-600x337.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="Illustration of the planet Mars covered in water in the ancient past, when its atmosphere was thicker and warmer. This shows a view over the massive Olympus Mons, the largest known volcano in the Solar System. Mars could return to this state under terraforming." decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Mars_image-1200x675_small-600x337.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Mars_image-1200x675_small-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Mars_image-1200x675_small-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Mars_image-1200x675_small.jpg 840w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Hot water on ancient Mars may have been habitable 11"></div>A 4.45-billion-year-old grain from a famous Martian meteorite shows that there was hot water on ancient Mars which had the potential to be habitable. It is the oldest direct evidence of hot water on Mars as scientists continue to look for signs that the Red Planet once hosted (or could host) life. The study, led […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="337" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Mars_image-1200x675_small-600x337.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="Illustration of the planet Mars covered in water in the ancient past, when its atmosphere was thicker and warmer. This shows a view over the massive Olympus Mons, the largest known volcano in the Solar System. Mars could return to this state under terraforming." decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Mars_image-1200x675_small-600x337.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Mars_image-1200x675_small-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Mars_image-1200x675_small-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Mars_image-1200x675_small.jpg 840w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Hot water on ancient Mars may have been habitable 14"></div> A 4.45-billion-year-old grain from a famous Martian meteorite shows that there was hot water on ancient Mars which had the potential to be habitable. It is the oldest direct evidence of hot water on Mars as scientists continue to look for signs that the Red Planet once hosted (or could host) life. The study, led by researchers at Western Australia’s Curtin University, is <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adq3694" target="_blank" rel="noopener">published</a> in the journal Science Advances. <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="alignleft size-full"><img decoding="async" width="500" height="500" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/1_Mars_NWA7034.jpg?x75256" alt="blue glove fingers holding black sample of rock in dish" class="wp-image-316761" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/1_Mars_NWA7034.jpg 500w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/1_Mars_NWA7034-300x300.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/1_Mars_NWA7034-100x100.jpg 100w" sizes="(max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px" title="Hot water on ancient Mars may have been habitable 12"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">A sample of the Martian meteorite known as ‘Black Beauty’. Credit: Curtin University/Aaron Cavosie.</figcaption></figure></div> NWA 7034, also known as “Black Beauty”, is a 320-gram Martian meteorite found in 2011 in the western Sahara Desert. It contains the most water of any Martian meteorite found on Earth. A <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9276826/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">2022 study</a> suggests that the rock was ejected from Mars’s surface in an impact 1.5 billion years ago, making its way to Earth 5–10 million years ago. The new study analysed a zircon grain from Black Beauty and found the geochemical “fingerprints” of water-rich fluids. The study suggested a history on Mars of hydrothermal systems associated with magmatism. Elements including iron, aluminium, yttrium and sodium were found in the zircon, suggesting water was present during a time when there was magmatism on early Mars. “Hydrothermal systems were essential for the development of life on Earth and our findings suggest Mars also had water, a key ingredient for habitable environments, during the earliest history of crust formation,” says co-author Aaron Cavosie, a planetary scientist from the Space Science and Technology Centre at Curtin University. Evidence now abounds that ancient Mars <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/astronomy/mars-ancient-lake-perseverance-rover/">had liquid water</a>. But much of this research also points to the Red Planet being <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/astronomy/ancient-mars-cold-for-life/">too cold</a> to sustain that liquid water long enough for life to emerge. The presence of hydrothermal systems on Mars may have made it habitable. “It’s hard to say for sure how long hot water was present on Mars, but it was probably present for tens of millions of years or longer,” Cavosie tells Cosmos. “The zircon we analysed crystallized in magma at 4.45 billion years ago. This age places it in a previously recognized time of igneous magmatic activity related to the growth of the Martian crust from 4.48 to 4.43 billion years ago. It’s possible that hydrothermal systems driven by magmatism were prevalent during this entire ~50-million-year span. This is now a testable hypothesis that can be addressed by collecting more data from Martian zircons.” Cavosie says hydrothermal systems, like those still found deep in Earth’s oceans, can reach 100–600°C. Cavosie’s earlier research suggests that Earth also had water about 4.3 billion years ago. “Another interesting question is what drove the early magmatism that made these zircons?” Cavosie says. “Most evidence from the study of meteorites indicates that Mars experienced a high level of meteorite impact events at this time. So it’s possible that the magmatism and the hydrothermal systems were in part driven by meteorite impacts.” The researcher says that about <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/astronomy/mars-meteorite-liquid-water/">20 meteorites</a> have been found that may have come from Mars, but Black Beauty is different. “What makes Black Beauty so special is that it’s a sample of regolith from the surface, similar to soil, so it contains hundreds of rock and mineral fragments sourced from all over Mars,” Cavosie explains. “The Black Beauty meteorites are an extraordinary buffet of pieces to the Martian geological puzzle.” Cavosie is excited by the prospect that future missions to Mars might return samples to Earth for further study. “Orbiters and landers and rovers have revolutionised our understanding of Mars. However, detailed nano-scale geochemical studies, as was done in our work on a meteorite, can only take place in laboratories on Earth. “The ability to analyse materials collected directly from the surface of Mars and returned to Earth represents an unprecedented science opportunity. In such a case, the regional setting of the samples is known, and laboratories on Earth can provide the best age and geochemical analysis possible. Return of samples from Mars will undoubtedly trigger a new generation in understanding Martian history, surface conditions, habitability, climate, and other processes. “In the meantime, we’re going to keep squeezing everything we can out of the bit of Mars lucky enough to have landed on Earth.” <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="Hot water on ancient Mars may have been habitable 13"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>How ancient Europeans changed at the dawn of agriculture</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/archaeology/ancient-dna-europeans-agriculture/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Evrim Yazgin]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Fri, 22 Nov 2024 14:35:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Archaeology]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Anthropology]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Biology]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Core Sciences]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Culture]]></category> <category><![CDATA[History]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[People]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Society]]></category> <category><![CDATA[agriculture]]></category> <category><![CDATA[ancient dna]]></category> <category><![CDATA[archaeology]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Europe]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316512</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/scientists-use-ancient-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="Excavation of human remains" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/scientists-use-ancient-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/scientists-use-ancient-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/scientists-use-ancient-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/scientists-use-ancient.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="How ancient Europeans changed at the dawn of agriculture 16"></div>DNA from samples spanning 8,500–1,300 years ago shows how ancient Europeans adapted to the development of early agriculture. Genes underwent significant changes in 14 regions of the genome. For example, those associated with traits that help in the production vitamin D and digest milk into adulthood showed strong signs of selection, but only in the […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/scientists-use-ancient-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="Excavation of human remains" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/scientists-use-ancient-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/scientists-use-ancient-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/scientists-use-ancient-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/scientists-use-ancient.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="How ancient Europeans changed at the dawn of agriculture 19"></div> DNA from samples spanning 8,500–1,300 years ago shows how ancient Europeans adapted to the development of early agriculture. <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="1200" height="675" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/scientists-use-ancient.jpg?x75256" alt="Excavation of human remains" class="wp-image-316455" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/scientists-use-ancient.jpg 1200w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/scientists-use-ancient-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/scientists-use-ancient-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/scientists-use-ancient-300x169.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px" title="How ancient Europeans changed at the dawn of agriculture 17"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Excavation of human remains. Credit: The University of Texas at Austin.</figcaption></figure> Genes underwent significant changes in 14 regions of the genome. For example, those associated with traits that help in the production vitamin D and digest milk into adulthood showed strong signs of selection, but only in the most recent time periods. This includes lighter skin pigmentation for vitamin D production in less sunny climates, and the ability to use milk as a nutritional source. “It’s possible this ability to digest dairy was important to survival during periods of crop failure, food scarcity and disease,” says lead researcher Vagheesh Narasimhan from the University of Texas (UT) at Austin. Immune-related genes underwent changes in different time periods, probably when ancient populations adapted to new diseases introduced by the spread of agriculture and migrations. About half of the adaptive signals were detectable only in the oldest time periods. This suggests they later vanished due to genetic drift or were masked by population mixing. More than 700 samples were taken from across Europe from modern-day Portugal and Britan in the west to Russia in the East. Samples were obtained from <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/archaeology/ancient-life-vittrup-man/">Scandinavia</a> and the <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/archaeology/neolithic-settlement-cosmic-rays-greece/">Mediterranean</a> and everywhere in between. Samples were grouped into 4 time periods: Neolithic, Bronze Age, Iron Age, and Historical. The oldest samples come from the Neolithic Period (also known as the Late Stone Age) which ended about 3,700 years ago. This period of human development is marked by the beginning of settled lifestyles. Communities in the Neolithic were the first to learn to cultivate plants and domesticate animals for food. This represented a shift away from the <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/archaeology/stone-age-genetic-inbreeding/">hunter-gatherer lifestyle</a> that had dominated for the previous 300,000 years of modern human existence. “Studying ancient DNA lets us reach back in time, tracking evolutionary changes directly in historical populations,” says Narasimhan. “We’re revealing genetic signatures that have been largely erased or masked in present-day genomes.” Even in a brief 7,000-year window, the DNA analysis was able to show evolutionary processes in these ancient European populations which are otherwise undetectable in modern genetic samples. The team used a new statistical approach to examine the DNA data. This allowed them to scan for signs of natural selection. “Our method provides a clearer picture of how and when certain traits were selected for, especially when those signals have been lost in modern genomes,” explains co-first author and UT Austin graduate student Devansh Pandey. The analysis showed adaptations took place during the transition to farming as humans lived in closer proximity to each other and domesticated animals. The ancient DNA analysis is <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-024-53852-8" target="_blank" rel="noopener">published</a> in Nature Communications. <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="How ancient Europeans changed at the dawn of agriculture 18"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Whale-ship collision hotspots: 93% have no protection measures</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/nature/marine-life/whale-ship-collisions-risk/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Evrim Yazgin]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Fri, 22 Nov 2024 07:35:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Marine life]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Animals]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Australia]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Biology]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Core Sciences]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Earth]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Nature]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Oceans]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Our Planet]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Ultramarine]]></category> <category><![CDATA[marine biology]]></category> <category><![CDATA[shipping]]></category> <category><![CDATA[whale]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316595</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/A.Willson_Roselyn20120116EOS7D394aa-CREDIT-Asha-De-Vos-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="whale fluke with ship in background" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/A.Willson_Roselyn20120116EOS7D394aa-CREDIT-Asha-De-Vos-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/A.Willson_Roselyn20120116EOS7D394aa-CREDIT-Asha-De-Vos-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/A.Willson_Roselyn20120116EOS7D394aa-CREDIT-Asha-De-Vos-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/A.Willson_Roselyn20120116EOS7D394aa-CREDIT-Asha-De-Vos.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Whale-ship collision hotspots: 93% have no protection measures 21"></div>A global survey has found that shipping traffic overlaps with almost the entire range of all whale species but only 7% of the areas with the highest risk of whale-ship collisions have protection measures in place for the whales. “Whale-ship collisions have typically only been studied at a local or regional level … and patterns […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/A.Willson_Roselyn20120116EOS7D394aa-CREDIT-Asha-De-Vos-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="whale fluke with ship in background" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/A.Willson_Roselyn20120116EOS7D394aa-CREDIT-Asha-De-Vos-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/A.Willson_Roselyn20120116EOS7D394aa-CREDIT-Asha-De-Vos-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/A.Willson_Roselyn20120116EOS7D394aa-CREDIT-Asha-De-Vos-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/A.Willson_Roselyn20120116EOS7D394aa-CREDIT-Asha-De-Vos.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Whale-ship collision hotspots: 93% have no protection measures 28"></div> <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="1200" height="674" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Ship-whale-head-on-20140904-JAC-0108-CREDIT-John-Calambokidis-Cascadia-Research.jpg?x75256" alt="Ship-whale-head-on" class="wp-image-316607" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Ship-whale-head-on-20140904-JAC-0108-CREDIT-John-Calambokidis-Cascadia-Research.jpg 1200w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Ship-whale-head-on-20140904-JAC-0108-CREDIT-John-Calambokidis-Cascadia-Research-600x337.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Ship-whale-head-on-20140904-JAC-0108-CREDIT-John-Calambokidis-Cascadia-Research-768x431.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Ship-whale-head-on-20140904-JAC-0108-CREDIT-John-Calambokidis-Cascadia-Research-300x169.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px" title="Whale-ship collision hotspots: 93% have no protection measures 22"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Credit: John Calambokidis, Cascadia Research.</figcaption></figure> A global survey has found that shipping traffic overlaps with almost the entire range of all whale species but only 7% of the areas with the highest risk of whale-ship collisions have protection measures in place for the whales. “Whale-ship collisions have typically only been studied at a local or regional level … and patterns of risk remain unknown for large areas,” says lead author Anna Nisi, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Washington in the US. “Our study is an attempt to fill those knowledge gaps and understand the risk of ship strikes on a global level.” <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="aligncenter size-full is-resized"><img decoding="async" width="391" height="864" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Figure-2-1.jpg?x75256" alt="three maps showing whale and shipping overlap" class="wp-image-316605" style="aspect-ratio:0.4525462962962963;width:581px;height:auto" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Figure-2-1.jpg 391w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Figure-2-1-272x600.jpg 272w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Figure-2-1-300x663.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 391px) 100vw, 391px" title="Whale-ship collision hotspots: 93% have no protection measures 23"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Credit: Nisi AC et al. Science. Nov. 22, 2024 print edition. DOI: 10.1126/science.adp1950</figcaption></figure></div> The research, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1126/science.adp1950" target="_blank" rel="noopener">published</a> in Science, focused on 4 species: blue, fin, humpback and sperm whales. It found that the highest risk areas lay along the coasts of the Americas, southern Africa and parts of Asia. The team found mandatory measures to reduce whale-ship collisions were very rare. These overlapped with just 0.54% of blue whale hotspots and 0.27% of humpback hotspots. Such measures had no overlap with any fin or sperm whale hotspots. The findings are “timely” and “not surprising”, according to Vanessa Pirotta, a researcher at Sydney’s Macquarie University who was not involved in the study. “Ship strike is a global problem and one that occurs here in Australia,” Pirotta tells Cosmos. She has <a href="https://www.publish.csiro.au/mf/fulltext/MF22050" target="_blank" rel="noopener">co-authored</a> <a href="https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/fee.1987" target="_blank" rel="noopener">papers</a> which have assessed the impact of shipping on marine giants in Australian waters. According to the non-profit organisation Friend of the Sea, <a href="https://friendofthesea.org/collisions-with-vessels-the-deadliest-threat-for-whales/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">20,000 whales are struck</a> by boats each year around the world. Many species are at increased risk of extinction because of such collisions, as well as other pressures such as overfishing by humans depleting the whales’ food sources. Many other large marine animals, including basking sharks and whale sharks, are also at risk of ship collisions. Pirotta says animals most at risk “are surface active like whales who come to the surface to breathe and feed, <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/nature/marine-life/whale-sharks-ships-climate-change/">whale sharks</a>, <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/nature/marine-life/first-images-shark-boat-strike/">basking sharks</a>.” Robert Harcourt, also at Macquarie and not involved in the Science paper, says “it is a really excellent study”. Harcourt says that <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2117440119" target="_blank" rel="noopener">previous research</a> using depth trackers suggested that whale sharks were getting struck by ships more often than was previously thought. “As container ships got bigger and bigger, even if they hit a blue whale, they don’t necessarily notice it. They sometimes come into port and they’ve got a fin whale or a blue whale draped over their bow, and they haven’t even known they’ve hit it because they’re so loud,” Harcourt explains. <figure class="wp-block-image size-full is-resized"><img decoding="async" width="545" height="307" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/IMG_2386-CREDIT-Sopaka-Karunasundara.jpg?x75256" alt="whale on ship bow" class="wp-image-316606" style="aspect-ratio:1.775244299674267;width:840px;height:auto" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/IMG_2386-CREDIT-Sopaka-Karunasundara.jpg 545w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/IMG_2386-CREDIT-Sopaka-Karunasundara-300x169.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 545px) 100vw, 545px" title="Whale-ship collision hotspots: 93% have no protection measures 24"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Credit: Sopaka Karunasundara.</figcaption></figure> The paper is an advance according to Harcourt because it uses some powerful models and the increased volume of data on whale movement and migration. Harcourt says protection measures are surprisingly simple. Shipping lanes could be temporarily closed according to the migration patterns of whales. “We do a lot of that for things like seismic surveys. We don’t allow seismic surveys in areas of high whale density,” Harcourt says. “If you look at southern Victoria, the Otway Basin, they don’t allow seismic activities during the period when blue whales are feeding, which is about 3 months of the year.” <figure class="wp-block-image size-full is-resized"><img decoding="async" width="624" height="496" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Figure-1-1.jpg?x75256" alt="three maps showing whale and shipping overlap" class="wp-image-316604" style="aspect-ratio:1.2580645161290323;width:840px;height:auto" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Figure-1-1.jpg 624w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Figure-1-1-600x477.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Figure-1-1-300x238.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 624px) 100vw, 624px" title="Whale-ship collision hotspots: 93% have no protection measures 25"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Credit: Nisi AC et al. Science. Nov. 22, 2024 print edition. DOI: 10.1126/science.adp1950</figcaption></figure> Another measure is to move shipping lanes away from “pinch points” such as the waters around the southern tip of Sri Lanka where there are large migrations of blue and sperm whales and a very dense shipping lane. “If they were to move the shipping lanes just 10km further offshore, they would greatly reduce the likelihood of running into blue whales,” Harcourt explains. “The other thing is to have ships slow down in areas where there are whales,” Harcourt adds. “There’s been a fairly recent, but very effective slowdown of ships going into the Salish Sea, which is the where the sea, where Seattle and Vancouver are. They’ve reduced the speed, I think, down to below 12 knots.” <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="1200" height="675" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/A.Willson_Roselyn20120116EOS7D394aa-CREDIT-Asha-De-Vos.jpg?x75256" alt="whale fluke with ship in background" class="wp-image-316603" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/A.Willson_Roselyn20120116EOS7D394aa-CREDIT-Asha-De-Vos.jpg 1200w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/A.Willson_Roselyn20120116EOS7D394aa-CREDIT-Asha-De-Vos-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/A.Willson_Roselyn20120116EOS7D394aa-CREDIT-Asha-De-Vos-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/A.Willson_Roselyn20120116EOS7D394aa-CREDIT-Asha-De-Vos-300x169.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px" title="Whale-ship collision hotspots: 93% have no protection measures 26"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Credit: Asha De Vos.</figcaption></figure> “It’s like when people cross train lines, they don’t have the perception of how fast that train is coming towards them, and that’s why people can get hit. Whales, presumably, are similar in terms of these big ships moving quite fast. So slowdowns in areas of high density is a really effective means of reducing the likelihood of impact.” Harcourt says the paper lays out clear guidelines for how whale-ship collisions can be reduced while also not having a major economic impact. “It’s really nice to have a large, collaborative group of people applying the latest modelling techniques to try and make a direct impact on conserving the world’s magnificent giants,” Harcourt says. “But that we can’t rest on our laurels with that. There are many more species that are really vulnerable.” <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="Whale-ship collision hotspots: 93% have no protection measures 27"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>“Reverse” earbuds might allow early detection of Alzheimer’s</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/health/earbuds-early-detection-of-alzheimers/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Richard A Lovett]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Fri, 22 Nov 2024 02:26:34 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Health]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316785</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="400" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/GSO-images.-Getty-600x400.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="GSO images. Getty" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/GSO-images.-Getty-600x400.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/GSO-images.-Getty-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/GSO-images.-Getty-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/GSO-images.-Getty.jpg 850w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title=""Reverse” earbuds might allow early detection of Alzheimer's 30"></div>Earbud-like microphones might be usable for early detection of Alzheimer’s disease and other ailments, medical researchers say. Rather than transmitting sound into the ear like conventional earbuds, these devices, which Miriam Boutros of École de Technologie Supérieure, in Montreal, calls “hearables,” transmit sounds out of the ear, after first blocking external sounds from coming in. […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="400" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/GSO-images.-Getty-600x400.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="GSO images. Getty" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/GSO-images.-Getty-600x400.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/GSO-images.-Getty-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/GSO-images.-Getty-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/GSO-images.-Getty.jpg 850w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title=""Reverse” earbuds might allow early detection of Alzheimer's 32"></div> Earbud-like microphones might be usable for early detection of Alzheimer’s disease and other ailments, medical researchers say. Rather than transmitting sound into the ear like conventional earbuds, these devices, which Miriam Boutros of École de Technologie Supérieure, in Montreal, calls “hearables,” transmit sounds out of the ear, after first blocking external sounds from coming in. The effect is a bit like sticking your fingers in your ears to listen to your heart, or the singer’s trick of cupping a hand over their ear to better hear their own voice. By blocking out external sounds, the ear is better able to detect noises emanating from within the body. Without technological assistance, this won’t give you detailed information (though it is excellent for keeping singers on pitch in a noisy room). But with sensitive microphones like those used by Boutros’s team, it’s possible to detect a lot more. Not just relatively loud things like heartbeat, breath, and voice, but even the blink of an eye, she said this week at a <a href="https://acousticalsociety.org/asa-virtual-fall-2024/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">virtual meeting</a> of the Acoustical Society of America. It’s also possible to detect rapid eye movements called saccades—a fancy term for those quick flicks of your eyes when something catches your attention, or you are skimming a page of text. It works, she says, because as tiny as these motions are, they make the eardrum vibrate whenever we do them—vibrations that we can’t hear ourselves, but which can be picked up by the hearable’s microphone. That’s important, she says, because an early sign of Alzheimer’s disease is saccades that are shorter, more variable, and less precise than normal. “Studying these patterns could be a critical step towards early detection,” she says. And, while there is no cure for Alzheimer’s, there are treatments that can <a href="https://www.nia.nih.gov/health/alzheimers-treatment/how-alzheimers-disease-treated" target="_blank" rel="noopener">slow its progress</a>. Next up, she says, is Parkinson’s disease, which she believes can also produce tiny changes detectable by the hearables. For it, she says, her team’s research is focusing on noises produced by swallowing. “Parkinson’s disease patients have difficulty regulating their breath so they can swallow,” she says. “Swallowing is very visible when we get the signal from the ear microphone, so this could be a marker for Parkinson’s disease.” <h3 class="wp-block-heading"><a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/news/could-alzheimers-be-an-autoimmune-disease/">What causes Alzheimer’s?</a> </h3> <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/O5bE"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/Daily-Dose-Newsletter_Cosmos_Embed_728x225.jpg?x75256" alt="Sign up to our weekly newsletter" width="600" height="154" title=""Reverse” earbuds might allow early detection of Alzheimer's 31"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Substance unknown to science identified in tap water</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/chemistry/tap-water-chloronitramide/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Ellen Phiddian]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Thu, 21 Nov 2024 19:07:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Chemistry]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Australia]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Core Sciences]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Earth]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Engineering]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Water]]></category> <category><![CDATA[analytical chemistry]]></category> <category><![CDATA[drinking water]]></category> <category><![CDATA[water]]></category> <category><![CDATA[water quality]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316640</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1445381865-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="hand filling glass with tap water" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1445381865-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1445381865-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1445381865-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1445381865.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Substance unknown to science identified in tap water 34"></div>After eluding chemists for 40 years, a mystery compound found in drinking water has finally been identified. The compound – called chloronitramide anion – is previously unknown to science. While it’s important to research the toxicity of the compound, independent experts say it’s no reason to avoid your tap water. The compound forms, according to […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1445381865-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="hand filling glass with tap water" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1445381865-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1445381865-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1445381865-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1445381865.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Substance unknown to science identified in tap water 38"></div> <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="478" src="/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-16-GettyImages-1445381865.jpg?x75256" alt="hand filling glass with tap water" class="wp-image-316639" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-16-GettyImages-1445381865.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-16-GettyImages-1445381865-600x337.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-16-GettyImages-1445381865-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-16-GettyImages-1445381865-300x169.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="Substance unknown to science identified in tap water 35"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Credit: d3sign / Getty Images</figcaption></figure> After eluding chemists for 40 years, a mystery compound found in drinking water has finally been identified. The compound – called chloronitramide anion – is previously unknown to science. While it’s important to research the toxicity of the compound, independent experts say it’s no reason to avoid your <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/tapwater-explainer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">tap water</a>. The compound forms, according to a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1126/science.adk6749" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">paper</a> in Science, as a by-product of common disinfectants called chloramines. The mystery molecule has a very simple structure, by chemical standards: Cl-N-NO2–. The researchers identified it in 40 samples of tap water from the USA, at an average concentration of 23 micrograms, or 0.00023 grams, per litre. “This compound will be present in any chloramine system,” lead author Associate Professor Julian Fairey, a civil engineer at the University of Arkansas, USA, tells Cosmos. “However, it could also form in systems that use chlorine or chlorine dioxide in which ammonia-nitrogen or other nitrogen-containing compounds are present.” The compound was first detected more than 40 years ago, as an unidentified signal from an analysis using UV light. Fairey began trying to unmask it 10 years ago. The tiny molecular size of the compound made it hard to pin down. “It does seem like a long time coming!” he says. “However, chloramine chemistry is complicated and until our <a href="https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.est.0c06456" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">recent</a> <a href="https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.est.3c08088" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">work</a>, the formation pathway of this mysterious compound was not well understood.” <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="567" src="/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-10803_Julian_Fairey_ARNews_Research-24-50.jpg?x75256" alt="person in lab" class="wp-image-316638" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-10803_Julian_Fairey_ARNews_Research-24-50.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-10803_Julian_Fairey_ARNews_Research-24-50-600x400.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-10803_Julian_Fairey_ARNews_Research-24-50-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-10803_Julian_Fairey_ARNews_Research-24-50-300x200.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="Substance unknown to science identified in tap water 36"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Julian Fairey. Credit: University Relations</figcaption></figure> The researchers were able to identify it by making it from compounds used to disinfect water, and performing a number of analytical techniques to show it was the same thing as the mystery water feature. Because no-one knew the compound’s identity, it’s not yet clear if it’s dangerous to human health. But computer modelling suggests it could be problematic. “We plan to collaborate with toxicity experts to help assess the public health relevance of this compound,” says Fairey. “It’s widely acknowledged that we don’t know the precise chemical identity of all the substances that form as byproducts from drinking water disinfection,” Professor Stuart Khan, a civil engineer at the University of Sydney, tells Cosmos. Khan, who was not involved with the study, says that it would be useful to have occurrence and toxicity data for the compound. “It’s not surprising – and it’s potentially very helpful – to see the science chugging away at gradually identifying more and more of the components,” he says. “I agree that a toxicological investigation of this would be useful now that we know its identity, but I am not overly worried about my tap water,” says Professor Oliver Jones, a chemist at RMIT University, who also wasn’t involved with the research. “The compound in question is not newly discovered, just newly defined.” Fairey says that agencies need to develop analytical techniques for finding Cl-N-NO2– in drinking water, so it can be monitored. “We also need to advance formation methods for this compound to generate sufficient quantities for health effects studies,” he says. Khan adds that disinfecting drinking water “saves millions of illnesses and deaths”. “The very low levels of toxicity that have been reported for disinfected drinking water are many orders of magnitude safer than a situation we would have without disinfection,” he says. “I used to work in a lab in the US that had a sign on the wall that read ‘drinking water disinfection has allowed millions of people to live long enough to worry about disinfection byproducts’. “That sign was, and remains, the truth!” <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="Substance unknown to science identified in tap water 37"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Researchers still puzzled about mysterious sounds in Southern Ocean</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/oceans/researchers-still-puzzled-about-mysterious-sounds-in-southern-ocean/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Imma Perfetto]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Thu, 21 Nov 2024 15:10:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Oceans]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Australia]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Earth]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Marine life]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Nature]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Ultramarine]]></category> <category><![CDATA[acoustics]]></category> <category><![CDATA[marine animal]]></category> <category><![CDATA[sound]]></category> <category><![CDATA[southern ocean]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316614</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ASA187_3aAO1_bio-duck_1200-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="A photograph taken off the back of a ship, showing the grey ocean" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ASA187_3aAO1_bio-duck_1200-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ASA187_3aAO1_bio-duck_1200-768x433.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ASA187_3aAO1_bio-duck_1200-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ASA187_3aAO1_bio-duck_1200.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Researchers still puzzled about mysterious sounds in Southern Ocean 40"></div>Mysterious repeating sounds emanating from the depths of the Southern Ocean continue to baffle marine scientists since they were first heard by submariners in the 1960s, when they were dubbed “bio-duck” noises. The ubiquitous sound has been recorded in Antarctic waters and off the Australian west coast. The 4 short bursts of quack-like sounds were also […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ASA187_3aAO1_bio-duck_1200-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="A photograph taken off the back of a ship, showing the grey ocean" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ASA187_3aAO1_bio-duck_1200-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ASA187_3aAO1_bio-duck_1200-768x433.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ASA187_3aAO1_bio-duck_1200-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ASA187_3aAO1_bio-duck_1200.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Researchers still puzzled about mysterious sounds in Southern Ocean 43"></div> <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="550" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ASA187_3aAO1_bio-duck_850.jpg?x75256" alt="A photograph taken off the back of a ship, showing the grey ocean" class="wp-image-316622" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ASA187_3aAO1_bio-duck_850.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ASA187_3aAO1_bio-duck_850-600x388.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ASA187_3aAO1_bio-duck_850-768x497.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ASA187_3aAO1_bio-duck_850-300x194.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="Researchers still puzzled about mysterious sounds in Southern Ocean 41"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Looking from the stern of the ship as it tows the long horizontal array of hydrophones. The tow cable can be seen going through the metal horn at the stern. The hydrophone array is several hundred meters behind the ship and about 200 meters deep. Credit: Ross Chapman</figcaption></figure> Mysterious repeating sounds emanating from the depths of the Southern Ocean continue to baffle marine scientists since they were first heard by submariners in the 1960s, when they were dubbed “bio-duck” noises. The ubiquitous sound has been recorded in Antarctic waters and off the Australian west coast. The 4 short bursts of quack-like sounds were also detected in the South Fiji Basin in July 1982 during one of the first experiments to study noise in the ocean. A <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4013705/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">report</a> in 2014, which identified the source of the noises, showed they were locally different. “For example, bio-duck sounds from Dumont D’Urville, East Antarctica, as well as sounds reported in archived recordings made in the Ross Sea, exhibited three pulses per burst. In contrast, recordings of bio-duck sounds from West Antarctica, including the sounds described here, typically have five to six pulses,” the researchers said. Emeritus Professor Ross Chapman of Australia’s University of Victoria became involved in the analysis of the 1982 data years later. “Studying those data was like opening a book that nobody had ever read before,” Chapman said in a press conference for the Acoustic Society of America earlier this week. “It was a very exciting time, because we learned something new about sound in the ocean every day.” Chapman presented an online session on bioduck at the 187th Meeting of the ASA on Thursday. “The main feature of the experiment was the line array of hydrophones … towed behind the ship for about 3 weeks, collecting data continuously. In other words, listening to all the sounds in the ocean and all the time,” says Chapman. “More than just listening, the hydrophone array is an acoustic antenna. So, we could know the direction the sounds were coming from. “And that was unique even in today’s world, when most of the long-term recordings are made with single hydrophones, so you can hear but you can’t figure out where the sound is coming from.” Chapman says the array resolved sound from at least 4 individual “speakers” at different locations, travelling in different directions in the ocean. As there were no visual sightings from the boat, they couldn’t conclusively determine which animals were making the noises at the time. Since then, bioduck noises have been recorded at various locations in the Southern Ocean, including in waters off the west coast of Australia. Their origin remained a mystery for decades until acoustic recording tags were attached to Antarctic minke whales (Balaenoptera bonaerensis) for the first time. The <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4013705/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">2014 study</a> analysed data from the 2 whales studied in Wilhelmina Bay on the Antarctic Peninsula and provided conclusive evidence the bio-duck sound was produced by the whales. “The question is: when do they make the bio-duck sound and why do they make it?” asks Chapman. “I wouldn’t say that the answer is really known even today.” <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="Researchers still puzzled about mysterious sounds in Southern Ocean 42"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Youngest transiting exoplanet shows how planets form</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/astronomy/young-exoplanet-formation-star/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Evrim Yazgin]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Thu, 21 Nov 2024 14:35:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Astronomy]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Astrophysics]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Core Sciences]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Physics]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Space]]></category> <category><![CDATA[astronomy]]></category> <category><![CDATA[exoplanet]]></category> <category><![CDATA[planet formation]]></category> <category><![CDATA[protoplanetary disc]]></category> <category><![CDATA[young star]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316513</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="337" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/front-6-600x337.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="illustration of giant planet around young star and ring of debris" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/front-6-600x337.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/front-6-768x431.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/front-6-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/front-6.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Youngest transiting exoplanet shows how planets form 45"></div>A giant planet orbiting a very young star could be the youngest transiting exoplanet found. Its discovery could shed light on how planets form. More than a dozen exoplanets have been found transiting stars that are 10–40 million years old. For comparison, our Sun is about 4.6 billion years old. Until now no planets have […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="337" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/front-6-600x337.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="illustration of giant planet around young star and ring of debris" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/front-6-600x337.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/front-6-768x431.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/front-6-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/front-6.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Youngest transiting exoplanet shows how planets form 48"></div><div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="alignleft size-full is-resized"><img decoding="async" width="800" height="1070" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/transiting-planet-image-Nature.jpg?x75256" alt="illustration of giant planet around young star and ring of debris" class="wp-image-316454" style="aspect-ratio:0.7476635514018691;width:567px;height:auto" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/transiting-planet-image-Nature.jpg 800w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/transiting-planet-image-Nature-449x600.jpg 449w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/transiting-planet-image-Nature-768x1027.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/transiting-planet-image-Nature-300x401.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/transiting-planet-image-Nature-600x803.jpg 600w" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" title="Youngest transiting exoplanet shows how planets form 46"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">An artist’s depiction of the system showing the host star, transiting planet, misaligned transition disk, and wide binary companion (in the background). Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/R. Hurt, K. Miller (Caltech/IPAC).</figcaption></figure></div> A giant planet orbiting a very young star could be the youngest transiting exoplanet found. Its discovery could shed light on how planets form. More than a dozen exoplanets have been found transiting stars that are 10–40 million years old. For comparison, our Sun is about 4.6 billion years old. Until now no planets have been found transiting younger stars – probably because they are not fully formed or are obscured by the <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/baby-planet-planetary-disk/">protoplanetary disc</a> that surrounds young stars. According to research <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-08123-3" target="_blank" rel="noopener">published</a> in Nature, astronomers have found the youngest transiting planet. The protoplanet is dubbed IRAS 04125+2902 b. Its host star, IRAS 04125+2902, is just 3 million years old. It’s 520 light-years from Earth. IRAS 04125+2902 b orbits the star every 8.83 days. The planet has a radius 10.7 times that of Earth and a mass 30% that of Jupiter. The protoplanet is “a possible precursor of the <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/super-earth-mars-jupiter/">super-Earths</a> and sub-Neptunes frequently found around main-sequence stars”, the authors of the paper write. “It was previously thought that the detection of a transiting planet in a disk-bearing system was improbable,” the authors add. They say that a special set of circumstances allowed for the transiting IRAS 04125+2902 b to be spotted. The planet’s orbit is edge-on when viewed from Earth. It is also not obscured by other debris in the outer disc surrounding the star, which is face-on. And the inner disc around the star – to a distance about 20 times that between Earth and our Sun – is depleted of material. All this means that IRAS 04125+2902 b is visible where other protoplanets of a similar age would not be. The researchers say the exoplanet provides a unique opportunity to observe planet formation. “Given its close proximity to Earth and rare configuration, the system is a powerful environment for understanding early formation and migration,” they write. <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="Youngest transiting exoplanet shows how planets form 47"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>The shape of light: “something that hasn’t been seen before in physics”</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/physics/photon-shape-light-matter/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Evrim Yazgin]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Thu, 21 Nov 2024 11:35:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Physics]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Core Sciences]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Materials]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Mathematics]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Technology]]></category> <category><![CDATA[light]]></category> <category><![CDATA[photon]]></category> <category><![CDATA[physics]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Quantum physics]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316514</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/photon_hi_res-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="shining blue green blob" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/photon_hi_res-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/photon_hi_res-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/photon_hi_res-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/photon_hi_res.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="The shape of light: “something that hasn’t been seen before in physics” 50"></div>A new quantum theory explaining how light and matter interact has also provided the first ever depiction of the shape of a single light particle, a photon. Understanding these fundamental aspects of photon-matter interactions could open up new possibilities in quantum physics and material science. It could pave the way for new and improved nanophotonic […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/photon_hi_res-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="shining blue green blob" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/photon_hi_res-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/photon_hi_res-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/photon_hi_res-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/photon_hi_res.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="The shape of light: “something that hasn’t been seen before in physics” 53"></div> A new quantum theory explaining how light and matter interact has also provided the first ever depiction of the shape of a single light particle, a <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/physics/how-many-photons-in-the-universe-go-on-have-a-guess/">photon</a>. <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="1200" height="675" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/photon_hi_res.jpg?x75256" alt="shining blue green blob" class="wp-image-316456" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/photon_hi_res.jpg 1200w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/photon_hi_res-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/photon_hi_res-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/photon_hi_res-300x169.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px" title="The shape of light: “something that hasn’t been seen before in physics” 51"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">A new theory, that explains how light and matter interact at the quantum level has enabled researchers to define for the first time the precise shape of a single photon. Credit: Dr Benjamin Yuen.</figcaption></figure> Understanding these fundamental aspects of photon-matter interactions could open up new possibilities in quantum physics and material science. It could pave the way for new and improved nanophotonic technologies, pathogen detection or controlled chemical reactions. The research is <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.133.203604" target="_blank" rel="noopener">published</a> in the Physical Review Letters. “The geometry of the environment defines a photon’s interaction with matter,” the authors write. “The geometry and optical properties of the environment has profound consequences for how photons are emitted, including defining the photons shape, colour, and even how likely it is to exist,” adds co-author Angela Demetriadou. The researchers from the University of Birmingham explored how photons are emitted by atoms or molecules and are shaped by their environment. They produced a theoretical model which groups into distinct sets the infinite possibilities of how light can interact. The model describes the interactions between the photon and its source, as well as how the energy from the interaction travels into the distance. Photons are quantum mechanical objects – that is they can be described as both waves or as particles. Neither description by itself fully captures all the characteristics of photons and other fundamental particles. This <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/physics/quantum-light-manipulating-interacting-photons/">wave-particle duality</a> has made it hard to pin down the exact shape of individual subatomic particles. “Our calculations enabled us to convert a seemingly insolvable problem into something that can be computed,” says first author Benjamin Yuen. “And, almost as a by-product of the model, we were able to produce this image of a photon, something that hasn’t been seen before in physics.” “This work helps us to increase our understanding of the energy exchange between light and matter, and secondly to better understand how light radiates into its nearby and distant surroundings,” Yuen says. “Lots of this information had previously been thought of as just ‘noise’ – but there’s so much information within it that we can now make sense of and make use of. By understanding this, we set the foundations to be able to engineer light-matter interactions for future applications, such as better sensors, improved photovoltaic energy cells, or quantum computing.” <a href="https://education.cosmosmagazine.com/">Cosmos Education</a> and <a href="https://www.publish.csiro.au/magazines/sciencebyemail" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Double Helix Extra</a>, with the <a href="https://aip.org.au/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Australian Institute of Physics</a>, are challenging the world’s scientists, writers and communicators to help teach kids about quantum science. Find out how to submit entries to the competition <a href="https://education.cosmosmagazine.com/cosmos-magazine-quantum-explained-challenge/">here</a>. <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="The shape of light: “something that hasn’t been seen before in physics” 52"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Chinese fossil found in 1986 confirmed as new dinosaur species</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/palaeontology/chinese-fossil-dinosaur-1986/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Evrim Yazgin]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Thu, 21 Nov 2024 01:22:14 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Palaeontology]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Animals]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Evolution]]></category> <category><![CDATA[History]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Nature]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[ankylosaur]]></category> <category><![CDATA[China]]></category> <category><![CDATA[dinosaur]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Fossil]]></category> <category><![CDATA[palaeontology]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316571</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/image_13414e-Huaxiazhoulong-shouwen-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="illustration of two ankylosaurid dinosaurs on river delta" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/image_13414e-Huaxiazhoulong-shouwen-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/image_13414e-Huaxiazhoulong-shouwen-768x433.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/image_13414e-Huaxiazhoulong-shouwen-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/image_13414e-Huaxiazhoulong-shouwen.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Chinese fossil found in 1986 confirmed as new dinosaur species 55"></div>Palaeontologists have identified a new species of dinosaur from a Chinese fossil which was dug up in 1986. Huaxiazhoulong shouwen is a member of the ankylosaurid group, which most famously includes Ankylosaurus. These “walking tanks” had rows of fused bones protruding out of their skins, thought to make them virtually impenetrable. Some species, including Huaxiazhoulong […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/image_13414e-Huaxiazhoulong-shouwen-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="illustration of two ankylosaurid dinosaurs on river delta" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/image_13414e-Huaxiazhoulong-shouwen-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/image_13414e-Huaxiazhoulong-shouwen-768x433.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/image_13414e-Huaxiazhoulong-shouwen-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/image_13414e-Huaxiazhoulong-shouwen.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Chinese fossil found in 1986 confirmed as new dinosaur species 60"></div> <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="1200" height="676" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/image_13414e-Huaxiazhoulong-shouwen.jpg?x75256" alt="illustration of two ankylosaurid dinosaurs on river delta" class="wp-image-316570" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/image_13414e-Huaxiazhoulong-shouwen.jpg 1200w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/image_13414e-Huaxiazhoulong-shouwen-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/image_13414e-Huaxiazhoulong-shouwen-768x433.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/image_13414e-Huaxiazhoulong-shouwen-300x169.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px" title="Chinese fossil found in 1986 confirmed as new dinosaur species 56"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Artistic reconstruction of Huaxiazhoulong shouwen. Credit: Ye Jianhao.</figcaption></figure> Palaeontologists have identified a new species of dinosaur from a Chinese fossil which was dug up in 1986. Huaxiazhoulong shouwen is a member of the <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/inside-the-head-of-an-ankylosaur/">ankylosaurid group</a>, which most famously includes Ankylosaurus. These “walking tanks” had rows of fused bones protruding out of their skins, thought to make them virtually impenetrable. <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="1061" height="707" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ankylosaurid-dinosaur-1.jpg?x75256" alt="tail club fossil ankylosaurid dinosaur" class="wp-image-316569" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ankylosaurid-dinosaur-1.jpg 1061w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ankylosaurid-dinosaur-1-600x400.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ankylosaurid-dinosaur-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ankylosaurid-dinosaur-1-300x200.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 1061px) 100vw, 1061px" title="Chinese fossil found in 1986 confirmed as new dinosaur species 57"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Tail club of Huaxiazhoulong shouwen. Credit: Historical Biology (2024). DOI: 10.1080/08912963.2024.2417208</figcaption></figure> Some species, including Huaxiazhoulong had <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/palaeontology/a-twist-in-the-armoured-tail-tale/">massive clubs</a> on the ends of their tails which were likely used to injure would-be attackers. The recently identified fossil specimen was a fully grown adult. At about 6m long and about 1.5m tall, Huaxiazhoulong is one of the largest ankylosaurs. It lived during the late Cretaceous, 84–72 million years ago. Among the bones are the animal’s vertebrae, tail and legs. The head of the creature has not been found. The fossils were uncovered at the Tangbian Formation in southeast China’s Jiangxi Province nearly 40 years ago. The bones have been housed in Jiangxi Provincial Museum. The new analysis is <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/08912963.2024.2417208?scroll=top&needAccess=true#abstract" target="_blank" rel="noopener">published</a> in the journal Historical Biology. Ankylosaurs are known only from the northern hemisphere – North America, Europe and Asia. Huaxiazhoulong is the second to be found in Jiangxi Province and represents an early member of the Asian family of ankylosaurids. <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="1000" height="232" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ankylosaurid-dinosaur.jpg?x75256" alt="skeleton of ankylosaurid dinosaur" class="wp-image-316568" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ankylosaurid-dinosaur.jpg 1000w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ankylosaurid-dinosaur-600x139.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ankylosaurid-dinosaur-768x178.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/ankylosaurid-dinosaur-300x70.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" title="Chinese fossil found in 1986 confirmed as new dinosaur species 58"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Schematic skeletal of Huaxiazhoulong shouwen. Credit: Historical Biology (2024). DOI: 10.1080/08912963.2024.2417208</figcaption></figure> “The finding of Huaxiazhoulong shouwen adds diversity to the Late Cretaceous of China, and helps elucidate the evolution of ankylosaurid dinosaurs in East Asia,” the authors write. <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="Chinese fossil found in 1986 confirmed as new dinosaur species 59"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Secrets of stonefish venom revealed</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/nature/marine-life/secrets-of-stonefishes-venom-revealed/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Imma Perfetto]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Wed, 20 Nov 2024 19:30:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Marine life]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Australia]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Biology]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Core Sciences]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Nature]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Ultramarine]]></category> <category><![CDATA[fish]]></category> <category><![CDATA[venom]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316476</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Reef-stonefish.-c-Joao-DAndretta-some-rights-reserved-CC-BY_1200-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="A photograph of a large fish sitting on a colourful reef. It is covered in growths of sea flora in a rainbow of colours." decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Reef-stonefish.-c-Joao-DAndretta-some-rights-reserved-CC-BY_1200-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Reef-stonefish.-c-Joao-DAndretta-some-rights-reserved-CC-BY_1200-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Reef-stonefish.-c-Joao-DAndretta-some-rights-reserved-CC-BY_1200-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Reef-stonefish.-c-Joao-DAndretta-some-rights-reserved-CC-BY_1200.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Secrets of stonefish venom revealed 62"></div>Researchers have done a “deep dive” into the most venomous fish species on Earth and revealed “surprising” new insights that might lead to better treatment for stings, and could be used to treat diseases such as cancer. The estuarine (Synanceia horrida) and reef (Synanceia verrucosa) stonefish are found throughout the warm waters of the Indo-Pacific and […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Reef-stonefish.-c-Joao-DAndretta-some-rights-reserved-CC-BY_1200-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="A photograph of a large fish sitting on a colourful reef. It is covered in growths of sea flora in a rainbow of colours." decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Reef-stonefish.-c-Joao-DAndretta-some-rights-reserved-CC-BY_1200-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Reef-stonefish.-c-Joao-DAndretta-some-rights-reserved-CC-BY_1200-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Reef-stonefish.-c-Joao-DAndretta-some-rights-reserved-CC-BY_1200-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Reef-stonefish.-c-Joao-DAndretta-some-rights-reserved-CC-BY_1200.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Secrets of stonefish venom revealed 66"></div> Researchers have done a “deep dive” into the most venomous fish species on Earth and revealed “surprising” new insights that might lead to better treatment for stings, and could be used to treat diseases such as cancer. The estuarine (Synanceia horrida) and reef (Synanceia verrucosa) stonefish are found throughout the warm waters of the Indo-Pacific and in the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea. <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="478" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Reef-stonefish.-c-Joao-DAndretta-some-rights-reserved-CC-BY_850.jpg?x75256" alt="A photograph of a large fish sitting on a colourful reef. It is covered in growths of sea flora in a rainbow of colours." class="wp-image-316474" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Reef-stonefish.-c-Joao-DAndretta-some-rights-reserved-CC-BY_850.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Reef-stonefish.-c-Joao-DAndretta-some-rights-reserved-CC-BY_850-600x337.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Reef-stonefish.-c-Joao-DAndretta-some-rights-reserved-CC-BY_850-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Reef-stonefish.-c-Joao-DAndretta-some-rights-reserved-CC-BY_850-300x169.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="Secrets of stonefish venom revealed 63"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Reef stonefish (Synanceia verrucosa). Credit: (c) João D’Andretta, some rights reserved (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CC BY</a>)</figcaption></figure> People unlucky enough to step on a stationary stonefish will suffer excruciating pain and may also develop more serious symptoms, such as weakness, fast heart rate, fluid in the lungs, convulsions, respiratory and cardiac failure and, rarely, death. Stonefish are one of the very few species that are both venomous and poisonous, Dr Silvia Saggiomo, who conducted the research at the Australian Institute of Tropical Health and Medicine (AITHM) at James Cook University (JCU), told Cosmos. “Apart from the venom they have on their dorsal spines, which poses a significant threat to public health … they also have a toxin that they secrete onto their skin, but we don’t know much about its function. “They are one of the very few fish species that can withstand long periods outside of the water, being found stuck in the sand and rocky shores or in tidal pools, once the tide recedes. “They are also incredibly sluggish and somewhat averse to swimming, which is counterintuitive when you think of a fish! They prefer, instead, to sit and wait being ambush predators.” Saggiomo, who is now at QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute in Australia, says that treatment for these stings is not straightforward. “There is a lack of a protocol that clinicians and first-aiders could apply to effectively treat people,” she says. “Sometimes immersing the affected limb in hot water improves symptoms, but this is not likely to stop the venom from causing further damage. More often than not, people are treated based on which symptoms they present at the time.” When researching <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/chemistry/cone-snail-venom-pharmaceuticals/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">venoms</a>, scientists mainly focus on the peptides, proteins, and enzymes, as they are usually associated with the medical pathologies seen in envenomated victims. “It makes sense to focus on them, as [by] understanding their mechanisms (or how these molecules work) we can understand how to stop or ameliorate symptoms and pathologies,” says Saggiomo. However, it also means that further investigation of the venom’s composition is often overlooked when a way to stop people from experiencing the worst symptoms of a sting has been found. “In the case of stonefish, it becomes clear when you read the literature that there are many molecules – small and big – that have not been identified,” says Saggiomo. “In my case, I’m interested in investigating possible molecules to use in venom-derived compounds that could aid in the treatment of other diseases, such as cancer, inflammation-related diseases, etc. “Small molecules are the best candidates for the job. They are much easier to work with, given the smaller size, if you want to synthetise them in the laboratory.” Saggiomo’s team tested the venom collected from stonefish housed at JCU Aquarium to isolate the small molecules for the first time. <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="638" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/estuarine-stonefish-c-Dan-Schofield-some-rights-reserved-CC-BY_850.jpg?x75256" alt="A photograph of an ugly fish sitting on a sandy floor underwater. It is covered in lumps and bumps with grown flora growing off of it." class="wp-image-316473" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/estuarine-stonefish-c-Dan-Schofield-some-rights-reserved-CC-BY_850.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/estuarine-stonefish-c-Dan-Schofield-some-rights-reserved-CC-BY_850-600x450.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/estuarine-stonefish-c-Dan-Schofield-some-rights-reserved-CC-BY_850-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/estuarine-stonefish-c-Dan-Schofield-some-rights-reserved-CC-BY_850-300x225.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="Secrets of stonefish venom revealed 64"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Estuarine stonefish (Synanceia horrida). Credit: (c) Dan Schofield, some rights reserved (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CC BY</a>)</figcaption></figure> “Professor Jamie Seymour has been milking these animals for years, extracting the venom for the production of antivenom, so he helped me obtain the venom. “The process is simple, quick, and it does not hurt the animals, so it’s a sustainable practice.” They discovered the presence of 3 molecules new to stonefish venom: gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA); choline; and 0-acetylcholine. These molecules have been previously found in other dangerous species, such as hornets and spiders. But according to Saggiomo, finding GABA was quite surprising. “Not many species have this neuromodulator present – this is the first time GABA has been found in a fish or in any other truly aquatic animal for the matter,” says Saggiomo. Neuromodulators are chemical messengers in the nervous system. “We are still trying to understand how these neuromodulators affect envenomation mechanisms,” says Saggiomo. The findings also highlight that the venoms of the 2 species, while sharing many molecules in common, have distinct molecular makeups. “I believe that, depending on the molecular makeup of the venom, stings from different species of stonefish have a different symptomology associated with it,” says Saggiomo. “The case studies (or medical cases) published in the literature would suggest that stings from S. verrucosa, the reef stonefish, are more dangerous and cause the highest amount of accidental envenomation around the world – in fact, the only truly well-documented case of a death caused by a stonefish sting identified the culprit as the reef stonefish.” If Saggiomo’s theory is correct, this could improve treatments for the sometimes-deadly stings of these unique fishes. The <a href="https://doi.org/10.1002/2211-5463.13926" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">research</a> is published in the journal FEBS Open Bio. <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="Secrets of stonefish venom revealed 65"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>A light touch makes PFAS not so-forever</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/chemistry/pfas-light-breakdown/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Ellen Phiddian]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Wed, 20 Nov 2024 16:32:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Chemistry]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Core Sciences]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Earth]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Sustainability]]></category> <category><![CDATA[catalyst]]></category> <category><![CDATA[PFAS]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316492</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-MiyakeLab02484-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="person in lab" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-MiyakeLab02484-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-MiyakeLab02484-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-MiyakeLab02484-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-MiyakeLab02484.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="A light touch makes PFAS not so-forever 68"></div>They’re called “forever chemicals” for a reason: PFAS are diabolically difficult to break down. But 2 different teams of chemists have found new ways to break them up – with light. Both studies have just been published in Nature. The stability of PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, comes from fluorine atoms bonded to carbon […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-MiyakeLab02484-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="person in lab" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-MiyakeLab02484-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-MiyakeLab02484-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-MiyakeLab02484-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-MiyakeLab02484.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="A light touch makes PFAS not so-forever 72"></div> <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="567" src="/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-MiyakeLab02484.jpg?x75256" alt="person in lab" class="wp-image-316423" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-MiyakeLab02484.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-MiyakeLab02484-600x400.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-MiyakeLab02484-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-MiyakeLab02484-300x200.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="A light touch makes PFAS not so-forever 69"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The Miyake Lab at Colorado State University. Credit: Colorado State University College of Natural Sciences/John Cline</figcaption></figure> They’re called “forever chemicals” for a reason: <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/explainer-what-are-pfas/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">PFAS</a> are diabolically difficult to break down. But 2 different teams of chemists have found new ways to break them up – with light. Both studies have just <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-024-08179-1" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">been</a> <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-024-08327-7" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">published</a> in Nature. The stability of PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, comes from fluorine atoms bonded to carbon atoms. This bond is very strong, and highly unusual in nature, making it very difficult to break down and virtually impossible to decompose. Each of the new studies has found a <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/chemistry/next-big-thing-catalysts-can-change-the-world-3/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">catalyst</a> which uses light energy (a photocatalyst) to break this carbon-fluorine bond. “Our approach is a fundamental advancement in organic synthesis that achieves activation of these challenging carbon-fluorine bonds across a variety of situations,” says co-author on one paper, Professor Garret Miyake, a chemist at Colorado State University, USA. “Our method is more sustainable and efficient and can be used to address stubborn compounds in plastics, for example, in addition to the obvious uses around PFAS.”  Miyake and colleagues’ catalyst is a combination of organic (carbon-containing) molecules. They break PFAS down in the presence of blue LED light. The other study, led by Professor Yan-Biao Kang from the University of Science and Technology of China, uses a different organic molecule, called KQGZ, to attack the carbon-fluorine bond. This catalyst, when heated with PFAS to 40°-60°C, could use light to break the substances down into pure carbon and fluoride salts. These substances could then be recycled into more PFAS, or used in other materials. The researchers analysed a range of different catalysts, and while KQGZ worked best, they suspect there may be even more effective agents out there. Meanwhile, Miyake’s colleagues say that their research could also be adapted to breaking down other hard-to-recycle materials, like plastics – and making them into more useful materials. <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="567" src="/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Garret-Miyake-2.jpg?x75256" alt="person smiling at camera" class="wp-image-316422" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Garret-Miyake-2.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Garret-Miyake-2-600x400.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Garret-Miyake-2-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Garret-Miyake-2-300x200.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="A light touch makes PFAS not so-forever 70"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Professor Garret Miyake. Credit: Colorado State University College of Natural Sciences/John Cline</figcaption></figure> But they are next looking at the viability of testing their compound out of the lab and in the environment. “We need to make this technology more practical so it can be used in water or soil – places where PFAS are found,” says study co-author Dr Mihai Popescu. “We need the chemistry we are showcasing here to be useful in those conditions and that is where a lot of work remains.” <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="A light touch makes PFAS not so-forever 71"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Faking an accent? You’ll be spotted in Belfast but not London, says study</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/people/culture/accent-faking-uk-ireland/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Ellen Phiddian]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Wed, 20 Nov 2024 11:33:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Culture]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Anthropology]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Behaviour]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[People]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Society]]></category> <category><![CDATA[accent]]></category> <category><![CDATA[voice]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316445</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1129785750-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="magnifying glass and speech bubble" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1129785750-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1129785750-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1129785750-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1129785750.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Faking an accent? You’ll be spotted in Belfast but not London, says study 74"></div>Across the UK and Ireland, people from Belfast are best at detecting when someone is faking their accent – while people from London are worst at it, according to a new study. The study, published in Evolutionary Human Sciences, also finds that people from Glasgow, Dublin and the northeast of England could find an “accent […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1129785750-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="magnifying glass and speech bubble" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1129785750-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1129785750-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1129785750-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1129785750.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Faking an accent? You’ll be spotted in Belfast but not London, says study 76"></div> Across the UK and Ireland, people from Belfast are best at detecting when someone is faking their accent – while people from London are worst at it, according to a new study. The study, <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/ehs.2024.36" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">published</a> in Evolutionary Human Sciences, also finds that people from Glasgow, Dublin and the northeast of England could find an “accent mimic” more accurately, while those from Bristol and Essex performed less well. “We found a pretty pronounced difference in accent cheater detection between these areas,” says corresponding author Dr Jonathan Goodman, a researcher at the University of Cambridge. “We think that the ability to detect fake accents is linked to an area’s cultural homogeneity, the degree to which its people hold similar cultural values.” The researchers asked 55 speakers of 7 different British Isles accents (northeast England, Belfast, Dublin, Bristol, Glasgow, Essex, and received pronunciation – RP) to record themselves reading out a set of sentences. Then, they asked the same speakers to read out the sentences in their best imitation of the other 6 accents they didn’t naturally speak. Participants listened back to some of the recordings made by others, and were asked to guess if they were real or mimicked accents. Next, the researchers asked 990 UK and Ireland residents to listen to some of the recordings, and guess whether the accents were real or fake. As participants guessed the identity of multiple different speakers each, the researchers garnered 12,290 responses. All groups could correctly identify a genuine local accent at a rate better than chance. But the rates varied a lot geographically. People from Belfast could correctly spot a fellow local between 68-83% of the time. Conversely, RP speakers could correctly find a fellow RP speaker 51-67% of the time. The other 5 accent groups lay in between, with people from Glasgow, the North of England, and Dublin, performing nearly as well as those from Belfast, and people from Essex and Bristol more similar to Londoners. People from Belfast were also best at finding fake local accents, correctly spotting a Belfast mimic 59-76% of the time. Other groups correctly spotted the fakers roughly between 45-70% of the time. “Cultural, political, or even violent conflict are likely to encourage people to strengthen their accents as they try to maintain social cohesion through cultural homogeneity,” says Goodman. “Even relatively mild tension, for example the intrusion of tourists in the summer, could have this effect.” The researchers point out that study participants were only listening to clips a few seconds long. If they heard speakers for longer, they expect all listeners would get better at accent spotting – but there would probably still be variations in accuracy from region to region. “I’m interested in the role played by trust in society and how trust forms,” says Goodman. “One of the first judgments a person will make about another person, and when deciding whether to trust them, is how they speak. “How humans learn to trust another person who may be an interloper has been incredibly important over our evolutionary history and it remains critical today.” <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="Faking an accent? You’ll be spotted in Belfast but not London, says study 75"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Most precise large-scale gravity map of universe tests Einstein’s theories</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/astrophysics/gravity-map-galaxies-universe/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Evrim Yazgin]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Wed, 20 Nov 2024 07:35:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Astrophysics]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Astronomy]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Core Sciences]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Mathematics]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Physics]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Space]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Albert Einstein]]></category> <category><![CDATA[astrophysics]]></category> <category><![CDATA[cosmology]]></category> <category><![CDATA[dark energy]]></category> <category><![CDATA[general relativity]]></category> <category><![CDATA[gravity]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316411</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Newscenter_Featured_1025x685px_iotw2352a-high-res-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="telescope observatory on mountain during meteor shower milky way" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Newscenter_Featured_1025x685px_iotw2352a-high-res-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Newscenter_Featured_1025x685px_iotw2352a-high-res-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Newscenter_Featured_1025x685px_iotw2352a-high-res-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Newscenter_Featured_1025x685px_iotw2352a-high-res.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Most precise large-scale gravity map of universe tests Einstein’s theories 78"></div>Researchers have compiled a map of 6 million galaxies in the most precise test of how gravity works on large scales in the universe. The survey, detailed in several pre-print papers on the arXiv server, uses data from the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI). It tracks how gravitational forces have shaped the universe over the […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Newscenter_Featured_1025x685px_iotw2352a-high-res-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="telescope observatory on mountain during meteor shower milky way" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Newscenter_Featured_1025x685px_iotw2352a-high-res-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Newscenter_Featured_1025x685px_iotw2352a-high-res-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Newscenter_Featured_1025x685px_iotw2352a-high-res-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Newscenter_Featured_1025x685px_iotw2352a-high-res.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Most precise large-scale gravity map of universe tests Einstein’s theories 81"></div> Researchers have compiled a map of 6 million galaxies in the most precise test of how gravity works on large scales in the universe. <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="1200" height="675" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Newscenter_Featured_1025x685px_iotw2352a-high-res.jpg?x75256" alt="telescope observatory on mountain during meteor shower milky way" class="wp-image-316412" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Newscenter_Featured_1025x685px_iotw2352a-high-res.jpg 1200w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Newscenter_Featured_1025x685px_iotw2352a-high-res-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Newscenter_Featured_1025x685px_iotw2352a-high-res-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Newscenter_Featured_1025x685px_iotw2352a-high-res-300x169.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px" title="Most precise large-scale gravity map of universe tests Einstein’s theories 79"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">DESI observes the sky from the Mayall Telescope, shown here during the 2023 Geminid meteor shower. Credit: KPNO/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/R. Sparks.</figcaption></figure> The survey, detailed in <a href="https://data.desi.lbl.gov/doc/papers/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">several pre-print papers</a> on the arXiv server, uses data from the <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/astronomy/dark-energy-desi-first-data/">Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument</a> (DESI). It tracks how gravitational forces have shaped the universe over the past 11 billion years. Surprise, surprise they found that gravity behaves as Einstein predicted in his general theory of relativity. The survey also limits possible theories of “modified gravity” which have been put forward as alternative ways of explaining observations such as the <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/astrophysics/desi-dark-energy-universe-first-results/">accelerating expansion of the universe</a> attributed to the elusive dark energy. “General relativity has been very well tested at the scale of solar systems, but we also needed to test that our assumption works at much larger scales,” says co-lead researcher Pauline Zarrouk, a cosmologist at the French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS) working at the Laboratory of Nuclear and High-Energy Physics (LPNHE). “Studying the rate at which galaxies formed lets us directly test our theories and, so far, we’re lining up with what general relativity predicts at cosmological scales.” The results don’t fully close the door on potential outlier theories explaining the nature of the universe, though. “The results from DESI, combined with datasets from other experiments, are consistent with general relativity theory operating at cosmic scales, although they do not completely exclude other theories of modified gravity,” says Mustapha Ishak-Boushaki, an astrophysicist at the University of Texas at Dallas. The study also placed an upper limit on the mass of neutrinos. Neutrinos are the only fundamental particles whose masses have yet to be measured. DESI is in its 4th of 5 years of surveying the sky. Its researchers plan to collect data from about 40 million galaxies and quasars by the time the project ends. <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="Most precise large-scale gravity map of universe tests Einstein’s theories 80"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Explained: new ways to peer deep under our oceans</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/oceans/new-ways-to-peer-under-our-oceans/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Cosmos]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Wed, 20 Nov 2024 01:30:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Oceans]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Ultramarine]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316375</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="349" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Map-600x349.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="Map" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Map-600x349.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Map-300x174.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Map.jpg 602w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Explained: new ways to peer deep under our oceans 82"></div>Marine and ocean researchers in Australia and the US have developed an innovative open-source framework which they say transforms how research image datasets are managed, processed and shared, setting a new standard for scientific collaboration, citizen science and data accessibility. The work builds on various projects which are opening up the underwater world for scientists […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="349" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Map-600x349.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="Map" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Map-600x349.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Map-300x174.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Map.jpg 602w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Explained: new ways to peer deep under our oceans 87"></div><div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="aligncenter size-full"><a href="https://squidle.org/geodata/explore#map" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img decoding="async" width="602" height="350" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Map.jpg?x75256" alt="Map" class="wp-image-316383" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Map.jpg 602w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Map-600x349.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Map-300x174.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 602px) 100vw, 602px" title="Explained: new ways to peer deep under our oceans 83"></a></figure></div> Marine and ocean researchers in Australia and the US have developed an innovative open-source framework which they say transforms how research image datasets are managed, processed and shared, setting a new standard for scientific collaboration, citizen science and data accessibility. The work builds on various projects which are opening up the underwater world for scientists and the general public, including the <a href="https://imos.org.au/facility/autonomous-underwater-vehicles/understanding-of-marine-imagery" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Integrated Marine Observing System</a> (IMOS) and what’s known as UMI – <a href="https://imos.org.au/facility/autonomous-underwater-vehicles/understanding-of-marine-imagery" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Understanding of Marine Imagery project</a>. Although these are science endeavours, the data projects are all open source and millions of the images are available to the marine-curious public. For example one of these projects is “Marimba,” which required Australia’s national science agency, CSIRO and a team at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute (MBARI) in California, to collaborate for more than a year to create the open-source tool. When processing images taken hundreds of meters below the water surface, using Marimba, geotags are added to the images, so they can be displayed in Google Earth, or they can be harvested into online platforms such as <a href="https://seamapaustralia.org/map/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Seamap Australia</a> and <a href="https://www.squidle.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">SQUIDLE+</a>. There they can be made accessible to the public and scientists for viewing and further research. “The ‘explore map’ feature of <a href="file:///C:/Users/man327/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/INetCache/Content.Outlook/B2A9HP2Y/(https:/squidle.org/)">SQUIDLE+</a> is one of the ways we can access and explore images described and packaged by the new tool, Marimba,” says Franzis Althaus from the CSIRO in Hobart who manages deep-sea image data sets. “At this stage only one deep-sea data set from an expedition to seamounts (underwater mountains) south of Tasmania is available in <a href="https://www.squidle.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">SQUIDLE+</a>. Marimba will help us package and publish many more such data sets.” <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/> Breakout: How a researcher found the first deep-sea skate nursery in the Southern hemisphere. Researcher Kylie Maguire from the CSIRO Environment <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jfb.15376" target="_blank" rel="noopener">used the images from a voyage to a seamount off southern Tasmania</a> and discovered an egg nursery for the skate Amblyraja hyperborea  which is a chondrichthyan (sharks, skates, rays and chimaeras), a group in global decline. Maguire’s research paper says, off Australia, coral reef egg case nursery habitat is restricted to a narrow depth range in temperate latitudes where it is scarce and impacted by historical bottom trawl fishing in many locations. <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="aligncenter size-full"><img decoding="async" width="650" height="433" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/kylie-maguires-image.jpg?x75256" alt="kylie maguires image" class="wp-image-316376" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/kylie-maguires-image.jpg 650w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/kylie-maguires-image-600x400.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/kylie-maguires-image-300x200.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 650px) 100vw, 650px" title="Explained: new ways to peer deep under our oceans 84"></figure></div> To follow how Maguire found this nursery, the metadata created by the Marimba project is very helpful. Click on the map at the top of this article, which will take you to “SQUIDLE+ Explore” page. On the right hand side in the “Explore” column, click on the “Filter view by platform” box and select “CSIRO O&A MRITC Towed Stereo Camera.” If you click on the dot that appears in the centre of the page, you will see there were 123 deployments of a CSIRO towed underwater camera creating 130,876 media items, over 23 days! Back on the right hand column, under the next drop box “Select Deployment” click on the left arrow which will display “IN2018_VO6″. Click on that number and a long list of new numbers appears alongside a map of Tasmania. Scroll down that list and select “IN2018_V06_098” which will then be displayed under the “Selected deployments” heading on the Explore column. Click the deployment name at the head of the column. It will drop down a list of available images and a map of Tasmania. Next, in the black “EXPLORE” bar at the top of the map select the Media tab. It will open some of the images. Use the scroll bar on the far right, scroll down to #109. This image was taken at 1294m depth it shows a reef formed by the stony coral Solenosmilia variabilis that forms the habitat for other corals, urchins and sponges. In this image Maguire had noticed the skate eggs distributed throughout the coral matrix. That led to identifying the area as a nursery habitat for a deep-sea skate. <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/> Chris Jackett from the <a href="https://www.csiro.au/en/research/environmental-impacts/sustainability?start=0&count=12" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sustainable Marine Futures program</a> at CSIRO says Marimba is a Python framework designed in collaboration with the <a href="https://www.mbari.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MBARI</a>. “It streamlines the structuring, managing and processing of scientific image datasets while adhering to the globally recognised <a href="https://www.go-fair.org/fair-principles/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">FAIR principles</a>. (The FAIR principles are a set of standards that intend to make data Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Reusable.)  “In the vast ocean of scientific data, finding, accessing, and utilising marine imagery has long been a challenge for researchers worldwide, compounded by diverse data formats, rapidly increasing volumes of imagery, and inconsistent workflows,” says Jackett. “Since there wasn’t a system available that could efficiently process and package our scientific marine image datasets while adhering to FAIR principles – we built one.” Jackett unveiled Marimba to a global audience of scientists and engineers at the recent <a href="https://miw2024.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Marine Imaging Workshop 2024</a>. “Marimba can help anyone involved in science working with imagery and deriving data from it. “It doesn’t matter where the imagery is sourced from – whether it’s from a Canon DSLR or a GoPro system. It can even be used for more specialised instruments like imaging flow cytometers. “It holds the potential to transform how we understand and protect our oceans- allowing us to extract deeper insights, accelerate research and foster international collaboration that could drive future marine conservation and resource management strategies.” The images give users an understanding of what’s on the seafloor, a place they can never visit. Captured in the image are low-profile reef systems in north west Tasmania, smothered in sandy sediment. Growing out of these reefs are brightly coloured sponges, small gorgonian fans and soft fluffy bryozoans. <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="aligncenter size-full"><img decoding="async" width="602" height="338" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/figure-1.jpg?x75256" alt="figure 1" class="wp-image-316377" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/figure-1.jpg 602w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/figure-1-600x337.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/figure-1-300x168.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 602px) 100vw, 602px" title="Explained: new ways to peer deep under our oceans 85"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">To find this image, as before click on Squidle+Explore; filter view by platform: IMAS BOSS Dropcam. In deployments select Zeehan_AMP; select deployment Z-16, and search for image #2</figcaption></figure></div> Jacquomo Monk, a senior marine ecologist at the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies at the University of Tasmania is refining underwater imagery methods to generate essential data for informed management of marine ecosystems. Jac’s work spans remarkable underwater landscapes, from the dark, frigid depths of southern Tasmania to the warm, clear waters of St. Lucia. He is the lead scientist for initiatives like SQUIDLE+ and Seamap Australia, where his contributions have significantly advanced the establishment of a national monitoring system for Australian Marine Parks. “This image was collected in 107m in the Zeehan Marine Park (west of King Island) as part of a <a href="https://figshare.utas.edu.au/articles/report/Franklin_and_Zeehan_Marine_Park_Multibeam_mapping_and_drop-camera_validation_for_Parks_Australia/24719955" target="_blank" rel="noopener">project</a> funded by Parks Australia to map the park,” Monk told Cosmos. “Thanks to platforms like SQUIDLE+, these images and annotations were then re-used in a national <a href="https://www.nespmarinecoastal.edu.au/project/2-1/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">project</a> funded through the <a href="https://www.nespmarinecoastal.edu.au/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">NESP Marine and Coastal Hub</a> to enhance the capacity of Australian Marine Park managers to protect natural values and assess the effectiveness of management in the South-west and South-east Marine Park Networks.” “Final mapping products are hosted by <a href="https://seamapaustralia.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Seamap Australia</a>, enabling the dynamic exploration of model predictions, composition of ground-truthing observations represented as spatially-referenced pie charts, and links back to the habitat images hosted through SQUIDLE+. Visit <a href="https://seamapaustralia.org/map/#c0404350-a029-49ed-ba9b-4a3b2dfe8c4f" target="_blank" rel="noopener">this site</a> to access these features. This image above is just one of the nearly 10 million fully openly accessible images of the seafloor hosted in <a href="https://squidle.org/geodata/explore#map" target="_blank" rel="noopener">SQUIDLE+</a>. Ariell Friedman, the chief software architect and principal developer of SQUIDLE+, says since SQUIDLE+ started in mid-2020, it has established itself as the most comprehensive and mature end-to-end platform globally with nearly 10 million fully openly accessible images. “SQUIDLE+ has imagery covering both Poles and everything in between from 26 distinct data sources,” Friedman says. Here’s another image from the Zeehan data set taken at 101m. <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="aligncenter size-full"><img decoding="async" width="602" height="337" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/figure-2.jpg?x75256" alt="figure 2" class="wp-image-316378" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/figure-2.jpg 602w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/figure-2-600x336.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/figure-2-300x168.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 602px) 100vw, 602px" title="Explained: new ways to peer deep under our oceans 86"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">To find this image as before search on Squidle+Explore; filter view by platform: IMAS BOSS Dropcam. In deployments select Zeehan_AMP; deployment Z-179, click on image #1</figcaption></figure></div> <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/nature/marine-life/3d-shark-and-ray-model-website/">Another way to explore the oceans without getting wet.</a> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Climate change is driving the rise in dengue cases</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/health/body-and-mind/climate-change-is-driving-the-rise-in-dengue-cases/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Imma Perfetto]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Tue, 19 Nov 2024 19:30:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Body and Mind]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Climate]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Earth]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Health]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Climate Change]]></category> <category><![CDATA[dengue]]></category> <category><![CDATA[mosquito]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316432</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-617715262_1200-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="A photograph of a mosquito biting human skin" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-617715262_1200-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-617715262_1200-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-617715262_1200-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-617715262_1200.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Climate change is driving the rise in dengue cases 89"></div>New research has found at least 257 million people now live in places where climate warming could cause dengue incidence to double in the next 25 years in Asia and the Americas Mild cases of dengue may be asymptomatic or cause fever and flu-like symptoms. Severe cases can cause serious bleeding, a sudden drop in […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-617715262_1200-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="A photograph of a mosquito biting human skin" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-617715262_1200-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-617715262_1200-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-617715262_1200-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-617715262_1200.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Climate change is driving the rise in dengue cases 91"></div> New research has found at least 257 million people now live in places where climate warming could cause dengue incidence to double in the next 25 years in Asia and the Americas Mild cases of dengue may be asymptomatic or cause fever and flu-like symptoms. Severe cases can cause serious bleeding, a sudden drop in blood pressure (shock), and death. While symptoms can be managed, there is no treatment for the viral infection, <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/health/project-to-eliminate-dengue-extended/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">but major steps are being taken to reduce the problem.</a> A study, which was <a href="https://astmhpressroom.wordpress.com/dengue_climate/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">presented last week</a> in New Orleans at the annual meeting of the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene and is yet to be peer reviewed, found global warming due to climate change is responsible for 19% of the current dengue burden. Under the <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/climate/explainer-ipcc-scenarios/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">IPCC’s high emissions scenario</a> (SSP3-7.0), the researchers expect dengue burden to increase by 61% on average and to more than double in some cooler regions by 2050. But they estimate that mitigating carbon emissions under the most optimistic emissions scenario (SSP1- 2.6) would reduce this increase in dengue by 18%. Dr Erin Mordecai, an infectious disease ecologist at Stanford University in the US and senior author of the study, says: “We looked at data on dengue incidence and climate variation across 21 countries in Asia and the Americas and found that there is a clear and direct relationship between rising temperatures and rising infections.” The team looked at other factors that can affect dengue infection rates, such as rainfall patterns, seasonal changes, virus types, economic shocks and population density, to ensure there was a distinct temperature effect. “It’s evidence that climate change already has become a significant threat to human health and, for dengue in particular, our data suggests the impact could get much worse,” says Mordecai. As of October 2024, countries in the Americas alone have recorded almost 12 million dengue cases, compared to 4.6 million in 2023. The mosquitoes that spread dengue, Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus, produce increasing amounts of dengue virus particles from temperatures of about 20°C and peaking at about 28°C. This means that dengue-endemic areas now entering the temperature range, such as parts of Peru, Mexico, Bolivia and Brazil, could face the greatest future risks, with infections over the next few decades rising by as much as 150% to 200%. With global climate models predicting that temperatures will continue to increase even with large reductions in emissions, the researchers found that 17 of the 21 countries studied still would see climate-driven increases in dengue even under the most optimistic scenarios for carbon cuts. <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="Climate change is driving the rise in dengue cases 90"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Want to be a trusted scientist? Act humble, says study</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/people/behaviour/trust-science-humility/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Ellen Phiddian]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Tue, 19 Nov 2024 11:16:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Behaviour]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Culture]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[People]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Society]]></category> <category><![CDATA[science communication]]></category> <category><![CDATA[trustworthiness]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316428</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-2155548914-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="two scientists talking, one wearing mask" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-2155548914-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-2155548914-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-2155548914-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-2155548914.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Want to be a trusted scientist? Act humble, says study 93"></div>People see humble scientists as more trustworthy, according to a new study. The study, published in Nature Human Behaviour, finds that scientists who display “intellectual humility” seem more reliable than those who don’t. “Research has shown that having intellectual humility – which is an awareness that one’s knowledge or beliefs might be incomplete or wrong […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-2155548914-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="two scientists talking, one wearing mask" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-2155548914-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-2155548914-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-2155548914-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-2155548914.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Want to be a trusted scientist? Act humble, says study 95"></div> People see humble scientists as more <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/people/australians-still-believe-in-science/">trustworthy</a>, according to a new study. The study, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41562-024-02060-x" target="_blank" rel="noopener">published</a> in Nature Human Behaviour, finds that scientists who display “intellectual humility” seem more reliable than those who don’t. “Research has shown that having intellectual humility – which is an awareness that one’s knowledge or beliefs might be incomplete or wrong – is associated with engaging in more effortful and less biased information processing,” says lead author Jonah Koetke, a graduate student at the University of Pittsburgh, USA. “In this work, we wanted to flip the perspective and examine whether members of the public believe that scientists who are intellectually humble also produce more rigorous and trustworthy research. “Because it is so critical to the scientific process – for example, being aware of the limits of our knowledge, communicating the limitations of results, being willing to update beliefs – members of the public might be more likely to trust scientists who exhibit intellectual humility.” The researcher ran 5 different online experiments, including a total of 2,034 participants. In the first study, 298 people were asked to rate the perceived humility and trustworthiness of various scientists, as well as their beliefs on polarising science topics like climate change and vaccination. In each of the next 3 studies, more than 300 participants read an article about a fictional scientist who was espousing a particular health or environmental activity. Participants were shown different articles, where the “scientist” displayed different levels of humility – the more humble scientist was consistently rated as more trustworthy. In 2 of these studies, the researchers changed the racial and gender identity of the fictional scientist to see if this had an effect on how they saw the scientist. They didn’t find an effect in either case. However, as science often does, the 5th study threw up conflicting answers. The researchers asked 679 different participants to read 1 of 4 “interviews” with a scientist, some of which tried different strategies to display intellectual humility – like giving credit to graduate students, or talking about the limitations of their results. While these techniques did make the scientist seem more humble, they didn’t make them seem much more trustworthy. And 2 of the communication methods actually backfired: participants found the scientist’s research less trustworthy. “This finding raises the question of how perceived trustworthiness in the scientist as a person might differ from trust in the scientist’s results,” write the researchers in their paper. “We still have a lot to learn about specific strategies scientists can use to display their intellectual humility in their public communications,” says Koetke. Co-author Associate Professor Karina Schumann, a psychology researcher at the University of Pittsburgh, says she finds the results encouraging. “They suggest that the public understands that science isn’t about having all the answers; it’s about asking the right questions, admitting what we don’t yet understand, and learning as we go,” says Schumann. “Although we still have much to discover about how scientists can authentically convey intellectual humility, we now know people sense that a lack of intellectual humility undermines the very aspects of science that make it valuable and rigorous.” <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="Want to be a trusted scientist? Act humble, says study 94"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>First “concerning” signs of summer 2024’s impact on Great Barrier Reef</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/nature/marine-life/summer-2024-impact-great-barrier-reef/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Imma Perfetto]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Tue, 19 Nov 2024 07:08:30 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Marine life]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Australia]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Climate]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Earth]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Nature]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Oceans]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Ultramarine]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Climate Change]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Coral Bleaching]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Great Barrier Reef]]></category> <category><![CDATA[tropical cyclones]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316408</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/AIMS000005217_1200-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="An underwater photograph of a coral reef, most corals are brown or bleached pale" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/AIMS000005217_1200-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/AIMS000005217_1200-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/AIMS000005217_1200-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/AIMS000005217_1200.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="First “concerning” signs of summer 2024’s impact on Great Barrier Reef 97"></div>The deadly impact of climate change bringing more intense marine heatwaves and cyclones to the Great Barrier Reef has been revealed by initial results from the Australian Institute of Marine Sciences’ (AIMS) Long-Term Monitoring Program (LTMP). The in-water surveys found that coral cover has declined between 11% in some places to as much as 72% […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/AIMS000005217_1200-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="An underwater photograph of a coral reef, most corals are brown or bleached pale" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/AIMS000005217_1200-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/AIMS000005217_1200-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/AIMS000005217_1200-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/AIMS000005217_1200.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="First “concerning” signs of summer 2024’s impact on Great Barrier Reef 102"></div> The deadly impact of climate change bringing more intense marine heatwaves and cyclones to the Great Barrier Reef has been revealed by <a href="https://www.aims.gov.au/information-centre/news-and-stories/initial-great-barrier-reef-monitoring-results-show-coral-mortality-north-due-bleaching-and-cyclones" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">initial results</a> from the Australian Institute of Marine Sciences’ (AIMS) Long-Term Monitoring Program (LTMP). The in-water surveys found that coral cover has declined between 11% in some places to as much as 72% in other sites, compared to pre-summer levels on 12 of 19 reefs surveyed so far. The latest results from AIMS’ LTMP are concerning, but not surprising, Biodiversity Council member Professor Graeme Cumming, from the University of Western Australia Oceans Institute, told Cosmos. “They show exactly what most coral reef scientists would expect. Ocean heating has caused the widespread mortality of many corals,” says Cumming. “The weedy, fast-growing coral species that were responsible for the relatively rapid increases in total coral cover pre-bleaching have been hit the hardest.” The reefs surveyed from August to October 2024 in the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) Marine Park are between Lizard Island and Cardwell in Queensland. <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="479" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/LTMP-sectors-and-regions-map_Nov2024_706px_850.jpg?x75256" alt="LTMP sectors and regions" class="wp-image-316409" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/LTMP-sectors-and-regions-map_Nov2024_706px_850.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/LTMP-sectors-and-regions-map_Nov2024_706px_850-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/LTMP-sectors-and-regions-map_Nov2024_706px_850-768x433.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/LTMP-sectors-and-regions-map_Nov2024_706px_850-300x169.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="First “concerning” signs of summer 2024’s impact on Great Barrier Reef 98"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Surveyed reefs to date have been in three of the LTMP’s eleven sectors of the Great Barrier Reef. Monitoring will continue in the coming months. Credit: AIMS</figcaption></figure> According to Dr Mike Emslie, leader of AIMS’ LTMP, all the reefs recently surveyed in this region were subjected to levels of climate change-driven heat stress that cause bleaching, in February and March 2024. “Tropical Cyclones Jasper and Kirrily also exposed many to wave heights likely to cause damage to corals, generally greater than four metres,” says Emslie. More than a third of hard coral cover was lost across the <a href="https://apps.aims.gov.au/reef-monitoring/sector/CL/manta" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Cooktown-Lizard Island sector</a> in its largest annual decline in 39-years of AIMS’ monitoring. The inner and mid-shelf reefs bore the brunt of the impacts from bleaching, with one inner shelf reef losing almost 3/4 of its pre-summer hard coral cover. Coral cover declined by just over a third across the 5 reefs surveyed to date in the <a href="https://apps.aims.gov.au/reef-monitoring/sector/CA/manta" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Cairns sector</a>. Evidence of this damage was highest at Mackay Reef due to a combination of freshwater inundation, cyclonic wave damage and coral bleaching. “More detailed analysis of the survey data will presumably provide more information about the new composition of the community of corals on the surveyed reefs,” says Cumming. A full assessment of the impact on coral cover across the GBR Marine Park will be available in mid-2025. “Of particular interest here will be the extent to which larger, older corals are being lost. These corals are critical for regenerating coral reefs because they produce many more offspring than the younger, smaller corals,” says Cumming. <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="478" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/AIMS000005217_850.jpg?x75256" alt="An underwater photograph of a coral reef, most corals are brown or bleached pale" class="wp-image-316415" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/AIMS000005217_850.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/AIMS000005217_850-600x337.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/AIMS000005217_850-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/AIMS000005217_850-300x169.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="First “concerning” signs of summer 2024’s impact on Great Barrier Reef 99"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Low coral cover at Cooktown, Lizard Island sector. Most of the coral colonies are dead or bleached. Credit: © AIMS | LTMP | Lizard Island | 28.09.2024</figcaption></figure> Coral cover was largely unchanged on 3 reefs in the <a href="https://apps.aims.gov.au/reef-monitoring/sector/IN/manta" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Innisfail sector</a>, which saw lower heat stress from the marine heatwaves and less intense impacts from cyclones Jasper and Kirrily. “Overall, it is encouraging that some reefs have not been hit as hard by recent bleaching events,” says Cumming. “However, past experience shows that there is little predictability to the heating pattern, and it is possible that reefs that have escaped this bleaching event may bleach the next time water temperatures escalate.” The Reef’s resilience is being severely tested, says AIMS acting research program director, Dr Manuel Gonzalez Rivero. “These initial results show the vulnerability of the Reef to bleaching events, which are increasing in frequency, footprint and intensity under climate change,” says Gonzalez Rivero. “The <a href="https://www.aims.gov.au/node/2825" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">2024 mass bleaching event on the Reef</a>, its fifth since 2016, forms part of the <a href="https://www.aims.gov.au/node/4383" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">fourth global bleaching event</a> impacting both the northern and southern hemispheres of the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans during 2023 and 2024, documented in more than 60 countries and territories worldwide.” Tropical cyclones are also expected to intensify with increasing global warming, according to the <a href="https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg1/chapter/chapter-11/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">IPCC Sixth Assessment Report</a>. The Australian Bureau of Meteorology <a href="http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/cyclones/australia/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">forecasts</a> 4 tropical cyclones for Australia’s Eastern region in the 2024–25 season. Cumming says the Australian government is not doing enough to save the GBR. “If they were serious about saving the reef, they would be doing everything they possibly could to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and maintain clean water in the GBR,” says Cumming. “That would mean speeding up the transition to renewable energy and shutting down coal mines and oil and gas rigs – not approving new ones. <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="638" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/AIMS000005228_©AIMS-LTMP-Lizard-Island-28.09.2024_850.jpg?x75256" alt="A photograph of an underwater coral reef with fish swimming in the background. Many of the corals are bleached pale." class="wp-image-316416" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/AIMS000005228_©AIMS-LTMP-Lizard-Island-28.09.2024_850.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/AIMS000005228_©AIMS-LTMP-Lizard-Island-28.09.2024_850-600x450.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/AIMS000005228_©AIMS-LTMP-Lizard-Island-28.09.2024_850-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/AIMS000005228_©AIMS-LTMP-Lizard-Island-28.09.2024_850-300x225.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="First “concerning” signs of summer 2024’s impact on Great Barrier Reef 100"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Low coral cover, Cooktown, Lizard Island sector. Large Acropora sp. plating and branching corals are dead. Light colonies in the foreground are bleached or recovering from bleaching. Credit: © AIMS | LTMP | Lizard Island | 28.09.2024</figcaption></figure> “Some additional measures that would help the reef would be to increase funding to limit harmful agricultural runoff into the waters of the GBR, reduce deforestation in the Daintree, stop coal-bearing ships from crossing the reef, reduce dredging programs that negatively impact water quality, and reduce commercial fishing activity within the marine park.” Biodiversity Councillor Stan Lui, a Torres Strait Islander from Erub (Darnley Island) who has worked in senior roles in fisheries and natural resources management for state and federal governments and on national and international advisory boards, told Cosmos the recent coral bleaching events on the GBR signifies a dire threat not only to its vast biodiversity but also profoundly impacts the cultural and economic foundations of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. “These communities, whose identities are deeply woven into the fabric of their Sea Country, are witnessing the degradation of essential cultural practices, sacred sites, and centuries-old knowledge,” says Lui. “Bleaching events undermine important fisheries, pivotal to their ways of life and livelihoods, by diminishing fish populations and degrading marine habitats critical for cultural, commercial, and recreational purposes.  “This crisis underscores the urgent need for global cooperation to mitigate climate change and integrate Indigenous knowledge into conservation strategies, ensuring the reef’s preservation as both a biodiversity haven and a cultural treasure.” <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="First “concerning” signs of summer 2024’s impact on Great Barrier Reef 101"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>How surface electrons could help nano fabrication</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/technology/materials/electron-imaging-surface-atom/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Evrim Yazgin]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Tue, 19 Nov 2024 03:35:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Materials]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Core Sciences]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Physics]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Technology]]></category> <category><![CDATA[electron microscopy]]></category> <category><![CDATA[electrons]]></category> <category><![CDATA[materials science]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316398</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SaitoSensei-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="diagram showing electrons coming out of layer of material" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SaitoSensei-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SaitoSensei-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SaitoSensei-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SaitoSensei.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="How surface electrons could help nano fabrication 104"></div>In some very neat science, electron imaging has captured the atomic structure of the outermost layer of electrons on a material’s surface. Understanding the structure of surface atoms is useful for engineers and chemists. The research could aid in fabrication, growth, and controlling electronic and mechanical properties of nano-scale materials. The imaging of atomic structure […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SaitoSensei-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="diagram showing electrons coming out of layer of material" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SaitoSensei-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SaitoSensei-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SaitoSensei-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SaitoSensei.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="How surface electrons could help nano fabrication 107"></div> In some very neat science, electron imaging has captured the atomic structure of the outermost layer of electrons on a material’s surface. <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="1200" height="675" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SaitoSensei.jpg?x75256" alt="diagram showing electrons coming out of layer of material" class="wp-image-316399" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SaitoSensei.jpg 1200w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SaitoSensei-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SaitoSensei-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SaitoSensei-300x169.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px" title="How surface electrons could help nano fabrication 105"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Secondary electrons (SEs) emitted from the surface layer are detected by the SE microscopy whereas the SEs from the bottom layer are absorbed or scattered by the surface layer. Credit: Reiko Matsushita.</figcaption></figure> Understanding the structure of surface atoms is useful for engineers and chemists. The research could aid in fabrication, growth, and controlling electronic and mechanical properties of <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/technology/materials/explainer-what-is-nanotechnology/">nano-scale materials</a>. The imaging of atomic structure is fascinating. Some materials have “surface reconstruction” where the atoms on the material’s surface have a different structure to those in its interior. Understanding the structure of surface atoms is useful for engineers and chemists. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) uses a focused electron beam to release and capture secondary electrons (SEs) emitted from the surface of the material. SEs tend to come from a shallow depth just beneath the surface – about 1 nanometre deep. This can make it difficult to observe surface reconstruction, especially if the sample is only a single-atomic layer. The new research, <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/jmicro/dfae041" target="_blank" rel="noopener">published</a> in the journal Microscopy, tackles this issue. The researchers from Japan’s Nagoya University note that previous research has observed SEs in silicon crystal from a depth of just 0.2nm. The Nagoya experiment takes this a step further, investigating the thinnest system with a surface layer sitting on a substrate – a double layer of the compound <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/chemistry/graphene-isnt-the-only-lego-in-the-materials-science-toy-box/">molybdenum disulphide</a> (MoS2). They found high surface sensitivity in their tests. The intensity of the SEs from the surface layer was about 3 times higher than from the second layer. “This result suggests that the surface layer absorbs or scatters SEs from the second layer,” says lead author Koh Saitoh from Nagoya’s Institute of Materials and Systems Sustainability. “This absorption contributes to the method’s depth sensitivity.” The SE images revealed stunning honeycomb-like structures on the surface layer, composed of molybdenum and sulphur atoms. It also showed overlapping patterns, indicating a distinct atomic arrangement in the surface and second layer. <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="How surface electrons could help nano fabrication 106"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Oldest ever Ediacaran worm found in South Australia</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/palaeontology/oldest-ever-ediacaran-worm-found-in-south-australia/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Imma Perfetto]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Mon, 18 Nov 2024 19:30:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Palaeontology]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Australia]]></category> <category><![CDATA[History]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Ediacaran]]></category> <category><![CDATA[nilpena]]></category> <category><![CDATA[palaeontology]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316347</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Screenshot-2024-11-18-171602-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="Screenshot 2024 11 18 171602" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Screenshot-2024-11-18-171602-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Screenshot-2024-11-18-171602-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Screenshot-2024-11-18-171602-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Screenshot-2024-11-18-171602.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Oldest ever Ediacaran worm found in South Australia 109"></div>Palaeontologists have uncovered a fossilised worm-like creature at Nilpena Ediacara National Park in South Australia. The discovery is the first to date ecdysozoans – a group of animals which today includes arthropods and nematode worms – back to the Ediacaran period, when complex life first evolved. “Scientists have hypothesized for decades that this group must […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Screenshot-2024-11-18-171602-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="Screenshot 2024 11 18 171602" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Screenshot-2024-11-18-171602-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Screenshot-2024-11-18-171602-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Screenshot-2024-11-18-171602-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Screenshot-2024-11-18-171602.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Oldest ever Ediacaran worm found in South Australia 113"></div> <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="444" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/uncus-combined_850.png?x75256" alt="uncus combined 850" class="wp-image-316353" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/uncus-combined_850.png 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/uncus-combined_850-600x313.png 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/uncus-combined_850-768x401.png 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/uncus-combined_850-300x157.png 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="Oldest ever Ediacaran worm found in South Australia 110"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Uncus fossil from Nilpena Ediacara National Park. The numbers correspond to the coordinates of this fossil on the fossil bed surface. Bottom: 3D laser scans enable the researchers to study the fossils’ shape and curvature. Credit: Droser Lab/UCR</figcaption></figure> Palaeontologists have uncovered a fossilised worm-like creature at Nilpena Ediacara National Park in South Australia. The discovery is the first to date ecdysozoans – a group of animals which today includes arthropods and nematode worms – back to the <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/complex-ecosystems-ediacaran/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Ediacaran</a> period, when complex life first evolved. “Scientists have hypothesized for decades that this group must be older than the Cambrian,” says Mary Droser, professor of geology at the University of California, Riverside, in the US, who led the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2024.10.030" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">study</a> published in Current Biology. The Cambrian, which spanned from about 538-485 million years ago (mya), is when life began to explode in diversity. “But until now its origins have remained enigmatic,” sats Droser. “This discovery reconciles a major gap between predictions based on molecular data and the lack of described ecdysozoans prior to the rich Cambrian fossils record and adds to our understanding of the evolution of animal life.” The ecdysozoans are the largest and most species-rich animal group on Earth. They include: nematodes, which are microscopic worms; arthropods, which include insects, spiders, and crustaceans; and scalidophora, a group of small, scaly marine creatures. “Like many modern-day animal groups, ecdysozoans were prevalent in the Cambrian fossil record,” says Ian Hughes, a graduate student in marine biology at Harvard University and first author of the paper. “We can see evidence of all three subgroups right at the beginning of this period, about 540 million years ago. “We know they didn’t just appear out of nowhere, and so the ancestors of all ecdysozoans must have been present during the preceding <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/golden-spike-anthropocene/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Ediacaran</a> period.” The <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/ediacaran-meal-fossil/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Ediacaran</a> period, named after the Ediacara Hills in Nilpena, 600km north of the state capital Adelaide, spanned from 635-538 mya and marks the first widespread appearance of complex multicellular animals. <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="638" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/droser-1_850.jpg?x75256" alt="droser 1 850" class="wp-image-316352" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/droser-1_850.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/droser-1_850-600x450.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/droser-1_850-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/droser-1_850-300x225.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="Oldest ever Ediacaran worm found in South Australia 111"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Scott Evans and Ian Hughes excavating a fossil bed at Nilpena National Park. Credit: Mary Droser/UCR</figcaption></figure> “Nilpena is perhaps the best fossil site for understanding early animal evolution in the world,” says Scott Evans, an assistant professor of Earth-Life interactions at Florida State University in the US and co-author of the study. “[This is] because the fossils occur during a period of heightened diversity and we are able to excavate extensive layers of rock that preserve these snapshots.” The layer the team discovered the new species in is particularly exciting, according to Evans, because: “the sediment grains are so small that we really see all the details of the fossils preserved there.” The species is named Uncus dzaugisi, uncus meaning “hook” in Latin, after the fossils’ fishhook-like appearance. “Sometimes we make dramatic discoveries and sometimes we excavate an entire bed and say ‘hmmm, I’ve been looking at that thing, what do you think?’” Hughes says. “That’s what happened here. We had all sort of noticed this fishhook squiggle on the rock. It was pretty prominent because it was really, really deep. “Because it was deep, we knew it wasn’t smooshed easily so it must have had a pretty rigid body.” Ecdysozoan animals are characterised by their rigid outer exoskeleton, which they periodically moult as they grow. They also realised Uncus was motile (capable of moving on its own) due to trace fossils behind the specimens. Droser and her team have been <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/magazine/animal-vegetable-now-mineral/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">excavating the site</a> at Nilpena for 25 years. Their prior discoveries also include the <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/palaeontology/australian-fossil-asymmetry-ediacaran/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">earliest evidence</a> of an animal with left-right asymmetry. <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="Oldest ever Ediacaran worm found in South Australia 112"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>New pterosaur fossil bridges evolutionary gap</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/palaeontology/pterosaur-fossil-bridge-gap/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Ariel Marcy]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Mon, 18 Nov 2024 16:03:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Palaeontology]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Biology]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Core Sciences]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Evolution]]></category> <category><![CDATA[History]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Nature]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316336</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Skiphousoura_life-reconstruction-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="Two pterosaurs in flight against a cloudy sky" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Skiphousoura_life-reconstruction-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Skiphousoura_life-reconstruction-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Skiphousoura_life-reconstruction-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Skiphousoura_life-reconstruction.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="New pterosaur fossil bridges evolutionary gap 115"></div>A new pterosaur fossil from southern Germany has shed light on how pterosaurs went from species with eagle-sized wingspans to the most enormous animals ever to fly in Earth’s skies. “This is an incredible find,” says David Hone from Queen Mary University of London. “It really helps us piece together how these amazing flying animals […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Skiphousoura_life-reconstruction-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="Two pterosaurs in flight against a cloudy sky" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Skiphousoura_life-reconstruction-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Skiphousoura_life-reconstruction-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Skiphousoura_life-reconstruction-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Skiphousoura_life-reconstruction.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="New pterosaur fossil bridges evolutionary gap 119"></div> A new <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/palaeontology/pterosaurs-should-have-been-too-big-to-fly-so-how-did-they-manage-it/">pterosaur</a> fossil from southern Germany has shed light on how pterosaurs went from species with eagle-sized wingspans to the <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/palaeontology/how-did-the-worlds-largest-pterosaur-fly/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">most enormous animals ever to fly</a> in Earth’s skies. “This is an incredible find,” says David Hone from Queen Mary University of London. “It really helps us piece together how these amazing flying animals lived and evolved. Hopefully this study will be the basis for more work in the future on this important evolutionary transition.” <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="541" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Skiphousoura_life-reconstruction_INTEXT.jpg?x75256" alt="Two pterosaurs in flight against a cloudy sky" class="wp-image-316340" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Skiphousoura_life-reconstruction_INTEXT.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Skiphousoura_life-reconstruction_INTEXT-600x382.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Skiphousoura_life-reconstruction_INTEXT-768x489.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Skiphousoura_life-reconstruction_INTEXT-300x191.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="New pterosaur fossil bridges evolutionary gap 116"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Life restoration of two Skiphosoura bavarica in flight. Credit: Gabriel Ugueto</figcaption></figure> Pterosaurs are an extinct group of flying reptiles closely related to dinosaurs and lived during most of the Mesozoic Era (also known as the “Age of Dinosaurs,” which lasted from 252 to 66 million years ago). Over 200 years of paleontological study has traditionally split pterosaurs into the early non-pterodactyloids and the later, much larger pterodactyloids. Pterodactyloids include <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/oldest-pterosaur-fossils-australia/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Quetzalcoatlus northropi</a>, a reptile with an estimated 11-metre wingspan, which is larger than some aircraft. The early species share several physical traits including short heads on short necks, a short bone in the wrist, a long fifth toe on the foot, and long tails. In contrast, the pterodactyloids have the opposite traits: large heads on long necks, a long wrist, a short fifth toe and short tail. Until recently, palaeontologists had incomplete information about which parts of the body changed and when. Then, in 2010, a series of intermediate fossils called darwinopterans revealed that the head and neck changed first. But questions remained about the rest of the body. Now, a UK-led team of palaeontologists has described a new pterosaur fossil with remarkable 3D preservation that lived after the darwinopterans and before the large pterodactyloids. <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="629" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Skiphosoura-fossil-normal-and-UV-light_INTEXT.jpg?x75256" alt="Fossil bones of a pterosaur scattered against a white background." class="wp-image-316341" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Skiphosoura-fossil-normal-and-UV-light_INTEXT.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Skiphosoura-fossil-normal-and-UV-light_INTEXT-600x444.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Skiphosoura-fossil-normal-and-UV-light_INTEXT-768x568.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Skiphosoura-fossil-normal-and-UV-light_INTEXT-300x222.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="New pterosaur fossil bridges evolutionary gap 117"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Photograph of the original specimen of Skiphosoura bavarica. Credit: René Lauer</figcaption></figure> Named Skiphosoura bavarica after its sword-like pointed tail, the new fossil fills an evolutionary gap and shows traits intermediate between the older darwinopterans and the later, larger pterodactyloids. Specifically, the team described Skiphosoura as having a longer wrist, a shorter fifth toe, and a shorter tail compared to older species but not to the same extreme as the larger pterodactyloids. They also note that Skiphosoura is unusually large for its time, suggesting that these physical changes enabled pterosaurs to reach enormous sizes. “Pterosaurs have long been symbols of the unique life of the past,” says co-author Adam Fitch from the University of Wisconsin-Maddison in the United States. “Skiphosoura represents an important new form for working out pterosaur evolutionary relationships and by extension how this lineage arose and changed.” The study is <a href="https://www.cell.com/current-biology/home" target="_blank" rel="noopener">publis</a><a href="https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(24)01377-0" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">he</a><a href="https://www.cell.com/current-biology/home" target="_blank" rel="noopener">d</a> in the journal Current Biology. <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="New pterosaur fossil bridges evolutionary gap 118"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Watch a giant virus take over a cell</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/biology/see-giant-virus-take-over-cell/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Ariel Marcy]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Mon, 18 Nov 2024 14:31:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Biology]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Core Sciences]]></category> <category><![CDATA[People]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Society]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Video]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316308</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-1030375056_FEAT-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="Two high school students use a light microscope to study a virus" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-1030375056_FEAT-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-1030375056_FEAT-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-1030375056_FEAT-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-1030375056_FEAT.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Watch a giant virus take over a cell 121"></div>A team of Japanese researchers has filmed a giant virus infecting a cell using just a light microscope, a tool familiar to high school and university students. The team found evidence that their video enhances student understanding of the virus life cycle.  Infected amoeba cells rupture and explode, spreading the Mimivirus. HPI stands for hours […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-1030375056_FEAT-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="Two high school students use a light microscope to study a virus" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-1030375056_FEAT-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-1030375056_FEAT-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-1030375056_FEAT-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-1030375056_FEAT.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Watch a giant virus take over a cell 123"></div> A team of Japanese researchers has filmed a <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/biology/giant-viruses-with-huge-tails-found-in-brazil/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">giant virus</a> infecting a cell using just a <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/physics/nanoparticles-high-harmonic-generation/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">light microscope</a>, a tool familiar to high school and university students. The team found evidence that their video enhances student understanding of the virus life cycle.  <iframe src="https://players.brightcove.net/5483960636001/default_default/index.html?videoId=6364843239112" allowfullscreen="" allow="encrypted-media" width="960" height="540"></iframe> Infected amoeba cells rupture and explode, spreading the Mimivirus. HPI stands for hours post-infection. Credit: Masaharu Takemura from the Tokyo University of Science, Japan One of the enduring challenges for biology educators is explaining microscopic processes and making them tangible. Typical viruses are not visible under a light microscope, instead requiring expensive electron microscopes that can only image inactive subjects. The research team, led by Masaharu Takemura of the Tokyo University of Science, identified <a href="https://www.nature.com/scitable/topicpage/discovery-of-the-giant-mimivirus-14402410/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Mimivirus, the so-called ‘giant virus’</a> as large enough to see under a light microscope. Mimivirus particles are 450-800nm, about 100 times smaller than the width of a human hair. To create a video, the team developed a new cell culture method and a new observation chamber that captured Mimivirus infecting and proliferating inside of its single-celled host, the amoeba Acanthamoeba. “For the first time in the world, we have succeeded in continuously visualizing the events that are believed to occur in viral infection over a long period of time—such as the proliferation of the virus, its release from cells, and the death of cells during the process,” says Takemura. Because a light telescope can look at active living things, the video shows how the host Acanthamoeba’s healthy movements slow down as the infection progresses. Eventually the host cell ruptures, spilling viral particles into the surroundings. <a href="https://education.cosmosmagazine.com/what-happens-in-a-virology-lab/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Virology</a> is an important topic in biology education and today students come to the classroom with information communicated during the COVID-19 pandemic. When surveyed, the majority of 200 undergraduates at a Japanese university associated the term “virus” with “corona” or “coronavirus”. When the 200 undergraduates were surveyed two weeks after viewing the video, new word associations with “virus” appeared, including “giant virus”, “living things” and “proliferation.” “[The video] enhances students’ understanding of virus proliferation mechanisms and highlights the biological significance of viruses, their impact on host cell fate, and their role in ecosystems,” says Takemura. The research and videos are <a href="https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/jmbe.00138-24" target="_blank" rel="noopener">published</a> in the Journal of Microbiology & Biology Education. <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="Watch a giant virus take over a cell 122"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Some paranormal believers are more stressed – but not all</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/people/anthropology/paranormal-belief-stress/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Ellen Phiddian]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Mon, 18 Nov 2024 11:32:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Anthropology]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Behaviour]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[People]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Social Sciences]]></category> <category><![CDATA[beliefs]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Psychology]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316363</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1454444053-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="candles" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1454444053-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1454444053-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1454444053-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1454444053.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Some paranormal believers are more stressed – but not all 125"></div>Belief in the paranormal is linked with stress – but only for certain beliefs, according to a new study on UK residents. The study, published in PLOS One, found those with “traditional” paranormal beliefs had higher levels of distress, while those with “new age” beliefs did not. “Historically, research suggests that paranormal beliefs such as […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1454444053-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="candles" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1454444053-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1454444053-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1454444053-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1454444053.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Some paranormal believers are more stressed – but not all 127"></div> Belief in the paranormal is linked with stress – but only for <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/people/raising-the-dead/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">certain beliefs</a>, according to a new study on UK residents. The study, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0312511" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">published</a> in PLOS One, found those with “traditional” paranormal beliefs had higher levels of distress, while those with “new age” beliefs did not. “Historically, research suggests that paranormal beliefs such as superstition increase during times of uncertainty,” lead author Dr Kenneth Drinkwater, a senior lecturer at Manchester Metropolitan University, tells Cosmos. “Moreover, stress is associated with reduced psychological well-being.” The researchers have done previous work which suggests that paranormal belief isn’t directly linked to poor mental health. But studies have suggested that certain types of paranormal belief are linked to stress. “This study further advances the relationship between paranormal belief, stress, and well-being,” says Drinkwater. “This is necessary because paranormal belief can be adaptive – that is, help people cope with life stressors.” The researchers ran an online survey of 3,084 UK residents. Participants filled out a questionnaire, called the Revised Paranormal Belief Scale, where they ranked how much they agreed with 26 statements relating to a variety of paranormal beliefs. Participants then completed the Perceived Stress Scale questionnaire, which measures recent levels of distress and coping. Both scales are established measures of paranormal belief and stress, respectively. But other research, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/S0191-8869(99)00183-X" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">published in 2000</a>, has broken the Revised Paranormal Belief scale into 7 different categories: <ul> <li>Traditional religious beliefs (such as “I believe in God”, and “There is a heaven and hell”)</li> <li>Witchcraft (“Black magic really exists”)</li> <li>Psi (“Some individuals are able to levitate objects through mental forces”)</li> <li>Superstition (“The number 13 is unlucky”)</li> <li>Spiritualism (“It is possible to communicate with the dead”)</li> <li>Extraordinary life forms (“The Loch Ness monster of Scotland exists”)</li> <li>Precognition (“Astrology is a way to predict the future”)</li> </ul> Researchers have classified the first 2 categories as “traditional paranormal beliefs”, and the latter 5 as “new age philosophies”. Drinkwater says there is a functional difference between traditional and new age beliefs: “whether belief provides a sense of control at the social (traditional) or individual (new age) level”. The researchers found that people who scored higher on traditional beliefs were also more likely to show higher distress and reduced ability to cope. But those who scored higher on new age beliefs had no such link with stress. This might be linked to sense of control, according to the researchers: traditional beliefs reflect “existence as governed by uncontrollable forces”. The researchers point out a limitation of their study is that the traditional and new-age distinction “reflect a Western, Abrahamic, predominately Christian perspective”. For instance, belief in the devil is classified as a traditional belief, while reincarnation is classified as new age. Drinkwater says that the researchers did not ask about the religious or cultural backgrounds of study participants. The researchers also point out that their study can’t establish cause and effect, saying that more work is needed to investigate the link between traditional paranormal beliefs and stress. “Although paranormal belief may not itself be predictive of lower well-being, it may indirectly reflect reduced psychological functioning,” they write in their paper. “From this perspective, like conspiracy theory endorsement, in extreme instances heightened endorsement of paranormal belief could be symptomatic of non-adaptive coping.” <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="Some paranormal believers are more stressed – but not all 126"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Antarctic geoengineering could ignite international fights</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/people/ethics/antarctic-curtain-geoengineering-politics/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Ellen Phiddian]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Mon, 18 Nov 2024 07:08:02 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Ethics]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Climate]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Culture]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Earth]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[People]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Society]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Antarctica]]></category> <category><![CDATA[geoengineering]]></category> <category><![CDATA[sea level rise]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316351</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1253948234-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="melting iceberg in Antarctica" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1253948234-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1253948234-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1253948234-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1253948234.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Antarctic geoengineering could ignite international fights 129"></div>Geoengineering – always a controversial topic – has been in the lens on Antarctic research this year, as a bold proposal to try and slow melting has captured public interest. While the technological and environmental risks of the large-scale environmental engineering suggestion has been hotly debated, researchers say that the geopolitical risks have – so […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1253948234-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="melting iceberg in Antarctica" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1253948234-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1253948234-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1253948234-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-GettyImages-1253948234.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Antarctic geoengineering could ignite international fights 132"></div> <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="531" src="/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-GettyImages-1253948234.jpg?x75256" alt="melting iceberg in Antarctica" class="wp-image-316348" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-GettyImages-1253948234.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-GettyImages-1253948234-600x375.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-GettyImages-1253948234-768x480.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-GettyImages-1253948234-300x187.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="Antarctic geoengineering could ignite international fights 130"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">A melting iceberg photographed on the Scientific and Technical Research Council of Turkiye’s 7th Antarctic expedition, May 2023. Credit: Sebnem Coskun/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images</figcaption></figure> Geoengineering – <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/news/space-mirrors-reflecting-light-where-the-sun-doesnt-shine/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">always</a> a <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/technology/geoengineering-could-cause-more-harm-than-climate-change/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">controversial</a> topic – has been in the lens on Antarctic research this year, as a bold proposal to try and slow melting has captured public interest. While the technological and environmental risks of the large-scale environmental engineering suggestion has been hotly debated, researchers say that the geopolitical risks have – so far – been overlooked. They’ve <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/ia/iiae281" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">published</a> their discussion of the project, known as the Antarctic curtain proposal, in International Affairs. The Antarctic curtain idea, <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-00119-3" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">made prominent by</a> Nature this January, revolves around the installation of a “curtain” on the ocean floor, near <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/climate/first-observations-of-meltwater-eating-away-at-antarctic-ice-shelves/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">melting ice sheets</a>. This curtain, tens of kilometres long and raised 100m high by a buoyant float, would stop <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/climate/new-tipping-point-discovered-beneath-the-antarctic-ice-sheet/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">warm ocean water</a> from reaching glaciers, slowing their <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/climate/antarctic-sea-ice-2024/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">melt</a>. The idea is controversial among scientists, with some arguing it <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-024-01297-8" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">wouldn’t be very effective</a>. “What had been a technical discussion among some scientists quickly became a social debate involving the general public,” says co-author Akiho Shibata, a researcher in international law at Kobe University, Japan. “We believe that it was important to publish a paper within one year of the original proposal, before the social debate takes on a life of its own.” Antarctica, point out the researchers, has been a model for peaceful international collaboration – governed by the 1959 <a href="https://www.ats.aq" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Antarctic Treaty</a>, which states that the continent should be used only for peaceful and scientific purposes. A massive geoengineering project, like this curtain, could be a lightning rod for tensions if handled badly, they argue. They write that in the current political climate, “it would be an extremely unlikely diplomatic achievement to secure the level of international cooperation … required for the proposed glacial geoengineering infrastructures”. There are 3 areas that could bring consequences: authority (relating to power and decision-making), sovereignty (relating to territorial claims), and security (relating to the safeguarding of something that would be seen as critical infrastructure). “This paper sheds light on the political and legal ‘shadows’ hidden behind the exciting surface of science and technology,” says Shibata. “However, we believe that it is necessary for the members of society to make decisions on the development of these technologies based on a thorough understanding of such negative aspects.” The researchers say that, despite being unlikely, building a curtain like this is not impossible from a geopolitical standpoint. “If in such a deeper scientific and technical discussion the argument is that there are social benefits that outweigh the governance risks we have presented, then again, we international political scientists and international legal scholars need to be involved in this discussion,” says Shibata. “Perhaps then the discussion will no longer be about protecting the key principles of the current Antarctic Treaty System while considering this technology but about modifying those key principles themselves.” <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="Antarctic geoengineering could ignite international fights 131"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Meta and others now allow military agencies to access their AI software</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/technology/ai/meta-allows-military-to-access-ai-software/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[The Conversation]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Sun, 17 Nov 2024 23:32:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[AI]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316106</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="400" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-2150483720-600x400.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="An image of a woman holding a cell phone in front of a U.S. Army logo displayed on a computer screen" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-2150483720-600x400.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-2150483720-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-2150483720-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-2150483720.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Meta and others now allow military agencies to access their AI software 134"></div>Meta will make its generative artificial intelligence (AI) models available to the United States’ government, the tech giant has announced, in a controversial move that raises a moral dilemma for everyone who uses the software. Meta last week revealed it would make the models, known as Llama, available to government agencies, “including those that are […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="400" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-2150483720-600x400.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="An image of a woman holding a cell phone in front of a U.S. Army logo displayed on a computer screen" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-2150483720-600x400.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-2150483720-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-2150483720-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-2150483720.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Meta and others now allow military agencies to access their AI software 136"></div> Meta will make its generative artificial intelligence (AI) models available to the United States’ government, the tech giant has announced, in a controversial move that raises a moral dilemma for everyone who uses the software. Meta <a href="https://about.fb.com/news/2024/11/open-source-ai-america-global-security/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">last week revealed</a> it would make the models, known as Llama, available to government agencies, “including those that are working on defence and national security applications, and private sector partners supporting their work”. The decision appears to contravene Meta’s own <a href="https://ai.meta.com/llama/use-policy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">policy</a> which lists a range of prohibited uses for Llama, including “[m]ilitary, warfare, nuclear industries or applications” as well as espionage, terrorism, human trafficking and exploitation or harm to children. Meta’s exception <a href="https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/business/technology/2024/11/04/meta-opens-its-ai-models-to-us-defense-agencies-and-contractors/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">also reportedly applies</a> to similar national security agencies in the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. It came just <a href="https://www.reuters.com/technology/artificial-intelligence/chinese-researchers-develop-ai-model-military-use-back-metas-llama-2024-11-01/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">three days after Reuters revealed</a> China has reworked Llama for its own military purposes. The situation highlights the increasing fragility of open source AI software. It also means users of Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger – some versions of which use Llama – may inadvertently be contributing to military programs around the world. <h3 class="wp-block-heading">What is Llama?</h3> <a href="https://zapier.com/blog/llama-meta/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Llama</a> is a collation of large language models – similar to ChatGPT – and large multimodal models that deal with data other than text, such as audio and images. Meta, the parent company of Facebook, released Llama in response to OpenAI’s ChatGPT. The key difference between the two is that <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-04-19/meta-releases-llama-3-ai-model/103744538" target="_blank" rel="noopener">all Llama models are marketed as open source and free to use</a>. This means anyone can download the source code of a Llama model, and run and modify it themselves (if they have the right hardware). On the other hand, ChatGPT can only be accessed via OpenAI. The <a href="https://opensource.org/ai/open-source-ai-definition" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Open Source Initiative</a>, an authority that defines open source software, recently released a standard setting out what open source AI should entail. The standard outlines “<a href="https://opensource.org/ai/open-source-ai-definition" target="_blank" rel="noopener">four freedoms</a>” an AI model must grant in order to be classified as open source: <ul> <li>use the system for any purpose and without having to ask for permission</li> <li>study how the system works and inspect its components</li> <li>modify the system for any purpose, including to change its output</li> <li>share the system for others to use with or without modifications, for any purpose.</li> </ul> Meta’s Llama fails to meet these requirements. This is because of limitations on commercial use, the prohibited activities that may be deemed harmful or illegal and a lack of transparency about Llama’s training data. Despite this, Meta still describes Llama as open source. <h3 class="wp-block-heading">The intersection of the tech industry and the military</h3> Meta is not the only commercial technology company branching out to military applications of AI. In the past week, Anthropic also announced it is teaming up with Palantir – a data analytics firm – and Amazon Web Services to provide US intelligence and defence agencies <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2024/11/07/anthropic-teams-up-with-palantir-and-aws-to-sell-its-ai-to-defense-customers/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">access to its AI models</a>. Meta has defended its decision to allow US national security agencies and defence contractors to use Llama. <a href="https://about.fb.com/news/2024/11/open-source-ai-america-global-security/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The company claims</a> these uses are “responsible and ethical” and “support the prosperity and security of the United States”. Meta has not been transparent about the data it uses to train Llama. But companies that develop generative AI models <a href="https://www.wired.com/story/how-to-stop-your-data-from-being-used-to-train-ai/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">often utilise user input data to further train their models</a>, and people share plenty of personal information when using these tools. ChatGPT and Dall-E provide options for <a href="https://www.wired.com/story/how-to-stop-your-data-from-being-used-to-train-ai/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">opting out of your data being collected</a>. However, it is unclear if Llama offers the same. The option to opt out is not made explicitly clear when signing up to use these services. This places the onus on users to inform themselves – and most users may not be aware of where or how Llama is being used. For example, the latest version of Llama powers AI tools in Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger. When using the AI functions on these platforms – such as creating reels or suggesting captions – users are using Llama. <h3 class="wp-block-heading">The fragility of open source</h3> The benefits of open source include open participation and collaboration on software. However, this can also lead to fragile systems that are easily manipulated. For example, following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, members of the public made changes to open source software to express their support for Ukraine. These changes included anti-war messages and deletion of systems files on Russian and Belarusian computers. This movement came to be known as “protestware”. The intersection of open source AI and military applications will likely exacerbate this fragility because the robustness of open source software is dependent on the public community. In the case of large language models such as Llama, they require public use and engagement because the models are designed to improve over time through a feedback loop between users and the AI system. The mutual use of open source AI tools marries two parties – the public and the military – who have historically held separate needs and goals. This shift will expose unique challenges for both parties. For the military, open access means the finer details of how an AI tool operates can easily be sourced, potentially leading to security and vulnerability issues. For the general public, the lack of transparency in how user data is being utilised by the military can lead to a serious moral and ethical dilemma. <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/zena-assaad-1434726" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Zena Assaad</a>, Senior Lecturer, School of Engineering, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/australian-national-university-877" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Australian National University</a> This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/meta-now-allows-military-agencies-to-access-its-ai-software-it-poses-a-moral-dilemma-for-everybody-who-uses-it-243250" target="_blank" rel="noopener">original article</a>. <img decoding="async" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/243250/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-advanced" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important" referrerpolicy="no-referrer-when-downgrade" title="Meta and others now allow military agencies to access their AI software 135"> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Fire data shifts human arrival in Tasmania back 2,000 years</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/archaeology/fire-management-tasmania-people/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Ellen Phiddian]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Sun, 17 Nov 2024 19:18:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Archaeology]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Australia]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Climate]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Culture]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Earth]]></category> <category><![CDATA[History]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Palaeontology]]></category> <category><![CDATA[People]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Australian Bushfires]]></category> <category><![CDATA[cultural burning]]></category> <category><![CDATA[palaeoecology]]></category> <category><![CDATA[tasmania]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316219</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-IMG_0456-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="two people standing in swap holding sediment cores" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-IMG_0456-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-IMG_0456-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-IMG_0456-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-IMG_0456.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Fire data shifts human arrival in Tasmania back 2,000 years 138"></div>Ancient pollen and charcoal remains uncovered from islands north of Tasmania (Lutruwita) suggest that human fire management practices were happening in the region 41,600 years ago. This predates the oldest archaeological evidence of people in Tasmania by roughly 2,000 years. The study, published in Science Advances, draws on 2 sediment records collected from islands in […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-IMG_0456-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="two people standing in swap holding sediment cores" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-IMG_0456-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-IMG_0456-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-IMG_0456-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-IMG_0456.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Fire data shifts human arrival in Tasmania back 2,000 years 144"></div> <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="638" src="/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-IMG_0456.jpg?x75256" alt="two people standing in swap holding sediment cores" class="wp-image-316210" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-IMG_0456.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-IMG_0456-600x450.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-IMG_0456-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-IMG_0456-300x225.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="Fire data shifts human arrival in Tasmania back 2,000 years 139"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Dr Matthew Adeleye and Professor David Bowman (right), co-authors on the current paper. Credit: Simon Haberle</figcaption></figure> Ancient pollen and charcoal remains uncovered from islands north of Tasmania (Lutruwita) suggest that human fire management practices were happening in the region 41,600 years ago. This predates the oldest archaeological evidence of people in Tasmania by roughly 2,000 years. The study, <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adp6579" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">published</a> in Science Advances, draws on 2 sediment records collected from islands in the Bass Strait. These islands were once part of a land bridge connecting Tasmania to the Australian mainland, as part of the ancient continent of <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/archaeology/first-arrivals-to-australia-populated-the-continent-very-quickly/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Sahul</a>. When the Palawa/Pakana communities arrived, current archaeological records suggest that they would have been the southernmost people in the world. The researchers, guided by Palawa/Pakana rangers, collected 2 mud cores – one 3m deep and the other 4m deep – from sites on Three Hummock Island and Clarke Island. <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="881" src="/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Fig-5-C.jpg?x75256" alt="map of Australia showing site locations" class="wp-image-316201" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Fig-5-C.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Fig-5-C-579x600.jpg 579w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Fig-5-C-768x796.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Fig-5-C-300x311.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Fig-5-C-600x622.jpg 600w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="Fire data shifts human arrival in Tasmania back 2,000 years 140"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Vegetation cover across Australia, with the two sediment core sites north of Tasmania circled (alongside 2 reference samples on or near the mainland). Adeleye et al., Sci. Adv. 10, eadp6579 (2024)</figcaption></figure> “We’re very fortunate to be invited to work on these landscapes,” study co-author Professor Simon Haberle, a palaeoecologist at the Australian National University, tells Cosmos. These sediment cores had built up layer by layer over tens of thousands of years, collecting pollen and charcoal from the surrounding environment over time. “They both, surprisingly, went back quite a long way – longer than most other records in the region have been found to go,” says Haberle. “That uncovered the opportunity to have this window of inquiry into how vegetation and fire changed over at least 50,000 years or more.” <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="478" src="/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Emerald-Swamp.jpg?x75256" alt="swamp" class="wp-image-316203" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Emerald-Swamp.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Emerald-Swamp-600x337.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Emerald-Swamp-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Emerald-Swamp-300x169.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="Fire data shifts human arrival in Tasmania back 2,000 years 141"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Emerald Swamp, Three Hummock Island, where one of the sediment cores was extracted. Credit: Simon Haberle</figcaption></figure> The team analysed pollen and charcoal deposits in the cores, combined with <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/earth-sciences/what-is-radiometric-dating/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">radiocarbon dating</a>, to judge vegetation and fire in the environment. They found a striking increase in charcoal 41,600 years ago, followed by a change pollens – meaning there was also a change in vegetation. “This suggests these early inhabitants were clearing forests by burning them, in order to create open spaces for subsistence and perhaps cultural activities,” says lead author Dr Matthew Adeleye, from the department of geography at the University of Cambridge, UK. Haberle says that the results are similar to those from <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/palaeontology/pollen-cultural-burning-australia/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">another study</a> he recently co-authored, which used pollen records to find a clear change in vegetation across the southeastern Australian mainland after human arrival. “The arrival of people, and the burning regimes that were then set up, had the impact of opening up environments – grasslands became more prominent.” But the vegetation changes also have their own idiosyncrasies, as can be seen from the differences in vegetation in the cores on the western and drier eastern side of the Bass Strait. <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="818" src="/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Fig-1.jpg?x75256" alt="map of Tasmania showing rainfall" class="wp-image-316202" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Fig-1.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Fig-1-600x577.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Fig-1-768x739.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Fig-1-300x289.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="Fire data shifts human arrival in Tasmania back 2,000 years 142"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Climate and vegetation across Tasmania. The western side recieves significantly more rainfall than the eastern side. Credit: Adeleye et al., Sci. Adv. 10, eadp6579 (2024)</figcaption></figure> “It’s not a simple widespread burning and a unidirectional change. It’s much more nuanced than that,” says Haberle. “That’s perhaps a characteristic of Aboriginal burning regimes. They’re not just widespread and random, but much more adapted to specific vegetation types and caring for Country in these different regimes.” <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/aboriginal-land-management-secrets/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Cultural burning practices</a>, once done across the continent, have recently been reintroduced in large parts of Australia to help manage the <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/climate/can-right-way-indigenous-burning-save-australias-neglected-heart/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">severity of bushfires</a>. “The Western science information is really more of an affirmation that cultural burning and care for Country has been a feature of the landscape for many, many thousands of years,” says Haberle, adding that Palawa/Pakana people “certainly know a lot of this story already”. The current research “clearly shows that different ecosystems, whether they’re relatively wet or dry, can be managed through cultural burning application”, says Haberle. “Introducing cultural burning can be certainly beneficial and appropriate for these kind of ecosystems that we are studying.” <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="Fire data shifts human arrival in Tasmania back 2,000 years 143"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Live and dead DNA separated from microbes discovered in driest desert</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/exploration/live-dead-dna-microbes-desert/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Ariel Marcy]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Sun, 17 Nov 2024 14:31:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Space Exploration]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Biology]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Core Sciences]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Science News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Space]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316045</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Atacama_GettyImages-696440792_FEAT-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="A series of jagged peaks coloured red, orange and gold. The desert where the microbes were found." decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Atacama_GettyImages-696440792_FEAT-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Atacama_GettyImages-696440792_FEAT-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Atacama_GettyImages-696440792_FEAT-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Atacama_GettyImages-696440792_FEAT.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Live and dead DNA separated from microbes discovered in driest desert 146"></div>Microbiologists have developed a new technique that can separate the DNA of living microbes from that of the dead. The new life detection method has been tested in the extremely arid Atacama Desert in Chile and has the potential for use in other hostile environments, including on other planets. The Atacama is the driest hot […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Atacama_GettyImages-696440792_FEAT-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="A series of jagged peaks coloured red, orange and gold. The desert where the microbes were found." decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Atacama_GettyImages-696440792_FEAT-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Atacama_GettyImages-696440792_FEAT-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Atacama_GettyImages-696440792_FEAT-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Atacama_GettyImages-696440792_FEAT.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Live and dead DNA separated from microbes discovered in driest desert 149"></div> Microbiologists have developed a new technique that can separate the DNA of living microbes from that of the dead. The new life detection method has been tested in the <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/nature/plants/what-genes-help-plants-survive-in-the-desert/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">extremely arid Atacama Desert</a> in Chile and has the potential for use in other hostile environments, including on other planets. The Atacama is the driest hot desert on Earth largely because it sits between two mountain ranges that each create a rain shadow. It has been arid since the Jurassic period, 150 million years ago.   <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="478" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-696440792_INTEXT.jpg?x75256" alt="A series of jagged peaks coloured red, orange and gold. The desert where the microbes were found." class="wp-image-316057" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-696440792_INTEXT.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-696440792_INTEXT-600x337.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-696440792_INTEXT-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-696440792_INTEXT-300x169.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="Live and dead DNA separated from microbes discovered in driest desert 147"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Valle de la Muerte (Valley of the Dead), Atacama Desert. Credit: Ignacio Palacios / Getty Images</figcaption></figure> The Atacama presents severe limitations on life with extremely low moisture and organic carbon coupled with high concentrations of salts, arsenic and UV radiation. Despite this, microbial communities survive even in the most marginal areas of the desert. <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/astrobiology/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Interest in astrobiology</a> prompted the detection of these microbes in the 1960s when NASA began planning to land the first <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/celebrating-viking-four-decades-of-landers-on-mars/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Viking spacecraft on Mars</a>. The Atacama was deemed to be the closest Earthly approximation of the Red Planet and thus the best place to test life detection methods. The new life detection method published this week paves the way for more sensitive analyses on even small samples of living microbes. This includes <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/biology/next-big-thing-peeling-back-the-layers-of-the-microbiome/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">metagenomics</a>, the study of the structure and function of the DNA from microbial communities. “Microbes are the pioneers colonizing this kind of environment and preparing the ground for the next succession of life,” says Dirk Wagner, a German geomicrobiologist who led the study. Existing tools for extracting genetic material from soils capture DNA from both living and dead microbes, some of which could have died long ago. The new technique addresses this problem by separating the intracellular DNA (iDNA) found in intact living cells from the fragmented extracellular DNA (eDNA) left over from dead cells. The method calls for multiple cycles of gentle rinsing to separate iDNA from eDNA. Wagner and colleagues say these steps concentrate high quality iDNA “which is often the bottleneck in low-biomass environments.” The ratio of iDNA and eDNA from each species can also be a useful metric. “If a community is really active, then a constant turnover is taking place, and that means the 2 pools should be more similar to each other,” says Wagner. Wagner and colleagues plan to apply the method in other hostile environments and leverage the higher quality iDNA for <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/biology/next-big-thing-peeling-back-the-layers-of-the-microbiome/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">metagenomic analyses</a> that target the active members of microbial communities. The research is <a href="https://doi.org/10.1128/aem.01443-24" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">published</a> in the journal, Applied and Environmental Microbiology. <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="Live and dead DNA separated from microbes discovered in driest desert 148"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Old clothes and carpet could make concrete stronger</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/engineering/concrete-textile-waste-strength/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Ellen Phiddian]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Sun, 17 Nov 2024 11:36:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Engineering]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Australia]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Core Sciences]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Earth]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Materials]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Sustainability]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Technology]]></category> <category><![CDATA[concrete]]></category> <category><![CDATA[fashion]]></category> <category><![CDATA[recycling]]></category> <category><![CDATA[textiles]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316214</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-Nayanatara-Ruppegoda-Gamage-and-Chamila-Gunasekara-with-concrete-samples-made-with-carpet-fibres-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="Two people standing outside holding concrete samples" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-Nayanatara-Ruppegoda-Gamage-and-Chamila-Gunasekara-with-concrete-samples-made-with-carpet-fibres-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-Nayanatara-Ruppegoda-Gamage-and-Chamila-Gunasekara-with-concrete-samples-made-with-carpet-fibres-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-Nayanatara-Ruppegoda-Gamage-and-Chamila-Gunasekara-with-concrete-samples-made-with-carpet-fibres-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-Nayanatara-Ruppegoda-Gamage-and-Chamila-Gunasekara-with-concrete-samples-made-with-carpet-fibres.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Old clothes and carpet could make concrete stronger 151"></div>If they’re past re-using, textiles are difficult to recycle – with individual fabrics needing different conditions. Hundreds of thousands of tonnes of textiles end up in Australian landfill every year. A better destination, according to some engineers, might be concrete. A team, based at RMIT University in Melbourne, has been trialling ways to add fibres […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-Nayanatara-Ruppegoda-Gamage-and-Chamila-Gunasekara-with-concrete-samples-made-with-carpet-fibres-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="Two people standing outside holding concrete samples" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-Nayanatara-Ruppegoda-Gamage-and-Chamila-Gunasekara-with-concrete-samples-made-with-carpet-fibres-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-Nayanatara-Ruppegoda-Gamage-and-Chamila-Gunasekara-with-concrete-samples-made-with-carpet-fibres-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-Nayanatara-Ruppegoda-Gamage-and-Chamila-Gunasekara-with-concrete-samples-made-with-carpet-fibres-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-16-Nayanatara-Ruppegoda-Gamage-and-Chamila-Gunasekara-with-concrete-samples-made-with-carpet-fibres.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Old clothes and carpet could make concrete stronger 157"></div> <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="638" src="/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Nayanatara-Ruppegoda-Gamage-and-Chamila-Gunasekara-with-concrete-samples-made-with-carpet-fibres.jpg?x75256" alt="Two people standing outside holding concrete samples" class="wp-image-316208" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Nayanatara-Ruppegoda-Gamage-and-Chamila-Gunasekara-with-concrete-samples-made-with-carpet-fibres.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Nayanatara-Ruppegoda-Gamage-and-Chamila-Gunasekara-with-concrete-samples-made-with-carpet-fibres-600x450.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Nayanatara-Ruppegoda-Gamage-and-Chamila-Gunasekara-with-concrete-samples-made-with-carpet-fibres-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Nayanatara-Ruppegoda-Gamage-and-Chamila-Gunasekara-with-concrete-samples-made-with-carpet-fibres-300x225.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="Old clothes and carpet could make concrete stronger 152"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">PhD scholar Nayanatara Ruppegoda Gamage (left) and Dr Chamila Gunasekara with concrete samples made using textiles. Credit: RMIT University</figcaption></figure> If they’re past re-using, textiles are <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/people/recycling-clothes/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">difficult to recycle</a> – with individual fabrics needing different conditions. Hundreds of thousands of tonnes of textiles <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/people/fashion-industry-product-stewardship-plan/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">end up in Australian landfill</a> every year. A better destination, according to some engineers, might be concrete. A team, based at RMIT University in Melbourne, has been trialling ways to add fibres from old clothes and carpets into concrete mixes. “This is a textile fibre-reinforced concrete,” Dr Chamila Gunasekara tells Cosmos. <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="638" src="/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-IMG_0583.jpg?x75256" alt="five people standing in textiles lab" class="wp-image-316206" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-IMG_0583.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-IMG_0583-600x450.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-IMG_0583-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-IMG_0583-300x225.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="Old clothes and carpet could make concrete stronger 153"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">David Law, Chamila Gunasekara, Shadi Houshyar, Sujeeva Setunge and Nayanatara Ruppegoda Gamage (left to right) in one of textile labs at RMIT University’s Brunswick campus. Credit: Will Wright, RMIT University</figcaption></figure> The team has found the concrete can have up to 30% fewer initial cracks, as well as being more durable. “When we place the concrete, maybe an hour or two later the first cracking starts – the water evaporates from the concrete placement, then the concrete starts to shrink,” explains Gunasekara. “That’s why we call it shrinkage cracking.” Steel fibres can reduce some of this cracking, but these fibres can still be very rigid. “Like a rubber band, textile fibres are very flexible,” says Gunasekara. “Fibres are distributed almost evenly throughout the cement matrix. Then, when a crack is initiated, fibres will go around the crack, [and] absorb the stress in the cement matrix.” By absorbing pressures from the drying concrete, these textile fibres can stop cracks from getting bigger. The pre-processing involves extracting fibres from a textile, then chopping them into 12mm lengths with an automated cutter. “We identified this is the best length that gave the optimum condition, or the maximum crack resistance,” says Gunasekara. <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="1133" src="/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Concrete-samples-made-with-carpet-fibres.jpg?x75256" alt="fibres and concrete samples" class="wp-image-316207" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Concrete-samples-made-with-carpet-fibres.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Concrete-samples-made-with-carpet-fibres-450x600.jpg 450w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Concrete-samples-made-with-carpet-fibres-768x1024.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Concrete-samples-made-with-carpet-fibres-300x400.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-Concrete-samples-made-with-carpet-fibres-600x800.jpg 600w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="Old clothes and carpet could make concrete stronger 154"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Concrete samples made with carpet fibres. Credit: RMIT University</figcaption></figure> The team initially trialled their concrete at the small scale, using discarded clothes as their source of textile fibre. “Then we thought: why we can’t use this the same principle for other [wastes], like carpet waste?” says Gunasekara. “We contacted industries that have a large amount of carpet waste generation.” And just like the clothes, “it’s working”, says Gunasekara. In fact, the technique has deliberately been designed to be as unselective as possible when it comes to a source of textiles. Showing the process worked with a single type of fibre would requite a lot of initial sorting and separating. “That will give additional cost, that will give additional energy,” says Gunasekara.  “The other thing is material supply chain. If we focus on only one single material, then the question is whether we have enough materials to progress the concretes – not only in our research, but in construction prospecting.” The team has tested a variety of frequently used synthetic fibres in clothes, like polyester, nylon, and polypropylene. “Up to 70% of textile waste would be suitable for conversion into usable fibres, presenting an opportunity in the materials supply chain,” says Dr Shadi Houshyar, a textile and material scientist at RMIT. They’ve also got it to work with “almost 100% non-recyclable” fabric used to make firefighting and military uniforms. <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="638" src="/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-IMG_0589.jpg?x75256" alt="two people in lab holding firefighting clothes" class="wp-image-316205" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-IMG_0589.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-IMG_0589-600x450.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-IMG_0589-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-IMG_0589-300x225.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="Old clothes and carpet could make concrete stronger 155"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Dr Chamila Gunasekara (left) and PhD scholar Nayanatara Ruppegoda Gamage with discarded firefighting clothes. Credit: Will Wright, RMIT University</figcaption></figure> These fabrics are designed to be as unreactive and unbreakable as possible, so wearers can survive extreme environments which makes them almost impossible to repurpose at the end of their life – except in concrete. “We used that material as well,” says Gunasekara. Now, the team is working with larger samples of concrete and numerical models to test structural performance and long-term durability. They’re also partnering with councils to test bigger chunks. “It can be a concrete slab on the ground, or maybe up to a 50-100m footpath,” says Gunasekara. “We are planning to start those field trials somewhere in the next year.” <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="Old clothes and carpet could make concrete stronger 156"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Migrating great tits learn from birds already on the scene</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/nature/birds/migrating-great-tits-learn-from-birds-already-on-the-scene/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Cosmos]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Sun, 17 Nov 2024 07:30:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Birds]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Nature]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[animal learning]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Great tit]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316189</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Great-tit_Donald-Davesne_CC-BY_1200-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="A photograph of a small songbird standing on a stick. It has a black head and white cheek, with light green body." decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Great-tit_Donald-Davesne_CC-BY_1200-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Great-tit_Donald-Davesne_CC-BY_1200-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Great-tit_Donald-Davesne_CC-BY_1200-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Great-tit_Donald-Davesne_CC-BY_1200.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Migrating great tits learn from birds already on the scene 159"></div>In some fascinating research involving training birds, scientists have added to our understanding of social learning in animal groups. Immigration, it seems, is a major driver of social learning in wild great tits (Parus major), a small songbird that can learn new behaviours from others of its species. A new PLOS Biology study has found […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Great-tit_Donald-Davesne_CC-BY_1200-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="A photograph of a small songbird standing on a stick. It has a black head and white cheek, with light green body." decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Great-tit_Donald-Davesne_CC-BY_1200-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Great-tit_Donald-Davesne_CC-BY_1200-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Great-tit_Donald-Davesne_CC-BY_1200-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Great-tit_Donald-Davesne_CC-BY_1200.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Migrating great tits learn from birds already on the scene 162"></div> <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="667" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Great-tit_Donald-Davesne_CC-BY_850.jpg?x75256" alt="A photograph of a small songbird standing on a stick. It has a black head and white cheek, with light green body." class="wp-image-316191" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Great-tit_Donald-Davesne_CC-BY_850.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Great-tit_Donald-Davesne_CC-BY_850-600x471.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Great-tit_Donald-Davesne_CC-BY_850-768x603.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Great-tit_Donald-Davesne_CC-BY_850-300x235.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="Migrating great tits learn from birds already on the scene 160"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Great tit (Parus major). Credit: Donald Davesne (<a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">CC BY</a>)</figcaption></figure> In some fascinating research involving training birds, scientists have added to our understanding of social learning in animal groups. Immigration, it seems, is a major driver of social learning in wild great tits (Parus major), a small <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/nature/birds/genes-allow-birds-to-keep-the-rhythm-while-singing/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">songbird</a> that can learn new behaviours from others of its species. A <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.3002699" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">new PLOS Biology study</a> has found great tits pay even closer attention to others when entering a new social group in an unfamiliar environment. They had to train birds so they could observe and understand behavioural patterns. The finding supports a long-held assumption about animal behaviour – that <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/focus/weather-radar-migrating-birds/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">migrating animals</a> use social learning to learn from resident populations in a new environment, instead of risking figuring things out themselves. “Social learning is a great shortcut when it comes to safely testing new waters,” says Dr Michael Chimento, lead author of the study from University of Konstanz, Germany. “Paying attention to what others are doing gives you the chance to see whether a new behavior is beneficial, or potentially dangerous. Copying it means that you too can reap the reward.” To investigate the effect of immigration on great tit learning behaviour, the team trained social groups of wild-caught birds to access food from a puzzle box. The birds had to either push a door left or right. They transferred right-pushing birds into aviaries where the residents used the left-hand solution, and vice versa. In some groups, the newcomers also discovered that residents scored a superior food reward by using their alternative method. And in some, the visual environment of the aviary was also changed by altering the type of foliage present. In trials where the new aviary’s foliage was different and altered the birds’ visual environment, 80% of newcomers switched their method of opening the puzzle box immediately upon being released into the new aviary and used the resident’s solution on their first try. Chimento says that this makes a compelling case that social learning was at play. “Of course, we can’t ask the birds exactly where they were getting their information from,” says Chimento, “but these behavioural patterns are striking enough to suggest that the birds were watching residents very closely from the moment they entered their new social group.” But when the foliage matched their original aviary, only 25% of the newcomers tried the resident solution on the first attempt, even when locals were earning better food. “They didn’t necessarily ignore the residents, but they took much longer to all switch over to the more rewarding solution,” says Chimento. “Our analyses suggested this was because they weren’t as influenced by the residents.” This is the first experimental evidence to show the powerful impact that immigration has on how animals learn from each other. “In nature, animals are often moving from one environment to another,” says the study’s senior author Lucy Aplin, a professor at the Australian National University and the University of Zurich, Switzerland. “So, it’s helpful to have a strategy to weed out what are good and bad behaviours to use in the new place. “Our study provided the experimental evidence to show that this is what happens in real life.” <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="Migrating great tits learn from birds already on the scene 161"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Who are you calling “bird brain”? Fossil from age of dinosaurs reveals roots of bird smarts</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/news/bird-brain-fossil-dinosaur/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Evrim Yazgin]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Sat, 16 Nov 2024 14:35:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Animals]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Birds]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Evolution]]></category> <category><![CDATA[History]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Nature]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Palaeontology]]></category> <category><![CDATA[animal intelligence]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Bird]]></category> <category><![CDATA[brain]]></category> <category><![CDATA[dinosaur]]></category> <category><![CDATA[evolution]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Fossil]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316258</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/front-5-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="illustration of ancient birds" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/front-5-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/front-5-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/front-5-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/front-5.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Who are you calling “bird brain”? Fossil from age of dinosaurs reveals roots of bird smarts 164"></div>A remarkably well-preserved fossil skull of a bird which lived 80 million years ago has been discovered in Brazil. It fills a 70-million-year gap in our understanding of how bird brains evolved. The bird belongs to a newly described species called Navaornis hestiae. The finding is reported in a paper published in Nature. The earliest […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/front-5-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="illustration of ancient birds" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/front-5-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/front-5-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/front-5-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/front-5.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Who are you calling “bird brain”? Fossil from age of dinosaurs reveals roots of bird smarts 168"></div> A remarkably well-preserved fossil skull of a bird which lived 80 million years ago has been discovered in Brazil. It fills a 70-million-year gap in our understanding of how bird brains evolved. <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="alignright size-full is-resized"><img decoding="async" width="800" height="1094" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/image_13425_1e-Navaornis-hestiae.jpg?x75256" alt="illustration of ancient birds with dinosaurs in background" class="wp-image-316235" style="aspect-ratio:0.7312614259597806;width:524px;height:auto" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/image_13425_1e-Navaornis-hestiae.jpg 800w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/image_13425_1e-Navaornis-hestiae-439x600.jpg 439w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/image_13425_1e-Navaornis-hestiae-768x1050.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/image_13425_1e-Navaornis-hestiae-300x410.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/image_13425_1e-Navaornis-hestiae-600x821.jpg 600w" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" title="Who are you calling “bird brain”? Fossil from age of dinosaurs reveals roots of bird smarts 165"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">An artist’s impression of Navaornis hestiae. Image credit: Júlia D’Oliveira.</figcaption></figure></div> The bird belongs to a newly described species called Navaornis hestiae. The finding is reported in a paper published in Nature. The earliest bird-like dinosaur is Archaeopteryx. It lived 150 million years ago. Navaornis has a larger cerebrum than Archaeopteryx, suggesting more advanced cognitive abilities than the <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/history/palaeontology/oldest-bird-tracks-fossil-africa/">earliest bird-like dinosaurs</a>. Most areas of its brain were less developed than in modern birds, indicating that Navaornis had not yet evolved the complex flight control mechanisms of today’s feathered friends. “The brain structure of Navaornis is almost exactly intermediate between Archaeopteryx and modern birds,” says co-lead author Dr. Guillermo Navalón from the University of Cambridge, UK. “It was one of those moments in which the missing piece fits absolutely perfectly.” Navaornis was discovered in 2016 near the city of Presidente Prudente, about 500km west of São Paulo. The region 80 million years ago, during the Cretaceous period, was probably relatively dry with slow-flowing creeks. Micro-CT scanning was used to reconstruct the bird’s skull cavity in remarkable detail. “This fossil is truly so one-of-a-kind that I was awestruck from the moment I first saw it to the moment I finished assembling all the skull bones and the brain, which lets us fully appreciate the anatomy of this early bird,” says Navalón. Today, birds have some of the most advanced cognitive abilities in the animal kingdom. Corvids – such as crows, ravens and magpies – are well established problem solvers. But scientists have long sought to understand how this intelligence developed over millions of years. Very little evidence about this transition has been found, however, linking Archaeopteryx to its modern descendants – until Navaornis. The ancient bird is a member of a group named enantionithines – or “opposite birds”. This name was coined by palaeontologist Cyril A. Walker <a href="https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/1981Natur.292...51W/abstract" target="_blank" rel="noopener">in 1981</a> due to the reversed articulation between the shoulder blade and a bone called the coracoid compared with other avian groups. <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="alignleft size-full"><img decoding="async" width="500" height="914" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/41586_2024_8114_Fig1_HTML.jpg?x75256" alt="bird skull photo and coloured diagram" class="wp-image-316233" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/41586_2024_8114_Fig1_HTML.jpg 500w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/41586_2024_8114_Fig1_HTML-328x600.jpg 328w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/41586_2024_8114_Fig1_HTML-300x548.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px" title="Who are you calling “bird brain”? Fossil from age of dinosaurs reveals roots of bird smarts 166"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">a,b, Photograph (a) and interpretive drawing (b) of the exposed side of the holotype of N. hestiae (MPM-200-1) in left lateral view. c, Micro-computed tomography rendering of MPM-200-1 in right ventral–lateral view. Scale bar, 10 mm. Credit: Nature, L M Chiappe et al.</figcaption></figure></div> “Opposite birds diverged from modern birds more than 130 million years ago, but had complex feathers and were likely competent flyers like modern birds,” says senior author of the new research Daniel Field, a professor at Cambridge. “However, the brain anatomy of Navaornis poses a new question: how did opposite birds control their flight without the full suite of brain features observed in living birds, including an expanded cerebellum, which is a living bird’s spatial control centre?” Despite this, Navornis was no dim wit. “Its cognitive abilities may have given Navaornis an advantage when it came to finding food or shelter, and it may have been capable of elaborate mating displays or other complex social behaviour,” Field adds. The Navornis fossil is one of the best bird fossils found from the Mesozoic era – also known as the “Age of Dinosaurs”. The palaeontologists are hopeful the site in Brazil and other locations around the world will further illuminate <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/nature/birds/dinosaur-extinction-bird-genome-evolution/">how birds evolved</a> their smarts over the aeons. <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="Who are you calling “bird brain”? Fossil from age of dinosaurs reveals roots of bird smarts 167"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Evidence that Mars had liquid water 742 million years ago found in meteorite</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/astronomy/mars-meteorite-liquid-water/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Evrim Yazgin]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Sat, 16 Nov 2024 11:35:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Astronomy]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Astrobiology]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Astrophysics]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Chemistry]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Core Sciences]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Earth]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Earth Sciences]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Physics]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Space]]></category> <category><![CDATA[astronomy]]></category> <category><![CDATA[geochemistry]]></category> <category><![CDATA[geology]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Mars]]></category> <category><![CDATA[meteorite]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316256</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/meteorite-contains-evi-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="a small black rock meteorite on see-through plastic stand against wooden background" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/meteorite-contains-evi-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/meteorite-contains-evi-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/meteorite-contains-evi-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/meteorite-contains-evi.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Evidence that Mars had liquid water 742 million years ago found in meteorite 170"></div>An asteroid struck Mars 10.7 million years ago, sending pieces of rock hurtling into space. One of those chunks landed on Earth – scientists analysing it have made an interesting discovery. The Martian rock landed somewhere in the US state of Indiana. It was rediscovered in a drawer at Purdue University in 1931 and named […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/meteorite-contains-evi-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="a small black rock meteorite on see-through plastic stand against wooden background" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/meteorite-contains-evi-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/meteorite-contains-evi-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/meteorite-contains-evi-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/meteorite-contains-evi.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Evidence that Mars had liquid water 742 million years ago found in meteorite 173"></div> An asteroid struck Mars 10.7 million years ago, sending pieces of rock hurtling into space. One of those chunks landed on Earth – scientists analysing it have made an interesting discovery. The Martian rock landed somewhere in the US state of Indiana. It was rediscovered in a drawer at Purdue University in 1931 and named the Lafayette Meteorite. How the rock made it into the drawer remains a mystery. Now scientists have aged and studied how the rock formed. <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="1200" height="675" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/meteorite-contains-evi.jpg?x75256" alt="a small black rock meteorite on see-through plastic stand against wooden background" class="wp-image-316257" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/meteorite-contains-evi.jpg 1200w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/meteorite-contains-evi-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/meteorite-contains-evi-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/meteorite-contains-evi-300x169.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px" title="Evidence that Mars had liquid water 742 million years ago found in meteorite 171"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The Lafayette Meteorite. Credit: Purdue University.</figcaption></figure> Findings from the analysis of the Lafayette Meteorite are published in Geochemical Perspective Letters. First, the researchers had to determine when the rock formed. “We dated these minerals and found that they formed 742 million years ago,” says lead author Marissa Tremblay, who believes the minerals in the meteorite would have been produced through interaction with <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/astronomy/ice-water-flow-ancient-mars/">liquid water while still on Mars</a>. “Dating these minerals can therefore tell us when there was liquid water at or near the surface of Mars in the planet’s geologic past,” she says. “We do not think there was <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/exploration/curiosity-mars-uninhabitable/">abundant liquid water on the surface of Mars</a> at this time. Instead, we think the water came from the melting of nearby subsurface ice called permafrost, and that the permafrost melting was caused by magmatic activity that still occurs periodically on Mars to the present day.” Tremblay’s team measured the amount of radioactive isotopes in the minerals to date the meteorite. Previous attempts to do so had likely been affected by other processes on Earth. This meant earlier research trying to determine the age of the meteorite was problematic. The team’s focus on argon isotopes has proven to give the most accurate age. “We have demonstrated a robust way to date alteration minerals in meteorites that can be applied to other meteorites and planetary bodies to understand when liquid water might have been present,” Tremblay says. <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="Evidence that Mars had liquid water 742 million years ago found in meteorite 172"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>A new theory about how social media interactions affect people’s brains</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/people/new-theory-about-social-media-interactions/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Cosmos]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Sat, 16 Nov 2024 02:30:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[People]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Behaviour]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316097</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="400" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-815928404-600x400.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="Social media: young graduates (Richard Baker / In Pictures via Getty Images Images)" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-815928404-600x400.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-815928404-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-815928404-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-815928404.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="A new theory about how social media interactions affect people's brains 174"></div>Are they right – the experts who argue that digital technologies are rewiring children’s brains? As digital platforms become ingrained in daily life, concerns about social media’s impact on mental health and behaviour—particularly among young people—have intensified, sparking debates over the need for stricter regulation. In response, governments are considering policies to limit social media use. Australia, […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="400" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-815928404-600x400.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="Social media: young graduates (Richard Baker / In Pictures via Getty Images Images)" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-815928404-600x400.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-815928404-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-815928404-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-815928404.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="A new theory about how social media interactions affect people's brains 175"></div> Are they right – the <a href="https://jonathanhaidt.com/anxious-generation/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">experts who argue</a> that digital technologies are rewiring children’s brains? As digital platforms become ingrained in daily life, concerns about social media’s impact on mental health and behaviour—particularly among young people—have intensified, sparking debates over the need for stricter regulation. In response, governments are considering policies to limit social media use. Australia, for instance, is introducing <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-11-08/how-the-age-minimum-for-social-media-will-work/104571790" target="_blank" rel="noopener">age restrictions on social media</a> platforms. In <a href="https://www.ansa.it/english/news/world/2024/09/11/european-schools-crack-down-on-mobile-phone-use_05160f6b-7c0b-479d-bbd5-e72a0a9426ba.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Europe</a>, similar measures are under review. <a href="https://www.ansa.it/english/news/general_news/2024/09/10/valditara-agrees-with-ban-on-cell-phones-for-under-14s_15cd8504-7128-4995-a2ad-843593687e03.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Italy</a> and <a href="https://www.irishtimes.com/ireland/education/2024/08/28/doctors-urge-ban-on-destructive-smartphone-use-by-children-under-age-16/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ireland</a> are considering smartphone bans for minors, while <a href="https://www.politico.eu/article/classroom-smartphone-ban-schools-belgium-mental-health-screen-time-apps-technology/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Belgium</a> and the <a href="https://www.euronews.com/2023/12/16/dutch-school-phone-ban-to-come-into-force-next-month" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Netherlands</a> have already prohibited phones in schools, citing negative impacts on learning and academic performance. <a href="https://www.euronews.com/my-europe/2024/08/31/greece-announces-new-rules-banning-mobile-phones-in-schools-from-september" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Greece</a> has implemented a partial ban, limiting smartphone use during school hours. North America is following suit. In the United States, <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2024/09/10/state-attorneys-endorse-social-media-warning-labels/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">42 state attorneys general</a> have called on Congress to mandate mental health warnings on social media platforms aimed at children. <h3 class="wp-block-heading has-brand-primary-color has-text-color">Neurobiological effects of online interactions</h3> As debates continue over social media’s benefits and risks, researchers are delving deeper into the neurobiological and psychological effects of online interactions. One challenge in assessing social media’s impact is its rapid evolution, which complicates efforts to conduct long-term studies that link digital use to specific cognitive or behavioural changes. While some <a href="https://jonathanhaidt.com/anxious-generation/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">experts argue</a> that digital technologies are fundamentally rewiring children’s brains and contributing to a mental health crisis, others contend that the evidence for such claims remains <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-00902-2" target="_blank" rel="noopener">inconclusive</a>. <h3 class="wp-block-heading has-brand-primary-color has-text-color">The “Disembodied Disconnect Hypothesis“</h3> In response to this pressing need for greater insight into social media, researchers have proposed a novel Disembodied Disconnect Hypothesis. <a href="https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/10.1089/cyber.2024.0334" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Introduced</a> in a recent paper by different European and American researchers coordinated by the <a href="https://organismi.unicatt.it/htlab/en.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Humane Technology Lab</a>, at the Catholic University of Sacred Heart, this framework examines how digital platforms reshape social behaviours without necessarily altering cognitive structures. The hypothesis posits that while digital platforms create new opportunities for interaction, they fundamentally differ from traditional, in-person social engagement. Researchers say this can have major psychological and social consequences. <h3 class="wp-block-heading has-brand-primary-color has-text-color">The role of in-person interaction</h3> Historically, communities have been built through face-to-face interactions in shared physical spaces. These interactions engage what researchers term “we-mode” processes, including behavioural synchrony (coordinated movements and expressions), shared attention (joint focus on objects or events), interbrain coupling (synchronised neural activity across individuals), and emotional attunement (shared emotional states). These embodied neurobiological mechanisms are not merely byproducts of social interaction but are fundamental to interpersonal bonding, the formation of collective identities, and the equitable distribution of social capital across diverse groups. For instance, <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rstb.2019.0432#:~:text=Synchrony%20also%20promotes%20prosocial%20behaviour,who%20do%20not%20experience%20synchrony." target="_blank" rel="noopener">studies have shown</a> that behavioural synchrony in communal rituals can increase prosocial behaviour and in-group cohesion, while interbrain coupling during face-to-face dialogue correlates with mutual understanding and empathy. <h3 class="wp-block-heading">The shift to digital communities</h3> By contrast, digital interactions eliminate many of these physical dynamics. While this grants individuals unprecedented freedom to choose their activities and social groups, it also reduces engagement with “we-mode” processes. Digital communities often bring together like-minded individuals, which can foster polarisation and deepen social inequalities. This digital shift creates what the researchers term the “disembodied disconnect”, dividing those who effectively use digital platforms to expand their networks and resources from those who struggle. Individuals with strong social skills often thrive in digital environments, expanding their networks and accessing diverse resources. In contrast, those grappling with loneliness or relationship difficulties may experience adverse effects such as rumination, unfavourable social comparisons, and weakened offline social ties. <h3 class="wp-block-heading has-brand-primary-color has-text-color">A complex picture of impact</h3> The study paints a complex picture of social media’s impact. On one hand, digital platforms have opened new channels for social interaction and community-building, reducing isolation for those who navigate them well. These platforms allow connections to flourish across geographic and temporal boundaries, providing critical support for niche or marginalised communities. They also serve as alternative social spaces during times of crisis, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the downsides are significant. Social media may worsen existing social inequalities and mental health challenges, particularly as it engages fewer of the “we-mode” processes fundamental to social bonding in physical spaces. For users already grappling with loneliness, digital interactions can increase anxiety and strain offline relationships. The lack of non-verbal cues often leads to misunderstandings, while the disinhibiting effect of online anonymity can fuel cyberbullying and the spread of misinformation. <h3 class="wp-block-heading has-brand-primary-color has-text-color">Tech and human interaction</h3> The impact of digital technologies on mental health is not universally positive or negative. A <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10409289.2023.2278117" target="_blank" rel="noopener">recent analysis</a> of 23 years of studies involving more than 30,000 children under 12 years old found that time spent watching television or playing computer games has measurable and long-term effects on children’s brain function. While excessive screen use may contribute to mental health issues, some studies show technology can improve focus and learning, and video games may enhance children’s cognitive skills. While the debate on the neurodevelopmental impact of digital technologies persists, the Disembodied Disconnect Hypothesis offers a more nuanced perspective. Rather than fundamentally rewiring cognitive structures, it suggests that digital technologies are reshaping human sociality in ways that can exacerbate existing social inequalities and mental health issues, particularly for those already struggling with loneliness and social anxiety. As the digital landscape evolves, both challenges to youth well-being and opportunities for mitigating mental health risks emerge. By understanding this “disembodied disconnect,” policymakers, educators, and researchers can better harness the benefits of digital platforms while addressing their potential harms, particularly for vulnerable populations. Striking a balance between digital engagement and traditional social interactions may offer a healthier approach to technology, particularly for the younger generation. As we navigate this transformed social landscape of the 21st century, it’s clear that the key lies not in wholesale rejection or uncritical embrace of digital technologies, but in thoughtful integration that preserves the essential elements of human connection. <h3 class="wp-block-heading"><a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/people/social-sciences/psychologists-find-there-are-four-types-of-social-media-user-which-one-are-you/">What type of social media user are you?</a></h3> Giuseppe Riva PhD is Director of Humane Technology Lab at the Catholic University of Milan, Italy. Humane Technology Lab (HTLAB) is the Laboratory of the Università Cattolica that was set up to investigate the relationship between human experience and technology. Originally published under <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Creative Commons</a> by <a href="https://360info.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">360info</a>™. ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Food for thought: the meat and livestock production summit</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/agriculture/the-meat-and-livestock-production-summit/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Richard A Lovett]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Fri, 15 Nov 2024 19:30:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Agriculture]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Sustainability]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=315680</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="425" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/GettyImages-1134121051-600x425.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="Sheep and lambs" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/GettyImages-1134121051-600x425.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/GettyImages-1134121051-768x543.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/GettyImages-1134121051-300x212.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/GettyImages-1134121051.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Food for thought: the meat and livestock production summit 177"></div>Two years ago, scientists from around the world met in Dublin in Ireland, to discuss the state of the science regarding meat production and animal husbandry. “They are too precious to society to become the victim of simplification, reductionism or zealotry,” they wrote in what has become known as the Dublin Declaration, ultimately signed by […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="425" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/GettyImages-1134121051-600x425.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="Sheep and lambs" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/GettyImages-1134121051-600x425.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/GettyImages-1134121051-768x543.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/GettyImages-1134121051-300x212.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/GettyImages-1134121051.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Food for thought: the meat and livestock production summit 182"></div> Two years ago, scientists from around the world met in Dublin in Ireland, to discuss the state of the science regarding meat production and animal husbandry. “They are too precious to society to become the victim of simplification, reductionism or zealotry,” they wrote in what has become known as the Dublin Declaration, ultimately signed by 1,216 scientists, economists, government officials, and farmers from around the world (including 82 from Australia). A <a href="https://www.publish.csiro.au/AN/pdf/AN23061" target="_blank" rel="noopener">special report </a>was published at the time with an Australian perspective, concluding: ” It is clear that the societal role of meat is being challenged with ideological and simplified logic, without substantiation from robust data-driven science. The Dublin Declaration is a first step to assemble an evidence-based narrative to underpin the essential role of meat in diet and health, a sustainable environment and society, economics and culture.” Late last month, nearly 200 of them got back together in Denver in Colorado I the US, for a second international meeting, titled: <a href="https://societalroleofmeat.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">“The Societal Role of Meat and Livestock.”</a>. <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="alignleft size-full is-resized"><img decoding="async" width="474" height="651" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/white-image.jpg?x75256" alt="white image" class="wp-image-315681" style="aspect-ratio:0.728110599078341;width:176px;height:auto" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/white-image.jpg 474w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/white-image-437x600.jpg 437w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/white-image-300x412.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 474px) 100vw, 474px" title="Food for thought: the meat and livestock production summit 178"></figure></div> The goal, says Keith Belk, an animal scientist at Colorado State University, Fort Collins, who hosted the summit, was to follow up on the Dublin meeting by reviewing the latest scientific information on all aspects of livestock management and meat consumption, ranging from human diet and health to environmental concerns and how best to communicate the science to policymakers and the public. There was even a presentation from a philosopher. The environmental issues with livestock production are well known. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization has estimated, for example, that livestock accounts for <a href="https://clear.ucdavis.edu/explainers/using-global-emission-statistics-distracting-us-climate-change-solutions" target="_blank" rel="noopener">14.5 percent</a> of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="aligncenter size-full"><img decoding="async" width="1000" height="701" src="/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/GettyImages-123527201.jpg?x75256" alt="Hereford beef cattle grazing at Arawata in the Strzelecki Ranges, Gippsland, Victoria, Australia" class="wp-image-29777" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/GettyImages-123527201.jpg 1000w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/GettyImages-123527201-600x421.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/GettyImages-123527201-768x538.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/GettyImages-123527201-300x210.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" title="Food for thought: the meat and livestock production summit 179"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Hereford beef cattle grazing at Arawata in the Strzelecki Ranges, Gippsland, Victoria, Australia</figcaption></figure></div> But not all forms of livestock production are created equal. Studies presented at the meeting, Belk says, show that some types of production are more effective than others at controlling emissions, especially when measured in terms of GHG emissions per kilo of meat or milk produced. Part of the difference appears to be the distinction between free-range or ranching production, in which animals are free to wander for much of the year, and more intensive forms of livestock raising, such as feedlots and dairies. “Greenhouse gas emissions are highest when your production system is inefficient,” Belk says. Also discussed was the need for revising the “food pyramid” used by government agencies for <a href="https://nutritionaustralia.org/fact-sheets/healthy-eating-pyramid/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">healthy eating advice</a>. The problem, says Frédéric Leroy, a food scientist at Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium, is twofold. First, these food pyramids “are very prescriptive, and don’t seem to work. Year after year, the rate of obesity and cardiopathology disease is increasing.” Secondly, he says, they attempt to force everyone onto a stereotyped Mediterranean diet that is actually a highly Americanized impression of the traditional diet of only a portion of the Mediterranean region. Better, he says, is a more flexible approach in which people are advised to avoid ultra-processed foods (other than occasional treats), while also staying away from diets based too heavily on foods with low nutrient density. That is, rather than focusing on telling people to avoid potentially bad things, what’s needed, he says, is “a renewed focus on the concept of adequate, essential nutrition.” How one does that may vary, he says, (allowing for many different cultural traditions), so long as the result is a nutritious mix of nutrient-dense foods, such as vegetables, nuts, dairy, fish, and even red meat. <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="aligncenter size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="564" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-2139529534.jpg?x75256" alt="Meat feedlot in Texas" class="wp-image-315689" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-2139529534.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-2139529534-600x398.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-2139529534-768x510.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-2139529534-300x199.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="Food for thought: the meat and livestock production summit 180"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">High view of a large beef feedlot / near Lubbock, Texas, USA. (Photo by: Richard Hamilton Smith /Design Pics Editorial/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)</figcaption></figure></div> The philosophy talk was from ethicist Paul Thompson, of Michigan State University, East Lansing. When most people think about ethical issues related to food and agriculture technology, he says, they tend to think in terms of cost/benefit tradeoffs. On one side, technology can increase food availability, reduce costs, or provide some other similar benefit. On the other, it may inflict harm on the environment, marginalized people, and perhaps the animals. But that’s not the only way of addressing such issues. Another is to view agriculture as special in and of itself. One version of this is to see the biggest issue as the need to continue being able to feed the world, not just today, but 50 years from now, even in the face of climate change. “This perspective is fairly widely held in the science community,” Thompson says. Another view is to think of farmers as especially valuable citizens who need to be protected. “We think of them as being important carriers of culture,” Thompson says. That cropped up in a <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/sustainable-food-systems/articles/10.3389/fsufs.2023.1277511/full" target="_blank" rel="noopener">UK report</a> on vat-grown meat, he notes, because one of the main criticisms of that technology was its impact on farmers. At the opposite end of the spectrum are urban dwellers, whose concerns are much more focused on the present, in which long food-supply chains have created what Thompson calls “a special vulnerability” for people who live in cities. “They’re much more focused on technologies that tend to drive more control over the food system into urban governance structures, whether those are local small producers, or things like manufacturing food [as in vat-grown meat].” The next step, Belk says, is for conference speakers to publish their finding in the journal Animal Frontiers (which in 2023 devoted an <a href="https://academic.oup.com/af/issue/13/2?login=false" target="_blank" rel="noopener">entire issue</a> to the first international summit on the role of livestock in society. But there will also probably be “a sort of call for action,” Belk says. “It’ll be to policy developers, but also to scientists, because scientists aren’t very good at sharing what their work means with the public at large. In today’s environment, where you have social media and so much disinformation and misinformation, there’s a need for figuring out how to do a better job of making real results of science available.” <h3 class="wp-block-heading"><a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/agriculture/can-red-meat-sector-go-green/">Read more: Can the meat sector go green?</a></h3> <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/JP4n"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Cosmos-Catch-Up-embed_728x150-1.jpg?x75256" alt="Sign up to our weekly newsletter" width="600" height="154" title="Food for thought: the meat and livestock production summit 181"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Now, that’s some hot carbon capture</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/chemistry/carbon-capture-industrial-heat-mof/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Ellen Phiddian]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Fri, 15 Nov 2024 14:32:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Chemistry]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Climate]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Core Sciences]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Earth]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Materials]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Technology]]></category> <category><![CDATA[carbon capture]]></category> <category><![CDATA[concrete]]></category> <category><![CDATA[greenhouse gas emissions]]></category> <category><![CDATA[industry]]></category> <category><![CDATA[steel]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316211</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-PressRelease_Images_KMC_RR-1-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="molecular model of metal-organic framework" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-PressRelease_Images_KMC_RR-1-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-PressRelease_Images_KMC_RR-1-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-PressRelease_Images_KMC_RR-1-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-PressRelease_Images_KMC_RR-1.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Now, that’s some hot carbon capture 184"></div>Chemists have made a substance that can absorb carbon dioxide at the high temperatures used in industrial processes, like cement or steel-making. The study, published in Science, could eventually help to lower the emissions of these hard-to-abate industries. While fossil fuels burned for energy can be readily replaced with low- or zero-emissions technology, it’s trickier […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-PressRelease_Images_KMC_RR-1-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="molecular model of metal-organic framework" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-PressRelease_Images_KMC_RR-1-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-PressRelease_Images_KMC_RR-1-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-PressRelease_Images_KMC_RR-1-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/1200-PressRelease_Images_KMC_RR-1.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Now, that’s some hot carbon capture 187"></div> Chemists have made a substance that can absorb carbon dioxide at the high temperatures used in industrial processes, like cement or steel-making. The study, <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.adk5697" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">published</a> in Science, could eventually help to lower the emissions of these hard-to-abate industries. While <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/climate/latest-report-fossil-fuel-co2-emissions-reach-record-high-again-in-2024/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">fossil fuels</a> burned for energy can be readily replaced with low- or zero-emissions technology, it’s trickier to change cement and steel-making to release less CO2. The most mature technology for capturing CO2 emissions at the source is through use of substances called liquid amines, which react with carbon dioxide molecules. But these chemicals don’t work above about 60°C, and industrial exhausts are usually well above 200°C. “A costly infrastructure is necessary to take these hot gas streams and cool them to the appropriate temperatures for existing carbon capture technologies to work,” says co-first author Dr Kurtis Carsch, a postdoctoral fellow at the University of California – Berkeley, USA. Carsch and colleagues investigated a promising category of molecules called metal-organic frameworks, or <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/chemistry/the-next-storage-revolution-up-close-and-personal/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">MOFs</a>. MOFs are <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/science/explainer-what-is-a-polymer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">polymers</a> made from carbon-based (organic) molecules and metals with lots of tiny pores, which allow them to act like molecular sponges. <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="478" src="/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-PressRelease_Images_KMC_RR-1.jpg?x75256" alt="molecular model of metal-organic framework" class="wp-image-316199" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-PressRelease_Images_KMC_RR-1.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-PressRelease_Images_KMC_RR-1-600x337.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-PressRelease_Images_KMC_RR-1-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/850-PressRelease_Images_KMC_RR-1-300x169.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="Now, that’s some hot carbon capture 185"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The molecular structure of the high-temperature, carbon-capturing MOF. It can selectively capture CO2 molecules over other substances in exhaust streams. Credit: Rachel Rohde, Kurtis Carsch and Jeffrey Long, UC Berkeley</figcaption></figure> “Our work moves away from the prevalent study of amine-based carbon capture systems and demonstrates a new mechanism for carbon capture in a MOF that enables high temperature operation,” says co-first author Rachel Rohde, a graduate student at UC Berkeley. Instead of relying on amines, the team’s MOF uses zinc hydride. It can capture carbon efficiently from between roughly 200°C and 400°C. “This material is highly stable and does something called deep carbon capture, which means it can capture 90% or more of the CO2 that it comes into contact with, which is really what you need for point-source capture,” says Rohde. “And it has CO2 capacities comparable to the amine-appended MOFs, though at much higher temperatures.” Co-author Professor Jeffrey Long, a chemist at UC Berkeley, says that “it was generally thought to be impossible” to capture molecules like CO2 in this way at temperatures this high. This is because matter naturally tends towards gas with increasing temperature – gaseous molecules are more favourable than the solid MOFs. “This work shows that with the right functionality – here, zinc hydride sites – rapid, reversible, high-capacity capture of CO2 can indeed be accomplished at high temperatures such as 300°C,” says Long. The team is now investigating whether they can make variations of this MOF that absorb even more CO2, or can absorb other gases at high temperatures. “There’s a tremendous number of ways we can tune the metal ion and linker in MOFs, such that it may be possible to rationally design such adsorbents for other high-temperature gas separation processes relevant to industry and sustainability,” says Carsch. <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="Now, that’s some hot carbon capture 186"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>What stardust can tell us about how our Sun formed</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/astronomy/sun-solar-system-formation/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Evrim Yazgin]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Fri, 15 Nov 2024 11:35:00 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Astronomy]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Astrophysics]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Australia]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Chemistry]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Core Sciences]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Physics]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Space]]></category> <category><![CDATA[astronomy]]></category> <category><![CDATA[astrophysics]]></category> <category><![CDATA[australian astronomy]]></category> <category><![CDATA[solar system]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Sun]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316229</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="337" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/front-6-600x337.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="illustration of sun forming with rocks around it" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/front-6-600x337.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/front-6-768x431.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/front-6-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/front-6.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="What stardust can tell us about how our Sun formed 189"></div>The Sun took about 10–20 million years to form according to an analysis of stardust left behind from the dawn of our solar system. Findings published in Nature show how long it took the molecular cloud of gas and dust to come together to create the Sun about 4.6 billion years ago. It is the […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="337" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/front-6-600x337.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="illustration of sun forming with rocks around it" decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/front-6-600x337.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/front-6-768x431.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/front-6-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/front-6.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="What stardust can tell us about how our Sun formed 192"></div><div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="alignleft size-full is-resized"><img decoding="async" width="800" height="1061" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/NatureCover_brighter.jpg?x75256" alt="illustration of sun forming with rocks around it" class="wp-image-316228" style="aspect-ratio:0.7540056550424128;width:449px;height:auto" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/NatureCover_brighter.jpg 800w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/NatureCover_brighter-452x600.jpg 452w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/NatureCover_brighter-768x1019.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/NatureCover_brighter-300x398.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/NatureCover_brighter-600x796.jpg 600w" sizes="(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" title="What stardust can tell us about how our Sun formed 190"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Artist impression of the Sun’s formation. Credit: Danielle Adams for TRIUMF.</figcaption></figure></div> The Sun took about 10–20 million years to form according to an analysis of stardust left behind from the dawn of our solar system. Findings <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-024-08130-4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">published</a> in Nature show how long it took the molecular cloud of gas and dust to come together to create <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/astronomy/nasa-meeting-sun-solar-maximum/">the Sun</a> about 4.6 billion years ago. It is the first time scientists have been able to give a concrete estimate for how long the process took. Scientists used sophisticated stellar evolution computer models to come up with their estimate. “From these models, we can determine which elements are produced by stars and how those elements are expelled into the galaxy,” says co-author Amanda Karakas from Melbourne’s Monash University. “These results are crucial for understanding what made up the gas and dust our Sun formed from,” she adds. “This is an exciting study because it provides an answer to one of the most enduring questions around the formation of our solar system.” The estimate for how long it took the Sun was made possible by an experiment in a lab in Germany. Researchers at the <a href="https://www.gsi.de/en/start/news/details/2024/11/13/betazerfall-thallium" target="_blank" rel="noopener">GSI Helmholtz Centre successfully observed</a> the rare decay of highly charged thallium (Tl) into lead (Pb). This allowed the astrophysicists to build a fuller picture of how much radioactive isotopes of lead to be expected in stars of different masses and ages. Tl-205 requires extreme temperatures of hundreds of millions of degrees Celsius  to decay toPb-205. “Ageing <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/astronomy/astronomers-star-evolution-new-lithium/">red giant stars</a> are the only place in the universe to generate this particular unstable isotope lead, a radioactive form of lead, which gets mixed into giant clouds of gas and dust and starts decaying,” Karakas says. “Our Sun formed from such a cloud, with some of the first solid fragments trapping some of this lead, which acts like a timestamp to give us clues to the formation time.” “Ageing red giant stars are the only place in the universe to generate this particular unstable isotope lead, a radioactive form of lead, which gets mixed into giant clouds of gas and dust and starts decaying,” she adds. “Our Sun formed from such a cloud, with some of the first solid fragments trapping some of this lead, which acts like a timestamp to give us clues to the formation time.” The research may help to explain how the planets in our solar system formed, as well as how other solar systems developed. <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="What stardust can tell us about how our Sun formed 191"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Science for kids: make a solar system to scale at home</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/space/astronomy/science-for-kids-solar-system-model/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Ariel Marcy]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Fri, 15 Nov 2024 04:19:28 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Astronomy]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Australia]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Core Sciences]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Our Planet]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Physics]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Space]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316175</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SolarSystem_GettyImages-529825452-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="Model solar system with planets blown up to show detail." decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SolarSystem_GettyImages-529825452-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SolarSystem_GettyImages-529825452-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SolarSystem_GettyImages-529825452-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SolarSystem_GettyImages-529825452.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Science for kids: make a solar system to scale at home 194"></div>Space is huge and explaining the vastness of space can be a tall order, especially to kids. The team at Double Helix, our partner publication, has brought this big concept down to Earth by creating a scale model of our inner solar system. You can create your own scale model using materials from around your […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SolarSystem_GettyImages-529825452-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="Model solar system with planets blown up to show detail." decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SolarSystem_GettyImages-529825452-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SolarSystem_GettyImages-529825452-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SolarSystem_GettyImages-529825452-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SolarSystem_GettyImages-529825452.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Science for kids: make a solar system to scale at home 199"></div> Space is huge and explaining the vastness of space can be a tall order, especially to kids. The team at <a href="https://doublehelixshop.csiro.au/en/eNewsletter" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Double Helix</a>, our partner publication, has brought this big concept down to Earth by creating a scale model of our inner solar system. You can create your own scale model using materials from around your home. It is a great activity to do with young people… or the young at heart. We were able to complete it in less than an hour but if you don’t have the materials on hand it will take longer.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">You will need</h2> <ul> <li>Ruler</li> <li>Tape measure</li> <li>Basketball</li> <li>Matchsticks</li> <li>Sewing pins with small and large heads</li> <li>Plastic cups or witches’ hats</li> <li>Pen</li> <li>Calculator (optional)</li> <li>Phone with measuring app (optional)</li> </ul> <figure class="wp-block-table is-style-regular"><table><tbody><tr><td>Space object</td><td>Actual diameter</td><td>Model diameter</td><td>What we used</td></tr><tr><td>Sun</td><td>1,392,700 km</td><td>242 mm</td><td>Basketball</td></tr><tr><td>Mercury</td><td>4,879 km</td><td>0.8 mm</td><td>Pin with small head</td></tr><tr><td>Venus</td><td>12,104 km</td><td> 2.1 mm</td><td>Matchstick</td></tr><tr><td>Earth</td><td>12,742 km</td><td>2.2 mm</td><td>Matchstick</td></tr><tr><td>Moon</td><td>3,476 km</td><td>0.6 mm</td><td>Pin with small head</td></tr><tr><td>Mars</td><td>6,790 km</td><td>1.2 mm</td><td>Pin with large head</td></tr></tbody></table></figure> <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="638" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Step1-1.jpg?x75256" alt="A basketball, matches, pins of various sizes representing the Sun and the planets." class="wp-image-316182" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Step1-1.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Step1-1-600x450.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Step1-1-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Step1-1-300x225.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="Science for kids: make a solar system to scale at home 195"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Credit: Double Helix</figcaption></figure> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">What to do</h2> Go to a local park with your model space objects, cups and tape measure. How big should the park be? The inner solar system will be about 40m wide; the distance to Jupiter will be about 136m. Pick a quiet area of the park to place your model Sun. We recommend picking a spot close to the park boundary, so you have plenty of room to spread out. The table below tells you the distances between space objects in real life and in your model. So, our scale is 1m: 5,740,000 km. <figure class="wp-block-table"><table><tbody><tr><td>Space objects</td><td>Actual distance</td><td>Model distance</td></tr><tr><td>Sun to Mercury</td><td>58,000,000 km</td><td>10.1 m</td></tr><tr><td>Mercury to Venus</td><td>51,000,000 km</td><td>8.9 m</td></tr><tr><td>Venus to Earth</td><td>40,000,000 km</td><td>7.0 m</td></tr><tr><td>Earth to Moon</td><td>384,400 km</td><td>0.07 m or 70 mm</td></tr><tr><td>Earth to Mars</td><td>79,000,000 km</td><td>13.7 m</td></tr></tbody></table></figure> Use the tape measure to practice pacing out exactly 1 meter. This might be two steps, one big step or one big jump. Choose a method that you’ll be able to repeat many times. You can also use an app to measure distances. <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="638" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Step4-2.jpg?x75256" alt="A man in a hat walks next to a tape measure, pacing out 1 metre." class="wp-image-316184" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Step4-2.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Step4-2-600x450.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Step4-2-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/Step4-2-300x225.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="Science for kids: make a solar system to scale at home 196"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Credit: Double Helix</figcaption></figure> Put the basketball down. That’s your Sun. With one foot next to your Sun, pace out 10 meters. Place your Mercury object here and mark it with a cup or a witch’s hat. With one foot next to Mercury, pace out 9 more meters away from your Sun. Place your Venus object here and mark it with a cup or a witch’s hat. With one foot next to Venus, pace out 7 more meters. Place your Earth object here and mark it with a cup or a witch’s hat. Look up – how big does the basketball appear now? Use a ruler or tape measure to measure 7cm from your Earth, and put your Moon object here. With one foot next to Earth, pace out 13.5 more meters. Place your Mars object and yet another cup or witch’s hat. Congratulations! You’ve completed a scale model of the inner solar system. A scale model can help us relate the astronomical gaps between the planets to distances we can understand and compare. Most illustrations of the solar system have to blow up the planets relative to their orbits so you can see them. <figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img decoding="async" width="850" height="478" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SolarSystem_GettyImages-529825452_InText.jpg?x75256" alt="Model solar system with planets blown up to show detail." class="wp-image-316177" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SolarSystem_GettyImages-529825452_InText.jpg 850w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SolarSystem_GettyImages-529825452_InText-600x337.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SolarSystem_GettyImages-529825452_InText-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/SolarSystem_GettyImages-529825452_InText-300x169.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 850px) 100vw, 850px" title="Science for kids: make a solar system to scale at home 197"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Most images of the solar system don’t show the planets to scale. Credit: Mark Garlick / Getty Images</figcaption></figure> <a href="https://stkildamelbourne.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Solar_System_Self_Guided_Trail_web_friendly.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">There’s a solar system sculpture</a> at scale at St Kilda Beach in Melbourne. Sweden claims the biggest scale model, which stretches across the entire country! <a href="https://skyandtelescope.org/observing/stargazers-corner/a-new-scale-model-solar-system/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The University of Colorado has a 1:10bn scale model</a> which inspired other sculptures, and it claims to be “materials efficient,” but Cosmos materials are likely to be entirely recycled! <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Adding Jupiter to your solar system</h2> What would it take to complete your solar system model? The outer planets are much further so it’s unlikely the whole model will fit in your park. For example, the next planet, gas giant Jupiter is 778,000,000km from the Sun. That’s 136 metres away from your basketball. <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Going further</h2> At the edge of our solar system lies the Oort cloud, which could stretch 15 trillion (that’s a 15 followed by 12 zeros) kilometres away from the Sun. In your model that would be 2,600 kilometres away. How about the nearest star (other than the Sun)? Proxima Centauri is 4.2 light years away, which is equal to about 40 trillion kilometres. In your model, that would be about 7,000 kilometres – a flight from Australia to Japan If you enjoyed this activity, we invite you to <a href="https://doublehelixshop.csiro.au/en/eNewsletter" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">sign up for Double Helix Extra</a>, a fortnightly newsletter delivering science activities, news, quizzes and more for kids and curious adults. <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="Science for kids: make a solar system to scale at home 198"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>Could exposure to air pollution be associated with eczema?</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/health/body-and-mind/air-pollution-link-eczema/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Imma Perfetto]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Fri, 15 Nov 2024 03:08:28 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[Body and Mind]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Health]]></category> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <category><![CDATA[Air pollution]]></category> <category><![CDATA[fine particulate matter]]></category> <category><![CDATA[skin]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316169</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/chris-leboutillier-NmT8Nk8OJMg-unsplash_1200-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="A photograph of an industrial smoke stack spewing gas into the atmosphere at sunset." decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/chris-leboutillier-NmT8Nk8OJMg-unsplash_1200-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/chris-leboutillier-NmT8Nk8OJMg-unsplash_1200-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/chris-leboutillier-NmT8Nk8OJMg-unsplash_1200-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/chris-leboutillier-NmT8Nk8OJMg-unsplash_1200.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Could exposure to air pollution be associated with eczema? 201"></div>People living in areas with higher levels of air pollution within the US are more likely to have eczema, new research in the journal PLOSE ONE has found. Outdoor air pollution its estimated to cause more than 4 million deaths per year, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). This is mainly due to fine […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="338" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/chris-leboutillier-NmT8Nk8OJMg-unsplash_1200-600x338.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="A photograph of an industrial smoke stack spewing gas into the atmosphere at sunset." decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/chris-leboutillier-NmT8Nk8OJMg-unsplash_1200-600x338.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/chris-leboutillier-NmT8Nk8OJMg-unsplash_1200-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/chris-leboutillier-NmT8Nk8OJMg-unsplash_1200-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/chris-leboutillier-NmT8Nk8OJMg-unsplash_1200.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="Could exposure to air pollution be associated with eczema? 203"></div> People living in areas with higher levels of air pollution within the US are more likely to have eczema, <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0310498#pone.0310498.ref006" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">new research</a> in the journal PLOSE ONE has found. Outdoor air pollution its estimated to cause more than 4 million deaths per year, <a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/ambient-(outdoor)-air-quality-and-health" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">according to the World Health Organization</a> (WHO). This is mainly due to <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/climate/bushfire-smoke-increasing-global-public-health-concern/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">fine particulate matter</a> – particles smaller than 2.5μm (PM2.5) in size, which are small enough to travel deep into the airways. In the new observational study, scientists linked the demographic and electronic health record data of more than 286,000 adults to average annual <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/health/no-safe-level-of-air-pollution-says-us-study/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">PM2.5 concentrations</a> in their post code. They found that the 12,695 participants (4.4%) diagnosed with eczema lived in areas with significantly higher PM2.5 concentrations than those without eczema. Even when controlling for demographics – such as age, sex, race/ethnicity, BMI, income, and smoking status – PM2.5 concentration was significantly associated with increased risk of having eczema. “Together with this study, findings from countries across the world support an approximately 2-fold increased risk of eczema with 10 μg/m3 increases in PM2.5,” the researchers write in the study. As this research was an observational study, the findings only indicate there is an association between higher levels of <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/earth/climate/how-useful-is-the-air-quality-index/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">air pollution</a> and risk of eczema, not that pollution definitively causes eczema. However, the researchers point to previous studies that indicate PM2.5 exposure may influence the risk of eczema through modulating the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) pathway and causing of oxidative stress, leading to damage to the skin’s epidermal barrier and inflammation. <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="Could exposure to air pollution be associated with eczema? 202"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> <item> <title>New writing program opens for teen STEM enthusiasts</title> <link>https://cosmosmagazine.com/news/new-writing-program-opens-for-teen-stem-enthusiasts/</link> <dc:creator><![CDATA[Jasmine Fellows]]></dc:creator> <pubDate>Fri, 15 Nov 2024 01:05:17 +0000</pubDate> <category><![CDATA[News]]></category> <guid isPermaLink="false">https://cosmosmagazine.com/?p=316098</guid> <description><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="400" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-1975268006-600x400.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="A teen Asian girl is captured studying online at home, using a laptop and headphones." decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-1975268006-600x400.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-1975268006-1440x960.jpg 1440w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-1975268006-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-1975268006-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-1975268006-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-1975268006-300x200.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="New writing program opens for teen STEM enthusiasts 205"></div>Quality journalism is not just for adults. Young writers and readers seek science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) news that is relevant and fact-based. In a move that supports the future of STEM journalism, CSIRO Double Helix magazine and Letterly will host a “Young STEM Journalism Bootcamp”. The Bootcamp is to run through January 2025, […]]]></description> <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class = "featured-image"><img width="600" height="400" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-1975268006-600x400.jpg?x75256" class="attachment-medium size-medium wp-post-image" alt="A teen Asian girl is captured studying online at home, using a laptop and headphones." decoding="async" style="width: 100%; margin-bottom: 10px;" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-1975268006-600x400.jpg 600w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-1975268006-1440x960.jpg 1440w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-1975268006-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-1975268006-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-1975268006-2048x1365.jpg 2048w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-1975268006-300x200.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" title="New writing program opens for teen STEM enthusiasts 208"></div> <h3 class="wp-block-heading"></h3> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="alignright size-thumbnail"><img decoding="async" width="300" height="300" src="/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-1975268006-300x300.jpg?x75256" alt="A teen Asian girl is captured studying online at home, using a laptop and headphones." class="wp-image-316124" srcset="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-1975268006-300x300.jpg 300w, https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/GettyImages-1975268006-100x100.jpg 100w" sizes="(max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px" title="New writing program opens for teen STEM enthusiasts 206"><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The Young STEM Journalism Bootcamp will develop the writing skills of high school students.</figcaption></figure></div> Quality journalism is not just for adults. Young writers and readers seek science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) news that is relevant and fact-based. In a move that supports the future of STEM journalism, CSIRO Double Helix magazine and Letterly will host a “Young STEM Journalism Bootcamp”. The Bootcamp is to run through January 2025, during Australia’s school holidays. Perfect for high school students, the online program will help young writers translate STEM into clear, relatable stories, that will be published by CSIRO. With guided feedback from experts, including the Double Helix magazine team, participants will learn to research, write and fact-check stories, developing their critical thinking and communication skills. “Science communication can change the world,” says Editor in Chief of CSIRO Publishing magazines unit, Ian Mannix. “We want young writers to be part of that opportunity. “It’s important to recognise that young people have an important viewpoint, and come from a different perspective than writers like me who’ve been in the business for 40 years. “This project will provide a great foundation in writing knowledge for participants. “It’s a great opportunity to build the talent pipeline for science journalism. We need to equip young people with the skills they need to understand science, so they can make evidence-based decisions to shape their futures.” Double Helix will publish their work on <a href="https://doublehelixshop.csiro.au/en/About" target="_blank" rel="noopener">its website</a> and the best stories will be printed in <a href="https://doublehelixshop.csiro.au/en/Subscribe" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Double Helix magazine</a>. “Some might even sneak into Cosmos, alongside the very successful podcasting content from young people who created <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/news/podcast-next-gen-how-important-are-marine-microbes/">Next Gen</a> for us last year,” Mannix says. The Letterly project builds on the history of CSIRO’s Double Helix magazine, which has almost 40-years’ experience of delivering quality science journalism to school-aged students. Letterly is a US-based startup with an education technology tool designed for 1:1 writing instruction. Enrolments can be made via the <a href="https://www.learn.letterly.io/doublehelix" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Letterly website</a>. Early-bird rates are available until 30 November. <div style><a href="https://link.cosmosmagazine.com/Q0f2"><img decoding="async" class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-198773" src="https://cosmosmagazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/Travel-with-scientists-embed_728x225-v1.jpg?x75256" alt="Buy the Cosmos eMag now" width="600" height="154" title="New writing program opens for teen STEM enthusiasts 207"></a></div> ]]></content:encoded> </item> </channel> </rss>