Weather:
Tornado in Kansas
Tornado in Oklahoma
pondelok 15. júna 2009
Below Antarctica
Geology/Biology:
"Scientists have found an ancient ecosystem below an Antarctic glacier and learned that it survived millions of years by transforming sulfur and iron compounds for growth.
Described in the latest issue of Science, the ecosystem lives without light or oxygen in a pool of brine trapped below Taylor Glacier and next to frozen Lake Bonney in eastern Antarctica, said John Priscu, co-author of the Science article. Priscu is a longtime Antarctic researcher and professor in the Department of Land Resources and Environmental Sciences at Montana State University.
The ecosystem contains a diversity of bacteria that thrive in cold, salty water loaded with iron and sulfur. The water averages 14 degrees Fahrenheit, but doesn't freeze because the water is three or four times saltier than the ocean.
The scientists made a breakthrough discovery when they learned that the bacteria convert key elements on Earth into food, Priscu said. The bacteria cycle sulfur compounds to access iron in the bedrock."
"Ancient Ecosystem Thrives Millions of Years Below Antarctic Glacier." Space Daily
Ancient Ecosystem Below Antarctic Glacier
"Buried beneath several miles of ice in Antarctica are lakes ranging in size from Lake Ontario to lakes the size of Manhattan. Lake Vostok, the largest subglacial lake on Earth, is believed to harbor ancient life that has been isolated from open exchange with the atmosphere for several million years."
"Ancient Lakes of Antarctica - Living Biological Labs Millions of Years Old." The Daily Galaxy
Ancient Antarctic Lakes
"Scientists have found what they say is the first evidence of a volcanic eruption under the Antarctic ice sheet.
They believe the volcano erupted about 2,000 years ago, and would have burst through its ice covering, producing a burst of steam and rocky debris."
"Ancient Antarctic Eruption Noted." BBC News
Ancient Antarctic Eruption
"Scientists have found an ancient ecosystem below an Antarctic glacier and learned that it survived millions of years by transforming sulfur and iron compounds for growth.
Described in the latest issue of Science, the ecosystem lives without light or oxygen in a pool of brine trapped below Taylor Glacier and next to frozen Lake Bonney in eastern Antarctica, said John Priscu, co-author of the Science article. Priscu is a longtime Antarctic researcher and professor in the Department of Land Resources and Environmental Sciences at Montana State University.
The ecosystem contains a diversity of bacteria that thrive in cold, salty water loaded with iron and sulfur. The water averages 14 degrees Fahrenheit, but doesn't freeze because the water is three or four times saltier than the ocean.
The scientists made a breakthrough discovery when they learned that the bacteria convert key elements on Earth into food, Priscu said. The bacteria cycle sulfur compounds to access iron in the bedrock."
"Ancient Ecosystem Thrives Millions of Years Below Antarctic Glacier." Space Daily
Ancient Ecosystem Below Antarctic Glacier
"Buried beneath several miles of ice in Antarctica are lakes ranging in size from Lake Ontario to lakes the size of Manhattan. Lake Vostok, the largest subglacial lake on Earth, is believed to harbor ancient life that has been isolated from open exchange with the atmosphere for several million years."
"Ancient Lakes of Antarctica - Living Biological Labs Millions of Years Old." The Daily Galaxy
Ancient Antarctic Lakes
"Scientists have found what they say is the first evidence of a volcanic eruption under the Antarctic ice sheet.
They believe the volcano erupted about 2,000 years ago, and would have burst through its ice covering, producing a burst of steam and rocky debris."
"Ancient Antarctic Eruption Noted." BBC News
Ancient Antarctic Eruption
Ancient Microbe Comes Back To Life
Biology:
Ancient microbe comes back to life. Now that's something! Old bugs waking up after being dormant for thousands or millions of years. Is it Bug Park in the making? Will we see ancient bugs running around?
"After more than 120,000 years trapped beneath a block of ice in Greenland, a tiny microbe has awoken. The long-lasting bacteria may hold clues to what life forms might exist on other planets. The new bacteria species was found nearly 2 miles (3 km) beneath a Greenland glacier, where temperatures can dip well below freezing, pressure soars, and food and oxygen are scarce. "
"Microbe Wakes Up After 120000 Years." Live Science
Ancient Microbe Wakes Up
"Ressurection bug' revived after 120000 years." New Scientist
Ressurection Bug
Ancient microbe comes back to life. Now that's something! Old bugs waking up after being dormant for thousands or millions of years. Is it Bug Park in the making? Will we see ancient bugs running around?
"After more than 120,000 years trapped beneath a block of ice in Greenland, a tiny microbe has awoken. The long-lasting bacteria may hold clues to what life forms might exist on other planets. The new bacteria species was found nearly 2 miles (3 km) beneath a Greenland glacier, where temperatures can dip well below freezing, pressure soars, and food and oxygen are scarce. "
"Microbe Wakes Up After 120000 Years." Live Science
Ancient Microbe Wakes Up
"Ressurection bug' revived after 120000 years." New Scientist
Ressurection Bug
piatok 12. júna 2009
Speeding up brain network might boost IQ
Biology:
So you want to get smarter?
"For decades scientists have tried, mostly in vain, to explain where intelligence resides in our brains. The answer, a new study suggests, is everywhere.
After analysing the brain as an incredibly dense network of interconnected points, a team of Dutch scientists has found that the most efficiently wired brains tend to belong to the most intelligent people.
And improving this efficiency with drugs offers a tantalising – though still unproven – means of boosting intelligence, say researchers.
The concept of a networked brain isn't so different from the transportation grids used by cars and planes, says Martijn van den Heuvel, a neuroscientist at Utrecht University Medical Center who led the new study.
"If you're flying from New York to Amsterdam, you can do it in a direct flight. It's much more effective than going from New York, then to Washington, and then to Amsterdam. It's exactly the same idea in the brain," he says."
"Speeding up brain networks might boost IQ." New Scientist
Brain Networks and Higher IQ
Environment:
Mount St. Helens has blown once before in recent memory. Is a much larger explosion coming?
"IS A supervolcano brewing beneath Mount St Helens? Peering under the volcano has revealed what may be an extraordinarily large zone of semi-molten rock, which would be capable of feeding a giant eruption."
"Supervolcano may be brewing beneath Mount St. Helens." New Scientist
Supervolcano Mount St. Helens
Astronomy:
Scientists have observed that a star about 600 light years away from Earth is shrinking and showing signs that it will go supernova. Of course what we're observing in the sky right now is 600 year old history, since it takes that long for the light from that star to reach us. So the star in present time could already have exploded.
"Nearby Star May Be Getting Ready To Explode." Fox News
Nearby Star May Go Supernova
Chemistry:
New element added to the periodic table, element 112.
"New Chemical Element In The Periodic Table." Science Daily
New Element 112
Element 118, one of the superheavies also discovered.
"Livermore Scientists Team With Russia To Discover Element 118." Science Daily
New Element 118
So you want to get smarter?
"For decades scientists have tried, mostly in vain, to explain where intelligence resides in our brains. The answer, a new study suggests, is everywhere.
After analysing the brain as an incredibly dense network of interconnected points, a team of Dutch scientists has found that the most efficiently wired brains tend to belong to the most intelligent people.
And improving this efficiency with drugs offers a tantalising – though still unproven – means of boosting intelligence, say researchers.
The concept of a networked brain isn't so different from the transportation grids used by cars and planes, says Martijn van den Heuvel, a neuroscientist at Utrecht University Medical Center who led the new study.
"If you're flying from New York to Amsterdam, you can do it in a direct flight. It's much more effective than going from New York, then to Washington, and then to Amsterdam. It's exactly the same idea in the brain," he says."
"Speeding up brain networks might boost IQ." New Scientist
Brain Networks and Higher IQ
Environment:
Mount St. Helens has blown once before in recent memory. Is a much larger explosion coming?
"IS A supervolcano brewing beneath Mount St Helens? Peering under the volcano has revealed what may be an extraordinarily large zone of semi-molten rock, which would be capable of feeding a giant eruption."
"Supervolcano may be brewing beneath Mount St. Helens." New Scientist
Supervolcano Mount St. Helens
Astronomy:
Scientists have observed that a star about 600 light years away from Earth is shrinking and showing signs that it will go supernova. Of course what we're observing in the sky right now is 600 year old history, since it takes that long for the light from that star to reach us. So the star in present time could already have exploded.
"Nearby Star May Be Getting Ready To Explode." Fox News
Nearby Star May Go Supernova
Chemistry:
New element added to the periodic table, element 112.
"New Chemical Element In The Periodic Table." Science Daily
New Element 112
Element 118, one of the superheavies also discovered.
"Livermore Scientists Team With Russia To Discover Element 118." Science Daily
New Element 118
streda 10. júna 2009
Guy catches air-to-air guided missile
It's a fish! It's a whale! No, it's an air-to-air guided missile! Imagine catching that while fishing!
"Fisherman hooks air-to-air guided missile." News.com.au
Fisherman catches missile
"Fisherman hooks air-to-air guided missile." News.com.au
Fisherman catches missile
Robot Scientist
Robotics:
Robots can make scientific discoveries on their own now. Hope it's not a step towards them taking over the world! Kidding...
Robots can make scientific discoveries on their own now. Hope it's not a step towards them taking over the world! Kidding...
Massive Black Hole
Astronomy:"A pair of pioneering astronomers revealed Tuesday how they used a supercomputer to show that a nearby black hole is vastly more massive than scientists ever imagined.
The black hole at the heart of the relatively close Messier 87 Galaxy (M87) weighs in at 6.4 billion times the mass of our Sun, according to US astrophysicist Karl Gebhardt and Germany's Jens Thomas, who say it's the largest ever measured with a reliable technique.
One of the more enigmatic features of astronomy, a black hole is a region in space that is inferred by tracking stars that orbit it. Objects fall into its stupendous gravitational field but nothing, not even light, can return.
Gebhardt and Thomas' revelation, they say, sheds light on how galaxies grow, and may solve the paradox of quasars -- active black holes guzzling matter in distant galaxies that scientists are struggling to understand."
"Black Hole more massive than imagined." Space Daily
Massive Black Hole
Energy:
Nuclear fusion is an interesting thing. The sun and the stars work through nuclear fusion. In this process, several lighter nuclei fuse together and form one larger nucleus. Energy is then released.
"A multi-billion-dollar project to prove whether nuclear fusion, the power that fuels the Sun, can be a practicable energy source is to be scaled down in its early stages, sources said on Monday.
The test reactor, to be built at a site in southern France, will start its experiments in 2018 as scheduled but will initially be built in a slimmed-down form, they said."
"Nuclear fusion power project to start in slimmed-down version." Space Daily
Nuclear Fusion
Nuclear fusion is an interesting thing. The sun and the stars work through nuclear fusion. In this process, several lighter nuclei fuse together and form one larger nucleus. Energy is then released.
"A multi-billion-dollar project to prove whether nuclear fusion, the power that fuels the Sun, can be a practicable energy source is to be scaled down in its early stages, sources said on Monday.
The test reactor, to be built at a site in southern France, will start its experiments in 2018 as scheduled but will initially be built in a slimmed-down form, they said."
"Nuclear fusion power project to start in slimmed-down version." Space Daily
Nuclear Fusion
utorok 9. júna 2009
Parrot dances to the Backstreet Boys
A cockatoo parrot keeps the beat and dances to a song by the Backstreet Boys. He's a better dancer and has more rhythm than most guys!
pondelok 8. júna 2009
Deep-Sea Frilled Shark
Oceanography:
This is a Deep-Sea Frilled Shark filmed off the coast of Japan. Usually these are found in deep water, however this one ended up closer to shore and died. These types of sharks are very ancient and their shape and form has changed very little from what it looked like millions of years ago.
This is a Deep-Sea Frilled Shark filmed off the coast of Japan. Usually these are found in deep water, however this one ended up closer to shore and died. These types of sharks are very ancient and their shape and form has changed very little from what it looked like millions of years ago.
Space Junk
Space:
"The spacefaring nations of the world are coming to the conclusion that the space debris issue has evolved from a minor nuisance to a full-blown imperative. Hundreds, if not thousands, of decision makers, engineers, managers, politicians and policy makers have focused their attention on how to deal with the fast-growing threat to operational satellites and future access to space."
"Space Traffic Management in the Earth 21st Century." Space Daily
Space Debris Management
"The spacefaring nations of the world are coming to the conclusion that the space debris issue has evolved from a minor nuisance to a full-blown imperative. Hundreds, if not thousands, of decision makers, engineers, managers, politicians and policy makers have focused their attention on how to deal with the fast-growing threat to operational satellites and future access to space."
"Space Traffic Management in the Earth 21st Century." Space Daily
Space Debris Management
Ancient Antarctica and the Origin of the Ice Sheets
Geology:
Ancient Antarctica millions of years ago supposedly looked like what the Alps look like today. There were mountains and valleys. It was only about 14 million years ago that the ice sheet covered those up.
"Many studies hint that Antarctica’s ice sheet began to form about 34 million years ago, but where that ice sheet originated and how it evolved have long been mysteries. Now, scientists who used ice-penetrating radar to survey a 30-by-30–kilometer area in East Antarctica report in the June 4 Nature that they may have discovered the birthplace of the Antarctic ice sheet.
The area surveyed during two field seasons — the Antarctic summers of 2005 and 2007 — sits more than 4 kilometers above sea level and is known as Dome A, says Simon M. Mudd, a geomorphologist at the University of Edinburgh. Buried far beneath that region’s relatively flat surface, however, lies a chain of peaks called the Gamburtsev Mountains. The new data, the first collected in the region since an aircraft-mounted radar probed the ice nearby in the 1970s, provides the first detailed glimpse at the subglacial topography there, Mudd says. “The topography here is less well known than the surface of Mars,” he notes."
"Ancient Antarctica, Before the Ice." Science News
Ancient Antarctica
Ancient Antarctica millions of years ago supposedly looked like what the Alps look like today. There were mountains and valleys. It was only about 14 million years ago that the ice sheet covered those up.
"Many studies hint that Antarctica’s ice sheet began to form about 34 million years ago, but where that ice sheet originated and how it evolved have long been mysteries. Now, scientists who used ice-penetrating radar to survey a 30-by-30–kilometer area in East Antarctica report in the June 4 Nature that they may have discovered the birthplace of the Antarctic ice sheet.
The area surveyed during two field seasons — the Antarctic summers of 2005 and 2007 — sits more than 4 kilometers above sea level and is known as Dome A, says Simon M. Mudd, a geomorphologist at the University of Edinburgh. Buried far beneath that region’s relatively flat surface, however, lies a chain of peaks called the Gamburtsev Mountains. The new data, the first collected in the region since an aircraft-mounted radar probed the ice nearby in the 1970s, provides the first detailed glimpse at the subglacial topography there, Mudd says. “The topography here is less well known than the surface of Mars,” he notes."
"Ancient Antarctica, Before the Ice." Science News
Ancient Antarctica
sobota 6. júna 2009
Berlusconi House Nakedness and Sex
News:
Photos of happenings at the Berlusconi villa have recently been leaked. After the wife of Silvio Berlusconi filed for divorce over the alleged affair of her husband with a 17-year old model (now 18) Noemi Letizia, more scandalous information has surfaced. A paparazzi took pictures of naked models frolicking in the gardens and sunning themselves next to the pool at the villa of Silvio Berlusconi. Some of the pictures leaked also include the nude photos of the former Czech Prime Minister, Mirek Topolanek, during his vacation at the villa. Yes, that's him, one with the pippy showing!
Photos of happenings at the Berlusconi villa have recently been leaked. After the wife of Silvio Berlusconi filed for divorce over the alleged affair of her husband with a 17-year old model (now 18) Noemi Letizia, more scandalous information has surfaced. A paparazzi took pictures of naked models frolicking in the gardens and sunning themselves next to the pool at the villa of Silvio Berlusconi. Some of the pictures leaked also include the nude photos of the former Czech Prime Minister, Mirek Topolanek, during his vacation at the villa. Yes, that's him, one with the pippy showing!
štvrtok 4. júna 2009
Gold mining in the Sewers!
Interesting:
So how to strike rich? Well one option is to go gold prospecting in the sewers! Seriously. In Japan, one of the sewers is literally a gold mine!
"A sewage treatment facility in Nagano prefecture, north-west of Tokyo, has reported a yield of gold extracted from sludge to rival production levels at some of the best mines in the world.
Tens of thousands of pounds worth of gold has been found at the Suwa treatment facility in the past year, with more than 1,890 grammes of gold per tonne of ash recorded from incinerated sludge. The gold yield significantly surpasses levels at Japan's Hishikari Mine, one of the world's leading gold mines, where 20 to 40 grammes of the precious metal are found per tonne of ore. "
"Japan's sewers paved with gold." The Telegraph
Gold in Sewers in Japan
So how to strike rich? Well one option is to go gold prospecting in the sewers! Seriously. In Japan, one of the sewers is literally a gold mine!
"A sewage treatment facility in Nagano prefecture, north-west of Tokyo, has reported a yield of gold extracted from sludge to rival production levels at some of the best mines in the world.
Tens of thousands of pounds worth of gold has been found at the Suwa treatment facility in the past year, with more than 1,890 grammes of gold per tonne of ash recorded from incinerated sludge. The gold yield significantly surpasses levels at Japan's Hishikari Mine, one of the world's leading gold mines, where 20 to 40 grammes of the precious metal are found per tonne of ore. "
"Japan's sewers paved with gold." The Telegraph
Gold in Sewers in Japan
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