Dean Calma IAEA, CC 4.0. BY-SA A gold-standard scientific trial revealed an existing mosquito control method works not only to reduce insect numbers, but also the diagnoses of dengue fever in the area. Dengue, also known as “breakbone” fever, is a severe viral infection spread by mosquitoes that can be debilitating when caught, and lethal … Read more
A collage of planets to scale – credit, CactiStaccingCrane CC 4.0. BY-SA via Wiki Next Saturday, the 28th of February, stargazers will have the chance to spot Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune all clustered together in the sky. Called a planetary alignment, they occur when the planets, which orbit atop the same horizonal … Read more
A mixed-species section of the Green Great Wall – Credit: 中国新闻网 CC 3.0. BY China’s multi-decade long, successful effort to plant a ring of trees around one of the world’s most hostile deserts has sprouted an unexpected benefit to humanity. Along with protecting the nation’s grasslands and agriculture from the spreading sands of the dismal … Read more
Brandy Vailes via Unsplash Decades of underinvestment in mining and refining across Europe and North America has landed the manufacturing sector in a problem, which a group of scientists believe can be helped by mushrooms rather than excavators. One must have been living under a rock not to have recently read the terms “critical minerals” … Read more
A blooming cactus in the National Park of the Llanos in Chile’s Atacama Desert – credit Kelly Mella via Unsplash Amid the scorching/freezing desert of Atacama in Chile, one of South America’s largest botanical storehouses aims to protect both the wild and cultivated heritage of the country’s plant life. Called the Initihuasi Seed Bank, this … Read more
A compositional analysis of cement (overlayed to right) in Pompeii – credit Archaeological Park of Pompeii A scientist who figured out the secret behind ancient Rome’s self-repairing concrete has recently confirmed his theory at a Pompeii building site where such concrete was in use. This marriage of theoretical and historical knowledge combined with hard evidence … Read more
credit – A Posado via SWNS The whiskers on an elephant’s trunk are key to its “amazing” sense of touch, reveals new research. The 1,000 hairs that cover the trunk have unusual properties that highlight where contact happens along each whisker allowing the largest land animal to grab something as small as a peanut, say … Read more
The Islas Ballestas off the coast of the Chincha and Pisco valleys remain an important location for many seabird species, as well as seals and other marine animals. Birds today are less abundant than they were in the past, leading to decreased guano accumulation compared to earlier eras – credit, Jo Osborn New archaeological evidence … Read more
NASA The reproductive spores of a moss species were able to somehow survive the vacuum of space during a 9-month stint outside the International Space Station. In the immortal words of Jeff Goldblum, life, uh, finds a way. Physcomitrella patens is known as a hardy pioneer species of spreading moss that readily cultivates on muddy ground. … Read more
A jaguar on the Piquiri river – credit, Charles J. Sharp from Sharp Photography CC 4.0. BY-SA via Wikimedia While searching for their cubs, the females of the world’s third-largest feline will make a sound that’s strikingly similar to what you’ve heard your own cat make. Weighing in excess of 300 lbs., the jaguar is … Read more