SCIENTIFIC: it's a weird and wonderful world, and science gets round to proving it every day...
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17-07-07: Pestered by mosquitoes? read about 5 garden plants that keep them away... Article
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17-07-07: There are now 300 vineyards in England...
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16-07-07: A British explorer has braved sub-zero temperatures to become the first person to swim at the North Pole. Lewis Gordon Pugh took to the freezing waters in just his Speedo swimming briefs, cap and goggles to highlight the devastating impact of climate change on the natural world. Article
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16-07-07: The UK sends more rubbish (per head of population) to landfills than any other country in Europe. The government has threatened local councils with fines totalling £205million if they haven't improved by 40% by 2013. To achieve this, many have instituted fortnightly collections of rubbish alternating with collections of re-cyclables in separate wheelie bins.
However,
following a storm of protest over "alternate week collections" The Communities and Local Government Select Committee also called for better research into the public health implications of leaving rubbish in the street for up to 14 days. They also said that fortnightly rubbish collections are unsuitable for many areas and there is no proof they increase recycling. Article
But what about the fact that much of what is put aside for recycling isn't actually recycled? There are hardly any facilities in England for recycling plastics, so much of the plastic collected - plus much more - is simply shipped to China. Lower labour rates there make separation of waste much cheaper, and an absence of legislation to protect the environment means that much of what we sent is put into land-fill sites over there...
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15-07-07: Just a reminder that there have been a lot of accidents with nuclear weapons... Article
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15-07-07: Showing the power of an exploding airbag. And then how just atmospheric pressure can crush a 55 gallon drum like it was a paper cup. Video
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Fantastic - a physics teacher shows you how to measure the speed of light in your kitchen! Link
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We have all heard that sunbathing exposes us to UVA and UVB rays - ultra-violet light that can burn the skin. Fortunately, there are many products that protect the skin and allow us to enjoy a bit of sun. Or are there...?
Despite the prevalence of all of these protective lotions, it has become apparent that the incidence of melanoma (the most dangerous form of skin cancer) have continued to increase in the UK, US and Australia. The reason seems to be that manufacturers have concentrated on screens to protect us from the UVB that is responsible for sunburn and skin ageing. however, there is increasing evidence that melanoma is caused by UVA. So a lotion that allows us to enjoy more sunshine without burning actually encourages us to spend more time outside exposing ourselves to UVA! Lawyers in the US have actually filed a class action against a number of sunscreen makers alleging that "sunblock" is misleading, because the products do not "block" the whole Uv spectrum and often imply equal UVA and UVB protection.
Full article in New Scientist 30 June 2007
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The mounds that termites build in the desert can be up to 5 metres tall - yet geologists are just realising that they burrow down as far as 30 metres! They do this in order to get moisture, but in the process they also bring rock particles to the surface that are easy evidence of the composition of the underlying bedrock. Mounds can even contain particles of pure gold because gold is very soft, and underground seams can be easily chewed by the insects.
Even more astonishing is that the desert grass Spinifex sends roots down as far as the water table - 50 metres or more. (That's the height of Nelson's Column in London!) The leaves and the taproot near the surface contain traces of the minerals far below ground.
Mining companies in Australia and South Africa are just realising that analysing samples brought to the surface by these two desert organisms can cut out a lot of expensive and unsightly drilling...
Full article in New Scientist 30 June 2007
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Fantastic picture of a wasp in flight.
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When Nasa first started sending up astronauts, they discovered ballpoint pens would not work in zero gravity. To combat the problem, Nasa scientists spent a decade and $12 billion to develop a pen that writes in zero gravity, upside down, underwater, on almost any surface and at temperatures ranging from below freezing to 300C. The Russians used a pencil.
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Surely the greatest travel Pic ever?
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The Victoria Crater on Mars - Pic taken by Mars Rover Opportunity
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The largest bird to have ever lived would have been a glider with a 7 metre wingspan. Article
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Europe 1000: A political map of Europe over 1000 years ago. Fascinating... Pic
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Gryphon parachute wings so you can fly for 40 kilometres before you glide down... Article
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Scientists have recovered a weapon fragment from a whale that suggests that it may have swum its first strokes not long after the American Civil War.
The fragment is part of a time delay bomb that was introduced in 1879 and manufactured until 1885. Scientists say it is rare to find a whale over 100 years, although they suspect some may reach 200.
The bowhead whale was killed by indigenous hunters off Alaska as part of their subsistence quota.
BBC Ceefax 20-6-07
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Mobile phone ringtones have reached the forests of western India - and leopards are answering their call. So far, six big cats which have strayed too close to villages have been lured into traps by ringtones playing the calls of roosters, goats and cows.
Conservation workers in Gujarat tempt the animals into cages under cover of darkness, then release them unharmed in forests away from the villages.
"The moos of a cow from the phone effectively trapped leopards", said D. Vasani, a forest official.
Reuters 4-6-07
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Rooks in Devon seem to have developed a new behaviour - they have been spotted spreading their wings over smouldering cigarette butts, ostensibly to get rid of parasites!
Richard Archer of the RSPB said "You have to be careful attributing behaviour but it would seem fumigation is the most likely conclusion...
The Telegraph 2-6-07
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Many local councils in the UK are now pushing for fortnightly waste collections in an attempt to increase levels of recycling - especially of plastics. So here are a couple of snippets from New Scientist (May 2007):
There are currently no plants in the UK capable of recycling polyester bottles into new food-grade polyester, so nearly three quarters of the 90,000 tonnes that is collected annually gets shipped to countries like China. In Asia, lower wages and lower environmental standards mean it is more cost effective to recycle there...
Oh, but much of it still ends up in a landfill... It is cheaper to ship it to China and bury it than to bury it in this country! (lower wages, less legislation etc...)
And 99 per cent of all the materials used in the US economy end up on the scrap heap after just 6 months...
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Lizard lifeline for diabetics?
The garish Gila Monster - Heloderma suspectum - is one of only two venomous lizards in the world, but the large poisonous lizard from Mexico has proved to be an unlikely lifeline for diabetics. The two-foot-long pink and black Gila Monster has a chemical in its saliva similar to a human hormone that helps regulate blood sugar.
Its potent poison, produced by glands in the lower jaw, is used to kill its prey - small mammals and birds. However, pharmaceutical scientists were more interested in the creature's spit. A chemical in the Monster's saliva, exendin-4, was found to act in a similar way to the human hormone glucagon-like-peptide-1 (GLP-1).
This month a new type 2 diabetes drug based on the lizard chemical was made available in the UK. Exenatide is the first in a new class of medicines known as incretin mimetics. It works by stimulating the pancreas to produce more insulin in response to raised blood sugar, and also influences digestion and appetite.
In healthy humans, GLP-1 stimulates beta cells in the pancreas to produce insulin when blood sugar levels get too high. But in type 2 diabetics, the GLP-1 message system can break down. The signal to make more insulin is weak or missing, and serious illness can result. Working together, scientists from the drug companies Eli Lilly and Amylin Pharmaceuticals developed an artificial version of exendin-4 that can be injected into patients. The product, exenatide, was launched in the UK last week under the brand name Byetta.
Wild populations of the Gila Monster and its cousin the Beaded Lizard - also poisonous - are declining rapidly due to habitat loss and illegal hunting for the pet trade. This has led conservationists to set up Project Heloderma in central and north America, where the reptiles live.
In recognition of the Gila Monster's gift to medicine, Eli Lilly is making a charitable contribution to the project over the next three years.
AOL 10th May 2007
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And never forget:
The average person on the average day, feels "below average"...
Some psychologists conducted a survey in which they asked people to rate something about themselves using a scale 1 - 5, where 3 was average, 4&5 were above average, 1&2 were below average. Easy?
They asked people what sort of person they were? Average, above average, or below average?
They asked them what kind of day they were having? Average, above average, or below average?
They asked them how they were feeling?
Average, above average, or below average?
The conclusion?
Obvious....
The average person on the average day, feels "below average"...!
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