Metals From Plants?

Plants: we eat them, juice them, weave them — and now it seems we can mine them too! After a successful experiment on the island of Borneo, Botany Professor Alan Baker and a group of researchers want to introduce phytomining (harvesting minerals from plants) as a better, partial substitute for traditional mining. By having farmers collect the nickel-rich sap of certain plants, Baker and the team were able to gather thousands of dollars of raw nickel, and are now looking to repeat the experiment on a larger scale. What is Phytomining? Phytomining, also known as agromining, means collecting...

Blood Red Snow In Antarctica

Recently, scientists at Ukraine’s Vernadsky Research Base in Antarctica shared pictures of blood-red snow, referred to as raspberry snow or watermelon snow . This heavy bloom of red algae is related to unusually warm summer temperatures in Antarctica. How Do Algae Survive In Winter? This alga belongs to the Chlamydomonas family and is found all over the world -- from soils and freshwater to oceans and mountains. These algae survive the cold and harsh Antarctic winters by staying dormant. But, when warm temperatures roll around in summer, they begin to bloom into a distinguishable shade of red...

Earth Was Once a Water World!

When you think of prehistoric Earth, you may think of ancient creatures roaming the land. But long before the dinosaurs, our planet may have been covered entirely by water! According to a study published in the journal Nature Geoscience, continents may not have existed three billion years ago during a period known as the archean eon. University of Colorado Boulder researcher Boswell Wing and Iowa State University researcher Benjamin Johnson found evidence of the ancient oceanic planet in an unusual place -- the outback of northwestern Australia. The site, known as Panorama, contained rock...

A Name For NASA's New Rover

NASA’s next rover to Mars finally has a name. Perseverance. This name was chosen by a seventh-grader from Virginia, Alexander Mather. He was one of the 28,000 people who submitted entries to NASA’s “Name the Rover” essay contest. Perseverance is undergoing a final check and assembly before it will be sent out to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. In addition to getting to name the rover, Alexander and his family will be flown out to Florida to witness the launch of Perseverance. The launch is scheduled to take place between July 17 and August 5 and scheduled to land on Mars on February...

A Special Day To Celebrate Women

Throughout history, women have faced inequality and injustice. Though women’s contributions to society have been many and crucial to the way our world is today, a majority of history books don’t credit them. In the past, women were not able to work or allowed to vote. While we have made some progress, many hardships and problems still remain. There are reports of girl infanticide in China and India. The rights of women with regard to voting, education, and divorce are still not established in many countries. And even in the West, women are paid only 80% of what men receive for the same work...

Canary Islanders Brave Sandstorms

Imagine you are on vacation. You step out of your hotel and expect to see a tropical paradise filled with pristine beaches and clear water. Instead, you are greeted by an “apocalyptic” orange sky and sand flying at dangerous speeds. On February 23, 2020, the Canary Islands were hit by an intense sandstorm that brought record-breaking winds and temperatures. The sandstorms reduced visibility, forced residents to stay indoors, shut down schools, and led to flight cancelations. Let’s look at what this weather phenomenon is and its impact. What is Calima? Calima, a Spanish word for haze, is a...

How Solar Storms Affect Whales

Did you know that gray whales travel around 10,000 to 12,000 miles a year? Starting off in Mexico, where they mate or birth calves, they then head to the Arctic to feed. Finally, they return to Mexico, completing one of the longest known animal migration trajectories with impressive precision. But how do these whales know where to go? How do they travel for so long and end up in the exact same locations, every time? Earth's Magnetic Field: A Gray Whale’s Compass? Because whales do not have many visual markers in the ocean, scientists believe their ability to find the direction may have to do...

A Teen Wrestler Breaks Records

A female teen from North Carolina has recently broken records by becoming the first girl ever to winning a state championship in wrestling. Heaven Fitch, a junior from Uwharrie Charter School has been wrestling since she was six due to her brother’s influence. She was a complete natural as her wrestling record was at a stellar 54 wins and only 4 losses. She competed in the 106-pound weight class. She won the final match with a score of 11-3. When asked about her thought on the win, she answered, “I’m just very overwhelmed...It’s like insane what I’ve done, it’s not fully sunken in yet.” She...

Botswana Auctions Permits to Hunt Elephants

In May 2019, Botswana -- a country in south-west Africa, officially lifted the ban on elephant hunting. Botswana is now auctioning permits to hunt elephants at approximately $39,000 each. Seventy permits have already been sold and the government is allowing 272 elephants to be culled this year. Let’s look at why the ban was lifted and Botswana’s plan to cull elephants. Elephant Numbers In Botswana Botswana has more than 130,000 elephants, making it the country with the largest population of African elephants. However, from 2007 to 2014, the elephant population in Africa decreased by 30%...

Tesler: The Man Behind Cut & Paste!

Have you ever copied and pasted something? What about opening a file by clicking on an icon? These ideas and technologies were created by Lawrence “Larry” Tesler, who sadly passed away on February 16, 2020. The cause of his death is still unknown, but he will be remembered nonetheless. His mission was to make computing life easier, and he did exactly that. Brief Biography Larry Tesler was born to Muriel and Isidore Tesler on April 24, 1945. He had a passion for computers in his early years. In high school, he made a new algorithm that generated prime numbers. His teacher was impressed and...

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