ريتشارد دوكنز's Blog, page 686

This Ultrathin “Invisibility Cloak” Makes It Impossible To See Microscopic Objects

Physics





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This illustration shows the gold nanoantennas reflecting light like a flat mirror. Berkeley Lab.

Scientists have revealed they have developed a minuscule "invisibility cloak" that renders tiny objects impossible to see. Importantly, the microscopic design is scalable, meaning it could be applied to things that aren't, you know, the size of a bacterium.

3D-Printed Pathway Helps Nerve Growth

Health and Medicine





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A 3D-printed nerve regeneration pathway in a test subject. University of Minnesota College of Science and Engineering

3D printing has some amazing possibilities for architecture and design, not the least of which is engineering personalized tissue – in this case, printing a personalized nerve scaffold for your post-injury healing.

Pigs Shot In The Head For Science

Plants and Animals





Photo credit:

csabacz/Shutterstock

While nobody wants to kill animals for this purpose, its necessity for the improvement of scientific knowledge is recognized. Ultimately, what we learn from these experiments not only benefits humans but animals as well. Still, nobody denies it is a grim and unfortunate practice - a message that has been hammered home by recently published research.

Amazing Video Shows Our Solar System To Scale Across Seven Miles Of Desert

Space





Photo credit:

To Scale/YouTube.

What does the Solar System look like when it's shown exactly to scale? Thanks to this amazing video, you can now find out.

Scientists Call For A Ban On Microbeads

Environment





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Microbeads are found in many cosmetic products, and often end up polluting our lakes and rivers. 5Gyres/Oregon State University

Check out some shower gel, and it might have lots of little bits in it. Most of the time, these are tiny spheres of plastic called “microbeads.” Designed to scrub your body and remove dead skin, they’re not just found in shower gel – cleaning products, facial scrub, and even toothpaste often contains them too. They might seem harmless and insignificant, but collectively trillions are being washed into our sewers and polluting our rivers and oceans every day.

Did Fearlessness Lead To Chicken Domestication?

Plants and Animals





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Red junglefowl in Thailand. noppadon sangpeam/shutterstock

Domesticated fowl who are less fearful of humans also grow more and lay bigger eggs. According to new work published in Biology Letters, tameness may have been the driving force behind various other desirable traits, and they appear to be all linked by changes in the brain chemical serotonin.

Obese Three-Year-Old Diagnosed With Youngest Known Case Of Type 2 Diabetes

Health and Medicine





Photo credit:

aquariagirl1970/Shutterstock

Even though a problem can surround us, often it takes a shocking story for it to truly sink in. So perhaps this one will help inform the public of just how bad the global obesity epidemic is getting, if the obvious expanding waistlines and endless documentaries weren’t enough. This is the unfortunate tale of Type 2 diabetes in the youngest known case, a 3-year-old girl.

Should We Just Let Pandas Die Out?

Plants and Animals





Photo credit:

ex0rzist/Shutterstock

“As pointless as taking off the pants in order to fart,” is how one expert has branded panda conservation efforts. Despite the serious amount of cash, time and energy injected into saving the bamboo-munchers from their march towards extinction, frustratingly nothing seems to work. Not even panda porn can help them go forth and multiply.

NASA Delays First Manned Mission Of Mars-Bound Orion Spacecraft To 2023

Space





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Orion will take humans to the Moon, an asteroid and Mars. NASA.

NASA has revealed that it has had to delay the first manned mission of its Orion spacecraft by up to two years, the latest setback in its goal to get humans to Mars.

Red Dwarves Have Surprisingly Slow Planetary Formation

Space





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Artist's impression of the disk around one of two newly discovered red dwarves. Credit: ANU

There may be more ways to make a planet than we realized, at least when it comes to timing. Red dwarfs have been found with disks apparently taking much longer to coalesce into planets than was previously thought possible. Coincidently, the announcement comes only days after the announcement of exceptionally rapid planet formation.