ريتشارد دوكنز's Blog, page 722

Christian Holocaust Part 2

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I’m off to enjoy a glass of Whiskey and a Cigar.

New Dark Matter Theory Says It’s A Type Of Particle We’ve Know About For 80 Years

Space





Photo credit:

Other theories suggest dark matter would be compact, shown in white on the left, while this latest theory allows it to spread out, right. NASA/STScl/Kavli IPMU.

Ah, dark matter. Creator of the universe, sculptor of galaxies, great brewer of coffee (probably). There seems to be nothing it can’t do, or isn’t responsible for, but there’s just one problem: Where the hell is it?

U.K. Suspends Ban On Controversial Pesticide Linked To Decline In Bee Populations

Plants and Animals





Photo credit:

Neonicotinoids have been linked to the decline of bees. Kichigin/shutterstock

In 2013 the EU brought into effect a ban for two years on the commercial use of neonicotinoid pesticides on crops.

Dark Coloration Might Help Birds Survive On Smaller Islands

Plants and Animals





Photo credit:

The two different color morphs of the chestnut-bellied monarch bird (Monarcha castaneiventris). A.Uy/University of Miami

Animals that find themselves on islands are known to evolve odd traits, some rodents and birds are known to get bigger, while mammoths and elephants shrink in size. But there are lots of other little oddities found in island populations of animals, and one of them is melanism, or having an all-black coloration.

Why Did Ichthyosaurs Go Extinct?

Plants and Animals





Photo credit:

Diversity of ichthyosaurs. Nobu Tamura, compiled by Levi Bernardo / Wikimedia CC BY 3.0.

Ichthyosaurs were one of the most successful lineages ever. These dolphin-looking marine reptiles of the Mesozoic Era evolved to occupy a vast range of niches: Some were massive apex predators hunting in the open ocean, others were small suction feeders swimming in shallow seas. All ichthyosaurs went extinct tens of millions of years before the dinosaurs were wiped out during the famous Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction event. But we still don’t know why.

Children With Prosthetics Could Soon Be Creating Their Own Lego Attachments

Technology





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Spaceship! Torres hopes for potential prosthetic partnerships with Lego, Mattel and Nintendo. Carlos Arturo Torres.

Imagine being able to snap a mechanical digger or a Star Wars spaceship onto the end of your arm. With the next level of prosthetic designs from Lego, this could soon be a playtime reality for kids with prosthetic limbs.

Oceanic Life Brightens Summer Clouds

Environment





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Satellite images of chlorophyll can be used to measure the concentration of marine organisms, and therefore the anticipated particles they release. NASA

Marine organisms are responsible for nearly doubling the number of droplets in summer clouds, reflecting light back into space and cooling the planet.

Scientists Want To Collect Whale Boogers Using Flying Drones

Technology





Photo credit:

Testing the flying drone Snotbot with Snotshot, a whale blow robot mimic. Ocean Alliance.

Engineering students in Massachusetts have teamed up with a whale conservation charity – with a little help from Sir Patrick Stewart – to better collect whale blow with flying drones.

What is whale blow? Well, contrary to popular opinion, it’s not water that whales spray out of their blowholes. It is a delightful mucal composite of snot, water and tissue that whales eject when near to the surface of the water, usually visible as a spray.

3D-Printed Smart Bottle Cap Could Tell You When Your Food Has Expired

Technology





Photo credit:

Stock image by Andrey Ezhov/shutterstock

What if your milk bottle could tell you if your milk is on the turn? No, you’re not hallucinating from drinking milk past its best.

This is the idea behind a new 3D-printed smart cap for liquid storage bottles and food storage containers from researchers at the University of California, Berkeley and National Chiao Tung University in Taiwan.

NASA’s Upcoming Mars Rocket Completes Critical Design Review

Space





Photo credit:

Shown is an artist's concept of the SLS Block 1. NASA.

To get humans to Mars you need a really, really big rocket. Bigger than anything that has ever been launched before, including the Saturn V Moon rocket, in order to launch all the necessary components into space.