ريتشارد دوكنز's Blog, page 725
July 19, 2015
The Real Cost Of NASA’s New Horizons Mission To Pluto
Photo credit:
New Horizons. NASA.
After a ten-year journey, NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft flew past Pluto this week, coming just 12,500 kilometers (7,800 miles) above the dwarf planet’s surface.
Congratulations and praise came from all over the world and beyond, as even astronauts in space joined in with celebrating the landmark journey.
Tiny Device Allows Wireless Delivery Of Drugs To The Brain
Photo credit:
Alex David Jerez Roman
As the control center for the body, it’s essential that the brain is protected from harm. One such shielding mechanism is the organ’s blood-brain barrier, a highly selective filter that acts to keep potentially toxic substances out and thus help preserve the brain’s delicate tissues and chemical balance. But because this barrier is so good at its job, it unfortunately means that if something goes wrong in the brain, it’s incredibly tricky to get therapeutic substances inside to reach target areas.
Study Reveals How Birth Order Influences Personality
Photo credit:
They've all got different personalities, but it's probably not due to the order they were born in. Blend Images/Shutterstock
We've all heard the claims: oldest siblings are bossy, younger ones are funnier to get noticed, middle children fear not having their voices heard. You can find thousands of articles online endorsing these stereotypes.
Scientists Figure Out Why Human Screams Are So Bloodcurdling
Photo credit:
Ollyy/Shutterstock
Screaming is primal. It warns other people about hazards, and it keeps parents alert to their babies’ needs. In a noisy world of thunder, dance parties, and police sirens, our shrieks and cries need to stand out for us to survive. And they do. According to a new Current Biology study, human screams activate not only the auditory parts of our brain, but also its fear circuitry.
Scientists Develop Pill That Could Let Celiacs Eat Gluten
Photo credit:
Africa Studio/Shutterstock
Around one percent of the world’s population has celiac disease. That means that one percent of humans can’t drink beer (the normal stuff, anyway). This was not good enough for scientist Hoon Sunwoo, who simply wanted to enjoy the sweet amber nectar with one of his friends who is afflicted with the disease. So what did he do?
Yet Another Teaser Trailer Of The Hoverboard Lexus Claims It’s Built
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It certainly hovers, it is a board but is it real, Lexus? Lexus/YouTube
Lexus caused an excitable stir last month when it dropped its short teaser trailer for Slide, the very real, rideable hoverboard the company allegedly has had in production for years.
The hoverboard works with magnetic levitation, which is impressive if it can actually carry the weight of a person. Unfortunately, this also means that it requires a magnetic surface to levitate. So as long as the route to wherever you want to travel to is fully magnetized, you’re good to go.
Space Salad Could Soon Be Eaten By Astronauts Aboard The International Space Station
Photo credit:
Romaine lettuce plants inside the bellows of a prototype Veggie flight pillow, which was launched aboard SpaceX's Dragon capsule in April of this year. NASA/Gioia Massa
Robust, green and fresh from the garden of space – romaine lettuce could soon be the dish of the day for the astronauts aboard the International Space Station.
They began growing the crunchy veg earlier this month, and if the conditions are right, they’ll be eating some space-grown lettuce leaves by next month.
Humans May Have An In-built GPS, Based On Discovery Of “Speed Cells” In Rats
Photo credit:
Put down the technology and use the GPS in your brain instead. Well, maybe. Maridav/Shutterstock
Scientists have found groups of cells that fire at different rates depending on how fast an animal is moving. Dubbed “speed cells,” they could be the missing link in how animals are able to pinpoint their own location.
Burst of Innovation Found in Jurassic Mammals
Photo credit:
An illustration showing docodonts, now extinct mammals that saw an explosion of skeletal and dental changes (including the special molar teeth that give them their name), in the Middle Jurassic. April Neander
During the Middle Jurassic about 200 million to 145 million years ago, mammals were evolving 10 times faster than they were by the time the Jurassic was over, according to a new study published in Current Biology. Some of these key innovations include live birth, warm bloodedness, and fur.
The Australian’s Campaign Against Wind Farms Continues But The Research Doesn’t Stack Up
Photo credit:
The research never mentions wind turbines, only low-frequency noise. Bildagentur Zoonar GmbH/Shutterstock
The Australian newspaper’s campaign against wind farms continued this morning with a page one story from the paper’s environment editor Graham Lloyd.
Lloyd writes about purportedly “groundbreaking” German research which, he infers, may provide a plausible basis for claims about wind turbines having direct effects on health.
Lloyd writes:
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