When astronomers looked skyward the other day they thought they had found a new star. In fact a comet had become a million times brighter practically overnight! Astronomers believe it could be because heat from the Sun infiltrated a tiny crack in the comet’s icy core, causing it to melt and crack open abruptly, spewing out lots of dust and gas that is now reflecting a lot more sunlight.
Almost a third of all apes, monkeys, and other primates are in danger of extinction because of habitat destruction and the trade in illegal wildlife. Overall, 114 of the world’s 394 primate species are classified as threatened with extinction by the World Conservation Union or IUCN. Isn’t it sad that one primate (humans) are pushing a third of all the rest to extinction. Read more here or here.
I’ve said before – I like sleep. So I’m not sure why anyone would want to deprive themselves of it. Especially considering that sleep deprivation has many adverse physiological effects (here is a list). Scientists have now discovered that brain activity associated with mental illness has been observed in healthy people who miss a single night’s sleep. So if you’re thinking of pulling an all-nighter to study for exams, don’t because it might literally make you crazy!
A worrying, but hardly surprising, new report from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) says that major threats to the planet such as climate change, the rate of extinction of species (more here), and the challenge of feeding a growing population are among the many that remain unresolved, and all of them put humanity at risk. Read more here or here.
If you think you’re not to blame check out your ecological footprint here.
Here is a semi-random post on the number 37.
37 is a prime number, 37°C is the normal human body temperature, 37 is the atomic number of rubidium and there are 37 genes in the mitochondrial genome. Weird!
For some really crazy 37 information go here.
In most countries October 5th is World Teachers’ Day (wikipedia), but in Australia, World Teachers’ Day is celebrated on the last Friday of October, which this year is TODAY. So to teachers the world over – well done 🙂
“A good teacher is like a candle – it consumes itself to light the way for others.”
Author Unknown
We know quite a lot about greenhouse gases and how to reduce them so it is a bit alarming that levels of greenhouse gases are rising faster this decade than they did during the 1990s. Before 2000, atmospheric carbon dioxide levels had been rising by about 1.5 parts per million (p.p.m.) per year. Since the year 2000, that figure has jumped to 1.9 p.p.m. per year. It is happening for quite a few reasons, read more here.
Humans are generally an optimistic bunch. We expect to live longer and be more successful than average, and we also underestimate our likelihood of getting a divorce or having cancer. A team of scientists have just discovered which areas of the brain are responsible for our optimism. It is the amygdala, buried deep within the brain, and the front portion of the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC). Scientists hope that the research may lead to a greater insight into the causes of depression. So … always look on the bright side of life 🙂
Read more here or here.
Humans seem to be having a really negative impact on this planet. Big things like climate change are often publicised but there are so many other little things. For example it has just been discovered that a pollutant found in rivers all over the world can inhibit a fish’s ability to shoal, or swim in a school. It seems that fish don’t like to associate with other fish that smell like the pollutant, nonylphenol. This is really bad news for a fish because if it can’t swim in a school then it becomes far more vulnerable to predation – it gets eaten by bigger fish! Read more here or here.
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