Welcome to Atheist Discussion, a new community created by former members of The Thinking Atheist forum.

Thread Rating:
  • 1 Vote(s) - 5 Average
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
Science News
#76

Science News
[quote="GenesisNemesis" pid='349977' dateline='1648487944']
Scientists find microplastics in blood for first time

[QUOTE]Scientists have discovered microplastics in human blood for the first time, warning that the ubiquitous particles could also be making their way into organs.

The tiny pieces of mostly invisible plastic have already been found almost everywhere else on Earth, from the deepest oceans to the highest mountains as well as in the air, soil and food chain.

A Dutch study published in the Environment International journal on Thursday examined blood samples from 22 anonymous, healthy volunteers and found microplastics in nearly 80 percent of them.

[/QUOTE]

This is why I don't heat anything in plastic. I don't want to eat the particles that result when it is heated. Some types of plastic have been removed from the market because of this, they caused cancer. I don't presume we know everything about our plastics and their long-term effect, and there are many types of plastic out there. I don't trust it. If I'd have my druthers, plastic would never touch my food - but that pretty much can't be avoided these days.
[Image: color%5D%5Bcolor=#333333%5D%5Bsize=small%5D%5Bfont=T...ans-Serif%5D]
The following 1 user Likes Dom's post:
  • GenesisNemesis
Reply
#77

Science News
(03-31-2022, 02:33 AM)Dom Wrote: [quote="GenesisNemesis" pid='349977' dateline='1648487944']
Scientists find microplastics in blood for first time

Quote:Scientists have discovered microplastics in human blood for the first time, warning that the ubiquitous particles could also be making their way into organs.

The tiny pieces of mostly invisible plastic have already been found almost everywhere else on Earth, from the deepest oceans to the highest mountains as well as in the air, soil and food chain.

A Dutch study published in the Environment International journal on Thursday examined blood samples from 22 anonymous, healthy volunteers and found microplastics in nearly 80 percent of them.

This is why I don't heat anything in plastic. I don't want to eat the particles that result when it is heated. Some types of plastic have been removed from the market because of this, they caused cancer. I don't presume we know everything about our plastics and their long-term effect, and there are many types of plastic out there. I don't trust it. If I'd have my druthers, plastic would never touch my food - but that pretty much can't be avoided these days.

Mountain-high though the difficulties appear, terrible and gloomy though all things seem, they are but Mâyâ.
Fear not — it is banished. Crush it, and it vanishes. Stamp upon it, and it dies.


Vivekananda
Reply
#78

Science News
Government action needed to ensure insurance against major hacking of driverless vehicles, experts warn
Date: November 3, 2021
Source: University of Exeter
Summary: Government action is needed so driverless vehicles can be insured against malicious hacks which could have potentially catastrophic consequences, a study says.

Continues on link.
[Image: M-Spr20-Weapons-FEATURED-1-1200x350-c-default.jpg]
Reply
#79

Science News
(03-30-2022, 11:34 PM)Minimalist Wrote: The Hubble is still working...


https://www.rawstory.com/hubble-telescop...ever-seen/


Quote:Hubble telescope spots most distant star ever seen

The Hubble space telescope has peered back to the dawn of cosmic time and detected light from a star that existed within the first billion years after the Big Bang -- a new record, astronomers said Wednesday.

The newly discovered star, called "Earendel," is so far away its light has taken 12.9 billion years to reach Earth, when the universe was seven percent its current age.
"We almost didn't believe it at first, it was so much farther than the previous most distant," said astronomer Brian Welch of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, lead author of a paper in Nature describing the discovery.
The previous record holder was detected in 2018 when the universe was four billion years old.

@Gwaithmir will doubtless be upset about the misspelling of Eärendil's name.
On hiatus.
The following 2 users Like Thumpalumpacus's post:
  • Alan V, GenesisNemesis
Reply
#80

Science News
Umlauts cost money!
[Image: M-Spr20-Weapons-FEATURED-1-1200x350-c-default.jpg]
The following 1 user Likes Gawdzilla Sama's post:
  • SYZ
Reply
#81

Science News
(04-01-2022, 11:14 PM)Gawdzilla Sama Wrote: Umlauts cost money!

Yabut saving a couple of cents substituting an "e" for the proper "i" -- is that worth Gwaithmir's ire?
On hiatus.
Reply
#82

Science News
(04-01-2022, 11:21 PM)Thumpalumpacus Wrote:
(04-01-2022, 11:14 PM)Gawdzilla Sama Wrote: Umlauts cost money!

Yabut saving a couple of cents substituting an "e" for the proper "i" -- is that worth Gwaithmir's ire?

I know what he meant. That's all that counts.  Winking
“I expect to pass this way but once; any good therefore that I can do, or any kindness that I can show to any fellow creature, let me do it now. Let me not defer or neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again.” (Etienne De Grellet)
The following 2 users Like Gwaithmir's post:
  • Thumpalumpacus, Dānu
Reply
#83

Science News
That would be my first warning sign to get the fuck off the pot.
[Image: M-Spr20-Weapons-FEATURED-1-1200x350-c-default.jpg]
Reply
#84

Science News
Salinity of the Earth's oceans taken by NASA's Aquarius instrument.  The orange color indicates saltier water.

[Image: 591162main_pia14786-43_full.jpg]

I never swam in any other ocean than the Pacific so when I traveled to the east coast of the US around the Carolinas and swam in the Atlantic I couldn't believe how salty it was......and how amazingly warm it was.  I wonder if it also has something to do with the color of the water.  The Pacific is bluer than the Atlantic.  I think the Pacific is prettier but it's so damned cold.  Brrrrrrr

Some of you Navy and military folks have probably experienced many more oceans and waters than I have.


Edit to add:  Here's the average temperature of earth's oceans.  Yup, the Pacific in the Northwest is pretty damned cold.  

[Image: Sea-surface-temperature20160211-5292-7xs...1522296786]
                                                         T4618
The following 1 user Likes Dancefortwo's post:
  • GenesisNemesis
Reply
#85

Science News
Big snowball coming our way

Man-To Hui, of the Macau University of Science and Technology, described the comet as "an amazing object", adding: "We guessed the comet might be pretty big, but we needed the best data to confirm this."

Comet Bernardinelli-Bernstein has been following a three-million-year-long elliptical orbit, taking it as far from the Sun as roughly half a light-year.

The comet is now less than two billion miles from the Sun, falling nearly perpendicular to the plane of our Solar System.
The following 1 user Likes TinyDave's post:
  • Dom
Reply
#86

Science News
(04-07-2022, 04:25 PM)Dancefortwo Wrote: Salinity of the Earth's oceans taken by NASA's Aquarius instrument.  The orange color indicates saltier water.

[Image: 591162main_pia14786-43_full.jpg]

I never swam in any other ocean than the Pacific so when I traveled to the east coast of the US around the Carolinas and swam in the Atlantic I couldn't believe how salty it was......and how amazingly warm it was.  I wonder if it also has something to do with the color of the water.  The Pacific is bluer than the Atlantic.  I think the Pacific is prettier but it's so damned cold.  Brrrrrrr

Some of you Navy and military folks have probably experienced many more oceans and waters than I have.


Edit to add:  Here's the average temperature of earth's oceans.  Yup, the Pacific in the Northwest is pretty damned cold.  

[Image: Sea-surface-temperature20160211-5292-7xs...1522296786]

I swam a lot in the Mediterranean. Always a pleasant temperature, and enough salt so you only swam with breasts strokes and avoided water in your face and eyes. Your eyes would burn in hell and your face turn into parchment if you didn't. Probably would have been fine for short swims, but we tended to swim until land was a faint line on the horizon. One could literally rest by lying flat on top of the water and taking a nap. The only hazard was swimming into a bunch of jellyfish, that burned like heck but had no lasting consequences. 

Good memories!
[Image: color%5D%5Bcolor=#333333%5D%5Bsize=small%5D%5Bfont=T...ans-Serif%5D]
The following 1 user Likes Dom's post:
  • Dancefortwo
Reply
#87

Science News
"A South American wildflower long believed to be extinct has been rediscovered.

Gasteranthus extinctus was found by biologists in the foothills of the Andes mountains and in remnant patches of forest in the Centinela region of Ecuador, almost 40 years after its last sighting.

Extensive deforestation in western Ecuador during the late 20th century led to the presumed extinction of a number of plant species, including Gasteranthus extinctus – the reason scientists gave it that name.

Despite reports that more than 97% of forests in the western half of Ecuador have been destroyed or converted to farmland, including most of the Centinela Ridge, the researchers began searching last summer, starting by scouring satellite images to identify intact primary rainforest.

“Centinela is a mythical place for tropical botanists,” said Nigel CA Pitman, one of the researchers behind the discovery. “But because it was described by the top people in the field, no one really double checked the science. No one went back to confirm that the forest was gone and those things were extinct.

“We walked into Centinela thinking it was going to break our heart and instead we ended up falling in love.”

The tropical wildflower is characterised by its neon-orange petals and big underside pouch, where pollinators can enter and exit."

[Image: 5508.jpg?width=620&quality=45&auto=forma...2375ec0d29]

[Image: g-extinctus-header-1200.jpg]
“We drift down time, clutching at straws. But what good's a brick to a drowning man?” 
The following 2 users Like Vera's post:
  • Dom, Dancefortwo
Reply
#88

Science News
Researchers generate the first complete, gapless sequence of a human genome

Date: March 31, 2022

Source: National Institutes of Health

Summary: Scientists have published the first complete, gapless sequence of a human genome, two decades after the Human Genome Project produced the first draft human genome sequence. According to researchers, having a complete, gap-free sequence of the roughly 3 billion bases (or 'letters') in our DNA is critical for understanding the full spectrum of human genomic variation and for understanding the genetic contributions to certain diseases.

Continues on link.
[Image: M-Spr20-Weapons-FEATURED-1-1200x350-c-default.jpg]
The following 3 users Like Gawdzilla Sama's post:
  • Alan V, Dom, skyking
Reply
#89

Science News
(04-15-2022, 08:34 PM)Vera Wrote: "A South American wildflower long believed to be extinct has been rediscovered.

Gasteranthus extinctus was found by biologists in the foothills of the Andes mountains and in remnant patches of forest in the Centinela region of Ecuador, almost 40 years after its last sighting.

Extensive deforestation in western Ecuador during the late 20th century led to the presumed extinction of a number of plant species, including Gasteranthus extinctus – the reason scientists gave it that name.

Despite reports that more than 97% of forests in the western half of Ecuador have been destroyed or converted to farmland, including most of the Centinela Ridge, the researchers began searching last summer, starting by scouring satellite images to identify intact primary rainforest.

“Centinela is a mythical place for tropical botanists,” said Nigel CA Pitman, one of the researchers behind the discovery. “But because it was described by the top people in the field, no one really double checked the science. No one went back to confirm that the forest was gone and those things were extinct.

“We walked into Centinela thinking it was going to break our heart and instead we ended up falling in love.”

The tropical wildflower is characterised by its neon-orange petals and big underside pouch, where pollinators can enter and exit."

[Image: 5508.jpg?width=620&quality=45&auto=forma...2375ec0d29]

[Image: g-extinctus-header-1200.jpg]

That's cool. I'll have to google for some pics of the area, it looks so lush, the sort of thing I really enjoy.
[Image: color%5D%5Bcolor=#333333%5D%5Bsize=small%5D%5Bfont=T...ans-Serif%5D]
Reply
#90

Science News
When astronauts travel into space they can expect some extraordinary new experiences.
But they may also face a more mundane and potentially mission-ending one: kidney stones.

It is already known that spending time in microgravity is linked to a drop in bone density:
this loss of calcium into the blood offers one possible explanation for the buildup of mineral-rich
kidney stones in astronauts, with dehydration another potential cause.

Space mice may offer clues to why astronauts get kidney stones.

While the research has not yet been published, the team say they have early indications
that galactic cosmic radiation—which includes gamma radiation as well as high energy
particles—may cause damage to DNA in the kidneys as well as affecting the transport and
metabolism of fats.

In addition, insights into the effects of radiation on astronauts could open up new avenues
for preserving healthy tissue in patients on Earth who are undergoing radiotherapy.
I'm a creationist;   I believe that man created God.
The following 2 users Like SYZ's post:
  • Gawdzilla Sama, Alan V
Reply
#91

Science News
A 13-year-old boy from Minnesota will soon earn his bachelor's degree from college—with a major in physics and a minor in math.

Elliott Tanner is maintaining a 3.78 grade point average at the University of Minnesota and is participating in undergraduate research while also tutoring classmates. He wants to be high-energy theoretical physicist and ultimately a professor of physics at the university.

"I have an incredible passion for physics," he said. "It's been one of my favorite things to do."

Elliott's mom, Michelle Tanner, said he started reading and doing math by age 3. Following a few years of homeschooling and a high school curriculum that took him two years to complete, he began taking college classes when he was 9.

"People who hear Elliott's story say he doesn't get to be a kid, or he grew up too fast," Michelle said. "He still very much is a kid and the only difference is he goes to school in a different building."

Besides being on the verge of graduating, he has been accepted into the University of Minnesota's Physics Ph.D. program. Now his parents are trying to figure out how to pay for it.

"We're just trying to explore all our options, and coming up with dead ends," Michelle said. "Trying to apply for any scholarships, fellowships, grants, and we have not been successful."

I guess if he had much less brains and way more brawn he would've gotten a scholarship all right Deadpan Coffee Drinker
“We drift down time, clutching at straws. But what good's a brick to a drowning man?” 
The following 1 user Likes Vera's post:
  • epronovost
Reply
#92

Science News
(04-24-2022, 09:20 PM)Vera Wrote: A 13-year-old boy from Minnesota will soon earn his bachelor's degree from college—with a major in physics and a minor in math.

Elliott Tanner is maintaining a 3.78 grade point average at the University of Minnesota and is participating in undergraduate research while also tutoring classmates. He wants to be high-energy theoretical physicist and ultimately a professor of physics at the university.

"I have an incredible passion for physics," he said. "It's been one of my favorite things to do."

Elliott's mom, Michelle Tanner, said he started reading and doing math by age 3. Following a few years of homeschooling and a high school curriculum that took him two years to complete, he began taking college classes when he was 9.

"People who hear Elliott's story say he doesn't get to be a kid, or he grew up too fast," Michelle said. "He still very much is a kid and the only difference is he goes to school in a different building."

Besides being on the verge of graduating, he has been accepted into the University of Minnesota's Physics Ph.D. program. Now his parents are trying to figure out how to pay for it.

"We're just trying to explore all our options, and coming up with dead ends," Michelle said. "Trying to apply for any scholarships, fellowships, grants, and we have not been successful."

I guess if he had much less brains and way more brawn he would've gotten a scholarship all right Deadpan Coffee Drinker


 
(04-24-2022, 09:20 PM)Vera Wrote:  .......he began taking college classes when he was 9.

LOL!  Way to make me feel like a total idiot, Vera.   Thanks!    Tip hat
                                                         T4618
Reply
#93

Science News
(04-24-2022, 09:27 PM)Dancefortwo Wrote:  
LOL!  Way to make me feel like a total idiot, Vera.   Thanks!    Tip hat

[Image: giphy.gif?cid=790b7611ea0bcd36b85693e65f...y.gif&ct=g]

Wait, wut? hobo
“We drift down time, clutching at straws. But what good's a brick to a drowning man?” 
The following 1 user Likes Vera's post:
  • Dancefortwo
Reply
#94

Science News
Researchers are claiming a major breakthrough in cracking the genetic code of
an iconic Australian animal that has been the source of controversy for years.

[Image: t96p1w_web.jpg]

The international consortium of researchers has been looking at the genomic
sequence of the pure Australian desert dingo to determine whether it is closer
to wolves or dogs and to provide clarity around the hotly debated question of
whether dingoes are the same as feral wild dogs.

The study, published today in Science Advances, found the answer lies somewhere
in between and pure dingoes are an "intermediary" between wolves and domestic
dog breeds.

Dingoes are Australia's 'top order predator', meaning they influence everything
in their environment.  If dingoes aren't given the protection they deserve, it'll
upset the country's ecological balance—potentially leading to environmental
issues like erosion and species extinction.
I'm a creationist;   I believe that man created God.
The following 3 users Like SYZ's post:
  • GenesisNemesis, epronovost, brewerb
Reply
#95

Science News
(04-25-2022, 12:15 AM)SYZ Wrote: Researchers are claiming a major breakthrough in cracking the genetic code of
an iconic Australian animal that has been the source of controversy for years.

[Image: t96p1w_web.jpg]

The international consortium of researchers has been looking at the genomic
sequence of the pure Australian desert dingo to determine whether it is closer
to wolves or dogs and to provide clarity around the hotly debated question of
whether dingoes are the same as feral wild dogs.

The study, published today in Science Advances, found the answer lies somewhere
in between and pure dingoes are an "intermediary" between wolves and domestic
dog breeds.

Dingoes are Australia's 'top order predator', meaning they influence everything
in their environment.  If dingoes aren't given the protection they deserve, it'll
upset the country's ecological balance—potentially leading to environmental
issues like erosion and species extinction.

very cool.
Reply
#96

Science News
[Image: cushion-lock.png]

Inspired By Japanese Art Form, 3M Creates Sustainable Alternative To Bubble Wrap

Quote:A major Twin Cities corporation believes it’s found a green, sustainable way to pack and ship delicate objects.

Tom Corrigan, an inventor for 3M, remembers the exact moment the light bulb went off and he came up with the perfect kiragami pattern. Kiragami is a Japanese art form of cutting and folding paper.

“Once [my design] expands, you get these wall-like structures that are completely vertical, so from a mechanical engineering point of view, you get this huge strength,” Corrigan said.

Corrigan had solved one of the company’s problems.

“Our goal is to replace plastic bubble [wrap] with a sustainable solution,” said Mark Copman, the president of 3M’s stationery and office supplies division.

Corrigan’s paper design became Cushion Lock: a green, recyclable alternative to the plastic bubble wrap we all love to pop.

“There’s an actual, growing demand,” Corrigan said. “Like if you tried to do this 30 years ago, would people have been interested? Maybe not.”

The paper expands to 60 times the size of what it looks like flat and interlocks with itself to create a nest.

Corrigan says the pattern cut into the paper is “magic.”

“The vast majority of bubble [wrap] is not recycled,” Copman said. “It’s about a $175 million market and most of it is not recycled.”
Mountain-high though the difficulties appear, terrible and gloomy though all things seem, they are but Mâyâ.
Fear not — it is banished. Crush it, and it vanishes. Stamp upon it, and it dies.


Vivekananda
The following 2 users Like Dānu's post:
  • Alan V, brunumb
Reply
#97

Science News
Sending that to a friend, he likes child prodigies. He grew up without the more enlightened attitudes we have now. He finished his Ph.D. before he was allowed to graduate from high school.

Sadly, his life didn't get any better and these days he's a struggling reclusive inventor nobody's ever heard of. And he's a billionaire from his patents. He made your cell phone work better about seven times.
[Image: M-Spr20-Weapons-FEATURED-1-1200x350-c-default.jpg]
Reply
#98

Science News
Quote:In a joint effort, tech giants Apple, Google, and Microsoft announced Thursday morning that they have committed to building support for passwordless sign-in across all of the mobile, desktop, and browser platforms that they control in the coming year. Effectively, this means that passwordless authentication will come to all major device platforms in the not too distant future: Android and iOS mobile operating systems; Chrome, Edge, and Safari browsers; and the Windows and macOS desktop environments.

“Just as we design our products to be intuitive and capable, we also design them to be private and secure,” said Kurt Knight, senior director of platform product marketing at Apple. “Working with the industry to establish new, more secure sign-in methods that offer better protection and eliminate the vulnerabilities of passwords is central to our commitment to building products that offer maximum security and a transparent user experience — all with the goal of keeping users’ personal information safe.”

A passwordless login process will let users choose their phones as the main authentication device for apps, websites, and other digital services, as Google detailed in a blog post published Thursday. Unlocking the phone with whatever is set as the default action — entering a PIN, drawing a pattern, or using fingerprint unlock — will then be enough to sign in to web services without the need to ever enter a password, made possible through the use of a unique cryptographic token called a passkey that is shared between the phone and the website.

By making logins contingent on a physical device, the idea is that users will simultaneously benefit from simplicity and security. Without a password, there will be no obligation to remember login details across services or compromise security by reusing the same password in multiple places. Equally, a passwordless system will make it much more difficult for hackers to compromise login details remotely since signing in requires access to a physical device; and, theoretically, phishing attacks where users are directed to a fake website for password capture will be much harder to mount.

(The Verge)
Mountain-high though the difficulties appear, terrible and gloomy though all things seem, they are but Mâyâ.
Fear not — it is banished. Crush it, and it vanishes. Stamp upon it, and it dies.


Vivekananda
Reply
#99

Science News
Brain imaging studies in people with COVID-19 typically have been small, cases have not been matched carefully to controls, medical history has not been considered, and most importantly, no brain imaging from before COVID-19 diagnoses has been available for comparison.

A new study from the U.K. Biobank overcomes all these deficiencies. Two magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans and cognitive testing were performed on people as part of a longitudinal population study that predated the COVID-19 pandemic. In 401 people, positive tests for SARS-CoV-2 occurred between the two MRIs (during the first 18 months of the pandemic); second MRI scans were performed an average of 141 days after positive SARS-CoV-2 tests in this group. These 401 cases were compared with 384 controls — matched to cases by age, sex, ethnicity, pre-COVID health status, and socioeconomic status — who underwent two MRI scans but had negative SARS-CoV-2 tests. Only 4% of case patients with COVID-19 had been hospitalized.

Compared with controls, people with COVID-19 had more reduction in gray matter thickness in the orbitofrontal cortex and parahippocampal gyrus, more tissue damage in regions connected to the olfactory cortex, greater reduction in global brain size, and greater cognitive decline. Similar changes were not seen in a small group of participants who had developed non-COVID pneumonias between their two scans.
Being told you're delusional does not necessarily mean you're mental. 
The following 3 users Like brewerb's post:
  • Fireball, Phaedrus, SYZ
Reply

Science News
I've also seen where white and gray matter increase, based on what people are doing, so the claim from that source is that the jury is out. Over at Phys.org, from about a week to ten days ago. Sorry, no link. I was kind of thinking that once the matter was lost, it was lost, but that research showed that the brain is a dynamic system, with regions growing and shrinking, depending on usage.
If you get to thinking you’re a person of some influence, try ordering somebody else’s dog around.
Reply




Users browsing this thread: 1 Guest(s)