When it comes to pressing environmental issues, air pollution is a common concern. The effects of air pollution on human health, specifically cardiovascular and respiratory systems, are well known. But have you ever wondered what it might be doing to your brain?A research team from the Universities of Birmingham and Manchester asked this exact question and discovered that even short-term exposure to air pollution can have surprising and long-lasting effects on our ability to perform daily activi ...read more
Deep beneath the streets of Rome near the Vatican, overlooking the banks of the Tiber River, Italian archaeologists have uncovered a hidden gem of Roman history — Caligula’s secret garden. This 2,000-year-old marvel, buried for centuries, offers a rare glimpse into one of Rome's most infamous rulers. Known for his excesses and controversial reign, the discovery of Caligula’s Garden not only illuminates his world but also sheds light on the opulence of ancient Roman life.Read More: 5 of the ...read more
Earthquakes, tornadoes, air strikes — all around the world, countless lives are lost not just to the direct impacts of disasters, but those that are trapped in the resulting wreckage. Search and rescue efforts, both professional and amateur, are dangerous in themselves, as digging through rubble creates risk for secondary collapse and exposure to hazardous materials. Meanwhile time is short, and the larger the affected area, the harder it is to search efficiently and effectively. Dogs can snif ...read more
The ancestors of modern waterfowl weren’t all that odd. Diving for fish and other prey in the waters of Antarctica, they looked like today’s birds, but were they truly modern?A new paper published today in Nature tells us all about these ancestors of modern-day ducks. Assessing a newly found fossil of Vegavis iaai from the Late Cretaceous around 69 million years ago, the paper confirms the classification of the species as a truly modern bird, not wholly unlike the ducks and geese of today.†...read more
A medley of elements make life on Earth possible, yet the ways in which our planet has gained them — and lost some in the process — have been on scientists’ minds for years. The major building blocks of life, like water, carbon, and nitrogen, often take center stage, but scientists have recently made sense of another foundational component in Earth’s framework — moderately volatile elements (MVEs). MVEs, containing such elements as zinc and copper, work in tandem with life-essential e ...read more
Author Vishay SinghPosted on Categories Discover Magazine