Mars holds enough water to cover the entire planet with an ocean about a mile deep, according to a new study in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. But accessing that water would require drilling wells 6 miles down. On Earth, creating wells that reach even a half mile down is a challenge. Water was first discovered on Mars in 2020, it was frozen in polar ice caps. But scientists had also noticed signs that much more once flowed on the surface through channels resembling riverbeds. F ...read more
The Titanic, discovered in 1985 deep beneath the ocean off of Newfoundland, is the most iconic shipwreck in the world. The massive luxury liner sank in 1912 after hitting an iceberg, but it was well preserved in its freezing resting place on the ocean floor.In 2021, the Oceangate, a state-of-the-art submersible, made it possible to visit the site, but just two years later, everyone aboard the vessel was tragically killed when it imploded deep in the blue, and all the crew members were lost to th ...read more
Parasites take an enormous toll on human and veterinary health. But researchers may have found a way for patients with brain disorders and a common brain parasite to become frenemies.A new study published in Nature Microbiology has pioneered the use of a single-celled parasite, Toxoplasma gondii, to inject therapeutic proteins into brain cells. The brain is very picky about what it lets in, including many drugs, which limits treatment options for neurological conditions.As a professor of microbi ...read more
My colleagues and I have developed an artificial intelligence system that helps buildings shift their energy use to times when the electric grid is cleaner.I’m an engineer who studies and develops smart buildings. My lab created Merlin, which learns how people use energy in their homes and adjust energy controls like thermostats to meet their needs while at the same time minimizing the impact on the grid. The system can learn on one set of buildings and occupants and be used in buildings with ...read more
As we focused our microscope on the soil sample for the first time, bits of organic material came into view: a tiny poppy seed, the compound eye of an insect, broken willow twigs and spikemoss spores. Dark-colored spheres produced by soil fungi dominated our view.These were unmistakably the remains of an arctic tundra ecosystem– and proof that Greenland’s entire ice sheet disappeared more recently than people realize.These tiny hints of past life came from a most unlikely place – a handful ...read more
Author Vishay SinghPosted on Categories Discover Magazine