Tag: Earth

  • We May All Be Martians

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    Daniela
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    Christie Hsu reports on new evidence that life may have come to earth from Mars: We may all be Martians, according to scientists who recently discovered more evidence that life on Earth may have started on Mars. “In addition, recent studies show that these conditions, suitable for the origin of life, may still exist on…

  • Seven Environmental Principles from Star Trek

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    Amy Larkin at The Guardian may be an even bigger Star Trek fan than I am.  She lays out seven principles from the series that are still relevant today.  Here’s a couple: On biodiversity Dr. Miranda Jones: I understand, Mr. Spock. The glory of creation is in its infinite diversity. Mr. Spock: And the ways our differences combine,…

  • Stunning Photos from NASA’s Sptizer Telescope

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    Wired celebrates the 10th anniversary of the Spitzer Star Telescope by sharing some of the extraordinary images it has produced: For 10 years, NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope has been helping scientists on Earth learn more about the mysterious objects hiding in our star-studded skies. On August 25, 2003, the telescope — carrying a relatively small, 0.85-meter beryllium…

  • Fun Animation of the Solar System

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    If you needed a quick reminder of how small you are in the universe, just check out this video, created by designer Philipp Dettmer. It’ll give you the basic run-down of the solar system: how many moons each planet has, how far apart they are, etc., plus a few fun tidbits (Saturn would float if you…

  • Fishey Fleet Coast-to-Coast Tour Ends at Seattle HempFest

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    Yesterday, the Fishy Fleet coast-to-coast tour ended at the 22nd annual Seattle HempFest. East coast driver Shannon Spectra, wrote a song about GMOs on the 10 day trip. In this video, she sings, hoop dances and reads the Yes On 522 Dr Bronner’s label that will be available in stores nationwide next month. Fishy Tomato: A genetically modified tomato, or…

  • Curiosity “Tastes” Martian Air

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    Alicia Chang, science writer for the AP, relays some interesting information discovered by Curiosity about the Martian atmosphere: The Curiosity rover has tasted Mars’ air: It’s made mostly of carbon dioxide with hints of other gases. There was a small surprise: Viking found nitrogen to be the second most abundant gas in the Martian air,…

  • Agrochemical Companies and their stockholders the only ones who need genetically engineered crops

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    In the opinion section of Pambazuka News, Ali Masmadi Jehu Appiah, a Chairperson for Food Sovereignty Ghana, asserts, “The only people who need genetically engineered crops are the foreign seed and agrochemical companies and their stockholders.”  He provides a compelling argument for why Ghana should reject genetically engineered Bt cotton: After several years of apparent short-term success in…

  • Earth’s “Deep Time” to Predict Future Effects of Climate Change

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    The Science Codex blog reports on a new study that highlights how information from past episodes of rapid change in the Earth’s history provide a valuable tool in predicting how climate change will affect our ecosystems: “Climate change and other human influences are altering Earth’s living systems in big ways, such as changes in growing seasons…

  • Swinging CO2 Levels Show The Earth Is ‘Breathing’ More Deeply

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    By Richard Harris | NPR Plant life on our planet soaks up a fair amount of the carbon dioxide that pours out of our tailpipes and smokestacks. Plants take it up during the summer and return some of it to the air in the winter. And a new study shows that those “breaths” have gotten…

  • National Sustainability Policy Needed

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    A new report from the National Research Council points out that the “U.S. should establish a National Sustainability Policy and take additional steps to encourage federal agencies to collaborate on sustainability challenges that demand the expertise of many agencies, such as improving disaster resilience and managing ecosystems.” The inherent problem preventing this is the way…