Chelsea Lee, CNN In the north Indian desert town of Jaisalmer, also known as “The Golden City” for its array of yellow sandstone architecture, temperatures can reach approximately 120 degrees Fahrenheit (49 degrees Celsius) at the height of summer. Here, buildings have long been designed to adapt to the heat, a tradition that New York… Read More How this school in the Indian desert stays cool even in extreme heat
Scientists have pinpointed pieces of DNA which, they say, act like Bond villains in the way they help cancers spread. These microscopic agents have also been shown to be responsible for helping tumours gain resistance to anti-cancer drugs. The discovery of these bits of genetic material – known as extrachromosomal DNA or ecDNA – could revolutionise the treatments of… Read More ‘Bond villain’ DNA could transform cancer treatment, scientists say
No place on Earth is colder than East Antarctica. Due to its higher elevation, not even West Antarctica can touch its hostile temperatures. Princess Elisabeth, a polar research station in the Queen Maud Land region, faces wind speeds of up to 155 mph (249 kph) and temperatures as low as -58°F (-50°C). A flair for… Read More How scientists are kept fed and happy in one of the most remote places on Earth
Katie Hunt, CNN On the Galapagos Islands, a ground finch that usually munched on small, soft seeds was forced, during a drought, to eat harder, larger ones. Within the space of a few generations, the bird evolved a larger but shorter beak better suited to cracking large seeds. The Galapagos medium ground finch (Geospiza fortis).… Read More The man who has transformed our understanding of evolution
A United Nations-backed scientific panel has concluded that actions taken under the Montreal Protocol have successfully strengthened the Earth’s ozone layer, helping avoid global warming from 0.5 to 1 degrees Celsius by mid-century. The Montreal Protocol is an 1989 international treaty aimed at regulating the production and use of chemicals that contribute to the depletion… Read More Earth’s ozone layer on way to recovery, finds UN report, should mend by 2040
Sonali Kolhatkar There is a common feeling that many of us have experienced in professional or academic environments, especially when we struggle against gender or racial bias. It’s called “imposter syndrome”—the feeling that one doesn’t deserve one’s position and that others will discover this lack of competence at any moment. I felt this way as… Read More Nepotism babies and the myth of American meritocracy
Katie Hunt, CNN The majestic structures of ancient Rome have survived for millennia — a testament to the ingenuity of Roman engineers, who perfected the use of concrete. But how did their construction materials help keep colossal buildings like the Pantheon (which has the world’s largest unreinforced dome) and the Colosseum standing for more than… Read More Mystery of why Roman buildings have survived over 2000 years, unraveled
David Cox what if I told you that stress can also be positive? That just as it can harm us, it also plays a key role in strengthening our immune system, forging connections in our brain that improve mental performance and building the resilience we need to navigate our way through the vagaries of life.… Read More Why everyday stress could be the key to a healthy old age
A summer of extreme heat and drought around the world has been a reminder that water scarcity is a pressing issue and one that will only get worse with climate change. Already, more than two billion people worldwide lack easy access to clean water, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). For some countries, desalination plants offer… Read More How sunlight could turn seawater into freshwater for coastal communities
Shobhit Mahajan; The Economic Times; December 17, 2022 At 1 am on December 5, scientists at the National Ignition Facility (NIF) at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in the US achieved a major breakthrough. For the first time they managed to squeeze out more energy from a nuclear fusion reaction than was pumped into it. Ignition,… Read More For Fusion Jam Tomorrow
After the truth-shower 