@ScienceDesk@flipboard.social
@ScienceDesk@flipboard.social avatar

ScienceDesk

@ScienceDesk@flipboard.social

Flipboard's page for news about science including space, climate change and more — from trusted sources. All posts written by human editors, especially for Mastodon.

For more science coverage, follow Flipboard's federated Science Desk (@science).

Header photo: Students observe a solar eclipse on March 20, 2015, in London. Photo by Rob Stothard/Getty Images.

This profile is from a federated server and may be incomplete. Browse more on the original instance.

ScienceDesk, to science
@ScienceDesk@flipboard.social avatar

"Stranger than science fiction." That's how an ecologist describes a strange fungus that hijacks cicadas’ bodies and behavior, turning them into "zombies."

CNN reports on the the fungus Massospora cicadina and how it's impacting some of the cicadas emerging this year: https://flip.it/cxfw5K

ScienceDesk, to Energy
@ScienceDesk@flipboard.social avatar

In a nation where many revere cows, the animals' waste has become an energy resource.

BBC News reports: "Indian cattle produce around three-million tonnes of cow dung a day. ... The government wants more of that dung, and other agriculture waste, to be made into methane."

https://flip.it/._x51N

#Energy #Methane #Agriculture #Cows #India #Environment

ScienceDesk, to animals
@ScienceDesk@flipboard.social avatar

Who’s the father? For these baby animals, one doesn’t exist.

From Vox: "More animals can occasionally reproduce asexually than scientists realized."

https://flip.it/hSTK4i

#Animals #Evolution #Biology #Science

ScienceDesk, to space
@ScienceDesk@flipboard.social avatar

The universe may have a complex geometry — like a doughnut.

Science News reports: "In a universe with an analogous, complex topology, you could travel across the cosmos and end up back where you started."

https://flip.it/EAdwS4

ScienceDesk, to Health
@ScienceDesk@flipboard.social avatar

"The first recipient of a genetically modified pig kidney transplant has died nearly two months after he underwent the procedure.''

AP reports on the 62-year-old patient and the latest research on organ transplants: https://flip.it/oPsJGH

#Health #Medicine #Science

ScienceDesk, to Health
@ScienceDesk@flipboard.social avatar

Chronic asthma could be caused by cell overcrowding in the airways.

Science News reports: "A glitch in the mechanical process that drives normal turnover of epithelial cells lining the lungs could be to blame. ... Better understanding of this physical force underpinning chronic asthma attacks might lead to new ways of combating the disease."

https://flip.it/mrBLcQ

#Asthma #Health #Disease #Science

ScienceDesk, to science
@ScienceDesk@flipboard.social avatar

Abnormally warm patches of water in the Pacific Ocean have had a disastrous effect on marine life since 2010. Now we may know what’s causing these giant “blobs” to keep appearing. Science Alert has more, including how a policy designed to improve environmental conditions may have negative consequences.
https://flip.it/cx7s4L

ScienceDesk, to science
@ScienceDesk@flipboard.social avatar

Could magma be moving deep below the surface on the border of Germany and the Czech Republic? And if so, what is the significance? Recently installed seismometers in the Vogtland region captured a swarm of earthquakes, suggesting a “complex seismic situation” could be developing. Live Science explains.
https://flip.it/xMLNt9

ScienceDesk, to science
@ScienceDesk@flipboard.social avatar

The solar storm that provided the magnificent view of the northern lights on Friday night may put on an encore. CNN has more on how you can catch the show. https://flip.it/zrFNqq
#Science #NorthernLights #AuroraBorealis #Space #SolarStorm

ScienceDesk, to science
@ScienceDesk@flipboard.social avatar

Scientists may have found a way to make biodegradable plastic from algae, a development that could potentially diminish the harmful effects of microplastics that linger for thousands of years. ABC News reports: https://flip.it/mizbsY

ScienceDesk, to science
@ScienceDesk@flipboard.social avatar

You already know not to take an AI chatbot seriously. But there may be reason to be even more cautious. New research has found that many AI systems have already started to deliberately present human users with false information. Science Alert explains why "AI developers do not have a confident understanding of what causes undesirable AI behaviors like deception.”
https://flip.it/ZbnJtj

ScienceDesk, to Japan
@ScienceDesk@flipboard.social avatar

Could snow trigger earthquakes? A new study in the journal Science Advances says thousands of quakes on Japan’s Noto Peninsula since 2020 could be linked to the region’s heavy snowfall, pointing to the weather correlating with “earthquake swarms.” While the study doesn’t say that climate directly causes the earthquakes, it suggests the rate of the seismic events could fluctuate depending on the weight of water on the surface and the movement of water below. Read more from NBC News.

https://flip.it/QdW0_j

#Earthquakes #Japan #Geology #Snow #Snowfall

ScienceDesk, to ocean
@ScienceDesk@flipboard.social avatar

Small but mighty, plankton are some of the most powerful creatures on Earth.

For @TheConversationUS, a marine conservationist writes: "Plankton are critical to marine ecosystems and to humans, but often glide under the radar of our interest."

https://flip.it/w_xF.r

ScienceDesk, to space
@ScienceDesk@flipboard.social avatar

A rare severe geomagnetic storm watch is issued for the first time in nearly 20 years amid "unusual" solar event.

CBS News quotes the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA): "Geomagnetic storms can impact infrastructure in near-Earth orbit and on Earth's surface, potentially disrupting communications, the electric power grid, navigation, radio and satellite operations."

https://flip.it/6cGvxW

ScienceDesk, to science
@ScienceDesk@flipboard.social avatar

Jonathan An, an assistant professor of oral sciences, tries to ignore the hype around new life-extension treatments. But while studying for his doctorate in dentistry, An experimented with a drug normally used for organ transplant rejection on mice with oral disease. It worked, and An plans to test the drug on humans next. We may not live forever, but could science help us enjoy the time we have? Read more from Vox: https://flip.it/i0-9ZS
#Science #Health #Medicine #Longevity

ScienceDesk, to science
@ScienceDesk@flipboard.social avatar

Several companies are offering people in mourning a chance to chat with a “simulation” of a deceased loved one. Some say it feels like they’re speaking to them from beyond the grave, while others find it disconcerting and manipulative. Ethicists Tomasz Hollanek and Katarzyna Nowaczyk-Basińska from the University of Cambridge are the latest to voice their concerns over the risks of the "digital afterlife industry." Here’s more from Science Alert: https://flip.it/C6.06y

ScienceDesk, to science
@ScienceDesk@flipboard.social avatar

When Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha’apai erupted in January 2022, the underwater volcano in the South Pacific unleashed the most intense lightning storm ever recorded and set off a mega-tsunami that was hundreds of feet high. Research indicated the eruption was fueled by two merging magma chambers. Now, scientists are looking at another potential trigger. Live Science has more: https://flip.it/ZAjd2N

ScienceDesk, to earthquake
@ScienceDesk@flipboard.social avatar

Two giant blobs lurk deep within the Earth, but why?

From @popsci "Some scientists believe they could be responsible for plate tectonics."

https://flip.it/ZswokA

#Earth #Earthquake #Volcano #Science

ScienceDesk, to Weather
@ScienceDesk@flipboard.social avatar

The U.S. National Weather Service issues tornado warnings, watches and emergencies. Do you know the difference between the three terms?

AP explains: https://flip.it/kO4VDw

#Tornado #Weather #NWS #Storm #Meteorology

ScienceDesk, to Futurology
@ScienceDesk@flipboard.social avatar

"A team of researchers have built a vision implant with tiny electrodes the size of a neuron, seeking to help blind people see again."

The Next Web reports: "Initial tests in mice showed that the implant can effectively stimulate visual perception using only a small amount of electricity."

https://flip.it/2Z5SA2

Here's the original study: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/adhm.202304169

#Eyes #Vision #Research #Science

ScienceDesk, to animals
@ScienceDesk@flipboard.social avatar

Scientists are learning the basic building blocks of sperm whale language after years of effort.

AP reports on new research from the Caribbean island of Dominica: https://flip.it/43UWRD

ScienceDesk, to climate
@ScienceDesk@flipboard.social avatar

"Earth has just experienced its 11th straight warmest month on record -- a preview of the brutal temperatures forecast for the summer, according to scientists."

ABC News reports: "May 2023 through April 2024 was the warmest 12-month stretch on record with a global average temperature of 2.90 degrees Fahrenheit above the 1850 to 1900 pre-industrial average."

https://flip.it/.uYDvT

ScienceDesk, to SpaceX
@ScienceDesk@flipboard.social avatar

"Over the weekend the crew of the upcoming Polaris Dawn mission shared a wealth of details about the intriguing private mission that will send humans farther than they have flown from Earth in half a century."

Here's an article by Eric Berger of @arstechnica: "Why a rich guy going to space for a second time actually matters."

https://flip.it/k_Qa7k

#Polaris #SpaceX #Space #NASA #Astronauts

ScienceDesk, to climate
@ScienceDesk@flipboard.social avatar

We hate to be pessimistic, but have you ever wondered if/when will humans become extinct? A supercomputer simulation has the possible answer.

BGR reports on a new study: https://flip.it/i65vTe

Here's the study: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41561-023-01259-3

#Extinction #ClimateChange #Humanity #Science

ScienceDesk, to space
@ScienceDesk@flipboard.social avatar

"Boeing called off its first astronaut launch because of a valve problem on the rocket Monday night."

AP reports: "The two NASA test pilots had just strapped into Boeing’s Starliner capsule for a flight to the International Space Station when the countdown was halted, just two hours before the planned liftoff."

https://flip.it/_Od3IK

#Boeing #Starliner #Space #NASA

  • All
  • Subscribed
  • Moderated
  • Favorites
  • •
  • JUstTest
  • ngwrru68w68
  • everett
  • InstantRegret
  • magazineikmin
  • thenastyranch
  • rosin
  • GTA5RPClips
  • Durango
  • Youngstown
  • slotface
  • khanakhh
  • kavyap
  • DreamBathrooms
  • provamag3
  • tacticalgear
  • osvaldo12
  • tester
  • cubers
  • cisconetworking
  • mdbf
  • ethstaker
  • modclub
  • Leos
  • anitta
  • normalnudes
  • megavids
  • lostlight
  • All magazines
    •