Asteroids are less pristine than comets, having often endured heating and the effects of liquid water. But these effects can produce dramatic new organic complexity. For decades, scientists have known that meteorites called chondrites, which originate from asteroids, contain a staggering diversity of organic molecules. The Murchison meteorite, which fell in Australia in 1969, contains…
This story originally appeared on High Country News and is part of the Climate Desk collaboration. In Southern California, December wildfires are somewhat uncommon but not completely out of the norm. And this year, extremely dry conditions and strong Santa Ana winds created the perfect recipe for dangerous late-year fires. On the night of December…
THIS ARTICLE IS republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Christmas can be a time of togetherness, fun, and relaxation. Yet, it can also bring unique challenges—particularly for those who may struggle with food anxiety, weight concerns, or an eating disorder. There are many reasons why the holidays can be such a difficult…
Almost no one ever writes about the Parker Solar Probe anymore. Sure, the spacecraft got some attention when it launched. It is, after all, the fastest-moving object that humans have ever built. At its maximum speed, goosed by the gravitational pull of the sun, the probe reaches a velocity of 430,000 miles per hour, or…
every year, at the beginning of November, one of the most impressive natural spectacles in the world takes place in Michoacán, Mexico. Hundreds of millions of migrating monarch butterflies settle in the forested massifs of the country’s Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve, roughly 100 kilometers west of Mexico City. Having flown south for eight months, beginning…
In recent earnings calls, shareholders in some publicly traded meat companies have asked whether the Trump administration’s deportation plans—among other issues—may pose a challenge to their industry. “We’ve been there before. It did not impact our business,” said Tim Klein, CEO of National Beef, which is owned by the Brazilian food company Marfrig, in response…
In these homes, a high value gets placed on achievement. I think the way these kids are created sends the message: “You’re not good enough. You need to achieve. You’re not accepted.” When the kids struggle, it’s especially devastating. Some kids have disabilities from being born preterm, which used to be a big risk with…
THIS ARTICLE IS republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. The number of people who read for fun appears to be steadily dropping. Fifty percent of UK adults say they don’t read regularly (up from 42 percent in 2015) and almost one in four young people aged 16 to 24 say they’ve never…
It’s the last flight of the day and the plane is pretty empty. So you’re thinking, maaaybe you’ll just move up a few rows, where there’s a nice window seat with a view that’s not obstructed by the wing. Not so fast, buster. The flight attendant says that’s a no-go. You have to stay in…
Planting forests while growing protein-rich food seems like a win-win, so are there any potential drawbacks? Lynne Boddy, professor of fungal ecology at Cardiff University, believes that mycoforestry “absolutely” has the potential to produce significant food crops while sequestering carbon. However, she advocates for “huge care” in doing so. “To my mind, whenever we inoculate…
