Science

Here’s Why The World Will Be Holding Its Breath During The JWST Launch

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When the immense sound of the Ariane 5 rocket rumbles across Europe’s spaceport in French Guiana, it will signal the end of a journey decades in the making. Perched atop the rocket will be the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), the most sophisticated and complex observatory ever constructed.   An enormous mirror 6.5 meters across, … Read more

Russian cosmonaut Anna Kikina will fly on SpaceX’s Crew-5 mission to the International Space Station

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CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — NASA and the Russian space agency Roscosmos are finalizing an agreement to launch the first cosmonaut on a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft, agency officials confirmed on Monday (Dec. 20).  Joel Montalbano, NASA’s International Space Station (ISS) program manager, told reporters during a prelaunch briefing for the upcoming Dragon cargo resupply mission … Read more

Crowds Can Cause Bridges to Sway Unnervingly, And We May Finally Know Why

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You may have experienced an unsettling amount of swaying and wobbling if you’ve been on a bridge with large numbers of pedestrians traveling over it at the same time. Now, we have a fascinating new explanation for what causes this worrying movement in the structure.   Until now, the thinking went as follows: people fall … Read more

Fossils: Remains of largest millipede that ever lived found on English beach

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Arthropleura was the largest millipede ever to live, and palaeontologists have just found the fossilised remains of the longest specimen yet on a beach in northern England Life 21 December 2021 By Chen Ly Reconstruction of the giant millipede Arthropleura, which lived 326 million years ago Neil Davies The remains of a 326-million-year-old giant millipede, … Read more

For The First Time, Scientists Map Brain Regions Responding to The Clitoris

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A new scientific study published Monday has identified the brain region linked to genital touch in women, and found that it was more developed in volunteers who reported having more sex.   The research involved stimulating the clitorises of 20 adult females while their brains were scanned using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). The researchers … Read more

Early lab studies hint Omicron may be milder. But most scientists reserve judgment | Science

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The new SARS-CoV-2 variant exploding around the planet is forcing humanity to adapt at a breakneck speed. This week, countries across Northern Europe imposed stringent new measures to try to bring down soaring case numbers. On Saturday, The Netherlands issued a near-complete lockdown of public life and allowed residents to receive no more than two … Read more

‘I won’t miss the nasty politics.’ Francis Collins reflects on his tenure at NIH | Science

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Francis Collins ended his 12 years as director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) on a high note last week, rushing to interviews and being showered with fond tributes from former presidents and even cellist Yo-Yo Ma. Collins, an affable, guitar-playing, motorcycle-riding geneticist and physician, steered the $43 billion agency through three administrations, won … Read more

CA Law Aims to Turn Food Waste into Renewable Energy

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California is poised to launch the nation’s biggest program to prevent food waste from going into landfills as a way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and generate clean energy. A law taking effect in January will require municipalities across the state to collect food waste for its potential use in making renewable natural gas for … Read more

Effort to address global vaccine shortfalls envisions a more equitable new year | Science

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After facing setback after setback this year, the nonprofit formed to make sure COVID-19 vaccines reach the poorest countries of the world may finally live up to its promise in 2022. A 14 December report shows that after scaling back its ambitions, the COVID-19 Vaccines Global Access (COVAX) Facility is close to meeting a revised … Read more

‘The Expanse’ is back on Amazon Prime for sixth and final season

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It’s here … and we almost wish it wasn’t. The sixth and final season of “The Expanse” is currently showing on Amazon Prime Video.  So, sit back, strap in, get comfortable in your crash couch, disengage the docking clamp, fire thrusters, engage the Epstein drive and ready “the juice” … this is the awesome, high-octane, … Read more