Science Quick Picks

2012 Google Science Fair

Jorge Goncalves — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 18:38:01 +0000

Google is looking for the brightest young scientists from around the world to submit interesting, creative projects that are relevant to the world today.

The Google Science Fair challenges students aged 13-18 to carry out a scientific investigation into a real-world problem or issue that interests them. The competition asks them to carry the investigation forward through rigorous experimentation, recording and conclusions.

Students compete with peers in their age group from all over the world to win scholarships, internships and once-in-a-lifetime experiences. There will also be a special Science in Action prize, sponsored by Scientific American. This will reward the project with the highest capacity to make a practical difference to the lives of people in a group or community.

What A New Space Race Would Accomplish

Guest Blogger — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 00:43:05 +0000

With NASA struggling to stay alive and the world mired in economic trouble, interest in astronomy, cosmology and other space-related sciences seems to have waned in the public eye. Yet, the knowledge we glean from space research can help us with practical applications here on Earth, as Huntingdon Life Sciences shows us. Perhaps what we need is a new space race. What would this accomplish? Well, it would:

Expand the search for Earth-like planets outside our solar system
One of the hottest fields in astronomy right now is exoplanet detection, which has benefited greatly from new technologies. Exoplanet detection, which is the discovery of planets outside our star system, used to be only possible by deducing a celestial body in the shadow of a star. Newer, more sophisticated techniques have made it more likely we will discovery planets hospitable for life.

Expand the development of a fusion-powered rocket
Fusion power in a rocket would not only reduce the incredible cost of putting men and women in space, it would exponentially increase the distances we could traverse. As it stands now, space travel is slow and costly.
Increase the chance of a trip to Mars. The Red Planet has beckoned us for years but the sheer cost of making the trip and ambiguity over what this journey would accomplish has hindered progress. A new space race to Mars would probably parallel the Cold War in terms of creating nationalistic pride.

Add to our understanding of climate change
The more science progresses the more we learn about how our planet operates and how it traps and is affected by the sun’s rays and greenhouse gases.

Make us safer from asteroids
In 1883, hundreds of comet fragments narrowly missed the Earth. We didn’t even know about this until recently, after turning up evidence from a 19th century astronomer. A new space race would force us to draw up contingency plans.
Increase the chance of a colony on the moon. Because of cosmic threats like asteroids, as well as more domestic threats like war, disease, and pollution, it’s probably a good idea for humans to not have all our eggs in one basket, so to speak. Establishing a lunar colony would aid in scientific research, as well as provide some DNA safeguards in the event of a planetary calamity.

Learn more about the origins of the universe
The further out we go, the further back we go in time. New telescopes are peering deeper into the history of universe than ever before. Someday it may be possible for us to actually observe the direct aftermath of the Big Bang.

This is what would likely be accomplished with a new space race. While the cost would be high, so too would be the gains in knowledge, technological advancement, and global safety.

What A New Space Race Would Accomplish is a post from Science Quick Picks, a blog dedicated to the world of Science.

Earth and Beyond: A Pictorial Journey

Guest Blogger — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 17:02:18 +0000

Space, the final frontier, with this pictorial journey we will boldly go where only lucky astronauts and the immense reach of a camera lens have gone before. We will gaze in wonder at some stellar sights, feeling very small in comparison to the vast expanse of space and very proud to be part of a race that has reached out from their humble position to the outer limits of the galaxy.

(1) Lift off

A magisterial space rocket lifts off from planet Earth on its mission to outer space.

(2) Another powerful launch

The Columbia Space Shuttle heads for space with all its cylinders blazing.

(3) Home

A beautiful shot of our planet Earth in all her glory.

(4) Antarctic Peninsula

A vertiginous view of the Antarctic Peninsula seen from outer space.

(5) A Long Fall from Space

Autumnal colours surround Lake Superior snapped from space.

(6) Up and Over Down Under

Fires photographed from way above North-Eastern Australia.

(7) High Shot of Low Pressure

Low pressure builds and swirls over the Great Lakes of America.

(8) A Cloud Street Map

Cloud streets and a hurricane billow and blow off the West Coast of America

(9) Nature’s Magic Captured from on High

The wondrous green and red aurora caused by charged particles from a solar wind clashing with oxygen.

(10) A Glorious Sight To Behold

A time-lapse shot of the aurora from the giddy heights of the International Space Station

(11) A Turbulent Typhoon Approaches

A super shot of Typhoon Roke heading for Japan taken from the NASA Goddard Space Flight Centre.

(12) The Forecast: Clouds, Clouds and Clouds

Cloud vortices curl and curve above Heard Island in the Indian Ocean.

(13) UARS Prior to Re-entry

NASA’s Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite (UARS) orbits the Earth before it plummeted down into the Pacific Ocean on 24 September 2011.

(14) A Full Moon

A lovely lunar video capturing the pockmarked surface of our shadowy satellite.

(15) A Closer Look at the Lunar Surface

A wonderful video of a lunar landscape flyover.

(16) Solar Power

An immense solar flare roars from the surface of the sun in this stunning image of the centre of our solar system.

(17) Blaze and Flare

The temperature of the Sun’s surface is around 6000 Celsius. In this photo, a fiery flare from it leaps into space.

(18) The Shine of a Sun Spot

The awesome might of the solar surface and a stunning sun spot.

(19) A Solar Eclipse from Space

A chiaroscuro eclipse is even more stunning when seen from space.

(20) Look upon Mercury

A beautiful shot of Mercury’s moon-like surface, craggy and scorched by the Sun.

(21) Beautiful Venus

The rocky surface of the red-hot planet Venus

(22) Mighty Mars

Favourite of science fiction writers, Mars is just as incredible in reality.

(23) Ringed Saturn

A mesmerising sight, Saturn and its majestic rings.

(24) The Giant Jupiter

The biggest of the gas giants and largest planet in our solar system.

(25) A Look at Europa

One of Jupiter’s moons, Europa has ice and water on its surface, which has led to speculation about whether it can or does sustain life.

(26) Distant Uranus

Another gas giant, Uranus was the first planet found by telescope.

(27) Far Off Neptune

Initially Neptune’s existence was predicted by mathematics, before telescopes became powerful enough to view him.

(28) Pluto Out In the Cold

Images of the icy dwarf planet from the Hubble Space Telescope.

(29) An Image of Andromeda

A stunningly detailed photograph of the Andromeda Galaxy, approximately 2.5 light years away.

(30) A spiralling Galaxy of Stars

A magnificent spiralling disc of stars in the far off galaxy NGC 2841, captured by the Hubble Space Telescope.

(31) Jets from a Black Hole

Incredible imagery of a black hole as it spews jets into the cosmos.

(32) Turbulent Centre of a Black Hole

The mysterious centre of a black hole as it emits bright light. The route to another dimension?

This list of galactic images was compiled and written by PrinterInks – suppliers of top brand printer cartridges, including Dell, Samsung, HP, Canon and Epson ink cartridges.

Each of the images and videos used in this post are, at the time of posting, held under the Creative Commons licensing.

Earth and Beyond: A Pictorial Journey is a post from Science Quick Picks, a blog dedicated to the world of Science.

Scientific Ideas That Seemed Crazy at the Time

Guest Blogger — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 17:55:54 +0000

By its very nature, science seeks to challenge. It asks brave questions, and comes up with answers that may seem ridiculous. Sometimes, those answers are not ridiculous, but become part of common knowledge, accepted by all. Here are just some of those ideas:

1) The Earth being round
The ancient Greeks were the first to realise that the earth is not flat, but round. Evidence included observations of the horizon, and early astronomy (it is a misconception that people believed in a flat earth into the Middle Ages: by then, most people knew it was round). At the time of discovery, the idea of a flat earth would have seemed counter-intuitive to many.

2) The Earth orbiting the sun
It was also the ancient Greeks who established at the earth orbited the sun, and not the other way around. The earth, they realised, was not the centre of the universe, but merely a part of it. This theory – heliocentrism – was espoused by Galileo in the seventeenth century, who challenged the Catholic church’s view that it was against the scripture, who accepted the idea relatively quickly.

3) Evolution
Darwin’s theory of evolution ran contrary to the creationist views which were mainstream in his time. However, overwhelming evidence led to its acceptance even by many religious people, although many still hold counter-evolutionary views, especially in the US.

4) Mendhelian inheritance
This is the theory, developed by Gregor Mendel in the 1860s, is the theory of how characteristics are passed down from one generation to another, through genes. His ideas were initially ignored: it was only in the twentieth century that they were taken up by other scientists, and went on to form the basis of modern genetics.

5) Global warming
The first theory that man’s activity could affect the world’s climate emerged in the late nineteenth century, but were disbelieved by most. It was not until the 1930s that scientists began to realise that they were likely true, and extensive research has taken place since. Nevertheless, the idea remains a controversial one, and is still refuted by some.

Other scientific theories are emerging all the time, and many seem utterly implausible. There is still so much that we do not know about our planet, and beyond it. Quantum physicists deal in ‘dark matter’ – so-called because they have limited understanding of what it is, though it is thought to be the basis of ‘black holes’. Other theories which seem impossible, but may yet be proven, are constantly studied. For example, it is thought that teleportation will be possible, perhaps within decades, and embryonic teleportation involving single atoms has already taken place: called ‘quantum entanglement’.

Another unlikely sounding theory is the ‘Copenhagen entanglement’. This holds that it is possible for something to be in two places at once: demonstrated by the ability of a particle to pass through two slits at the same time. There are many possible bizarre manifestations of these theories, and others. Who knows, they may yet come to shape our world.

Rachel is a freelance blogger with a background working on science parks and an interest in making science more accessible.

Scientific Ideas That Seemed Crazy at the Time is a post from Science Quick Picks, a blog dedicated to the world of Science.

Learn How Gravity Works — Again, as an Adult

Guest Blogger — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 23:55:57 +0000

I went to a science center exhibit a few weeks ago that had you step on a scale and it showed you how much you weighed on planet Earth (wake-up call that I need to return to the gym), followed by what you’d weigh on each of the other planets. The interactive exhibit explained that the variation is due to gravity. Gravity, which I found to be a complicated theory to grasp as a child, can be easily explained at 800loadcel.com. But, essentially, it is what keeps you standing upright and not smushed to the Earth right now.

Thank you, gravity!

Gravity is not the only scientific theory that is hard to sum up in a few words. As a former science major, I struggled to see things as only black or white. I found the topics interesting, but it was difficult to see why water boiled at a specific temperature and not one degree sooner, how load cell calibration worked or where exactly kinetics came into play. This may be why I ended up changing my major.

Science for dummies

The average person doesn’t need to know every single who, what, when, where, and why of biology, chemistry, physics, astronomy, and meteorology. But a running knowledge of how the world works comes in handy for helping your kids on homework, water cooler conversations, and if you’re ever picked to go on Jeopardy.

I find that watching shows on the Discovery Channel rekindles my childhood love of learning. Shows like “Myth Busters,” which uses science to explain why or why not old wives’ tales are true (for example, talking on your cell phone while pumping gas will make you blow up), is a fun way to engage the audience while exposing them to more complicated theories and processes.

More fun when you can play along

I am also a huge fan of attending museums and exhibits geared toward kids. My boyfriend and I recently went to the Maryland Science Center and Baltimore Aquarium. The day trip proved to be a fun one that included learning (and relearning!) about marine wildlife, germs, DNA, and the human body.

I especially love interactive exhibits. From mazes that teach about the human digestive system to a display on Antarctica that has real parkas worn on the tundra available for visitors to try on, it’s just more fun to lean while doing.

Many websites offer at-home ideas to help your kids get the extra attention needed to learn about a specific lesson in science class. Use baking soda and vinegar to teach about chemical interactions via a volcano for chemistry. Take them outside for some hands-on ecology while helping out in the garden. And maybe you’ll also rekindle your love of science in the process.

Now that you know more about how to enjoy the science all around us, dig deeper into a topic of your choice, such as why with load cell calibration is important (800loadcel.com can help!).

Post written by guest blogger James Tennant.

Learn How Gravity Works — Again, as an Adult is a post from Science Quick Picks, a blog dedicated to the world of Science.

Nano-coatings for Scientific Research

Guest Blogger — Mon, 23 May 2011 18:12:18 +0000

Liquid repellent nano coating is a technology which allows surfaces to be liquid repellent without changing their look or feel. They can be applied to a wide range of products and can add significant value for product manufacturers and scientific researchers alike. With consumer products such as textiles for shoes or swimwear, or coatings for mobile phone keypads, the advantages of a water repellent surface are clear. Nano coatings on sports goggles can reduce the problems of smudging and nano coating of hearing aids can protect them against corrosion damage. However, what are the application and benefits for scientific research?

There are several applications for water repellent nano coatings in the field of life sciences. In work where it is advantageous to have minimal liquid retention on surfaces there are some clear applications for nano coating technology. For biological science and microbiogical laboratory equipment, nano coating technology is beneficial in minimising the risk of false positives, transfer loss and cross contamination. Nano coatings are proven to be non – toxic, non – irritating, hypoallergenic and are effective even at high temperatures; in other words, ideal for life sciences. Suitable applications include consumables such as Petri dishes, pipette tips and microtitre plates.

Nano coatings are resistant to washing processes and continue to be functional following any solvent washing. They are compatible with steam and radiation, to allow suitable sterilisation steps. With no effect on the optical clarity of product and with no leachable substances, liquid repelling nano coating is the natural choice for life science research consumables.

In laboratory work, where pipetting accuracy is critical, nano coating of pipette tips can have very substantial benefits. Pipette tips coated with a water repellent nano coating exhibit massively reduced liquid retention. This means that much less of the pipetted liquid adheres to the interior of the pipette tip, increasing the accuracy of the dispensed volume.

In microbiological laboratories, where the sterility of consumables is critical to avoid cross contamination, nano coating can be a significant bonus. Since micro – organisms can generally survive wherever water is a liquid, water repellent consumables such as pipette tips and Petri dishes are a clear benefit. As nano coatings are unaffected by steam or radiation treatment, there is no risk when the consumables undergo sterilisation prior to use.

Nano coatings also have a number of beneficial applications to filtration. Liquid repellent coatings enhance porous and micro-porous filtration membranes and are particularly effective in reusable filtration membranes. Performance is enhanced by increasing oil and water repellence, whilst not affecting pore size (and therefore air flow) or pore distribution. The nano coating technology can improve working efficiencies, capture rate and reliability and as such has many applications in the biosciences, industrial filtration and processing, electronics, water treatment and the food and beverage industry.

The properties and efficiency of solar cells and engineered glass are detrimentally affected by dirt and staining. Nano coatings can substantially improve performance of these instruments by resisting adherence of water, dirt and frost. Using liquid repellent nano coatings for these applications can therefore increase the variety of climates and locations they can be used in.

Article by P2i.com – Market leaders in nano-technology and water repellent coatings.

Nano-coatings for Scientific Research is a post from Science Quick Picks, a blog dedicated to the world of Science.

10 Cool Facts About Space Research

Guest Blogger — Fri, 13 May 2011 14:27:22 +0000

This post is a guest contribution by Rachel.

1) International space stations, sent up into space to carry out research, orbit the earth at around 350km high. Passenger aeroplanes only reach around 9km high.

2) We have achieved much in space research: putting a man on the Moon, and exploring Mars. However, there is still a very long way to go, and more to explore than we could ever imagine. We’ve yet to reach any of the stars: the nearest, Proxima Centurai, would take tens of thousands of years to reach with current technology.

3) Space satellites and research missions help us understand the earth and its climate, as well as the world beyond it. It gives us the ability to observe our climate and weather, and see how we are being affected by global warming.

4) Space research has many spin-offs that are useful down here on Earth. These have included barcodes, smoke detectors and heart pacemakers. Space research pushes the boundaries of what can be done so frequently, that it is always likely to lead to innovation in many fields.

5) Space may be vast and largely unexplored, but spacecraft have explored huge areas of our solar system, and travelled further and faster than we could ever have believed possible a few decades ago. Much of this exploration has been done by robots: they are the most useful tool space researchers have, as sending humans long distances is not often possible. They have been to most of the planets and moons in our solar system, and some are making their way out of it to explore the universe beyond.

6) Space-based imaging technology uses x-rays and electromagnetics that can only work outside the Earth’s atmosphere in order to create images of space. The images they create open the door on a magical, mysterious work of incredible energy. We can now see colliding galaxies and exploding stars in all their amazing glory.

7) Space research has found that all particles have a negative version of themselves: like a parallel universe. This is what is known as anti-matter. When matter and anti-matter collide, they explode, destroying each other.

Space is thought to be full of radiation that was created by the Big Bang, 13.7 billion years ago. This is known as cosmic microwave background, and is one of the most compelling pieces of evidence we have for the Big Bang theory.

9) Space researchers think that the universe might be made up mainly of a mysterious substance called ‘dark matter’. Dark matter cannot be seen, and cannot be detected with any of the scientific research instruments we have available, and its nature remains uncertain. It could make up invisible black holes.

10) While NASA may dominate space research, they’re not the only players: here in the UK we have a new space innovation centre at Harwell Oxford. It’s the first of its kind in Europe.

Rachel is a keen blogger with a particular interest in space exploration and the science of the universe. Personal heroes include Sir Patrick Moore and Professor Stephen Hawking.

10 Cool Facts About Space Research is a post from Science Quick Picks, a blog dedicated to the world of Science.

Open Access Week

Jorge Goncalves — Mon, 18 Oct 2010 21:15:32 +0000

Open Access Week (OA Week, October 18-24, 2010), a global event now entering its fourth year, is an opportunity for the academic and research community to continue to learn about the potential benefits of Open Access, to share what they’ve learned with colleagues, and to help inspire wider participation in helping to make Open Access a new norm in scholarship and research.

“Open Access” to information – the free, immediate, online access to the results of scholarly research, and the right to use and re-use those results as you need – has the power to transform the way research and scientific inquiry are conducted. It has direct and widespread implications for academia, medicine, science, industry, and for society as a whole.

OA Week is an invaluable chance to connect the global momentum toward open sharing with the advancement of policy changes on the local level. Universities, colleges, research institutes, funding agencies, libraries, and think tanks have used Open Access Week as a platform to host faculty votes on campus open-access policies, to issue reports on the societal and economic benefits of Open Access, to commit new funds in support of open-access publication, and more.

See also, for instance, the 2010 Events, Videos or Forum Discussions.

More sites:
JISC Open Access Week
OER Foundation Open Access Week Webinars
SPARC favorite things on the 2010 OA Week site

Open Access Week is a post from Science Quick Picks, a blog dedicated to the world of Science.

Best International Universities

Guest Blogger — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 08:23:20 +0000

This a guest post by Diane Johnson. Diane graduated from the University of Utah and enjoys writing, particularly about travel and online classes.

After high school graduation many students decide to go to college, while some travel the world, and others start their careers. And within those main decisions there are other choices such as whether to go to a local college or move and attend a university in another state or country. Fortunately, US News and World Report ranks schools and puts out the “World’s Best Universities” list so students will know what their options are. So now students can earn a degree from a top rated university and still live abroad. This allows individuals to travel and experience something new but also increase their knowledge and skills. And these top rated international universities are located in many countries throughout the world.

England

1. University of Cambridge

4. University College – London

6. University of Oxford

7. Imperial College London

21. Kings College London

30. University of Bristol

Australia

20. Australian National University

37. University of Sydney

38. University of Melbourne

43. University of Queensland

46. University of New South Wales

Canada

18. McGill University

29. University of Toronto

44. University of British Columbia

Japan

24. University of Tokyo

25. Kyoto University

49. Osaka University

China

23. University of Hong Kong

40. Hong Kong University of Science and Technology

42. The Chinese University of Hong Kong

47. Peking University

Other Top Rated Universities

19. ETH Zurich (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology)

22. University of Edinburgh

32. École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL)

33. École Normale Supérieure de Paris (ENS Paris)

36. École Polytechnique, ParisTech

45. University of Copenhagen

51. Ruprecht-Karls-Universität Heidelberg

52. Trinity College Dublin

56. University of Amsterdam

62. Uppsala University

If students are debating between going to college and traveling the world, they should know there is a third option. There are great universities everywhere and these universities made it into the top 100 of U.S. News & World Report’s World’s Best Universities: Top 400.

Best International Universities is a post from Science Quick Picks, a blog dedicated to the world of Science.

DocsTeach: Turning Students into Historians

Jorge Goncalves — Sun, 10 Oct 2010 23:17:34 +0000

DocsTeach – The National Archive Experience: Find, use, create and share activities using documents from the National Archives. More than 3000 documents are available for use in classroom activities.

The National Archives Experience: The National Archives Experience depicts the outstanding national mosaic and tells the stories of the American journey to young and old, scholars and students, cynics and dreamers.

The National Archives and Records Administration – Archives.Gov.

DocsTeach: Turning Students into Historians is a post from Science Quick Picks, a blog dedicated to the world of Science.

Science Quick Picks

2012 Google Science Fair

Related posts

What A New Space Race Would Accomplish

Related posts

Earth and Beyond: A Pictorial Journey

(1) Lift off

(2) Another powerful launch

(3) Home

(4) Antarctic Peninsula

(5) A Long Fall from Space

(6) Up and Over Down Under

(7) High Shot of Low Pressure

(8) A Cloud Street Map

(9) Nature’s Magic Captured from on High

(10) A Glorious Sight To Behold

(11) A Turbulent Typhoon Approaches

(12) The Forecast: Clouds, Clouds and Clouds

(13) UARS Prior to Re-entry

(14) A Full Moon

(15) A Closer Look at the Lunar Surface

(16) Solar Power

(17) Blaze and Flare

(18) The Shine of a Sun Spot

(19) A Solar Eclipse from Space

(20) Look upon Mercury

(21) Beautiful Venus

(22) Mighty Mars

(23) Ringed Saturn

(24) The Giant Jupiter

(25) A Look at Europa

(26) Distant Uranus

(27) Far Off Neptune

(28) Pluto Out In the Cold

(29) An Image of Andromeda

(30) A spiralling Galaxy of Stars

(31) Jets from a Black Hole

(32) Turbulent Centre of a Black Hole

Related posts

Scientific Ideas That Seemed Crazy at the Time

Related posts

Learn How Gravity Works — Again, as an Adult

Thank you, gravity!

Science for dummies

More fun when you can play along

Related posts

Nano-coatings for Scientific Research

Related posts

10 Cool Facts About Space Research

Related posts

Open Access Week

Related posts

Best International Universities

Related posts

DocsTeach: Turning Students into Historians

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