On October 19, 2017, astronomers at the University of Hawaii spotted a strange object travelling through our solar system, which they later described as “a red and extremely elongated asteroid.” It was the first interstellar object to be detected within our solar system; the scientists named it ‘Oumuamua, the Hawaiian word for a scout or messenger. The following October, Avi Loeb, the chair of Harvard’s astronomy department, co-wrote a paper (with a Harvard postdoctoral fellow, Shmuel Bialy) that examined ‘Oumuamua’s “peculiar acceleration” and suggested that the object “may be a fully operational probe sent intentionally to Earth’s vicinity by an alien civilization.” Loeb has long been interested in the search for extraterrestrial life, and he recently made further headlines by suggesting that we might communicate with the civilization that sent the probe. “If these beings are peaceful, we could learn a lot from them,” he told Der Spiegel.
I recently spoke by phone with Loeb, who was frustrated that scientists saw ‘Oumuamua too late in its journey to photograph the object. “My motivation for writing the paper is to alert the community to pay a lot more attention to the next visitor,” he told me. During our conversation, which has been edited and condensed for clarity, we discussed why Loeb thinks we need to consider the possibility that ‘Oumuamua was sent by aliens, the dangers of unscientific speculation, and what belief in an advanced extraterrestrial civilization has in common with faith in God.
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Avi Loeb, the chair of Harvard’s astronomy department, believes that the peculiar nature of the interstellar object called ‘Oumuamua raises questions about its possible origins.
Courtesy ESA/Hubble, NASA, ESO, M. Kornmesser
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The Maldives, officially the Republic of Maldives, is an Asian country, located in the Indian Ocean, situated in the Arabian Sea. It lies southwest of Sri Lanka and India, about 1,000 kilometres (620 mi) from the Asian continent. The chain of 26 atolls stretches from Ihavandhippolhu Atoll in the north to the Addu City in the south. Comprising a territory spanning roughly 298 square kilometres (115 sq mi), the Maldives is one of the world’s most geographically dispersed sovereign states as well as the smallest Asian country by land area and population, with around 427,756 inhabitants. Malé is the capital and most populated city, traditionally called the “King’s Island” for its central location.
According to the Mayo Clinic, Alzheimer’s is a degenerative disease that destroys brain cells, called neurons. It was first described in 1906 by a German doctor named Alois Alzheimer.
Alzheimer’s, an illness that mostly affects older people, continues to gain ground. The Alzheimer Society of Canada reports that over 700,000 Canadians are afflicted with the disease. This number is expected to double to 1.4 million by 2031.
While a cure for this form of dementia has not yet been found, being aware of certain early signs is important. Several treatments, developed to mitigate these symptoms, are more likely to work if the disease is diagnosed early.
If you are worried about your health, don’t wait to make an appointment with your doctor.
The fifteen volcanoes that make up the eight principal islands of Hawaii are the youngest in a chain of more than 129 volcanoes that stretch 5,800 kilometres (3,600 mi) across the North Pacific Ocean, called the Hawaiian-Emperor seamount chain. Hawaiʻi’s volcanoes rise an average of 4,572 metres (15,000 ft) to reach sea level from their base. The largest, Mauna Loa, is 4,169 metres (13,678 ft) high As shield volcanoes, they are built by accumulated lava flows, growing a few meters/feet at a time to form a broad and gently sloping shape.
Hawaiian islands undergo a systematic pattern of submarine and subaerial growth that is followed by erosion. An island’s stage of development reflects its distance from the Hawaii hotspot.
As she headed to her lab one sunny Texan morning, molecular biologist Meng Wang couldn’t yet guess what would be waiting for her when she arrived: tens of thousands of worms, wriggling around in different boxes. As she peered into each box, slowly it dawned on her. What she saw could cure the most debilitating condition known to humanity: ageing.
Diseases related to ageing – like cancer, rheumatism and Alzheimer’s – kill 100,000 people every day around the world. But a growing number of scientists say it doesn’t have to be this way.
BBC World Service podcast The Inquiry quizzed some of the world’s leading researchers about the nature of ageing – and about the cutting-edge science that could ‘cure’ it, from the role of microbiomes to 3D-printed organs.
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A new organ can be a new lease on life
More and more scientists are saying that we can beat ageing-related diseases (Credit: Getty)
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The glaciers and ice caps of Iceland cover 11.1% of the land area of the country (about 11,400 km² out of the total area of 103,125 km²) and have a considerable impact on its landscape and meteorology. An ice cap is a mass of glacial ice that covers less than 50,000 km² of land area covering a highland area and they feed outlet glaciers. Glaciers are also contributing to the Icelandic economy, with tourists flocking to the country to see glaciers on snowmobiles and on glacier hiking tours.
Many Icelandic ice caps and glaciers lie above volcanoes, such as Grímsvötn and Bárðarbunga, which lie under the largest ice cap, Vatnajökull. The caldera of Grímsvötn is 100 km² in area, and Bárðarbunga is 60 km².
When volcanic activity occurs under the glacier, the resulting meltwater can lead to a sudden glacial lake outburst flood, known in Icelandic as jökulhlaup, but jökulhlaups are most often caused by the accumulation of meltwater due to geothermal activity underneath the glacier. Such jökulhlaups have occasionally triggered volcanic eruptions through the sudden release of pressure.
Iceland is losing ice due to climate change. Okjökull glacier in Borgarfjörður, West Iceland, has lost its glacier title and is now simply known as “Ok” In order to fit the criteria glaciers need to be thick enough to sink and move under their own weight, which Okjökull is not. Okjökull is the first Icelandic glacier to lose its title.
Rushing along at speeds of up to 24 miles per hour, tidal bores are an unusual, unforgettable sight in Southcental Alaska. A unique combination of hydrology and geography forms these waves. Cook Inlet has a huge tidal range, and it’s the only place in the U.S. where such a bore tide forms. These extreme tides hit the narrow, shallow and gently sloping floor of Turnagain Arm. Rapidly rising tidewaters are forced up, forming a raised front. Depending on conditions, the bore can be up to 6 feet tall.
It takes hours for a wave to travel from the mouth of Turnagain Arm all the way to far end. Imagine one wave stretched out like a wide carpet, unrolling in froth as it sweeps into a basin of water.
The largest bores occur during extreme minus tides with the full and new moon cycles. The bore wave typically shows up after low tide in Anchorage.
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Girdwood, Alaska
Alex showing off after everyone else fell off the wave yesterday
Turnagain Arm is a waterway into the northwestern part of the Gulf of Alaska. It is one of two narrow branches at the north end of Cook Inlet, the other being Knik Arm. Turnagain is subject to climate extremes and large tide ranges.
Historically, windmills in Holland served many purposes. The most important probably was pumping water out of the lowlands and back into the rivers beyond the dikes so that the land could be farmed.In the fourteenth century, hollow-post mills were used to drive scoop wheels to drain the wetlands.
Film and Writing Festival for Comedy. Showcasing best of comedy short films at the FEEDBACK Film Festival. Plus, showcasing best of comedy novels, short stories, poems, screenplays (TV, short, feature) at the festival performed by professional actors.
Image from the Maldives
![Deskundigen beweren dat de ziekte van Alzheimer binnen enkele decennia epidemische vormen zal aannemen. Volgens de Wereldgezondheidsorganisatie (WHO) hebben wereldwijd 46 miljoen mensen dementie en naar verwachting zullen dat er in 2050 130 miljoen zijn.]({"default":{"load":"default","w":"80","h":"52","src":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/BBMIjb8.img?h=516&w=799&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f&x=818&y=409"},"size3column":{"load":"default","w":"62","h":"40","src":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/BBMIjb8.img?h=403&w=624&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f&x=818&y=409"},"size2column":{"load":"default","w":"62","h":"40","src":"//img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/BBMIjb8.img?h=403&w=624&m=6&q=60&o=f&l=f&x=818&y=409"}})
Hawaii volcano eruption
A new organ can be a new lease on life
Bore tide surfing
Bore tide surfing
Netherland windmill
