Kenya: Water

Case Study on Kenyan farmers now saving water after implementing a new system.

 

Should Scientists Expect Lots of Life In An Ocean Teaming With Oxygen?

Image by ntr23 via Flickr

A news report published last week Thursday made headlines proclaiming the discovery that Europa, a moon of Jupiter, is “rich in oxygen”. Here on planet Earth oxygen is critical for the development of life, as well as mental intelligence. On an “Ask Dr. Oz” feature of popular television show, the following was written about the effect of oxygen on the human body:

 

“The brain demands at least 20% of the body’s oxygen supply, when it doesn’t get this supply it can lead to issues such as sleep apnea, poor concentration, forgetfulness, mood swings, restlessness, depressive thoughts and low drive.”

While oxygen levels have a significant impact on the human body, it is vital to find out if marine life forms on Earth react in similar ways to varying oxygen levels as humans do. As it turns out some animals do not even require oxygen as this article by Brian Merchant demonstrates. Yet when one examines the marine life forms that do require oxygen, it becomes impossible to deny the fact that there are literally more species of marine life forms than I can accurately give a figure to. The result equates to the undeniable conclusion that just as humans are unique in terms of interests, likes and dislikes, so too are marine creatures unique in terms of their biology and requirements for sustenance. The scale of variation on Earth from the Atlantic Cod to the common Goldfish, to even underwater bacteria, is truly a zoo of imagination. Nothing is impossible in this universe unless you close your mind to it altogether. With that said the discovery of oxygen on Europa makes this moon a very appealing candidate for discovering life, but when one considers all the factors that had to coincide perfectly to enable life on Earth to thrive, is oxygen and water, in simplicity, really enough, and if so can we expect coordination, tool-making abilities, and self-consciousness to be among those traits listed as no longer confined to Earthly life. 

Source of above photo: Zemanta

For each source highlighted the links above will open a new window providing you with the aforementioned articles.

 

A Student’s Opinion On The STEREO Hunt

 

Image via Wikipedia

I have recently been updated on NASA’s STEREO probes. They are a set of probes set to make solar observations but now, their focus has been shifted to find a more mysterious object, as the full article below points out. STEREO is searching for what appears to be the object that crashed into Earth 4.5 billion years ago to form the moon, an object labelled Theia. Although scientists have never found concrete evidence concerning remnants on “Theia”, the STEREO probes bring a new sense of hope that soon, humanity will come one stop closer to finding more about our Moon’s origin and what it indicates about further objects in space situated similarly.

 

Full Article:

http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2009/09apr_theia.htm?list1315750 

And How You Can Help:

http://sungrazer.nrl.navy.mil/