It’s been an amazing week in the world of science: from surprising findings from satellite data regarding the amount of sea level rise to the outer reaches of the solar system where Pluto’s moon Charon was found to have a “Hulk-like” skin, and back to Earth where birds who don’t get sick while spreading disease are explained, as well as a study confirming the benefits of organic milk and meat. Not to mention a new type of black hole that could break the theory of relativity (in theory), and more confirmation that drinking alcohol is good for your heart.
Here’s a summary of our most popular stories this week:
NASA Discovers Why Sea Level Rise Hasn’t Been as much as Expected
“We always assumed that people’s increased reliance on groundwater for irrigation and consumption was resulting in a net transfer of water from the land to the ocean,” said lead author J.T. Reager of JPL, who began work on the study as a graduate student at UC Irvine. “What we didn’t realize until now is that over the past decade, changes in the global water cycle more than offset the losses that occurred from groundwater pumping, causing the land to act like a sponge — at least temporarily. These new data are vital for understanding decadal variations in sea level change. The information will be a critical complement to future long-term projections of sea level rise, which depend on melting ice and warming oceans.” …
New Theoretical Black Hole Could Break General Relativity
Theoretical physicists have used a super computer to simulate Einstein’s theory of general relativity in more than 4 dimensions, and in the process have discovered a special type of black hole that would cause the general relativity concepts to break down completely if one formed. It’s an interesting proposition, because only four dimensions have been proven to exist, although theoretical physicists have proposed up to 11 total dimensions in order to describe the behavior of the universe.
This new simulation, completed by researchers from University of Cambridge and Queen Mary University of London, found that in 5 dimensions, a special form of ring-shaped black hole could break down and create a “naked singularity,” violating the predictions of general relativity…
10 Incredible Discoveries That Science Can’t Explain (Yet…) [Video]
As we all know, scientific knowledge is constantly evolving and advancing, but every now and then, scientists discover theoretical or experimental enigmas that challenge the current scientific models and remain unsolved – at least for now…
This is How Birds Spread Disease Without Getting Sick
Birds carry a fungus that can be fatal in people, yet the birds don’t get sick. Now researchers think they know why.
Cryptococcus neoformans is a fungus that causes deadly infections in people with a weakened immune system. It’s found in bird droppings, and it’s one of the most dangerous infections for people with AIDS—and is thought to cause hundreds of thousands of deaths worldwide every year…
Star with Record-Breaking Eclipse Discovered
Scientists have discovered a binary star system nearly 10,000 light years from Earth which has an both stellar eclipse duration and a period between eclipses that smashes all records. For this binary star system, every 69 years the sun disappears from Earth’s view in a near total eclipse that lasts for three and half years.
The newly discovered system, known only by its astronomical catalog number TYC 2505-672-1, sets a new record for both the longest duration stellar eclipse and the longest period between eclipses in a binary system…
Pluto’s Charon Looks to be the ‘Incredible Hulk’ of Moons
NASA scientists studying images of Pluto’s largest moon, Charon, from the New Horizons flyby data have discovered a fascinating feature of the surface of that moon: like the Incredible Hulk growing too big for his shirt, its surface is covered with “pull-apart” faults indicating that it has expanded and cracked…
Large Study Finds Big Differences in Organic Milk and Meat
A new study from Newcastle University, and the largest of its kind, examined the nutritional value of organic milk and meat compared to non-organic, and found clear differences in many key nutritional factors of the organic products. The study surveyed data from over 250 studies from around the world to come to its conclusions.
There has often been controversy in the food industry regarding whether organic food products are actually any better than products that are produced in what have become the conventional industry standard methods of food production. This study appears to lay that debate to rest…
Also From This Week, Check Out:
- New Study: Testosterone Treatment is Definitely Effective
- Straight A students may not be the best innovators
- Why U.S. Politicians Have Some of the Biggest Grins
- This Drummer Really Does Have Three Arms [Video]
- Your Neanderthal Genes may be Making You Depressed [Video]
- This Deadly Flower is New to Science
- Breakthrough in Mind-Controlled Prosthetics: Man Moves Artificial Fingers with Thoughts [Video]