Science

The original version ofthis storyappeared inQuanta Magazine.

The bottom of the ocean is cold, dark, and under extreme pressure. It is not a place suited to the physiology of us surface dwellers: At the deepest point, the pressure of 36,200 feet of seawater is greater than the weight of an elephant on every square inch of your body. Yet Earth’s deepest places are home to life uniquely suited to these challenging conditions. Scientists have studied how the bodies of some large animals, such as anglerfish and blobfish, have adapted to withstand the pressure. But far less is known about how cells and molecules stand up to the squeezing, crushing weight of thousands of feet of seawater.

THIS ARTICLE IS republished fromThe Conversationunder aCreative Commons license.

Bottlenose dolphins in Sarasota Bay in Florida and Barataria Bay in Louisiana are exhaling microplastic fibers, according to our new research published in the journal PLOS One.

Tiny plastic pieces have spread all over the planet—on land, in the air, and even in clouds. An estimated 170 trillion bits of microplastic are estimated to be in the oceans. Across the globe, research has found that people and wildlife are exposed to microplastics mainly through eating and drinking but also through breathing.

This story originally appeared on Grist and is part of the Climate Desk collaboration.

Three years ago, Erin Primer had an idea for a new summer program for her school district: She wanted students to learn about where their food comes from. Primer, who has worked in student nutrition within California’s public school system for 10 years, applied for grant funding from the state to kick off the curriculum, and got it. Students planted cilantro in a garden tower, met a local organic farmer who grows red lentils, and learned about corn. “Many kids didn’t know that corn grew in a really tall plant,” said Primer. “They didn’t know that it had a husk.”

People with fast street cars like to put them through their paces at the quarter-mile track. One way to get your quarter-mile time is to just buckle up and put the pedal to the metal. But if your car’s design is suboptimal, you won’t be taking home the bragging rights.

So here’s this week’s question: Can automotive engineers predict a car’s quarter-mile time using physics? And could the physics suggest some tricks to make a car faster? Yes and yes! Let’s see how.

Late in his team’s game against the Green Bay Packers on September 15, Indianapolis Colts tight end Kylen Granson caught a short pass over the middle of the field, charged forward, and lowered his body to brace for contact. The side of his helmet smacked the face mask of linebacker Quay Walker, and the back of it whacked the ground as Walker wrestled him down. Rising to his feet after the 9-yard gain, Granson tossed the football to an official and returned to the line of scrimmage for the next snap.

After Milton madelandfall as a Category 3 hurricane in western Florida last week, some residents who evacuated the area are now returning to discover water damage in their homes. And they may soon find something else: mold.

Mold can begin to grow as soon as 24 to 48 hours after moisture exposure. And Florida’s subtropical climate, which remains hot and humid in October, makes it a perfect breeding ground. Even worse, mold will continue to grow until the source of moisture is eliminated.

As Hurricane Miltonmade landfall on Florida’s west coast the evening of October 9, a deluge of rain ruptured the city of St. Petersburg’s water main lines. The damage meant that some hospitals in the area—including one with a large neonatal intensive care unit (NICU)—were temporarily cut off from public water.

Jason Weida, secretary of Florida’s Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA), knew access to water could be an issue after Milton. Hurricanes can affect the water supply in a few different ways. They can cause infrastructure damage, like in St. Petersburg. They can knock out power at water treatment plants, leading to untreated or undertreated water. And stormwater runoff can contaminate groundwater and surface water. In 2022, after Hurricane Ian hit, some Florida hospitals were left without running water for days.

This story originally appeared on WIRED Italia and has been translated from Italian.

SpaceX has reached an important milestone in testing Starship, the spacecraft it wants to use for crewed missions to the Moon and Mars. Following a test launch yesterday, the Super Heavy booster that launches Starship returned to Earth and landed at its “Mechazilla” launch tower, succeeding in the first ever attempt at this maneuver. This success brings SpaceX a step closer to its ambition of making Starship a fully reusable spacefaring system.

The original version ofthis storyappeared inQuanta Magazine.

For a molecule of RNA, the world is a dangerous place. Unlike DNA, which can persist for millions of years in its remarkably stable, double-stranded form, RNA isn’t built to last—not even within the cell that made it. Unless it’s protectively tethered to a larger molecule, RNA can degrade in minutes or less. And outside a cell? Forget about it. Voracious, RNA-destroying enzymes are everywhere, secreted by all forms of life as a defense against viruses that spell out their genetic identity in RNA code.

THIS ARTICLE IS republished fromThe Conversationunder aCreative Commons license.

Cinnamon has been long used around the world in both sweet and savoury dishes and drinks.

But a new TikTok trend claims adding a teaspoon of cinnamon to your daily coffee (and some cocoa to make it more palatable) for one week can help you burn fat. Is there any truth to this?

There are two types of cinnamon, both of which come from grinding the bark of the cinnamomum tree and may include several naturally occurring active ingredients.