Sparks and Seeds for Learning: February 2017

Space Artists's Concepts for Unseen Planets

Check out npr to see the process behind designing concept art for newly discovered planets. It is fascinating!

'This artist's impression shows a best guess of what the surface of the planet

Proxima b might look like, as it orbits the red dwarf star Proxima Centauri, the

closest star to our solar system. Maybe Mars was the model?'

M. Kornmesser/ESO

Waterball Ping Pong

"Astronaut Scott Kelly has spent more time in space than any other American. He has also played solo ping pong with a ball of water and two hydrophobic paddles."

Image Credit: NASA

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You MUST Watch this Video

Earth's history is laid out to scale on a football field. A VERY cool timeline.

Giant Creatures

Full story here. And here’s our rhyming round-up of other ancient, giant versions of modern mammals:

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Glow Worms

Image Credit: Janek von Byern, GIF’d by Maddie Sofia

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Where in the World Have New Diseases Emerged?

"What new viruses are emerging in your backyard?

If you’re a germaphobe, make sure you’re sitting down.

Back in 1999, a woman in California cleaned up rodent droppings in her home. Two weeks later, her liver started failing. Then she started to bleed internally — a hemorrhagic fever that would kill her. Eventually doctors found a new virus in her body, which very likely came from a rat.

A few years later, a man in Arizona went to the hospital. The skin on his legs was infected and dying. Doctors had to amputate. His diagnosis? A new kind of leprosy.

Over in the Midwest, the problem has been new tick-borne diseases, some deadly. And in New England, doctors are dealing with a disease that causes Lyme-like symptoms but is caused by a different bacteria.

The pattern continues across the country and across the world. A spike in new infectious diseases is the new normal.

Another side effect of humanity’s conquest of the natural world."

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Frog Spit is a Non-Newtonian Fluid

"The researchers used high-speed photography and an instrument called a Rheometer to analyze frog saliva under prey-capturing conditions. The scientists think frog tongues could one day help engineers design reversible soft adhesives that could work at high speeds.

Dye that Changes Colour Like a Moodring

"Color-changing hair might seem like something out of a fantasy novel, but Lauren Bowker of The Unseen has made it a reality. Bowker, a chemist and fashion designer, is known for her “high-fashion alchemy.” She’s previously created hue-shifting purses as well as other air sculptures that use science to produce a stunning visual effect. Now, she’s turning her attention towards color-changing hair dye that’s controlled by temperature—when there’s a dramatic spike or drop, the dye seemingly has a mind of its own... Each hue reacts to either bodily or environmental temperatures. Blushing, for instance, causes your body temperature to rise and as a result, a shift in color... Weather is also a factor. With one color combination, stepping into chilly weather shifts blonde hair to a fitting icy blue."

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