Science, Art, Litt, Science based Art & Science Communication
JAI VIGNAN
All about Science - to remove misconceptions and encourage scientific temper
Communicating science to the common people
'To make them see the world differently through the beautiful lense of science'
Members: 22
Latest Activity: 20 hours ago
WE LOVE SCIENCE HERE BECAUSE IT IS A MANY SPLENDOURED THING
THIS IS A WAR ZONE WHERE SCIENCE FIGHTS WITH NONSENSE AND WINS
“The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge.”
"Being a scientist is a state of mind, not a profession!"
"Science, when it's done right, can yield amazing things".
The Reach of Scientific Research From Labs to Laymen
The aim of science is not only to open a door to infinite knowledge and wisdom but to set a limit to infinite error.
"Knowledge is a Superpower but the irony is you cannot get enough of it with ever increasing data base unless you try to keep up with it constantly and in the right way!" The best education comes from learning from people who know what they are exactly talking about.
Science is this glorious adventure into the unknown, the opportunity to discover things that nobody knew before. And that’s just an experience that’s not to be missed. But it’s also a motivated effort to try to help humankind. And maybe that’s just by increasing human knowledge—because that’s a way to make us a nobler species.
If you are scientifically literate the world looks very different to you.
We do science and science communication not because they are easy but because they are difficult!
“Science is not a subject you studied in school. It’s life. We 're brought into existence by it!"
Links to some important articles :
1. Interactive science series...
a. how-to-do-research-and-write-research-papers-part 13
b. Some Qs people asked me on science and my replies to them...
Part 6, part-10, part-11, part-12, part 14 , part- 8,
part- 1, part-2, part-4, part-5, part-16, part-17, part-18 , part-19 , part-20
part-21 , part-22, part-23, part-24, part-25, part-26, part-27 , part-28
part-29, part-30, part-31, part-32, part-33, part-34, part-35, part-36, part-37,
part-38, part-40, part-41, part-42, part-43, part-44, part-45, part-46, part-47
Part 48, part49, Critical thinking -part 50 , part -51, part-52, part-53
part-54, part-55, part-57, part-58, part-59, part-60, part-61, part-62, part-63
part 64, part-65, part-66, part-67, part-68, part 69, part-70 part-71, part-73 ...
.......306
BP variations during pregnancy part-72
who is responsible for the gender of their children - a man or a woman -part-56
c. some-questions-people-asked-me-on-science-based-on-my-art-and-poems -part-7
d. science-s-rules-are-unyielding-they-will-not-be-bent-for-anybody-part-3-
e. debate-between-scientists-and-people-who-practice-and-propagate-pseudo-science - part -9
f. why astrology is pseudo-science part 15
g. How Science is demolishing patriarchal ideas - part-39
2. in-defence-of-mangalyaan-why-even-developing-countries-like-india need space research programmes
3. Science communication series:
a. science-communication - part 1
b. how-scienitsts-should-communicate-with-laymen - part 2
c. main-challenges-of-science-communication-and-how-to-overcome-them - part 3
d. the-importance-of-science-communication-through-art- part 4
e. why-science-communication-is-geting worse - part 5
f. why-science-journalism-is-not-taken-seriously-in-this-part-of-the-world - part 6
g. blogs-the-best-bet-to-communicate-science-by-scientists- part 7
h. why-it-is-difficult-for-scientists-to-debate-controversial-issues - part 8
i. science-writers-and-communicators-where-are-you - part 9
j. shooting-the-messengers-for-a-different-reason-for-conveying-the- part 10
k. why-is-science-journalism-different-from-other-forms-of-journalism - part 11
l. golden-rules-of-science-communication- Part 12
m. science-writers-should-develop-a-broader-view-to-put-things-in-th - part 13
n. an-informed-patient-is-the-most-cooperative-one -part 14
o. the-risks-scientists-will-have-to-face-while-communicating-science - part 15
p. the-most-difficult-part-of-science-communication - part 16
q. clarity-on-who-you-are-writing-for-is-important-before-sitting-to write a science story - part 17
r. science-communicators-get-thick-skinned-to-communicate-science-without-any-bias - part 18
s. is-post-truth-another-name-for-science-communication-failure?
t. why-is-it-difficult-for-scientists-to-have-high-eqs
u. art-and-literature-as-effective-aids-in-science-communication-and teaching
v.* some-qs-people-asked-me-on-science communication-and-my-replies-to-them
** qs-people-asked-me-on-science-and-my-replies-to-them-part-173
w. why-motivated-perception-influences-your-understanding-of-science
x. science-communication-in-uncertain-times
y. sci-com: why-keep-a-dog-and-bark-yourself
z. How to deal with sci com dilemmas?
A+. sci-com-what-makes-a-story-news-worthy-in-science
B+. is-a-perfect-language-important-in-writing-science-stories
C+. sci-com-how-much-entertainment-is-too-much-while-communicating-sc
D+. sci-com-why-can-t-everybody-understand-science-in-the-same-way
E+. how-to-successfully-negotiate-the-science-communication-maze
4. Health related topics:
a. why-antibiotic-resistance-is-increasing-and-how-scientists-are-tr
b. what-might-happen-when-you-take-lots-of-medicines
c. know-your-cesarean-facts-ladies
d. right-facts-about-menstruation
e. answer-to-the-question-why-on-big-c
f. how-scientists-are-identifying-new-preventive-measures-and-cures-
g. what-if-little-creatures-high-jack-your-brain-and-try-to-control-
h. who-knows-better?
k. can-rust-from-old-drinking-water-pipes-cause-health-problems
l. pvc-and-cpvc-pipes-should-not-be-used-for-drinking-water-supply
m. melioidosis
o. desensitization-and-transplant-success-story
p. do-you-think-the-medicines-you-are-taking-are-perfectly-alright-then revisit your position!
q. swine-flu-the-difficlulties-we-still-face-while-tackling-the-outb
r. dump-this-useless-information-into-a-garbage-bin-if-you-really-care about evidence based medicine
s. don-t-ignore-these-head-injuries
u. allergic- agony-caused-by-caterpillars-and-moths
General science:
a.why-do-water-bodies-suddenly-change-colour
b. don-t-knock-down-your-own-life-line
c. the-most-menacing-animal-in-the-world
d. how-exo-planets-are-detected
e. the-importance-of-earth-s-magnetic-field
f. saving-tigers-from-extinction-is-still-a-travail
g. the-importance-of-snakes-in-our-eco-systems
h. understanding-reverse-osmosis
i. the-importance-of-microbiomes
j. crispr-cas9-gene-editing-technique-a-boon-to-fixing-defective-gen
k. biomimicry-a-solution-to-some-of-our-problems
5. the-dilemmas-scientists-face
6. why-we-get-contradictory-reports-in-science
7. be-alert-pseudo-science-and-anti-science-are-on-prowl
8. science-will-answer-your-questions-and-solve-your-problems
9. how-science-debunks-baseless-beliefs
10. climate-science-and-its-relevance
11. the-road-to-a-healthy-life
12. relative-truth-about-gm-crops-and-foods
13. intuition-based-work-is-bad-science
14. how-science-explains-near-death-experiences
15. just-studies-are-different-from-thorough-scientific-research
16. lab-scientists-versus-internet-scientists
17. can-you-challenge-science?
18. the-myth-of-ritual-working
19.science-and-superstitions-how-rational-thinking-can-make-you-work-better
20. comets-are-not-harmful-or-bad-omens-so-enjoy-the-clestial-shows
21. explanation-of-mysterious-lights-during-earthquakes
22. science-can-tell-what-constitutes-the-beauty-of-a-rose
23. what-lessons-can-science-learn-from-tragedies-like-these
24. the-specific-traits-of-a-scientific-mind
25. science-and-the-paranormal
26. are-these-inventions-and-discoveries-really-accidental-and-intuitive like the journalists say?
27. how-the-brain-of-a-polymath-copes-with-all-the-things-it-does
28. how-to-make-scientific-research-in-india-a-success-story
29. getting-rid-of-plastic-the-natural-way
30. why-some-interesting-things-happen-in-nature
31. real-life-stories-that-proves-how-science-helps-you
32. Science and trust series:
a. how-to-trust-science-stories-a-guide-for-common-man
b. trust-in-science-what-makes-people-waver
c. standing-up-for-science-showing-reasons-why-science-should-be-trusted
You will find the entire list of discussions here: http://kkartlab.in/group/some-science/forum
( Please go through the comments section below to find scientific research reports posted on a daily basis and watch videos based on science)
Get interactive...
Please contact us if you want us to add any information or scientific explanation on any topic that interests you. We will try our level best to give you the right information.
Our mail ID: kkartlabin@gmail.com
Started by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa. Last reply by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on Thursday. 1 Reply 0 Likes
Q: In your opinion, were the covid vaccines a success or a failure?Krishna: No, opinions don’t count in science. Only data and evidence.CDC data show that vaccination offered significant…Continue
Started by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa. Last reply by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on Wednesday. 1 Reply 0 Likes
The idea that aliens may have visited the Earth is becoming increasingly popular. Around a fifth of UK citizens …Continue
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Why our solar system's moons have no ringsOf the nearly 300 moons found to date in our solar system, not a single one is a ringed moon!If giant planets in our Solar System have rings, and if…Continue
Started by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa. Last reply by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa on Monday. 2 Replies 0 Likes
Q: Dr.Krishna, I have read your article on Nocebo Effect. But what…Continue
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About 10% of human-made mercury emissions into the atmosphere each year are the result of global deforestation, according to a new MIT study.
The world's vegetation, from the Amazon rainforest to the savannahs of sub-Saharan Africa, acts as a sink that removes the toxic pollutant from the air. However, if the current rate of deforestation remains unchanged or accelerates, the researchers estimate that net mercury emissions will keep increasing.
The researchers' model shows that the Amazon rainforest plays a particularly important role as a mercury sink, contributing about 30% of the global land sink. Curbing Amazon deforestation could thus have a substantial impact on reducing mercury pollution.
The team also estimates that global reforestation efforts could increase annual mercury uptake by about 5%. While this is significant, the researchers emphasize that reforestation alone should not be a substitute for worldwide pollution control efforts.
Aryeh Feinberg et al, Deforestation as an Anthropogenic Driver of Mercury Pollution, Environmental Science & Technology (2024). DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.3c07851
Nearly half of the world's migratory species are in decline, according to a new United Nations report released recently.
Many songbirds, sea turtles, whales, sharks and other migratory animals move to different environments with changing seasons and are imperiled by habitat loss, illegal hunting and fishing, pollution and climate change.
About 44% of migratory species worldwide are declining in population, the report found. More than a fifth of the nearly 1,200 species monitored by the U.N. are threatened with extinction. These are species that move around the globe. They move to feed and breed and also need stopover sites along the way.
Habitat loss or other threats at any point in their journey can lead to dwindling populations.
Migration is essential for some species. If you cut the migration, you're going to kill the species.
The report relied on existing data, including information from the International Union for Conservation of Nature's Red List, which tracks whether a species is endangered.
Participants of the U.N. meeting plan to evaluate proposals for conservation measures and also whether to formally list several new species of concern.
One country alone cannot save any of these species. In 2022, governments pledged to protect 30% of the planet's land and water resources for conservation at the U.N. Biodiversity Conference.
But these results don't reflect that!
Source: AP and other news agencies.
Astrophysicists have found that planets have flattened shapes like smarties just after they form rather than being spherical as previously thought.
The research, accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysics Letters, shows that protoplanets, which are very young planets recently formed around stars, are flattened structures called oblate spheroids. The paper can currently be accessed on the arXiv preprint server.
The researchers used computer simulations to model the formation of planets according to the theory of disk-instability, which suggests that protoplanets form in short timescales from the breaking up of large rotating disks of dense gas orbiting around young stars.
Taking this approach, the team determined planet properties, compared them with observations and examined the formation mechanism of gas giant planets. They focused on investigating the shapes of young planets and on how these planets may grow to become large gas giant planets, even larger than Jupiter. They also examined the properties of planets forming in a variety of physical conditions, such as ambient temperature and gas density.
Observational confirmation of the flattened shape of young planets may answer the critical question about how planets form, pointing towards the currently less-favored disk-instability model rather than the standard planet formation theory of core accretion.
The researchers also discovered that new planets grow as material falls onto them, predominately from their poles rather than their equators.
These findings have important implications for observations of young planets as they suggest that the way planets appear through a telescope depends on the viewing angle. Such observations of young planets are important in order to understand the planet formation mechanism.
The researchers are following up this discovery with improved computational models to examine how the shape of these planets is affected by the environment in which they form, and to determine their chemical composition to compare with future observations from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). Observations of young planets have become possible in the last few years with observing facilities such as the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA) and the Very Large Telescope (VLT).
Adam Fenton et al, The 3D structure of disc-instability protoplanets, arXiv (2024). DOI: 10.48550/arxiv.2402.01432
Gender-based heat map images show where men tend to look and where women tend to look on a path at night. Women focused significantly more on potential safety hazards—the periphery of the images—while men looked directly at focal points or their intended destination. Credit: Violence and Gender (2023). DOI: 10.1089/vio.2023.0027
Part 2
An eye-catching new study shows just how different the experience of walking home at night is for women versus men.
The study provides clear visual evidence of the constant environmental scanning women conduct as they walk in the dark, a safety consideration the study shows is unique to their experience.
Researchers showed pictures of campus areas at four Utah universities—Utah Valley University, Westminster, Brigham Young University and University of Utah—to participants and asked them to click on areas in the photos that caught their attention. Women focused significantly more on potential safety hazards—the periphery of the images—while men looked directly at focal points or their intended destination.
The resulting heat maps represent perhaps what people are thinking or feeling or doing as they are moving through these spaces.
While men tended to focus on the path or a fixed object (like a light, the walking path or a garbage can), the women's visual pattern represented a scanning of the perimeter (bushes, dark areas next to a path).
The researchers say the findings provide some insight into what it is like to walk home as a woman, which could be multiplied through years or a lifetime of experiences.
The researchers said the data suggests that because environment is perceived and experienced differently by women and men, decision-makers in building campus and community environments should consider the varied experiences, perceptions and safety of both. Why can't we live in a world where women don't have to think about these things? , they ask!
Yes, why?!
Robert A. Chaney et al, Gender-Based Heat Map Images of Campus Walking Settings: A Reflection of Lived Experience, Violence and Gender (2023). DOI: 10.1089/vio.2023.0027
Part 1
Pollutants from burning fossil fuels have been found embedded in corals, for the first time, offering scientists a potential new tool to track the history of pollution, finds a new study by researchers.
The study, published in the journal Science of the Total Environment, identified carbon particles emitted by burning fossil fuels embedded in the corals of Illa Grossa Bay, off the Columbretes Islands in the Mediterranean Sea. Finding this type of pollution—known as fly-ash or spheroidal carbonaceous particles (SCPs)—contaminating natural deposits is seen as an indicator of the presence of human influence on the environment, and an historical marker of the beginning of the proposed Anthropocene epoch.
Corals are a commonly used natural archive for paleoclimate studies because of their measurable growth rates. Akin to tree rings, their long life and slow and regular growth can provide scientists with annual, monthly or even weekly, environmental data going back years.
Up to now, they've largely been used to gauge past climatic conditions like water teperatures and chemistries, but this is the first time that pollutant particles—other than microplastics—have been recovered from corals.
The discovery of these pollutants embedded in coral skeletons extend over decades and paint a clear picture of how extensive human influence is on the environment. It's the first time we've been able to see this kind of contaminant in corals, and its appearance in these deposits parallels the historic rate of fossil fuel combustion in the region.
Corals, which are small invertebrates that tend to dwell in expansive colonies, ingest the SCP pollutants from the surrounding waters, incorporating them as they grow their calcium carbonate skeletons.
As it becomes clearer that humans have altered the natural environment to an unprecedented level, these pollutants act as indelible markers, indicating the start of the Anthropocene epoch. This is valuable to researchers trying to better understand the history of human impact on the natural world and serves as a powerful reminder of how extensive human influence is over the environment.
L.R. Roberts et al, First recorded presence of anthropogenic fly-ash particles in coral skeletons, Science of The Total Environment (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.170665
The color of our oceans, lakes and rivers can tell us a lot about what's going on just beneath the surface. With the new hyperspectral capabilities of the Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem (PACE) mission, we'll know more about the health of aquatic ecosystems and those impacts on human health and climate studies. Scientists explore just five different ocean colours around the globe and find out what those colours tell us.
One in 10 premature births in the United States have been linked to pregnant women being exposed to chemicals in extremely common plastic products, a large study sowed recently. The chemicals, called phthalates, are used to soften plastic and can be found in thousands of consumer items including plastic containers and wrapping, beauty care products and toys. Phthalates have been known for decades to be "hormone disruptors" which affect a person's endocrine system and have been previously linked to obesity, heart disease, some cancers and fertility problems. Because they affect hormones, these chemicals "can precipitate early labour and early birth. By analysing the level of phthalates in the urine of more than 5,000 pregnant women in the United States, the researchers were able to examine how exposure to the chemicals could have affected how early the babies were born. The 10 percent of mothers with the highest levels of phthalates had a 50-percent increased risk of giving birth before week 37 compared to the lowest 10 percent, according to the study in The Lancet Planetary Health. Extrapolating their findings across the US, the researchers said that nearly 56,600 preterm births could have been linked to phthalate exposure in 2018 alone, roughly 10 percent of the country's premature births that year. Babies born prematurely or at a lower weight tend to have more health problems later in life. Researchers say that more than three quarters of exposure to phthalates was due to plastic.
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanplh/article/PIIS2542-5196(23)00270-X/fulltext
Astronomers found the giant black hole in the Milky Way is spinning very fast. NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory and the VLA show that it is warping spacetime. As the black hole spins, it pulls matter and spacetime with it. This leads to the black hole looking more like a football from some angles.
Scientists have found a new treatment target for CDKL5 deficiency disorder (CDD), one of the most common types of genetic epilepsy.
CDD causes seizures and impaired development in children, and medications are limited to managing symptoms rather than tackling the root cause of the disease. The disorder involves losing the function of a gene producing the CDKL5 enzyme, which phosphorylates proteins, meaning it adds an extra phosphate molecule to alter their function.
Following recent research from the same lab showing that a calcium channel could be a target for therapy for CDD, the team has now identified a new way to potentially treat CDD by boosting another enzyme's activity to compensate for the loss of CDKL5.
In research published in Molecular Psychiatry, the scientists studied mice that don't make the CDKL5 enzyme. These mice show similar symptoms to people with CDD, such as impaired learning or social interaction.
The researchers first identified that CDKL5 is active in nerve cells in mice but not in another type of brain cell called an astrocyte. In the nerve cells, they measured the level of phosphorylation of EB2, a molecule known to be targeted by CDKL5, to understand what happens when CDKL5 isn't produced.
Interestingly, even in mice that don't produce CDKL5, there was still some EB2 phosphorylation taking place, which suggested that another similar enzyme must also be able to phosphorylate it.
By looking at enzymes similar to CDKL5, the researchers identified that one called CDKL2 also targets EB2 and is present in human neurons. In mice without both CDKL5 and CDKL2, the remaining EB2 phosphorylation almost fully dropped off.
The researchers concluded that although most activity comes from CDKL5, about 15% is from CDKL2, and the remaining < 5% from another enzyme yet to be identified.
Their research suggests that increasing the level of CDKL2 in people who are deficient in CDKL5 could potentially treat some of the effects on the brain in early development.
Margaux Silvestre et al, Cell-type specific expression, regulation and compensation of CDKL5 activity in mouse brain. Molecular Psychiatry. (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41380-024-02434-7
© 2024 Created by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa.
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