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'
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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 Apr 29. 1 Reply 0 Likes
Q: Why do different kinds of environments change the anatomies, appearances, biology and/or physiologies of the wild animals and/or plants after migrating?Krishna: Different environments exert…Continue
Started by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa. Last reply by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa Apr 27. 4 Replies 0 Likes
Why is antibiotic resistance increasing? It is the result of evolution!And why should bacteria evolve? In order to survive! Because antibiotics are their 'poison'.If they can't surmount this problem…Continue
Started by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa. Last reply by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa Apr 27. 1 Reply 0 Likes
Q: Is the human race a superorganism?Krishna: Not entire human race. The human body? To some extent!Recently somebody told me they feel lonely. This was my reply to them:Do you think you are alone?…Continue
Started by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa. Last reply by Dr. Krishna Kumari Challa Apr 26. 2 Replies 0 Likes
A generic drug (or generics in plural) is a drug defined as "a drug product that is comparable to a brand/reference listed drug product in dosage form, strength, quality and performance…Continue
Comment
The difficulty lies in the fact that such a "second law" for quantum entanglement would require us to show that entanglement transformations can be made reversible, just like work and heat can be interconverted in thermodynamics.
It is known that reversibility of entanglement is much more difficult to ensure than the reversibility of thermodynamic transformations, and all previous attempts at establishing any form of a reversible theory of entanglement have failed. It was even suspected that entanglement might actually be irreversible, making the quest an impossible one.
In their new work, published in Nature Communications, the authors solve this long-standing conjecture by using probabilistic entanglement transformations, which are only guaranteed to be successful some of the time, but which, in return, provide an increased power in converting quantum systems.
Under such processes, the authors show that it is indeed possible to establish a reversible framework for entanglement manipulation, thus identifying a setting in which a unique entropy of entanglement emerges and all entanglement transformations are governed by a single quantity. The methods they used could be applied more broadly, showing similar reversibility properties also for more general quantum resources.
findings mark significant progress in understanding the basic properties of entanglement, revealing fundamental connections between entanglement and thermodynamics, and crucially, providing a major simplification in the understanding of entanglement conversion processes.
This not only has immediate and direct applications in the foundations of quantum theory, but it will also help with understanding the ultimate limitations on our ability to efficiently manipulate entanglement in practice.
Bartosz Regula et al, Reversibility of quantum resources through probabilistic protocols, Nature Communications (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-47243-2
Part 2
Researchers have shown, through probabilistic calculations, that there is indeed, as had been hypothesized, a rule of entropy for the phenomenon of quantum entanglement.
This finding could help drive a better understanding of quantum entanglement, which is a key resource that underlies much of the power of future quantum computers. Little is currently understood about the optimal ways to make effective use of it, despite it being the focus of research in quantum information science for decades.
The second law of thermodynamics, which says that a system can never move to a state with lower entropy, or order, is one of the most fundamental laws of nature, and lies at the very heart of physics. It is what creates the "arrow of time," and tells us the remarkable fact that the dynamics of general physical systems, even extremely complex ones such as gases or black holes, are encapsulated by a single function, its entropy.
There is a complication, however. The principle of entropy is known to apply to all classical systems. Then what about quantum world?
We are now going through a quantum revolution, and it becomes crucially important to understand how we can extract and transform the expensive and fragile quantum resources. In particular, quantum entanglement, which allows for significant advantages in communication, computation, and cryptography, is crucial, but due to its extremely complex structure, efficiently manipulating it and even understanding its basic properties is typically much more challenging than in the case of thermodynamics. Part 1So what should you do if you come across a green cloth book from the 19th century? First, don't be overly concerned. You would probably have to eat the entire book before you'd suffer from severe arsenic poisoning. However, casual exposure to copper acetoarsenite, the compound in the green pigment, can irritate the eyes, nose and throat.
It is more of a concern for folks who may regularly handle these books where frequent contact could result in more serious symptoms. Therefore, anyone who suspects they might be handling a Victorian-era book with an emerald green binding is advised to wear gloves and avoid touching their face. Then clean all surfaces afterwards.
To aid with the identification of these potentially hazardous books, the Poisonous Book Project has incorporated crowd-sourced data into their research. The researchers now distribute bookmarks that feature safety warnings and showcase various shades of emerald green to aid their identification. As a result, they have now identified over 238 arsenic editions from across the globe.
https://theconversation.com/many-old-books-contain-toxic-chemicals-...
Part 3
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The harmful effects of these pigments have even been implicated in Napoleon's death from stomach cancer. Napoleon was particularly keen on the new green colors, so much so that he ordered his dwelling on St Helena, where he was exiled, be painted in his favorite color.
The theory that the arsenic in the walls contributed to his death is supported by the high levels of arsenic detected in samples of his hair. Despite the clear link between the green pigments and health issues, toxic wallpapers continued to be produced until the late 19th century.
Green isn't the only color to worry about, however. Red is also of concern. The brilliant red pigment vermilion was formed from the mineral cinnabar, also known as mercury sulfide. This was a popular source of red paint dating back thousands of years. There is even evidence that neolithic artists suffered from mercury poisoning. Vermilion red sometimes appears on the marbled patterns on the inside of book covers.
Yellow has also caught the eye of the poisonous book project. In this case, the culprit is lead chromate. The bright yellow of lead chromate was a favorite with painters, not least Vincent van Gogh, who used it extensively in his most famous series of paintings: Sunflowers. For the Victorian-era bookbinders, lead chromate allowed them to create a range of colors from greens (achieved by mixing chrome yellow with Prussian blue) to yellows, oranges and browns.
Both lead and chromium are toxic. But yellow books are less of a concern than green and red. Lead chromate is not particularly soluble, making it difficult to absorb. It is, in fact, still a widely used pigment.
Part 2
In our modern society, we rarely consider books to be dangerous items. However, certain books contain elements so hazardous that they require scrutiny before being placed on the shelves of public libraries, bookstores or even private homes.
The Poisonous Book Project, a collaborative research project between Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library and the University of Delaware, is dedicated to cataloging such books. Their concern is not with the content written on the pages, but with the physical components of the books themselves—specifically, the colors of the covers.A team of physicists has devised a way to overcome two key hurdles standing in the way of using fusion as a general power source.
In their paper published in the journal Nature, the group describes how they devised a way to raise the density of the plasma in their reactor while also keeping it stable.
Scientists at various sites around the world have been working for several years to figure out how to use fusion reactions to create electricity for general use—thereby freeing the world from using coal and gas fired power plants that spew greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. But it has been a long and difficult road.
It was just in the past couple of years that researchers were able to show that a fusion reaction could be made to sustain itself, and that more power could be produced than was input into such a system.
The next two hurdles to overcome are increasing the density of the plasma in the reactor and then containing it for extended periods of time—long enough for it to be useful for producing electricity. In this new study, the research team has devised a way to do both in a tokamak chamber.
To contain the plasma as its density was increased, the team used additional magnets and bursts of deuterium where needed. They also allowed for higher densities at the core than near the edges, helping to ensure the plasma could not escape. They held it in that state for 2.2 seconds, long enough to prove that it could be done.
They also found that during that short time span, the average density in the reactor was 20% over the Greenwald limit—a theoretical barrier that had been predicted to mark the point at which adding pressure would escape the magnetic field holding the plasma in place.
They also found that the stability of the plasma was H98y2 above 1, which means that the experiment was successful.
The research team acknowledges that their experiment was done in a very small reactor—one with a diameter of just 1.6 meters. For such an achievement to be considered fully successful, it will have to be done in a much larger reactor, such as the one currently under construction in France, which will have a diameter of 6.2 meters.
S. Ding et al, A high-density and high-confinement tokamak plasma regime for fusion energy, Nature (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41586-024-07313-3
Researchers find brown fat's 'off-switch'
Brown fat, also known as brown adipose tissue (BAT), is a type of fat in our bodies that's different from the white fat around our belly and thighs that we are more familiar with. Brown fat has a special job—it helps to burn calories from the foods that we eat into heat, which can be helpful, especially when we're exposed to cold temperatures like during winter swimming or cryotherapy.
For a long time, scientists thought that only small animals like mice and newborns had brown fat. But new research shows that a certain number of adults maintain their brown fat throughout life. Because brown fat is so good at burning calories, scientists are trying to find ways to activate it safely using drugs that boost its heat-producing abilities.
A new study has found that brown fat has a previously unknown built-in mechanism that switches it off shortly after being activated. This limits its effectiveness as treatment against obesity. The team has now discovered a protein responsible for this switching-off process. It is called "AC3-AT."
Hande Topel et al, Cold-induced expression of a truncated Adenylyl Cyclase 3 acts as rheostat to brown fat function, Nature Metabolism (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s42255-024-01033-8
**
Using existing data from various sources, including measurements of fluid movements related to oil and gas extraction and water injections for geothermal energy, the team found that the current fluid movement rates induced by human activities are higher compared to how fluids moved before human intervention.
As human activities like carbon capture and sequestration and lithium extraction ramp up, the researchers also predicted how these activities might be recorded in the geological record, which is the history of Earth as recorded in the rocks that make up its crust.
Human activities have the potential to alter not just the deep subsurface fluids but also the microbes that live down there.
As fluids move around, microbial environments may be altered by changes in water chemistry or by bringing new microbial communities from Earth's surface to the underground.
For example, with hydraulic fracturing, a technique that is used to break underground rocks with pressurized liquids for extracting oil and gas, a deep rock formation that previously didn't have any detectable number of microbes might have a sudden bloom of microbial activity.
There remain a lot of unknowns about Earth's deep subsurface and how it is impacted by human activities, and it's important to continue working on those questions, say the scientists.
Grant Ferguson et al, Acceleration of Deep Subsurface Fluid Fluxes in the Anthropocene, Earth's Future (2024). DOI: 10.1029/2024EF004496
Part 2
The impact of human activities—such as greenhouse gas emissions and deforestation—on Earth's surface have been well-studied. Now, hydrology researchers have investigated how humans impact Earth's deep subsurface, a zone that lies hundreds of meters to several kilometers beneath the planet's surface.
They looked at how the rates of fluid production with oil and gas compare to natural background circulation of water and showed how humans have made a big impact on the circulation of fluids in the subsurface.
In the future, these human-induced fluid fluxes are projected to increase with strategies that are proposed as solutions for climate change, according the study. Such strategies include: geologic carbon sequestration, which is capturing and storing atmospheric carbon dioxide in underground porous rocks; geothermal energy production, which involves circulating water through hot rocks for generating electricity; and lithium extraction from underground mineral-rich brine for powering electric vehicles.
Responsible management of the subsurface is central to any hope for a green transition, sustainable future and keeping warming below a few degrees.
With oil and natural gas production, there is always some amount of water, typically saline, that comes from the deep subsurface. The underground water is often millions of years old and acquires its salinity either from evaporation of ancient seawater or from reaction with rocks and minerals. For more efficient oil recovery, more water from near-surface sources is added to the salt water to make up for the amount of oil removed and to maintain reservoir pressures. The blended saline water then gets reinjected into the subsurface. This becomes a cycle of producing fluid and reinjecting it to the deep subsurface.
The same process happens in lithium extraction, geothermal energy production and geologic carbon sequestration, the operations of which involve leftover saline water from the underground that is reinjected.
Researchers showed that the fluid injection rates or recharge rates from those oil and gas activities is greater than what naturally occurs .
Part 1
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