TABLE OF CONTENTS COVER DESIGN BY MARLEY GEISLER AMHOWITZ
PHYSICS 01 - M ATTER DOES US A SOLID AND M ORE: THE FIVE PHASES AND WHY THEY M ATTER BY ALLYSON STERLING 03 - GETTING A RUNG UP ON THE STARS: CEPHEIDS AND THE COSM IC DISTANCE LADDER BY REID ALLENSTEIN 05 - THE NEUTRINO: WHAT'S THAT AND WHY SHOULD WE CARE? BY TOBEY STEINER 07 - AIRPLANE FLIGHT: THE TRUTH IN A M ISCONCEPTION BY JACKSON REDMAN PHYSICS SECTION DESIGN BY ANI BROWN, MADDY GIDDINGS, PRESCOTT KELLY, & HOLDEN MCNEILAGE
ENVIRONMENT 09 - DOWNSIDES OF WIND FARM S BY DAWSON GARLAND 11 - INDIGENOUS PRACTICES M AY BE KEY TO CONTROLLING WEST-COAST WILDFIRES BY HONOR DODD ENVIRONMENT SECTION DESIGN BY ANI BROWN, MADDY GIDDINGS , & JAKE LEHMANN
ASTROBIOLOGY 13 - LIFE ON VENUS? BY NNENNA BROWN 14 - STILL CURIOUS? YOUR QUESTIONS ABOUT LIFE ON VENUS ANSWERED BY ROMAN CORTEZ ASTROBIOLOGY SECTION DESIGN BY JAKE LEHMANN
BIO-ENGINEERING 15 - BRAINWAVE CONTROLLED PROSTHETICS BY ZANIYAH HESTER 17 - YOUR NEXT M EAL COULD COM E FROM A PRINTER BY LUIS PEREZ BIO-ENGINEERING SECTION DESIGN BY JAKE LEHMANN
REFERENCES 19 - REFERENCES REFERENCES SECTION DESIGN BY MARLEY GEISLER AMHOWITZ
HEAD LIN E byauthor
Welcom e t o t h e f ir st issu e of t h e sixt h volu m e of The Inquirer, t h e Wildw ood In st it u t e f or STEM Resear ch an d Developm en t ?s popu lar scien ce m agazin e. The Inquirer is w r it t en , edit ed, design ed, an d pu blish ed by t h e In st it u t e, an d ou r pu r pose h as alw ays been clear : t o equ ip In st it u t e m em ber s w it h scien t if ic w r it in g sk ills an d pr ovide ou r r eader s w it h accu r at e, object ive, an d digest ible scien ce w r it in g.
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Matter Does Us a Solid and More: The Five Phases and Why They Matter By Allyson Sterling Every physical object we know of is made of matter. From the air we breathe to the oceans that cover almost three quarters of Earth to the Sun high in the sky, all of it is matter. To generate this vast variety in nature, matter takes several forms. Solids, liquids, and gases are the three well-known states of matter constantly present in our lives. Most people are aware of these three states and what they mean, but are these the only guises matter can adopt? Are the three states most common on Earth the only states of matter there are? The truth is there are actually five states of matter. The fourth type might not be as familiar to the average person, but we depend on matter in that state just as much as any other state. This state of matter is known as a plasma, and it?s the phase of matter that comprises our Sun and all other typical stars. Those four states? gas, liquid, solid, and plasma? are the only phases of matter found in nature. ?But wait?, I hear you saying, ?didn?t you just tell us there are five states of matter? That?s only four!? And that is correct. The fifth state of matter is not found naturally but, instead, is human made. This fifth material phase is the Bose-Einstein Condensate, which only occurs in exceedingly cold temperatures. This state is so extreme that we have only observed it by making it in a lab; nonetheless, it has allowed us to pursue new avenues of research. Let?s take a closer look at each of these different states of matter.
Water in Gas, Liquid, and Solid States
The coldest of the natural phases of matter is a solid. Since the molecules in a solid are lower in temperature, they move slower on average. These molecules will vibrate but remain in a fixed average position, unable to break the bonds holding them in place. This means that solids keep their shape without needing a container. Ice, for example, is the solid form of water. When solids are heated, their molecules speed up, and at a certain temperature- the melting point- the grip of their bonds weakens and they melt into liquids, losing their shape. Instead of staying in place, liquid molecules slide around. Despite this, liquids are still relatively dense. Liquids conform to the shape of the containers they?re placed in. For example, the water we drink is a liquid. When matter is heated even more, it turns from a liquid into a gas. At this point, the molecules in a gas are moving much faster on average, indeed, so much faster that the previous Matter appears in different phases based on its bonds have no grasp on them. These temperature. The different phases have different properties and appearances but are composed of fast-moving molecules end up much more distant from one another and will expand to the same underlying substances: atoms and molecules. As temperature increases, the average fill the container they are in. Water appears speed of the atoms/molecules increases, and with in this form as water vapor. These transitions are known as phase changes. As substances increased speed, the atoms/molecules can more easily break free of bonds that hold them in place. heat up, they eventually melt and evaporate, We'll use the substance of water as an example for and the reverse occurs when they are cooled. Water vapor will condensate into water, and the first three states of matter because it?s liquid water will freeze into ice. observed in all of these states in everyday life.
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everyday life.
But how does matter change into the fourth natural state, a plasma? This happens when a gas is heated to such high temperature that the electrons in its atoms (the underlying substance) begin to be stripped away. Plasmas have many of the same properties as gases, with the major difference being that the atoms in a plasma are charged, which affects their electromagnetic properties. Plasmas may seem rare on Earth, but it is actually by far the most common state of matter in the universe. At extreme temperatures, electrons can be ripped away from gaseous matter, producing ions. Ions are particles with an unequal number of protons and electrons, which gives the particle an overall charge. Plasmas have around the same number of positively charged and negatively charged particles. It is also possible to create non-neutral plasmas in a lab, for example, a plasma of pure electrons, which is surprising because electrons repel each other. What makes plasmas unique is that beyond the force of gravity that acts on all phases of matter, plasmas also respond to electromagnetic forces because of their charged state. Although plasmas are structured most similarly to gases, they act more like liquids. While the particles in a plasma are more distant, like in gases, the charged particles interact with each other through electromagnetic forces, causing more liquid-like movement. So, we know what this charged-matter phase is and how it comes about, but where is it found? Well, an example of a plasma we see every day is the Sun. All typical stars exist as plasmas, which is why it?s by far the most abundant state of matter in the universe.
A bit closer to home and down on Earth, lightning is also a plasma. The extreme heat that occurs in lightning strikes breaks apart the atoms in our atmosphere, tearing off their electrons, and hurling plasma bolts down to the ground. Whil e plasmas occur in extreme heat, the fifth
state of matter exists at extremely cold temperatures: a Bose-Einstein Condensate (BEC). In a BEC, particles have such a low temperature that they stop moving entirely and clump together. To reach this point, matter must fall to temperatures nearing absolute zero. At that point, the BEC is less a collective of particles, and more one super-particle. Matter in this state is big enough to be viewed with a microscope, and it acts as a superfluid, which means it flows without generating friction, i.e., heat loss. The production of BECs has facilitated research into atoms, molecules, and quantum physics that was impossible before their discovery. This state of matter was originally imagined by Einstein. He predicted that at these low temperatures, the bulk matter would behave as a single wave. Einstein's theory was based on the work of Satyendra Nath Bose, a mathematician and physicist, who created the quantum equations detailing this effect. While Einstein came up with the idea of a BEC in 1924, it wasn?t until 1995 that one was first made. It was made using rubidium atoms at the University of Colorado. Since then, BECs have been used to study light and atomic lasers. This state of matter has only been observed in laboratories, but there are theories that say it may exist near neutron stars. From the most common phases of matter seen all around us to the almost unseen, lab-made BEC, matter is everywhere around us. Understanding these different phases is essential to understanding the universe, the matter our world is made of and why it matters to us.
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Getting a Rung Up on the Stars: Cepheids and the Cosmic Distance Ladder
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By Reid Allenstein Astronomers can?t simply use one method to measure all the different distances in the universe. Depending on the astronomical object and the distance to be measured, astrophysicists have invented various strategies to take measurements. The distance-scale measures range from within our solar system to nearby stars to faraway galaxies to the farthest reaches of space. When combined together, these techniques are called the Cosmic Distance Ladder. Each ?rung? of the ladder represents a method that works well for certain astrophysical objects in a rough range of distances. The distance measuring system used for the closest objects employs radar ranging. Radar ranging uses low-frequency electromagnetic waves to determine the distance of an object in space. A radar antenna fires a short signal burst in a specific direction. Then the antenna waits for a small amount of the signal to return after reflecting off a planet such as Venus. Because the speed of the signal is known, by measuring the time it takes the signal to make the round trip, astrophysicists can calculate the distance to the planet. Radar was used to find the distance between all of the planets currently within our solar system.
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When radar no longer works, at around one astronomical unit (1 AU), roughly the size of our solar system, astronomers switch to stellar parallax. In this method, astronomers first find the star in the night sky and then wait six months to find the star again. By waiting six months, the Earth has traveled half of its orbit around the Sun, so when astronomers look for the star again, it will have shifted in position because their line of sight has changed. The angle made by their two lines of sight is called the parallax angle. Using this angle, the size of the Earth?s orbit around the Sun, and trigonometry, astrophysicists can calculate the distance to the star from Earth. Importantly, the accuracy of stellar parallax measurements depends on the accuracy of the measurement of the Earth?s orbit, which depends on radar ranging. This dependency carries through for each ?rung? on the Cosmic Distance Ladder.
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Beyond 200 parsecs (pc) astronomers switch to spectroscopic parallax. Spectroscopic parallax requires more information about the star being observed than stellar parallax. Astronomers need to know the apparent magnitude, absolute magnitude, and what type of star is being observed. After subtracting the absolute magnitude from the apparent magnitude, the result gets input into a known logarithmic relationship that determines the distance of the star. For distances greater than 25 million pc, astrophysicists use the Tully-Fischer relation. That relation connects the absolute brightness of a spiral galaxy to its rotational speed and can be used to measure the distance to galaxy clusters. Moving beyond 200 million pc, astrophysicists use relationships based on the brightness of supernovas to determine the distance to galaxies. Finally, when measuring objects even farther away, scientists use a method called Hubble?s Law, which utilizes the cosmological redshift. Redshift occurs when light waves are stretched due to apparent motion and, thus, become redder. As the universe expands, galaxies appear to move away from each other, even though it?s really the structure of space expanding. This apparent motion causes light emitted a long time ago from a galaxy far away to be redshifted. So far, we?ve skipped the ?rung? between the Tully-Fisher relation and spectroscopic parallax that measured distances beyond 10,000 pc and within 25 million pc, the method that uses Cepheid variable stars (Cepheids). Cepheids pulse in a predictable manner. This
behavior differs from that of typical stars and can be used to calculate the distance to stars as well as the distance to the galaxy that the Cepheid resides in. The procedure works like this: First, astrophysicists measure the apparent brightness of the Cepheid. Second, they measure the period of the absolute brightness of the Cepheid. Third, they compare the period to the period-luminosity curve created by Henrietta Swan Leavitt in 1908 to find the absolute brightness of the Cepheid. Fourth, using the apparent and absolute brightness, astronomers calculate the distance to the Cepheid. Following this process also allows astronomers to determine the distance between the galaxy containing the Cepheid and Earth. Cepheid variables play an important role in the Cosmic Distance Ladder, occupying the ?rung? between spectroscopic parallax and the Tully-Fisher relation. Crucially, Cepheids permit measuring the distance between galaxies. With all the different ways to measure distances in space, it?s important to remember that each ?rung? serves a different purpose and that each ?rung? relies on and builds upon those prior to it in the same way that each scientist relies on and builds upon the work of previous generations of scientists. 10
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The Neutrino: What's That and Why Should We Care? By Tobey Steiner
At oms serve as the fundamental building blocks for objects at Earthly temperatures. According to the Standard Model, atoms are not fundamental and are instead comprised of two elementary particles: electrons and quarks. In grade school, we are taught that atoms are made up of protons, neutrons, and electrons. However, the protons and neutrons that make up the nucleus of an atom are themselves made up of quarks. Elementary particles are subatomic particles with no substructure, meaning they are not composed of other particles. Quarks and electrons are elementary, while protons and neutrons are composite.
The Standard Model
Electrons are elementary particles with an electric charge of -e, where e is the elementary charge. In atoms, electrons are bound to the nucleus, the center of the atom, by an electromagnetic force. The nucleus is made up of protons with an electric charge of +e and neutrons that have no electric charge. Ordinary matter is made of both electrons and quarks. The electron, a heavy lepton, has a neutrino associated with it. The associated neutrino has a low mass, no electric charge, and unusual properties. Because neutrinos don?t interact electromagnetically, they can?t be visibly observed. Neutrinos can come from many different sources including the Big Bang, the sun?s rays shining, exploding stars, and other cosmic disasters. Every second, trillions of neutrinos pass through us and everything in the universe. They are the most abundant matter particle in the universe. Neutrino detection, however, is extremely difficult because these particles rarely interact with other particles. They are the most anti-social particles in the universe.
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Fermilab is a particle physics laboratory that investigates the elemental particles and how they interact. Its goal is to understand the nature of elementary particles. Fermilab is responsible for groundbreaking research on neutrinos and other dimensionless particles. Its new Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE) is an international collaboration in neutrino science and proton decay studies. DUNE seeks to answer fundamental questions about the nature of matter and the evolution of the universe. 13.8 billion years ago, the Big Bang occurred, igniting the universe. Energy transformed into matter and antimatter. Revolutionary scientists, like Paul Dirac, came up with a theory that there must have been equal amounts of matter and antimatter. However, when a particle and an antiparticle collide, they annihilate each other. So, if this was the case, then why didn?t everything get annihilated? Why is there matter at all? Moreover, given that the universe hasn?t disappeared, why isn?t there some antimatter somewhere? Galaxies and stars are composed of matter, not antimatter. We find nothing made of antimatter. Scientists have been trying to answer the question? why does matter dominate the universe?? for decades without success. Some physicists think there is more matter than antimatter because of neutrinos. Recent research in Japan has led scientists to believe that neutrinos may be what caused the imbalance between matter and antimatter during the start of the universe. This resulted in excess amounts of matter being able to take the form of stars, oceans, even humans. DUNE may provide new evidence that will determine whether or not neutrinos are the reason for matter dominating antimatter.
Super-Kamiokande Neutrino Detector During Maintenance
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Airplane Flight: The Truth in a Misconception By Jackson Redman
A common myth about airplanes is that scientists don't have an explanation for how airplanes fly. That, however, is inaccurate. Indeed, not only do scientists have a theory, but they have two theories! Both of these theories have their own strengths and weaknesses. Each theory is helpful as an explanatory model in some ways but not as much in others. One of these theories is based on Bernoulli?s principle and one is based on Newton's third law of motion. Bernoulli?s theory was originally developed by Daniel Bernoulli in 1738, and it states that the curvature of a plane wing is what allows a plane to fly. This theory asserts that curvature creates faster wind speeds over the top of the wing and a slower wind speeds under the bottom of the wing. This speed differential creates a pressure differential, with a lower pressure on the topside of the wings and a higher pressure on the underside. It?s this pressure difference that lifts a plane up into the air and keeps it aloft.
Diagram Depicting Airplane Fight Based on Bernoulli?s Principle
However, there are at least two significant flaws in his theory. First, the theory doesn't explain how planes can fly upside down. This is major issue for Bernoulli?s theory because it states that it?s the low pressure atop the wings cause by the curvature of the wings that allows the plane to fly, but when flying upside down, a plane should have low pressure underneath its wings, which would make the plane lose its lift and plummet to the ground, but that isn?t observed. Second, planes can fly without curved wings, which cuts against the idea that it?s curved wings that permit airplanes to fly.
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These drawbacks to Bernoulli?s theory led to a second, less-popular theory based on Newton's third law of motion. Newton?s third law of motion states that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. This law applies to the air that flows under a plane's wings. The third law explains airplane flight in this way: the air pushed down under the wings creates a reaction force that pushes up on the wings and lifts the plane. This theory also explains why planes stall and fall when they fly too low. This danger occurs when the plane's engine isn't powerful enough for the plane to fly at a large enough angle relative to the horizon to force the necessary amount of air under its wings to create the requisite lift to keep it flying. Thus, this theory?s ability to explain both lift and stall provides support for its merit. Additionally, this theory explains how planes can fly upside down and with flat wings. Nevertheless, there is one major flaw in this theory. It doesn?t explain why there is a low-pressure area above the wings of a plane. This low-pressure area is created above the wings regardless of wing shape or size.
Diagram Depicting Airplane Flight Based on Newton?s Third Law of Motion
Even though neither of these theories is flawless, both of the leading explanations for how airplanes fly have basis in physical law, mathematical merit, and support from observation. Bernoulli?s theory concerns pressure differences and air speeds and is currently the favored theory. Newton?s third law of motion says that planes fly by being pushed up by the air underneath them. Accordingly, the claim that scientists don't have an explanation for how planes fly is misleading. Nonetheless, within that misconception lies some truth? scientists don't fully understand the dynamics that allow airplanes to fly. Like always in science, there is more work to do and understanding to be developed.
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Downsides of Wind Farms By Dawson Garland As renewable energy becomes a more accessible and affordable option, new methods of harvesting energy can have big impacts that we often overlook. Wind farms, for example, have been touted as the future of clean energy in recent years but bring with them some less positive implications.
Blyth?s wind farm marked the humble beginnings of wind-powered energy, but the technique has come a long way since the 19th century. Halfway across the world in Gansu, China, the Jiquan wind base is the largest wind farm to date with an expected output of 20 gigawatts (GW).
Before we dive into the downsides, let's take a look at what wind farms are and how they work. Wind farms are designed to harness the power of wind to spin turbines, producing energy as the blades rotate. These turbines can be great in size, with their blades spanning over 350 feet in length. The way the turbines function is actually similar to airplane wings, which have airfoils built into them to create a curve. When wind hits the curve it produces lift, the force that powers wind turbine blades. The blades spin at about 10-20 revolutions per minute and are attached to a gear box that is connected to the generator. The gearbox amplifies one rotation of the blade into 90 rotations, which provides the generator with enough power to produce energy. The first energy-producing wind farm was built by James Blyth in 1887 to provide energy for his cottage in Glasgow, Scotland.
An average wind turbine can produce roughly 1.5 megawatts (MW). This means that if the conditions are optimal, one wind turbine can power up to 332 homes per year. Many factors make wind farms a great option, but these positives don?t come without downsides. Wind turbines are big and require a lot of moving parts. On average, they need to be serviced and updated every 5-7 years, even when every part is functioning perfectly. This makes maintenance very costly as each farm can contain hundreds of turbines. Plus, most commercial turbines cost up to four million dollars to install, and you can?t just put wind farms anywhere. Before installation, the proposed location of the farm must undergo extensive assessment of weather conditions to ensure that the area has enough high-speed winds to make the farm productive. This makes wind farms an unrealistic solution for clean energy in places that don?t have much wind, unlike more versatile technologies like solar panels.
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Engineers try to place the farms away from residential areas because of the noise levels, as the turbines are audible from hundreds of meters away. This again can be difficult for many reasons. If residential areas provide the optimal wind speeds for turbines, engineers can?t take advantage of these conditions because those areas may already be occupied. These tall turbines also affect television and radio connection, posing another barrier for locations and zoning. Another shortcoming of wind farms is that they don't yield much profit per acre of land. For example, a large-scale wind turbine that occupies about 1.5-2 acres can produce around $10,000 per year, whereas one acre of a solar farm can generate around $21,000-$43,000 per year. Wind-powered energy is also unreliable and more difficult to store than solar energy. Because wind is less constant and often fleeting depending on the weather pattern, this makes it difficult to consistently produce enough energy to provide power over a long period of time. Wind farms don?t just pose economic challenges, but also have unintended consequences for surrounding wildlife. A recent study showed that over 300,000 birds were killed nationwide by wind turbines in 2015 alone. In California, an average of 8 birds are killed by every turbine in the state per year. Researchers found multiple reasons to explain this. Birds tend to fly lower to the ground during the day, and although the engineers try to place these wind farms in areas with lower wildlife populations, many wind farms are in active bird migration paths.
When birds fly though these zones, they?re unable to react fast enough to avoid the blades. However, a recent experiment found that painting one blade on each turbine with black paint significantly reduced bird mortality rates by 71.9 percent compared to other turbines in the same farm. Over the ten year period during which the study was conducted, 500 birds were killed by the farm?s 68 turbines. When four turbines were painted partially black, in the following three years only six birds were killed by the painted turbines while 18 were killed by the non-painted turbines. Though this is clearly not a way to drop all death rates to zero, it is a step in the right direction. Scientists have figured out that the reason this works is because the black blade creates a ?smear ? and shows the blades as an obstacle. While wind farms are a good renewable energy source, they do have lots of downsides and some aren't as easily fixed. While these are good examples of why engineers should focus more on other sources, wind farms will still proliferate across the globe as a result of the renewable energy movement.
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Indigenous Practices May Be Key to Controlling West Coast Wildfires By Honor Dodd
When the wind blows at 40 mph, a fire can engulf a hillside in seconds, roaring into an intense heat. As it consumes everything in its path, spewing embers onto nearby structures, there?s no path to escape. Kim Ackar, a resident of Igo, California was in this very situation earlier this year. She was lucky: she came out physically unharmed while her neighbors were rushed to the burn unit at the ICU. Her home is the only one standing in her entire neighborhood. This was just one of many wildfires that have been raging up and down the West Coast from Oregon to California in recent months. These lethal fires require extensive resources to contain and are causing disruptions, big and small, in the lives of countless residents, first-responders, and taxpayers who bear the cost burden of fighting fires. Worse still, there are signs that these severe fires will only become more frequent in the future. So what steps can be taken to mitigate this risk? Among the most destructive of California's 2020 fire season was the August Complex Fire. It was ignited by lightning strikes on August 16, 2020, and was still burning as of November 2020. While there is no way to control where lightning strikes, forest management systems can control what catches on fire during lightning storms by using controlled burns as a fire prevention strategy. Controlled burns are exactly what they sound like: fires that are started in areas with excess flammable brush to mitigate the risk of a larger wildfire that would be harder to control. By burning up excess dead brush, controlled fires make room for growth of new trees and plants, which creates a more resilient ecosystem. Because the August Complex Fire began in an area packed with dry, flammable material, many experts believe a prescribed burn could have prevented the rapid spread of the flames. Another benefit of controlled forest fires is that they can reduce the impact of wildfires on the surrounding ecosystem and wildlife. When wildlife habitats contain too much overgrowth or debris, the extra fuel intensifies the fires, damaging the ecosystem to a greater extent and allowing flames to reach higher into tree canopies. With controlled fires clearing out overgrowth, conditions are more livable for animals and many regions have seen an influx in wildlife residents after implementing regular prescribed burns.. Moreover, prescribed burns are nothing new. Indigenous peoples of the Americans managed these landscapes for thousands of years and used fire as a tool to maintain diverse ecosystems, and suppress brush growth. They also saw burns as a strategy to ensure that sunlight could reach low-growing plants, including those that grew fruits, nuts, and berries on which many communities depended. In Yosemite, when white settlers moved in and stopped using fire as a landscape management tool, the open meadows quickly became overgrown.
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Later, when Native Americans were brought back into that area an elder commented
on how overgrown and bushy everything looked? the very quality that provides wildfires with fuel to burn hotter and spread faster. In recent years, some forest management systems have reintegrated these controlled fires which have shown to be effective for thousands of years as an indigenous practice. But the positive effects of controlled burns don?t come without a downside. There is always the risk that forest management teams may lose control of a prescribed burn, which can lead to a significantly destructive wildfire. This doesn?t only impact wildlife; the smoke created by forest fires affects people, especially those with preexisting health problems. Uncontrolled fires also carry the risk of starting a landslide once the anchoring of plant roots and overgrowth is gone. This makes soil more mobile, especially during rains. Mudslides and landslides can endanger residential communities and cause significant property damage and even loss of life. Luckily, though, these events aren?t likely given the skill and expertise of forest management teams, and the benefits of controlled burns as a wildfire prevention strategy far outweigh the costs. They?ve become an essential tool in mitigating the impacts of forest fires and will become even more necessary as our climate becomes warmer and drier. Implementing controlled fires in the parks system at the state and national levels could significantly reduce the frequency and magnitude of wildfires West Coast. The parks systems must implement these controlled fires because we have not only witnessed the devastating impacts of wildfires shared by Kim Ackar and many others, but the positive outcome of controlled wildfires used by Native Americans. Controlled fires help mitigate out-of-control wildfires like the August Complex Fire by promoting biodiversity, and ensuring that when a fire does start, it doesn?t burn for months on end destroying lives, livelihoods, and wildlife.
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Life On Venus? By Nnenna Brown D
Perhaps one of the most groundbreaking scientific revelations of 2020 has been the discovery of potential life on Venus. Earlier this year, researchers detected phosphine high in Venus' atmosphere, about 55 kilometers above the surface. Phosphine is gaseous and highly flammable, a toxic compound containing both oxygen and phosphorus. However, it doesn?t necessarily need oxygen to exist because it?s produced by a bacteria that doesn?t require oxygen to survive. This makes it well-suited for Venus?oxygen-deprived atmosphere.
Although scientists couldn't pinpoint the exact location of Venus?phosphine in their studies of chemical processes, this finding does introduce the idea of aerial life on Venus. "Now that we've found phospine, we need to understand whether it's true that it's an indicator of life," says Leonardo Testi, ESO astronomer and ALMA European Operations Manager. Researchers will study the absorption lines on the graph that revealed the detection of Venus' phosphine using infrared telescopes in order to verify the phosphine on Venus as the product of a biological process (or unknown chemical process) and not a blip. The phosphine concentration found was at 20 parts per billion, but there was only one line of data indicating phosphine's presence in the atmosphere, which explains the cautious optimism among scientists.
As the race to discover life on Venus ramps up, more exploratory missions are preparing to launch. These missions were scheduled to start launching by July 2020, but the COVID-19 pandemic put them on hold. Countries like the US, Japan, and some European nations are planning missions to orbit or pass by Venus. For example, the BepiColombo spacecraft, a joint mission between the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and European Space Agency (ESA), will pass Venus on the way to Mercury. The European Space Agency?s solar orbiter will also conduct a fly-by of Venus, and NASA?s Parker Solar Probe will pass Venus on the way to the Sun. Researchers hope that these missions will confirm the presence of phosphine on Venus and provide more clues about the existence of life on Venus. While there is not yet a definitive answer to whether or not life exists, scientists are encouraged by the discovery of phosphine and hope to learn more in the coming years.
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Still Curious? Your Questions Answered About Life On Venus By Roman Cortez
Wh en Can We Expect M or e In f or m at ion ? Scientists hope new data is on the horizon as the missions to Venus are scheduled to conclude in the coming months. The BepiColombo mission has a chance of detecting gasses as early as next August with its newly developed infrared instrument designed to study solar particles. ?It is a low probability, but I would not completely rule it out,? says Nour Raouafi, an astrophysicist at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland, who is the project scientist on the mission.
Model of Phosphine Molecule
Wh at Do Resear ch er s Hope Will Com e Ou t of Th ese M ission s? In the wake of the discovery of phosphine on Venus, excitement has sparked increased funding and innovation for future missions, even within the newly established United States Space Force. International governments have also hired scientists to begin work on space research initiatives. While there is not yet a definitive answer to whether or not life exists on Venus, scientists are encouraged An Aerial View of Venus
by the discovery of phosphine and hope to learn more in the coming years.
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Brainwave-Controlled Prosthetics By Zaniyah Hester
Prostheses have been around for thousands of years, but they have come a long way from their humble beginnings. Historical records dated back to 950?710 B.C.E. show that the first prosthesis was a big toe made out of wood and leather. In the 1500s, there was a prosthetic hand made of metal casting which wrapped around the wearer 's stump. The user of the prosthesis was able to move the fingers slightly, but not much. Back then, prostheses were bulky and were made to hide the missing limb instead of providing functionality. Modern day prostheses, on the other hand, are functional, compact, and can be designed to resemble real limbs. Today, over 2,000 years after the first recorded use of prosthetics, neuroscientists at The University of Chicago are working to create a prosthesis that is controlled by the user ?s brain. These brain-controlled prosthetics would provide the same functionality and dexterity as a human hand, and would be able to receive sensory feedback, allowing people to control their limbs efficiently and autonomously. There are forty-five miles worth of nerves in the human body that connect to skin, muscles, and the brain allowing people to move and pick things up. This makes restoring sensation a complex task, but neuroscientists are currently working to accomplish it by studying the sense of touch and how the brain directs the movement of limbs.
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As stated by the University of Chicago neuroscientists, ?The robotic neuroprosthetic system works by implanting arrays of electrodes in areas of the brain that control movement and process the sense of touch from a natural limb.? Another way to allow the brain to communicate with prosthetics is through electroencephalogram (EEG) technology. According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, EEG detects electrical activity in the brain using electrodes with small metal disks and thin wires that are attached to a cap. The cap is placed on the user 's scalp and the brainwave charges appear on a computer screen as a graph as they?re detected. The graph shows what part of the brain the signal is coming from, which can help researchers identify which part of the brain controls the movement of limbs.
An EEG Cap
Another way to allow the brain to communicate with prosthetics is through electroencephalogram (EEG) technology. According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, EEG detects electrical activity in the brain using electrodes with small metal disks and thin wires that are attached to a cap. The cap is placed on the user 's scalp and the brainwave charges appear on a computer screen as a graph as they?re detected. The graph shows what part of the brain the signal is coming from, which can help researchers identify which part of the brain controls the movement of limbs. Using EEG technology is a relatively noninvasive method as it does not require a surgery. In both techniques? EEG and electrode implants? electrodes pick up on the activity in the user ?s brain. As the user ?s brain fires subconscious signals to move their arm, their prosthesis will move correspondingly thanks to the sensors incorporated into it. These sensors work by sending electrical signals that stimulate the cerebrum, specifically the parietal lobe, the part of the brain that is responsible for touch, sensory comprehension, and movement.
The future looks bright for brainwave controlled prosthetics, and this technology has the potential to significantly improve quality of life for individuals who are missing limbs.
Brainwave Controlled Prosthetic Hand
Many amputees have expressed a desire for having sensation back in the place where their lost limb was once located and be able to move in the same way as they did before they lost their limb. With a brainwave controlled prosthesis, this would be possible for the first time.
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Your Next Meal Could Come from a Printer By Luis Perez
Many seniors have trouble eating solid food as a result of tooth loss and receding gums, leading to vitamin and nutrient deficiencies. The only solution currently on the market is pureed baby foods, which provide some nutritional benefits, but not enough to sustain an adult. But researchers at the Singapore Institute of Technology (SIT) are changing the game by creating 3D-printed food in the form of a nutrient-dense edible gel. Although 3D printing technology has been around for decades, innovations are constantly being made in the field, like the production of these printed meals. Researchers can even alter the nutritional profiles of certain foods to give consumers more bang for their buck. Evelyn Ong, a product innovation manager at Singapore?s Polytechnic Food Innovation and
Resource Center says, ?With durian [a fruit commonly eaten in Singapore], we can reduce the sugar content and also fortify it with calcium and vitamin D?. While this might sound like a challenging task, engineering and producing 3D-printed food has never been so easy. Thanks to the diligent work of engineers at SIT, the process is quite simple to make these 3D-printed foods. "3D food printing is a way of food preparation by additive manufacturing, whereby pureed ingredients are filled into the printer cartridge, and extruded layer by layer to print out the chosen design using the 3D food printer," explains Lim Wensheng, a lecturer at Massey University. First, a gel is created from nutrient extracts. The gel has a similar consistency to toothpaste, making it ideal for senior citizens who have trouble consuming solid food. Strands of gel are then pushed out of the printer onto a tray into any desired shape, the most time-intensive step. For example, a simple crab dish can take up to an hour to be printed. Engineers also
use modeling software to design the 3D-printed food before printing, making the product more palatable to the consumer. At the Singapore Institute of Technology, students are training to be pioneers in this
Samples of 3D-Printed Food/Gel
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new field of 3D printing, learning the ins and outs of engineering, nutrition, manufacturing, and laboratory science. Xin Hui, a food technology student says, "Our SIT education has enabled us to gain a wide perspective, from theoretical knowledge to application in real-life scenarios. Besides understanding the science behind food, we also touched on food technology and food business, backed by laboratory sessions and problem-based learning. These practical skills will definitely help us prepare for a career in the food industry, and enable us to contribute back to society." Xin Hui, along with his peers, plans to use his expertise in food technology to develop more effective nutrition solutions for seniors.
devices less accessible to individuals. Fortunately, many experts in 3D printing expect that as the technology matures and becomes more cost-efficient, it is inevitable that 3D-printed food will be used globally. In 2020, the 3D-printed food market was valued at around $50 million, but this number is projected to swell to $400 million in the next four years. These projections look promising, but only time will tell whether or not the market will be a success, and whether consumers will embrace these new products. Would you try a 3D-printed meal?
While many researchers aim to solve nutritional issues with 3D printing, costs might present a significant roadblock to the widespread use of this technology. With the applications of 3D printing becoming more diverse, increasing demand has pushed printer prices up to $5,000, making the
Design Software Used to Create 3D-Printed Food
Creative Designs to Promote 3D-Printed Food
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