The Ramaz Science Publication
Spring Edition / April 2020
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Table of Contents Sold Out Hand Sanitizer by Esther Cabot ‘21 Pg. 3
Coronavirus Around the Globe by Arielle Levy ‘21 Pg. 12
Antibodies and the Coronavirus by Avigail Dupont ’21 and Adena Horvitz ’21 Pg. 5
Why Your Brain Needs a Good Night’s Rest by Batya Levy ‘21 Pg. 14
How Should Doctors Treat Patients with the Coronavirus? by Sydney Eisenstein ‘22 Pg. 8
Only a Mother Can Love It by Samantha Sinensky ‘21 Pg. 16
How to Live Longer by Arielle Levy ‘21 Pg. 10
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Never-Before-Seen Image of the Sun’s Surface by Emily Vayner ’23 Pg. 19
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Sold Out Hand Sanitizer With concerns for coronavirus running high, supplies of hand sanitizer are running low. Faced with this dilemma, people have started to wonder if they can make their own Purell. But will homemade hand sanitizer protect you against coronavirus infection? The New York Times reported that prices of hand sanitizer have soared, with prices ranging from $400 on Amazon to Craigslist listing items at ten times their normal price. So, could an at-home hand sanitizer really do the job? Experts at the CDC say that you have to use the right recipe but note that hand washing with soap is the best method for curbing disease transmission. However, when soap and water isn’t available, hand sanitizer is a great alternative. It's true that the alcohol in hand sanitizers lends products their microbe-busting power, but the CDC recommends that sanitizers contain 60-95% alcohol in order to eradicate germs. Tito’s vodka, for example, does not have a high enough alcohol concentration. On March 4, they tweeted, “Per the CDC, hand sanitizer needs to contain at least 60% alcohol. Tito's Handmade Vodka is 40% alcohol, and therefore does not meet the current recommendation of the CDC.” So be careful with the ingredients you're using, and in the meantime, use some soap. Recently, Doug Preszler, a cashier at a supermarket in Iowa, reported that he didn’t feel at risk when he originally applied for his job. However, five months in, he has found himself at the forefront of a global crisis with little protection, save for a pocket-size bottle of hand sanitizer and disposable gloves. He finds himself increasingly worried doing the most routine tasks. Clearly, grocery workers are subject to a different experience. Although most of us are able to follow guidelines and stay indoors as much as possible, grocery workers are in a “war zone” every day. At least 41 grocery workers have died so far and thousands more have tested positive. The hand sanitizer Preszler uses may help, but at a certain point, nothing is completely reliable. We all just need to make an effort to do what we can.
Esther Cabot ’21
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Works Cited account, TitosVodkaVerified. “TitosVodka (@TitosVodka).” Twitter, Twitter, 21 Mar. 2020, twitter.com/TitosVodka? ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1235342471414063104&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fthehill.com%2Fchanging-america%2Fwell-being%2Fpreventioncures%2F486136-no-titos-vodka-will-not-protect-you-from Bhattarai, Abha. “'It Feels like a War Zone': As More of Them Die, Grocery Workers Increasingly Fear Showing up at Work.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 12 Apr. 2020, www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/04/12/grocery-worker-fear-death-coronavirus/. Tiffany, Kaitlyn. “The Hand-Sanitizer Hawkers Aren't Sorry.” The Atlantic, Atlantic Media Company, 11 Mar. 2020, www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2020/03/hand-sanitizer-online-salesebay-craigslist-price-surge/607750/. Weisberger, Mindy. “Hand Sanitizer Sold out? Here's How to Make Your Own.” LiveScience, Purch, 4 Mar. 2020, www.livescience.com/coronavirus-diy-hand-sanitizer.html.
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Antibodies and the Coronavirus During these uncertain times, we are faced with contradictory news coming from either direction. Some people claim that Malaria pills are the secret to “curing” the Coronavirus pandemic, while others say they make symptoms worse. These kinds of myths and falsehoods are at the root of the fear surrounding this pandemic. Among them comes the research and hope around antibody testing for the virus. Antibodies are your body's method of protecting against foreign antigens, or “invaders”, such as the Coronavirus. They operate by latching on to the antigen and removing it from the body to protect you from harm. The research behind antibodies in correlation to Coronavirus is as follows: a test is done to determine whether or not you possess Coronavirus antibodies, and then it is determined whether or not you were even aware you had the virus. Based on a study found by University of Southern California; when they tested 3,300 volunteers for the antibodies they found that between 2.5 and 4.2% of them had the Coronavirus antibodies. But what do these numbers mean to curious, and anxious citizens? Other schools, such as the Stanford University of Medicine, have found similar evidence in their research. But while we all may think that antibody testing is the holy grail, there has not been sufficient testing or FDA approvals to mass distribute this means of testing. Officials fear that too much hope is being placed into the “promise” that antibody testing brings. The government and health officials have been working hand in hand, but in terms of antibody testing there seems to be a miscommunication. Health care officials have reprimanded the government for releasing testing too quickly, explaining that not enough research is behind it. Why are people so hopeful about antibody testing in the first place? The test is proven to find immune responses to Covid-19 that will provide healthcare officials with crucial information towards a vaccine. The test also provides insight into how threatening the virus really is. As far as everyone is concerned as of now, having antibodies for the Covid-19 virus means you are safer than someone without them. Researchers are exploring the “immunity” route as many people believe that, similar to chicken pox, or SARS, once you have contracted the virus and have the antibodies, you are safe from further infection. However, the common oversight is that without waiting to see how the virus will continue to behave and influence us, we cannot claim these things with certainty. A major downfall to the rate of testing without sufficient research is that: “People don’t understand how dangerous this test is,” said Michael T. Osterholm, an infectious disease expert at the University of Minnesota. “We sacrificed quality for speed, and in the end, when it’s people’s lives that are hanging in the balance, safety has to take precedence over speed.” Additionally, these tests also have a significant margin of error in terms of its false positive rate. Chairman of the Pathology department of Mount Sinai Hospitals, Carlos Cordon-Cardo, MD, PhD, has released new information regarding the results of antibody testing. He explained that when BREAKTHROUGH -APRIL 2020
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experimenting with Covid-19 therapies they have drawn several positive and negative conclusions. In a treatment known as convalescent plasma, someone who has the virus antibodies donates blood, and that blood is then transfused into an ill patient, “passing” on those antibodies. This test has been conducted in China and seems promising over there. Here in the US, however, more skepticism is surrounding convalescent plasma. It has proven to help patients suffering from the virus recover more quickly, that is not up for debate. Rather, doctors fear that transfusing antibodies to an ill patient does not guarantee that they will then produce their own, essentially placing them at just as high a risk as someone without the antibodies, leaving the potential for re-exposure. Going back to the actual tests themselves; many commercial businesses have taken production into their own hands. With the FDA announcing Emergency Use Authorization (EUA), companies and manufacturers do not need FDA approval, which typically requires screening and extensive research; they just need to be granted permission to do whatever they want, basically. Theel, the founder of Cellex Inc in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, states: “Although commercial manufacturers claim their tests have high sensitivity and specificity, they haven’t published their data yet. This lack of transparency is worrisome...”. We can all agree that these worries reach beyond just Theel alone. The uncertainty and unreliability surrounding these tests are compromising to the data that credible organizations are trying to conclude. These tests are proving to be very ambiguous and haphazard. Although there is so much uncertainty behind these tests, work is still being done. Progress is still being made, and any research into solving the Covid-19 pandemic is still a step in the right direction. Our main concern as citizens is to take responsibility into our own hands. We need to maintain social distancing and shelter in place to prevent the spread and be done with this terror once and for all.
Adena Horvitz ’21and Avigail Dupont ’21
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Works Cited Abbasi, Jennifer. “The Promise and Peril of Antibody Testing for COVID-19.” JAMA, 17 Apr. 2020, jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2764954. Eder, Steve, et al. ”Antibody Test, Seen as Key to Reopening Country, Does Not Yet Deliver.” The New York Times, 19 Apr. 2020, www.nytimes.com/2020/04/19/us/coronavirus-antibody-tests.html. Ng, Christina, and Mark Abdelmalek. “Antibody Research Indicates Coronavirus May Be Far More Widespread than Known.” ABC News, ABC News Network, 17 Apr. 2020, 11:52, abcnews.go.com/Health/antibody-research-coronavirus-widespread/story?id=70206121. Palus, Shannon. “Here's the Deal With Antibodies and Coronavirus Immunity.” Slate Magazine, Slate, 15 Apr. 2020, slate.com/technology/2020/04/antibodies-immunity-coronavirus.html. Richardson, Valerie. “Coronavirus 'Much More Widespread' than Previously Thought, Stanford Antibody Study Finds.” The Washington Times, The Washington Times, 17 Apr. 2020, www.washingtontimes.com/news/2020/apr/17/coronavirus-much-more-widespread-previously-though/. The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Antibody.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 6 Feb. 2020, www.britannica.com/science/antibody. Weintraub, Karen. “What Can Antibody Testing Really Tell Us About COVID?” WebMD, WebMD, 16 Apr. 2020, www.webmd.com/lung/news/20200416/what-can-antibody-testing-really-tellus-about-covid. menu
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How Should Doctors Treat Patients with the Coronavirus? On March 11, the World Health Organization announced in a news conference that the coronavirus is a pandemic. Up until March 11, the virus was seen as a threat and as a virus that had the potential to become a pandemic. The organization did not declare the virus as a pandemic before this point because “Using the word pandemic carelessly has no tangible benefit. But it does have significant risk in terms of amplifying unnecessary and unjustified fear and stigma, and paralyzing systems” said World Health Organization director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus in a news conference on February 26. With cases in more than 100 countries, and increasing infections not linked to travel, the organization decided to change their language. A pandemic is a disease that is spreading in multiple countries around the world at the same time. Although the organization declared the virus a pandemic, this term does not mean the virus cannot be contained. The label “pandemic” emphasizes the importance of countries around the world taking urgent actions to respond to their own outbreaks. The last time the World Health Organization decided that a virus was a pandemic was in 2009 and was the H1N1 strain of influenza, also known as the “swine flu”. COVID-19 is the first virus in the family of corona viruses to be a pandemic. Ghebreyesus says that the title “pandemic” should be a signal to expand efforts to contain the virus and lessen its spread. Some experts say that those efforts can prevent huge spikes in cases that overwhelm health systems. Ghebreyesus said, “We’re in this together, to do the right things calmly and protect the citizens of the world. It’s doable.” After the virus was labelled as a pandemic, doctors from all over the world have shared a similar issue regarding the virus. Doctors are questioning the use of ventilators for some patients. Generally, the main treatment being used for coronavirus has been ventilators, which aid patients in breathing. Doctors are examining which patients need ventilators and at what point they should be used. A heated debate emerged among doctors in support of and combating the disregard of conventional ways of treating severe respiratory diseases. Many doctors warn that abandoning traditional policies could be dangerous. Some doctors describe their fear of treating the virus incorrectly, as the virus changes everything doctors thought they knew about treating patients in severe respiratory distress. There have been some reports of corona patients with very low oxygen levels (some patients had oxygen saturations around 80%). Before the coronavirus outbreak, doctors would have put patients with such low oxygen levels on breathing machines immediately. Many doctors say they can no longer rely on the usual criteria to make the decision to intubate. At the beginning of the outbreak, experts recommended treating severe cases of coronavirus like acute respiratory disease syndrome (ARDS). ARDS is a type of lung damage that compromises the body’s oxygen supply. Many coronavirus patients have low oxygen levels but do not exhibit other symptoms of ARDS. Luciano Gattinoni, one of the world’s leading researchers of ARDS, wrote an editorial examining 150 coronavirus patients in Italy. Gattinoni found two distinct groups of patients - type H patients included 20-30% of patients, had stiff and heavy lungs,
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and fit the ARDS profile, and type L patients included over 50% of patients, had thin and compliant lungs, and did not fit the ARDS profile. Gattinoni concluded that patients who fit type H can be treated as if they have ARDS but patients who fit type L cannot be treated as if they have ARDS. The virus being a pandemic allows for doctors all over the world to discuss observations about the virus.
Sydney Eisenstein ’22
Works Cited “Coronavirus Confirmed as Pandemic by World Health Organization.” BBC News, BBC, 11 Mar. 2020, www.bbc.com/news/world-51839944. Lambert, Jonathan. “What WHO Calling the Coronavirus Outbreak a Pandemic Means.” Science News, 11 Mar. 2020, www.sciencenews.org/article/coronavirus-outbreak-who-pandemic. Pérez-Peña, Richard, et al. “Trump Stops U.S. Funding of W.H.O.; U.K. Coronavirus Deaths May Be Higher Than Official Toll.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 14 Apr. 2020, www.nytimes.com/2020/04/14/world/coronavirus-news.html.
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How to Live Longer American culture has an obsession with maintaining youth and immortality. To appear younger, many people resort to plastic surgery, expensive supplements, and extreme workouts. However, there is a much simpler way of attaining a long life and it begins with diet. Has anyone ever told you to eat your fruits and vegetables because they’re good for you? The word good does not begin to describe their beneficial effects on your health. Eating plant-based foods such as fruits and vegetables reduces the risk of metabolic syndrome, heart disease, depression, and brain deterioration. Scientists have stressed that even with all these benefits, only one in ten adults are consuming enough vegetables. Furthermore, studies have shown that vegetarians and vegans are twelve to fifteen percent less likely to die prematurely and have a twenty-nine to fifty-two percent lower risk of dying from cancer, heart disease, hormone-related diseases, and kidney disease. There is also a surplus of data that suggests that premature death and susceptibility to diseases increase along with meat consumption. Another important food to incorporate into your diet are nuts. Nuts provide healthy fat, protein, fiber, potassium, magnesium, and antioxidants. A study which mapped the effect nuts have on human health discovered that those who ate more than three ounces of nuts a week had a thirty-nine percent lower mortality risk than non-nut consumers. “Blue zones” is a term given to territories where the population significantly surpasses the global mortality rate. One example of a blue zone is Loma Linda, California. This territory is known for having the highest number of Seventh Day Adventists. An important practice of Seventh Day Adventists is to consume a plant-based and primarily vegetarian diet. The Seventh Day Adventists of Loma Linda tend to live ten years longer than the general North American population. Scientists studied 73,000 of Loma Linda’s Seventh Day Adventists. They found a link between their diet and long lives, proving that vegans, vegetarians, and pescatarians live longer. But, what if you’re not a fruit and vegetable kind of person? Well, tea and coffee also have benefits that may increase human lifespan. Polyphenols and catechins in green tea decrease the probability of cancer, diabetes and heart disease. Furthermore, coffee drinkers have a lower risk of type two diabetes, heart disease, cancer, Alzheimer’s, and Parkinson’s. In conclusion, scientists have discovered that tea and coffee consumers have a twenty to thirty percent lower risk of early death in contrast with non-drinkers. Although making conscious decisions in terms of nutrition can extend your life, social habits also contribute. Scientists have discovered that people who maintain healthy relationships can live up to fifty percent longer. Furthermore, having at least three friends can decrease premature death by two hundred percent! Also, researchers have found that organized people live longer. A study was conducted of one thousand five hundred children. Some of the children were organized and others disorga-
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nized. The organized children lived eleven percent longer than the disorganized children. Scientists believe this is because organized people tend to be more health conscious and take fewer risks. Living long lives may seem out of reach and out of our control due to genetics, circumstances, and luck. However, we still can make conscious efforts to live long through our physical and social health. Arielle Levy ’21
Works Cited Petre, Alina. “13 Habits Linked to a Long Life (Backed by Science).” Healthline, 8 Apr. 2019, 13 Habits Linked to a Long Life (Backed by Science). Sass, Cynthia. “What to Eat So You Live Longer.” Health.com, 1 Oct. 2019, www.health.com/ nutrition/longevity-diet.
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Coronavirus Around the Globe As the world finds itself struggling to contain the coronavirus, the methods and tools used by countries vary. According to experts, South Korea is taking extremely cautious measures to contain the virus. In Seoul, one hospital has “phone booths” for people to easily get tested. The phone booth method encloses an individual within a glass box. The box has a telephone in the interior and exterior, allowing for communication between the doctor and the potential patient. After a consultation via the telephone, the doctor uses a rubber glove that allows them to test the patient swiftly. After the test, the phone booth is cleaned for the following patient. This method is only seven minutes long which allows ten times as many people to be tested compared to conventional methods. Although many countries like South Korea are being praised by health experts, many are failing to keep their communities healthy. The Philippines have been criticized for their lack of protective gear for doctors such as masks, gloves, and goggles. Also, they do not have adequate testing available. The issue of civilian hysteria, fear, and uncertainty surrounding the pandemic worsens when Phillipino leaders contradict each other on lockdown terms. Lastly, most of the issues the Philippines have are due to generally being unprepared and responding too late. Italy is another example of this. Italy found themselves surpassing China in the number of coronavirus deaths. On February 20, Italy faced its first case of confirmed coronavirus. The patient, however, had no contact with China, and was therefore not the first case in Italy. He was most likely among many in the country to have it. Although the country sealed many towns off, used a checkpoint system as a safety measure, and pushed people to social distance, the mayor of Milan with other political figures, stressed, “not to change our habits.” Statements like these, among the “Milan doesn’t stop” campaign, undermined the importance of social distancing. This worsened the coronavirus outbreak. Although Nicaragua has no confirmed cases, health officials stated that they have been acting irresponsibly. The vice president, Rosario Murillo, organized a public rally to encourage positivity in this frightening time. The rally’s name was, “Love in the time of Covid-19.” Ironically, many signs at the rally warned people of the respiratory effects of the coronavirus, while many people seemed to disregard the fact that social gatherings worsen the spread. Although as individuals, we cannot control how our government handles the virus, we can take action to prevent ourselves from becoming sick. Social distancing is the way to keep yourself and others safe.
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Attendees of the 'Love in times of COVID-19' demonstration in Managua, Nicaragua Arielle Levy ‘21
Works Cited Frank, Allegra, and Constance Grady. “Phone Booths, Parades, and 10-Minute Test Kits: How Countries Worldwide Are Fighting Covid-19.” Vox, Vox, 22 Mar. 2020, www.vox.com/science-andhealth/2020/3/22/21189889/coronavirus-covid-19-pandemic-response-south-korea-phillipines-italynicaragua-senegal-hong-kong.
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Why Your Brain Needs a Good Night’s Rest While it's already been shown that lack of sleep can lead to weight gain and poor school performance, a new study has been conducted to see if sleep is somehow connected to our moods and how we behave. A group of scientists based in Shanghai, China tapped into data from the ABCD or Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development study which recorded how children slept. Sleep records were compared with emotional and behavioral findings and it was found that kids who slept less than 7 hours a night on average, were more likely to suffer from behavioral problems than those who slept the recommended 9 to 10 hours per night. Mathematician Wei Cheng explains that missing sleep is incredibly dangerous for adolescents whose brains are still developing. During sleep, the brain organizes itself and your memories, therefore making it easier for you to locate information when you need it. But if you don’t get enough sleep, your brain may not have enough time to organize your negative emotions, therefore affecting your mood once you are awake. Additionally, every 20 seconds as you sleep, fresh cerebrospinal fluid rolls into your brain. This fluid, CSF, can wash harmful proteins out of the brain, such as those involved in Alzheimer’s disease. Researchers used a form of rapid fMRI to measure the movements of CSF in the brain. The waves of CSF differed dramatically in patients who were awake to those who were asleep. There were gentle waves in the people who were awake that were related to breathing patterns, whereas the waves in sleeping people were compared to “tsunamis”. Neuroscientist Laura Lewis, explains that the absence of CSF waves could leave toxic proteins around.
Batya Levy ’21
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Works Cited Hurt, Avery. “Do You Sleep Enough to Banish Unpleasant Moods?” Science News for Students, 10 Mar. 2020, www.sciencenewsforstudents.org/article/do-you-sleep-enough-to-banish-unpleasantmoods. Sanders, Laura. “Sleep May Trigger Rhythmic Power Washing in the Brain.” Science News, 11 Dec. 2019, www.sciencenews.org/article/sleep-may-trigger-rhythmic-power-washing-brain.
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Only a Mother Can Love It While little is known about possible extraterrestrial life, if not for protective biotechnological equipment, humans could not survive the harsh conditions of outer space. In a mere few minutes of unprotected exposure to space’s vacuum, saliva would boil, air in the lungs would expand, and blood would bubble. However, there is a hardier species than human beings, living on all seven continents of the Earth, and potentially is able to sustain life on the moon. Tardigrades, or water bears, are tiny creatures, about 1.5 mm in length, that are known to withstand extreme, even unearthly, environments. A tardigrade is just large enough to be seen by the human eye and has a striking appearance. With four stubby legs on either side of a chubby-looking body, and no eyes, the creature is complete with a circular mouth, containing sharp teeth that can project outwards (figure 1). Figure 1: Scanning electron micrograph of a tardigrade walking over the surface of moss.
A few months ago, the Israeli spacecraft, Beresheet, launched on a mission to the moon. Just before take-off, tardigrades were added to the Beresheet’s cargo, without governmental approval. Just prior to touchdown on the surface of the moon, due to a computer error, the spacecraft crashed, and the tardigrades were released onto the moon’s surface. Apparently, a small proportion of these creatures survived the crash, and are now alive on the moon. Even on Earth, the tardigrade is known for enduring intense climates, from high mountain peaks, deserts, and to the lowest seas. Yet, it seems they are even prepared for life in outer space, as the tardigrades are not affected by the high amount of cosmic radiation emitted from stars, like our sun. Such radiation is lethal for humans, damaging their DNA and destroying molecules in the body. However, the tardigrade possesses a protein called Dsup, that inhibits radiation from damaging intracellular DNA. Another radiation risk for humans in outer space is the formation of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS). Cosmic radiation, a form of ionizing radiation, interacts with intracellular molecules containing oxygen to form free radicals, termed ROS. These highly reactive oxidant molecules pull off
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electrons from biologically important molecules, such as proteins and DNA, causing damage. Tardigrades produce an excess of antioxidants which protect against and neutralize the harmful effects of ROSs. The tardigrades were able to survive outer space transport because they traveled in the dehydrated state, called “tun form.” This is a metabolically inactive state, in which tardigrades desiccate, or excrete 99% of the water from their bodies. The creatures also lower their metabolism by a hundredfold, to a point where it is almost nonexistent. In fact, this is known as cryptobiosis, or “hidden life,” an almost deathlike state. The creature inserts its eight legs and head towards its exoskeleton, forming a ball (figure 2). In the tun form the tardigrade can exist, for up to a century. Such unique abilities allow for the tardigrade to survive low pressure, temperatures just above absolute zero, and continuous exposure to cosmic radiation.
Figure 2: Interconversion of a tardigrade from its metabolically active hydrated form, to its desiccated inactive, tun form. Additionally, in the tun form, many of the cellular organelles incorporated within them a sugar molecule, named trehalose. This carbohydrate acts in lieu of water, ensuring that cells do not expand in the presence of extremely hot or cold temperatures. A property of water molecules is their expansion during rapid temperature fluctuations, resulting in immediate cellular death. An intracellular cytoplasm with trehalose, instead of water, protects the tardigrade against temperature extremes. The international reaction is negative towards life forms secretly transported into outer space without Israeli governmental approval. Tardigrades on the lunar surface are considered to be alien species contaminating the moon. International rules need to be established to prevent spontaneous decisions such as this one. Meanwhile, this allows scientists an opportunity to evaluate a life form, other than human beings, on the moon. Samantha Sinensky ’21
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Works Cited Biello, David. “Space Suits Them.” Business Source Insider, Nov. 2008. Grady, Monica. “Tardigrades: We're Now Polluting the Moon with near Indestructible Little Creatures.” Phys.org, 9 Aug. 2019, phys.org/news/2019-08-tardigrades-polluting-moon-indestructiblecreatures.html. Grush, Loren. “Why Stowaway Creatures on the Moon Confound International Space Law.” The Verge, 16 Aug. 2019, www.theverge.com/2019/8/16/20804219/moon-tardigrades-lunar-landerspaceil-arch-mission-foundation-outer-space-treaty-law. Hashimoto, Takuma, and Takekazu Kunieda. “DNA Protection Protein, a Novel Mechanism of Radiation Tolerance: Lessons from Tardigrades.” Life, 7:26, 2017. Herkewitz, William, and Daisy Hernandez. “The Secret of the Only Animal That Can Survive in Space.” Popular Mechanics, 7 Aug. 2019, www.popularmechanics.com/space/a11137/tardigradeswater-bears/.
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Never-Before-Seen Images of the Sun’s Surface At the highest resolution ever taken, never-before-seen images of the sun’s surface have recently been taken by the Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope. While this telescope is the world’s largest to date, it is impressive for many more reasons and could provide key insights into our sun and its effect on our own planet. Inside of a cooling dome, the telescope, paired with a 13-foot mirror, sits atop of Maui’s largest volcano, Haleakalā, approximately 10,000 feet above sea level. Because of the favorable weather and atmospheric conditions, Hawaii proved to be the ideal location for the telescope. However, the decision to build the telescope atop Haleakalā was met with controversy. Native Hawaiians fought the telescope’s presence. Native Hawaiian culture holds spiritual connection to the land to be of most importance. A telescope enclosure measuring nearly 14 stories tall towering over the summit interferes with the land’s natural beauty and spirituality. Nevertheless, after a tough fight and monetary concessions, the telescope was built, and is providing promising findings with its revolutionary technology. It utilizes innovative methods used to counteract blurring in image quality due to the Earth’s atmosphere. The technology allows for better focus and removes visual distortions. However, focusing 13 kilowatts of solar power generates an immense amount of heat—heat that must be removed. A unique cooling system, containing more than seven miles of coolant distributed throughout the observatory, was built to protect the telescope. There is no doubt that the telescope is an innovative and exciting scientific achievement. However, the best is yet to come. Despite the sun being 93 million miles from Earth, the telescope captured images showing a pattern of turbulent “boils.” Each of these boils is roughly the size of Texas, and they function by transporting heat from the inside of the sun toward its surface. In addition to the crisp images, the telescope will be able to perform measurements of the sun previously unattainable. Previously, solar astronomers and heliophysicists1 had to wait for a total solar eclipse to study the sun’s corona. The corona is the outermost part of the sun’s atmosphere and is usually hidden by the bright light of the Sun’s surface. During a total solar eclipse, the moon blocks out the bright light of the Sun, allowing the Corona to be observed. However, using the Inouye Solar Telescope, scientists no longer have to wait for this rare occurrence. Scientists can now obtain answers to puzzling questions such as, why is the corona a million degrees hotter than the photosphere, the Sun’s visible surface? They can also study the exact nature and origin of “coronal mass ejections,” powerful blasts that release extremely hot streams of plasma into space, sometimes causing solar flares that reach Earth’s surface. These solar flares have important con1 A scientist
who studies the Sun and the physical connection between the Sun and the solar system.
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sequences, as they can damage satellites and power grids, cause blackouts, impact air travel and even disable technologies such as GPS. The Telescope has already produced an imagine never observed before, but the possibilities for future accomplishments seem endless. The facility is meant to operate for at least 44 years; who knows what surprises lie in store?
Emily Vayner ‘23
Works Cited Loomis, Ilima, 2020, How the world’s largest solar telescope rose on Maui while nearby protests derailed a larger scope, sciencemag.com https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2017/08/how-world-s-largest-solar-telescope-rose-maui-while-nearby-protests-derailed-larger Mann, Adam, 2020, The Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope: Getting a close-up look at our sun, Space.com https://www.space.com/daniel-k-inouye-solar-telescope.html National Science Foundation, 2020, NSF’s newest solar telescope produces first images, NCF.com https://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=299908 Sargent, George, 2020, New telescope reveals sun's surface in closest detail yet, Reuters.com
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https://www.nbcnews.com/science/space/new-telescope-reveals-sun-s-surface-closest-detail-yetn1126491
We hope you enjoyed this issue of BREAKTHROUGH! EDITORS Daniella Feingold ’20 Samantha Sinensky ‘21 FACULTY ADVISOR Ms. Lenore Brachot
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