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STRESSED TREES AND STUDENTS?

BY MARTI STELLING (she/her)

LIKE STUDENTS, TREES are incredibly sensitive to changes in their environment.

Deciduous is a fancy name for trees which stay green during spring and summer and later change colour in the autumn. Change of colour in the leaves of deciduous trees during the summer months is a warning sign.

Each leaf is made up of four pigments. These are: chlorophyll (green), xanthophylls (yellow), carotenoids (orange) and anthocyanins (red).

The periods of intense heat and dry weather that Britain experienced during August caused a “false autumn”, stressing the trees and causing them to shed their leaves prematurely.

This could be compared to the return to university that students across the country are having to adapt to. Long days in the library, cramming three months’ worth of reading into a week, and turning up to 9am lectures in last night’s clothes.

Long periods of hot weather and lack of water forced the trees into survival mode, making their leaves change hue and drop to the ground, creating autumn silhouettes. While you may be imagining a picturesque New England scene, the reality is a little darker.

Younger trees, as well as those planted in less healthy soil such as by roadsides, are particularly at risk, with many likely to die away completely. Larger trees with

strong roots will be less impacted due to their ability to source nutrients from deeper in the soil. If water supply does not return, the tree is likely to die.

During late August and early September, the days are too long for the natural autumn processes

to begin. Autumn days are shorter and contain less sunlight, giving the trees a signal to stop producing chlorophyll. This means that the green colour starts to fade and makes way for hues of red, orange, and brown.

Draught is one of the most common causes of stress in trees as, for plants, draught is a hydraulic failure. Lack of water within a tree leads to chlorosis (the scientific name for loss of colour) of the foliage, as well as wilting, premature leaf drop, and self-pruning. This can result in the tree shedding an entire branch!

While I will never be one to resent the evenings drawing in earlier and wool jumpers creeping back into my wardrobe; the trees are an obvious warning sign of a much bigger issue.

Climate change is causing irreparable damage to nature and, until we tackle the issue of global warming, we will keep seeing premature changes to our environment.

Red, yellow, orange, and brown: the colours that define the season

“Draught is one of the most common causes of stress in trees, as for plants, draught is hydraulic failure.”

Larger trees are more resilient than trees which are comparatively newer

BY KAITLYN BEATTIE-ZARB (she/her)

THE EARTH CAN be a

pretty divisive place. War, politics and Twitter arguments all tend to make the human race feel constantly divided and alienated. However, it’s important to remember that humans have also done some pretty incredible things, particularly when they work together.

So, here are 4 times when global scientific collaboration has made the world a better place.

The Ozone Layer

As human actions began to impact the atmosphere’s ozone layer in the 1980s, government regulation was enacted globally to limit ozone depletion, choosing to protect human health and the environment over harmful manufacturing processes. Signed in 1987, the Montreal Protocol was an agreement between over 197 countries, all aiming to phase out harmful aerosols such as the chlorofluorocarbons and hydrochlorofluorocarbons found in hairspray.

After a peak in 1990, the levels of such chemicals have dropped significantly, with the ozone now verifiable and reas-

TOP 4 GLOBAL SCIENTIFIC COLLABORATIONS

suringly on the mend.

The James Webb Telescope

Space has always been a collaborative activity for humanity, with space races, shuttle programs and the International Space Station providing necessary chances for international team work.

This recent successful collaboration between the United States, Canadian, European Union Space Agencies, presents the unique chance to survey the furthest depths of space in the creation of Earth’s largest optical telescope. The James Webb telescope, which was launched last December after decades in development, offers infrared sensitivity to glimpse space objects that were previously too faint for the Hubble Telescope. Able to observe over 13.4 billion light years away, it has since photographed the formation of galaxies at the beginning of the universe and can capture awe-inspiring high-resolution images of space and the enormity of the universe previously unwitnessed.

Child Mortality

One long, continuing goodnews story is the global fall of child mortality across the last century. Despite slower progress throughout the 20th century, in recent years widespread education, vaccination programmes, healthcare and nutrition awareness, and the governmental funding of global health initiatives has led to a huge drop in child mortality rates across the planet. Before 1800, child mortality was at 43% worldwide. However, by 2015 that had decreased to a mere 4.3%. Even Earth’s poorest regions have seen progress, with sub-saharan Africa’s mortality rate falling from 32% in 1950 to 8% in recent years. Whilst not yet finished, the global cooperation to promote healthcare and lessen the poverty gap is hugely beneficial in saving the lives of millions of children, and ensuring a healthy and long life for all.

Coronavirus Vaccine

The most topical of scientific collaborations in recent years is the creation of coronavirus vaccines in 2020. When the COVID-19 pandemic took over the world and caused mass lockdowns across the planet, scientists of many countries set to work analysing the disease in order to create quick and effective vaccines. Building off previous research into the SARS and MERS diseases and a cemented understanding of the structure of mRNA vaccines, scientists were able to share research and create a vast range of workable vaccines in an unprecedentedly short timeframe. And it wasn’t just scientists teaming up. World governments, institutions, nonprofits and private companies all worked together to fund and support the research, manufacture and distribution of life-saving vaccines in the face of a monumental public health crisis.