- 2010
- Apr
- 10
Discoverer of ‘Lucy’ raises questions about Australopithecus sediba, the new human species from South Africa
An Anonymous Reader contributed a delightful account by way of Scientific American. A selection follows:
By now you’ve probably heard of Australopithecus sediba, the 1.95-million-year-old human species that made news on April 8. In a nutshell, researchers have found two beautifully preserved partial skeletons that they say represent a previously unknown member of the human family–one that may have given rise to our genus, Homo. You can read my story on the find here .
There’s a lot to talk about with this discovery, so I thought I’d supplement the story with some tidbits from the cutting room floor and material that came in after my deadline.
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- 2010
- Apr
- 9
Alaska eagle survives plunge after mating dance (AP)
An Anonymous Reader gives notice of an interesting article submitted on Yahoo!. A selection follows:
AP - An acrobatic display of passion proved too much for a pair of eagles engaged in a mating dance over Alaska’s Prince William Sound.
- 2010
- Apr
- 9
Climate ‘more urgent than ever’
Helen came across a notable article presented at BBC News. From the article:
The need for a new global climate deal is “greater than ever”, say developing country delegates at UN climate talks in Bonn.
- 2010
- Apr
- 9
Cutting the cost of solar by watching every nut and bolt
Donna gives notice of a current article presented at Scientific American. A passage reads:
Editor’s Note: Scientific American ’s George Musser will be chronicling his experiences installing solar panels in Solar at Home (formerly 60-Second Solar). Read his introduction here and see all posts here .
Solar power involves wondrous quantum physics and materials science , but its fate may hinge on whether contractors can learn to bolt on the panels without losing too many screws. The panels themselves account for only about half the cost of a solar array; the rest is the installation and back-end equipment . As panel makers slash their prices , the nuts and bolts loom ever larger. Fortunately, a quiet revolution is now underway in installation. Brendan Neagle, the chief operations officer of Borrego Solar , a major U.S. installer, says they’ve sped up installation by 40 percent over the past two years. Zep Solar has invented a new roof mounting system, already supported by the module maker Canadian Solar , that speeds things up by another factor of two. And Nat Kreamer, president of Acro Energy , another large installer, says they’ve streamlined the preparation work and can get a system up on your roof within 30 days of your first phone call — quite an improvement on the eight or so months it took me .
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- 2010
- Apr
- 8
Launch success for ‘ice explorer’
James found this notable treatise posted over at BBC News. An excerpt follows:
Europe’s Cryosat-2 spacecraft launches successfully from Baikonur on a mission to map Earth’s polar ice.
