Science

Representative Image (AI-generated) What if the best way to understand a 2,000-year-old burned scroll is to make one yourself and set it on fire? Scientists did just that to investigate how writing might be recovered from carbonised papyrus scrolls buried by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius. In a study published in PLOS ONE, researchers created…

A group of students in Taiwan has found a way to give discarded shellfish waste a second life beneath the waves. Their project, named Reefvive, takes oyster shells and coral gravel that would otherwise be thrown away and turns them into 3D-printed bases for growing coral. According to the James Dyson Award, the structures have…

A rare tree daisy from Chile’s Robinson Crusoe Island is receiving a new lifeline after two seedlings arrived at Logan Botanic Garden in south-west Scotland. Dendroseris neriifolia has been reduced to one known wild tree, which grows on a steep cliff and is supported by ropes to prevent it from falling. Conservationists in Chile and…

For America, bison have always been more than just an ordinary animal. The largest land mammal in North America, the massive, shaggy beast has been extremely important to the native cultures. Since 2016, it has also been crowned as America’s national mammal and is an apt representative of the country’s natural history.Bison, also referred to…

Scientists have turned discarded fish scales into a plastic-like material that can break down naturally in soil, Cyclo. Plas 2, the material is made from collagen fish scales and chitosan, creating a thin, flexible, translucent film. In tests, the material began breaking down after two weeks and biodegraded by the end of eight weeks. It…

Image: European Space Agency When a star strays too close to a supermassive black hole, gravity can tear the star apart in what astronomers call a tidal disruption event. Some of the debris gets swallowed, while the rest can be blasted back out in powerful jets, sometimes months or years after the star is destroyed….

Researchers have found that waste eggshells can be processed into a fine powder and used to replace part of the cement in mortar without reducing its compressive strength. A study tested calcined eggshell powder at replacement levels ranging from 2.5% to 12.5%. The strongest result came at 10%, where the mortar reached a compressive strength…

For much of the 20th century, the Iberian lynx was disappearing from the Spanish landscape. By 2001, only 62 mature animals were recorded, leaving one of Europe’s most distinctive wild cats perilously close to extinction. Since then, a sustained conservation programme has altered its trajectory. Reintroductions, captive breeding, habitat restoration and efforts to protect its…

Egg-laying Skink (Oligosoma suteri) in New Zealand. Image Credit: Wikipedia A conservation effort in New Zealand took a surprising turn when 30 egg-laying skinks were moved from Green Island to Korapuki Island in 1992. The group consisted of 10 males and 20 gravid females (already carrying eggs). Years later, researchers compared the skinks on both…