“We may be at a point where we need a radical departure from the standard [story of our universe], one that may even require us to change how we think of the elemental components of the universe, possibly even the nature of space & time.”

Opinion | The Story of Our Universe May Be Starting to Unravel (Published 2023)

Is cosmology in crisis?

#space #science #history #news

I decided to try #Bluesky having heard a lot of other science writers are there. Of course, I’ll happily stay at Mastodon, but am curious to check it out. If anyone wants to connect, my handle is the same there @sheril.bsky.social

Katherine Esau, born in 1898 in Ukraine, was a pioneering botanist who studied plant anatomy & viruses. Esau began studying agriculture in 1916 in Moscow. Her family fled to Berlin & ultimately arrived in the US in 1922. Esau earned a PhD & her research on plant structure spanned 7 decades. She wrote 6 textbooks & was the 6th woman elected to the National Academy of Sciences. In 1989, Esau received the National Medal of Science. https://ccber.ucsb.edu/ucsb-natural-history-collections-library-and-historical-information-katherine-esau/life-katherine #HistoryRemix #science #history

Scientists in China have found evidence that our ancestors were almost entirely wiped out ~1 million years ago. Why? #ClimateChange While not every expert agrees, the research is intriguing & @npub10mwv...xxep has the details:

Humanity’s Ancestors Nearly Died Out, Genetic Study Suggests (Published 2023)

The population crashed following climate change about 930,000 years ago, scientists concluded. Other experts aren’t convinced by the analysis.

#science

Tardigrades have survived every mass extinction on Earth since they evolved about a 1/2 billion years ago.There are ~1,300 known species. And millions of years from now, they won’t even notice we’re gone. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/tardigrades-turn-out-not-be-dna-thieves-180964236/ #nature Image: Eye of Science/Science Photo Library

My sweet pup's having surgery right now. I wish we could have more time with our #dogs. We really don't deserve them.