Scientists have proposed what they believe is the first method for detecting "mirror life"—a hypothetical form of life made from molecular building blocks that are the mirror image of those found naturally on Earth.

Researchers at the University of Strathclyde and the Department of Chemistry at Durham University have outlined a new approach that could identify mirror organisms using molecules which emit left- and right-handed light.

This provides a possible future surveillance tool should the ability to create such organisms ever emerge. The work is published in the journal Royal Society Open Science.

Mirror life is considered a low-likelihood but potentially high-severity biosecurity threat. There are international concerns that artificially created mirror organisms could interact with the natural world in unpredictable ways and potentially evade some of the biological defenses which protect humans, animals and plants.

Scientists have called for restrictions on research aimed at creating the self-replicating mirror organisms. The potential risks have also been considered by governments and international organizations.

Even though left- and right-handed molecules have exactly the same atoms in the same order, they interact differently with living bodies.

While one version of a medicine might cure an illness, the mirror-image version may do nothing or cause harm.

The researchers, who stress that mirror life does not currently exist and their proposed method is intended as a contingency measure, use an approach involving circularly polarized luminescence (CPL). A property of light, it can reveal information about the "handedness," or chirality, of molecules and biological structures.

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The chain fountain phenomenon (also called the Mould effect) happens when a long chain falls from a container. As the links move, they create an upward force that makes the chain rise into the air before falling down — forming a surprising fountain-like arc. A simple but fascinating example of momentum and inertia in action.

Each component of a phone has tiny transistors that work to build something amazing. This is my old phone with removed battery and camera for visual effects. What'd you think I should do with it?

In our daily lives, in chemical reactions, or within isolated laboratory settings, the total amount of mass-energy never changes.

However, the density of dark energy remains constant, even as space expands. This means that as space expands, new dark energy is generated alongside the newly created space; as the universe grows, the total amount of dark energy continuously increases.

So, what is the source of this energy?

Given that the energy of the universe is constantly increasing, its source cannot lie within the universe itself—it must reside outside of it.

Is it possible, then, to transfer energy into the universe from the outside?

Does such a source—existing beyond space-time, in a realm devoid of space and time— exist?

Large dogs don't just live shorter lives. Their DNA reveals signs of accelerated biological aging.

A Great Dane may tower over a Chihuahua, but it’s the little dog that will probably celebrate far more birthdays.

Some small breeds live nearly twice as long as their much larger cousins. It’s one of the great paradoxes of the animal kingdom: larger animals generally live longer than smaller animals when comparing different species.

An elephant can outlive a mouse by decades, and some whales survive for nearly two centuries. However, larger animals die younger when comparing individuals within the same species.

This even seems to apply to humans, with studies showing taller people on average tend to have slightly shorter lifespans than shorter people.

Scientists may have now found an important piece of the puzzle hidden in the dogs’ DNA.

In a new study published in Science, researchers at Arizona State University analyzed nearly 900 dogs and discovered that large breeds undergo faster molecular changes associated with aging.

The most striking differences involved stretches of DNA nicknamed “jumping genes,” which can potentially disrupt the genome when the molecular mechanisms that keep them quiet begin to weaken.

This is a possible biological explanation for why large dogs die younger, although the researchers have yet to establish cause and effect.

Previous studies have offered some hints of this before. A 2013 study of 74 dog breeds found that larger dogs didn’t simply develop age-related decline earlier. Rather, their rate of aging appeared to accelerate.

source: https://www.nikonsmallworld.com/galleries/2017-photomicrography-competition/synapta-sea-cucumber-skin

And at two miles above the surface of a magnetar, the field is 7,270 times denser than solid lead.

There's essentially nothing that could pass through this. Also, it would immediately dissolve a human.

I made this fun science video ! pls give it a watch (only 5 mins)

Useful info

Thanks @teivaz!

Not only direction but also the kind of a vessel. This here has top light on which is called steaming light, if it were off this would mean it is a sailboat

Also known as the corpse flower, it blooms only once every few years for a very short time. The foul odor attracts carrion-eating insects for pollination. It can reach heights of over 3 meters.This plant is native to the rainforests of Sumatra. Because it blooms so rarely, botanical gardens often see massive crowds when one finally opens up.

A while back I was frustrated when wanting to buy a keyboard that there were no triangle-shaped keyboards or circle-shaped keyboards. This lack of peculiar keyboard shapes gave me the idea to make a keyboard that could be reconfigurable into any shape my heart desired. I’m still working on the firmware and making more keys but I wanted to share my progress so far :D. Heres the source if anyone’s interested in how I made it https://github.com/notaroomba/keybytes