Could Sunzaun solar panels be the future of green energy?
A company in California has created a vertical solar panel that allows agriculture and green energy to co-exist. Solar panels are one of the most promising sources for green energy, with over 1 million different sites in the UK alone. With the disastrous effects of climate change already impacting people...
Current in Science
Why is space pollution a threat to the future?
Space exploration has served humanity well, offering a means of weather prediction and an ability to study the distant cosmos. However, our passion for science has created significant amounts of space junk. Space junk refers to any debris that is left in space by humans. It is usually comprised of...
Scientists examine Antarctica’s thawing ‘Doomsday Glacier’
Scientists have gotten a first look at what’s thawing away Antarctica's giant Thwaites ice shelf - dubbed the ‘Doomsday Glacier’ due to its huge sea rise potential. There’s positives and negatives to be taken. Sea levels are said to have risen between 21 and 24 centimetres since 1880, and high-tide flooding...
Could gene-editing be used to treat mental illness?
Just as the technology is promising new therapies for everything from heart disease to cancer, some researchers believe that tinkering with the epigenome could help reverse the damage done by trauma. In recent years, scientists have made strides towards treating diseases through gene-editing technology, their most promising breakthrough being the...
Could this mushroom one day replace plastic?
Researchers are studying the molecular structure of fomes fomentarius, a fungus with the remarkable ability to yield a wide range of materials with different properties. If you’re familiar with my writing, by now I’m sure you’re well aware of my deep-rooted obsession with all things mycelium. This is pretty understandable,...
Could clouds of moon dust temper global warming?
Scientists at the University of Utah believe firing millions of tons of moon dust into the atmosphere could help to prevent global warming. The best answer is often the simplest... is a mantra being emphatically shunned by climate scientists at the University of Utah. The group of researchers at the institution have...
Scientists believe live bacteria could be eating ocean plastic
It’s hard to believe any living thing could survive on a diet consisting of plastic, but new research has revealed that certain bacteria have found a way to ingest ocean pollution – making it disappear altogether. If you’ve been visiting Thred for a while, you’re likely well-versed in how serious our global plastic pollution problem is. We have written a ton about how the 12 million tons of plastic dumped into...
Scientists create ‘vagina on a chip’ to advance sexual health research
Medical conditions affecting people with vulvas are notoriously understudied, but recent developments in the field suggest that things might finally be about to change. Scientists at the Wyss Institute at Harvard University have created the world’s first ‘vagina on a chip,’ a development that could prove significant in bridging several knowledge gaps on women’s sexual health. It comes amid growing furore towards prevailing bias in the medical sphere, which still...
New study suggests vaping damages the immune system
Though scientists still know little about the long-term effects of e-cigarettes on the human body, they just found the devices to be causing significant cellular and molecular changes in the lungs.
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ll know that vapes are all the rage.
Replacing one of the leading causes of preventable death worldwide, these days they are, quite literally, everywhere.
Regularly seen in the hands of
Australia legalises therapeutic use of MDMA and psilocybin
In a world first, the country has officially recognised psychedelics as legitimate medicines. From July, authorised psychiatrists will be able to prescribe the drugs for treatment-resistant mental illnesses like post-traumatic stress disorder and depression. For decades, scientists and researchers have sought to prove the extraordinary medical potential of psychedelic drugs. Time and time again these mind-altering compounds have shown genuine promise in alleviating some of the most intractable (and expensive)...
