A Pea Aphid

Scientists have discovered what might be one of the only creatures to use photosynthesis like a plant. Called the pea aphid, this tiny insect seems to turn sunlight into energy for daily use.

While most animals rely on energy from food to obtain adenoise triphosphate, studies have suggested that the pea aphid traps sunlight within its body to generate ATP. This complex is the cellular energy that enables the body to perform biochemical processes.

Aphids are already recognized as different from most animals in that they produce their own carotenoids- pigments that are generated by plants, microorganisms and fungi. Though the ability was originally attributed to a gene swap between the bugs and fungi, new information implies that the substance is related to the aphid’s photosynthetic abilities.

Carotenoids are one of the primary factors in an aphid’s color. Recent research has found that the aphids’ color, and carotenoid production, changes depending on environmental factors. Colder temperatures result in greener aphids with high levels of carotenoids, optimal conditions bred orange aphids with medium levels of carotenoids, and oppressive, limited environments bred white, pigment-less aphids.

A test of ATP levels in each color of aphid showed that the green ones produced more than the white, while the orange produced more when exposed to sunlight than when kept in the dark. A detailed report was published in the Scientific Reports journal just this month.

One of the hottest topics in the science and tech world today is the recent landing of NASA’s rover ‘Curiosity’ on Mars. Here, the Washington Post’s Marc Kaufman explains why the project is considered “the mission of the decade.”

Another video reflects just how monumental the landing was, as the NASA staff erupts in celebration:

In an effort to encourage people to pursue their dreams, 34-year-old Song Hojun built a satellite in his basement.

The South Korean spent years collecting pieces from back-alley electronic stores to create his $500 OpenSat, which will be launched into space later this year.

“Making a satellite is no more difficult than making a cellphone,” Hojun claims. “I believe that not just a satellite, but anything can be made with the help of the internet and social platforms. I chose a satellite to show that symbolically.”

Though universities and other science-focused organizations have launched ‘homemade’ satellites in the past, Hojun believes his is the first that was completely designed and funded by an individual.

Hojun is known to combine art and technology, seeing as he is an engineering student in university. He was inspired to begin his Open Satellite Initiative, which incorporates the two fields, after working for a private satellite company. He explained that the fact that he was just one guy actually helped him throughout the process.

“I’m just an individual, not someone working for big universities, corporations or armies, so they open up to me and easily give out information,” he said of the space professionals that he contacted around the world.

Hojun’s satellite will be launched, with the help of technology company NovaNano, from Kazakhstan in December.

A new app called ‘Chirp’, developed by Animal Systems, enables iPhones and iPads to share images through a short burst of sound. Animal Systems is a spin off of the computer science department of University College London, and the lead developer on the app was Daniel Jones.

Jones explains that the biggest challenge was “making sure that we had a system that would work equally well in environments that are particularly noisy. So, in  a pub, or on a bus… to be able to work in all sorts of different real-world places.”

Jones adds that the capability is similar to Bluetooth- one advantage though is that once the app is installed, devices do not need to be paired in order for the transfer to work. Though the technology is only available for iPhones and iPads today, Jones and Animal Systems hope to expand the program to radios, tvs and PA systems. Any device capable of sound should be able to ‘read’ a Chirp.

Learn more with Matt Cowan of Reuters:

The national mourns today as California native Sally Ride passed away yesterday at the age of 61. Passing away from pancreatic cancer, Ride will long be remembered as the first American woman to make it into space.

But she wasn’t always shooting for the moon. Studying physics and English at Stanford University, Ride was actually also a nationally ranked tennis player. She chose to stick with academia rather than to pursue a tennis career. She applied for NASA’s training program on an impulse in 1978, and soon became one of six women who were chosen for the 35 training spots.

During the space shuttle’s second mission she was a capsule communicator at mission control. During the space shuttle’s seventh mission in 1983, she was given the privilege of becoming the first American woman astronaut.  The Challenger took off on June 18, 1983.  She was also on the thirteenth space shuttle flight of the Challenger.

Sally Ride was the only astronaut appointed to the Presidential Commission that investigated the tragic explosion of the Challenger in January of 1986.  After this experience, she worked for NASA and created the Office of Exploration.  Leaving NASA in 1987, she taught physics at Stanford and then at the University of California at San Diego.

Ride’s organization Sally Ride Science said, “”Sally’s historic flight into space captured the nation’s imagination and made her a household name.”

As NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said,

“Sally Ride broke barriers with grace and professionalism — and literally changed the face of America’s space program. The nation has lost one of its finest leaders, teachers and explorers. Our thoughts and prayers are with Sally’s family and the many she inspired. She will be missed, but her star will always shine brightly.”

Hearing about her passing, President Barack Obama said,

“Sally’s life showed us that there are no limits to what we can achieve, and I have no doubt that her legacy will endure for years to come.”

New research has revealed that dolphins may possess similar brainpower to humans. The marine mammal has hinted at skills and awareness previously believed to be limited to humans alone.

MRI scans demonstrate that dolphin brains, like human ones, are four or five times larger than those of other, similarly-sized animals, explained Lori Marino, a leading dolphin expert and senior lecturer in neuroscience and behavioral biology at Emory University.

“If we use relative brain size as a metric of ‘intelligence’ then one would have to conclude that dolphins are second in intelligence to modern humans,” she said.

Marino addresses two additional points to prove her case: first, the dolphin neocortex, which managed high-order thinking and emotional processes, is highly developed in dolphins, and second, dolphins exhibit many human-like skills, such as cultural learning, self-recognition, communication through symbols, and the ability to grasp abstract concepts.

Another study strengthens Marino’s claim, but from a different perspective altogether; dolphins may use complex, non-linear mathematics throughout their hunts.

Tim Leighton, study author, was first inspired to research the idea after watching the Discovery Channel’s ‘Blue Planet.’

“I immediately got hooked, because I knew that no man-made sonar would be able to operate in such bubble water,” he said, referring to the hundreds of bubbles that form around the dolphins’ prey during a hunt.

“These dolphins were either ‘blinding’ their most spectacular sensory apparatus when hunting- though they still have sight to rely on- or they have sonar that can do what human sonar cannot… Perhaps they have something amazing,” he continued.

“Bubbles cause false alarms because they scatter strongly,” Leighton explained, “and a dolphin cannot afford to waste its energy chasing false alarms while the real fish escape.”

Leighton believes the marine mammals rely on a complex mathematical process that is based on the fact that the emitted pulses vary in amplitude; one may have a value of 1, while the next is a half of that amplitude. If his theory is correct, there are two stages to the hunt.

“So, provided the dolphin remembers what the ratios of the two pulses were, and can multiply the second echo by that and add the echoes together, it can make fish visible to its sonar. This is detection enhancement,” Leighton said.

The second stage works to differentiate between bubbles and actual prey by subtracting the echoes from one another. The math is complicated, but basically renders the fish visible to sonar through addition, and then invisible by subtraction- confirming the target.

Further research is required to validate Leighton’s theory, but several different angles have implied that dolphins may indeed be the second most intelligent animals on Earth today.