The Brights

See plants and animals like never before with award-winning photographs taken by researchers from around the world with the help of modern microscopes

Time for your close-up: vivid images of nature loom larger than life

Double Nobel Prize laureate Linus Pauling is the only person to have received two unshared Nobel Prizes.

Pauling was a chemist who lived on the frontiers of science. Working in the 1930s, he was among the pioneers who used quantum mechanics to understand and describe chemical bonding. His interests and contributions were many – he published the structure of the alpha helix, investigated sickle cell anaemia as the first molecular disease, and was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1954.

After the bombing of Hiroshima, Pauling turned his attention to a different cause: peace. He campaigned vehemently against nuclear weapons and spearheaded a petition to ban nuclear testing. His efforts led to a second prize – the 1962 Nobel Peace Prize "for his fight against the nuclear arms race between East and West."

Learn more about Linus Pauling: https://bit.ly/3k4g1n7

Trends toward lower carbon intensity mean that countries are producing less CO2 emissions per unit of economic output (here dollar of GDP).

One of several indicators for SDG 9 — explore them all on our SDG Tracker: https://t.co/1vx5i8U6Gi https://t.co/NhpbQqgS7p

Lab-grown structures with the potential to develop into fetuses should be defined — and regulated — as embryos, some researchers say.

What is an embryo? Scientists say definition needs to change

Be safe west coast peeps!

Category 4 Hurricane Hilary expected to deluge California and the U.S. Southwest with rain The latest news and live updates on Hurricane Hilary, which has grown into a Category 4 hurricane expected to bring strong winds and rain this week.

The caterpillar of Eudocima phalonia looks like a galaxy!✨

📷 Arabinda Pal

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This Fossil Friday, behold the dazzling colors of an iridescent ammonite (Placenticeras intercalare). A relative of today’s squids, this ammonite lived some 80 million years ago near what is now Alberta, Canada. This fossil’s spectacular coloration is the result of millions of years of high temperatures and pressures. As these forces acted on nacre in this ammonite’s shell, it was transformed into a gemstone known as an ammolite. Along with amber and pearl, ammolite is one of only a handful of gems made by living organisms. You can spot this rare specimen in the Louis V. Gerstner, Jr. Collections Core in the Museum’s new Gilder Center!

Photo: © AMNH / C. Chesek

The August Perseid meteor shower is rich and steady, from early August through the peak. The meteors are colorful. And they frequently leave persistent trains. All of these factors make the Perseid shower perhaps the most beloved meteor shower for the Northern Hemisphere.

Meteor shower guide: Next up Delta Aquariids and Perseids You might see Delta Aquariid meteors, or Perseid meteors, any time from late July to mid-August. That’s true even though, in 2023, the full moon around August 1 will cast its light in the sky for much of the night. If you watch shortly before sunup, the mornings prior to this full moon might work ...

Another reason to keep Church & State separate!

"It was the result of having multiple pastors tell me, essentially, the same story about quoting the Sermon on the Mount, parenthetically, in their preaching — "turn the other cheek" — [and] to have someone come up after to say, "Where did you get those liberal talking points?" And what was alarming to me is that in most of these scenarios, when the pastor would say, "I'm literally quoting Jesus Christ," the response would not be, "I apologize." The response would be, "Yes, but that doesn't work anymore. That's weak." And when we get to the point where the teachings of Jesus himself are seen as subversive to us, then we're in a crisis."

He was a top church official who criticized Trump. He says Christianity is in crisis Russell Moore criticized Donald Trump and the Southern Baptist Convention's response to a s*xual abuse crisis. Then he found himself on the outside.

These scientists explain the power of music to spark awe Many of us know that feeling of being transported by a song. Research reveals that listening to music can have profound effects on our mind and body.

Watercolor by jacqueline
Dancing in the Moonlight

Ruby Chocolate It's naturally a bubblegum shade of pink.

Research at multiple archaeological sites has now confirmed that Neanderthals made tools once seen as a sign of superior human intelligence.

https://www.discovermagazine.com/the-sciences/neanderthals-also-had-superior-toolmaking-abilities-not-just-humans

Stop, drop, and roll with the Venezuelan pebble toad (Oreophrynella nigra)! When threatened by a predator, like a tarantula, this amphibian tucks in its limbs and rolls—descending downhill like a pebble. Because the toad is so lightweight and small, reaching lengths of only 1.2 in (30 mm), it isn’t hurt by its high speed descent. Its bumpy, rock-like camouflage helps it blend in when it finally does come to a halt.
Photo: guilherme jofili, CC BY 2.0, flickr

Believe it or not, this lizard can walk on water! Meet the plumed basilisk (Basiliscus plumifrons). By sprinting on its hind legs at speeds of more than 7 mph (11.3 km/h), this critter can dash over water without breaking the surface. Its specialized feet—equipped with long, flattened toes—create air pockets as the lizard moves. But the plumed basilisk doesn’t have to worry about sinking: This reptile is also an excellent swimmer and can remain underwater for up to 30 minutes!
Photo: rpvo, CC BY-NC 4.0 iNaturalist

The Largest Insect Ever Existed Was a Giant 'Dragonfly' The largest insect that ever existed was a dragonfly called Meganeuropsis permiana. This insect lived during the late Permian era, about 2...

Getting kids outside: one of the best things a parent can do Parents can help their kids grow, learn, and have adventures just by spending some time in nature.

Check Out This Fantastic Rainbow Agate From Indonesia.

Photo Copyright ©️ Chille Maulidhaa

🗺️ 🦋

Common mapwing butterflies carry their name from their intricate map-like wing patterns which resemble the longitude and latitude lines of maps!

by Rajesh Kumar via Instagram

Scientists Think Cloning Could Help Save Endangered Species

Scientists Think Cloning Could Help Save Endangered Species The endangered Przewalski’s horse and black-footed ferret are the faces of cloning for conservation.

Oldest Ever Human Genetic Data Recovered From 2-Million-Year-Old Hominid Fossils

Oldest Ever Human Genetic Data Recovered From 2-Million-Year-Old Hominid Fossils Researchers were even able to identify the s*x of all four specimens.

To Eat Or Not To Eat...

Neuroscientists May Have Found the Part of Your Brain That Makes You Hangry Neuroscientists think a cluster of cells in the brain that stimulate appetite could be a target for eating disorder therapies

It took 150 million years for feathered dinosaurs to master flight and become the birds we see overhead today.

sulc.us/birdflight

The trilobite beetle is a type of net-winged beetle that is found in tropical forests of India and South-east Asia. It is named after its resemblance to trilobites, the extinct marine arthropods that lived from the Early Cambrian to the Late Permian periods.

The females and larvae of the trilobite beetle have a flattened, dark body with large scales over the head. They never metamorphose out of their larval form and can grow up to 80 mm in length. The males are much smaller and look like typical beetles.

The reproductive behavior of the trilobite beetle is poorly known. After mating, females lay around 200 eggs in rotting logs or dead trees. Their diet is also unclear, but it is assumed that they feed on microbes from rotting plants or are potential predators of insects and snails.

The trilobite beetle has a unique defensive behavior. When threatened, the females and larvae curl their body into a tight ball, using their large scales to protect their soft underbelly. This behavior is similar to that of trilobites and is an effective defense against predators.

The trilobite beetle is a fascinating and rare insect that faces a major threat from the loss of tropical forests due to deforestation and other human activities.

Text credit: Earth Unreal

Image credit: Marcus Kam
(image taken in Malaysia)
OMD-EM1MK2, 60mm,Godox V860ii and MKdiffuser 3.0

"Somewhere in Africa"
Acrylic on canwas 70/85 cm
2021
Zurab Dariali

That's really hot!

Stunning New Images Show The Face of The Sun Like We’ve Never Seen It Before - I Love The Universe A new portrait taken with the world's most powerful solar telescope has captured the face of our Sun in exquisite detail. The middle layer of the Sun's atmosphere, known as the chromosphere, looks almost like a s**g rug up close and personal to the giant star, with a resolution of just 18 kilometers...

James Webb takes a beautiful photo of colliding spiral galaxies !

The James Webb Telescope has captured a new image of a pair of colliding spiral galaxies that together are called "Arp 220". Their encounter emitted light equivalent to more than a trillion times that released by the Sun, and spurred intense star formation processes there.

Because of the galaxies undergoing merging , Arp 220 is a very bright object, especially in infrared light — and because Webb specializes in near- and mid-infrared light, they make great objects for observations with him. This time, Webb observed it with the NIRCam and MIRI instruments.

The telescope revealed some interesting features there—among them are faintly glowing bluish structures. They are tidal tails, formed by material torn from galaxies by gravity , and indicate the “dance” taking place between galaxies. The orange tones represent organic matter in the Arp 220 filaments.

Arp 220 is such a bright object that it has been classified as a ULIRG, which stands for “ultra-luminous infrared galaxy”. This ULIRG is 250 million light-years from us, and is the closest and brightest of the other three closest merging galaxies to Earth.

The object is formed by the encounter of two spiral-type galaxies, which began about 700 million years ago. The process has yielded star formation so intense that there are around 200 large star clusters out there, nestled in a dusty region that spans about 5,000 light-years.

Previous observations have revealed approximately 100 supernova remnants in an area barely 500 light-years across. The cores of colliding galaxies were revealed by the Hubble telescope , which showed they were more than 1,000 light-years apart; each has rings formed by regions of forming stars. In this photo, the nuclei appear with strong infrared luminosity and some “spikes”, typical of James Webb observations .

Source: Webb Telescope

: Colliding spiral galaxies, collectively known as Arp 220

Human Hearing Loss Explained by Zebrafish Hair Cells Neurobiologists advance understanding of how zebrafish use hair cells to detect movement; findings may apply to human hearing and balance.

Turtles come in a variety of colors depending on the species. For example, sea turtles’ color range can be olive-green, yellow, greenish-brown, reddish-brown, or black in color. Most turtles are green, dark or light brown, or brownish-gray colored and have a huge variety of patterns on their shells ranging from circles to stripes to hieroglyphs, which can be a multitude of colors like red, yellow, orange, black, or white.

Photo credit: ??

Stemonitis splendens is a type of slime mold that is commonly known as the chocolate tube slime. The fruiting bodies of this slime mold are called sporangia, and they are smooth, dry, and range from 10 to 20 mm in height and 1 to 2 mm in diameter. The sporangia are a dark purplish brown color. Initially, the slime mold appears as a group of small white spheres that resemble snail eggs. As time passes, the white spheres elongate and darken to form chocolate brown tubes.

This species of slime mold typically grows on decaying organic matter on the forest floor, where it obtains nutrients and food. Stemonitis splendens is triggered to form reproductive fruiting bodies in response to certain environmental conditions, which are often stressful. Its primary season for growth and reproduction is from March to November.

Text credit: Earth Unreal
Image credit: Sarah Lloyd

Back to the Moon!

NASA has named a crew of astronauts who will be heading to the moon, marking the first time in over 50 years that such an appointment has been made. The team includes Reid Wiseman as the mission commander, Victor Glover as the pilot, and Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen as mission specialists. While the first three are affiliated with NASA, Jeremy Hansen is a member of the Canadian Space Agency. Next year, the four astronauts will embark on a crucial test flight to orbit around the moon, which will pave the way for the agency's eagerly anticipated return to the lunar surface.

Credit: Josh Valcarcel / NASA

Schopenhauer believed that morality came from the 'everyday phenomenon of compassion', that it was natural to all humanity, and that compassion is the only 'non–egoistic motive'. He was born on this day 1788 and is considered one of the most influential philosophers of all time. Today we celebrate his life, work, and legacy.

This is 'hair ice' - a type of ice that forms on dead wood and takes the shape of fine, silky hair. Also known as 'ice wool' or 'frost beard', this natural phenomenon is pretty uncommon, having been reported mostly at latitudes between 45 and 55 °N, in broadleaf forests.

More cool hair ice: https://bit.ly/3uv3vlH

📷 Ronaldhuizer