science
Topics and developments in science and medicine, presented by Futurism.
False Vacuum Theory. Top Story - April 2018.
Coming to the realization that there just might be a "start over" button for the entire universe can be pretty unnerving... not knowing for sure whether the physics we use in our world today are legitimate is even more terrifying. Yet here I am with another unproven theory. This one's about the evolving False Vacuum Theory.
By Sarah McDaniel8 years ago in Futurism
How Psychic Ability Can Be Used in Archaeology
Debunkers would call psychic archaeology a fraud, but as I have an interest in the field of archaeology in general, I want to explore how my abilities can help me as an archaeologist. Archaeology is a field of many subheadings such as historical archaeology, or as known as the archaeology of the modern period. I’m interested in the actual science of real archaeology, not just pseudoscience as I want to be a real scientist, in addition to law school and my M.D. UCLA has an archaeology department besides the law department I want to enroll in when I go back to school and get my grades up.
By Iria Vasquez-Paez8 years ago in Futurism
Fusion With Our Past
Fusion energy has been known as the gateway to our civilization's future. Fusion reactions yield the largest amount of energy per unit of mass than any other reaction that we know of, and it is in our near technological reach. The amount of energy produced from fusion fuel would be so large that, once commercially stabilized, the fuel would be so inexpensive and require such modest amounts to operate, that electricity would eventually be virtually free. This, however, is the bliss of idealism. We have yet to actually achieve remotely close to any of these claims, and it seems as though that almost-in-reach phase is lasting much longer than we anticipated.
By Oliver White8 years ago in Futurism
Discuss and Evaluate the Influence of Hormones on Psychology and Behaviour
Hormones are organic chemicals which arise in the body and are connected with behaviour, mood and development, helping to maintain homeostasis. They are produced and released by specialized glands called endocrine glands (J. Nelson 2000). They can be divided into three categories: amino acid derivates, peptides, and proteins and steroids (Preece 2012). Hormones are the most familiar to people because of the use and abuse of steroid hormones for different aims, such as contraception and bodybuilding (D. G. Hardie 1991). In this essay, I will explain the main concepts of the endocrine system with a regard to behaviour and in particular sexual behaviour.
By Chiara Marullo8 years ago in Futurism
The Scientific Method Vs. Pseudoscience in Archaeology
Real science demands inquiry, skepticism, and ability to prove theories using a hypothesis. Believing in pseudoscience can cause great harm to the mind. There is much logic used in the acquirement and interpretation of data. A theory is a systematic explanation that can reinterpret existing data so that new predictions can be made about new data. Using hypothesis becomes a matter of testing statements about something, which is linked to our broader understanding of the past. Archaeologists are interested in how people lived in the past through the study of gravesites featuring objects buried with the dead.
By Iria Vasquez-Paez8 years ago in Futurism
Are Humans A Virus On The Planet?
Out of every living organism on Earth, humans identify the closest with a virus. We expand uncontrollably, we destroy our host (our host being Earth,) and we have no stable means of not eradicating ourselves without expanding to a new planet.
By Kristopher Kristianson8 years ago in Futurism
Occam’s Razor
Occam’s razor is a term attributed to William of Ockham (1287-1347), an English Franciscan friar, philosopher and early scientist, who took a vow of poverty, and who helped come up with a concept that is used in science today which determines that the fewest assumptions is the easiest. Scientists have changed the meaning of the term “Occam’s razor” throughout the centuries since it was first coined. Isaac Newton said of Occam’s razor that, “We are to admit no more causes of natural things than such are both true and sufficient to explain their appearances.” In other words, the simplest explanation rather than a complex explanation is always the better explanation.
By Iria Vasquez-Paez8 years ago in Futurism
We Earth Humans Are Polymorphic
By polymorphic, this means that we can all look different from one another. We even look different from our parents or like a combination of both parents. Unless we are twins, we all have genetic variations that make each other look different. Each person’s genome has 3 million differences but humans are also 99.9% the same. This gives white supremacists pause, no doubt. Genome variations are small, which leaves a few base pairs substituted for. If we are all truly based on similar genetic material despite our individual differences in appearance, then we are all more similar than many racists stop to think about.
By Iria Vasquez-Paez8 years ago in Futurism
Science, Religion, and Our Future
One thing I find in great abundance while observing the behaviors and beliefs of my fellow people is an utter lack of realization that we are a kind of ape, "monkey" if you wish to speak in modern slang. It’s always important to understand where we came from, to know the origins of our thought, so that we can recognize outdated and progressively harmful behaviors with a sense of urgency in order to eliminate them. People really do walk, talk, flirt, and fight just like monkeys, just slightly more advanced.
By Jacob Copeland8 years ago in Futurism
Are the Mayan’s Correct? Are We Heading for an Environmental Catastrophe?
The world is heading for an environmental catastrophe. This essay will focus on the belief of some leading scientists and environmentalists that we are in the process of a sixth mass extinction due to global warming and its acidifying effects on the world’s oceans. Firstly, it will focus on the previous five mass extinctions, from the first one 434 million years ago that wiped out 60 percent of all genera according to fossil records; to the last one at the end of the cretaceous period, 65 million years ago – famous for wiping out the dinosaurs. Then it will introduce the reason some scientists now agree was a leading factor in all five previous mass extinctions – cyanobacteria, commonly known as blue-green algae. It will then go into more detail on cyanobacteria, what they are, how they work and why they are significant contributors to mass extinctions and why scientists believe they will be responsible for a sixth mass extinction. The beneficial properties of cyanobacteria will be discussed also. It will then explain what stromatolites are and why they were the focus of scientific studies. A brief summary of the hypothesis of John Rodgers and James Castle, of Clemson University, and the conclusion they reached following their two year study will be given. Finally, the article will discuss Thermohaline Circulation also known as the Global Oceanic Conveyor Belt. Its purpose and a description of how it operates will demonstrate its importance in keeping the world alive and the consequences of rising global temperature.
By Michelle Spittle8 years ago in Futurism
