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Showing posts from May, 2018

Biometrics

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Imagine never having to remember a password or enter a PIN number again. Your phone, computer, bank account and even your own front door will all be able to recognize you through the use of biometrics. Your fingerprints, ears, voice, face, iris, retina, gait and even your distinct odor can already be used to identify you. As convenient as it sounds - since you will always have your body with you - some are concerned about the potential for invasion of privacy and also the possibility of security breaches. Stock Images About Biometrics If a hacker steals your password, you can create a new one. But, if the computer storing your biometric data is hacked you cannot get a new ear, iris or voice. And since biometric security opens many doors, literally and figuratively, hackers may be able to gain much more than with a single password. Privacy advocates warn this may be the beginning of Big Brother watching you, and not just online. Facial recognition software can pick an individ

Invincible Water Bears

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Although they can survive unprotected in outer space, these resilient creatures are terrestrial living beings, not aliens as some have claimed. They are found on every continent on planet Earth and they love the water, yet can be found in the desert as well. First discovered by pastor and zoologist Johann Goeze in 1773 and later named Tardigrada (Italian for "slow stepper"), these creatures still fascinate scientists today. Images & Video of Tardigrades It's unlikely that Goeze knew how amazing tardigrades (also called water bears) really are. They can withstand a high temperature of 300 degrees and a low of -458 degrees F. They have also survived outer space, radiation, and six times the pressure of the deep sea. How do they do this? When faced with adverse conditions they can desiccate - dry up - themselves. When in this state they are referred to as 'tuns' and resemble a little ball. It is a death-like state called cryptobiosis. Water bears usua

Volcanic Eruptions: Kilauea and Beyond

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  A wall of lava flows down Hoʻokāpu Street on Hawaii's Big Island, engulfing cars and setting trees ablaze – one of many scenes of havoc following the eruption of Kilauea in May. Deriving their name from the Roman god of fire, Vulcan, volcanoes live up to their reputation as one of nature's most fearsome phenomena. Literally openings in the earth's surface, volcanoes exist throughout the world, including underwater.  Images & Video of Kilauea and Other Volcanos Volcanoes usually occur where tectonic plates separate but they can also arise from hot spots in the earth's crust, such as in the Hawaiian Islands and Yellowstone National Park. When pressure builds up and travels to the earth's surface, an eruption occurs that can last between one hour and hundreds of years. The Island of Stromboli's volcano has been continuously active for over 2,000 years. In addition to lava, ash and fire, eruptions are often accompanied by earthquakes, mudslides, a

Deep Sea Exploration

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A Telescope Fish has eyes that can track bioluminescent prey. The world can feel like a small, crowded place, but actually, two-thirds of the planet remains relatively unexplored. Over 1,500 people have climbed Mount Everest, but only THREE have gone to the deepest part of the ocean. Up until recently, we haven't had the technology to fully study and explore the oceans, but the race is on. Why is this so urgent? Over 70% of the oxygen we breathe comes from marine life such as plankton. Due to increased CO2 (carbon dioxide), pollution and other manmade changes to the environment, plankton may end up on our endangered species list one day. Images of Undersea Exploration and Creatures To protect plankton, marine life and the oceans overall, we first need to understand what is normal, how things are changing, how fast and why. We know that the oceans dissolve much of the excess CO2 that humans create. But this makes oceans more acidic, damaging and killing coral and plankton