Science
From mathematics and AI to medicine and psychology, The Optimist Daily features the latest news on discoveries, technological advances, and breakthroughs in the world of science. Our Science section is here to engage and enlighten you.
Two-thirds of seafloor life is waiting to be discovered
Most of our planet is filled with water. Amazingly, though, two-thirds of life occupying the seafloor is still waiting to be discovered, finds a recent study published in Science Advances. DNA sequencing techniques also revealed that there is at least three times more life on the seafloor than Read More...
Sunlight helps dissolve oil spills
In a recent study of the 2010 Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, researchers discovered that approximately 10 percent of oil spilled in the Gulf of Mexico was dissolved by sunlight. Oil can partially dissipate and dissolve in seawater through natural processes, which scientists account for. These Read More...
New type of "ashy" star discovered
Space is a marvel. From the Milkyway to supernovas, there is a whole universe out there to be understood - quite literally! The latest discovery in space news is a new type of star, spotted by a team of astronomers from the University of Tubingen. Usually, the surfaces of stars are composed of Read More...
UK man has a plan to reduce glass waste
Lately, and for obvious reasons, there’s been a lot of attention on figuring out what to do with all the plastic clogging up our oceans and waterways. While solving this problem is obviously important, the plastic issue also highlights an overarching problem, not necessarily with hard-to-recycle Read More...
“All we need is change”—Serre Chevalier makes skiing more sustainable
Does the climate catastrophe that we find ourselves in herald the end of ski resorts? Visiting the slopes for a weekend of skiing and snowboarding is now tinged with the guilt of all the environmental damage that goes along with it. Between the short-haul, carbon-emitting flights many skiers Read More...
Female-led start-up Novoloop figures out how to upcycle plastic waste
A new, female-led US-based start-up, Novoloop, has an exciting announcement— they’ve come up with an effective solution to problematic polyethylene (aka the regular everyday plastic that’s polluting our planet). Scientists and Novoloop founders Jeanny Yao and Miranda Wang have been working Read More...
Maybe a cure? First woman cured of HIV - “The New York Patient”
In the last 20 years, a string of medical developments has greatly improved the quality of life and lowered the mortality rate of those living with HIV. While the outlook for those living with the Human Immunodeficiency Virus has gotten better, the prospect of a cure has largely seemed far off, if Read More...
UK households get paid to curb daily energy use
Households in the UK could soon be paid to curb their electricity usage for a certain time of day (during peak usage hours) under a new scheme to help reduce energy bills while pushing for a zero-carbon power supply system. Starting in this past week, the trial for this plan, led by Octopus Read More...
Scientists grow an artificial fish from human heart cells
From this headline you probably have a lot of questions, so let us explain. This seemingly crazy science experiment was carried out by a collaboration between Harvard University and Emory University, with the end goal of growing an artificial heart that pumps on its own. "Our ultimate goal is to Read More...
California shades irrigation canals with solar panels to boost energy and save water
Solar energy is one of the fastest-growing renewable energy industries in the world, however, that doesn’t mean that we aren’t faced with challenges in the widespread implementation and harvesting of solar power. One of the biggest issues with solar energy is that the land that is usually ideal Read More...