Rise and fall of societies
A recent paper published in the University of Tennessee-Knoxville’s journal Cliodynamics: The Journal of Theoretical and Mathematical History details a new model explaining the rise and fall of societies. The paper explains that the success of small political units or “polities” can be modeled mathematically.
The numerical model “focuses on both size and complexity of emerging ‘polities’ or states as well as their longevity and settlement patterns as a result of warfare.”
The study uncovered that there are two main factors affecting the success of a polity — the scaling of a state’s power to the probability of winning a conflict and a leader’s average time in power. Though the fact that wealth and power impact a society’s success is not a huge surprise, the study was an important foray into mathematically modeling a system as dynamic as a human society.
Parallel universes
Physicist Brian Greene explains the possibilities for multiple parallel universes in a recent interview with National Public Radio (NPR). Greene, the author of multiple books, including The Elegant Universe and The Fabric of the Cosmos, attempts to use string theory and logic to prove the possibility that parallel universes may exist.
Assuming that our universe is either finite (and impossibly large) or infinite, Green argues that “there are only so many ways matter can arrange itself within that infinite universe. Eventually, matter has to repeat itself and arrange itself in similar ways. So, if the universe is infinitely large, it is also home to infinite parallel universes.” String theory attempts to reconcile the problems between general relativity and quantum mechanics by modeling the universe as a collection of “really, really small strings that vibrate in 10 or 11 dimensions — meaning dimensions we can’t see. If they exist, it could explain literally everything in the universe — from subatomic particles to the laws of speed and gravity.”
Paper batteries
CENIMAT, a Portuguese research centre, recently announced the creation of paper batteries that are able to recharge using moisture from the air, reports Engadget.com.
In 2008, the group created transistors printed on a paper substrate and have been expanding their research ever since. The batteries are said to require only 40 per cent humidity in the surrounding air to recharge, allowing them to operate in a multitude of environments. The group aims to use this technology in the development of tablets, cellphones and various medical devices including pacemakers. The group’s goal is create devices entirely out of “paper and derivatives,” thereby alleviating the current problem of electronic waste.
We are algae
Good news everyone! The great minds at the University of Cambridge have identified the mechanism that controls the 24-hour clock in all life forms. The study found “that the 24-hour circadian clock found in human cells is the same as that found in algae and dates back millions of years to early life on Earth.” The study also provided “important insight into health-related problems linked to individuals with disrupted clocks — such as pilots and shift workers.”
The most surprising find is one concerning red blood cells, which were found to follow a 24-hour circadian cycle. The functionality was typically thought to be controlled by genes and DNA, but red blood cells do not contain DNA. The researchers will probe further into the importance of cellular level circadian patters, hopefully shedding light on a variety of diseases, including diabetes and cancer.
Five arrests related to DDoS attacks made in U.K.
Five men were arrested for the distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks that took place in Decemeber and early this year. The attacks were against major corporation websites such as PayPal, Mastercard and Amazon, in response to the arrest and incarceration of Julian Assange, the founder of Wikileaks.ch.
According to the BBC, the software used for the attacks aided in leading police to the attackers. Three teenagers aged 15, 16 and 19, as well as two men aged 20 and 26, were arrested in the West Midlands, Northamptonshire, Hertfordshire, Surrey and London.
Plastics to replace silicone solar panels
According to CNN, researchers are plugging away to enhance a plastic semiconductor. Yes, plastic. Typically plastic is a poor conductor of electricity when compared to something more common like silicon; however, plastics such as plastic photovoltaics are ultimately much cheaper to manufacture and produce. The hope is to enhance plastics molecular structure to improve its conductivity. Currently, silicon is 15-18 per cent efficient where as plastic can only achieve 7-8 per cent.
Who needs a stomach?
Not the longtom fish, apparently. Up until recently, researchers were puzzled by this species, also known as Tylosurus gavialoides, which is a carnivore, yet at some point during its evolution it lost the use of a stomach for digestion, according to NewScientist. What puzzled zoologists more was the fact that this fish doesn’t have teeth for breaking apart animals, therefore it swallows fish whole and head first. Usually, a stomach with extremely acidic fluids is needed, but in this fish, this is not the case; it was discovered that the longtom uses an enzyme called trypsin, which breaks down protiens, to digest its meal.
Humans could have left Africa early than thought
Anthropologists previously believed that modern humans first emerged from Africa around 200,000 years ago. However, a recent discovery of more modern tools, found in the Arabian Peninsula, indicated that this might have happened roughly 50,000 years earlier. National Geographic says the 125,000 year-old tools that were found have a “design [that] is uniquely African,” which suggests that early humans marched out of Africa through modern-day Somalia into the Arabian Peninsula.
Adrian Paker, a physical geographer from Oxford Brookes University, believes a period of climate change 130,000 years ago would have lowered sea level, making it easier for these early-humans to move into the Middle East.
