For wild animals, life is all about survival. And most don’t have the luxury of cheetah-fast speed or shark-like strength. But nature has equipped a select group with an unusually powerful weapon — venom. While venom is most often associated with creepy, crawly creatures like scorpions, snakes and spiders, this naturally occurring biological weapon is…
Category: Articles
Ohio State astrophysicists involved in stellar discovery
Scientists are finding galaxies billions of light years away from Earth, yet there are still discoveries to be made right next door. In January, data from the Dark Energy Survey — which utilizes an 8,000-pound camera mounted on an equally powerful telescope in the Andes Mountains to see deep into space — revealed 11 previously unknown stellar…
Exploring approaches to save coral reefs — right here in Ohio
With their unique structures and breathtaking colors, coral reefs are one of the world’s most inspiring and appreciated natural wonders. They’re also greatly threatened by environmental stressors associated with climate change, including sea temperature rise and ocean acidification. Some coral species are less sensitive to these climate shifts than others, and scientists have been trying…
Tibetan ice core could reveal more than 600,000 years of climate history
Researchers from The Ohio State University are studying the oldest ice core ever drilled outside of the North and South Poles, thanks to an international collaboration co-led by Lonnie Thompson, Distinguished University Professor in the School of Earth Sciences. The ice core — drilled from the Guliya Ice Cap in Tibet — may include ice that formed…
Komen Columbus looks beyond breast cancer to solve racial divides
The equation is simple: the more money and education you have, the more likely you are to be in good health. The equation for reversing this trend, however, is a bit more complex. Impoverished and minority populations have long suffered the burdens that stem from health inequity, such as higher rates of infant mortality, diabetes…
Smart Columbus: Oh, the places we’ll go
In small government offices and crowded boardrooms, the future of urban transportation is transpiring right here in Columbus — the U.S. Department of Transportation’s first Smart City. The wheels started turning for Smart Columbus last summer, when the city won the USDOT’s Smart City challenge over cities such as Austin, Portland and San Francisco. The roughly…
As addiction rises, so does need for specialized doctors
Opioid overdose claimed the lives of more than 33,000 people in the U.S. in 2015, according to a report released by the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. That’s more than double the fatal opioid overdoses that occurred in 2005, found the report, which analyzed and compiled data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s…
Where transportation is headed in 2017
Nearly every single product you own or interact with was transported via air, rail, sea or road so that it could be shipped directly to you or the store where you purchased it. While most don’t often ponder the ins and outs of transportation, it is a key facet of our everyday lives. Transportation enables…