Written by Kristin Kish, Digital Marketing Intern.
Between school, homework, practice and spending time with loved ones, it’s easy to miss out on the latest in science, technology, engineering, art and math. But don’t worry, Thinkery’s got you covered. Here are some of our favorite STEAM discoveries from the previous week. It’s fuel for your weekend.
13,000 feet below the ocean surface, you will find really weird things—lumps of metal manganese and strange aquatic species, including “ghost octopods.” Called “Casper” after the oh-so-friendly ghost, these cephalopods lack pigment cells, resulting in an eerie appearance. Scientists know very little about this special species, but worry that human harvesting of the manganese could cause trouble for these cute creatures. Learn more here!
East Antarctica’s largest glacier is melting due to warm ocean waters rising from deep in the Southern Ocean. These warm water channels are causing the glacier to melt from the bottom up. And right now, 30 researchers have set sail in the “Aurora Australis,” hoping to collect more important information about the melting glacier.
Scientists hope their research will explain exactly how these warm waters are being brought up from the deep ocean. If melted, this glacier could raise global sea levels by 11.5 feet.
What did our ancestors eat 1.2 million years ago? After carefully examining an old tooth, scientists have determined that our ancestors ate raw meat, vegetables, wood, butterfly wings and insect legs. They also determined that all food at this time was eaten raw. This finding suggests that our ancestors in Europe did not use fire 1.2 million years ago. It also suggests that because they didn’t have toothbrushes, they used twigs and sticks as toothpicks to keep their teeth clean.