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.
Tiny light-shooting tool may offer new insights into human brain activity
While fundamental to everything our body does, the complex networks created by neurons in the brain are still not completely understood by scientists. However, getting a good grasp of how these networks are creating by neural signals is key to treating problems such as epilepsy, depression, and Read More...
Researchers make a surprising discovery about common west coast flower
The western false asphodel, or Triantha occidentalis, was first noted in the scientific record in 1879 and commonly dwells in bogs near urban centers of the Pacific Northwest. Despite being on scientists’ radar for over 140 years, it was not until very recently that researchers discovered a Read More...
New technique may soon enable human-like sensation in prosthetics
Replicating the familiar sense of human touch is one of the most pressing challenges facing roboticists who are working on improving bionic limps. That problem may soon be solved, however, thanks to a team of researchers that has recently developed a new tactile sensing method that could augment Read More...
Novel material converts waste heat to electricity with record efficiency
Researchers at Northwestern University have come up with an extremely high-performing thermoelectric material that may be the most efficient yet at converting waste heat into electricity. Thermoelectric systems generate electricity by using a temperature gradient. When one side of special material Read More...
Simple parking policy incentivizes employees to take greener routes to work
A key goal of public transportation is to reduce the number of cars on the road and therefore improve air quality and reduce emissions, especially in urban areas, but a small detail in the US federal tax code is actually working against this goal. The federal tax code has an exemption for Read More...
The Optimist View: Honoring the Animals
"It's not whether animals will survive, it's whether man has the will to save them." - Anthony D. Williams BY Amelia Buckley [caption id="attachment_1405688" align="alignleft" width="225"] Ram in Glacier National Park[/caption] Coming around a bend along a trail in Glacier National Park, I Read More...
Former steel mill will get new life as a producer of wind turbines
Before it closed in 2012, Sparrows Point in Maryland was home to the largest steel mill in the world, supplying key components for shipbuilding and large infrastructure projects in the US, such as the girders of the Golden Gate Bridge. Now, the site of the former mill will now be given a new lease Read More...
Beyond recycling: plastic can be eaten!
Single use plastic waste is one of the largest problems facing humanity. According to Greenpeace, over 6.3 billion tons of plastic waste have been created and discarded, with only 9 percent of that number being recycled. This isn’t necessarily due to a lack of effort; plastics like polyethylene Read More...
Poland's AirBubble playground keeps air pure with algae
Poland is one of Europe’s most polluted countries, in a world where, according to the WHO, 93 percent of children breathe in polluted air while they play. To protect Poland’s children from air pollution, an innovative park, called the AirBubble, was erected in central Warsaw, next to Read More...
Students invent device so dad in wheelchair can stroll with his baby
A group of high school students has invented an innovative stroller attachment for wheelchairs that allows people with disabilities to safely take their baby for a walk. The invention, called WheeStroll, was developed by a team of students from Bullis School in Maryland, as part of a class called Read More...