Earth Day 2024: Planet vs. Plastics

Earth Day 2024

• Earth Day is celebrated annually on April 22nd, focusing on environmental protection.
• Originated in 1970 with Gaylord Nelson, mobilizing over 20 million people.
• Earth Day Network (EDN) has over 50,000 partners in 190+ countries.
• EDN has influenced landmark environmental laws, including the Clean Water Act (1972), Endangered Species Act (1973), and the 2015 Paris Agreement.
• Earth Day 2024's theme is "Planet vs. Plastics," emphasizing the global plastic production issue.
• Over 380 million tons of plastic are produced annually, with 50% for single-use.
• EDN demands a 60% reduction in plastic production by 2040.

Plastic Pollution Solutions

• EDN proposes four strategies to curb plastic production:
  • Raising public awareness about plastic's health risks (cancer, marine life).
  • Persuading countries to phase out single-use plastics by 2030.
  • Encouraging governments to limit fast fashion (a contributor to plastic pollution).
  • Urging corporations to develop sustainable plastic substitutes.
• Individuals can also contribute by using reusable items (cutlery, water bottles, bags).
• Companies can implement changes like using natural/recycled fabrics or compostable containers.

Upcoming Celestial Event

• NASA predicts a visible nova outburst sometime before September 2024.
• Novae occur in binary systems, involving a red giant and white dwarf star.
• Material from the red giant accumulates on the white dwarf, causing a dramatic explosion (nova).
• T Coronae Borealis (T CrB), a binary system, is notable for its periodic nova outbursts (approximately every 80 years).
• The last T CrB outburst was in 1946.
• This particular outburst will be visible to the naked eye for several days.

Taiwan Earthquake

• A 7.4 magnitude earthquake struck Taiwan's east coast on April 3, 2024.
• This was the most powerful earthquake to hit the island nation in 25 years.
• Impact included deaths, injuries, and damage to buildings, in part due to mountainous landslides.
• Fatalities were significantly lower than the 1999 earthquake, due to improved earthquake preparedness.
• This includes earthquake sensors, public education/drills, and strict building codes.

Global Solo Sailing

• Cole Brauer, a 29-year-old American, completed the 30,000 mile Global Solo Challenge in 130 days, becoming the first American woman to achieve this without stopping.
• Brauer's journey involved navigating challenging waters like Cape Horn.
• Her race encountered setbacks like severe weather.

Chimpanzee Military Tactics

• Chimpanzees demonstrate coordinated patrolling behaviors at the edges of their territories.
• They use higher ground to assess risks and communicate with rival groups, showing complex cognitive abilities and tactical warfare strategies resembling human military methods.

Revolutionary War Sketch

• Judith Hernstadt's sketch, depicting women and soldiers in a horse-drawn carriage, was rediscovered after 40 years.
• The sketch accurately depicted a North Carolina troop's march through Philadelphia in 1777—a significant eyewitness account.
• It's the first-known wartime drawing of the North Carolina troops, and one of two known artworks featuring the women supporting the Continental Army.
• The artist, identified as Pierre Eugene du Simitiere, was a well-known Swiss Revolutionary War artist.

Crab Spider Cooperation

• Scientists observed male and female crab spiders cooperating for camouflage in a Chinese rainforest.
• The male acted like the flower's stamens and pistils while the female disguised herself as the petals.
• This cooperation enhances survivability and predation efficiency; it was the first example of cooperation mimicry in any species.

New Ichthyosaur Species

• A father-daughter team discovered a new species of massive ichthyosaur fossil in Somerset, England.
• Experts confirmed that the fossil was from the Triassic period.
• The new species was estimated to be 80 feet long, one of the largest marine animals ever.
• The newly named species, Ichthyotitan severnensis was published in PLOS One.

Periodical Cicadas

• Sixteen US states are bracing for trillions of noisy cicadas, with two broods (Brood XIX and XIII) emerging simultaneously, a rare event last seen in 1803.
• Periodical cicadas spend most of their lives underground, feeding off sap from tree roots.
• The black, shrimp-sized bugs with red, beady eyes emerge every 13 or 17 years to reproduce and die soon after.
• Researchers hypothesize that cicadas' 13/17-year cycles are a defense mechanism against predators with 2, 4, or 8-year life cycles, exploiting prime numbers.
• Cicadas' emergence peaks for two to three weeks starting in mid-May.
• Overlapping is expected in Illinois and Iowa, but not in other states.
• Cicadas are harmless but can be a nuisance due to swarms and loud calls.
• Female cicadas damage young trees by laying eggs, potentially stunting growth or killing young trees.
• Adult cicadas die after laying eggs, providing a food source for other animals and nitrogen for trees.

Summer Olympics

• The 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris will include four new sports: breaking (breakdancing), surfing, skateboarding, and sport climbing.
• Breaking, a 1970s New York City urban dance style, is characterized by intricate footwork, rapid movements, and spins.
• Surfing returns to the Olympics after debuting at Tokyo 2020, with events held in Tahiti.
• Skateboarding features park and street disciplines, with athletes judged on height, speed, and maneuver variety.
• Sport climbing will feature bouldering, speed climbing, and lead climbing events; at Paris, only bouldering and lead climbing scores will be combined. Speed climbing is a stand-alone event.

Sumatran Orangutan

• A Sumatran orangutan named Rakus successfully treated a cheek wound by applying medicinal plant juice, a behavior documented by scientists.
• Sumatran orangutans, critically endangered with around 14,600 remaining, face habitat loss and hunting.
• The orangutans typically give birth once every 8-9 years.

Tornadoes

• Tornado activity in the US this April was significantly above average at over 300 reported tornadoes across the country.
• The month of April typically sees an average of 182 tornadoes.
• Powerful tornadoes, including an EF-4 twister in Marietta, Oklahoma, caused considerable damage and fatalities.
• Minden, Iowa, experienced significant damage from another powerful tornado.
• Tornadoes are most active between March and July, and "Tornado Alley" (Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, etc.) is particularly prone to them.

Wildfires

• Canada experienced its worst wildfire season on record in 2023, with over 6,500 blazes and more than 48 million acres burned.
• "Zombie" fires, hidden fires smoldering under the snow, reignited in British Columbia and Alberta as snow melted.
• These fires are often difficult to detect due to their underground nature and remote locations, and spread undetected.
• Low snowfall and warmer winter temperatures in the past three years have contributed to the increase in zombie fires.

X-59 Aircraft

• NASA's X-59 aircraft, designed for quiet supersonic flight, aims to change travel by breaking the sound barrier without the sonic boom.
• The unique design features a long pointed nose, a top-mounted engine and removal of the forward-facing cockpit window.
• Tests are planned in California in late 2024, with the goal of testing over some US cities.

Rising Sea Levels and Floating Cities

• Rising sea levels, driven by global warming, threaten coastal communities worldwide.
• Dogen City, a proposed floating city in Japan, aims to address this by housing up to 10,000 residents and having a two-level design to combat tsunami risk and has a sea-cooled data center for city management, healthcare, and drug discovery.
• Aims for completion in 2030. Other floating cities projects are also under development.

Cancer Treatment

• Scientists are developing personalized cancer vaccines to fight unique cancers by harnessing the body's immune system.
• A study of 6 melanoma patients found that personalized vaccines could effectively treat the cancer in 2015-2021.
• Four patients had no recurrence, and the two with recurrence were eventually cured with additional doses.
• This research has earned Dr. Catherine Wu the Sjöberg Prize (February 2024), including a $1 million award to fund cancer research.

Sphere Entertainment Venue

• Sphere, a new entertainment venue in Las Vegas, resembles an orb with a massive LED screen.
• The venue's interior features a high-resolution wrap-around LED screen, an advanced audio system, and 17,500 seats with sound vibration technology.
• Sphere opened in September 2023, hosting U2's 40-nights residency, and interactive experiences like "The Sphere Experience."
• Postcard from Earth, a 50-minute sci-fi film, is part of the experience.

Cooper's Hill Cheese Rolling

• An annual cheese rolling competition in Gloucestershire, England, involves participants running (or tumbling) down a hill after a wheel of cheese.
• It started in the 1800s to settle land ownership disputes.
• In 2009, the competition was cancelled due to risk of injury but continues every year.
• This year's competition (May 27, 2024) featured men's and women's downhill races and kids'/adult uphill races.
• Abby Lampe, a competitor from the USA won the women's downhill race.

Claudia Sheinbaum – Mexican President

• Claudia Sheinbaum became Mexico's first female and Jewish president, taking office October 1, 2024.
• She previously served as head of government of Mexico City and is a climate scientist, advocating for clean energy transitions.
• Biggest challenge is the increasing violence in Mexico, to be countered by increased policing and camera surveillance.

China's Chang'e 6 Lunar Mission

• China's Chang'e 6 lunar probe brought back soil samples from the Moon's far side (June 25, 2024).
• The mission is named after the Chinese Moon goddess.
• The probe landed at the South Pole-Aitken basin, which is one of the largest and oldest impact craters in our Solar System.
• The samples will be studied globally to understand more about the Moon's far side and the solar system's early evolution.

2024 Paris Olympics - Gymnastics

• The US gymnastics team won 10 medals at the 2024 Paris Olympics, including three gold, one silver, and six bronze.
• The men's team won bronze after a 16-year drought, overcoming a setback from initial qualifying events.
• Brody Malone, captain of the men's team, delivered a flawless routine despite a previous knee injury.

Mount Vernon Excavation

• Archaeologists discovered 35 glass bottles containing perfectly preserved cherries and berries from the 18th century at George Washington's Mount Vernon home.
• The bottles, which were probably buried before Washington left for the Revolutionary War, provide insight into daily life and culinary practices during that era.

Elephant Communication

• A new study indicates elephants may assign individual "names" to each other, using calls that are not imitative, unlike dolphins or parrots.
• The study analyzed hundreds of elephant calls, using machine learning to identify their recipient.
• A playback of these calls proved their ability to recognize specific calls and respond to them despite the low frequencies which are hard for humans to decipher.

Herculaneum Excavation

• The ancient city of Herculaneum, buried by Mount Vesuvius in AD 79, had its beach excavated and restored in 2024.
• Herculaneum was a popular Roman resort town, hidden under volcanic ash for almost 2,000 years.
• The restoration allows visitors to see the site as ancient Romans did by going down a tunnel to the beach.
• The original black sand beach was replaced with a dark-colored material to make it wheelchair accessible.
• Excavations have revealed well-preserved baths, an underground theatre, luxurious homes, and over 300 skeletons, including those of women, children, babies, and men.
• Remains were found in shelters, suggesting people fled there to be rescued by boats, including a Roman soldier found near a boat with his belt and weaponry.
• Scientists believe that the residents tried to escape the volcano. A "Ring Lady" was found with rings.
• Continued excavation has uncovered a shrine with blue walls and a banquet room with ancient paintings.

Florida Carpenter Ant Surgery

• Florida carpenter ants exhibit remarkable social behavior by performing life-saving "surgeries" on injured nestmates, unlike most other ants.
• They use precise bite-off amputations to remove infected limbs or clean minor wounds, depending on the injury type, for their nestmates.
• The survival rate for ants with femur injuries treated in the colony was 90% compared to 40% for isolated ants, and bacteria-contaminated tibia injuries experienced a 75% survival rate compared to 10% isolated.
• This procedure showcases a form of unique medical care in the animal kingdom.

Large Diamond Discovery in Botswana

• Lucara Diamond discovered a 2,492-carat diamond in Botswana's Karowe mine.
• It is the second-largest diamond ever found.
• The largest diamond found to date is the 3,106-carat Cullinan diamond, discovered in South Africa in 1905.
• The Karowe mine is known for producing exceptionally large diamonds, including the 1,758-carat Sewelô diamond, previously the world's second-largest, sold to Louis Vuitton in 2019.
• The diamond is expected to fetch tens of millions of dollars.

Starliner Spacecraft Return

• NASA's Starliner spacecraft will return to Earth uncrewed in early September 2024 due to safety concerns.
• Astronauts Butch Wilmore and Sunita Williams will remain at the International Space Station (ISS) until February 2025.
• The return will happen with Crew 9, initially planned for August 18th and changed to February 2025
• Their return will occur on a SpaceX Dragon.

Banksy's London Murals

• Banksy revealed a series of animal murals in London from August 5th to 13th, 2024.
• These included a mountain goat, elephants, monkeys, a wolf, pelicans, and a gorilla.
• The London Zoo displayed the final mural, featuring a gorilla releasing animals from the zoo's confines

Big Basin Redwood Fire Recovery

• The CZU Lightning Complex Fire in 2020, having burned 97 percent of the Big Basin Redwood State Park, displayed stunning resilience in redwood trees.
• Redwood trees store energy from leaf photosynthesis and have bud tissue for leaf regrowth, aiding in regrowth after fire.
• The stored energy in the giant redwoods was between 50 and 100 years old, enabling rapid regrowth.

Friday the 13th

• Friday the 13th is considered unlucky by many, based on superstition.
• Some attribute the fear to the number 13 following the perceived "completeness" of 12.
• A Scandinavian legend links 13 to a fatal banquet among gods.

Mammoth Direct Air Capture Facility

• Climeworks' Mammoth DAC plant, the largest in the world, is located in Iceland.
• It can capture up to 39,000 tons of carbon dioxide annually using geothermal energy and will turn into stone deep underground
• It's part of a larger effort by Climeworks and other companies.

SpaceX Polaris Dawn Mission

• SpaceX's Polaris Dawn mission, the first commercial space mission under the Polaris program, successfully completed a five-day civilian flight and a groundbreaking spacewalk on September 15, 2024.
• The flight reached a record altitude of 870 miles above Earth, surpassing the Gemini 11 mission.
• The spacewalk is the first-ever civilian spacewalk conducted by spacecrafts with no life support systems.

U.S. Presidential Election 2024

• Millions of Americans will vote for President on November 5, 2024, choosing between Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump.
• The election involves the Electoral College, allocating electoral votes among states based on population.
• For presidency, a candidate needs a majority of electoral votes (270).
• The new president's term begins on January 20th.

East Greenland Landslide and Tsunami

• A landslide and tsunami in East Greenland's Dickson Fjord in September 2023 triggered a prolonged seismic wave that shook the earth for nine days.
• The confined fjord space resulted in a seiche, reinforcing and prolonging the seismic activity.
• The event is linked to climate change-induced glacier melt impacting the underlying mountain's structural integrity.

Octopus Hunting Strategies

• Octopuses exhibit leadership abilities, controlling hunting packs and disciplining those who try to exploit the group, like blacktip groupers.
• Octopuses hunt with blue goatfish, using their unique abilities to reach prey in crevices and trap them together.
• Octopus leadership involves stopping the fish from moving, allowing the octopus to choose the best hunting spot.