Scientists are studying a part of the Earth’s exposed mantle in Maryland
Updated Apr 28, 2021;
Posted Apr 28, 2021
A part of Earth s mantle is exposed in Baltimore, Md. (photo by Brad Helmink via Unsplash)
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Scientists are currently studying a part of the Earth’s mantle which has become exposed in Baltimore, Md.
The rock layer typically lies far below the Earth’s surface, and presents a rare opportunity for researchers to learn more about our planet’s extensive history.
National Geographic reports how scientists were led to the exposed mantle by following a trail of ultramafic rocks, a type of mineral-rich rock that forms way underground. Samples of these ultramafic rocks were found throughout the Baltimore region, bringing researchers to the realization that they were standing on a part of the Earth that seldom gets any sunlight.
Print article Last year, when his tour of Australia was abruptly canceled midway through because of Covid, comic ventriloquist David Strassman found himself back home in America and bored. According to Ketchikan artist Ray Troll, Strassman “was rattling around the house, had nothing to do, and out of the blue he called me up one day and said, ‘Hey, I’ve got an idea.’” Strassman’s idea was simple. He and Troll share an obsession with dinosaurs and a love for science. So why not create a podcast celebrating both? And thus, in very short order, Paleo Nerds was launched. One year later, their combined effort is going strong, with the finale for their second 16-episode season set to premier April 21.
Credit: Carl Buell
A new study shows that the similarly smooth, nearly hairless skin of whales and hippopotamuses evolved independently. The work suggests that their last common ancestor was likely a land-dwelling mammal, uprooting current thinking that the skin came fine-tuned for life in the water from a shared amphibious ancestor. The study is published today in the journal
Current Biology and was led by researchers at the American Museum of Natural History; University of California, Irvine; University of California, Riverside; Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics; and the LOEWE-Centre for Translational Biodiversity Genomics (Germany). How mammals left terra firma and became fully aquatic is one of the most fascinating evolutionary stories, perhaps rivaled only by how animals traded water for land in the first place or by the evolution of flight, said John Gatesy, a senior research scientist in the American Museum of Natural History s Division of Verte
Life-size models of the Megalodon were built at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History in Washington DC, and another at the Western Australian Museum Boola Bardip in Perth. Scientists wanted to determine how big the megalodons actually were.
However, the two beasts vary in size - the Smithsonian s is 15 metres while the Perth one is 14 metres.
Both of these are slightly smaller than the 18 metre depiction which scientists had believed megalodons grew to, which prompted a scientific investigation.
John Long, strategic professor in palaeontology at Flinders University, and Mikael Siversson, head of deparment, Earth and planetary sciences at Western Australian University, began analysing teeth of megalodons and discovered the species was actually bigger than previously thought.
How Big Was the Megalodon Shark? - The Wire Science science.thewire.in - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from science.thewire.in Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.