Ryan Rykaczewski describes one of the most massive migrations on the planet, driven by the sun. Image by Tintinnidguy (Own work) [CC BY-SA 4.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0)], via Wikimedia Commons 

#ExplainTheSun  - The Largest Migration on The Planet

This week in The New York Times, journalist Chris Dixon posed the question: “Do humans have a future in deep sea exploration?” With the rise of robotic exploration carried out by remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) and autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs), for example, financial support for manned submersibles—like the Pisces IV and V at the Hawai‘i Undersea Research Laboratory in Oahu—is increasingly limited. In fact NOAA’s deep sea exploration budget is a mere fraction of the one for NASA’s exploration funding. And yet, at least 90 percent of the world’s oceans remain unexplored. This is a problem, say scientists. In a 2012 interview with Science Friday, famed oceanographer Sylvia Earle said, “to explore—to peel back the layers of the unknown—is one of the most important things that we can do. Ignorance is killing us.” She returns to the program, along with deep sea explorers and researchers Hanumant Singh and Colin Wollerman, to discuss what place people have in deep sea exploration as technology continues to advance. 


Is Deep-Sea Exploration Worth It?

Once, there was the ordinary incandescent light bulb. It shone brightly, but wasted much of the energy put into it as heat. Then came the compact fluorescent. And as costs have dropped, consumers have increasingly been switching to light-emitting diode (LED) technology for many lighting applications, in an ongoing search for a more efficient bulb. Now, in work published in the journal Nature Nanotechnology, researchers report that nanophotonic devices may be able to breathe new life into old incandescent technology. Marin Soljačić and Ognjen Ilic, two authors of the study, explain how they’ve been able to “recycle” some of the incandescent bulb’s wasted heat and re-emit it as visible light, boosting efficiency.

For the Lowly Incandescent Bulb, a Ray of Hope

Science, technology, and other cool stuff from public radio's Science Friday. It's brain fun, for curious people. From WNYC Studios.

Is Deep-Sea Exploration Worth It?

SciFri

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