An interesting bit on efforts to clone a giant redwood tree and plant saplings from that tree in an effort to increase the amount of carbon absorbed from the environment.
Over the last few days a thick, grey fog has enveloped the Chinese capital, sending levels of particulate matter - the unit of measuring air pollution - into deeply hazardous territory. Levels of particulate matter 2.5, which can penetrate human lungs and cause respiratory ailments, heart attacks and other health impacts, peaked near 600 micrograms per cubic meter of air in the city. The World Health Organization standard for healthy air is just 25 micrograms per cubic meter.
Since its inception in 1958, NASA has accomplished some pretty spectacular feats of science. Our country has landed humans on the Moon six times. We've successfully put laboratories onto the surface of Mars, and we've flown by every single planet in our solar system, including the recently promoted asteroid-turned-dwarf planet, Ceres. Despite decades of scientific and technological achievements, some people still think that funding NASA is a waste of money. However, when you do the calculations, it turns out we are actually getting a great value from this government-run agency.
