Meet Jonathan, the Seychelles giant tortoise (Aldabrachelys gigantea hololissa), who turns 190 years in 2022.
Author: Saima Baig
I write on science, history, nature, environment, climate change, feminism, politics and religion.
Lindisfarne – Where the Vikings entered England
Lindisfarne is the island on the northeastern coast of England, where the Vikings first landed when they attacked England in 793AD. This was a holy island with a monastary of monks. A priory had been built in 635AD. And I went there to photograph it. Here are the images and the history.
Brown Dwarfs – Planets, stars, or something entirely different?
Learn about these mysterious objects known as brown dwarfs, that are neither stars nor planets.
Conwy Castle in Wales, the 700 years old fortress
I spent lovely day walking around this brilliant fortress, looking at the royal apartments, the spiral staircases, the towers and the well. Check it out in this video.
Ambleside Roman Fort UK
On the way back from the Lake District last weekend, I stopped by at Borrans Field in Ambleside to see the Ambleside Roman Fort, at the northern end of Lake Windermere. It was really amazing. Roman remains in the middle of a town bustling with tourists.
Video of walking tardigrades!
We know that tardigrades are extremely cool. And now we can see them walk in this video.
Fantastic Women Series: Eunice Newton Foote – The Woman Scientist Who Predicted Global Warming in 1856
Eunice Newton Foote – The Woman Scientist Who Predicted Global Warming in 1856. She was a campaigner for women’s rights. But she has been forgotten. Read about her here.
CFC Ban through Montreal Protocol bought us time against Climate Change
In 1987, one of the most successful multilateral environmental efforts were undertaken when the Montreal Protocol was signed, with the objective to completely phase out ozone depleting cholorofluorocarbons (CFCs). On September 16, 1987, 196 states and the European Union (a total of 197 parties) got together to sign the Montreal Protocol. This was such a huge success and 99% of CFCs were removed from the products in which they were used, helping to save the ozone layer that protects the Earth from harmful UV radiation from the Sun.
Now, a new study suggests that this treaty may also have helped us avert a climate crisis; otherwise we would be in an even worse situation than we are now. Read More.
Ancient Colombian Rock Art
You may remember reading an article or two in UK newspapers about a new rock art discovery in Colombia, which the papers called the “Sistine Chapel of Ancient’s Rock Art”. Well, the articles were not entirely accurate. They gave the impression that this was a new discovery and had been unseen till a UK tv channel crew and archaeologists got there to make a documentary. This is not true. They ignored the fact that Colombians have known about this for a very long time. After the article was published in the UK, it was picked up by international media, all of whom also neglected to mention that this was not a new discovery but something that has been part of Colombian history and culture for decades. Here’s the story.
The Eating Green Fad: Is your almond and soy latte all yout think it is?
How green is your almond milk and your soy latte? Find out here.