2019

Hydrothermal vent in the Urashima site (Photo courtesy Submarine Ring of Fire 2014 - Ironman, NSF/NOAA, Jason, Copyright WHOI)

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An article published in the journal “Nature Ecology & Evolution” reports the creation of protocells in warm and alkaline salt water that replicate the conditions of the hydrothermal vents existing in deep seas. A team of researchers led by University College London (UCL) took a step forward in research into the origin of life on Earth by bringing new clues that hydrothermal vents are the place where the first life forms emerged. In fact, they proved the possible formation of protocells starting from compounds existing in that environment and in those environmental conditions.

Doctor Who - Paradise Towers

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“Paradise Towers” is an adventure of the twentyfourth season of “Doctor Who” classic series, which aired in 1987. It follows “Time and the Rani” and it’s a four parts adventure written by Stephen Wyatt and directed by Nicholas Mallett.

The Seventh Doctor (Sylvester McCoy) and Melanie Bush (Bonnie Langford) are looking for a pool and land in the Paradise Towers, which are supposed to be a luxury high-rise building. However, they immediately realize that the place is deteriorated.

The two travelers meet a gang of girls and realize that the Paradise Towers are still inhabited but have turned into a sort of urban jungle. There’s the Caretaker Corps but their strict observance of the rules doesn’t really help the situation.

The Martian Race by Gregory Benford

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The novel “The Martian Race” by Gregory Benford was published for the first time in 1999.

The rocket that’s supposed to carry the first astronauts to Mars explodes at launch and the immediate consequence is the decision by the USA President to give up such attempts to focus on missions in the vicinity of the Earth. However, the goal of sending humans to Mars is kept alive by the announcement of a $30 billion prize for whoever can accomplish that feat and bring astronauts back to Earth.

Billionaire John Axelrod intends to win the prize and earn more money thanks to the Mars mission and its results. The Consortium he put together to finance the feat is the first to send four people to the red planet, but to win the prize they must be the first to return. Another team sent by a European-Asian collaboration follows them and all the humans arrived on Mars encounter various problems they need to solve in order to return to Earth.

Fossil teeth from 8-9 million years ago discovered in Yukon have been attributed to an ancient rhino

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An article published in the journal “American Museum Novitates” reports the description of first traces of vertebrate fossils probably dating back to 8-9 million years ago, in the Neogene period, which include rhinos. A team of researchers led by Jaelyn Eberle of the Natural History Museum of the University of Colorado at Boulder subjected the fossils to sophisticated tests such as the electron microscope to examine their characteristics and identify if not the species at least the family they belong to. This made it possible to establish that these were, for example, fragments of turtle and tortoise shell and rhino teeth.

Lois McMaster Bujold in 2009

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Lois McMaster Bujold was born on November 2, 1949 in Columbus, Ohio, USA. In the 1980s Lois McMaster Bujold she wrote the first three novels of the Vorkosigan Saga, her best known science fiction work. In the following decades she had success in the fantasy genre as well with the Chalion series and the series known as The Sharing Knife.