Blue Rubber with a Twist of Biodiversity and Big Brained Hyenas
Sorry for being late this week. I was quite busy over the weekend.
In this week's science post. . .
The Color of Human Sacrifice
From Antiquity a few weeks ago, Dr. Arnold from the Field Museum discusses the color blue and Mayan human sacrifice. It has been known that the Maya used a pigment called Mayan blue from about 300 ce until their civilization was destroyed. It is almost impervious to age, acid, weather and even modern solvents. The composition, discovered in the 1960s is indigo dye and a clay mineral known as palygorskite. They are melded together to produce the pigment. There is great significance to the pigment in ritual sacrifice. It is the color of Chaak, the rain god. When the sky looked too much like Mayan blue and there was a drought, a victim was picked, painted with the pigment and sacrificed. What wasn't known until recently was where the pigment was made and who made it. A bowl in the Field Museum answered part of that question. The bowl, which was used to burn incense, contained traces on incense, indigo dye, and palygorskite. The bowl was found near a well which was filled with bones and pottery and used for ritual purposes. The bottom layer of the well was covered with the elements of the Mayan blue pigment. What Dr. Arnold and colleges speculate is that the pigment was made by heating in or near incense burners and painted onto pots or humans. Before the pigment could set the objects (or people) were dumped into the well in some form of ritual. The pigment did not get a chance to set before it was washed off the items and tinted the sediment below Mayan blue. The authors additionally speculate that the ritual purposes of Mayan blue exceed what was the current understanding.
This article is interesting from the science perspective as well. It shows that modern science can be used in archaeology to better understand the ancient world. This is an old lesson, but a good one for both scientists and arcaheologists. After having spoken with both sides there is often a very large divide both in thought processes and willingness to work together. The more success stories there are, hopefully, the more cooperation and trust there will be for the disciplines to work together. This is a classic use of mass spectrometry to analyze trace elements which has implications in everything from understanding trade routes through trace elements in pots, to discovering what was inside pottery, to diet, to what certain spaces were used for. While science is only a tool which has it's limitations and will never outclass traditional methods of archaeological analysis, it can be a great aid to understand the past.
Self Repairing Rubber Band
Ludwik Leibler, Philippe Cordier and colleagues at the Higher School of Industrial Physics and Chemistry discuss their new compound in Nature. They have made a rubber like substance from vegetable oils and urea which can self repair when cut. If cut, the ends can be pressed together quickly and the bonds will reform as good as new. There is a limited regeneration capability and the the ends must be pressed together quickly or the bond will not reform, but nonetheless this is still an amazing compound. The principle of traditional rubber materials is covalent bonds. The new material uses smaller molecules linked together by hydrogen bonds. This allows for the regeneration capability as the hydrogen bonds can reform if the ends are pressed back together where covalent bonds cannot be reformed in this manner.
This is a really interesting discovery. Understanding regeneration of rubbers and rubber-like materials can help create all sorts of interesting research and practical applications. It's also just plain cool that we have rubber bands that can be put back together.
Big Brained Hyenas?
Dr. Kay E. Holekamp studies spotted hyenas in Kenya. Her research is discussed in this week's Science Times (New York Times Science Section). She has come to realize that primates are not the only species that can help us understand brain evolution. The spotted hyenas live in large social groups, can identify each other as individuals, and understand a strict hierarchical structure dealing with both inter-clan and intraclan politics so to speak. How does this deal with big brains? Well, humans have abnormally large frontal cortexes in comparison to our nearest relatives. Primateologists, psychologists, evolutionary biologists, and anthropologists who work with ancient hominid bones believe that this increase in frontal cortex is due to to an increase in social] interaction. Those individuals with larger frontal cortexes were better able to handle complex social interactions and therefore a larger frontal cortex was under positive selection. So back to our hyenas. The spotted hyena belongs to a family of four species: the spotted hyena, the brown hyena, the striped hyena, and the aardwolf. The spotted hyena has the most complex social structure and the most social interaction. The brown hyena lives in much smaller clans with a less complex social structure. The striped hyenas live in small groups of one female and two to three males. The aardwolfs live in monogamous pairs. Dr. Holekamp hypothesized that the spotted hyenas would have relatively large frontal cortexes in comparison to their nearest relatives because they have the most complex social interaction. Looking at skull CT scans this indeed was the result. The spotted hyenas had the largest frontal cortexes followed by the brown and then the striped and finally the aardwolf. While hyenas do not respond to the traditional tests of intelligence, curiosity, and creativity used by primatetologists, Dr. Holekamp suggests that this may be in part because hyenas are carnivores. She is conducting a series of tests to learn about their creativity by placing meat in boxes and seeing if the hyenas can figure out how to remove the meat from various types
of enclosures.
This is great. The more we learn about the animal kingdom the more questions we have about what makes humans unique. Is it the capacity for language? Is it the ability to use tools? Is it the ability to reason abstractly? Is it our social abilities? All of these are the questions dealing with: What makes us human? While the primates, our nearest genetic relatives, are great for study, looking at other animal groups should provide us with a number of other data points with which to work. In recent years different groups of scientists have worked with dolphins (who are quite intelligent and in the wild have babysitters), elephants (who show self awareness in mirrors by traditional tests only monkeys and dolphins previously passed), chichlids (who show behaviors of cooperativity and helpfulness), and many others. The more we learn about the animal kingdom the more questions we need to ask about ourselves, our role on this planet, and our obligations to care for the rest of our cousins. The more we realize that they aren't just "dumb animals" the more we must realize the need to save this diversity of life on the planet, and the more we ask ourselves, just what makes us human?
Norway's Biodiversity Protection Vault
Norway's Global Seed Vault received it's first shipment last week (New York Times and CNN). It is an underground compound in the middle of a frozen Arctic mountain which will store samples from the world's crops (natural and farmed). Another project to preserve other types of plants already exists. The Global Seed Vault aims to have samples of all agricultural plants from around the world in order to provide a safe place to preserve biodiversity in case of natural or human-made disaster. Biodiversity has decreased drastically in the past 100 years and as such keeping a storehouse for the future is a very good thing. It was built in the Arctic to allow for the seeds to stay frozen even in the case of a power failure. This sort of project is crucial for the future. Dr. Cary Fowler, president of the Global Crop Diversity Trust, states “You need a system to conserve the variety so it doesn’t go extinct. A farmer may make a bowl of porridge with the last seeds of a strain that is of no use to him, and then it’s gone. And potentially those are exactly the genes we will need a decade later.”
Again we deal with the issue of saving our planet from ourselves. Plants are extremely important for everything from food to cures for ailments and disease, to fuel and building materials. The diversity is decreasing daily in places like the Amazon and keeping a record is the best thing we can do at the moment. The environment and atmosphere is going to get worse before it gets better and the hope is that places like these who preserve diversity can help restore the environment when things get better enough to allow for reconstruction.
Hoped you all enjoyed this week's installment.
In this week's science post. . .
The Color of Human Sacrifice
From Antiquity a few weeks ago, Dr. Arnold from the Field Museum discusses the color blue and Mayan human sacrifice. It has been known that the Maya used a pigment called Mayan blue from about 300 ce until their civilization was destroyed. It is almost impervious to age, acid, weather and even modern solvents. The composition, discovered in the 1960s is indigo dye and a clay mineral known as palygorskite. They are melded together to produce the pigment. There is great significance to the pigment in ritual sacrifice. It is the color of Chaak, the rain god. When the sky looked too much like Mayan blue and there was a drought, a victim was picked, painted with the pigment and sacrificed. What wasn't known until recently was where the pigment was made and who made it. A bowl in the Field Museum answered part of that question. The bowl, which was used to burn incense, contained traces on incense, indigo dye, and palygorskite. The bowl was found near a well which was filled with bones and pottery and used for ritual purposes. The bottom layer of the well was covered with the elements of the Mayan blue pigment. What Dr. Arnold and colleges speculate is that the pigment was made by heating in or near incense burners and painted onto pots or humans. Before the pigment could set the objects (or people) were dumped into the well in some form of ritual. The pigment did not get a chance to set before it was washed off the items and tinted the sediment below Mayan blue. The authors additionally speculate that the ritual purposes of Mayan blue exceed what was the current understanding.
This article is interesting from the science perspective as well. It shows that modern science can be used in archaeology to better understand the ancient world. This is an old lesson, but a good one for both scientists and arcaheologists. After having spoken with both sides there is often a very large divide both in thought processes and willingness to work together. The more success stories there are, hopefully, the more cooperation and trust there will be for the disciplines to work together. This is a classic use of mass spectrometry to analyze trace elements which has implications in everything from understanding trade routes through trace elements in pots, to discovering what was inside pottery, to diet, to what certain spaces were used for. While science is only a tool which has it's limitations and will never outclass traditional methods of archaeological analysis, it can be a great aid to understand the past.
Self Repairing Rubber Band
Ludwik Leibler, Philippe Cordier and colleagues at the Higher School of Industrial Physics and Chemistry discuss their new compound in Nature. They have made a rubber like substance from vegetable oils and urea which can self repair when cut. If cut, the ends can be pressed together quickly and the bonds will reform as good as new. There is a limited regeneration capability and the the ends must be pressed together quickly or the bond will not reform, but nonetheless this is still an amazing compound. The principle of traditional rubber materials is covalent bonds. The new material uses smaller molecules linked together by hydrogen bonds. This allows for the regeneration capability as the hydrogen bonds can reform if the ends are pressed back together where covalent bonds cannot be reformed in this manner.
This is a really interesting discovery. Understanding regeneration of rubbers and rubber-like materials can help create all sorts of interesting research and practical applications. It's also just plain cool that we have rubber bands that can be put back together.
Big Brained Hyenas?
Dr. Kay E. Holekamp studies spotted hyenas in Kenya. Her research is discussed in this week's Science Times (New York Times Science Section). She has come to realize that primates are not the only species that can help us understand brain evolution. The spotted hyenas live in large social groups, can identify each other as individuals, and understand a strict hierarchical structure dealing with both inter-clan and intraclan politics so to speak. How does this deal with big brains? Well, humans have abnormally large frontal cortexes in comparison to our nearest relatives. Primateologists, psychologists, evolutionary biologists, and anthropologists who work with ancient hominid bones believe that this increase in frontal cortex is due to to an increase in social] interaction. Those individuals with larger frontal cortexes were better able to handle complex social interactions and therefore a larger frontal cortex was under positive selection. So back to our hyenas. The spotted hyena belongs to a family of four species: the spotted hyena, the brown hyena, the striped hyena, and the aardwolf. The spotted hyena has the most complex social structure and the most social interaction. The brown hyena lives in much smaller clans with a less complex social structure. The striped hyenas live in small groups of one female and two to three males. The aardwolfs live in monogamous pairs. Dr. Holekamp hypothesized that the spotted hyenas would have relatively large frontal cortexes in comparison to their nearest relatives because they have the most complex social interaction. Looking at skull CT scans this indeed was the result. The spotted hyenas had the largest frontal cortexes followed by the brown and then the striped and finally the aardwolf. While hyenas do not respond to the traditional tests of intelligence, curiosity, and creativity used by primatetologists, Dr. Holekamp suggests that this may be in part because hyenas are carnivores. She is conducting a series of tests to learn about their creativity by placing meat in boxes and seeing if the hyenas can figure out how to remove the meat from various types
of enclosures.
This is great. The more we learn about the animal kingdom the more questions we have about what makes humans unique. Is it the capacity for language? Is it the ability to use tools? Is it the ability to reason abstractly? Is it our social abilities? All of these are the questions dealing with: What makes us human? While the primates, our nearest genetic relatives, are great for study, looking at other animal groups should provide us with a number of other data points with which to work. In recent years different groups of scientists have worked with dolphins (who are quite intelligent and in the wild have babysitters), elephants (who show self awareness in mirrors by traditional tests only monkeys and dolphins previously passed), chichlids (who show behaviors of cooperativity and helpfulness), and many others. The more we learn about the animal kingdom the more questions we need to ask about ourselves, our role on this planet, and our obligations to care for the rest of our cousins. The more we realize that they aren't just "dumb animals" the more we must realize the need to save this diversity of life on the planet, and the more we ask ourselves, just what makes us human?
Norway's Biodiversity Protection Vault
Norway's Global Seed Vault received it's first shipment last week (New York Times and CNN). It is an underground compound in the middle of a frozen Arctic mountain which will store samples from the world's crops (natural and farmed). Another project to preserve other types of plants already exists. The Global Seed Vault aims to have samples of all agricultural plants from around the world in order to provide a safe place to preserve biodiversity in case of natural or human-made disaster. Biodiversity has decreased drastically in the past 100 years and as such keeping a storehouse for the future is a very good thing. It was built in the Arctic to allow for the seeds to stay frozen even in the case of a power failure. This sort of project is crucial for the future. Dr. Cary Fowler, president of the Global Crop Diversity Trust, states “You need a system to conserve the variety so it doesn’t go extinct. A farmer may make a bowl of porridge with the last seeds of a strain that is of no use to him, and then it’s gone. And potentially those are exactly the genes we will need a decade later.”
Again we deal with the issue of saving our planet from ourselves. Plants are extremely important for everything from food to cures for ailments and disease, to fuel and building materials. The diversity is decreasing daily in places like the Amazon and keeping a record is the best thing we can do at the moment. The environment and atmosphere is going to get worse before it gets better and the hope is that places like these who preserve diversity can help restore the environment when things get better enough to allow for reconstruction.
Hoped you all enjoyed this week's installment.