Archive | August, 2009

Bottom-dwelling creatures in the Chesapeake Bay need more oxygen, study finds.

Bottom-dwelling creatures in the Chesapeake Bay need more oxygen, study finds.

A recent survey of the bottom-dwelling animals of the Chesapeake has revealed that communities of even these relatively hardy organisms are under stress. Many regions of the bay are becoming inhospitable to bottom-dwelling animals because of a lack of oxygen—a condition known as “hypoxia.” [...more]

conservation biology, zoology Comments (0)

Golden years at the Zoo: Veterinarians work to help animals live longer, stay healthy

Golden years at the Zoo: Veterinarians work to help animals live longer, stay healthy

Successes in animal health care presents many new challenges for veterinarians. Longer life spans in captivity mean zoo animals are now experiencing age-related health problems that their zoo predecessors never lived long enough to develop—like diabetes in cheetahs, arthritis in big cats and dental issues for coatis. [...more]

Featured, conservation biology, zoology Comments (3)

Cosmic “baby photos” of distant solar systems lend insight as to how planets form

Cosmic “baby photos” of distant solar systems lend insight as to how planets form

New observations by the Smithsonian’s Submillimeter Array, a radio telescope atop Mauna Kea in Hawaii, are shedding light on planet formation. The array provides sharp views by combining eight antennas into the equivalent of a single, large telescope. It can resolve details as small as a dime seen from seven miles away. [...more]

Featured, astrophysics Comments (0)

Bombarded with ultraviolet light, the blue Hope diamond glows red

Bombarded with ultraviolet light, the blue Hope diamond glows red

The Hope Diamond’s red glow has long been considered a unique property of that stone. Most blue diamonds produce a bluish-white phosphorescence if exposed to ultraviolet light. The few other diamonds known to emit red phosphorescence were commonly assumed to have been from the even larger original stone from which the Hope was cut. [...more]

geology Comments (3)

Black Holes, just two numbers is all you need…

Black Holes, just two numbers is all you need…

Black holes sound wildly complicated. After all, there are all sorts of bizarre things going on: intense gravity, the warping of the fabric of space, the distortion of time itself. But when it comes to describing black holes, it comes down to just two numbers: the mass of the black hole and its spin. That’s right. Everything you physically need to describe a black hole is found in just these two numbers. [...more]

Video, astrophysics Comments (0)

Smithsonian Names Eva Pell as Under Secretary for Science

Smithsonian Names Eva Pell as Under Secretary for Science

Today the Smithsonian Institution announced Eva J. Pell, Senior Vice President for Research and Dean of the Graduate School at Pennsylvania State University, will be the new Under Secretary for Science at the Institution. [...more]

Meet the Scientist Comments (0)

Rising acidification of estuary waters spells trouble for Chesapeake Bay oysters

Rising acidification of estuary waters spells trouble for Chesapeake Bay oysters

Already under siege from overfishing, disease and poor water quality, the oyster population in the Chesapeake Bay today stands at 2 percent of what it was in colonial times. Now, new data show that rising acidity in the Bay will have a negative impact on oyster shells. [...more]

Featured, conservation biology, zoology Comments (0)

Problem plastics in museum collections have conservators on alert

Problem plastics in museum collections have conservators on alert

While society at large frets about plastics that pile up and seem to last forever— grocery bags clogging landfills and soda bottles washing up on beaches—museums worry about the thousands upon thousands of artifacts in their collections made of plastic, objects that in many cases are crumbling and cracking and sometimes damaging other artifacts as they break [...] [...more]

materials science Comments (1)

Meet our Scientists—Videos!

Science Spotlight

Kiwis come to National Zoo. The Smithsonian’s National Zoo will be using a new kiwi pair donated by the New Zealand Embassy to establish a breeding science center. Both birds came from the Ngati Hine people in New Zealand. Adding these animals to the genetic pool in North America is a rare and valuable opportunity. This pair came with another pair that will continue on to Germany and one bird that went to the San Diego Zoo. Kiwis are native to New Zealand and have been there for more than 60 million years, making them New Zealand’s most ancient bird. (Photo by Mehgan Murphy)

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