discuss Science & Technology news & discussion

[CraigD]

Post and discuss interesting articles & videos about science and technology.

You don't need to be an expert - just interested in the wonders of modern science, technology, and the history of these fields.

Please keep it rational, and post articles from reputable sources.
Try not to editorialise headlines and keep the copy to just a paragraph with a link to the original source. When quoting excerpts from articles, I think the best method is to italicise the copy, and include a link to the source.

Have some fun with your comments and discussions... just keep the sources legitimate.

Other threads:
The Break Room has a number of other popular threads, so there is no need to post material here that is better suited to these other threads:

- Covid19-Coronavirus updates and news
- Conspiracy Thread Free For All
- The *religious* discussion thread

Please enjoy!

 

[koolishman]

Plant DNA Found For The First Time In Animals, Bizarre Study Reveals



IT’S THE PERFECT PREMISE for a science fiction movie.

A seemingly unthreatening bug feeds on a plant that produces deadly toxins. An extremely rare gene crossover event occurs. The insect then acquires DNA from the plant and becomes a superbug, terrorizing people all over the globe.

But this isn’t the stuff of science fiction. This bug exists in real life, and it’s taking down crops ranging from tomatoes to potatoes.

In a study published Thursday in the journal Cell, molecular biologists report finding this unique DNA transfer in the whitefly (B. tabachi). This is the first time scientists have observed such a rare gene crossover event between plant and animal.

Co-author Ted Turlings is a professor of chemical ecology at the University of Neuchâtel. “As far as we know, ours is the first example of horizontal transfer of a functional gene from plant to animal,” he tells Inverse.

Horizontal gene transfer occurs when a species receives genes from another species and incorporates those genes into its own DNA.

Although this kind of gene transfer occurs occasionally between bacteria, finding this kind of DNA crossover between multicellular organisms is highly uncommon, Turlings says.

The study hones in on the effects of the gene that the whitefly received from the plant: BtPMaT1.

WHY IT MATTERS — This is the first known finding of gene transfer from plant to animal.

As Turlings explains, it’s a “big deal.” The existence of horizontal gene transfer is a major departure from the underlying principles of gene theory, he explains.

“Genes are normally transferred from parents to offspring — vertically,” Turlings says.

“Horizontal gene transfer happens very rarely just by chance when accidentally something happens whereby the gene from one species ends up in another species.”

But just how did B. tabachi acquire this plant gene? It may have to do with an ancient virus, the study suggests. The scientists believe that a virus transported this gene from a plant into the whitefly, which Turlings calls “an extremely rare event.”

 

[CraigD]

^ ^ The bunnies, they're just showing off

 

[CraigD]

Plant DNA Found For The First Time In Animals, Bizarre Study Reveals



IT’S THE PERFECT PREMISE for a science fiction movie.

A seemingly unthreatening bug feeds on a plant that produces deadly toxins. An extremely rare gene crossover event occurs. The insect then acquires DNA from the plant and becomes a superbug, terrorizing people all over the globe.

But this isn’t the stuff of science fiction. This bug exists in real life, and it’s taking down crops ranging from tomatoes to potatoes.

In a study published Thursday in the journal Cell, molecular biologists report finding this unique DNA transfer in the whitefly (B. tabachi). This is the first time scientists have observed such a rare gene crossover event between plant and animal.

Co-author Ted Turlings is a professor of chemical ecology at the University of Neuchâtel. “As far as we know, ours is the first example of horizontal transfer of a functional gene from plant to animal,” he tells Inverse.

Horizontal gene transfer occurs when a species receives genes from another species and incorporates those genes into its own DNA.

Although this kind of gene transfer occurs occasionally between bacteria, finding this kind of DNA crossover between multicellular organisms is highly uncommon, Turlings says.

The study hones in on the effects of the gene that the whitefly received from the plant: BtPMaT1.

WHY IT MATTERS — This is the first known finding of gene transfer from plant to animal.

As Turlings explains, it’s a “big deal.” The existence of horizontal gene transfer is a major departure from the underlying principles of gene theory, he explains.

“Genes are normally transferred from parents to offspring — vertically,” Turlings says.

“Horizontal gene transfer happens very rarely just by chance when accidentally something happens whereby the gene from one species ends up in another species.”

But just how did B. tabachi acquire this plant gene? It may have to do with an ancient virus, the study suggests. The scientists believe that a virus transported this gene from a plant into the whitefly, which Turlings calls “an extremely rare event.”

We share DNA with plants through our biological evolutionary history, so it's not all that surprising for DNA to be shared again down the track.

All life on this planet shares a common ancestor.

 

[koolishman]

NASA Study:Direct Observations Confirm that Humans are Throwing Earth’s Energy Budget off Balance

Climate modelling predicts that human activities are causing the release of greenhouse gases and aerosols that are affecting Earth’s energy budget. Now, a NASA study has confirmed these predictions with direct observations for the first time: radiative forcings are increasing due to human actions, affecting the planet’s energy balance and ultimately causing climate change. The paper was published online March 25, 2021, in the journal Geophysical Research Letters.

“This is the first calculation of the total radiative forcing of Earth using global observations, accounting for the effects of aerosols and greenhouse gases,” said Ryan Kramer, first author on the paper and a researcher at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, and the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. “It’s direct evidence that human activities are causing changes to Earth’s energy budget.”



NASA’s Clouds and the Earth’s Radiant Energy System (CERES) project studies the flow of radiation at the top of Earth’s atmosphere. A series of CERES instruments have continuously flown on satellites since 1997. Each measures how much energy enters Earth’s system and how much leaves, giving the overall net change in radiation. That data, in combination with other data sources such as ocean heat measurements, shows that there’s an energy imbalance on our planet.

“But it doesn’t tell us what factors are causing changes in the energy balance,” said Kramer.

This study used a new technique to parse out how much of the total energy change is caused by humans. The researchers calculated how much of the imbalance was caused by fluctuations in factors that are often naturally occurring, such as water vapor, clouds, temperature and surface albedo (essentially the brightness or reflectivity of Earth’s surface). For example, the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder (AIRS) instrument on NASA’s Aqua satellite measures water vapor in Earth’s atmosphere. Water vapor absorbs energy in the form of heat, so changes in water vapor will affect how much energy ultimately leaves Earth’s system. The researchers calculated the energy change caused by each of these natural factors, then subtracted the values from the total. The portion leftover is the radiative forcing.



The team found that human activities have caused the radiative forcing on Earth to increase by about 0.5 Watts per square meter from 2003 to 2018. The increase is mostly from greenhouse gases emissions from things like power generation, transport and industrial manufacturing. Reduced reflective aerosols are also contributing to the imbalance.

 

[CraigD]

Bill Gates-funded Study to Dim Sunlight May Be Needed Against 'Horrific' Climate Change

Widespread use of technology that dims natural sunlight to help fight climate change should only be used as a last resort, scientists have warned.

Large scale use of the process—known as solar geoengineering—is a "terrifying" concept that is only likely to be used in the future if significant regions of the planet become too warm to be habitable, Harvard University Professor Frank Keutsch told The Times.

Despite the concern, Keutsch is leading a project to study such technology, which could start later this year.

In theory, solar geoengineering is based on the idea that experts can reduce the impact of global warming by reflecting sunlight back into space using chemicals.

In the case of Keutsch's experiment, the chemical will be calcium carbonate, which is essentially a chalk dust. If the plan is green-lit, a high-altitude balloon would disperse the mineral dust to study the viability, and risks, of solar geoengineering.

The process is not without controversy, as some experts have voiced fears that blasting chemicals into our immediate orbit tampers with the natural order, making weather less predictable or threatening populations' food supplies by causing drought.

For now, research into the field is fairly limited. That's what the Harvard project, called the Stratospheric Controlled Perturbation Experiment, or SCoPEx, aims to fix.

This proposal is indeed a scary proposition.

Placing a solar blocking sail midway between the Sun and the Earth is a better option as we can easily modify the effect without modifying our atmosphere.

EDIT:
I bet the anti-Gates brigade will shortly be using this headline as ammunition, much like they did with the Covid-19 vaccine microchip headlines.

 

[koolishman]

This proposal is indeed a scary proposition.

Placing a solar blocking sail midway between the Sun and the Earth is a better option as we can easily modify the effect without modifying our atmosphere.

Solar Blocking is discussed in detail here, and seems that costs are just too prohibitive now, but may drop over time.

 

[CraigD]

Solar Blocking is discussed in detail here, and seems that costs are just too prohibitive now, but may drop over time.

Thanks!

This is discussing using the Lagrange points for orbital stability, which are too close to Earth for this purpose because as the article points out, they require a massive sail to act as a sunshade.

I'm thinking a smaller sail, positioned closer to the sun, kept in a solar orbit synchronous with the Earth using a solar or nuclear powerplant.

The technology exists, it just needs to be adapted and refined for the purpose.

Edit:
Theses are the Legrange points, but we need to get closer to the Sun than L1 to utilise a smaller sail. Someone who is good at math and trigonometry could work out the optimal distance that provides the best coverage of the Earth using the smallest sail.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lagrange_point

 

[koolishman]

One of The Earliest Stone Tool Types Could Date Back 2.6 Million Years, New Data Show

Using a recently introduced type of statistical analysis, researchers estimated the proportion of stone tool artifacts that might be lying undiscovered based on what has been dug up so far. In turn, this gives us clues about how old the tool remnants we don't yet know about are likely to be.

These calculations reveal that ancient hominins may have been using basic Oldowan tools 2.617-2.644 million years ago (up to 63,000 years earlier than previous findings suggest), and the slightly more sophisticated Acheulean tools may have been used 1.815-1.823 million years ago (at least 55,000 years earlier than previously thought).

"Our research provides the best possible estimates for understanding when hominins first produced these stone tool types," says paleolithic archaeologist Alastair Key from the University of Kent in the UK.

"This is important for multiple reasons, but for me at least, it is most exciting because it highlights that there are likely to be substantial portions of the artifact record waiting to be discovered."

The optimal linear estimation (OLE) statistical analysis applied here has already been deployed to judge how long species carried on living before extinction, based on the most recent fossils that have been found. The process has been shown to be reasonably accurate, and in this study it was used in reverse.

 

[CraigD]

One of The Earliest Stone Tool Types Could Date Back 2.6 Million Years, New Data Show

Using a recently introduced type of statistical analysis, researchers estimated the proportion of stone tool artifacts that might be lying undiscovered based on what has been dug up so far. In turn, this gives us clues about how old the tool remnants we don't yet know about are likely to be.

These calculations reveal that ancient hominins may have been using basic Oldowan tools 2.617-2.644 million years ago (up to 63,000 years earlier than previous findings suggest), and the slightly more sophisticated Acheulean tools may have been used 1.815-1.823 million years ago (at least 55,000 years earlier than previously thought).

"Our research provides the best possible estimates for understanding when hominins first produced these stone tool types," says paleolithic archaeologist Alastair Key from the University of Kent in the UK.

"This is important for multiple reasons, but for me at least, it is most exciting because it highlights that there are likely to be substantial portions of the artifact record waiting to be discovered."

The optimal linear estimation (OLE) statistical analysis applied here has already been deployed to judge how long species carried on living before extinction, based on the most recent fossils that have been found. The process has been shown to be reasonably accurate, and in this study it was used in reverse.

"To give you an idea of how long ago we're talking about, it's been suggested that the first use of stone tools predates the development of opposable thumbs in hominins: we were smashing rocks before we could properly get a grip on anything."

Interesting. That statement is at odds with theory that we evolved because we had opposable thumbs.

Tantalizing Evidence Hints Ancient Humans Had Stone Tools Before Opposable Thumbs
https://www.sciencealert.com/the-ea...tools-may-not-have-had-fully-opposable-thumbs

 

[CraigD]

North Korea claims 'new tactical guided' missiles launched

North Korea has claimed the missiles it launched Thursday were a "new-type tactical guided projectile", in its first statement since the test.

It was the country's first ballistic launch in almost a year and the first since Joe Biden became US President.

Mr Biden has said the US will "respond accordingly". The US, Japan and South Korea have condemned the tests.

Under UN Security Council resolutions, Pyongyang is banned from testing ballistic missiles.

North Korea's Friday statement says the two weapons struck a test target 600km (373 miles) off North Korea's east coast, disputing Japanese assessments that they flew just over 400km.

"The development of this weapon system is of great significance in bolstering up the military power of the country and deterring all sorts of military threats," Ri Pyong Chol, the senior leader who oversaw the test, said according to the North Korean release. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was not present.

According to Pyongyang, the new missile is able to carry a payload of 2.5 tons which would make it capable of carrying a nuclear warhead.

Read on...

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-56533260

 

[CraigD]

Facial recognition beats the Covid-mask challenge

Anyone with a smartphone that uses facial recognition will know it does not really work with a mask on.

That can be frustrating - but although masks have undoubtedly thwarted the facial-recognition industry, the technology has also adapted.

Read on...

https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-56517033

 

[koolishman]

"To give you an idea of how long ago we're talking about, it's been suggested that the first use of stone tools predates the development of opposable thumbs in hominins: we were smashing rocks before we could properly get a grip on anything."

Interesting. That statement is at odds with theory that we evolved because we had opposable thumbs.

Tantalizing Evidence Hints Ancient Humans Had Stone Tools Before Opposable Thumbs
https://www.sciencealert.com/the-ea...tools-may-not-have-had-fully-opposable-thumbs

Yes. I too was thinking about it. I guess there are many things we still haven't found out.

 

[koolishman]

‘Zombie’ genes? Research shows some genes come to life in the brain after death

In the hours after we die, certain cells in the human brain are still active. Some cells even increase their activity and grow to gargantuan proportions, according to new research from the University of Illinois Chicago.

In a newly published study in the journal Scientific Reports, the UIC researchers analyzed gene expression in fresh brain tissue — which was collected during routine brain surgery — at multiple times after removal to simulate the post-mortem interval and death. They found that gene expression in some cells actually increased after death.

These ‘zombie genes’ — those that increased expression after the post-mortem interval — were specific to one type of cell: inflammatory cells called glial cells. The researchers observed that glial cells grow and sprout long arm-like appendages for many hours after death.

“That glial cells enlarge after death isn’t too surprising given that they are inflammatory and their job is to clean things up after brain injuries like oxygen deprivation or stroke,” said Dr. Jeffrey Loeb, the John S. Garvin Professor and head of neurology and rehabilitation at the UIC College of Medicine and corresponding author on the paper.

 

[CraigD]

‘Zombie’ genes? Research shows some genes come to life in the brain after death

In the hours after we die, certain cells in the human brain are still active. Some cells even increase their activity and grow to gargantuan proportions, according to new research from the University of Illinois Chicago.

In a newly published study in the journal Scientific Reports, the UIC researchers analyzed gene expression in fresh brain tissue — which was collected during routine brain surgery — at multiple times after removal to simulate the post-mortem interval and death. They found that gene expression in some cells actually increased after death.

These ‘zombie genes’ — those that increased expression after the post-mortem interval — were specific to one type of cell: inflammatory cells called glial cells. The researchers observed that glial cells grow and sprout long arm-like appendages for many hours after death.

“That glial cells enlarge after death isn’t too surprising given that they are inflammatory and their job is to clean things up after brain injuries like oxygen deprivation or stroke,” said Dr. Jeffrey Loeb, the John S. Garvin Professor and head of neurology and rehabilitation at the UIC College of Medicine and corresponding author on the paper.

We're getting into that grey area of what defines life and death when there are biological processes that continue functioning, at least for a while. Symbiotic microbiome colonies would also continue living after the host dies.

 

[CraigD]

Red Arrows grounded after Royal Navy Hawk T1 crash in Cornwall

Two pilots ejected and were taken to hospital

Ejection seat manufacturer Martin-Baker said it was the first Royal Navy ejection in 18 years.

The company wrote on Facebook: “A Royal Navy Hawk aircraft from 736 Naval Air Squadron crashed this morning during a flight from RNAS Culdrose. Both pilots ejected successfully.

“This is the first Royal Navy ejection in 18 years with the last being Martin-Baker’s 7,000th ejection back in 2003.”

Read on...

https://www.lincolnshirelive.co.uk/news/local-news/red-arrows-grounded-after-royal-5230504


After further research, I've found some interesting information not mentioned in the article:

In August 2011, a Red Arrows pilot was killed when his Hawk T1 crashed following a display at the Bournemouth Air Festival;, the inquest found "G-force impairment" may have caused the pilot to lose control. The Hawk T1 fleet was grounded as a precautionary measure and returned to flight status a few days later.

In November 2011, the Red Arrows suffered another pilot fatality when the Martin-Baker Mk.10 ejection seat fitted to the Hawk T1 activated while the aircraft was stationary; the veteran combat pilot died on ground impact when the ejector seat parachute also failed to deploy.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BAE_Systems_Hawk#United_Kingdom


Further information:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BAE_Systems_Hawk

Earlier this month it was announced that the Red Arrows would continue flying following a sponsorship deal that saved them from being retired alongside the RAF's other 76 Hawk T1 trainers.

 

[koolishman]

NASA image of the day.

https://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/imagegallery/iotd.html

Mars' frosty sand dunes captured by Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.

 

[koolishman]

Bioplastic made from wood powder entirely degrades in three months

Motivated by our growing problem with plastics, which are environmentally damaging both to produce and after they're disposed of, scientists are tinkering away with more eco-friendly forms of the material. Researchers at Yale University have put forward a candidate that ticks a number of important boxes, developing a new bioplastic with high strength but an ability to degrade entirely in the space of three months.
The team at Yale began with a wood powder that is a typical waste product at lumber mills, and used a biodegradable solvent to reduce it to a slurry of organic polymers and cellulose with hydrogen bonding and entanglement at a nanoscale level. This slurry was then able to be cast as a bioplastic, which the team put to the test against conventional plastics.

The experiments involved burying sheets of the bioplastic in soil, where they became fractured after two weeks and degraded completely in three months. The bioplastic also exhibited high mechanical strength, stability when made to hold liquids, and resistance to UV light.


“There are many people who have tried to develop these kinds of polymers in plastic, but the mechanical strands are not good enough to replace the plastics we currently use, which are made mostly from fossil fuels,” says co-author Yuan Yao. “We’ve developed a straightforward and simple manufacturing process that generates biomass-based plastics from wood, but also plastic that delivers good mechanical properties as well.”

In addition to degrading at a rapid rate, the bioplastic can also be returned to its original slurry form, which allows the solvent to be recovered and reused.

 

[CraigD]

Bioplastic made from wood powder entirely degrades in three months

Motivated by our growing problem with plastics, which are environmentally damaging both to produce and after they're disposed of, scientists are tinkering away with more eco-friendly forms of the material. Researchers at Yale University have put forward a candidate that ticks a number of important boxes, developing a new bioplastic with high strength but an ability to degrade entirely in the space of three months.
The team at Yale began with a wood powder that is a typical waste product at lumber mills, and used a biodegradable solvent to reduce it to a slurry of organic polymers and cellulose with hydrogen bonding and entanglement at a nanoscale level. This slurry was then able to be cast as a bioplastic, which the team put to the test against conventional plastics.

The experiments involved burying sheets of the bioplastic in soil, where they became fractured after two weeks and degraded completely in three months. The bioplastic also exhibited high mechanical strength, stability when made to hold liquids, and resistance to UV light.


“There are many people who have tried to develop these kinds of polymers in plastic, but the mechanical strands are not good enough to replace the plastics we currently use, which are made mostly from fossil fuels,” says co-author Yuan Yao. “We’ve developed a straightforward and simple manufacturing process that generates biomass-based plastics from wood, but also plastic that delivers good mechanical properties as well.”

In addition to degrading at a rapid rate, the bioplastic can also be returned to its original slurry form, which allows the solvent to be recovered and reused.

I'm not exactly sure how this process works, but I'm wondering if when this bioplastic breaks down, does it leave billions of microplastics in the environment?

Just because we can't see it, doesn't mean it's not there.

 

[Cannuck]

The potential of soils to slow climate change by soaking up carbon may be less than previously thought.

The storage potential of one of the Earth’s biggest carbon sinks – soils – may have been overestimated, research shows. This could mean ecosystems on land soaking up less of humanity’s emissions than expected, and more rapid global heating.

Boosting soils helps carbon sequestration ie. using biochar fallow periods, just like recharging a battery.

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/gcb.13178 (quite a list of references)

Data Turned Into Sounds of Stars, Galaxies, Black Holes

Data sonification maps the data from these space-based telescopes into a form that users can hear instead of only see, embodying the data in a new form without changing the original content.

That was amazing! I'm not sure what a black hole sounds like though, lol. I suppose if one became 'tuned in' there could be much more information to decode using this sense.

 

[CraigD]

Scientists Have Simulated The Primordial Quantum Structure of Our Universe

Peer long enough into the heavens, and the Universe starts to resemble a city at night. Galaxies take on characteristics of streetlamps cluttering up neighborhoods of dark matter, linked by highways of gas that run along the shores of intergalactic nothingness.

This map of the Universe was preordained, laid out in the tiniest of shivers of quantum physics moments after the Big Bang launched into an expansion of space and time some 13.8 billion years ago.

Yet exactly what those fluctuations were, and how they set in motion the physics that would see atoms pool into the massive cosmic structures we see today is still far from clear.

A new mathematical analysis of the moments after a period called the inflationary epoch reveals that some kind of structure might have existed even within the seething quantum furnace that filled the infant Universe, and it could help us better understand its layout today.

Astrophysicists from the University of Göttingen in Germany and the University of Auckland in New Zealand used a mix of particle movement simulations and a kind of gravity/quantum modelling to predict how structures might form in the condensation of particles after inflation occurred.

Read on...

https://www.sciencealert.com/univer...st-trillionths-of-a-second-after-the-big-bang

 

[CraigD]

New species of spider named after beloved children's movie

If any animal ever needed some good PR, it would be the spider.

And now, they might just have some, with a new Australian species of peacock spider being named after beloved children's movie Finding Nemo.

Museum's Victoria's Joseph Schubert has released new research establishing the existence of Maratus nemo.

"It has a really vibrant orange face with white stripes on it, which kind of looks like a clownfish, so I thought Nemo would be a really suitable name for it," Mr Schubert said.
Mr Schubert, 23, is a proper arachnid aficionado, having scientifically described 12 new species of Maratus spiders - the peacocks - and five species in the Jotus genus of jumping spiders.

But Mr Schubert had some help finding Nemo, with an ecological field officer for Nature Glenelg Trust stumbling across the colourful spider near Mount Gambier in South Australia.

Read on...

https://www.9news.com.au/national/p...ing-nemo/c5c93990-3c19-481c-80af-06f4e00b35f8


Related:

Peacock spiders, dance for your life! - BBC

 

[CraigD]

LIVE: Starship SN11 Flight Test

SpaceX is set to launch the Starship SN11 prototype to an altitude of approximately 10 kilometers.

A launch attempt is possible in the afternoon local time on Friday. However, as with testing, there is always a chance that teams could decide to stand down and try again on a different day.

 

[Sutruk]

New species of spider named after beloved children's movie

If any animal ever needed some good PR, it would be the spider.

And now, they might just have some, with a new Australian species of peacock spider being named after beloved children's movie Finding Nemo.

Museum's Victoria's Joseph Schubert has released new research establishing the existence of Maratus nemo.

"It has a really vibrant orange face with white stripes on it, which kind of looks like a clownfish, so I thought Nemo would be a really suitable name for it," Mr Schubert said.
Mr Schubert, 23, is a proper arachnid aficionado, having scientifically described 12 new species of Maratus spiders - the peacocks - and five species in the Jotus genus of jumping spiders.

But Mr Schubert had some help finding Nemo, with an ecological field officer for Nature Glenelg Trust stumbling across the colourful spider near Mount Gambier in South Australia.

Read on...

https://www.9news.com.au/national/p...ing-nemo/c5c93990-3c19-481c-80af-06f4e00b35f8


Related:

Peacock spiders, dance for your life! - BBC

Amazing the peacock spiders... first time I see them. The video showing the male spider sneaking ahead of the other male "a rival suitor muscles in to try his luck"... and the female thinking "hey you, where do you think you are going?" and eating him in less than a tenth of a second... amazing

 

[CraigD]

Amazing the peacock spiders... first time I see them. The video showing the male spider sneaking ahead of the other male "a rival suitor muscles in to try his luck"... and the female thinking "hey you, where do you think you are going?" and eating him in less than a tenth of a second... amazing

I didn't know what they were called until today.

I had one scurrying around on my desk a few months ago... tiny little thing. I got my magnifying glass out and saw he had a bright little face similar to the one in the picture.

For a creature so small, he had a real attitude!

 

[koolishman]

Renewables met 97% of Scotland's 2020 electricity demand, new figures reveal

NEARLY 100 per cent of Scotland’s electricity demand was generated from renewables last year, new figures have revealed.

Through 2020, 97.4% of demand came from renewable sources – up on 90.1% the previous year, according to Scottish Government data.

Scottish Renewables says output has now tripled over 10 years, with the nation now generating enough power for the equivalent of seven million households.

Onshore wind is currently the biggest player, generating 70% of capacity, with hydro and offshore wind making up the remaining demand.