SCIENCE
SCIENCE PIC OF THE MONTH
Astronomers have discovered
enormous arms of hot gas in the Coma
cluster of galaxies. With a minimum
span of half a million light years, these
arms provide insight into how the
Coma cluster has grown by merging
smaller groups and clusters of galaxies
to turn into one of the largest structures
in the universe held together by gravity.
This composite image, with Chandra
data in pink and Sloan Digital Sky
Survey optical data appearing in white
and blue, features these spectacular
arms. (Image: NASA)
SMART ANSWERS
Life is full of clever questions that need smart
answers. Linda Pretorius provides a few.
NEAR-DEATH EXPERIENCES
Has science crossed the (?at)line?
So to speak, yes. Neuroscientists found that brain activity in rats
briefly surged 30 seconds after their hearts stopped beating. The
same pattern was seen whether death was due to a heart attack or
suffocation.
But perhaps it was just a glitch?
It’s unlikely. The EEG patterns showed highly synchronised neural
activity, similar to that of an awake, active brain.
THE STUFF OF LIFE
So has the mystery of the origin of life on Earth been
solved?
Well, at least one more piece of the puzzle fell in place. Scientists
recently found that icy comets crashing into Earth may have blasted life
into the planet.
So, life on Earth came from outer space?
It’s not quite sure, but the researchers believe that reduced oxygen
and glucose supply to the brain spurred high-level neural processing.
The ingredients for life, yes. Comets typically consist of an icy mix of
water, carbon dioxide, ammonia and methanol. Experiments showed
that when such a mix was shock compressed, several different amino
acids, which are the building blocks of proteins, formed. This suggests
that comets brought the ingredients for life, while the impact with early
Earth provided the necessary energy to make it happen.
So near-death experiences are real?
Does this mean there could be life elsewhere too?
It could well be for some people. And the well-organised brain activity
patterns seen in the current study seem to offer some scientific
explanation for the ‘realer than real’ perceptions about 20% of heart
attack survivors reported in previous research.
It certainly ups the odds. In fact, one of Saturn’s moons also consists of
frozen water and organic molecules. A high-speed comet crash could
well provide enough energy to let complex organic molecules such as
amino acids form.
What could have caused the heightened activity?
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October 2013 | TechSmart