Scientists confirm life under Antarctic ice for the first time

Without sunlight and oxygen is practically impossible to most terrestrial organisms survive. However, there are extremely inhospitable places where life can survive, as for example the oceanic trenches where live bacteria.

Scientists have long suspected that life may proliferate in places little conducive, in addition to the oceanic trenches. The latest suspicion is that life may exist under the ice of Antarctica. However, it is no longer a suspect, because a group of Montana State University researchers, the United States, was able to prove the existence of life in this region of the globe.

Just over half A kilometre deep Antarctic ice, scientists have found living microorganisms. Researchers, pierced the West Antarctic ice sheet and found organisms called Archaea. These organisms survive by converting methane into energy, allowing them to live in places where there is no wind or sunlight, such as in the icy depths.

In the past, the scientific community had already identified bacteria in Antarctic ice samples, but there was suspicion that these bacteria there have gone through contamination from the perforations, referred to Inhabitat. But the existence of microorganisms Archea are living proof that life exists beneath the Antarctic ice.

The ice in this region of the planet has common features with other places in the solar system, as the moon Europa, of Jupiter, or the moons Titan and Enceladus, Saturn. The moon Titan is cold but has lakes of liquid methane, which hypothetically might host life. However, space exploration should not reach these sites before 2020 and, as such, will need to wait to confirm the suspicion.

Foto:  Alan R. Light / Creative Commons

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Scientists discover dinosaur of 25 meters and 58 tons in Argentina

Media 25 feet long and eight feet tall, weighed 58 pounds and, despite everything, was still growing. Is this the diagnosis of dinosaur unearthed in the region of Patagonia, Argentina, and it already is considered one of the largest animals that ever lived on Earth. So great that researchers call it Dreadnoughtus â€" named after the invincible battleship of World War I.

According to The New York Times, which advanced the news a few minutes ago, the skeleton now collected in Patagonia is one of the most complete ever found of a large dinosaur. Led by paleontologist Kenneth j. Lacovara, Drexel University, Philadelphia, the United States, the Working Group explained the Scientific Reports that bones are huge.

"I have 16 tons of bone in my lab," said Lacovara, who discovered the fossil in 2005. The excavation of the fossil took four years, having the bones traveled to Philadelphia, by sea, in 2009. It took another four years to assemble the skeleton and study its more than 200 bones, representing 45% of the dinosaur.

The Dreadnoughtus lived there are 84 million and 66 million years ago, forming part of a group of sauropod dinosaurs known as titanosaurs.

Researchers have made testing of all bones and published the 3D models of each, which can help other paleontologists studying the fossil from a distance and even print three-dimensional replicas of the bones.

The full name of the dinosaur is Dreadnoughtus schrani, in honor of the dreadnought, the invincible battleship of World War I, and Adam Schran, an entrepreneur from the technological branch that helped finance the project.

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A tower of Babel in sand built with 3D technology

The Sand Babel â€" or Babel of sand â€" is a skyscraper built with 3D technology from the desert sand and is powered with solar energy. Inspired by the tornadoes and the pedestals found in the desert, the Rocky tower was designed with an underground metro network and combines residential spaces, research laboratories and viewpoints.

This futuristic structure, which would be installed in the desert, is a project of Chinese designers won an honorable mention in 2014 eVolo Skyscraper Competition, refers to the Inhabitat. The idea developed by Chinese designers consists in building a smart grid of skyscrapers by the desert landscape. The towers would be built through a 3D printer powered solar energy, which would use sand to print the various parts of structures.

Each tower would have two main sections. The upper spiral skeleton would be built through the continued transmission of clamping forces, whereas the lower structure would keep the building stable and would strengthen the foundations. The Foundation will act as organic roots and facilitate communication between the various skyscrapers.

The towers were still equipped with a water generation system. The process would happen in mushroom-shaped roof, which would use temperature differences to generate water through condensation.

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Port: start-up of urban ecology wants to take the country's schools gardens

"A garden at my school" is the project that the Noocity urban ecology, a start-up of Porto, wants to implement in the largest possible number of schools in the country. The aim is to lead to efficient gardens schools and easy to install and tighten the relationship of children with nature, "establishing an emotional connection with the natural world that is the urban farmers of tomorrow".

According to Noocity, there are already many schools sensitive to pedagogical gardens, but by limitations of time, space, resources or lack of knowledge not yet deployed its draft horta. This start-up wants to minimise these obstacles and offer more efficient garden solutions and simple to install.

Through the project "a garden at my school", this company portuense 20% discount offers to schools which are interested in acquiring an efficient garden or other products in the amount of € 600. However, the Noocity also has a collective financing platform, where schools who are interested in acquiring a vegetable garden but do not have financial resources may apply for a fundraising campaign towards the community.

Create spaces for healthy cities

The Noocity appeared in 2013 by three friends â€" Joseph redhead, Pedro Monteiro and Samuel Roberts-, who met in Brazil, where they performed experiments on Agriculture and Permaculture.

Already in Portugal, with the objective of developing a garden on the terrace, the three friends created the first prototypes of systems of vertical and horizontal gardens gardens (special bags that allow systems to be cultivated and can be hung anywhere). When they realized that there was nothing similar in the market decided to create his own company.

In addition to the systems of vertical and horizontal gardens, this start-up is still in a prototype phase vermicompostor and a greenhouse. All products sold by Noocity are produced in Portugal.

The Noocity, in addition to the gardens for schools project, is also implementing the "We Grow Our Food Locally," a project that intends to include urban agriculture in the daily processes of hotels and restaurants. The first example is in Caffeine restaurant in Porto, where the Noocity installed a kitchen garden for herbs in the courtyard.

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Green shoe: the new ecological footwear store and vegan in Cascais

The Green Shoe is the latest footwear shop of Cascais, but also the first in the country devoted solely to trade in ecological footwear and vegan, according to the charge, Alexandra Pardal.

This new commercial space arose from the need to respond to the demand for footwear and vegan alternative to animal skin. Thus, sustainability-oriented, the Green Shoe bet on 100% Portuguese shoe marketing and friends of the environment and of animals.

In addition to ecological and vegan footwear, the store still sells accessories that relate to environmental ethics.

However, the Green Shoe went further and, in addition to market sustainable shoes, receives customers in a space decorated with pallets and wooden bobbins that were reused to serve as shelves, counters and exhibitors.

The Green Shoe is located at Travessa dos Navegantes, paragraph 15, in Cascais.

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Germany prohibits Uber transport service

The Uber transport service â€" or carpooling company urban, as we called â€" has just been banned in Germany, after a decision by the regional court of Frankfurt. According to The Guardian, the American company will pay up to € 250 000 for each trip, if "caught".

The Guardian noted that the complaint was made by the Cab Deutschland and the Court ruled that the Uber violates the Law of carriage of passengers.

Founded by Garrett Camp and Travis Kalanick, in 2009, under the name of UberCab, the company is expanding rapidly into Europe. However, she is being the target of criticism from taxi companies and lobby has been banned from operating in the city of Brussels, Belgium â€" anybody caught transporting a client of Uber can pay € 10 thousand.

In Germany, however, the Uber promise not to accept the Court decision. "You can't put brakes to progress. The Uber will continue with its operations in Germany, "said the company, which announced yet appeal the decision and, if necessary, exhaust all the possibilities.

The Uber lets call a taxi through an application for smartphone, which then will bind the private taxi drivers. Funded by Google and Goldman Sachs, the app can realize that cars are closer to the person who called them, saving you time and money.

The application also calculates the price of trip â€" which varies from city to city â€" and lets share taxis with others. At the end of the trip, the driver is evaluated.

Last summer, thousands of taxi drivers clogged cities like London, Paris or Madrid in protest against Uber. In April, the Uber was looking for a director-general for Portugal. Our country should not escape the rule of the protests.

Foto: bfishadow / Creative Commons

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People who live beside volcanoes

For 20 years the city of Rabaul in Papua New Guinea, was destroyed overnight, following the eruption of three volcanoes, Tavurvur and Vulcan, Rabalankaia. Thanks to a timely warning, a large part of the population and tourists managed to escape in time, as the ashes and lava invaded the houses and buildings of the town.

Despite having been destroyed and lost the status of the country's capital, Rabaul was not alone: who has rebuilt his life in ruins despite the threat of new eruptions or severe respiratory diseases.

Intrigued by this lack of respect for nature, the French photographer Eric Lafforgue flew Rabaoul to document the lives of these brave: he found children playing in abandoned buildings and person to eat eggs buried in the ash.

"The rain soaked thick ash fell on the houses, and about 80 percent of buildings collapsed with the weight," explained Lafforgue. The photographer explained have found the former mayor of Rabaul, which after the death of his wife in 1994 eruption, ended up living alone in front of Tavurvur.

There is also a hotel under the volcano Rabaul, which reopened in 2005 and who seeks adventurous tourists. "All rooms have a view of the volcano, and when the wind blows, we couldn't see anything because of the ash," concluded the photographer.

The old airport, destroyed by the eruption, is covered by three meters of gray. "Nobody knows why it was built at the foot of the volcano. See some of the pictures of Eric.

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