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Eureka! 2012's Biggest Moments in Science

EUREKAI 2012'S BIGGEST MOMENTS IN SCIENCE)) From superstorms to the God particle, 2012 wasn't lacking in news that made our heads spin. Space Physics Weather Biology Engineering Higgs boson discovered A 50-year search for an elusive piece in the understanding of mass, particles and force almost certainly ended in July when physicists at the The discovery of the particle verifies a theory by English physicist Peter Higgs, which Large Hadron Collider revealed their preliminary discovery of the Higgs boson, often called the says that elementary particles, like the quarks and electrons inside "God particle." atoms, get mass from an invisible field that stretches through all of space. Without something to give particles mass, there would be no stars or planets. Curiosity lands on Mars The nail-biting landing on Mars of NASA's rover, Curiosity, drew the attention of millions around the world. Since it touched down on Mars in August, the rover has beamed back information about the rocks, soil and atmosphere-not to mention scores of pictures-of the Red Planet, one of our closest neighbors. Not only did Curiosity's landing on Mars command attention, but its mission has drawn millions of fans: @MarsCuriosity, a verified Twitter account, has more than 1.2 million followers. Fetal genome sequencing Researchers in June announced the successful They indicated a test sequencing of a fetus' genome using snippets of might be widely available in about five years, which brings up potentially DNA in the mother's blood. monumental consequences. If such tests became as routine as sonograms, what would expectant parents do with such information-which diseases their child-to-be would be more prone to or knowledge about personality traits or physical appearance? Quantum teleportation distance record broken Two teams of researchers SUccessfully transported quantum particles 50 miles through the open air. While not truly moving the particles (a remote copy was created in the destination location), the teams' world record distance was hailed as a possible advance in quantum Internet technology. It also in theory could be used by military and spy agencies to pass unbreakable codes, by sending them to a quantum satellite and then beaming them back to any spot on Earth. Earth 2.0? An Earth-sized exoplanet was seen orbiting Alpha Centauri B, one of the stars in the stellar system nearest to our own. Because the planet orbits much closer to its star than Earth, it likely does not host life, but scientists suspect the system might host more planets that may be more hospitable for life. Climate change's effects come knocking The consequences of unchecked greenhouse gas emissions played out on the East Coast-and on live TV for everyone else-as Superstorm Sandy, a confluence of storm fronts, As climate crashed ashore in scientists had long warned, rising carbon New York and New Jersey, killing a total of 131 dioxide levels will lead to more people in the U.S. and causing $50 billion in damage. powerful storms and make most parts of the planet grow warmer. Sea water desalinization A practical and cost-effective way to make sea water consumable has long been a focus for scientists. In July, a team from MIT announced a new method of desalinization that promises to be cheaper and much less energy-intensive than existing systems. SOURCES howstuffworks.com CNN.com bestmastersprograms.org

Eureka! 2012's Biggest Moments in Science

shared by absolutelytrue on Jan 30
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From superstorms to the God particle, 2012 wasn't lacking in news that made our heads spin.

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