41

Technology / What if an airplane reaches its top designated speed?

« on: 08/11/2019 11:16:18 »

Daniel got in contact with us with a good question:
If a domestic jet that is travelling from point a to point b at near top speed suddenly enters an area of air moving very fast in the direction of the plane, what would stop the plane exceeding its top designed speed?
Do you know the answer?

42

Physiology & Medicine / Could stem cells be used to treat arthritis?

« on: 08/11/2019 10:18:25 »

Angela wrote to us with a cool idea:
So, great news today is all about Stem cells being used to treat MS. My basic understanding is that they use chemo drugs to effectively kill the body’s immune system and then reboot the immune system with stem cells. Given that arthritis is also an autoimmune disease, could a similar method be used to treat it?
Do you know the answer?

43

Plant Sciences, Zoology & Evolution / Has natural selection stopped for humans?

« on: 08/11/2019 10:09:09 »

Zaid got in touch with an interesting idea:
In the modern societies that we live in, an individual human does not need to be fittest in order to have offspring . Everyone can get a job and make money to buy food and everyone gets a chance to reproduce. Does that mean that evolution by natural selection has stopped for humans? And if so is there any other way that humanity will evolve?
What do you think?

44

Technology / Could we make a scanner to detect hidden knives remotely?

« on: 08/11/2019 09:59:34 »

Paul wrote to us with a cool idea:
Can a remote scanner be developed which would enable police to scan folk from a distance and determine if they were armed with a knife? If so this device could also work in tandem with CCTV so the police can see them on CCTV and also determine that they were carrying knives.
What do you think?

45

Physiology & Medicine / Can we import organs for transplant?

« on: 08/11/2019 09:51:48 »

Les got in contact with an interesting question:
Does the UK source hearts for transplant outside the UK? With such a shortage it would make sense. Hearts from France, for example?
Do you know the answer?

46

Technology / How do the military process DNA so quickly?

« on: 08/11/2019 09:30:52 »

Judi got in contact with us with an interesting question:
News is saying that the death of al-Baghdadi was confirmed by DNA.  How can they confirm the DNA of a person so quickly? Does the military have a special process?
Do you know the answer?

47

General Science / Can we use magnets against sharks?

« on: 08/11/2019 09:25:25 »

Paul wrote with an idea on how to stop shark attaks on divers:
Why are magnets or battery operated magnets not inncorporated into wet suits for divers to deter sharks? Can an intense magnetic field not be generated underwater or would it adversely affect the diver?
What do you think?

48

Chemistry / What's the black residue at the bottom of swimming pools?

« on: 07/11/2019 16:31:33 »

Raghu got in contact with us with the following problem:
I have noticed that a black residue settles at the bottom of our swimming pool within 4-5 hours after the pool is cleaned and treated. I notice this especially when the pool gets water from the softner.  Does softened water need a different type of treatment during cleaning than regular water? How to get rid of this residue?
Can you help?