1

Marine Science / What is the extent of chemical and nuclear waste dumping in the oceans?

« on: 22/12/2021 09:40:22 »

I recently learned that European companies are dumping nuclear waste from hospitals and factories in Europe in Somalia's unregulated ocean coastline.

🇺🇳 UN envoy to Somalia: ‘Somebody is dumping nuclear material here. There is also lead, and heavy metals such as cadmium and mercury.’ Much of it can be traced back to European 🏥 hospitals and factories.

Some of the waste such as hexachlorobenzene (HCB) is denied for processing in Europe and is therefor dumped in Somalia’s oceans. Locals report that German and Danish shipping companies recently dumped 60,000 barrels of HCB from Australia.

One gram of HCB is enough to contaminate one billion gallons (over 3 billion litres) of water.

A recent study (2019) by Royal Society of Chemistry showed that Humpback whales are getting sick by HCB contamination, causing a variety of health effects, DNA damage and cancer. HCB dominates the contaminant profiles in whales.

https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2019/ra/c9ra05352b


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Another example: Off the coast of Los Angeles, as many as half a million barrels of the potent and highly toxic insecticide DDT are scattered across the ocean floor, waiting to be released into the water. This was discovered a few years ago by a Los Angeles Times investigation. DDT has already been found in Southern California 🐬 dolphins and a recent study linked DDT to an aggressive cancer in 🦭 sea lions.

https://www.latimes.com/projects/la-coast-ddt-dumping-ground/

Upon further research I discovered that the scale of the dumping of waste is much bigger than many people may expect.

(2021) Scientists: “there are massive chemical dumps in the ocean we know almost nothing about”
Industrial companies have used the ocean as a dumping ground for toxic waste. Hazardous industrial chemicals and radioactive waste have been accumulating in the ocean for 150 years.

Industrial companies treat the ocean as a bottomless pit with the idea “out of sight, out of mind”.
Source: https://grist.org/accountability/there-are-massive-chemical-dumps-in-the-gulf-we-know-almost-nothing-about/

A recent study showed that almost 90% of all seabirds have toxic pollution in their bodies. In the past decades, 67 percent of all seabirds have died. Many seabird species could become extinct in the coming decades.

99% of Seabirds Will Have Toxic Pollution In Their Body Within Decades
A recent study found a 67 percent decline in seabird populations between 1950 and 2010. “Essentially seabirds are going extinct,” says Wilcox. “Within decades.”
Sources: http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0129342
https://www.ecowatch.com/seabirds-plastic-pollution-2609353767.html

Dozens of death whale babies that washed up in Norway in recent years show that they are already contaminated with deadly levels of toxic chemicals shortly after they are born.

Dead baby orca reveals harmful chemical levels in baby whales
https://www.livescience.com/orca-whales-toxicology.html

Japan recently denied a shipment of whale meat because it was highly contaminated.

Japan refuses Norway’s toxic whale meat
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/world-on-a-plate/2015/mar/23/japan-refuses-norways-toxic-whale-meat

A ticking time bomb is lying beneath the surface of many European seas. It is estimated that German parts of the North Sea and the Baltic Sea alone contain some 1.6 million metric tonnes of relic munitions. These conventional and chemical weapons threaten human life and the marine environment. The weapons, TNT and other explosives slowly decay, releasing harmful substances like cytotoxic, genotoxic, and carcinogenic chemicals into the water.


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After 10 years of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster, the 🇯🇵 Japanese government has decided on Tuesday, April 13th 2021, to start releasing radioactive water into the Pacific Ocean in 2023. According to a German Marine Scientific Research Institute, once the waters are dumped in the ocean, radioactive materials could spread to most of the Pacific Ocean within 57 days and all oceans within a decade, which could cause a disaster for marine life.

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According to the following article, industrial companies dump a minimum of 180 million tons of toxic chemical and radioactive waste into the oceans per year. By comparison, American society produces 120 tons of waste per year.

https://earthisland.org/journal/index.php/articles/entry/over_180m_tons_of_toxic_waste_dumped_into_worlds_oceans_rivers_and_lakes_ea

Questions:

1. how much nuclear and chemical waste is dumped in the oceans each year? Are there initiatives to monitor it?
2. what will the effect be for the ocean or the planet when the waste dumping continues at the current rate?

2

The Environment / Sun as origin of water on Earth - what percentage?

« on: 22/12/2021 09:24:18 »

I recently noticed a news article that indicated that water on Earth could have originated from the Sun.

Sun is likely an unaccounted source of the Earth’s water
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/11/211129122755.htm

Question: what percentage of water on Earth could have originated from the Sun?

3

New Theories / ESP for planet hunting / advancements in Cosmology

« on: 21/12/2021 13:39:18 »

I hope that this post is appreciated on this forum. I was just banned on space.com for asking this question. Previously, a post about the big bang theory being a religion that received several serious replies was 'deleted' for questionable motives as well. As it appears, the possibility of ESP is a sensitive topic as well.


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My original post and question:

According to the CIA, ESP (Extrasensory Perception) and remote viewing are real, and while the CIA has been attempting to use the potential to serve political agenda's, if ESP and remote viewing are possible, it may provide options to speed up advancements in Cosmology.

CIA program director of Stanford Research Institute:

In my experience and according to most other researchers, it appears that an experienced psychic can answer any question that has an answer. I cannot wait to see what the future holds when we fully open the doors of our perception! It is time to accept the gift of psychic abilities. The hardware is fine; it’s the software that must be upgraded—and quickly.

Source: https://www.watkinsmagazine.com/the-reality-of-esp-a-physicists-proof-of-psychic-abilities

As it appears, it would just involve asking the right question. In the case of Cosmology, ESP may provide an unexplored opportunity for new discoveries.

Imagine having the ability to remote view a planet of an advanced civilization somewhere in the Milky Way and unlock information about technologies and potentially a location. Alternatively, imagine the ability to remote view earth in 10,000 years.

With ESP and remote viewing, time and distance appear to become non-local while conscious experience remains possible.

While some may be quick to dismiss the possibility of paranormal matters, a multi-million USD Government funded CIA remote viewing program has survived many subsequent administrations and the existence of a professional association for remote viewing that intends to secure proper use of remote viewing, provide a strong indication that ESP and remote viewing should be taken serious, and in that case, exploring its potential use for Cosmology becomes applicable.

The following documentary film (2021) provides information about the CIA program.


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https://thirdeyespies.com/ (free on YouTube)

International Remote Viewing Association | IRVA
IRVA is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to promoting the responsible use and development of remote viewing.
https://www.irva.org/

An example book that addresses the subject:


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The Reality of ESP
A Physicist’s Proof of Psychic Abilities. This book, detailing its author’s many successful investigations into the paranormal, should make those who deny the possible existence of such phenomena think again”.

Author Russell Targ, of Palo Alto, California, is a physicist, author, and retired senior staff scientist from Lockheed-Martin.

https://espresearch.com/
https://www.irva.org/

Anyone can do it

It is a logical idea that ESP, remote viewing or anything paranormal require something 'special', but the film Third Eye Spies showed that they recruited regular people from the military without prior experience with anything paranormal to perform professional remote viewing, and that the least experienced persons were sometimes better at the task. 'Anyone can do it', but there are people with talent.

There is even a remote viewing conference where regular people (public) can take part in remote viewing. It is showed in the film and as it appears, students and people without prior paranormal experience were able to perform 'paranormal' remote viewing.

Question: has it ever been attempted to use ESP for Cosmology? If so, are there online references?

4

New Theories / What is the farthest distance an animal has traveled in space?

« on: 13/06/2021 05:25:02 »

Filter or 'reducing valve' theory of mind suggests that the origin of consciousness/life could be the Neutrino particle.

When life would be bound to a region around the Sun, then it may not be possible for animals to live on 🪐 Mars or to explore deep space.

A feature of the biological cell, plant and animal alike, is that all cells have a similar size, which is approximately 10 microns. If Neutrino's are the origin of consciousness/life then perhaps, the distance between the Earth and the Sun and the size of the biological cell are tied to enable life.

Questions:

1) What is the farthest distance an animal has traveled in space?

2) Is there evidence that Earth life is possible in deep space?

References:

https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/blog/think-well/201906/does-consciousness-exist-outside-the-brain

https://medium.com/top-down-or-bottom-up/the-filter-theory-of-the-mind-brain-connection-cf48d7184b24

https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/f8f7/977fed4fc4f3663634bf3f2185f478b60cae.pdf

https://arrow.tudublin.ie/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1100&context=scschphyart

https://thoughtcatalog.com/nikki-halsted/2019/02/neutrinos-and-astrology-could-this-ghost-particle-be-the-force-behind-human-consciousness/

5

Plant Sciences, Zoology & Evolution / Scientists warn: "In a few decades many insects are gone"

« on: 14/02/2020 08:45:21 »

 “We wanted to really wake people up. When you consider 80% of biomass of insects has disappeared in 25-30 years, it is a big concern. In a few decades, the insects are gone.”

 “We have now entered the world's sixth mass extinction event, the biggest and most rapid global biodiversity crisis since a meteor ended the age of the dinosaurs.”

Scientists agree that Earth is at the outset of a mass extinction event—only the 6th in half-a-billion years—which could drive a million species, or one-in-eight, into oblivion over the coming decades.

https://phys.org/news/2020-02-bumble-bees-extinct-climate-chaos.html

Multiple eco-crises could trigger ‘systemic collapse’: scientists

Overlapping environmental crises could tip the planet into “global systemic collapse,” more than 200 top scientists warned Wednesday.

https://phys.org/news/2020-02-multiple-eco-crises-trigger-collapse-scientists.html

What could explain a potential collapse of nature on Earth? Is it logical that some species "give up" or is it plausible to assume that millions of species are actually forced into extinction by humans or an other factor, in decades of time?

6

Physics, Astronomy & Cosmology / Is it possible for the laws of physics to change in time?

« on: 26/09/2019 17:38:06 »

A recent study has provided evidence that the laws of physics can change in time, indicating that the Universe may be infinite and has no beginning.

Laws of physics may change across the universe

Another author on the paper, Michael Murphy of Swinburne University in Australia, understands the caution. But he says the evidence for changing constants is piling up. “We just report what we find, and no one has been able to explain away these results in a decade of trying,” Murphy told New Scientist. “The fundamental constants being constant is an assumption. We’re here to test physics, not to assume it.”

"The discovery, if confirmed, has profound implications for our understanding of space and time and violates one of the fundamental principles underlying Einstein's General Relativity theory,"

The findings may also imply the Universe is infinite.

Sources:
https://astronomy.swin.edu.au/~mmurphy/research/are-natures-laws-really-universal/
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/09/100909004112.htm
https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn19429-laws-of-physics-may-change-across-the-universe/
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2056018/Laws-physics-change-depending-universe.html

The questions:

1) is it evident that the laws of physics can change in time?
2) what would the implications be if it were to be true?

7

Plant Sciences, Zoology & Evolution / Does philosophy/ethics play a role in the "GMO or synthetic biology revolution"?

« on: 22/04/2019 21:08:21 »

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A special on Synthetic Biology in The Economist (Redesigning Life, April 6th) predicts that synthetic biology will be the most important thing in science in this century and presents it as a natural and inevitable part of human evolution.

Remaking life means automating biology

Those given to grand statements about the future often proclaim this to be the century of biology in the same way that the 20th century was that of physics and the 19th century was that of chemistry. ...

Humans have been turning biology to their own purposes for more than 10,000 years. ...

Reprogramming nature is extremely convoluted, having evolved with no intention or guidance. But if you could synthesize nature, life could be transformed into something more amenable to an engineering approach, with well defined standard parts.

The report presents synthetic biology as a unguided practice driven primarily by the short term financial self-interest of companies. Humans (companies) will attempt to control the genetic fabric of nature and are already well on their way.

Biotechnology is already a bigger business than many people realize. Rob Carlson of Bioeconomy Capital, an investment company, calculates that money made from creatures which have been genetically engineered accounted for about 2% of American GDP in 2017.

Questions

1) Does philosophy have a say in the evolution of humanity in regards to if and how to per sue synthetic biology or GMO for food?

2) Are ethics involved to determine if and/or how GMO will be a part of human evolution or is it purely driven by market (money)?


Ethical considerations

Can life be a 'fixed state'? Basic logic shows that you can't stand above life as being life because when you would try to do so you would create a figurative stone that sinks in the ocean of time.

It may be best to serve life instead of trying to stand above it.

A special in New Scientists showed that evolution is not like Darwin's tree of life and is also horizontal, on the basis of what is consumed. When humans consume food, information is consumed that is used in evolution.


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The source of life is unknown. If it is not known where life came from, it is not possible to claim that what has been observed is limited to what has been observed. The origin of life cannot be factored out because it hasn't been observed.

Overcoming problems is essential for progress in life. When humans would attempt to control genetic evolution from their short-sighted and external perspective, they may hinder a vital core of successful evolution. What may appear as a genetic defect in a given time may be part of a longer term (e.g. 300 year) strategy to achieve evolutionary solutions that are essential for longer term survival.

A basis of respect for nature may be essential for successful evolution.

To summarize:

• Can life be a 'fixed state'?
• Synthetic biology (GMO) for food could be seen as a sort of incest.
• The source of life is unknown. It is not plausible to assume that life is limited to what humans can see.
• A belief that evolution is driven by random chance may result in the idea that thinking isn't needed and that anything random will count as "good".

8

Technology / Is it possible to create a electrostatic / magnetic bubble for breathable air?

« on: 16/03/2019 12:24:21 »

I have a question that is related to a potential technological innovation that could help protect people against the effects of air pollution in cities.

Preface

Air pollution is a major issue that is damaging people's health in many cities.

I am from The Netherlands and many people here ride bikes and are directly exposed to the pollution, while in the same time, their physical effort cause them to be more heavily impacted by the pollution. New studies have shown that people on bikes underestimate the effect of air pollution on their health.

In London, UK, tens of thousands of people die prematurely each year due to the effects of air pollution.

abc.net.au /news/2017-01-09/london-activists-ramp-up-fight-against-deadly-air-pollution/8168076

Study: disc brakes are a major cause of air pollution

Many people don't know that brake wear (micro-particles of metal, copper and manganese) is more toxic for humans than exhaust fumes and that 20% of the total emissions by cars are from disc brakes.

In a study published January 31, 2017 in the journal Environmental Science & Technology, researchers described how metals from disc brakes such as copper, iron and manganese interact with acidic sulfate-rich particles already in the air to produce a toxic aerosol.

“There’s a chain reaction happening in the air,” said Rodney Weber, a professor in Georgia Tech’s School of Earth & Atmospheric Sciences. “Acidic sulfate in the atmosphere comes into contact with those metals emitted from disc brakes and changes their solubility, making them more likely to cause oxidative stress when inhaled.”

The researchers found that the metals given off from disc brakes damage pieces of the lungs as well as increases pro-inflammatory responses, leading to stress on breathing and on the body.

The researchers found that the brake wear of cars contributes up to 20% of the total traffic emissions of a standard car.

phys.org /news/2017-03-problems-blackened-wheel.html

I've been thinking of solutions for bike riders and I thought of creating a sort of electrostatic or magnetic bubble similar to the earth's magnetic field to divert air pollution around the mouth and nose.



It might be a cheap and easy solution. It may even be possible to hand such a tool out for free as a sponsored gadget so that millions of people could be protected in an instant.

I've searched Google but although I did notice innovations that use such technology to control particles, it was mostly for protecting technologies such as optical devices and it appears that a solution for protecting breathable air does not yet exist.

The question: is it possible to create a efficient electrostatic / magnetic bubble to divert air pollution (i.e. metal micro-particles) to enable people on bikes in cities to breath clean air?

The most toxic particles such as metal may be more easy to repel. If just 10% efficiency could be achieved, it would be  a win for health. But maybe such a solution could be made highly efficient while it does not have a visual impact (i.e. a simple gadget, or a maybe a lightweight and fashionable cap).

Thanks in advance for your insights!

p.s. I do not intend to create a product, I would hope that others may if they would see a potential for it. Besides helping to protect people's health and performance, it may be a commercial opportunity.