Nutrient Cycling

Auroras also occur on planets such as Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. These gas giants have thick atmospheres and strong magnetic fields. These auroras are a little different from Earth's as they are formed under different conditions.

Venus has an aurora generated by its magnetotail. Mars experiences local auroras due to magnetic fields in the crust. There are also northern hemisphere auroras caused by particles hitting the Maritan atmosphere.

Northern lights occur roughly every eleven years. Record-keeping of the sun's activity began in 1749. Since then, there have been 22 full cycles.

Particles ejected from the sun travel 93 million miles toward Earth before they are drawn toward the magnetic north and south poles. As the particles move through the Earth's magnetic shield, they mix with the oxygen, nitrogen, and other elements that result in the display of lights.

Known problems with known solutions include the following:

• Global warming. It is partly caused by excessive emission of carbon dioxide (CO2). CO2 emissions come from energy generation and can be replaced by nuclear power.
• Declining freshwater reserves could be tackled through greater use of desalination and recycling wastewater.

Once the gravity of these problems becomes apparent to a critical mass of humanity, solutions would be put in motion.

Known problems to which solutions are not only imaginable but (probably) within reach include:

• Malaria: Like smallpox that was fully eradicated in 1980, it is not much of a stretch to think that Malaria will be defeated through a combination of genetic engineering, insecticide-treated mosquito nets, vaccines, and drugs.
• Superbugs or deadly viruses: Crispr technology allows for easy alteration of DNA sequences and modifies gene function. Crispr could be used to turn bacterium or viruses machinery against itself.

These problems are bound to cause suffering until an appropriate solution is found.

75 percent of home electricity is consumed while plugged in but not in use. 

Use LED light bulbs at your home, as they use 60% less energy.

Hundreds of studies on plants and animal behavior in recent years reveal that living things, including humans, are in reality multispecies events of collaboration and interdependence.

This is seen in the way fungus helps nurture and connect trees, or the way algae and coral form a partnership to create colorful coral reefs.

Life is more complex and collaborative than previously thought.

The recent findings which prove that competition is not natural, at least not more than collaboration, pave the way to think about our relationship with the planet, and the millions of species inhabiting it.

Environmentalists are tackling the climate crisis assume that people are by nature bound to harm ecology, and will consume and plunder the natural resources. This leaves them with a narrow set of solutions to control the crisis.

It involves filling the lungs to the max and goes by various names like belly or diaphragmatic breathing.

It has been linked to improved cognitive performance, lower stress levels, and lower blood pressure.

Central to ancient Hindu philosophy was prana, described as vital “airs” or “energies” flowing through the body. Stemming from that belief, yoga was built on pranayama or breath retention. 

Compostable Tableware, bags and packaging isn't really a solution and is being unadvisedly chosen as the best alternative.

The environmental benefits of compostables are not what they are touted as, because an increase of compostables in the rivers from the waste streams could have unpredictable consequences, and will create more and more trash.

Recyclable Plastic and the effort towards it isn't problem-free.

There are trash contamination issues with plastic and 79% of it isn't even recycled, but landfilled, or burned.

In the 1970s and into the 80s, research was done where mice were given a variety of supplementary antioxidants in their diet or via an injection straight into the bloodstream.

The result showed that an excess of antioxidants didn't stop the onset of disease or extended lifespan.

• In 1994, one trial followed the lives of 29,133 Finish people in their 50s who all smoked. Some were given beta-carotene supplements. The group that supplemented with Beta-carotene had a 16% increase in lung cancer.
• Another study shows a breast cancer increase of 20% for postmenopausal women who supplemented with folic acid.
• One study with 100 heavy smokers had a 28% increase in lung cancer after just four years of beta-carotene and vitamin A supplementation.

• Penicillin was the first widely-used antibiotic. It was discovered in 1928 by Alexander Fleming, a bacteriologist.
• He noticed that the staph cells he'd been studying in a petri dish had died, and an unusual mold was growing in it.
• The mould was purified and tested in 1940, and later mass-produced.
• By 1943, the US was supplying all the Allied forces with this miracle drug, which gave them an advantage in treating injuries.

• An agriculture student-turned-microbiologist, Selman Waksman, tested 10,000 soil samples over the years.
• In 1943, he identified streptomycin, a broad-spectrum antibiotic effective against tuberculosis.
• Drug companies caught on to it, and commissioned pilots, explorers, and foreign correspondents sent back soil samples as they traveled, collecting dozens of new antibiotics.
• By 1970, researchers found themselves discovering the same molecules over and over.