Deserts covered in GLASS – sounds like the latest sci-fi film universe! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. In Chile’s Atacama Desert, the sand is littered with football-sized, green-black glass chunks. But these aren’t human artifacts. What sculpted this glass garden? Geologist Peter Schultz at
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Diamonds in a Hurry!
Diamonds are forever…and take forever to make! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Diamonds — SO divine! But they take billions of years to form and mining is dangerous. Who can wait that long for luxury? Dougal McCulloch and colleagues at R-M-I-T University in Melbourne,
Continue readingAstro Glassblowing
Deserts covered in GLASS – sounds like the latest sci-fi film universe! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. In Chile’s Atacama Desert, the sand is littered with football-sized, green-black glass chunks. But these aren’t human artifacts. What sculpted this glass garden? Geologist Peter Schultz at
Continue readingLava Music
Wow! I LAVA this song! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Volcanoes rumble and grumble all the time, creating extremely low-frequency sounds. But – listen! Are they actually playing the “music of the night?” Jeffrey Johnson from Boise State University and an international team explored
Continue readingDiamonds in the Deep
Are diamonds a geologists’ best friend? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Our planet’s volume is eighty percent mantle–the rock layer between Earth’s crust and inner core. But the mantle extends down thousands of kilometers, and we can only dig down TWELVE. Can we learn
Continue readingHobbit Miss-tery
News flash! Hobbits are real! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science, taking you to Indonesia’s Flores Island. In 2003, archeologists unearthed a fossilized female skeleton there. The ancient human was only three feet tall. But she was an adult, so the scientists dubbed her “the
Continue readingUnderage Volcano
Don’t erupt — but is that a fake I.D.?! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Taupo is an active volcano in New Zealand. But scientists can’t pin down its age! The usual method is to carbon date nearby trees that perished during the eruption. All
Continue readingRock Fans
First there were crop circles, now there are… rock circles? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. In California’s Death Valley, a remote dry lakebed holds a secret! Rocks scattered across its parched surface have mysterious trails etched behind them. It seems the rocks move! But
Continue readingFantasy Islands
What do island paradises and diapers have in common? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science, with the poop on coral-reef islands! These islands build up from sediment deposited over time. But where does that sediment come from? Sometimes, from parrotfish! To be specific, parrotfish poop!
Continue readingGolden Fleece
There’s gold in them thar … sheep??? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Remember Jason and the Argonauts, from Greek mythology – or from the crazy 1963 movie? Sailing to the ends of the earth in search of a Golden Fleece? What the heck is
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