Fixing a Hole

'Fixing a hole where the rain gets in' was a reflection on the difficulties presented by persistent fans for the Beatles. But the hole that appears in the sun right now may present a different set of difficulties for us earthlings.

The hole in the sun is a gap in the sun’s magnetic field where charged particles are being expelled at speeds up to 500 miles per second (1.8 million miles per hour!). It’s not small like a sunspot, it’s something like 50 earths wide. The strong solar wind being ejected is producing fantastic auroras as it hits the earth’s atmosphere. These ionized particles can also influence radio transmissions, which could impact all types of communications on earth. And the solar wind has been implicated in the production of clouds, clouds that have a direct influence on earth’s weather.

The hole has been followed by a ‘prominence eruption’ in which a gas cloud loosely held by the sun’s magnetic field suddenly falls apart with much of the mass being shot out into space. If these eruptions are directed our way they can cause magnetic storms here on earth.

One such solar storm, known as the Carrington event, hit earth in 1859. In that storm a solar prominence eruption hit Earth's magnetosphere and induced perhaps the largest geomagnetic storm on record. English astronomer Richard C. Carrington observed a so-called ‘white light flare’ on the sun at the time. A similar sized solar storm occurring today would likely disrupt all sorts of electrical systems that are critical to modern civilization. In 2012 a huge solar storm occurred, but it was directed away from earth, saving us from any problems.

Last month our neighborhood star featured a rather unusual collection of three coronal holes appearing together. The coronal holes are the dark areas in the photographs – these are false color images taken in ultraviolet wavelengths that are invisible to the human eye.

There is a great deal that we do not understand about the sun, including how features like coronal holes and prominence eruptions form. What we do know is that the sun supplies the energy for life on earth, so we continue to study it.

Young Blood

Juan Ponce de Leon famously searched for the Fountain of Youth in Florida. According to recent research, perhaps he would have had more success if he had been imitating Nosferatu and consuming blood from the young.

According to experiments on mice by teams of researchers at Harvard, Stanford, UC Berkeley, UC San Francisco, and elsewhere, young blood rejuvenates tissues and organs including muscles, liver, heart, and brain, when injected into old mice.

In one study the researchers surgically connected the circulation systems of each old mouse with a young mouse, thus allowing the young blood to flow into the old mouse. Their results showed a substantial reversal of nervous system aging in the older mice. They concluded:

“Our data indicate that exposure of aged mice to young blood late in life is capable of rejuvenating synaptic plasticity and improving cognitive function.”

Results with the mice look so promising as a potential treatment for Alzheimer’s, that a biomedical startup called Alkahest has started running a small clinical trial that involves injecting human blood plasma from young people into dementia patient volunteers. Half of the recipients will receive 4 weekly injections of young blood while the other half will act as a control group and receive injections of a placebo (saline solution). They will be monitored for a year and results are expected to be available in October 2015.

In related work, researchers are trying to identify the factor(s) in young blood that are responsible for its effect on aging. A paper from Lee Rubin et al of Harvard has identified and tested a protein called growth differentiating factor 11 (GDF-11) that has shown unexpected ability to reverse the effects of aging on the brains of mice.

Another Harvard researcher, Amy Wagers, leads a team that has been utilizing GDF-11 for several years to improve muscle function in mice. In one study Wagers has found that increased GDF11 levels in aged mice improved muscle structure and function, providing increased strength and endurance.

Perhaps the next time I  babysit my grandchildren I should ask to be paid in blood.

Robots Will Rule

Robotics is a rapidly advancing field that will do more to change our lives in the next few decades than any other technology. From humble beginnings with the commercial automated vacuum, Roomba, these mechanical assistants can do everything from perform surgery to manufacture autos to conduct military operations. One cannot open a newspaper without reading about drones that deliver packages, monitor traffic, or carry out bombing missions. Drones are just one example of the possibilities with flying robots.  

In addition to the large scale applications, scientists and engineers are developing micro-robots that may help with searches of confined spaces or be implanted into one’s body to conduct medical procedures as in "Fantastic Voyage” by Isaac Asimov. Of course, like any technology, these microrobots could be turned to evil as in Michael Crichton’s posthumous novel “Prey,” where swarms of nanorobots invade and devour their prey.

Real life micro-robots are being developed by Sarah Bergbreiter at the University of Maryland. In a recent TED talk she demonstrates how she can make simple robots the size of a grain of rice walk and jump. Bergbreiter and her students are working on micro structures and systems for locomotion, sensing, actuation, power, and systems integration.

One of these micro-robots, no larger than a breath mint, and powered by light, is able to jump over 100 times its own height. Another micro-robot is able to 'run' ten times its body length per second. A human performing these feats would be jumping a building 50 stories high and running a 5 second 100-meter dash! Bergbreiter uses fabrication techniques pioneered in the electronics industry to prepare micro-actuators that propel these little guys.

It will not be long before these micro-robots leave the lab and become part of our lives.