Science

I'm not nearly smart or cool enough to be interested in science, but when presented with concepts that are somewhat easy to understand, my mind gets freaking blown. This post is a SCIENCE appreciation post.
#1 Dude grows lil ecosystem


"For the last 40 years it has been completely sealed from the outside world. But the indoor variety of spiderworts (or Tradescantia, to give the plant species its scientific Latin name) within has thrived, filling its globular bottle home with healthy foliage.

Yesterday Mr Latimer, 80, said: ‘It’s 6ft from a window so gets a bit of sunlight. It grows towards the light so it gets turned round every so often so it grows evenly.

‘Otherwise, it’s the definition of low-maintenance. I’ve never pruned it, it just seems to have grown to the limits of the bottle.’

The bottle garden has created its own miniature ecosystem. Despite being cut off from the outside world, because it is still absorbing light it can photosynthesise, the process by which plants convert sunlight into the energy they need to grow."


#2 What happens when you cry in motherfuggin space


#3 Cool natural patterns (from a blog dedicated to natural patterns and fractal art)






"Crystals, guys. More natural patterns.

The top image is a Lichtenberg figure, which is created by discharging an electric current into an acrylic pane, which is then decomposed, showing the pattern of current discharge.

[ That’s why it looks like lightning. Same concept, different medium. ]

It’s a dendritic pattern, showing fractal symmetry and self-similarity at all levels.

The silver crystals to the left are native silver, which grows in dendritic patterns. Similar patterns may be found in gold, copper, and other metals.

…Bismuth, to the right, is a little unique. Its crystals are still self-similar, though, and look about ten times as cool, in my opinion."
#4 Sweet ass ice caves



"Ice Caves Around the World

Ice caves come in two forms. A cave formed entirely of ice is actually called a glacier cave and as the name implies, forms in glaciers. Water runs through or under the glacier and forms a cave.

The other type of ice cave can be any cave type (limestone, lava tube, etc.) that has ice in it year round. These caves trap cold air. Water entering the cave freezes and stays frozen year round.

Glacier caves can be found in the Pacific Northwest and ice caves are found in many locations where temperatures drop below freezing. Once cold air enters the cave, it generally stays there.
Iceland
Russia
France
Antarctica
Iceland
Russia
Iceland
Iceland"