The greatest scientific discoveries of 2014.
This year mankind landed on his first comet in women with a uterus transplanted child was born, and fossilized seashells forced us to completely revise our understanding of human culture. And it is - just a few of the most important scientific achievements are listed below.1. The oldest drawing made before the era of modern cheloveka
In 2007, archaeologists have studied the fossilized shells in the museum's collection, and stumbled upon a detail that previous researchers have somehow missed: engraving on shells in the form of abstract patterns. Age shells exceeds 500,000 years, and this fact indicates that "Homo erectus" was far more complex creatures than previously thought, and was able to think abstractly. This year, researchers published a report, which confirms that these shells - indeed the earliest works of art in the world.2. Evidence of the Big Bang theory refuted interstellar pylyu
In March this year the Harvard servers literally began to fall, unable to withstand the influx of wanting to see the press conference about ... gravitational volnah.
This is not surprising. As a physicist Mark Kamionkovski:
«Not every day you wake up and you recognize something completely new about the universe». Blockquote> The scientists were finally able to see firsthand the special pattern in the cosmic microwave radiation, known as "B-mode 'gravitational waves. Cosmologists theorists have predicted that this regime reached its peak in the first 10-30 seconds after our universe emerged from the big bang. More precisely, they dumali.Vposledstvii turned out that the results of research in this area was "experimental artifact." The scientists were able to confirm that the source of gravitational waves, which are in the "B-mode", could be a common interstellar dust. Now the researchers are hoping to use a powerful telescope Antarctic BICEP2 to real-time observe gravitational waves in the "B-mode" 3. The world's first birth of a child in the donor utrobe
In late September, the first woman ever gave birth to a child after the transplant underwent cancer. Mother and child have given hope to women all over the world with disabilities uterus wishing to carry and give birth ditya.Zhenschina own, whose name was not disclosed, was born without a uterus (congenital defect known as Syndrome Mayer-Rokitansky-Kuster-Hauser). It - one of nine Swedish women, the uterus transplant from a living donor between 2012 and 2013. Some of these women have received the uterus by their family members (including from their own mothers), but specifically, the uterus has reportedly been donated by a woman 61-year-old "family friend" 4. Blood, rejuvenating old mozgi
Several years ago, scientists from Stenfordsogo University found that by injecting young blood may reverse cognitive aging in mice. At the same time, the researcher Saul Villeda could not understand how it helps young blood to reverse all the effects of cognitive impairment. This year, new research helped establish the mechanism responsible for this unusual omolozhenie.5. The spacecraft 'Orion "proves the skeptics their nepravotu
When NASA announced plans to send humans into deep space, these dreams have been met with a mixture of sadness and contempt. Because few people believed that it will ever become a reality. When the ship "Orion" passed the first test of all systems, these doubts continued his presledovat.V December this year at NASA have proved that all the doubters wrong. The first test flight of "Orion" was successful. On the one hand, it was just a test flight, and there was no one aboard. On the other hand, it was a real, undeniable progress in the transition from dream to reality. The next time the "Orion" will go into space with astronauts on board, and will have to bring people to one of the asteroids. NASA trying to do something outrageously ambitious with minimal budget, and all this could fall apart at any moment. But if they still continue to work, the test flight "Orion" is the first step in an incredible puteshestvii.6. The largest in the history of swarm robots has found the form In August this year, researcher Mark Rubinstein and his colleagues reported that they could demonstrate the most impressive to date, a swarm of robots. The group consisting of the 1024 robotic width of 2 cm, entitled "kiloboty" can self-assemble to form a variety of two-dimensional (two dimensional in the sense that the height of all these forms does not exceed the height of a "kilobota"). 73,280,698
Robots can twitch, push each other to achieve a complex global behavior. And they do it on their own. And all together they make up the largest swarm of robots ever sozdannyh.Razumeetsya, a horde of the 1024 cars on several orders of magnitude smaller communities real insects (ants in the number supercolonies, for example, can exceed 100 million individuals), but in any case it is very important step in robototehniki.7. Potentially habitable planet-sized Zemlyu
In April, scientists announced the discovery of planets Kepler-186f, which is probably similar to the Earth more than any previously detected planets. It is the same size as our own world, and it is located at the right distance from its star, which is allowing it to be on the surface vodu.
"The ultimate goal of all of these searches for extrasolar planets - the real reason why we're doing this - this is the answer to the question: are we alone?", - Said Tom Barclay, researcher NASA.Barklay argues that to answer this big question can be pre- answering a lot of questions small, such as "Are there other planets like Earth?" With the discovery of Kepler-186f answer to this question has become clearer than ever. And the answer - da.8. Beneath the earth's oceans poverhnostyu
After a series of experiments, geologists have come to a very unexpected conclusion. Deep underground can be a huge amount of water the size of the ocean. This water may be trapped inside the mantle under high pressure between the liquid core of the planet and its foreign koroy.Na decades geologists have built different hypotheses about what could create Earth's oceans. One of the most popular hypothesis states that icy comets crashed into the planet, and gradually melted, forming the oceans. But another theory, which seems more plausible, is that the water was "complete" with the planet in the early stages of its formation. The planet was formed from the dust and debris so that water could easily be trapped beneath the earth koroy.9. Cluster of galaxies Laniakea Our galaxy cluster mass and volume 100 times greater than previously thought. Using an innovative display method, astronomers have been able to mark a huge area they now call «Laniakea». The new study is much better defines the boundaries of the supercluster, and makes a whole new way to look at our neighborhood Galaktiki.10. The identification of the remains of Richard III
This year has been closed case, which is considered the oldest forensic medical examination in history. New genetic analysis presented irrefutable evidence that the skeleton found under a car park in Leicester, belongs to King Richard III. This will learn new details about his appearance and proiskhozhdenii.11. Hidden Ocean on Entselade
In 2005, the NASA spacecraft "Cassini" sent pictures of what it looked like it was clouds of steam coming from the "tiger stripes" - breaks the surface, located near the south pole of Enceladus, the icy moon of Saturn. However, these images were not enough to prove that beneath the surface of the satellite has voda.No in April this year the analysis of additional data submitted "Cassini", confirmed that under the icy surface of Enceladus actually exist huge reserves zhidkosti.Analiz confirmed and one more thing What: This tiny moon of Saturn is actually differentiated celestial body that is composed of two layers - the outer, the ice layer and an inner rocky core of silicates. The interesting thing is that this layer of silicate in combination with water may mean that Enceladus has a potentially habitable environment, one that could be far more sensitive to the appearance of life than the environment in Europe, satellite Yupitera.Eschё four months later, the team "Cassini" presented observations, which can be seen on the surface of Enceladus geysers that can be directly associated with the ocean under its surface. This monumental otkrytie.
Carolyn Porco, leader of photo processing "Cassini", said:«The fact that Enceladus was discovered a potentially habitable environment for me was an incredible discovery. Many of us are now asking is not whether the tiny moon a second source of life in our solar system ». Blockquote> 12. The skull of an underwater cave, containing the history of the first American clue poselentsev
Scientists have long been exploring the coast of North and South America, but they have not managed to find a civilization older than the Incas or the Maya, that would be the answer to the question of the origin of indigenous amerikantsev.A differences in facial features from the "Native American" and so-called " paleoamerikantsev 'experts urged that the origin of these two groups - razlichnoe.Odnako skull found this year in an underwater cave off the coast of Mexico, helped to prove that Native Americans and paleoamerikantsy have a common ancestor: a man of Beringia (this is a huge area, connected the Eurasia and America during the last ice age), and that the differences in the structure of their faces may not be due to their origin, and the differences in the way zhizni.13. Dreadnoughtus - «amazingly huge" dinozavr
Dreadnoughtus, described in the September paleontologist Kenneth Lakovaroy and his team, has been rising at 6 m. His neck was 11 m long, the length of the tail was almost 9 m, and the total length was 26 m.Izmereniya one of the femurs of the dinosaur led Lakovaru and his team concluded that this dinosaur lived about 77 million years ago, weighed about 65 tons, which undoubtedly makes it the largest land animals ever suschestvovavshih.14. Evidence of tectonic activity in Europe, satellite Yupitera
A recent geological survey in Europe showed that one massive fragment of its surface area of 20,000 square kilometers, just missing. In September this year, researchers published evidence that tectonic plates can move the satellite, and some fragments of the surface may disappear under the adjacent tectonic plates. If these data are confirmed, this discovery will make Europe the only place in the Solar System (other than Earth, of course), where the surface continues to emerge as a result of active tectonics plit.15. Stem cells may contain a cure for diabetes 1 tipa
Insulin-producing cells, also known as «β-cells", are located in the pancreas and help maintain the desired level of glucose in the blood. Patients with type 1 diabetes, these cells are destroyed by the immune system. < Is it possible to cure this? Yes, if we replace the damaged cells cells grown in the laboratory. In October, researchers from Harvard University have published a method to convert human embryonic stem cells into insulin-producing cells, with the number of these cells is sufficient to transplant them to the patient. However, researchers still have to figure out how to protect cells from the attacks of synthetic immunity. To date, the β-cells are tested in animals, including at primatah.16. A living organism with an expanded genetic alfavitom
The genetic codes of all living things are made up of four components: adenine, thymine, guanine and cytosine. These "building blocks", which are denoted by letters abbreviated A, T, G and C are found in a variety of combinations, the number of which is enormous. However, in May of this year, researchers announced that they were able to create in the laboratory E. coli genome which includes a completely new letters "of the genetic alphabet." This achievement has required almost 15 years raboty.17. Yeast artificial chromosomes, built with nulya
Twelve years ago, scientists have created the first artificial virus. Eight years later, the world was presented to the first bacterium with a synthetic genome. By 2012, the researchers have created the world's first complete computer model of a living organism. And in March of this year, an international team of researchers was able to create from scratch a synthetic and fully functional genome chromosomes drozhzhey.18. Scientists have discovered Ginos, a new kind of sexual organa
When a Brazilian researcher Rodrigo Ferreira sent several specimens of insects Swiss entomologist Charles Lienhard, who determined that the insects belong to a completely new type, now known as «Neotrogla» .
Although archaeologists have long suspected that the huge stones Neolithic Stonehenge once formed a closed circle, the evidence to support this theory was not. In September, after the dry summer season, archaeologists were able to watch the spots dry grass, the occurrence of which clearly confirms the original circular shape of a prehistoric pamyatnika.A more in two weeks, archaeologists using a powerful, penetrating into the ground radar, discovered several previously unknown mounds, chapels, altars, graves and - best of all - a large monument belonging to the megalithic and consisting of 50 giant stones. These results put upside down the entire concept of Stonehenge, which until this discovery was considered a very deserted mestom.20. Module "Fila" successfully sat on kometu
More than 10 years ago, scientists from the European Space Agency said goodbye to robotic module "Fila", sending it together with the space probe "Rosetta" comet to Chyuryumova-Gerasimenko for data collection. In November this year, after the probe "Rosetta" went into orbit around the comet module separated from the "Rosetta" and landed on kometu.Posle couple of unsuccessful attempts to gain a foothold on the surface of the module could still settle in the shade of the rocks. Thus, for the first time in space history robotic research module was delivered to the surface of the comet - and this alone is enough to change our view of the universe.
via factroom.ru
