Articles

Keystone Species and Their Role in Ecosystems
(Microorganism, Animal and Plant Life)

Keystone species are those that help maintain the balance and survival of an ecosystem; without them, the ecosystem would drastically change, or it would completely disappear. As the name implies, these species are the keystone the ecosystem is based on; they are particularly important because, if they disappear, no other species can replace them. Keystone species are usually predators, but they might also include fungi and plants.


You are What You Eat: Strong to the Bones
(Food, Mood, and Behavior)

Did you know that 99% of your body's calcium is stored in your bones and teeth? This calcium makes up your bone bank. Calcium is "deposited" and "withdrawn" from your bone bank daily, based on your body's need for calcium. If your daily diet is low in calcium, calcium is "withdrawn" from your bone bank. Bone is broken down to keep your blood calcium level normal. 


Wildfires
(Earth Sciences)

Wildfires are enormous fires that occur in forests and areas with plant cover, and are very difficult to control.


Galapagos Islands: Threats and Conservation Efforts (3)
(Microorganism, Animal and Plant Life)

Over thousands of years, wildlife—plants and animals—formed their own unique ecosystems without any influence of outside forces until the Galapagos Islands underwent many changes, especially since the arrival of humans to the Islands. With the increase of the population, the demand for food also increased, causing an increase in fishing, poaching, hunting, in addition to an increase in the use of wood. 


Climate Migration: A Life-Threatening Danger
(Earth Sciences)

Now, an additional reason for migration has emerged: climate change. The problem is that the nature of this disaster has not yet been identified, whether it is a natural phenomenon or a human-made one.


You are What You Eat: Young Skin, No Cosmetics!
(Food, Mood, and Behavior)

The US cosmetics industry collected some $32 billion in 2004, with sales of skin care products bringing in the largest share. People spend loads of money on expensive cosmetics to treat skin problems; such as acne, wrinkles and dryness, while they overlook the cheapest, safest and most effective remedies: healing foods.


Galapagos Islands: The Laboratory of Evolution (2)
(Microorganism, Animal and Plant Life)

For more than 180 years, scientists have studied this rich ecosystem and its species. Among all the scientists, the Galapagos Islands were of great importance to Charles Darwin; it was the place that gave him the main idea of evolution by natural selection.


Plight of the Mighty
(Microorganism, Animal and Plant Life)

10 August, World Lion Day, is a celebration of the animal kingdom’s most beautiful and fearsome creature founded by Big Cat Rescue, the world’s largest accredited sanctuary dedicated to big cats. Though a fun and exciting occasion for all, its foundations are based in a very serious matter: lion numbers have dramatically declined to the point where the species needs to be placed on the endangered list.


If It Had Not Been for Our Climate…
(Earth Sciences)

Many people complain frequently, and I may understand this if it is of the challenges in life; yet, I am surprised by those who complain about our climate and surrounding nature. I always hear: "What a climate! Why does it not rain as it does in other countries? We do not have a lovely ambiance or spectacular scenes!" As if we have the choice to be in this nature or that!


Galapagos Islands: Endemic Species of the Galapagos (1)
(Microorganism, Animal and Plant Life)

If you are an adventurer and a nature lover, you have to add the Galapagos Islands to your bucket list. In addition to the lack of natural predators and friendly wildlife, these Islands are teeming with a diverse array of endemic plants and animals. This means that they are not found elsewhere in the world, thanks to the geographical isolation of the Islands from other places.


The Long-Awaited Virus-C Cure
(Health and Diseases)

There has been many speculations about recently discovered medications to cure hepatitis-C patients. Thus, it is our duty to shed light on and investigate the effectiveness of these medications, as well as the global efforts exerted to vanquish the disease in the very near future.


In Life, Play Chess, Not Checkers
(Food, Mood, and Behavior)

Benjamin Franklin wrote in 1779 that the game of chess “is not merely an idle amusement (since) life is a kind of chess, in which we have often points to gain, and competitors or adversaries to contend with, and in which there is a vast variety of good and evil events that are in some degree the effects of prudence or the want of it”.


How Do Fish Breathe?
(Microorganism, Animal and Plant Life)

There are some living organisms that cannot breathe the same way that mammals do because they do not have lungs, such as fish. If fish have a respiratory system similar to that of mammals, a single breath underwater will fill its lungs with fluids, making them useless.


You are What You Eat: Your Hair…Your Health!
(Food, Mood, and Behavior)

Not only does your hair form one of the important aspects of your personality, it also reflects your general health. It is very much vulnerable to the stresses and strains of your everyday life and also gets affected by the type and quality of food that you eat.


Could Coral Reefs Adapt to Climate Change?
(Microorganism, Animal and Plant Life)

The Red Sea in eastern Egypt is full of coral reefs that people from all over the world come just to take pictures next to them and enjoy watching them while diving. However, changes to Earth's climate in recent years have made coral reefs more vulnerable than before. Will they someday lose and be deprived of their habitats? This is what we explore in this article.


The Human Tendency for Cosmic Tragedy: NEOs
(Astronomy and Space Sciences)

Near-Earth Objects (NEOs) are comets and asteroids that have been nudged by the gravitational attraction of nearby planets into orbits that allow them to enter the Earth's neighborhood.


Feel the Movie
(Science in Arts and Culture)

The world we see has three dimensions: height, width, and depth. However, the movie industry is determined not to stop at just that.

Eratosthenes of Cyrene: Beta Teacher!
(Inventions and Innovations)

Eratosthenes of Cyrene was the third librarian of the Ancient Library of Alexandria, and one of the greatest scientists humanity has ever known. Eratosthenes, son of Aglaos, was born in Cyrene, Libya in 276 BCE; he passed away around 195 BCE.

Food Science and Food Conservation
(Food, Mood, and Behavior)

Food science is the discipline concerned with the biological, chemical, and physical aspects of food, from harvesting or slaughtering to consumption; that is, “from the farm to the fork”.


World Blood Donor Day: 14 June
(Human Body)

Do you remember the last time you donated blood? Millions of people need blood transfusions yearly and 54% of the recipients in low income countries are children below the age of five.


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SCIplanet is a bilingual edutainment science magazine published by the Bibliotheca Alexandrina Planetarium Science Center and developed by the Cultural Outreach Publications Unit ...
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