Popular Science
The first
year of the new millennium has produced some tantalizing discoveries
that will likely serve as starting points for a variety of new
scientific missions.
Just consider
the events of the past year. If the possibility of water flowing
on Mars doesn't whet your appetite for space exploration, maybe
the black hole at the center of our galaxy will do the trick.
If your inclinations
are more earthbound, there is still plenty to fire the imagination.
Cloning continues to weave itself into our lives, most recently
as a possible source of human organ transplants. Insights as to
what makes us human are coming from the first blueprint of our
genetic structure, and from the discovery of tiny fossilized monkeys
that may be our earliest ancestors. A lost Mayan palace found
in the Guatemalan jungle may shed light on how that culture evolved,
with lessons to be learned by our own society. Closer to home,
a restoration plan for the Florida Everglades may help preserve
the area for future generations.
Why care about
wetlands? Maybe because scientists now believe they can produce
hydrogen fuel from pond scum, of all things. Perhaps the most
remarkable advance of all is our own thinking about science. Unlike
those pundits of a century ago, the smart money is betting that
more surprising discoveries lie ahead.
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