If you want to study the stars you need a telescope out in space, NASA must have thought when it launched the Kelpler Space Telescope in March 2009. Named after astronomer Johannes Kepler, the space observatory was launched in an Earth-trailing heliocentric orbit. It was supposed to be a mission that lasted three and a half years, but ended up surviving nearly nine years.

Now the space telescope which allowed observers on Earth to study a huge number of planets and stars has just enough fuel left for a few more months. Once it ends, NASA says that the mission will be over as contact with the space telescope will be lost. However, that doesn’t mean that the human beings will not have other sources of data in the future.

NASA is all set to launch Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite or TESS to help search for other planets that could support life. The launch for TESS is planned for April 16th from Florida. The advantage of new technology will allow TESS to see more, and share more tha what Kepler ever could. This is one follow up science project from which the researchers at NASA can expect to learn a whole lot more.

To beat the expensive housing situation in Hong Kong, architect James Law has come up with what many may consider a pipe dream. The micro apartments that James Law has designed are constructed inside 2 sections of 8 foot diameter drainage pipes. The pipes are fitted with glass doors on both ends and have a living area with a bench. The bench converts into a bed and has a set of shelves on the facing curved wall.

One shelf fits a bar fridge and a microwave which is placed next to a gallery sink. The pipe apartment even boasts of air conditioning, not to mention a tiled bathroom at one end which has a combined shower and toilet. No bathtubs in this space, but it’s cheap to build at just $15,000 and is being rented out at $400 per month. This is quite cheap for Honk Kong and given the fact that it is a 100 square foot area.

The design makes it much more spacious than the ‘coffin’ and ‘cage’ homes which are constructed from subdividing older apartments. Another advantage of these OPODs is that they can be stacked into the gaps between existing building. This saves space on an already crowed island. Here’s one science experiment which may just succeed in creating housing in areas such as under highway passed or even on the roofs of already existing buildings.

The idea of becoming an astronaut is an exciting one. The journey to actually traveling to outer space a much more demanding adventure. You would expect a person who has undergone this experience to change after it’s all done. However, some of the changes may be ones that were rather unexpected, such as changes to the astronaut’s DNA.

NASA has been studying astronaut Scott  Kelly after he spent a year in space. The man has an Earth bound twin named Mark Kelly and the study focused on the differences between the two. Both physiological and psychological changes were expected and found. Not only did Scott have trouble readjusting to the gravity after his return to Earth, there were changes at a physical level to his DNA.

the telomeres or end caps of the chromosomes had become significantly longer after his prolonged stay in outer space. While 93% of these genes returned to normal after he landed back, about 7% of them were still  longer than normal. Several of them related to his immune system, bone formation, hypoxia and hypercapnia along with his DNA’s self repairing ability. Now this is a scientific study that proves that being in outer space really changes you.

It’s not always possible to get a bird’s eye view of the world around us. Yes, Google Earth may provide you with photos and a street view, but it can’t tell what lies underneath the building. Lidar, which rhymes with eyedar, is an aerial light detection and ranging technology. It works by sending laser pulses from a plane, helicopter or drone. The information is then collected by the Lidar device about the surface below.

Possible uses for Lidar include urban planning. It can give you a good idea about how the geometry of the city flows. What buildings will cast shadows on the park. The trees that are now ready to be trimmed so that they don’t fall during a storm on top of a house. Which streets are likely to be most windy, and which part of the town is most likely to be vulnerable to starting a flood. All this information can be gained by studying the data of a Lidar.

Not only is the information gained about above the ground structures, such as what all restaurants have a ramp to allow the handicapped in a wheelchair easy access, the technology also gives us a view under the ground. It can tell where historical properties may be weakening due to underground tunneling. Using the Lidar makes for an exciting science experiment.

As the planet’s population grows, the pressure on it’s limited resources increases. In order for us to make the most of the future, we need to adopt a healthier approach to living in harmony with our surroundings. Human activity has already changed the landscape and the climate. It may not be long before it reached the point of no return and causes us to have a breakdown in our current way of life.

Perhaps it is now out of the hands of the government and politicians to orchestrate a change. Perhaps it is now time to see who the actual agents of change can be. Those who care about the planet and it’s future. Those who are willing to create a lifestyle that is actually sustainable, eco friendly and replicated easily.

It is the cities that need to come together with their locally run businesses and citizens. They are the people on ground who can make the small changes that will add up to the big changes that are needed by the planet. It would make an interesting science project to find out just what a family of four could contribute to a sustainable living effort. Think of all the ways that small actions could be incorporated into family level activities.

That little plastic straw that comes attached to your juice box may seem so trivial a matter to be up in arms about, till you really listen to what the environmentalists are telling you. More than 500 million straws are used on the planet everyday. That’s enough to circle the Earth two and half times.

The plastic straws take nearly 200 years to decompose completely. That means every plastic straw that was ever manufactured is still in existence on the planet today. What’s worse, the places that recycle plastic are unable to recycle straws. This means the number of straws is constantly increasing.

Since most litter ends up in the ocean, the straws in the ocean are constantly increasing. This affects the marine ecology. Many sea animals and fish are hurt due to plastic straws. Either because it was hard and poked them, or they ate it and died because they couldn’t digest it.

Think about the number of straws that you used today. Would you really require so many if you could use a glass to empty your tetra pack drink into? Or even drink directly from the bottle? It would make an interesting science project to find out just how many plastic straws are used in a household in a month.