(Press-News.org) Alexandria, VA -- The universe is repulsive, but in a good way. In 2008, while studying bursts of light emitted from exploding stars, newly named Nobel Laureates Adam Riess, Saul Perlmutter and Brian P. Schmidt discovered one of the most mysterious, yet prevalent, components of our universe: dark energy. The three were using the brightness and color from supernovae to determine the speed with which the universe expanded in the past, versus how fast it is expanding now. What they discovered completely transformed how astronomers view the evolution of space. The growth of our universe through time is accelerating. The culprit? Dark energy.
Astronomers and astrophysicists previously thought that the increasing amount of matter within our universe would cause the speed of space expansion to decrease over time. This assumed that all of the newly formed matter would have attractive forces that dragged and pulled at the edges of space. However, dark energy, which comprises approximately 70 percent of our universe, is in fact a repulsive force. And, although the universe has always been expanding, in recent years (which, in astronomical terms means in the past 5 billion years), it has also been accelerating.
###
In September's issue of EARTH magazine, Adam Riess told EARTH about what dark energy is, the implications of his discovery (for which he won the Nobel Prize in physics, as announced this week), and the future of his research.
This story and many more can be found in EARTH magazine, available online at http://www.earthmagazine.org/earth/article/499-7db-a-4.
Subscribe to EARTH magazine to stay up-to-date on the latest in Earth and space science news! EARTH magazine is your source for the science behind the headlines.
The American Geosciences Institute is a nonprofit federation of 50 geoscientific and professional associations that represents more than 250,000 geologists, geophysicists and other earth scientists. Founded in 1948, AGI provides information services to geoscientists, serves as a voice of shared interests in the profession, plays a major role in strengthening geoscience education, and strives to increase public awareness of the vital role the geosciences play in society's use of resources, resiliency to natural hazards, and interaction with the environment.
EARTH: down to earth with Nobel Prize winner Adam Riess
2011-10-06
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
You can wash away your troubles, with soap
2011-10-06
"Wash away my troubles, wash away my pain," goes the song. Is there such a thing as soap and water for the psyche? Yes: Metaphor is that powerful, say Spike W.S. Lee and Norbert Schwarz of the University of Michigan in a literature review appearing in the latest issue of Current Directions in Psychological Science, a journal published by the Association for Psychological Science.
Religious rites like baptism make psychological sense, the article suggests. Says Lee: "Cleansing is about the removal of residues." By washing the hands, taking a shower, or even thinking of ...
Atlanta Tinting Company The Tint Guy Offers Commercial Window Tinting Services
2011-10-06
Atlanta tinting company The Tint Guy has been helping local business cut down on their energy costs this summer by installing protective window film on office windows throughout the city. Specializing in commercial, residential, and automotive window tinting in Atlanta, The Tint Guy provides only the highest quality window tint Atlanta has available.
Commercial tinting is one of the most cost-efficient options for improving an office building, capable of recovering its cost in energy savings within a short period of time. The larger the building, the more potential to ...
Virginia Commonwealth University study: We are what we experience
2011-10-06
Our life experiences -- the ups and downs, and everything in between -- shape us, stay with us and influence our emotional set point as adults, according to a new study led by Virginia Commonwealth University researchers.
The study suggests that, in addition to our genes, our life experiences are important influences on our levels of anxiety and depression.
"In this time of emphasis on genes for this and that trait, it is important to remember that our environmental experiences also make important contributions to who we are as people," said principal investigator ...
New potential therapeutic target for breast cancer
2011-10-06
New Rochelle, NY, October 5, 2011 -- A possible new target for breast cancer therapy comes from the discovery that the Tyk2 protein helps suppress the growth and metastasis of breast tumors, as reported in Journal of Interferon & Cytokine Research, a peer-reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. The article is available free online for the next week at http://www.liebertpub.com/jir.
Qifang Zhang and Andrew Larner, Virginia Commonwealth University (Richmond, VA), and colleagues from VCU, Temple University School of Medicine (Philadelphia, PA), Jagiellonian ...
Atlanta Moving Company Atlanta Peach Movers Advise Extra Care for Moving Specialty Items
2011-10-06
The professionals at Atlanta Peach Movers, a full service Atlanta moving company specializing in local and long distance moves, remind Atlanta residents of the importance of hiring a professional moving service to move fragile or bulky items such as pianos, paintings, or arcade games. These items are valuable and often irreplaceable, and require special care when being moved. The Atlanta long distance movers at Atlanta Peach Movers are highly trained and experienced in moving all types of specialty items.
In addition to Atlanta moving services, Atlanta Peach Movers ...
New study shows inflammatory food toxins found in high levels in infants
2011-10-06
Researchers from Mount Sinai School of Medicine have found high levels of food toxins called Advanced Glycation End products (AGEs) in infants. Excessive food AGEs, through both maternal blood transmission and baby formula, could together significantly increase children's risk for diseases such as diabetes from a very young age. A second study of AGEs in adults found that cutting back on processed, grilled, and fried foods, which are high in AGEs, may improve insulin resistance in people with diabetes. AGEs -- toxic glucose byproducts previously tied to high blood sugar ...
Can peer mentors help teens lose weight? new strategies for combatting teen obesity
2011-10-06
New Rochelle, NY, October 5, 2011 -- Obesity among adolescents has more than tripled over the past 40 years, and recent estimates find that over 18% of teens in the U.S. are obese. Education and mentoring targeting obesity and delivered in high schools by peers has been shown to have a significant impact on teen diet and physical activity, according to a study published in Childhood Obesity, a peer-reviewed journal published by Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.(http://www.liebertpub.com) The article "Effect of HealthCorps, a High School Peer Mentoring Program, on Youth Diet and Physical ...
I&K International Limited Offer Customers the Chance to Get a Free Makeup Bag
2011-10-06
I&K International Limited has announced an exciting new offer, whereby clients at Hairtrade.com will receive a free makeup bag when they buy any 3 items at the online store.
Customers shopping at Hairtrade.com - the UKs leading online hair care and hair extensions supplier - will be able to take advantage of the offer up until the 15th of October 2011.
Hairtrade.com has found a great deal of success since it started to supply all kinds of hair extension products back in 2005, and is now considered a must-visit for shoppers interested in hair extensions and wigs. ...
Invasive melanoma may be more likely in children than adults
2011-10-06
A Johns Hopkins Children's Center study of young people with melanoma, a deadly form of skin cancer, has found that some children have a higher risk of invasive disease than adults.
The study, published online Oct. 5 in the journal Cancer, is believed to be the first to compare disease spread in children and adults, and the results suggest some profound biological differences between childhood and adult melanoma, the researchers say.
The Johns Hopkins team analyzed five years of medical records tracking 717 children and 1,368 young adults (ages 20 through 24) diagnosed ...
Illusory memories can have salutary effects
2011-10-06
"False memories tend to get a bad rap," says developmental psychologist Mark L. Howe, of Lancaster University in England. Indeed, remembering events incorrectly or remembering events that didn't happen can have grave consequences, such as the criminal conviction of an innocent person. "But false memories are a natural outcropping of memory in general. They must have some positive effect, too."
That argument -- that memory illusions were evolutionarily adaptive and remain useful for psychological well being and problem-solving -- is the subject of an intriguing paper in ...