Curio Cabinet

It's Flashback Friday! Enjoy this favorite from the Curio Cabinet archives.
 

It turns out canine noses are as good at locating heat sources as smells. In fact, a 2020 study conducted at Sweden's Lund University gave strong evidence that dog noses function like infrared heat sensors. The study was fairly simple. First, scientists trained three dogs to approach objects warmed to 80 degrees Fahrenheit. Then the researchers placed one of these warmed objects into a container sealed with electrical tape, aside an identical, room-temperature control box. When tasked with selecting the box with the warm object, the dogs succeeded over and over. This intrigued the team, so they placed 13 similarly-trained dogs into an fMRI scanner. The pooches' left somatosensory cortices in their brains all lit up when introduced to the heated object. Researchers are uncertain how the dogs do this, but they believe the rhinarium is partially responsible. The rhinarium is the moist, sniffly, nerve-loaded tip of a dog's nose, which has up to 300 million olfactory receptors. Considering the rhinarium's ability to overcome the experiment's physical barriers, the appendage seems to function as a thermal radiation sensor, meaning it detects infrared radiation directly from bodies or shifting photons. This differs from conduction sensors, which measure heat transfer through direct contact, and convection sensors, which pick up on heat passing through mediums. Dogs have officially joined the ranks of other heat-sensing animals, like snakes, bats, and certain beetles. It's interesting to note that the standard prey of dogs and wolves tend to have very thick coats of fur relative to their body mass. So it seems those smaller mammals have adapted to give off less heat, to slip under the rhinarium's radar. But even then, the dogs still have their smelling ability. If dogs are "man's best friend," then I think physics are dogs' best friend!
 

Image credit & copyright: loriklaszlo/Depositphotos
 

Who needs a dark side of the Moon when it can disappear altogether? Scientists have recently uncovered an explanation to the Moon's disappearance for a night in medieval England. On the night of May 5, 1110 C.E. a total lunar eclipse was documented in the middle of the night, lasting into the day time. According to researchers from the University of Geneva in Switzerland, the secret to the eclipse was in the trees and snow: ice core samples taken from glaciers date sulphuric aerosol particles from volcanic activity to 1110 C.E. In addition, tree rings dating from the same period reveal unusually ring thinning and cold weather for the year. Several accounts from the time note crop failures, famine, and other incidents of unfavorable weather. While previous research pointed to an eruption at Iceland's Hekla volcano as the cause of the lunar eclipse, the University of Geneva researchers point to a months-long eruption at Japan's Mount Asama in 1108 as the likely culprit of the blackout. Whatever the reasons, we bet the visible moon couldn't come back fast enough on May 6th.
 

Image credit & copyright: CoffmanCMU / Getty Images / iStockphoto
 

Written by: Esther P.

If you're a fan of movie chase scenes, you're likely familiar with the Los Angeles River. The dreary, and rather dystopian river is about to undergo a facelift, thanks to renowned architect Frank Gehry. Before 1941, the Los Angeles river flowed freely from the foothills of the Simi Hills and the Santa Monica and Santa Susana Mountains all the way to the Pacific Ocean. That year, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers completed the Sepulveda Dam, a project commissioned in response to historic flooding in 1938. They also built concrete channels from Elysian Park to Long Beach to prevent the 51-mile river from spilling out of its banks again. Unfortunately, these measures left the LA River looking like an open-air sewer fed by runoff and wastewater. In 2009, the nonprofit River LA formed with the mission of reviving the river. By reinvigorating the riparian zone, supporters hope to improve air and water quality, and provide much-needed green spaces for neighboring communities. After all, a quarter of all Angelenos live within a mile of the river.
 

In 2015, the city of Los Angeles provided funding to River LA to commission a study on the river. To many people's surprise, they selected Frank Gehry and his team for the project. While Gehry's designs—from the Loyola Law School and Walt Disney Concert Hall downtown to the Chiat/Day Complex in Venice—already mark the Los Angeles landscape, they are not known for blending into their environments. Nonetheless, Gehry and his team bravely took on the task, working pro bono to research the river. They compiled and published data regarding water flow, land use, public health, and more. Ultimately, Gehry realized revitalizing the river meant working with the existing structure. Although most people agree the concrete is an eyesore, reconfiguring it would endanger nearby communities.
 

One solution Gehry recently shared is a $150-million cultural center at the confluence of the Los Angeles River and Rio Hondo River in the South Gate community. Gehry's design features wide, elevated platforms covered in green space. Spanning the river, and extending 3 miles, the platforms will be several times larger than New York City's Central Park. Not only will they serve as important sites for community gatherings and recreational activities, but they will also host local flora and fauna. (The region is a biodiversity hotspot with over 45,000 endemic species.) Of course, Gehry's plan is not without controversy. Critics worry he's only adding more concrete. Until Gehry's master plan to revitalize the river is released next year, we can only speculate. Here's to hoping for an urban oasis!
 

Below, Frank Gehry discusses the project:

 
Image credit & copyright: A sketch of Gehry’s platforming concept for a three-mile stretch of the L.A. River, which would create acres of parkland above the existing riverbed. Courtesy of Oline / Richard Roark.

Thank you, thank you very much, vaccines. As the COVID-19 vaccines roll out this year, we're reminded of Elvis Presley's role in promoting polio vaccinations. Just before his second appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show on October 28, 1956, the King posed for photos while receiving the new polio vaccine. Presley had been recruited by the National Foundation for Infantile Paralysis (NFIP, later renamed March of Dimes) to help promote the vaccine among teenagers and young adults. Those populations were not being sufficiently immunized, even though they were a vulnerable population. The NFIP would further court Presley's audience by having him record public service announcements, holding exclusive "Salk hops"—named after the inventor of the polio vaccine Jonas Salk, and offering signed photos to Elvis fan clubs who could prove all of their members were vaccinated. The efforts by Presley and the NFIP helped polio cases drop by 81% between the years of 1955 and 1957. Now that's what we call a little less conversation, a little more vaccinations!

 

Image credit & copyright: Seymour Wally / NY Daily News Archive via Getty Images
 

Written by: Esther P.