Saman Herath

Scientists just replaced plastic with bamboo and the results are extraordinary. 🌿 Researchers at Northeast Forestry University and Shenyang University of Chemical Technology in China have engineered a fully biodegradable plastic made entirely from bamboo cellulose. Unlike old bamboo composites that still relied on petroleum-based resins, this new material is built from bamboo at the molecular level. It achieves a tensile strength of 110 megapascals, roughly double that of conventional bioplastics like polylactic acid, making it strong enough for use in cars, appliances, and infrastructure.
What makes this truly game-changing is what happens at the end of its life. The material fully biodegrades in soil within 50 days and retains 90 percent of its original strength even after recycling, supporting a true closed-loop economy. 🌍 The study was published in Nature Communications in October 2025. Plastic has polluted our planet for generations and this single plant may finally help us undo that damage. The future of materials might just be growing in a forest.

📚 Source: Zhao et al., Nature Communications, 2025. Northeast Forestry University and Shenyang University of Chemical Technology, China.

Some life on Earth thrives where survival seems impossible.
From deep-sea hydrothermal vents to the vacuum of space and intense radiation zones, these extraordinary organisms push the limits of biology.
The Pompeii worm, tardigrade, and Deinococcus radiodurans demonstrate how life can adapt to extreme heat, pressure, radiation, and desiccation in ways that challenge our understanding of survival.

For the first time, a woman is heading to the Moon.

NASA astronaut Christina Koch is set to fly on Artemis II, a roughly 10-day mission that will send four astronauts around the Moon. No woman has ever traveled this far from Earth before.

Koch will serve as mission specialist aboard the Orion spacecraft, helping test life support, navigation, and communication systems as the crew travels hundreds of thousands of miles from Earth.

She already holds the record for the longest single spaceflight by a woman at 328 days (528 days) and was part of the first all-female spacewalk in 2019.

Since the Apollo era, nearly 90% of astronauts have been men. Artemis II marks a shift, not just in technology, but in who gets to explore beyond our planet.

“If there’s something to celebrate it’s that we are at a time when anyone who has a dream gets to work equally hard to achieve that dream. If we’re not going for all and by all, we’re not truly answering all of humanity’s call to explore,” Koch said.

Under a microscope, sand reveals a hidden world of intricate shapes and colors that are invisible to the naked eye.
Each grain is unique, often formed from fragments of minerals, shells, coral, or volcanic material.
Some grains appear smooth and rounded, while others are jagged and sharp, reflecting their geological history.
You may see translucent quartz crystals, colorful feldspar pieces, or tiny shell fragments with delicate patterns.
This microscopic view transforms ordinary sand into a fascinating collection of natural micro-sculptures.

We're going back to the Moon today – the first time in over 50 years!

The countdown has officially begun.

NASA’s Artemis II mission is set to launch four astronauts on a 10-day journey around the Moon, marking the first crewed lunar mission since 1972. Riding a 322-foot (98-meter) rocket, the crew will travel thousands of miles beyond Earth, loop around the Moon, and return for a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean.

This mission won’t land on the surface, but it’s a critical test. Engineers will evaluate life support systems, navigation, and deep space operations before attempting a landing in future missions.

The last time humans ventured this far was during Apollo 17. Now, more than five decades later, the goal is bigger than flags and footprints. NASA aims to build a sustained presence on the Moon and use it as a stepping stone to Mars.