High Tectonic Stress in Southern California

 

San Andreas Fault 

The San Andreas fault and a neighboring fault in Southern California have reached their highest levels of tectonic stress in 1,000 years, and a rupture at one fault could propagate to the other, researchers found.

The results of a study published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, suggest the San Andreas and San Jacinto faults are primed for an Earth-shattering rupture, which may involve the earthquake gate at Cajon Pass opening to unleash more destruction than a single-fault event would on its own.

Cajon Pass, where the San Andreas and San Jacinto faults connect, is an "earthquake gate" that can facilitate the spread of ruptures.

The San Andreas and San Jacinto faults have caused 36 earthquakes with magnitudes of 6.4 or above in the past 1,000 years. Southern California's last "big one" was a magnitude 7.9 event in 1857, when a 205-mile (330 kilometers) segment of the San Andreas fault slipped horizontally between Parkfield and Cajon Pass. That rupture did not propagate through Cajon Pass, but a similar megaquake in 1812 did, suggesting this could happen again in what is now a much more built-up and densely populated environment, according to the study.

Read more here: 'The system is critically stressed': San Andreas and San Jacinto faults scarily close to major earthquake, study finds | Live Science

Moon Station by 2032

The far side of the Moon experiences 14 days of continuous sunlight, 

followed by 14 days of total darkness.

NASA is building a permanent base at the lunar South Pole. The project utilizes commercial landers like Blue Origin’s and rovers from companies such as Astrolab and Lunar Outpost. The goal is to achieve early, semi-permanent habitation capability by 2029, and a continuous human presence by 2032.

NASA is procuring the technologies required to sustain a sprawling, miles-long base in a dark, extremely cold environment at the Moon's South Pole. NASA believes that this region of the Moon's surface presents the best access to water ice and minerals. The base will be a hub for mining and processing local resources for long-term habitation and fuel production.

The initial phase involves a rapid series of robotic and cargo missions to scout the South Pole, test technologies, and prepare for human surface operations. Commercial payloads are being delivered using landers with proven heritage to reduce risk for future crewed landings.

Read more here: 2-building-the-moon-base.pdf

Hydrogen from Breadcrumbs?

 

Bread, the staff of life. Christ, the Bread of Life. 

From Bread comes life supporting hydrogen.

Breadcrumbs from food waste could replace fossil fuels as a source of hydrogen in one of the most common chemical reactions used in chemical manufacturing, new research suggests.

The new process, reported Feb. 23 in the journal Nature Chemistry, combines natural fermentation processes in bacteria with metal catalysis to generate an array of valuable chemical products from simple food waste. Calculations showed that this hybrid procedure was carbon negative overall, and the authors think it could be the first step in reimagining chemical manufacturing as a more sustainable industry.

Read about it here: Chemists make hydrogen from breadcrumbs in groundbreaking reaction that could replace some fossil fuels | Live Science

Chinese Produce Hexagonal Diamonds

 

Vredefort Crater Dome in South Africa seen from space with the Operational Land Imager on Landsat 8, 27 June 2018. The largest known meteor crater on earth.

Chinese researchers claim to have made the first samples of pure hexagonal diamond or lonsdaleite. Lonsdaleite is a rare, ultra-hard carbon allotrope found in meteorite impact sites and synthesized in lab. It's hexagonal crystal structure makes it theoretically up to 58% harder than regular cubic diamonds. It is highly prized for potential industrial applications in cutting and drilling due to its superior stiffness, stability, and hardness.

The biggest challenge in identifying lonsdaleite is the lack of pure samples; in many cases, it is mixed with cubic diamond, graphite and other minerals. This makes it difficult ‪—‬ or even impossible ‪—‬ to test and measure its unique properties.

The new study, published March 4 in the journal Nature, addressed this problem by creating several pure hexagonal diamond samples about 0.06 inches (1.5 millimeters) in diameter ‪—‬ big enough to measure the samples' material properties. The team found that hexagonal diamond is both stiffer and harder than cubic diamond, and that it resists oxidation much more than cubic diamond does.

Read more here: Chinese scientists create rare 'hexagonal diamond' that's harder than natural diamond | Live Science

Early Alzheimer's Onset Responds to Single Protein

 

A single gene mutation protects against Alzheimer's disease in people destined to get the disease very young — and now we know why.

The gene mutation affects a protein called reelin that directs brain cells to shred the probable culprits in the disease — toxic amyloid plaques and tau tangles. The mutation makes reelin work much more efficiently, new research reveals.

The finding could point the way towards transformative therapies for the condition, experts said.

The new research, published in December 2025 in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, has identified exactly how the COLBOS mutation protected the patient's brain for decades.

Single protein could dramatically alter trajectory of Alzheimer's disease | Live Science

The Brilliant Qanats of Iran

 

Iran has an extensive system of underground irrigation tunnels called "qanats". About 36300 qanats have been found so far. These highlight the resourcefulness and innovation of ancient Persia (Iran). Most are in Isfahan province in the center of the country. Isfahan province is one of the 31 provinces of Iran.

Qanat of Moon

© ICQHS

Author: ICQHS Archive

The qanats are ancient, gravity-fed underground aqueducts that transport water from mountain aquifers to arid plains. They are hand-dug tunnels and vertical shafts and represent a sophisticated, sustainable water management system with several networks now UNESCO World Heritage sites.

These tunnels were made famous by the book Blind White Fish in Persia, a 1953 book by Anthony Smith is which he chronicles a 1950 Oxford University expedition to Iran to find blind, white fish in the country's qanats. While the expedition failed to find the fish, the book became a classic travelogue, detailing the unique qanat system and the rural Persian life encountered by Smith and his companion.

Persian Qanat | Iranian Invention - Iran Safar; The Pigeon Towers of Isfahan Province; The Wind Towers of Persia; Ice Houses in the Persian Desert

The Pigeon Towers of Isfahan Province

 

For centuries the farmers of Isfahan Province in Iran relied on pigeon guano to fertilize their famous melon crops. The towers provided nesting for the pigeons, and their droppings were collected in 3000 squat, circular pigeon towers, each able to house about 14,000 birds. 

Today the pigeon towers are no longer used, but many can be seen along the Zayandeh River south of the Ateshkadeh-ye Esfahan (Fire Temple of Isfahan). Today only around 700 of the pigeon towers remain in the Province.

Read more here: Pigeon Towers of Iran - Everything about Iranian Dovecotes; The Brilliant Qanats of Iran; Ice Houses in the Persian Desert; The Wind Towers of Persia