Diamond Catalyst Shows Promise in Assessment

Based on these findings, researchers believe that lower elevation with drier environments is being heavily impacted by temperature changes. This not only threatens the ecology of these lower elevation sites, but it also could contribute more to the rapid changes in greenhouse gases. Without forests to be able to repopulate themselves, there will be fewer trees to produce oxygen through consuming carbon dioxide. This may increase the levels of greenhouse gases, making climate change even more dangerous to local environments.

References

Science Daily. (2013). Climate change threatens forest survival on drier, low-elevation land. Science News. Web. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/06/130628103145.htm

Article 6: "The Quantum Secret to Alcohol Reactions in Space"

The nature of space is so different from out environment here on earth. Chemical processes are often much different than how they would react on the planet. As such, the article "The Quantum Secret to Alcohol Reactions in Space," published on Science Daily on June 30th, 2013, discusses some of the reasons why strange chemical reactions take place in space like no where else in the universe.

The nature of space is still so strange to scientists. Essentially, "it's the harsh environment that makes space-based chemistry so difficult to understand; the extremely cold conditions should put a stop to chemical reactions, as there isn't sufficient energy to rearrange chemical bonds" (Science Daily, 2013). Yet, that is not the case. Chemical reactions still take place all the time in the cold, harsh conditions of space. A true understanding of how and why this happens has eluded scientists for generations.

Recently, chemists have uncovered evidence of why strange alcohol reactions can take place in unlikely environmental conditions. Researchers now theorize that the dust grains in interstellar clouds help propel the onset of various chemical reactions, even despite such low availability of heat and energy deep in space. A highly reactive molecule known as methoxy radical was recently found in space, and scientists were determined to find out why it was there. Essentially, scientists believe that these dust grains act as a medium to help boost the level of energy needed to produce such complex chemical compounds. They helped facilitate quantum tunneling that allowed for ongoing chemical reactions. Scientists recreated similar space-like environments and were surprised with how reactive substances were. This has prompted for more research on the nature of chemical reactions in space.

References

Science Daily. (2013). The quantum secret to alcohol reactions in space. Science News. Web. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/06/130630145004.htm