scuola energia e ambiente
Beginning of life
Between 3700 and 2500 million years ago, the Earth was born. Nothing was as it is today, neither the continents, nor the oceans, nor the atmosphere. In those times, the atmosphere was crossed by electric storms, and ultraviolet rays of the Sun. These phenomena transformed the substances that were present, by means of chemical reactions, into macromolecules that were able to reproduce and feed themselves. Life was born! Between 3200 and 2900 million years ago, thanks to the appearance of blue algae that could carry out chlorophyll photosynthesis, oxygen spread into the atmosphere. Thanks to the oxygen in the air and the nitrogen, life could also be transferred to the surfaces above the water. According to some scientists, life originated in puddles of water on the surface, others instead believe it originated in the ocean abysses, where there are sources of very hot water rich in minerals. To date, in these inhospitable environments we find bacteria that are able to live without light and receive energy from chemical oxidation of the sulphur compounds.
subjects dealt with in Beginning of life
The Beginning of life
Philosophers from ancient Greece believed that life was contained in matter itself and when conditions were favourable it would appear…
The evolution of life
The first living organisms we have proof of thanks to fossils, are three and a half billion years old. They…
Fossils
We may say that every day, palaeontology researches, active worldwide, present some new discovery : it may be a new…
special reports
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25 November 2014 / Life
Years of plastics
Waste, abandoned objects, disposed items, even though we try to ignore them, hide them and shift them, they pervade our…
3 November 2014 / Life
Conan the bacterium
Have you ever leafed through the pages of a book of Guinness World Records? You can find records of all…
7 October 2014 / Life
What language does science speak? 2nd part
There is an old proverb that says “the apple does not fall far from the tree ”. Apparently it seems…
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18 September 2014 / Life
What language does science speak?
Do you remember the game called “Chinese whispers”? All the participants had to stand in line and the game started…
2 July 2014 / Life
A hoax? No thank you, I prefer to find out myself!
In Italian, bufala: a hoax, also means a female buffalo – and a type of mozzarella cheese is made with…
31 August 2013 / Life
The Red List of Italian animals
Biodiversity in Italy Italy has a rich biodiversity due to its distinctive geographic, climatic and historical characteristics. In particular, there…
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4 April 2013 / Life
Carbon (14C) dating method
Radiocarbon dating In 1991, near the border between Austria and Italy, the body of the Similaun man, also known as…
27 September 2012 / Life
Over 7 billion people on Earth
World population hits 7 billion Demographers have estimated that on 31 October 2011 world population reached the 7 billion mark,…
11 June 2012 / Life
Bats, facts and fiction
Legend or fact? In ancient Rome, bats were nailed to the door of the house as a protection from witches…
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25 November 2014 / Life
Years of plastics
Waste, abandoned objects, disposed items, even though we try to ignore them, hide them and shift them, they pervade our…
3 November 2014 / Life
Conan the bacterium
Have you ever leafed through the pages of a book of Guinness World Records? You can find records of all…
-
7 October 2014 / Life
What language does science speak? 2nd part
There is an old proverb that says “the apple does not fall far from the tree ”. Apparently it seems…
18 September 2014 / Life
What language does science speak?
Do you remember the game called “Chinese whispers”? All the participants had to stand in line and the game started…
-
2 July 2014 / Life
A hoax? No thank you, I prefer to find out myself!
In Italian, bufala: a hoax, also means a female buffalo – and a type of mozzarella cheese is made with…
31 August 2013 / Life
The Red List of Italian animals
Biodiversity in Italy Italy has a rich biodiversity due to its distinctive geographic, climatic and historical characteristics. In particular, there…
25 November 2014 / Life
Years of plastics
Waste, abandoned objects, disposed items, even though we try to ignore them, hide them and shift them, they pervade our…
3 November 2014 / Life
Conan the bacterium
Have you ever leafed through the pages of a book of Guinness World Records? You can find records of all…
7 October 2014 / Life
What language does science speak? 2nd part
There is an old proverb that says “the apple does not fall far from the tree ”. Apparently it seems…
from the Multimedia section
curiosities
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The African elephant
The African elephant is the largest land animal living on our Planet. The male African elephant can reach a length…
Animal records
Long jump Snow leopard : 13 metres Springbok: 10 metres Kangaroo: 9 metres Flea: 35 cm, in other words, 220…
The biggest animal
The biggest living animal is the blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus). It can reach a length of 33 metres and weigh…
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Another camouflage …
In the gardens it is quite common to find the larvae of the Chrysomelidae family beetle, called lily beetle (Crioceris…
The biggest tree
The tallest tree in the world is called Hyperion . It is a Sequoia sempervirens and is 115.55 metres tall,…
The whale shark
The whale shark (Rhincodon typus) is the biggest fish in the world, in fact it can reach a length of…
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CO2 “eating” trees
If a tree “eats” CO2 and produces oxygen it is easy to understand the importance it has in reducing the…
Green for hope
Trees carry out an important hydrogeological function: the leaves protect the soil from erosion caused by rain and the roots…
The tree and the truffle
Truffles are hypogean (underground) fungi which grow in the presence of particular trees such as oaks, holm oaks and willows,…
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The African elephant
The African elephant is the largest land animal living on our Planet. The male African elephant can reach a length…
Animal records
Long jump Snow leopard : 13 metres Springbok: 10 metres Kangaroo: 9 metres Flea: 35 cm, in other words, 220…
-
The biggest animal
The biggest living animal is the blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus). It can reach a length of 33 metres and weigh…
Another camouflage …
In the gardens it is quite common to find the larvae of the Chrysomelidae family beetle, called lily beetle (Crioceris…
-
The biggest tree
The tallest tree in the world is called Hyperion . It is a Sequoia sempervirens and is 115.55 metres tall,…
The whale shark
The whale shark (Rhincodon typus) is the biggest fish in the world, in fact it can reach a length of…
The African elephant
The African elephant is the largest land animal living on our Planet. The male African elephant can reach a length…
Animal records
Long jump Snow leopard : 13 metres Springbok: 10 metres Kangaroo: 9 metres Flea: 35 cm, in other words, 220…
The biggest animal
The biggest living animal is the blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus). It can reach a length of 33 metres and weigh…