From a newly discovered eighth continent to a whole new form of matter, today we look
at the 10 Most Mind Blowing Discoveries From 2017!
Number 10.
"CRISPR" Imagine being able to prevent disease and
genetic defects before a human is even born.
Well, in 2017 scientists made significant strides towards being able to edit our genes.
Chinese scientists became the first to successfully use a new gene editing tool called CRISPR-Cas9.
CRISPR is an injectable DNA construct that can alter the genes of humans and other living
organisms.
Specifically it uses an enzyme to remove the part of the DNA that isn't working properly
or is damaged and then replaces it with a new DNA sequence.
The Chinese successfully used this tool to complete the first two steps in process designed
to treat a patient with lung cancer.
The United States plans on conducting their first trial using CRISPR in the coming months
and many see this research as the leading component of a new international science race
between the U.S. and China.
Number 9.
"Another Earth?"
The quest to find life outside of our own planet ramped up in 2017 as astronomers discovered
three new Earth-like planets.
These planets are around 40 light years away orbiting the star TRAPPIST-1 and are perfectly
situated within the Goldilocks zone, or the location most likely to support life like
ours.
The planets were discovered by the Belgian astronomer Michael Gillon and a team of researchers
when they noticed them as shadows dimming the light in front of TRAPPIST.
Though not much can be inferred about the third planet of the group that is farthest
away from the star, they have been able to deduce that the first two planets are about
the same size as earth and though they probably receive as much as four times the radiation
from the star as we do our sun, the are in the prime area to potentially host liquid
water.
Unfortunately we can't yet get an up close and personal look at the planets as with our
current space travel capabilities it would take millions of years to reach them.
Number 8.
"Fountain of Youth" What if your body would age to a certain point
and then have the ability to trigger a process that reverses the aging process, theoretically
letting you live forever?
Well this idea may not be the stuff of science fiction for long, as there is a new therapy
that has been proven to work in mice that reverses their aging.
Scientists at Harvard University has been studying a compound with almost miraculous
anti-aging abilities called NAD+.
They found that when they increased the levels of this naturally occurring chemical in mice
that not only did the test mice appear younger than other mice their age, but there were
signs that their DNA's ability to repair itself increased and the deterioration caused naturally
by aging in their muscles was reversing.
So what does this mean for humans?
Well a company named MetroBiotech has developed a similar compound to NAD+ and put it in a
capsule, with plans to test it on humans in the near future.
Number 7.
"Zealandia" How many continents are there?
Up until 2017, the correct answer would be 7, but due to the efforts of Geoscientists
our geography books might soon be adding one more.
This is the continent of Zealandia and though over 90 percent of it is submerged under the
Pacific Ocean, the scientific community has officially recognized it as the 8th geological
continent.
How can Zealandia be a continent despite its underwater nature?
Well it meets the four requirements of the definition of a continent.
First, its crust must be thicker than 7 kilometers and Zealandia's crust averages about 20 kilometers
in thickness.
Second, it must be made up of several different types of rocks and mineral, which it is.
Third, it must be isolated from other continents via prominent geological features.
It is very close to the continent of Australia, however, it is separated by Cato Trough which
is well over 3,000 meters in depth.
Fourth and the most critical parameter is that it has to be significantly elevated over
the oceanic crust which it is, even though it is covered in ocean.
If you want to visit Zealandia the largest portion of it that isn't underwater is the
southern island of New Zealand.
Number 6.
"Useful Mucus" What does the slimy skin of a frog have to
do with curing one of the most devastating illnesses around today?
It turns out more than you would probably guess, as scientists have found a special
chemical in the mucus of one particular frog.
The frog, known as Hydrophylax bahuvistara, is found in the southern regions of India
and in the mucus that it's skin secretes there is an antimicrobial peptide that has some
astonishing qualities.
The chemical that is made up of amino acids has been found to annihilate a considerable
variety of influenza A viruses.
Amazingly, the peptide also hasn't been found to have any ill-effects on the red blood cells
of humans.
The team of scientists who have been studying the chemical have named it 'urumin' after
a type of blade used in a type of Indian martial arts.
Although it has proven quite effective, it still will probably be years before urumin
passes through all the necessary trials in order to be approved for use in hospitals
and doctor's offices.
Number 5.
"Water Harvester" Imagine being stuck in the Sahara desert without
fresh water around for miles, but instead of succumbing to dehydration (as you would
have likely done in the past) you take a device out of your backpack, flip a switch and voila,
and instant glass of water.
Though this is an exaggerated example, the possibility is closer than you think, as research
teams from the University of California, Berkeley and MIT invented a machine that can literally
suck water from thin air.
This is called the solar-powered harvester and has even proven to be effective in places
with lower than twenty percent humidity.
The gizmo is made using an innovative material known as metal-organic framework which has
incredible gas and liquid storing power.
The solar-powered harvester uses the framework for storage and then the processes of diffusion
and condensation to siphon water from the air.
As of now, the device is only in its prototype phase but that hasn't stopped research teams
and companies all of the world from trying replicate it and improve it's design.
Number 4.
"Human-Pig Hybrid" What if when a human heart becomes irreparably
damaged or infected by a disease like cancer, doctors could just replace it with a brand
new heart that they picked off of a tree?
Well the tree notwithstanding, the idea of being able to grow replacement organs like
crops took another giant leap forward in 2017 as scientists created the first human-pig
hybrid.
What may sound like something horrifying and straight out of the Island of Dr. Moreau,
actually isn't what it seems.
Yes, the scientists put human DNA into the embryo of a swine but you don't have to worry
about ManBearPig showing up at your doorstep anytime soon.
The true endgame is creating a pig that has organs almost identical to a human's that
can be used as transplants for patients in need.
The first human-pig hybrid was created by combining the cells of the two species inside
a pig embryo creating what is scientifically known as a chimera.
The project is still in the petri dish phase as of now, but scientists have previously
been successful in growing organs that have the DNA of one species inside of another.
In one case, they were able to introduce the tissue of a rat's pancreas and have it grow
inside the body of a mouse.
These pancreases were then used as transplants for mice suffering from diabetes.
If you imagine the extreme possibilities, doing this using a pig as a surrogate for
human tissue could make vital organs essentially replaceable like the parts of a machine.
Number 3.
"Time Crystals" We have known that there are three forms of
matter for years now but a newly discovered fourth state may change the way chemistry
and physics are approached forever.
Before there were only liquids, gases and solids but you can now add time crystals to
the list.
No, this isn't a Jim Henson movie, scientists discovered a type of matter they are calling
'time crystals' also known as a non-equilibrium state of matter which can exist at the same
state endlessly without expending energy.
What started out as a theoretical brain teaser that scientists and mathematicians had long
wrestled with on paper, became a physical reality in the lab in 2017.
This is when the physicists at U.C.
Santa Barbara proudly announced they had created what is now known as time crystals, by essentially
shooting high powered lasers at diamonds.
The time crystals can only be created for mere instants as of now, but the possibilities
for technological applications are infinite.
This discovery will undoubtedly open the doors for new theories on time, new advances in
quantum computing and the ways we can store information.
Number 2.
"Aerosol Epidermis" The scarring and permanent damage done to
the body from burning can be devastating physically and emotionally on burn victims, but a new
invention may be able to drastically change the way these wounds are treated.
Dr. Jorg Gerlach and his team of German Researchers created a liquid treatment made of a patient's
stem cells which could be sprayed onto a burn wound and then assist in the rapid regeneration
of skin with astoundingly fast results.
Not only did the wounded area accept the stem cells with any complications, once healed,
the area looked almost identical to the patient's skin before the burn.
This new method of healing burn wounds could make painful skin grafting a thing of the
past, reduce infections and help to prevent scarring better than any previously discovered
method.
So far there has only been success with first and second degree burns as third degree burns
require regeneration of more complex tissue like muscles.
But because of the quick progression of the research on stem cells and TODO cut repeat)
tissue regeneration, it isn't hard to imagine that soon, the once Sci-Fi sounding idea of
regenerating entire limbs and facial features, could be a reality.
Number 1.
"CAR-T" One of the biggest contributors to cutting
our lives all-too short is cancer, but dedicated research and a newly designed treatment may
have given us a more-powerful tool in the battle against it.
This new treatment called, CAR-T, involves arming a patient's red blood cells to attack
the cancer.
The researchers remove some blood cells from a patient and then beef them up by giving
them a chimeric antigen receptor that helps them hunt down cancer cells once they are
reintroduced to the bloodstream.
These souped-up cells can also replicate themselves million of times over in order to keep fighting
for months on end.
The FDA recently approved this new form of immunotherapy for use in hospitals and it
has proven effective in fighting leukemia in children.
Though there are some instances of relapse, the treatment has a remission rate of just
over 80 percent.
This method of supercharging our own immune systems will hopefully one day be successful
at curing other types of cancer and diseases and make inconsistently effective and painful
treatments like chemotherapy, unnecessary.