Kepler-186 f

Let’s Talk Science:
Carbon dating and Kepler-186f

Chitwan Khosla
Features Editor
4 features@theotherpress.ca

Science is about questions and
looking for their answers; if
Newton hadn't wondered and
looked for why the apple fell to
the Earth instead of going up,
we might have never found out
about gravity. So, like Newton,
this section is a quest to find
answers in the field of science,
logic, and theories. If you

have a question about science
that youd like answered, send
it to Chitwan at features@
theotherpress.ca

What is carbon dating?

[° simple terms, carbon dating
or radiocarbon dating is a
technique used to find how old
any specimens or objects (e.g.,
fossils) are. It is often used in

forensic science as well to study:
: vestibular system or the

: balance system of our body

: allows us to stand, walk, run,

: sit in a straight position, and

: much more. A very important
: part of this system is our ears.
: Endolymph—a liquid substance :
: found in inner ear—and tiny

some old physical evidence.
The degradation of the
radioactive isotope of carbon is
the basis of carbon dating. This
isotope or form of carbon is
found in nature—especially in
living organisms—and decays
at a very slow speed: half of it

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And more!

: decays over 5,568 years, and

; then again after 5,568 years

: half of the remaining sample

: decays. Since the rate of decay
: is pretty much constant, the

: approximate date of the death
: of the living organism or the

: age of the non-living objects

: of biological origin can be

: determined. Carbon dating can
: help to date objects as much as
: 50-60 thousand years old, and
: hence, is a very reliable process
: for archeologists to employ.

: This technique was developed
: bya team of scientists led by

: Professor Willard F. Libby in

: late 1940s, and he won a Nobel
: Prize for it in chemistry in the
year 1960.

: Is it true that ears help in
: balancing our body?

Yes, this is very true that

: your ears are essential for

your body’s balance. The

: sensory hairs found in the inner :
: ear help to keep us balanced.

: This is because endolymph

: moves according to gravity

: and gives information to the

: brain about the position of the
: body. The tiny hairs also keep

: track of body movement and

: signal the brain. The brain in

: turn responds to these signals

: and makes the skeletal and

: muscular system position ina

: way so that we stay upright and
: don’t fall.

You might have noticed

feeling dizzy after moving in

: circles or spinning. This is

: because after we stop spinning,
: this liquid substance does not

: stop immediately as we do and
: it signals the brain that body

: is still in motion. This in turn

: makes you dizzy because your:
: body and brain don’t coordinate :
: until this liquid comes to rest.

Vegetables have fat in

: them which, though very low

Have an idea?

Contact: Chitwan Khosla, Features Editor

M features@theotherpress.ca

www.theotherpress.ca

as compared to meat, can be

extracted to make vegetable

: oil. Vegetable fat is said to be
: healthy, and it is recommended :
; to consume some in your diet.
: However, it is important to note :
; that vegetable oil is extracted

: from the seeds of vegetables

: and not the raw veggies that

: we usually eat. This makes it

: difficult to say whether it is

: healthy or not as it is still being
: debated.

Soy has a large amount

: of fat in it, making it a major
source for vegetable oil.

: Seeds like peanuts, sesame,

: sunflower, cotton, and the

: like are also used to make

: vegetable oil. Olive oil, almond
oil, and coconut oil are kinds

: of vegetable oil too. These,

: individually or as mixtures,

are widely used as cooking

oil, in beauty products, and
: : sometimes in medicines.
: What is vegetable oil made :

: of as vegetables don't have :
: fat?

Is there more information

: on Kepler-186f apart from

: that it is an earth-like
Myth: Vegetables don’t have :

any fat. Fact: Vegetable oil is
: made of vegetables.

: planet?

Kepler-186f is one of the

latest planets discovered by

 

Image courtesy of PHL @UPR Arecibo, NASA

: NASA scientists using the
: Kepler Space Telescope, which
: the planet is named after.

According to the official website

: of NASA, Kepler-186f is unique

in many ways. Scientists have

: discovered that along with

: resembling earth, its size is

: quite comparable to earth as

: well. Kepler-186f is part of the

: Kepler-186 system which is

: 500 light years away from us,

: and like earth, is part of a solar
: system and orbits its star once

: every 130 days.

Thomas Barclay, research

scientist at the Bay Area

: Environmental Research

: Institute at Ames, said, “Kepler-
: 186f can be thought of as

: an Earth-cousin rather than

: an Earth-twin. It has many

: properties that resemble Earth.”

This implies that we still

don't know if this planet is

: habitable like Earth. It may or

: may not sustain life, so we can’t
: really imagine buying a house

: on another planet anytime

: soon! There is a lot more

: research left to do yet, but we

: may expect more breakthroughs
in the future.