Dare to Know

“ Survival of the boring” describes a traditional view that evolution favours unremarkable, generalist species over innovation. Find out how a new study challenges that assumption by showing that diversity and innovation often drive evolutionary success.

The Orion Nebula is one of the most studied areas of star formation in the galaxy. Find out how the new James Webb Space Telescope has revealed previously unknown objects that defy our understanding of how stars and planets form.

The Indonesian hunter gatherers known as the Punan Batu have their own, secretive language that they sing instead of speaking. Find out how this trait, combined with their unique genetic background, gained them official recognition and legal rights as Indigenous peoples.

The Earth Species Project is using artificial intelligence (AI) to understand how animals communicate. Find out how learning to “talk to the animals” could boost animal conservation and welfare around the world. Check out the Dare to Know Website at daretoknow.ca

NASA appointed a new director of Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP) research this week. Find out what this new role entails and what NASA hopes to contribute by studying these anomalies.

“Music is the universal language,” we often hear, but how true is that maxim? Find out how a new study shows that people from diverse cultures can recognize the emotions expressed in songs.

Carbon offsets allow businesses and wealthy individuals to buy credits to compensate for failing to meet their carbon emission targets. Find out why the system isn’t helping the planet, and the reforms needed to make this emerging marketplace effective.

Lunar missions made the news twice this week, but for very different reasons. Find out why India is celebrating a technological triumph, while Russia is downplaying a catastrophic failure.

Climate Justice is the name of a movement recognizing the climate crisis as a threat to social justice. Find out why human rights group Amnesty International has issued a detailed policy briefing on global warming.

Hydrothermal vents are underwater springs that form on the ocean floor. Find out how an international scientific expedition surprised even themselves when they uncovered a new kind of ecosystem beneath one of these formations.

A giant exoplanet has been discovered orbiting a low-mass star. Find out why this finding challenges our understanding of planet formation and helps scientists decipher the origins of solar systems, including our own.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has led to investigations of  genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity and crimes of aggression. Find out why the International Criminal Court and  UN Independent Commission of Inquiry are working to hold Russian authorities accountable.

A galaxy without dark matter has come to light in the constellation Perseus. Find out why this poses a puzzle for astronomers and challenges cosmology’s explanation of how our universe began.

Creative people enjoy their idle time, and it’s often when fresh ideas inspire them. Find out how a new study shows we need to find time to relax with our thoughts in this hectic, digital age.

Animal origins have puzzled biologists ever since Darwin documented the process of natural selection. Find out how a new study of how fossils form helps scientists establish when animal life first arose on Earth.

The Euclid Space Telescope’s mission is to explore the composition and evolution of dark energy. Find out how its observations of over a billion galaxies aim to solve what scientists call cosmology’s greatest mystery.

Genius is an idea that humanity has accepted since the dawn of civilization. Find out why some scholars question the validity and value of the concept, with some even viewing it as a potential danger for society.

“Anthropocene epoch” is the term for a proposed geological era to represent the influence modern humanity has on our planet. Find out why a picturesque lake near Milton, Ontario is the chosen site to represent this new epoch.

Wildfire season in Canada runs every year from May through October. Find out why climate change is making this year’s forest fires the most intense and destructive ever recorded. Also available as a text blog at daretoknow.ca/2023/06/10/wildfire-season-in-canada-and-climate-change/

Dying brains of some animals and humans show some remarkable brain wave activity. Find out why researchers want to find out  if these readings indicate some form of near death experience or hidden consciousness connected to the end of life. Also available as a text blob at http://daretoknow.ca/2023/05/27/dying-brains-may-experience-surge-of-consciousness/

Dying brains of some animals and humans show some remarkable brain wave activity. Find out why researchers want to find out  if these readings indicate some form of near death experience or hidden consciousness connected to the end of life. Also available as a text blog at http://daretoknow.ca/2023/05/27/dying-brains-may-experience-surge-of-consciousness/

Environmental DNA (eDNA) comes from the traces of genetic material organisms shed as they go about their lives. Find out how our ability to analyze human eDNA samples is a mixed blessing for the fields of ecology and forensics. Also available as a blog at http://daretoknow.ca/2023/05/20/environmental-dna-poses-scientific-and-ethical-dilemmas/

Mars exploration was in the headlines for several reasons during the month of April. Find out the latest exploits of NASA’s Ingenuity, Curiosity and Insight rover missions on the Red Planet.

Brain scans from a recent study enabled scientists to decode what people were thinking. Find out how the researchers used artificial intelligence to read minds, and how this new technology might help people who can’t speak or even change how we all communicate. This episode is also available as a blog post: http://daretoknow.ca/2023/05/08/brain-scans-enable-scientists-to-read-minds/

Quasar origins have been a mystery to astrophysicists since they discovered these quasi-stellar radio sources sixty years ago. Find out how a team of researchers discovered that quasars ignite when galaxies collide. This episode is also available as a blog post: http://daretoknow.ca/2023/04/29/quasar-origins-explained-by-studying-distant-galaxies/