Star Wars science

Turning carbon dioxide to stone

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4/18/22 Thank you for subscribing to The Cheat Sheet, from Science News for Students. If you like this newsletter, share it with a friend or colleague. Did someone forward this to you? Sign up for our weekly updates. Got questions, suggestions or comments? Email us at sns@sciencenews.org and put “The Cheat Sheet” in the subject line. We’d love to hear from you. Coming Soon  May the fourth be with you. This Star Wars Day, May 4, check out some of our favorite Star Wars–related stories. A few reveal how the epic space-opera isn’t so far, far away from reality. Millions of years ago, for instance, giant ocean worms on Earth may have burst out from the seafloor like the giant space slug that nearly gobbled up the Millennium Falcon. And planets orbiting two stars , like Luke Skywalker’s home planet of Tatooine, may be common throughout our own galaxy.  In other ways, Star Wars movie magic doesn’t translate to real life. Find out why rolling droids like R2-D2 and BB-8 wouldn’t do so well on desert planets, and what it would really take to create artificial gravity inside spaceships. Science News also has a few stories about efforts to make Star Wars tech a reality — such as using sound waves or lasers to create free-floating, 3-D displays like the one Princess Leia used to send her plea to Obi-Wan Kenobi.  (And for all the Trekkies out there, May 4 may not be your day, but we haven’t forgotten your fandom. We’ve covered tricorders, tractor beams and other tech from the starship Enterprise making its way into the real world, too.)  Science News is a nonprofit. We depend on our readers to support our journalism. You can help by subscribing for as little as $25.   SUBSCRIBE NOW   Catch up with the latest from Science News for Students A bold plan to save the planet turns carbon dioxide into stone: Scientists hope this will limit both further warming of our planet and an escalation of extreme weather events. Readability: 7.4 Resources: power words, word find puzzle, classroom questions  In an emergency, you may want to see Dr. Dog: Emergency room visits by therapy dogs can reduce pain, anxiety and depression in patients waiting for care, a new study finds. Readability: 7.0 Resources: power words The scent of queen ‘murder hornets’ can lure males into traps: Traps that were baited with compounds found in the mating pheromone of hornet queens attracted thousands of males. Readability: 7.0 Resources: power words, alternate version at Science News Kitchen sponges are bacteria’s dream home: Sponges are favorite spots for bacteria, partly because of the mixed-housing environment that the cleaner-uppers offer microbes. Readability: 8.0 Resources: power words, alternate version at Science News Let’s learn about Pluto: Once known as a pipsqueak planet, Pluto is now the solar system’s best known dwarf planet. Readability: 6.4 Resources: power words, video, word find puzzle  Scientists Say: Inorganic: Inorganic molecules include salts, minerals and other compounds that lack organics’ carbon-hydrogen bonds.  Readability: 8.1 Resources: power words, audio recording Opportunity In the Pathways to Sustainable Invention webinar series, multigenerational panels of inventors from diverse backgrounds — including student inventors — share their experiences. The next event, “How Black inventors are transforming food science” will take place on May 10. Check out the recordings of past webinars, which are available on YouTube .  Find out more about the resources available for using Science News for Students stories for learning. And if you like this newsletter, please share it with a friend or colleague. Did someone share this with you? Subscribe to this newsletter here. If you’ve got questions, suggestions or comments, email us at sns@sciencenews.org. Thank you for reading! Privacy policy  |  Update Profile  | Manage Subscriptions  |  Unsubscribe This email was sent by: Society for Science 1719 N Street NW Washington, DC, 20036, US