DNA damage occurs at a rate of 10,000 to 1,000,000 molecular lesions per cell each day as a result of environmental influences and normal metabolic activities within the cell. While this accounts for just 0.000165 percent of the human genome’s nearly 6 billion bases, unrepaired lesions in essential genes can impair a cell’s capacity to […]
Concrete is a composite material composed of fine and coarse aggregate bonded together with a fluid cement (cement paste) that hardens (cures) over time. Concrete is the second-most-used substance in the world after water, and is the most widely used building material. Its usage worldwide, ton for ton, is twice that of steel, wood, plastics,
Auguste Perret (12 February 1874 â 25 February 1954) was a French architect and a pioneer of the architectural use of reinforced concrete. His major works include the ThĂ©Ăątre des Champs-ĂlysĂ©es, the first Art Deco building in Paris; the Church of Notre-Dame du Raincy (1922â23); the Mobilier National in Paris (1937); and the French Economic,
Rajagopalan Vasudevan is an Indian scientist who has mostly worked in the field of waste management. He is presently employed as a professor at Thiagarajar College of Engineering. He devised a novel way for reusing plastic garbage to build better, more durable, and more cost-effective roads. He devised the concept of shredding plastic trash, combining
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Insects (from Latin insectum) are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body (head, thorax and abdomen), three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes and one pair of antennae. Insects are the most diverse group of animals; they include more than a million described species and represent more than half of all known living organisms. The total number of extant species is estimated at
Construction on Van Stadens Wind Farm outside Port Elizabeth in the Eastern Cape, was started in September 2012. The South African renewable energy company, MetroWind, is proceeding with the R550-million project which will provide power to the Nelson Mandela Bay municipality. The company will construct nine 3-megawatt wind turbines, boosting the local electricity grid, accounting for nearly half the 10 percent renewable energy
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Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary information encoded in genes, which can be transmitted to future generations. Another major theme is evolution, which explains the unity and diversity of life. Energy processing is
Ecology is the study of the relationships between living organisms, including humans, and their physical environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community, ecosystems, and biosphere level. Ecology overlaps with the closely related sciences of biogeography, evolutionary biology, genetics, ethology and natural history. Ecology is a branch of biology, and it is not synonymous with environmentalism.
In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical manifestation of its ecological niche. Thus “habitat” is a species-specific term, fundamentally different from concepts such as environment or vegetation assemblages, for which
An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime environments and are an example of an ecotone. Estuaries are subject both to marine influences such as tides, waves, and the influx of saline