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Published by norazilakhalid, 2020-12-19 17:32:00

Science Illustrated AU I79 2020

Science Illustrated AU I79 2020

Horsefly cuts a
hole in your skin

When a female horsefly attacks, you will notice it.
With five sharp scissor-like blades, it cuts a hole
in your skin, allowing it to sponge up your blood.

Horseflies are one of the most humans can swat the horsefly away,
common groups of blood- but other animals have to endure the
suckers; they exist throughout pain, as the horsefly has developed
the world in some 3000 species, and sharp claws on its legs that make it
Australia has around 200 of those. hard to dislodge, so those unable to
They can be one of the most painful swat must endure the horsefly until it
bloodsuckers around in the summer, has finished its meal. And unlike many
as like midges they cut the skin with other bloodsuckers, the horsefly is
nippers, here a scary set that are active during the day, better able to
shaped as long scissor-like blades. access domestic animals and people.
When the horsefly needs access to
blood, it simply cuts a hole in the The big flies don’t feed on blood all
victim’s skin, causing severe bleeding. the time. Indeed the males are
Subsequently, it inserts a special harmless nectar drinkers; it’s the
proboscis into the wound to suck up females which need the extra dietary
the blood. The proboscis does not supplement from blood. Even their
function as a hollow pipe, as is the maggot larvae are aggressive and
case with the mosquito, rather it predatory, injecting their prey with
absorbs the blood like a sponge. We venom, liquifying their innards and
sucking out the juices.

The horsefly cuts through your skin

With five sharp blades, the horsefly digs deep into your skin,
sucking up the blood with a sponge-like proboscis.

FEMALES CRAVE BLOOD

1 Male horseflies feed only on nectar,
but the females need blood for their eggs.

JAWS CAUSE THE WOUND

2 The horsefly uses its jaws to open the
wound and make room for the proboscis.

BLADES CUT UP THE SKIN

3 The horsefly has five scissor-like
blades that it uses to cut a painful

hole in the skin.

SPONGE PROBOSCIS SUCKS UP BLOOD

KEN IKEDA MADSEN 4 Unlike mosquitoes, which employ a
hollow pipe for sucking up blood, the

horsefly’s proboscis functions like a sponge.

scienceillustrated.com.au | 51

HUMANS HAIR

EVERYBODY
CAN HAVE
A GOOD
HAIR DAY!

Do you have too
little hair? Or too
much? These small
outgrowths on our
heads and bodies
cause many of us
problems – whether
abundant or other-
wise. But scientists
are ready to save our
hair with 3D printers,
lasers, and stem cells.

SHUTTERSTOCK

52 | SCIENCE ILLUSTRATED

By Jonas Grosen Meldal

Half of all men, and around
a quarter of women, have
lost some of their hair by
the age of 50.

SHUTTERSTOCK

KEEPING
YOUR HAIR ON

THE FOLLICULAR
CHALLENGE FOR SCIENCE

scienceillustrated.com.au | 53

HUMANS HAIR

O ne single delicate hair stands up, The last of these plays the biggest role in its your life. The cycle’s stages are a growth
surrounded by an excited team appearance. Melanin comes in two versions: stage, a transitional stage, and a resting
of scientists. The small hair is eumelanin and pheomelanin. If you have a stage. During the first stage the hair grows,
not very impressive in itself – it lot of eumelanin, your hair is brown or and during the third stage it falls out. And
can’t be used to treat disease or black; if you have plenty of pheomelanin, then everything starts over. Some 90% of the
feed the world. But it is, nevertheless, a huge your hair is red, and if you have only a little scalp’s approximately 100,000 hair follicles
breakthrough worth billions of dollars. The of either, your hair is fair. are in the growth stage at any given time.
scientists are in a lab at Columbia University Each of those follicles produces about 0.4mm
in the US, and they have just produced arti- Under the skin, though, your hair remains of hair a day. Combined, your scalp hair
ficial skin – and artificial hair – that can be alive. Each hair is located in an oblong skin grows about 36 metres per day – so that’s
transplanted to people. around 13km of hair a year.
Hair is no longer vital to our survival, but 100
worldwide we spend hundreds of billions of hair follicles per square Shocks destroy hair follicles
dollars caring for hair, removing hair, or get- centimetre is about normal
ting extra hair. More than half of all men Most of your hair is scalp hair – but of course
(and 25% of women) have lost part of their for a human head. your body also has hair elsewhere. Indeed
scalp hair by the time they turn 50 – and for with five million hair follicles, your body is
many this can cause insecurity, even de- pocket known as a hair follicle, and at the just as hairy as that of a gorilla. The only
pression. On the other hand, more than 80% root of the hair is a small lump of cells – a places that are completely hair-less are the
of both men and women actively remove hair papilla – in which the hair is linked palms, the soles of the feet, the lips, and
hair from their bodies on a regular basis. with small blood vessels that supply oxygen some parts of the sex organs. Body hair is
Hair is so closely related with personal and nutrition. In the hair papilla, stem cells often slight or fair, but not always – and
well-being that scientists from all over the develop into hair cells that divide, forcing overly obvious body hair can cause problems.
world are working hard to solve our hair the entire hair upwards in the process. In an American study, 55% of men admitted
problems. The breakthrough at Columbia In other words, your hair grows from below. they were ashamed of their body hair, while
University is just one of many in recent years, Over time, as new hair cells are pushed an English study revealed that some 90% of
adding to an arsenal of lasers, stem cells, upwards by even newer cells, they lose young women remove all hair from their
and 3D printers. Scientists are now ready to contact with the blood supply and die. legs and armpits.
make us all feel better about our hair.
Every single hair follicle passes through However, efficient hair removal is not
Your hair grows 36 metres a day a three-stage cycle repeatedly throughout easy. Shaving and cutting retains its impact
for only a day or two, then the hair grows
We often think hair looks attractive — but out again. Tweezers and wax removal keep
everything you see is dead. The part that hair away for longer because the hair root is
protrudes from the skin consists of dead removed, but the hair follicles will typically
cells larded with the protein keratin, which produce new hair in 2-4 weeks. Eflornithine
forms around 85% of hair, with the rest be- cream can curb hair growth to some extent,
ing primarily water, minerals and melanin. and the treatment is used by women with
hirsutism – a condition affecting 5-15% of

SHUTTERSTOCK Under a microscope, you can
see the overlapping dead cells
located on the hair exterior.

54 | SCIENCE ILLUSTRATED

Your hair falls out SHUTTERSTOCK
after five years

Your scalp hair has an expiry date. For around five years
it grows at full throttle thanks to stem cells deep in your skin.

But then everything comes to a sudden halt.

Hair Skin surface Hair
falls out.

SHUTTERSTOCK & MALENE VINTHER Stem cells Hair papilla Cell activity Hair papilla Stem cells
Blood vessels ceases. disconnects are activated.
from follicle.

Stem cells build Hair loses oxygen Hair follicle ousts
hair from scratch and nutrient supply hair and starts over

Hair growth begins when a group After 3-5 years the hair follicle Finally, the hair disconnects

1 of stem cells moves from the side 2 and hair papilla shrink, so the hair 3 and might fall out at any time.
to the bottom of a hair follicle, no longer gets any oxygen and Some 5-10% of hair follicles are
where there is a hair papilla in which blood nutrients for growth. The growth ceases, at this stage, and so around 100 scalp
vessels supply oxygen and nutrients to the and the hair remains the same length hairs are lost a day. After 3-4 months,
cells. The stem cells develop into hair cells for 2-3 weeks. About 3% of scalp hair the hair follicle’s stem cells wake up
and divide over and over again, causing the folllicles are at this stage at any one time. again, renewing contact with the blood
hair to penetrate the skin. supply so that a new hair can grow.

scienceillustrated.com.au | 55

HUMANS HAIR

Hair invades science

Engineers develop tiny hairs that make robots sensitive, biologists count the hairs
of sea otters, and music lovers wait for the moment that a great tune gives them
goosebumps. We asked our editorial staff to give us the most fun facts about hair.

MORTEN KAREN JEZ FORD ESBEN NANNA
POULSEN GRUBBE SCHOUBOE VIUM
AUSTRALIAN
ZOOLOGY ASTRONOMY EDITOR AND THE ALL-TIME MEDICINE
EXPERT ENTHUSIAST AUDIOPHILE NO. 1 TECH FAN NERD

The sea otter Black holes – Studies have Chinese scientists Geneticists have
has the densest extremely massive attempted to explain aim to make robots as revealed that the
fur of any animal. objects in space – emit why music can make sensitive as humans. shape of our hair
Every square zero-energy particles your hair stand on end: So they have created is determined by
centimetre of skin that astrophysicists it may be a sign of tiny artificial hairs interaction between
includes 140,000 hair have named ‘hair’, euphoria, or a fear reflex, with sensors that feel many different genes.
follicles, making the according to a ground- but it is believed to show the surroundings just Specific mutations can
fur 100% waterproof. breaking theory. a strong brain connection as our hair does. make hair growth in
In comparison, between the auditory individual hair follicles
humans have 100 cortex and the areas that asymmetric, so the hair
hair follicles per cm2. control our emotions. becomes curly.

all women, causing excess facial hair 0.04 men is usually bald temples, followed by a
growth. But eflornithin can cause rashes to 0.12mm is few bald spots in areas on top of the head,
and other side effects, so it is not ideal. the diameter of a ultimately leading to a completely bald pate.
typical human hair. In women, the hair loss typically takes place
The most potent long-term weapon in less dramatically in a gradual reduction in the
the struggle against hair can be electrolysis Surgeons move hair number of hairs.
and lasers, which destroy the hair follicles
themselves. In electrolysis, slim needles are The biggest hair research advances made One of the main reasons for the decline
inserted into the hair follicles. The needles in recent years haven’t provided help in the in the number of hairs over the years is that
emit a weak electric current that harms the struggle against excessive hair growth, but the hair follicles become more sensitive to
hair follicles and prevents hair growth. rather tackle the opposite problem – people male sex hormones, particularly dihydrotes-
Laser treatment, meanwhile, directs intense who suffer from too little hair. Both men and tosterone. The hormone binds to cells in the
light waves into the hair follicles. The light women can lose scalp hair, and for some there hair papilla, triggering a shrinking process
is absorbed by the melanin of the hair, and can be significant signs of loss even before of the hair follicles, so the hairs fall out, and
is heated until the stem cells of the hair they reach the age of 20. The first evidence in new hairs can no longer be produced.
follicle die. Most commonly the results only
remain fully effective for a few months, Minoxidil is often used to combat bald-
until the hair follicle recovers, and although ness. The chemical is rubbed directly into
the revived hair emerges more finely than the scalp to stimulate hair growth. It was
the original, more treatment is usually originally developed to alleviate elevated
required. And again, both electrolysis and blood pressure, but when patients experi-
laser treatment can cause side effects enced sudden hair growth in areas where
including skin irritation and even scarring, their hair had previously disappeared, it was
so that the search for the perfect weapon introduced as a remedy against hair loss.
against unwanted hair still continues. Minoxidil works by intensifying the blood
flow to the hair follicles, but it is not always

56 | SCIENCE ILLUSTRATED

effective, and even in those who experience Hair cells reveal
new hair growth, not all hair is revived – often your mental health
a limited number of relatively fine hairs.
Typically at least two months of use will be Hyperactive genes in your brain can cause mental illness,
required before any evidence of returning and scientists don’t need direct access to your brain to
hair materialises. And once the minoxidil identify the harmful genes – they just require your hair.
intake stops, so does hair growth. And once
again its use can lead to unpleasant side ef- Enzyme Gene Nerve cell Hyperactive gene
fects, including the risk that hair can begin harms cells
growing extravagantly in unwanted places, Healthy Hydrogen
such as the cheeks and forehead. mitochondria sulphide The MPST gene is
Cell
So many people choose another type of ramifications 1 hyperactive in the
treatment: a hair transplant, by which brain cells of
functional hair follicles are transplanted to schizophrenics. The gene
places with sparse hair. Surgeons move hair codes for an enzyme that
follicles from a hairy area resistant to di- contributes to producing
hydrotestosterone – typically the back of the hydrogen sulphide, so that
head – to the bald area. The total number of schizophrenics produce
scalp hairs does not increase – the hair is excessive quantities of it.
just moved. This treatment is not optimal, Hydrogen sulphide is an
so scientists have long been in search of an antioxidant that protects
alternative. The breakthrough at Columbia against inflammation, but
University may finally offer a more efficient high quantities are harmful.
and hopefully practical solution.
Nerve cell Fewer Brain cells
3D printer shapes hair follicles ramifications lose antennas

The production of new hair follicles from Gene Hydrogen sulphide
scratch is the ‘holy grail’ in the development
of treatments against hair loss. But unfortu- Sick 2 restricts the energy
nately this has proven extremely difficult. mitochondria production in cell
Animal experiments had seemed to be mitochondria and reduces
promising, as they revealed that cells from the quantity of cell
the hair papilla located at the bottom of the ramifications that receive
hair follicle can stimulate the formation of signals from other nerve
new hair follicles. But for unknown reasons, cells. Problems result
the process is different in humans. concerning the handling
of sensory impressions
For us, the cells need to unite in a correct and other symptoms linked
3D structure before they can launch the for- with schizophrenia.
mation of hair follicles. Previous studies
have shown that the cells’ genetic activity Hair MPST enzyme Hair reveals
changes when they are moved from their follicle hyperactive gene
normal ‘3D’ environment in the scalp to 2D
conditions in the lab, where the cells’ overall The MPST gene SHUTTERSTOCK & MALENE VINTHER
structure is dissolved, and they blend into
the surroundings. 3 is hyperactive not
only in the brain
In order to avoid the problem and cells of schizophrenics, but
ensure the very best conditions for also in hair stem cells. The
cells, the scientists from Columbia gene is widely translated
University produced a 3D printer into RNA that subsequently
which was programmed to make functions as a workshop
a plastic mould with long, thin drawing for the making of
‘posts’.This mould was then im- the MPST enzyme. So the
mersed into a liquid solution of
skin cells that subsequently hair of schizophrenics
hardened. When the mould was includes high levels
removed from the skin cells, the of both RNA and
posts left rows of deep, thin the enzyme, and
pockets that looked just like hair by measuring the
follicles. The scientists subse- contents of those,
quently placed cells from human scientists can
hair follicles at the bottom of the estimate the risk
pockets, and the cells were supplied of schizophrenia.

| 57

FAIVBEOUMTYHTAHISROCANATRUGOEESRBNEELEGVORSRNEE,EAGNDMYLAEEHSRYRWDTVASHHIEITNRASUCT?GEPASHSIFUILBTSDCTILEOVRI?STSTEUOECRDKANTCUONTOHEEIDMSASAHTIMSNROSTD.ORRFNFMOEACSOLUSNSSEES 1

58 | SCIENCE ILLUSTRATED “Stress causes
grey hair”

TRUE

Scientists used to think that
the cause of sudden grey hair
growth was solely genetic, but
new research from Harvard
University in the US
demonstrates that stress can
also play an important role.
In stressful situations, the
nervous system liberates the
neurotransmitter noradrenaline,
which over-activates some hair
follicle stem cells. The cells
produce the melanin pigment
that provides the hair with its
colour, but noradrenaline makes
them change and migrate, so
that the hair loses its melanin
supply. Without the pigment,
the hair becomes grey or white.
However, new research indicates
that in some cases the hair
can return to its original colour
if the stress ceases.

2 4
“Bald men 3 “Women do not
have more lose their hair”
testosterone” “Blondes
are stupid” FALSE
FALSE
FALSE Women’s hair follicles pass 5
When the male sex hormones through the same cycle as “Hair grows
of testosterone and Blonde women often fall victim men’s. After a long growth faster in
dihydrotestosterone bind to to jokes indicating that they stage, the hair in the hair the summer”
hair follicles, the latter can have a low IQ, but scientists follicle lets go and falls out,
shrink and lose contact with the have come to their rescue. before a new hair begins to TRUE
blood supply, so the hair can no In 2014, geneticists revealed grow. Like men, women
longer grow. That may cause that the DNA mutation which normally lose 50-150 hairs a
baldness. Nevertheless there causes fair hair only affects day, and in some cases even
is no statistical connection hair follicles, and has no more. Moreover, many women
between baldness and a high effect on the brain’s nerve suffer patchy baldness just like
testosterone level in men. cells, or on IQ. And in 2016 men, and it is not uncommen
The hair loss is not caused by American scientists carried that women in menopause
unusually high quantities of out a thorough analysis of experience a marked loss of hair
testosterone, rather by high the link between hair colour due to the reduced quantity of
sensitivity to testosterone in and IQ in more than 10,000 oestrogen in their blood.
the hair follicles. On the other white American women.
hand, studies do indicate that a The results demonstrated Women’s oestrogen level According to a Chinese study
high testosterone level can that average IQ was reduces from age 45, and from 2014, scalp hair grows
cause baldness in women. almost the same regardless that might cause hair loss. 0.4mm a day on average during
hair colour. Indeed blonde the summer, and 0.375mm
women scored an average IQ SHUTTERSTOCK during the winter. As with
of 103.2, brunettes 102.7, many furred animals, we also
redheads 101.2, while women lose a lot of hair in the summer,
with black hair had an IQ of so an unusually high number of
100.5. So on that study, blondes our hair follicles are in a state
actually came out ‘smartest’. of ‘rest’ over the summer.
With fewer active hair follicles,
there is more nutrition for
the remaining ones, and that
could possibly be the cause
for faster growth.

scienceillustrated.com.au | 59

HASAN ERBIL ABACI ET AL. HUMANS HAIR with a series of materials to stimulate
growth, such as JAK blockers, which have
Artificial recently been shown to play an important
hair grown role in hair growth. After three weeks of
in a lab. waiting, a fragile hair suddenly grew out –
causing cheering in the lab.
Scientists from Columbia University have grown artificial hair in a lump of skin cells.
When the lump was transplanted to a mouse, the hair kept on growing. The scientists were able to grow blood
vessels around the artificial hair follicles
and subsequently transplant the hair fol-
licles to mice. The process might soon be
tested on humans. But it is not the only new
technique under development.

Embryonic stage rebooted

All the hair follicles produced throughout
our lives are created in the embryonic state.
They are produced via a complex series of
molecular signals in skin cells known as
fibroblasts, and in keratin-producing cells.
A group of genes known as hedgehog genes
play an important role in the signalling,
and those genes become more or less deac-
tivated after birth, as ongoing activity might
lead to the development of tumours. So the

New hair grows in skin gel

A 3D-printed mould, skin gel, and lots of stem cells – that’s the formula for
artificial hair that can be transplanted to people suffering from hair loss.

Hole caused
by mould

Mould Keratin-
producing
3D printer cells

Mould

Cells from
hair papilla

Gel Stem cells
Fibroblasts

SHUTTERSTOCK & MALENE VINTHER 3D printer produces Skin-cell gel hardens Hair cells added
piercing moulds around the mould into the cavities

A 3D printer produces a plastic The mould is placed with the posts In the holes, scientists add cells

1 mould. The mould includes long rows 2 pointing downwards in a gel which 3 from a person who needs new hair.
of thin posts with the same diameter includes the connective tissue First cells from the hair papilla are
as hair follicles, some 0.5mm wide. Scientists protein collagen, and skin cells known as located at the bottom of hair follicles, secondly
can easily print different variants of the fibroblasts. The gel hardens into the same hair stem cells, and finally cells that are to
mould, so it can be adjusted according to the consistency as skin. The mould is then produce keratin. The scientists add materials
thickness of the posts and the distance removed, leaving holes in the gel of the that boost hair growth, and after three weeks,
between them. same depth and thickness as hair follicles. the hair grows out.

60 | SCIENCE ILLUSTRATED

skin cells lose their ability to produce new 5.62 One particular advantage of using hair
hair follicles after we have been born. for diagnoses is that the hair provides a
metres is the record for hair longer-term view than blood. A blood sam-
Scientists from the Karolinska Institute length, on Xie Qiuping of ple reveals the body’s immediate contents of
in Sweden have managed to reactivate the stress hormones, whereas a hair includes
hedgehog signals in the skin cells of mice – China, as measured in 2004. data about stress levels over several months.
and with them the formation of new hair According to a Dutch study, a high content
follicles. Unlike Columbia University’s extremely valuable information about a of the stress hormone cortisol in the hair is
method, this one produces new hair follicles person’s health, revealing inflammatory linked with increased risk of cardiovascular
directly in the skin, without the need for a substances, toxins, heavy metals, lack of disease and type 2 diabetes.
transplant. The drawback is that the mice important nutrients, and more. Scientists can
did indeed develop cancer tumours because even use X-rays of a hair to reveal evidence of Moreover the risk of cardiovascular
of the hedgehog signals. But the problem breast cancer, because the cancer influences disease has proven to depend on the quan-
was solved by treating the mice with vismo- hair growth. The method is not sufficiently tity of scalp hair. A major analysis of 40,000
degib, which blocked the harmful signals, reliable to be used exclusively, but it is an men revealed that bald men suffer around a
stopping the tumour growth without reduc- important tool that can be used in combina- 70% higher risk of cardiovascular disease
ing the new hair follicles. Scientists are now tion with other tests. than do men with a full head of hair.
seeking the best method for eliminating any
potential side effects for humans. A few decades ago, nobody would have
guessed that our hair – simple strands of
Stress hides in the hair dead cells and keratin – could deliver such a
significant source of knowledge about our
While we wait for the cure against hair loss, health, or that scientists like the ones from
scientists are finding new ways of using the Columbia University would one day celebrate
hair we have left on our heads. They have and cheer the birth of one single lonely hair
discovered that one single hair can supply in a culture dish.

HAIR GROWN IN
A PETRI DISH
COULD BE
PLANTED ONTO
BALD HEADS.

SHUTTERSTOCK

scienceillustrated.com.au | 61

TECHNOLOGY LIVING ROBOTS

Computers have
designed new
creatures that
have been brought to
life in culture dishes.

CLAUS LUNAU & SHUTTERSTOCK

62 | SCIENCE ILLUSTRATED

By Mikkel Meister

COMPUTER
CREATES
A NEW
LIFE FORM

We have entered a new era of
‘designed’ life. Scientists have
handed their creative thinking to
a computer, which has outpaced
evolution and created a ‘biobot’ – a
living robot. The creature consists
of frog cells, but it behaves unlike
anything that exists in nature.

CREATION

A computer simulates millions of years of evolution,
producing a new and fine-tuned life form.

FAMILY TREE

Biobots are neither robots nor biology, so are completely
unique among life forms that have been created in the lab.

LIFE

In the future, such new creatures could help us with activities
from microplastics removal to cancer treatment.

scienceillustrated.com.au | 63

TECHNOLOGY LIVING ROBOTS

CREATION

Digital data to analogue organism

A supercomputer has sped through a digital evolution process calculating
virtual mutations that create organisms that are best suited for different jobs.
The result is neither robot nor biology – it is a new, programmed life form.

0 SECONDS 6 SECONDS Skin and
heart cells

Building block Building block
– heart cell – skin cell

Independent
organism

Version 1 2 34

Frog has the building blocks Evolution takes place in data Scientists take embryo cells

Scientists encode building blocks A second set of 50 new variants is The computer proclaims the best-

1 as digital representations of heart 2 produced, based on the first 50. All 3 suited candidate for the job,
and skin cells from the African 100 ‘creatures’ are tested (for speed, and then the life form moves from
clawed frog. They also specify a purpose in this example), and the 50 best are selected. the digital environment to the real world.
such as “the organism must move fast”. From these the computer makes 50 further Scientists collect cells from frog embryos to
The computer then calculates the variants, the new group of 100 is tested and be merged into spherical organisms with
parameters of 50 random creatures that the 50 best ones selected – and so on, until layers of movable and immovable cells.
may meet the specified purpose. the process has been repeated 1000 times.

A group of creatures measuring although the scientists behind the biobots, subject is explained by Michael Levin, one of
about 1mm in length speed a group including Tufts and Harvard Univer- the lead scientists of the biobot project. With
around a culture dish. Some of sities, have termed the tiny creatures CDOs, this knowledge about cells, Levin says,
these soft creatures seem to for ‘computer-designed organisms’. The scientists can, in principle, “build” anything,
have arms and legs; others CDOs consist of skin cells and heart cells based on any cells. And if everything can be
look more like oblong snail-like objects with from the frog Xenopus laevis, but in the designed by a ‘digital Darwin’ in the lab,
neither arms nor legs. On closer inspection, CDOs these cells no longer behave as skin then disease – perhaps even ageing – could
however, they don’t much resemble snails cells and heart cells.The computer gives the become things of the past.
either – or anything ever seen before. That’s cells new tasks in these living robots that
because these tiny creations are not the move about petri dishes in an apparently Scientists create life forms
products of nature’s standard processes of purposeful manner, in spite of the fact that
evolution.They were designed by a computer they have neither brains nor intelligence. The biological organisms that inhabit Earth
that skipped past Darwin, speeding through The enigmatic biobots can move things today were created over millions of years of
a digital evolution process to produce a com- about, cooperate over jobs, even cure them- evolution. Every species left on the planet
plete formula for a new species of living selves of injuries. And perhaps they will one has proven itself the variant most fit to sur-
robot, to be built from natural cells. Scientists day be able to solve far greater challenges – vive, thanks to size, shape, number of arms,
have then produced the creatures according removing microplastics from the oceans or flexibility, intelligence or other characteris-
to the computer’s instructions. getting rid of hazardous nuclear waste. tics that have been refined by numerous
mutations, ending up as the creature we
The result is a completely new life form The biobots are not only good for practi- know today.
that is neither a natural creature of flesh cal tasks, they are also helping scientists
and blood, nor a robot controlled by micro- understand how cells communicate with But what if we didn’t have to wait milli-
chips. It is something between – a ‘biobot’, each other and grow into organisms. The ons of years to see new species arrive in the
world via natural evolution? What if we

64 | SCIENCE ILLUSTRATED

THIS BIOBOT CLAUS LUNAU & BRIAN GRATWICKE & DOUGLAS BLACKISTON/SAM KRIEGMAN & SHUTTERSTOCK
WITH FOUR ‘LEGS’
WAS DESIGNED
BY COMPUTER.

Living robots are <1MM
sculptured in a
culture dish

Scientists then

4 ‘edit’ the
organisms, using
tools employed in
microsurgery to remove
tissue and deliver the
shape that the computer
has designed. And the
creatures achieve the
physical speed that the
computer simulations
have predicted.

could create them in the lab? It’s a question ANTOINE CULLY/PIERRE AND MARIE CURIE UNIVERSITY
that has been asked by scientists and others
for many years. Think of Mary Shelley’s 200- Scientists from the Sorbonne University developed an Injured leg
year-old story about Frankenstein’s monster algorithm to solve the challenge of an injured robot leg.
– a life form created from dead tissue imbu- The algorithm proposed a solution that the scientists scienceillustrated.com.au | 65
ed wth new life by Frankenstein. had not considered: the robot should lie on its ‘back’
and move around by means of its ‘elbows’.
Over the past 20 years, the desire to
create synthetic life has moved from the
world of literary imagination into scientists’
labs. The global research effort to sequence
DNA has presented us with blueprints from
nature’s workshop, showing how different
organisms have been ‘programmed’. In 2010,
a major breakthrough came when a team of
scientists headed by American gene expert
J. Craig Venter created artificial DNA code,
which they were able to insert into an exist-
ing cell, and which successfully changed its
behaviour according to the inserted DNA
code. Scientists had created history’s first
example of synthetic life – designed and
‘programmed’ in a lab.

TECHNOLOGY LIVING ROBOTS

FAMILY TREE

Computer culture:
programming for life

Over the past 20 years, scientists have
created several new life forms in the lab.
But so far, synthetic life has been
designed by chemists and biologists,
whereas biobots ‘evolved’ in a computer
which assigned new tasks to cells.

SKIN CELLS HEART CELLS

IMAGESELECT & ALLAN WIECHMANN BIOBOTS: computer-
generated biology

The new biobots are made of
cells from the African clawed
frog. In nature, skin cells protect
the frog’s interior, whereas heart
cells pump blood about its body.
A biobot behaves like a robot – its
cells perform tasks that have been
programmed by a computer.

MICHAEL ROSNACH CYBORG: biology and
mechanics combined

This swimming ray was
created in a Harvard
University lab. Its body is made
of silicone lined with several
layers of heart cells – a total of
some 200,000 cells from a rat
heart were used, and they
function as the robot’s muscles.

MOLECULAR ROBOT Ring
can power motors Molecular machine

ACS NANO Scientists created molecular
machines that are oblong
molecules. The molecule includes
a ring-shaped structure that can
be programmed to move back
and forth along the molecule.
The motion can liberate energy
that can power tiny motors.

66 | SCIENCE ILLUSTRATED

Since then, scientists have expanded DAVID S. HOLLOWAY/GETTY IMAGES
their experimentation to the creation of
synthetic RNA and of hybrid creatures made
by merging mechanics with natural cells.

But biobots are quite different. All other
life forms previously created in labs were
designed by scientists — humans making
detailed plans to determine how their own
little ‘Frankensteins’ were to behave once
brought to life. But the new biobots were
programmed by a computer. Scientists just
followed the computer’s instructions to bring
the creatures to life in culture dishes.

Biobots are a brand new type of Digital evolution in 20 hours J. CRAIG VENTER
computer-generated life form that are GENE RESEARCHER
neither robot nor biology, instead The biobot life forms are created based on
falling somewhere in between. basic building blocks – in this case from cells In 2010, J. Craig Venter
of the African clawed frog. So the first step created new life in the lab
SHUTTERSTOCK & LOTTE FREDSLUND of the groundbreaking biobot project was to when he inserted synthetic
translate two types of cells from the frog – DNA into a cell which
skin cells and heart cells – into digital code. began to behave according
The skin cells’ basic task in nature is to pro- to the artificial DNA code.
tect the frog’s interior against infections
from the outside, so these are a static type eration of the fittest biobots were then used
of cell – they cannot move around.The heart as the basis for 50 new biobots, again with
cells, on the other hand, are designed to small mutations, to deliver a new group of
pump blood about the frog’s body, so these 100. These were then tested in the simula-
are able to contract and cause motion. The tion again, with the 50 fastest declared the
two basic qualities – static and dynamic – winners and retained, while the 50 slowest
were key qualities assigned to the cells in were again removed. Doing what computers
the code which the computer subsequently do best – repetition – the evolutionary pro-
used as its 3D building blocks. cess continued to a total of 1000 generations.

Finally, scientists specified a general The supercomputer carried out the
purpose for the desired biobot, such as “fast evolution process until it had created 100
motion in a straight line from point A to different blueprints for the small, living
point B”. And then the evolution began – all robots. Biologists from Tufts University then
expressed in 1s and 0s. began constructing the creatures using real
frog cells. They took skin and heart stem
The computer implemented an evolu- cells from African clawed frog embryos,
tionary algorithm which carries out its own combining them into tiny balls and allowing
accelerated version of nature’s mutations. It them to grow by cell division.
took around 20 hours to develop a biobot,
which is pretty nifty compared with nature’s When the balls had grown to around
pace – scientists from Oregon State Univer- 10,000 cells with alternating layers of skin
sity estimate that it takes around a million cells and heart cells, the scientists began
years for an important mutation such as to sculpt the creatures according to the
new body size to become a lasting feature of computer blueprints. Working through a
a species.

For each separate specified purpose (such
as strength or speed), the computer began
with the creation of 50 random biobots, cre-
ated in a simulated 3D world where the
computer algorithm can build, test, develop,
and refine the biobots. The computer then
developed 50 new biobots based on the orig-
inal 50, but including slight mutations and
variations of building blocks.

The whole group of 100 biobots was then
tested in a computer simulation to see how
each performed against the criteria speci-
fied. So for speed, say, the 50 fastest biobots
were retained for the next stage, while the
50 slowest were abandoned. This new gen-

scienceillustrated.com.au | 67

TECHNOLOGY LIVING ROBOTS

microscope, they used tweezers and elec- Moreover, it was clear that the relation design via digital evolution. And the biggest
trodes normally employed in microsurgery between predicted behaviour in the digital advances may come not from the jobs that
to remove cells – around half of the cells and actual behaviour in the real analogue the biobots can do, but from the knowledge
from each biobot – until they were as close world was no mere coincidence. The scien- about cells they can provide.
as possible to the computer’s designs. tists flipped one of the biobots on its back,
causing it to lose most of its ability to move. Evolutionary algorithms, Michael Levin
Surprise cooperative behaviour This was consistent with the computer’s explains, can help us understand the cells of
simulations, this extra test proving again the very young human body.
The biobots began to behave as predicted by that the computer had indeed created a new
the computer. Some moved in straight lines life form that behaved exactly as had been “The major question is how cells
and some in circles. But others briefly linked programmed and predicted. cooperate to build complex functional
up, working in pairs to solve problems. Such bodies during the embryonic stage. How do
combinations happened spontaneously as 10,000 they know what to build, and which signals
the biobots touched each other, a behaviour do they exchange to build these anatomies
that the computer, much to the scientists’ cells from frog embryos – and stop at the right time? This is impor-
surprise, had developed without prompting formed the starting tant – not just to understand the evolution
in its simulations, including a group of bio- point for one biobot. of body shapes and the functions of genes,
bots which appeared to cooperate to collect but for all biomedicine,” Levin explains.
particles. The scientists tested this digital New life form heralds new era
behaviour in the real world by filling a cul- If scientists can discover the answers to
ture dish with coloured particles and bio- Biobots mark the beginning of a new era of these questions, a new world of computer-
bots. And a group of biobots did indeed col- computer-designed life. It has been proven designed organisms – perhaps new body
lect the colouring agents and place them in that a computer can create organisms that parts – will open up.
a pile. The result holds the hope of biobots people could not themselves predict in spite
one day being able to act collectively in the of having defined the guidelines for devel- Just think about contagious diseases,
real world – for example collecting and re- opment. With biobots, scientists can build says Michael Levin.
moving microplastics from the oceans. new organisms that benefit from computer
“This is about anatomy control,” he says,
The biobots’ ability to manipulate tiny explaining that if we can design biological
objects might also be used in other tissue from scratch, we can also repair exist-
contexts. One type of biobot ended up with ing tissues. We could correct anamolies in
a hole at its centre, produced by the babies, reprogram cancer tumours into ordi-
computer to solve the specified task of nary tissue, even ‘teach’ the body to regen-
“motion with the least possible friction erate after accidents. Even death might no
caused by a liquid”. But with further small longer be inevitable, for if computers design
mutations, the hole could be used to carry the tissues of the body to continuously re-
tiny objects. The scientists immediately generate, would we then continue to grow
realised the potential: a biobot could carry older? According to Michael Levin, biobots
nanoparticles with cancer drugs into the are an important first step towards those
body of a cancer patient to treat sick cells dizzying future possibilities.
without harming the surrounding tissue –
as can happen in traditional chemotherapy. Colouring agent DOUGLAS BLACKISTON/SAM KRIEGMAN
The biobots measure less than 1mm in size
and are broken down naturally after about Biobot
a week, so they could be used as drug
carriers in the body, taking tiny doses of Area clear of
medication to specific places in the body. colouring agent

Other biobots with the ability to push Much to the scientists’ surprise, computer simulations showed that different types of biobots could
objects might be employed to counteract cooperate, although they have no ‘brains’. The principle was tested successfully in a culture dish with
arteriosclerosis in patients’ blood vessels. pink-coloured particles, in which biobots collected and placed the colour particles in a ‘pile’.

Apart from moving around, the biobots
can also cure themselves. The scientists
discovered this after using tweezers to rip
one of the creatures apart – after which new
cells grew to close up the hole. The ability to
‘fix’ themselves is high on the priority list of
both scientists and companies that are in
the business of developing robots which are
able to work more independently than is
currently possible. If a robot was, say, busy
cleaning up following a nuclear disaster
and became damaged, self-repair would
save time and improve safety compared
with sending in a human technician.

68 | SCIENCE ILLUSTRATED

LIFE CLAUS LUNAU & LOTTE FREDSLUND & DOUGLAS BLACKISTON/SAM KRIEGMAN

Living bots could clean oceans
and deliver cancer drugs

Biobots include fats and proteins that give them a life-span of about a week.
During this short period of time they could collect microplastics in the ocean or
deliver cancer drugs within the body, then breaking down in a natural fashion.

Remove plastic waste Loosen plaque Deliver drugs
from the oceans from blood vessels to cancer patients

Different types of biobots can One type of biobot is shaped Some of the biobots were
combine into pairs and like a triangle with a small produced with holes at their
cooperate. They can then do a job incision in one corner. The incision centres to reduce friction with the
more efficiently – such as pushing functions like a gripping mechanism surrounding liquid. The holes can be
tiny particles towards the same with which it can hold on to small modified so the biobot can carry
place. Scientists suggest that the objects and push them in one small objects. Hence a biobot might
biobots, which are quickly broken direction. Scientists suggest such carry nanoparticles with cancer
down in nature, could collaborate biobots could clean blood vessels of drugs into the body and deliver
to collect ocean microplastics. plaque in cases of atherosclerosis. them to cancerous cells.

Biobot Biobot Plaque Nanoparticle

Plastic Drug

Cancer cell

scienceillustrated.com.au | 69

TECHNOLOGY OCEAN MINES

The oceans hold billions of tonnes of metals which could
be recovered by vehicles vacuum-cleaning ocean floors.
The metals might be used for green technologies –
but is this worth the potential damage of mining them?

GSR & KEN IKEDA MADSEN & SHUTTERSTOCK

70 | SCIENCE ILLUSTRATED

By Rolf Haugaard Nielsen

Our endless craving
for rare metals is

CREATING AN
OCEAN-FLOOR

GOLD RUSH

In the cold darkness at the
bottom of the oceans lies a
treasure trove of metals which, if
extracted, might be used in wind
turbines and electric cars. Huge
vacuum cleaners on caterpillar
tracks are ready to begin work in
the first underwater mines – but at
what cost to ocean eco-systems?

WAT C H

This MIT animation
demonstrates the

ocean-floor mining process:
tinyurl.com/science200

scienceillustrated.com.au | 71

TECHNOLOGY OCEAN MINES

Ocean ‘vacuum cleaner’
swallows metal nodules

The Patania II mining robot is designed to vacuum up
manganese nodules from the ocean floor, to provide
important metals for green technologies. The vehicle will
be tested in the Clarion Clipperton Zone in the Pacific.

Mining ship controls

Manganese nodules ‘vacuum cleaner’

Metal nodules grow 1 The Patania II is controlled
from a mining ship via a cable.
on shark teeth
The cable also carries the robot’s
The manganese nodules form on
2 small shells or shark teeth, where weight of 25 tonnes as it is lowered

metal oxides from the water settle. The and raised to/from the ocean floor

nodules with diameters of 3-10cm grow at a depth of 4.5km.

over millions of years. The estimated
value of the nodules in the Clarion
Clipperton Zone is US$24 trillion.

Sediment

Water pump

Manganese nodules Nodules are collected

in a container

4 Ocean floor sediment is filtered
out of the manganese nodules
Vacuum hoses
and pumped out of the rear end of the
pump up nodules
CLAUS LUNAU & GRANGER COLL/RITZAU SCANPIX vehicle. The nodules are ‘pushed’

3 The front of the vehicle is equipped backwards by a pump until they end
with four ‘vacuum cleaners’ that
up in a container. When the container

each consist of two hoses which collect is full, the nodules are placed in a pile

the metal-containing nodules. The water on the ocean floor, from where they

flow causes underpressure right above can be pumped up to the mining ship.

the ocean floor, which sucks the

manganese nodules into the vehicle.

72 | SCIENCE ILLUSTRATED

B ack in 1872, HMS Challenger OCEAN EXPLORATION TRUST
left the harbour of Portsmouth
to begin a 1000-day expedition Smoking chimneys near volcanic springs include copper, silver and other metals. The chimneys are
across the oceans. Scientists formed from metal-containing sulphides that seep up from the ocean floor in volcanic rift zones.
aboard the ship collected data
on temperatures, ocean currents and chem- 25 primarily in DR Congo, where child labourers
ical variations in the ocean water, and they work under potentially lethal conditions for
took samples from the dark ocean floor tonnes is the weight of the a pittance of pay. Mining often takes place in
several kilometres below the surface. The Patania II ‘vacuum cleaner’ a conflict zone, so that the supply can easily
muddy samples included many small, hard become unreliable.
nodules that proved to be rich in metals designed to collect metal
such as manganese, nickel and copper. nodules from the ocean floor. But the demand for electric car batteries
is exploding. An extrapolation carried out by
Today, almost 150 years later, a new gold quickly to consumers, which will requirs BloombergNEF shows that global demand for
rush is gaining pace across the world to get more and thicker cables to span continents seven important ingredients in electric car
hold of these metals. Government players in and oceans.The copper for such cables is cur- batteries – including copper, cobalt, lithium,
China and Japan, as well as private compa- rently extracted in mines on dry land, with and aluminium – is a little under a million
nies in Europe and elsewhere, stand ready to Australia estimated to have about 13% of the tonnes in 2020, but will reach 7 million tonnes
race towards the ocean floor. world’s copper resources, the second largest by 2030, with cobalt demand reaching some
after Chile, where 40% of the world’s copper 1.6 times the world’s current supply.
Given inherent environmental impacts is produced in open mines in the Andes.
from many mining practices, however, the Aside from these mines leaving huge craters So mining companies are looking to the
very idea of deep-ocean mining is insepara- in the landscape, the concentration of copper ocean floor. Studies in recent decades have
ble from a fear for the ocean’s eco-systems. in the ore is only 1%, so the metal must be shown that depths of 4-5km offer a veritable
So it is ironic that the explosion in demand extracted – using toxic chemicals. The toxic treasure trove of minerals with a high metal
for metals is partly because they will be ore waste causes environmental problems content. Several studies estimate that the
required for the global green transition. In whether stored on dry land, where the toxin ocean floor could include more metal than
order to phase out fossil fuels within energy can seep into the ground water, or dumped all the world’s continents combined.
generation, and to electrify the chemical into the ocean.
and transport industries, the world will Three types of ocean floor are particularly
require more copper for cables, more rare Cobalt is another problem – indeed it is interesting. One is underwater mountain
earth metals for use in wind-turbine power almost the bête noire of climate technology. peaks, where the crust is rich in metals such
generator magnets and in fuel cells that can Electric cars depend on cobalt in their bat- as platinum, which is used in the catalysts
convert hydrogen into power without caus- teries, and while Australia produces some which purify car exhaust emissions. Mining
ing additional pollution. Cobalt is also indis- cobalt, the vast majority of ore is extracted robots can crush the crust of the mountain
pensable for lithium-ion batteries, which in polluting mines in vulnerable rainforest, peaks and pump the gravel to a ship.
play a central role in the green revolution.
The second treasure trove could be in the
Existing mines on dry land cannot meet volcanic sources of ocean-floor rift zones,
these requirements alone, and cause their where sulphur compounds containing lots of
own environmental and climate challenges metal seep up to produce smoking chimneys.
– the emission of toxic substances, and huge The walls of the chimneys include copper,
holes in landscapes. Australians need think lead, zinc, gold and silver. Machines with
no further back than last May’s devastation metre-wide rotating heads made of tungsten
of a 46,000-year-old sacred Aboriginal site in carbide can be used to crush the chimneys,
the Pilbara’s Juukan Gorge by Rio Tinto in its
quest for iron ore, despite company execu-
tives being aware of the site’s significance.

So is ocean mining an answer to aid the
green revolution – and reduce pollution from
mines on dry land? Mining companies and
engineers have developed huge vacuum-
cleaner-like mining robots that can roam the
ocean floor collecting the metal-containing
nodules. Other machines can crush ocean-
floor crust and volcanic sources that are rich
with valuable metals. The real question is
whether such ocean mines can operate effi-
ciently in such extreme environments with-
out ruining these environment in turn.

Copper, cobalt, platinum & more

If the green revolution is to achieve its full
acceleration, then power generated by wind
turbines and solar panels must be delivered

scienceillustrated.com.au | 73

TECHNOLOGY OCEAN MINES

after which the gravel is pumped up to a and the ploughed ocean floor still resembled
mining vessel. This method has been tested
off Papua New Guinea and Okinawa, Japan. a wasteland. It has not regenerated.

But it is the deep ocean outside national Nor are these empty environments. Sci-
zones – at least 370km from the coast – that
has triggered the biggest gold rush among entists have discovered surprisingly rich
mining companies. Large regions of the ocean
floor are covered in manganese nodules the wildlife in the darkness at the bottom of the
size of tennis balls.They are metal-rich, about
one quarter of each nodule being manganese deep seas – fish, worms, shellfish, fungi, sea
(used in steel and glass-making), with seven
times more copper per kilogram than pro- cucumbers, starfish and sea urchins. Their
duced by mines on dry land, and with high
concentrations of nickel, molubdenum and habitats will inevitably be harmed in mining
cobalt. The key advantage over the mountain
peaks and volcanic sources is that the nodules areas, and beyond. Mining robots such as
are lying loosely on the ocean floor and can be
sucked up without crushing, making such Patania II cause a cloud of silt to rise up
mines less dependent on toxic extraction
chemicals. Last but not least, the nodules are through the water column, and this might
there in huge quantities as an almost inex-
haustible resource – experts estimate that harm further wildlife there.
trillions are ready to be extracted from the
ocean floor. For cobalt alone, it is estimated So we are likely to face a difficult choice.
that the small metal balls include more co-
balt than all known land reserves combined. We might hope that ocean mining robots can

The International Seabed Authority (ISA), be finetuned to protect the
which regulates extraction of minerals on
the ocean floor, has awarded 29 exploration ocean environment as much
licences, 16 of them in the Clarion Clipper-
ton Zone, an area in the Pacific more than as possible. GSR has installed
five times the size of New South Wales,
where the ocean floor is covered in manga- a sensor at the front of Patania Ocean mines:
nese nodules. This is where ocean mines II to make sure that the under-
will have their first major test, with Belgian pressure from water pumps
company Global Sea Mineral Resources
(GSR) preparing a trial of their “ocean vacuum affects only the upper part of green boost
cleaner”, Patania II, over an area of 0.9km2. the ocean floor and won’t stir
up too much sediment –
Vacuum cleaner to be tested though its model calculations

Patania II is the size of a bus, and weighs 25 still indicate that the cloud of or a ruined
tonnes.The vehicle collects manganese nod- silt will spread 3-10km from
ules by means of water pumps which cause the ocean vacuum cleaner be-
underpressure right above the ocean floor, so fore the particles sink back
sucking up the nodules. Sediment from the
ocean floor is filtered out of the nodules and onto the ocean floor. The test ecosystem?
pumped out of the rear. Nodules are collected of Patania II is to show if the
in a container, then sucked up through a hose mining robot can successfully
to a mining vessel on the surface. harvest manganese nodules

The test voyage of Patania II will be ac- in strips with empty space in
companied by the German research vessel
Sonne, which will send small submarines between them, and whether Ocean-floor mining could provide
and measuring equipment to observe the ocean currents can be em-
consequences for the environment and on
wildlife in the darkness at 4km depth. Previ- ployed so that the majority of metals such as cobalt and copper for
ous studies have indicated that mining
could leave scars on the ocean floor. In 1989, ‘fallout’ lands in areas that green technology, and the method
German scientists carried out a series of ex- have already been harvested. could replace contaminated mines
periments in the Pacific using an agricultur- The ISA is expected to keep on dry land. On the other hand, we
al harrow to simulate an ocean vacuum 30% of the Clarion Clipperton might disturb pristine ecosystems
cleaner. The scientists have revisited the Zone free of commercial min- and devastate the ocean floor.
sites several times – most recently in 2015 – ing to protect the ecosystem.

Despite such efforts, the

mining of ocean floors would

still be – literally – disturbing.

So can the world can do without the treasure

trove of metals if we are to save Earth’s

climate? In a report from May 2020, the World

Bank calculated that production of materials

such as lithium, cobalt and graphite must

increase by no less than 500% by 2050 if the

global temperature rise is to be kept under

the two degrees specified in the Paris Agree-

ment, and it will be difficult for mines on dry

land to meet the demand, and to do so with-

out considerable pollution. It may have to be

the small nodules discovered 150 years ago

that will fuel the green revolution. As scien- The tentacled Relicanthus

tists from Oxford University said in an article exists at a depth of 4km in

about ocean mines in 2018, the question is no the Clarion Clipperton Zone.

longer whether ocean mines become a fact

of life, but when it will happen – and how.

74 | SCIENCE ILLUSTRATED

FOR OCEAN MINES

Metals needed for a climate-friendly world

The ocean floor includes metals that will be includes copper, aluminium, nickel and
in short supply in a greening world where cobalt. The below extrapolation includes
electric cars replace petrol-powered cars, seven important materials for car
with demand for car batteries set to batteries. Demand is under a million
explode over the next 10 years. As well as tonnes annually today, but is expected to
lithium, an electric battery typically rise to 7+ million tonnes annually in 2030.

Demand/million tonnes per year Manganese
8 Lithium
7 Cobalt
6 Nickel
5 Graphite
4 Aluminium
3 Copper
2
1
0

2030
2029
2028
2027
2026
2025
2024
2023
2022
2021
2020
2019
2018

AGAINST OCEAN MINES

Large vehicles will Wildlife Ship 0km
damage ocean wildlife Silt 1km
2km
When mining vehicles crush underwater 3km CRAIG SMITH & DIVA AMON/ABYSSLINE PROJECT & SHUTTERSTOCK & KEN IKEDA MADSEN
mountains, pulverise chimneys near volcanic 4km
springs, or vacuum up manganese nodules, the
ocean floor will be converted into a wasteland, Ocean vacuum cleaner
and animal habitats will inevitably be Ocean floor
destroyed. Although ‘ocean vacuum cleaners’
seem to be the most gentle method (because
rather than crushing the ocean floor, they suck
up manganese nodules), they will still stir up
fine-grained sediments, or silt, from the ocean
floor due to the vehicle’s weight and motion,
and the pumps that set water in motion.
Silt could kill fish and other marine organisms,
so a vital question is whether sediment clouds
caused by an ocean vacuum cleaner will reach
into the top 1km of the water column which
includes the most biodiversity. The GSR mining
company will test this in 2020.

scienceillustrated.com.au | 75

HUMANS THE HUMAN BRAIN

ONGOING SERIES:

YOUR
CHEATING
BRAIN

Your life is a hallucination, your memories are
unreliable, and you can’t even control your
own thoughts. Scientists are discovering
that our brains deceive us all the time.

Memory
Senses
Logic
Free will

When you have to make a
complex choice, the brain
often forgets about logic and

lets emotions take over.

SHUTTERSTOCK & LOTTE FREDSLUND

Logicalthinking isimpossible

The human brain is the world’s most sophisticated computer – but still your
decisions are illogical and driven by emotion, because the brain is programmed
to sacrifice reflection for speed, and prefers to prevent you changing your mind.

Y ou have gone to a supermarket The brain is likely to abandon your sense based on common sense. Damasio worked at
to buy washing powder, but of logic, allowing itself to be guided by emo- the US University of Iowa, where he had treat-
your usual brand has sold out. tions instead. The small box feels under- ed a patient – Elliot, a successful businessman
Remaining on the shelves in whelming; the thought of carrying home the – who was used to making quick decisions.
front of you is a selection of big bucket puts you off. And you don’t want But that ended abruptly when he underwent
five different choices. One is quite a lot to hunt down an employee and ask them to brain surgery for a tumour, and had part of the
smaller than the others, while another get the box from the top shelf. You are likely brain’s frontal lobes removed. Elliot quickly
comes in a bucket with enough powder to to go one of two ways – either buying the recovered to become as intelligent, eloquent
last you the next six months. A third one ‘50%-off’ powder for the joy of a good deal, and attentive as before the surgery, but his life
boasts elegant packaging, the fourth one is or just walking away, annoyed by all the quickly took a downturn. After the surgery
rather difficult to reach on the top shelf, and choices.The most logical choice may lie else- Elliot lost his job, his family left him, and he
the fifth sports a label that says ‘50% off’. where, but you made the decision quickly, went bankrupt. What had gone wrong?
When you read labels and dosage guides to without overburdening your brain.
try to calculate the price per wash for each The problem was that Elliot was unable
power, you give up, because the variables Emotions and choices hand in hand to make decisions. He could spend an entire
create too many options to choose between. afternoon wondering whether to classify his
But then your brain comes to your rescue. Neurologist Antonio Damasio realised in 1994 documents according to date, case file,
that in practice we rarely make decisions or size. Elliot also found it difficult to

DECEIT: INSULA VMPFC

Emotions 2
lend logic a
helping hand 13

According to neurologist Antonio Damasio, our AMYGDALA SHUTTERSTOCK
emotions and experience help our brains to make
decisions. In any series of options, many of them scienceillustrated.com.au | 77
will trigger memories of another choice you have
previously made. Experience, such as the
satisfaction of having made a good or bad deal,
is related to good or poor behaviour, which is
recorded in the amygdala (1) in the temporal
lobe and processed in the insula (2) in the cerebral
cortex. According to the theory, the emotions
triggered by each option are evaluated in the vmPFC
(3), which forms part of the frontal lobes. The option
triggering the most satisfying emotion is given priority
by the brain, and forms a strong element in the final
decision, which may override any logical thinking.

HUMANS THE HUMAN BRAIN

choose who to spend time with or who to A similar conclusion was reached by had manipulated the data to indicate the
do business with. And when he did finally psychologist Alexander Todorov. He made exact opposite.
manage to make a choice, it was often not a 245 test subjects take a look at pictures
good one for him. of different faces for either a tenth of a sec- A series of experiments suggest that a
ond, half a second, one second, or for an un- small area known as the DLPFC at the top
Antonio Damasio was introduced to limited period of time, and he asked the test right side of the frontal lobes plays a key
similar patients who had all had surgery in subjects to rank the faces. The conclusion role when logical thinking is challenged by
the same part of the frontal lobes, also was that it only took 0.1 second to decide our existing knowledge or conviction. Neu-
known as the ventromedial prefrontal cortex how trusting, competent, pleasant, aggres- rologist Vinod Goel from York University in
(vmPFC).The area is involved in regulation of sive or attractive the faces in the pictures Toronto, Canada, scanned the brains of test
our reaction to emotions. As both Elliot and were judged to be. Even if the test subjects subjects as they read a chain of arguments
other patients had become more insensitive were allowed more time to look at the faces, – all apples are red fruit; all red fruit is poi-
after their injuries, Damasio suggested that they didn’t change their minds. sonous; all apples are poisonous. This made
emotions are a precondition of being able to logical sense, but conflicted with the test
make choices. The brain is stubborn subjects’ ideas about apples. This kind of
logic clash causes a conflict in the brain, ac-
Even the simplest of decisions involves What’s more, the brain finds it very difficult tivating the DLPFC, which also tries to find
many pieces of information which, in a per- to change its mind. In an experiment from out what is right and wrong.
fect world, should be carefully weighed 2013, Dan Kahan from Yale University in the
against each other. But according to Dama- US introduced a group of test subjects to The brain’s tendency is to follow and
sio, the brain has neither the time nor the fictitious documentation on the effect of maintain its first emotional impulse, and
mental resources to make the many deci- arms control. The documentation was diffi- that makes it inherently difficult to convince
sions of a normal day in a strictly logical way. cult to understand, so instead of carefully an opponent in a discussion. But you can
Instead it imagines the likely emotional re- analysing the numbers, the test subjects use the brain’s way of working to your ad-
sult of the different choices. tended to take a short cut, concluding that vantage. Impressive graphics can produce a
the factual data supported their existing feeling of trustworthiness, a tactic used by
Experience determines outcome personal belief – even though the scientist Professor Brian Wansink from Cornell Uni-
versity in the US to convince 61 students
These ideas – known as somatic markers – 3 that a drug could cure the flu.
are based on experiences earlier in life. As a
child, you might have resented getting the seconds is how long the Half of the students were introduced to
smallest piece of cake at a birthday party, brain takes to decide if a fictional test results in the shape of a
and years later the brain will still associate person is attractive or not. simple table. This convinced 68% of the
the choice of the small box of washing pow- students. But the same data introduced in
der with that regret – without considering fancy graphics convinced a full 97% of them
whether the small box actually gives you that the drug would work. According to
better value for money. Similarly, the brain Wansink, the illustration made a stronger
associates the choice of the ‘50% off’ packet impression that the claim had been scien-
– even without looking at the real price – tifically documented.
with some past experience somewhere you
got a real bargain and were congratulated on So the next time you’re debating, or
the purchase by friends and family. shopping for washing powder, consider
whether you’re thinking truly logically – or
Individual somatic markers are quickly are just allowing yourself to be
retrieved from the memory, and it takes only controlled by your emotions.
a split second for the vmPFC to choose the
best feeling. Antonio Damasio doesn’t claim
that all decisions are made based only on
the emotions, but the process makes sure
that any obviously-unacceptable choices are
quickly eliminated, while the best other
choices are ranked. The number of choices
that the brain has to analyse is reduced.

You are rated in 0.1 second

Your brain’s quick decisions can be very
obvious when you meet new people. Psy-
chologist Robert Kurzban ran an experiment
with 10,000 people in cooperation with the
American HurryDate speed-dating service.
In one single night, each person met 25 po-
tential partners and had three minutes to
form an impression of them. But the study
showed that the average test subject spent
only three seconds deciding if they were
attracted to the other person or not.

78 | SCIENCE ILLUSTRATED

DETECTION:

Reveal your brain’s deceit

The brain does not like logic, as it often becomes difficult to analyse
complex problems logically. Using emotions and prejudiced opinions
makes the task easier – even though it might deliver a misleading result.

SOLVE THE PROBLEMS PROBLEM 2: Rate traffic accidents

PROBLEM 1: Which cards First, consider this question: do you think the speed limit on
should be turned over? freeways should be reduced, or increased? Then take a look at
the table below, which is a fictitious study of accident numbers on
You are a quality control officer 298 stretches of motorway on which the speed limit was increased,
in a factory that makes playing and 132 where it was decreased. Do the results support your view?
cards. All cards must meet one
requirement: if the number on the Motorway stretches More Fewer
card is even, it MUST be red. on which the speed accidents accidents
You do not have enough time to limit was increased
check all the cards, so your challenge 223 75
is to turn over only the cards that you Motorway stretches
suspect might break the rule. Which on which the speed 107 25
of these four should you turn over? limit was reduced

PROBLEM 3: Who gets the vodka?

You have been sent to a bar that ONLY serves apple juice or vodka. You must make sure
that people under the age of 18 do NOT drink vodka. You know EITHER a guest’s age
OR what they drink. Which of these four guests would you check for breaking the rule?

11 8

16 41

YEARS YEARS

PROBLEM 3: You should ask the 16-year-old and PROBLEM 2: It depends... Whatever you think ANSWERS SHUTTERSTOCK & LOTTE FREDSLUND
the vodka drinker. The problem is almost about freeway speeds, you will probably answer
identical to problem 1, but is easier to solve as that the study argues IN FAVOUR OF your PROBLEM 1: You need turn over only the 8 and
the logical thinking is aided by your emotional conviction. However, the study shows that MORE the blue card. The colour of the back of the card
understanding of age and alcohol. The 41-year- road accidents result from REDUCING the speed with the 11 is irrelevant, as the rule only applies
old is allowed to drink vodka, and the apple juice limit. The data is difficult to comprehend, as it to cards with even numbers. The number on the
drinker can drink apple juice no matter what requires quite a lot of maths and statistical back of the red card is also irrelevant, as according
his/her age. On the other hand the 16-year-old insight. Consequently the brain will tend to skip to the rule, red cards can include either even or
CANNOT drink vodka, and the vodka drinker the complex intermediate results and choose the odd numbers. But the reverse side of the card with
CANNOT be under 18. answer that supports its existing opinion. the 8 MUST be red, as it is even, whereas the blue
card CANNOT have an even number on the back.

scienceillustrated.com.au | 79

MEGAPIXELS

Drop the pilot: silicone droplets on oil
illustrate complex quantum theory

The ‘pilot-wave theory’ is a disputed interpretation of quantum
mechanics in which a particle behaves like a particle but moves like a
wave. It’s difficult to visualise, but physicist Aleks Labuda’s demonstration is
elegant. He placed silicone droplets on a layer of oil, all on top of a loudspeaker
playing a frequency of 15Hz. A wave formed in the oil that determined the
direction of movement of the droplets across the surface, the droplets behaving
like particles, but moving like waves – just like the theory.

Photo // Aleks Labuda

UCI Cubic power: carbon
cage beats diamond

US scientists have developed a
new nanomaterial stronger than
either diamond or nanotubes, arranging
carbon atoms in a cage using a 3D laser
printer. It proved 6.39 times stronger
than its cylindrical predecessors, and
scientists predict that the material could
be used for future planes and spacecraft.

Photo // Cameron Crook & Jens Bauer

80 | SCIENCE ILLUSTRATED

DLR/ESA Ice bowl: Korolev crater traps ice on Mars

This image combines five recordings by the Mars Express probe which has
orbited Mars since 2003. It shows the Korolev crater, more than 80km
across, and maintaining a constant layer of aqueous ice some 2200km3 in volume.

Photo // FU Berlin

Dental deal: brave fish
cleans lemon shark’s teeth

The small suckerfish has cut a deal with the lemon
shark, swimming into its mouth to remove food
from its teeth. In rare cases it even acts as midwife
when there are difficulties cutting the umbilical cord
to a newborn shark; suckerfish sometimes offer their
assistance in exchange for being allowed to eat the cord.

Photo // Pascal Kobeh

sscciieenncceeiilllluussttrraatteedd.c.coomm.a.auu || 8811

Editor: David Dragsted Text & Art: Anker Tiedemann & Erik Wied
ANSWERS ON PAGE 11

adnSidofflefivrneednptrootuybtplieenmswsohfdiiecnshtiegylnloieugdeenfxoccree,l! VISUAL ANALYSIS

LOGIC

1 Luna, Sol and Sirius together own a total of 84 books.
Luna and Sirius together own twice as many books
as Sol, while Sol and Sirius together own the same
number of books as Luna. Who owns 28 books?

2 What number should NUMERACY
replace the question mark ?

4 Where in the figure can you see three
adjacent cubes with the numbers 1-9 on their
nine visible side faces? And what is the total of
the three central numbers in that group?

MEMORY

ScQieunicze

3 Which half heart VISUAL ANALYSIS FROM THIS ISSUE Answers on p11: no peeking!
will match Marie’s
to create a whole? 5 By what method do 6 What is the main function for
scientists hope to double which the Patania II ‘vacuum
Brian the height of wind turbines? cleaner’ robot has been designed?

Marie's Victoria's A) Better scaffolding A) Tidying bedrooms
half heart B) A new concrete formula B) Collecting ocean plastic
C) 3D-printed bases C) Cleaning busy highways
Michael D) Microbot builders D) Gathering precious metals

Oliver 7 What shape do most 8 Computer-designed life-forms
astrophysicists think is have now been created in the
Alice Victoria most likely for our universe? real world using what?

Pierre A) A closed ball A) Dinosaur DNA
B) An open saddle shape B) Cells from a frog
C) Almost flat C) 3D-printed organs
D) A double 'doughnut' D) Lego

82 | SCIENCE ILLUSTRATED

SHUTTERSTOCK DON’T MISS THE NEXT ISSUE

COMING UP

ON SALE 4 JANUARY 2021

QUASARS

In 2020, astronomers recorded the
most powerful explosion ever when a
quasar uttered a death scream of light.
The data now shows that quasars cause
cosmic storms which provide answers to
some of the universe's big mysteries.

A VACCINE FOR
PHOBIAS & ANXIETY?

Scientists have designed a virus and
infected brain cells with it so that they
produce a chemical that dampens anxiety.

The method has proven effective in
monkeys, and scientists believe that
humans might also be vaccinated against
many forms of anxiety and phobia.

A NEW RANGE FROM AUSTRALIA’S
NUMBER 1 ORGANIC WINERY

Available at fine wine retailers and www.angove.com.au
Please Drink responsibly.


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