By: Isabelle Baidoo

Axolotls have been on earth for roughly the last 10,000 years, inhabiting central Mexico. Much of their suitable habitat has been drained or dried up, so there are only two spring-fed lakes left that they can inhabit wildly. Axolotls breed very easily in captivity and quickly develop new colors and sizes.

They have feathery gills spouting from either side of their heads, webbed feet, a dorsal fin that runs down their body, and a tail. Although axolotls have gills, adult axolotls have functional lungs and can breathe through their skin. Axolotls are unique compared to other salamanders because they reach adulthood without going through metamorphosis. Instead of going to land once they’re fully developed, they remain aquatic and keep their gills.

These creatures have the ability to completely regenerate their limbs. Regeneration is initiated by injuries or wounds, but not all injuries result in limb regeneration. Small cuts, scrapes, or bruises wouldn’t result in complete regeneration but their healing time is much faster than humans.

Axolotls suck in their prey through their small smiling mouths, they eat crustaceans, mollusks, insect eggs, and small fish.

The pet trade of axolotls started from Paris, France in 1864 when Mexican traders brought axolotls to Europe, Europeans across the continent were intrigued by the exotic creatures. This led to the excessive breeding of axolotls in captivity.

The pink axolotls you commonly see as pets have been bred to be those colors; wild axolotls are mostly gray, brown, or black. Pink axolotls are extremely rare in the wild since they can’t camouflage well.

When keeping an Axolotl as a pet you must take into consideration that they prefer cool water. Their water temperature should be less than 70 degrees F. When feeding your pet, experts recommend you attempt to replicate its natural diet as closely as possible. You can do this by feeding them a combination of earthworms, brine shrimp, and daphnia. Daphnias are a small aquatic crustacean.

By: Hannah Gliedman

What is the Golden Record?

In 1977 spacecrafts Voyager 1 and 2 were launched into space. Their goal was to take pictures of Jupiter. Because this was going to be the first man-made thing to reach interstellar space the NASA team decided to put aboard a record that would encapsulate all human existence in 90 minutes. The record would be used to communicate with other life forms about planet earth. It showed images from our universe, our home, us and just about everything on earth. It played sounds from every generation from all around the world. This record is a symbol of the human condition, and it’s called the Golden Record.

Creation of the record?

NASA enlisted Carl Sagan, a committee chair, and his team, to create the record. They wanted to put aboard an object that, if found, would signal to the finder where it came from. A main problem the team had when creating the record was fitting the entire history of earth into a 30 minute frame, because at the time records could only hold about 30 minutes of playtime. The team at NASA figured out how to maximize the speed and get the playtime up to 90. Now all they had to do was figure out what they wanted to fill it with.

How it works

Because there is a very slim to none chance that beings that evolved completely separate from us would understand our language, NASA scientists had to create a way for aliens to understand. They used the most abundant element in the universe, hydrogen, this diagram shows hydrogen particles transitioning through parallel and antiparallel spins. When this happens electromagnetic radiation is released with a period of about .7 nanoseconds and a wavelength of 21 cm, so they hope that aliens will associate that tick with those measurements.

What’s on the record?

The record starts with sounds from planet earth telling the story of earth through sound: volcanos, thunder, crickets, birds, fire, laughter, Morse code, airplanes, a baby crying, and greetings from 55 different languages, and music from all sides of the globe.

The chances of an extraterrestrial being finding the spacecraft before its inevitable decay in a billion years is slim. The chances of it decoding it and sending a message back is even smaller, because by the time we receive their message humans will cease to exist, but that’s not the point. Yes, it would be cool to have communication with other living creatures in the universe, but that’s not the point. The point of the record is to have something, anything out in the universe that shows that we were here, so that when the sun expands and humans and earth are destroyed there is something out there to prove to someone that humans existed.

By: Trump Vang

Fungi are a common occurrence throughout the world. They can resemble the common mushroom, with their round tops and cylindrical stems, or a branched mass of matter taking any shape possible. Although past their appearances, what are they actually?

Fungi are organisms composed of cells, and are a type of eukaryotic organism (Has an easily defined nucleus). They are a part of their own kingdom, known as Fungi, and differ from their commonly associated plant kingdom.

These organisms feed on deteriorating material or sometimes other living things. Through their efforts, they’re able to properly grow and reproduce in order to keep their species going. Just like some plants, Fungi release “seeds”, known as spores in the air to  spread their species. Unlike seeds from plants, their spores are often microscopic, with some even reaching 2 micrometers.

Species of Fungi:

There are many different types of Fungi, having evolved for their specific purposes in the environment today. Although, some stand out through their appearance, ways of reproducing and growing.

For instance, take the Devil’s Fingers Fungi. It’s a mushroom that has four to eight “fingers” that protrude from its base. Along with its appearance, it also shows itself to smell like rotting flesh due to its slime coating. Surprisingly enough, this type of fungi is actually edible, despite its appearance, although its taste is very bitter.

Adding onto appearances, is the Veil Lady fungus. This type of fungus is a mushroom, with its appearance resembling a mushroom with the addition of a skirt/veil that it surrounds itself in. The mushroom is able to spread its spores by attracting flies and insects to itself. Just like the Devil’s Finger, the Veil Lady is edible, being commonly used within cuisines and certain traditional dishes.

Another unique type of Fungi is the Ophiocordyceps camponoti-floridani. This fungus can infect ants, turning their behavior awry. It’s able to properly take over its host to put itself in a good position to grow and reproduce. When its host dies, the fungus releases spores, allowing for the cycle to reproduce when a spore comes in contact with an ant. Through this reproduction method, the fungus is able to spread, and grow in this process. 

There are a multitude of mushrooms that could be expanded on, but these three species show the diversity within Fungi as a whole.

Fungi are organisms that spread themselves through spores, whether it be through air, animals, etc. They’re unlike anything else that has grown, be it animals, plants, bacteria, etc. Their unique appearances and growth patterns have attracted us to them for what seems to be centuries. Along with this, their unique qualities through taste, mechanisms and structure, have allowed us to use them whether it be for cooking, technology or even construction.