Each week, I devote part of my Sunday to reading.  I tend to accumulate a lot of saved links on Facebook during the week, and I like to try to keep up with what fellow writers are posting here on WordPress.  At the end of my reading day, I like to put up a post to draw my readers’ attention to a few articles I found to be of particular interest.

Here’s what I enjoyed this week:

An Ice Core Reveals the Economic Health of the Roman Empire

by Nicholas Wade, New York Times

I know I wrote about an article on climate science last week, but this one was too fascinating to pass up.  Seldom do I see science news in a newspaper like the New York Times before it shows up on Phys.org or another scientific journal, and this one was special.  The article explores the findings of a recent study on arctic ice cores conducted jointly by Oxford archaeologist Andrew I. Wilson and Joseph R. McConnell, an expert in ice core study at the Desert Research Institute in Reno, NV.  This groundbreaking study allowed the researchers to track the economic activity of the Roman Empire by measuring lead traces in ice cores formed by ancient snowfall.

The Romans are known to have used lead extensively, for everything from waterproofing boats to plumbing and even drinking cups (much to their detriment, as lead is known today to be highly toxic).  However, lead also served another purpose for the Romans: lead ores are known to naturally contain silver, which was used in producing the primary form of Roman currency, the denarius coin.  As high temperatures are required to separate lead from silver, it stands to reason that higher concentrations of atmospheric lead pollution would appear during periods of Roman economic prosperity.

And sure enough, the researchers found levels of lead in the Greenland ice cores they studied generally corresponded to known or suspected fluctuation in the Roman economy.  Lead pollution was higher during periods of economic prosperity, notably the Pax Romana, which lasted from 27 BCE to CE 180.  Conversely, lead levels dropped during calamity, including severe plagues from CE 165-180 and 250-270.

Could space aliens on hefty super-Earths be trapped by their own gravity?

by Seth Shostak, NBC

Here on Earth, we’ve reached the point where we practically take space travel for granted.  Indeed, most of us generally accept the idea that space travel is the key to our species’s future.  But, what if our planet’s gravity were stronger?  Would that potentially deny us the heavens?  That’s the question posed by a recent paper, covered here by senior SETI astronomer Seth Shostak, in a recent article for NBC News.

Based on our admittedly limited survey of other star systems thus far, it appears that so-called “Super Earths” are far more common than our own, smaller planet.  These worlds lie within the habitable zone of their stars, but are between one point two to two times larger than Earth.  While such size disparity may seem minor, on a planetary scale it’s staggering, and according to a recent paper by German astronomer Michael Hippke of Sonnenberg Observatory, it could pose unforeseen challenges for aliens seeking to leave their planet.

While it stands to reason that species developing on such heavy worlds would be able to cope with the gravity themselves, in attempting to launch chemically-propelled rockets like the ones we use, they would face the same gravitational constraints we do.  Lifting off on such a planet would require more fuel and larger rockets than anything we’ve yet produced.  And that, Hippke argues, could make the challenge of space travel nigh insurmountable.

Shostak, however, argues that the paper is overly pessimistic about their chances.  While nothing can change the gravitational constraints they’d face, Shostak contends that space travel would, indeed, be possible for such (hypothetical) alien species, even if it meant a 50-100 year delay in their first missions.  What’s more, he points out that the stronger gravity of Super Earths could also present significant advantages.  Increased landmass would likely mean more diverse lifeforms, potentially leading to earlier development of intelligent species.  Higher gravity would likely mean a denser atmosphere, potentially leading to earlier development of aviation, generally seen as a natural precursor to space exploration.

These advantages, Shostak suggests, could potentially negate the expected delay of space travel.

Gels, Foams and Purees: Cookbooks Serve Up Recipes For Those Who Struggle To Swallow

by Jill Neimark, NPR

An unexpected advantage to procrastinating this week was being able to include this article, just posted today.  If you don’t follow NPR’s food blog, The Salt, you really should.  And this article by Jill Neimark is in line with the fantastic content they put out on a weekly basis.

Dysphagia is a disorder that makes swallowing difficult.  The disorder is most commonly associated with complications from stroke or dementia, and with humans living longer and the Baby Boomer generation aging into retirement, it’s becoming more common.  For years, the most common means of feeding patients suffering from dysphagia was through the use of pureed foods.  Unfortunately, most pureed foods are inherently bland and generally unappealing, leading to weight loss from patients who refuse to eat.

Now, several enterprising chefs, notably Asian scholar Diane Wolff and Peter Morgan-Jones of the HammondCare Foundation in Australia, are trying to change that.  Through inventive presentation and molecular gastronomy, they’re working to develop recipes to feed dysphagia patients more appealing, better-tasting food that will maintain weight and health.  Using everything from agar fruit gels and flavored foams (a recent innovation in molecular gastronomy), they hope to change the way we look at food, and the way dementia patients get the calories they need.

Knowledge is power.  Take time out to read a bit every day.  It’s your window into the world around you.