Micrometeoroids that delivered stardust to asteroid 4 Vesta also carried water, researchers report.

The formation of our solar system was a messy affair. Most of the material that existed before its formation—material formed around other, long-dead stars—was vaporized, then recondensed into new materials.

But some grains of that material from before the sun’s birth still persist. These “stardust” grains arrived on Earth inside primitive meteorites.

IF ICY MICROMETEOROIDS DELIVERED WATER TO THE INNER SOLAR SYSTEM WHEN THE EARTH WAS STILL FORMING, THIS COULD BE ONE WAY THAT THE EARTH ENDED UP WITH ENOUGH WATER TO SUPPORT LIFE.”

Like our Earth,” says Nan Liu, an assistant research professor in physics and the Laboratory for Space Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, “Vesta has a core, a mantle, and crust,” features that formed as the materials melted, differentiated, and coalesced into a single planet-like object.

And like Earth, micrometeoroids also pummel Vesta. The brightest asteroid in the night sky, Vesta orbits the sun in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.

Liu, along with Lionel Vacher, a postdoctoral researcher, and Ryan Ogliore, assistant professor of physics, studied samples of the Kapoeta meteorite for this research. Kapoeta fell to Earth in 1942 in what is now South Sudan, landing on a road in front of a British convoy during World War II. NASA’s Dawn mission to asteroid Vesta established a link between Vesta and the howardites, eucrites, and diogenites, groups of meteorites found on Earth.

The research team focused on small, dark inclusions in Kapoeta that seemed out of place, like pieces of clay in lava rock.

“They look completely different from surrounding material,” Liu says. They turned out to be microscopic meteoroids, less than 100 microns across (smaller than the thickness of a human hair), that landed on Vesta’s surface.

Liu used a mass-spectrometer microscope, the NanoSIMS, to search the inclusions for presolar material. Because stardust has a very different isotopic composition from material that formed within the solar system, it jumped out at her under the microscope.

HABITABLE PLANETS AROUND OTHER STARS MAY HAVE ACQUIRED THEIR WATER THROUGH SIMILAR MEANS.”

The stardust in asteroid Vesta is a unique record of ancient, galactic material delivered long ago to a body far from Earth. The researchers postulate that the micrometeoroids arrived at Vesta after the violent impacts of the Late Heavy Bombardment, about 3.5 billion years ago.

Vacher and Ogliore measured the chemical compositions of the micrometeoroids to understand in what type of environment they formed. They recognized minerals and textures that were linked to interactions between rock and water from melted ice.

One of the big questions is: How did water get on Earth?

We need a mechanism to bring ice from the outer solar system, where the temperature is low,” Vacher says. “This research shows that you can transport small micrometeoroids that contain ice to dry bodies that formed without water.”

The ancient record of these micrometeoroids’ impacts on Earth has been erased by weather and plate tectonics. The micrometeoroid record from asteroid Vesta may help to explain how water was delivered to the young Earth.

“If icy micrometeoroids delivered water to the inner solar system when the Earth was still forming, this could be one way that the Earth ended up with enough water to support life,” Ogliore says. “Habitable planets around other stars may have acquired their water through similar means.”

More analyses are needed to determine the when and the where. “Our next measurements will constrain when this wet material was delivered to Vesta, and where it came from: an icy asteroid, a comet or some other exotic source,” Ogliore says

The origin of water on Earth is the subject of a body of research in the fields of planetary science, astronomy, and astrobiology. Earth is unique among the rocky planets in the Solar System in that it is the only planet known to have oceans of liquid water on its surface. Liquid water, which is necessary for life, continues to exist on the surface of Earth because the planet is at a distance far enough from the Sun that it does not lose its water to the runaway greenhouse effect, but not so far that low temperatures cause all water on the planet to freeze.

Earth could not have condensed from the protoplanetary disk with its current oceans of water because the early inner Solar System was far too hot for water to condense. Instead, water and other volatiles must have been delivered to Earth from the outer Solar System later in its history. Modern geochemical evidence suggests that water was delivered to Earth by impacts from icy planetesimals similar in composition to modern asteroids in the outer edges of the asteroid belt.

Depression and anxiety have become major mental health concerns of modern society. Shockingly, depression and anxiety are some of the least treated mental disorders. This is because people shy away from treatment stating various reasons. Victims usually say, that they need some time so that they can get out of the clutches by themself, they don’t wanna take the pills, they are embarrassed to speak about it with the doctors. Whatever the reasons may be, depression and anxiety can stop people from doing their day to day activities or even lead to making fatal decisions if untreated at most cases. 

While treatment is the best option to get out of depression and prevent anxiety, reading some self-help books can be your trump card to beat depression and anxiety without any treatment. Even if it doesn’t help you get rid of them, it will be the best guide post treatment so that you don’t go into depression again. 

One of the best books which I would suggest is “The subtle art of not giving a fuck” authored by Mark Manson. The book stands apart from other motivational books by emphasizing us to accept our failure and limits while guiding how to live with them. This book addresses the depression and anxiety problems. Also the circumstantial reasons for falling prey to those disorders are discussed. Most victims when they read this book would be surprised by getting to know the long story before they ended up with depression and anxiety. The author also talks about the modern societal problems that are misleading people and making them more prone to anxiety and depression. 

This book is not limited to certain people as the author try to articulate the meaning of life while addressing the issues. If you are person who don’t prefer motivational books but want the message, then this book is for you.

Edtech stands for education and technology. The role of an Edtech company is to use all the hardware, software in enhancing the education system. Their major purpose and goal is to design certain hardware and software products for the educational institutions. Due to the rise in technology now students can have access to e-learning and learn from home.

Top 10 Companies in Edtech Industry:

1. Byju’s Learning App
2. Udemy
3. Coursera
4. edX 
5. Hanson Robotics
6. Neuron Robotics
7. Moleskine
8. Amazon Kindle
9. Google Assistant
10. Microsoft

Edtech security risks.

EdTech security risks create ransomware, account takeover, and data security risks for college districts.
New EdTech supports innovation in teaching and enriches learning. However, that very same technology can leave you susceptible and open to cyberattacks. It poses risks to student privacy and safety, and increases the risks you want to face in terms of knowledge breaches and ransomware attacks. Many people say that school districts are facing a cybersecurity crisis. Fortunately, there are steps you can take to manage EdTech security risks.

Account Takeovers: Hackers can takeover accounts of teachers and students. The hackers may be able to make purchases using a credit card. They can use their account access to send phishing emails to other contacts and gain access to more accounts and information. Or, they’ll be ready to take over a Facebook profile and send bullying messages to other students supported their personal information. They could also take over an email account for an administrator and wreak all kinds of havoc.
Data Loss: Hackers can destroy school records once they need access. They are also known to redirect contractor payments to dummy accounts that the hackers control, and use employee information to steal tax returns. On a private level, students, staff, and fogeys can face fraud , a drag which will take years to resolve.
Classroom and Learning Disruption: Whether students are unable to access online lessons, or teachers are unable to prepare and present online lessons, the disruption to the classroom and learning opportunities is a significant problem. Flagstaff administrative district recently had to cancel school thanks to a ransomware attack that impacted building security, phones, and other systems.

Managing the security risks.

. 24/7 Monitoring
Monitor the activity on your systems to spot abnormal behavior that would result from an account takeover. This activity might be unusual login locations and lateral phishing emails that would indicate an account takeover.

2. Schedule Automatic Action First try and Identify the EdTech and SaaS applications that are connected to your district G Suite or Office365 systems. Then, automatically classify their risk potential. Once identified, you’ll take action automatically or manually to sanction, prohibit, remove, or notify the offender. In some cases, more than one of those actions is appropriate.

If your monitoring uncovers a known malicious app, otherwise you determine an app to be malicious, define a procedure for checking with the user. Find out if the user added the app intentionally , or if it might be a results of an account takeover. In this situation, it’s a good idea to suggest that the user reset their account password.

3. Update Your Cloud Safety Measures

Review your G Suite for Education security measures to make sure that you’re using them to the fullest. And, conduct a cloud security audit to spot anything you’ll be missing.

4. Create an EdTech Policy Manual
   It’s critical that everyone in your district understands the importance of protecting the security of your data. They should also be aware of the fact that cybercriminals are targeting K-12 institutions. Make sure the manual defines:

The EdTech that is approved for use
The minimum security and privacy requirements for new EdTech
The process for vetting new EdTech apps
Managing your EdTech security risks is one among the simplest weapons you’ve got against cybercriminals. If your administrative district doesn’t have an automatic system to spot and manage the EdTech apps that are connected to district G Suite and Office 365 environments, your defense isn’t as strong as it could be. Fortunately, identifying EdTech security risks in your environment doesn’t have to be difficult—or particularly expensive.

.

We often hear people using these terms in today’s world. They have a bit similar symptoms, but are yet so different. All the three terms have different meanings.

• Stress

Stress is a result of day to day life activities. It’s your body’s reaction to the problems you face like completing a deadline, loss in business, etc.
It goes away when the problems you face are over.
It may be harmful to your body if stress lasts long.There are two main types of stress:

1. Acute stress
The stress that you feel when you have a fight with your partner/ family or do activities that are new and exciting is called acute stress. It goes away in a short span of time. Everyone experiences acute stress in their day to day life.

2. Chronic Stress
The stress that goes on for days, weeks or even months is called Chronic stress. It occurs when you face problems like unhappy marriage, financial problems, work problems or family problems. You might become so used to chronic stress that you might not realise that it is a serious problem.

Secretion of hormones takes place when your body reacts to stress. This alerts your body at the time of danger and is in a way good as it helps you to handle stressful situations.When you suffer from chronic stress, your body stays alert even though there is no danger.

This may lead to health problems if not managed on time like:
• Heart problems
• High blood pressure
• Depression or anxiety
• Skin problems like acne
• Menstrual problems
• Diabetes

Symptoms include tiredness, trouble in sleeping or sleeping too much, use of alcohol or drugs, upset stomach, weight loss or gain, etc.•

Anxiety disorder

The worry or fear of the future, about what’s going to come is called anxiety.
The nervous feeling that you get before a job interview or at the first day of the school is called being anxious.

When such feeling continues for a long period like six months are so severe that they start to cause effect on your life, it’s called anxiety disorder.

Anxiety disorder can occur at any age and to anyone. When it gets severe it stops you from doing things you love or from doing normal things like riding a bike, crossing a road, etc.
The feeling of constant fear clings to you and affects your life. If left untreated, it gets worse and may lead to deadly outcomes.

According to a study, females are more likely to suffer from it that the males.

Anxiety disorders consist of various types. They are as follows:

• Phobia– It is the extreme fear of an activity, a thing or a situation.

• Panic disorder- the occurrence of panic attacks at any time of the day, makes the person suffering from it be in constant fear about the occurrence of next panic attack at an unexpected time.

• Post Traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)- this type of disorder occurs after going through a traumatic event like death of a loved one, an accident, etc.

• Separation anxiety disorder- this disorder occurs when you live in constant fear of being away from your family or a loved one.

• Obsessive- compulsive disorder– It’s the constant irrational thoughts that lead you to perform specific repeated action or behaviour.

• Symptoms

Symptoms are different from person to person as the situations people face also differs.
Some people might feel there heart beating fast while some might feel out control as if have no control over their thoughts.People might suffer from nightmares, panic attacks or flashbacks of painful moments. The feeling of fear of a specific place or event consumes you.

Other symptoms include:
• increased heart rate
• rapid breathing
• restlessness
• trouble concentrating
• difficulty falling asleep

• Depression

The mood disorder that causes constant feeling of sadness and loss of interest in the activities you love is called depression.

Events that cause a major impact on your life like death of a loved one, being betrayed or loss of a job can lead to depression.It may last for several weeks or years.

Symptoms are as follows:
• a depressed mood
• Loss of interest in activities or hobbies
• Change in sleeping cycle like sleeping too much or too little
• Feeling worthless or guilty
• Constant thoughts of death or suicide, or a suicide attempt.

According to a study, depression is more common in females than in males and the symptoms might differ as follows:

• Feeling irritated
• Anxiety
• Constant Mood swings
• Fatigue
• Holding on to negative thoughts

Some gender based symptoms are also observed in males which are as follows:
• Avoiding contact family and friends
• Taking too much work load
• Abusive and controlling behaviour in relationship

• Teenagers might experience difficulty in adjusting to a new environment, peer pressure or inferiority complex. These can lead to depression.

Depression can occur at any stage of life and can make people take drastic steps like suicide.

Maybe All of us don’t have the power to treat such conditions but the least we can do is be kind to one another. You never know what someone might be going through. There maybe some hidden battles that they might be facing but plastering them all with a smiling face.
Whenever someone tells you that you have hurt them, don’t shut them out. You don’t get to decide if you hurt them or not. Don’t make them feel like a fool for expressing their feelings. Don’t always be self righteous and think that you can never make a mistake. If your actions are bothering or hurting someone, STOP!
If unknowingly or knowingly your actions hurt someone, then avoid doing it. The means of your fun and entertainment might affect someone’s mental health.Be careful with the words that you use. You never know what impact they might have.
You can save someone just by being kind and being there for them. May it be your family or friends, always ask them how they are.