Free Republic

Starting February 10, European consumers may find a surprising new ingredient in their everyday meals—UV-treated mealworm powder. Under a new EU regulation, up to 4% of this insect-based protein can be added to bread, cheese, pasta, and other products. Derived from the larvae of the mealworm beetle and treated with UV light for safety, the ingredient is being promoted as a sustainable protein alternative. However, those with shellfish allergies should be cautious due to potential cross-reactivity.

Digesting a crunchy critter starts with the audible grinding of its rigid protective covering—the exoskeleton. The hard cover might be good for the metabolism, according to a new study, in mice. The researchers, led by Steven Van Dyken, Ph.D., found in mice that digesting chitin, an abundant dietary fiber in insect exoskeletons and also mushrooms and crustacean shells, engages the immune system. An active immune response was linked to less weight gain, reduced body fat and a resistance to obesity. The immune system is well known for safeguarding the body against various threats, including bacteria, viruses, allergens and even cancer....

A scientific approach to the wild theory that cow farts are destroying the Earth. https://banned.video/watch?id=6300fd990457c60fc3c0d0c4

A simple manufacturing technology based on chitin, one of the most ubiquitous organic polymers on Earth, could be used to build tools and shelters on Mars, according to a study published September 16 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Javier Fernandez of Singapore University of Technology and Design, and colleagues. With plans to revisit the lunar surface and eventually send a crewed mission to Mars, future space exploration missions are likely to involve an extended stay. For such missions, or perhaps even settlements, survival requires meeting basic human needs. One material that could be used to meet those needs...

Scientists have unearthed fossilized fungi in the remote Northwest Territories of the Canadian Arctic dating back to one billion years, in a discovery that could reshape our understanding of how life first arrived on land from the oceans. Fungi, the “Hidden Kingdom,” are not plants. Living things are organized for study into large, basic groups called kingdoms. Fungi were listed in the Plant Kingdom for many years. Then scientists learned that fungi show a closer relation to animals, but are unique and separate life forms. Most fungi build their cell walls out of chitin. This is the same material as...

Fungi are single or multi-celled organisms that break down organic materials, such as rotting wood, in order to absorb their nutrients. Neither plant nor animal, they range from mushrooms to single-celled yeast. Scientists were investigating organic chemicals trapped in an Italian sedimentary rock formation when they found evidence that an extinct fungus feasted on dead wood during a time when the world’s forests had been catastrophically eradicated.[1] What could have caused such a universal effect on forests, and why does organic material remain in rocks that are supposedly 251.4 million years old?...