The Search for Life on Earth

Inside Flipboard / April 21, 2015

It’s easy to forget that the search for life, here, on Earth is far from over.

A 2011 study in PLOS Biology reported that about 86 percent of land species and 91 percent of creatures in the oceans have yet to be discovered. For context, there are about 8.7 million identified species, though some believe that number is far higher.

But scientists are worried. The accelerated rate of climate change has impacted biodiversity from polar regions to the tropics and has left researchers in a sprint to discover life before it disappears.

Just ask Drs. Meg Lowman, Zeray Alemseged and Luiz Rocha, three researchers at the California Academy of Sciences who have made a living out of studying life—from the tree tops to deep within the earth and into the depths of the oceans.

For this year’s Earth Day, we put together a Flipboard story where we asked each researcher to share their thoughts on life, the search for it and what it all means. Also featured in the magazine are responses from a few of our science curators who shared their thoughts on the most pressing issues facing the planet today along with a cross-section of Earth Day related-magazines and topics.

Flip through, dive deep and discover life on Earth by tapping into the magazine.

~NajibA is curating “Adult Stuff.”
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