One way to track what’s happened on Earth during past periods of drastic climate change is to examine fossils, but, says @KnowableMag, “the fossil record for most species is spotty.” Enter planktonic foraminifera, a unicellular marine organism that first appeared on Earth about 100 million years ago. Nine out of 10 species went extinct when an asteroid hit 66 million years ago. It took 10 million years for species diversity to recover. Tim Vernimmen takes a look at what that can teach us about the past — and future.

https://flip.it/G63zRy

#MarineLife #Paleontology #Palaeontology #Fossils #Plankton #ClimateChange #ClimateCrisis #Environment #Newstodon #NewstodonFriday #FollowFriday

When a Tennessee student makes a threat on social media and it comes to the attention of school staff, the law requires them to investigate the validity of the threat, and figure out a plan of action that supports the student, and protects their peers. @ProPublica reports on an incident in DuPont Tyler Middle School earlier this year, where authorities expelled a seventh grader without following proper procedures. The 12-year-old’s alleged threat was a screenshot of a text exchange that he says he reposted from a Spanish-language news site. It’s just the latest in a series of similar stories of children being expelled, facing felony charges, and being detained — in one case, just for making a “finger gun” gesture at classmates.

https://flip.it/QCyFxu

#Tennessee #GunCrime #Education #Children #Schools #Newstodon #NewstodonFriday #FollowFriday