Q&A

YOUR QUESTIONS ANSWERED

… WHY DO DOGS LIKE STICKS SO MUCH?

… HOW WOULD DEEP-SKY OBJECTS APPEAR IF YOU TRAVELLED AT THE SPEED OF LIGHT?

… WHY DOES A CORNEA HEAL AND CARTILAGE WEARS OUT, WHEN NEITHER HAS A BLOOD SUPPLY?

… HOW DO VOLCANIC ERUPTIONS AFFECT CLIMATE CHANGE?

… WHEN’S THE BEST TIME TO VIEW A HARVEST MOON?

… DO HOUSEPLANTS IMPROVE AIR QUALITY?

… DO ANY OTHER ANIMALS SUFFER FROM INSOMNIA?

… WHAT WOULD THE WORLD’S TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCES LOOK LIKE WITHOUT FOSSIL FUELS?

… HOW DO YOU OVERCOME EXAM ANXIETY?

Email your questions to questions@sciencefocus.com or submit on Twitter @sciencefocus

OUR EXPERTS

DR ALASTAIR GUNN

Astronomer and astrophysicist

PETE LAWRENCE

Astronomy writer

CERI PERKINS

Science writer

LUIS VILLAZON

Science and technology writer

PROF ALICE GREGORY

Sleep expert

DR HELEN PILCHER

Biologist and science writer

DR CHRISTIAN JARRETT

Psychologist and neuroscientist

PROF DANN MITCHELL

Climate science expert

DR NISH MANEK

GP and health writer

HOW HIGH CAN INSECTS FLY?

Three main factors limit the altitude that winged insects can reach: air density, temperature and oxygen availability. All three relate to the fact that Earth’s gravitational pull gets weaker the higher we rise above sea level, allowing air molecules to spread out. The fewer molecules a given volume of air contains, the ‘thinner’ –