Posts by Madeleine Muzdakis

Madeleine Muzdakis

Madeleine Muzdakis is a Contributing Writer at My Modern Met and a historian of early modern Britain & the Atlantic world. She holds a BA in History and Mathematics from Brown University and an MA in European & Russian Studies from Yale University. Madeleine has worked in archives and museums for years with a particular focus on photography and arts education. When she isn’t writing, she enjoys hiking, film photography, and studying law while cuddling with her cat Georgia.
Science
September 21, 2024

Complex Life May Have Begun 1.5 Billion Years Earlier Than Believed

Humans, cats, dogs, chickens, rats, trees, fungi—today, complex life on Earth comes in a remarkable number of variations. Its evolution has taken many twists and turns over millions of years, including the asteroid that wiped out the dinosaurs and the development of “legs” for sea creatures to take to the land. But when did this prehistoric parade of evolution begin? Evidence of microbes has been discovered dating back 3.7 billion years.

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Environment
September 15, 2024

Fossilized Flowers From Greenland Reveal It Was a Green Tundra Less Than 1 Million Years Ago

Climate change is an ever-present reality that has already impacted our planet in many ways. Sea levels rise about an inch or more each decade as water long stored in glaciers melts into the sea. This damaging process is quickly at work in Greenland, where the country's extensive and ancient ice cover is dramatically falling victim to a warming planet. But how much history is being undone by the melting of these glaciers?

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Astronomy
August 30, 2024

Scientists Discover New Evidence That a Magma Ocean Once Covered the Moon

The Moon is our planet's loyal companion, orbiting Earth every 27 days. Although over 200,000 miles from Earth, it is our closest celestial neighbor. It clocks in at one-quarter Earth's size, and its history is deeply entwined with its larger companion. Scientists believe the Moon was created when a protoplanet impacted the early Earth, breaking off a large chunk of matter, and eventually formed a new body.

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My Modern Met

Celebrating creativity and promoting a positive culture by spotlighting the best sides of humanity—from the lighthearted and fun to the thought-provoking and enlightening.