Cat’s Eye Nebula photo by NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope

From new planets being discovered outside our Solar System to the creation of the first synthetic organisms on Earth, 2007 was a phenomenal year of revolutionary scientific breakthroughs and innovations. Time magazine recently listed its top 10 scientific discoveries of 2007 which I found interesting and fun (what can I say? I’m a science guy!).

Here’s a summary of the highlights from 2007:

1. Reprogramming cells into stem cells
2. Creation of first man-made organisms
3. Largest supernova ever recorded, 100-200x bigger than sun
4. 700 new species discovered around the world including giant sea spiders and legless amphibians
5. Tissue engineering of first human heart valve
6. New planets discovered outside our Solar System
7. New dinosaur discovered in Mongolia supporting theory that carnivorous dinosaurs became birds
8. 36,000 year old human skull discovered in South Africa supports theory that humans originated from Africa and spread out to Europe and Asia
9. World’s oldest living animal discovered, a 405 year old clam
10. Kryptonite discovered in Serbia

For more information about any of these topics, read Time’s Top 10 Scientific Discoveries

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