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This week, astronomers considered whether dark energy varies over cosmic timescales. Via neutron analysis, physicists revealed that some Early Iron Age swords were altered recently by swindlers in order to be more historically exciting. And a professor in New Jersey solved two fundamental problems that have baffled mathematicians for decades. Additionally, there were developments in children's crafting supplies, carbon sequestration and the shifting map of the universe:

Glitter solved

Microplastics are toxic to ocean species, and they're often consumed by land animals, causing a range of problems including starvation and gastrointestinal abrasions. And unlike such sources as degrading plastic bottles and car body panels, glitter is actually made to be dumped directly out of a container all over things like glue-covered construction paper and participants in New York's annual Mermaid Parade.

Glitter is made of PET—polyethilene terephthalate. The European Union actually banned glitter, and the Australian researchers, recognizing the urgency of sustainable, biodegradable glitter for the service of humankind, have now introduced glitter made from cellulose, as seen in such sustainable environmental materials as trees and grass. They developed a cellulose nanocrystal that sparkles under light and degrades harmlessly in the environment.

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