They aren't too different from human neurons. Non-spiking neurons also use nonlinear membrane dynamics to integrate inputs into a signal encoded by the voltage across the membrane. The cell then outputs a neurotransmitter in response to its voltage. In the case of a spiking cell and a spike dependent synapse, synaptic release is thought to be all or nothing. While in graded synapses, synaptic release is a more linear (modeled as a less steep sigmoid) function of voltage. Spiking cells can also have graded synapses (at least in crustaceans, I don't really know about vertebrates).
The idea is that spiking is one way to have a more robust signal over long distances: Crustaceans often have nonspiking local interneurons and spiking projection neurons and motor neurons. The problem of fast, reliable electrical signal transduction over long distances is also solved by having more insulation (particularly in vertebrates) or having thicker cables (particularly in invertebrates).
Humans also have non-spiking neurons with graded synapses in the retina.
Renting has some benefits over owning. Particularly if you are in a stage in life where it's valuable to change your city.
In America, we have policies that subsidize owning over renting, like the mortgage interest tax deduction. I don't think we need more policies to make renting more expensive.
Burying old trees underground seems like the simplest solution to this issue. An old tree represents hundreds of years of removing carbon dioxide out of the air and converting it into a form that is convenient for storage. We only need to do the last step of making sure that invested carbon sequestration is not put back into the atmosphere through decomposition or fire.
Here's a link to a relevant publication (from a university that unfortunately doesn't have the prestige or marketing team of MIT): doi.org/10.1186/1750-0680-3-1
It sounds simpler but would involve a lot more logistics. You'd be moving lots of heavy stuff around, building new roads for it, monitoring to make sure the logging companies really are gently removing sustainable bits here and there instead of just clearcutting valuable ecosystems, etc.
Where with MIT's method, you put a machine next to a good spot for geological storage and turn it on. According to articles I've seen on similar methods (Climeworks etc), it would be about a thousand times more efficient in terms of land area.
> To limit the potential confound of disease states associated with our human brain samples, we compared the biophysical properties of neurons from patients with hippocampal sclerosis; tumour; and other conditions, including gliosis and trauma. We found no significant differences in somatic outside-out currents between the three groups (Extended Data Fig. 7). We also directly tested the effect of epileptic seizures on somatic ionic conductance in rats and found no significant differences (Extended Data Fig. 7). Together, these results suggest that disease aetiology is unlikely to underlie the distinct features of human L5 neurons such as their low conductance.
