ScienceDaily: Earth & Climate News |
| Iodine in desert dust destroys ozone Posted: 22 Dec 2021 12:31 PM PST When winds loft fine desert dust high into the atmosphere, iodine in that dust can trigger chemical reactions that destroy some air pollution, but also let greenhouse gases stick around longer. The finding may force researchers to re-evaluate how particles from land can impact the chemistry of the atmosphere. |
| These fish work together by the hundreds of thousands to make waves Posted: 22 Dec 2021 12:31 PM PST In the sports arena, spectators sometimes create a spectacle known as a wave, as successive groups stand up in unison to yell with arms in the air. Now, researchers have shown that small freshwater fish known as sulphur mollies do a similar thing, and for life or death reasons. The collective wave action produced by hundreds of thousands of fish working together helps to protect them from predatory birds. |
| Posted: 22 Dec 2021 07:08 AM PST Scientists predict that continued global warming under current trends could lead to an elevation of the sea level by as much as five meters by the year 3000 CE. |
| People with IBD have more microplastics in their feces Posted: 22 Dec 2021 05:40 AM PST Microplastics -- tiny pieces of plastic less than 5 mm in length -- are everywhere, from bottled water to food to air. According to recent estimates, people consume tens of thousands of these particles each year, with unknown health consequences. Now, researchers have found that people with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) have more microplastics in their feces than healthy controls, suggesting that the fragments could be related to the disease process. |
| Tsunamis’ magnetic fields are detectable before sea level change Posted: 21 Dec 2021 10:35 AM PST A new study finds the magnetic field generated by a tsunami can be detected a few minutes earlier than changes in sea level and could improve warnings of these giant waves. |
| Crows keep special tools extra safe Posted: 21 Dec 2021 07:27 AM PST Just like humans, New Caledonian crows are particularly careful when handling their most valuable tools, according to a new study. The research reveals that crows are more likely to store relatively complex and efficient foraging tools for future use than more basic tools. |
| Plants as cold specialists from the ice age Posted: 21 Dec 2021 07:27 AM PST Plants of the spoonweed group time-and-again quickly adapted to a changing climate during the Ice Ages of the last two million years. Evolutionary biologists and botanists used genomic analyses to study what factors favor adaptation to extreme climatic conditions. The evolutionary history of the Brassicaceae family provides insights into how plants may be able to cope with climate change in the future. |
| Trees are important for cleaner air in cities Posted: 21 Dec 2021 07:27 AM PST Air pollution levels vary greatly between different places in a city. This is the finding of a new study which concludes that trees contribute to cleaner air in cities. |
| The Hitchhiker’s guide to the soil Posted: 21 Dec 2021 07:27 AM PST The interaction of fungi and bacteria in the transport of viruses in the soil ecosystem has been examined in a recent study. The scientists showed a novel mechanism of viral transport by bacterial shuttles traveling along fungal hyphae. Bacteria thereby benefit from taking along viruses on the conquest of new habitats. |
| How transparency in butterflies and moths helps ward off predators Posted: 21 Dec 2021 07:27 AM PST Transparent wing patches may do more than allow butterflies and moths to hide -- they may also warn predators to leave them alone, suggests a new study. |
| Extinct reptile discovery reveals earliest origins of human teeth, study finds Posted: 21 Dec 2021 07:27 AM PST A new extinct reptile species has shed light on how our earliest ancestors became top predators by modifying their teeth in response to environmental instability around 300 million years ago. |
| An ancient relative of Velociraptor is unearthed in Great Britain Posted: 21 Dec 2021 07:27 AM PST A new bird-like dinosaur that used brute strength to overcome its prey has been found by palaeontologists combing through fossils found on the Isle of Wight, on the South Coast of Great Britain. |
| Looking at factors that accelerate mass extinction in the fossil record as climate changes Posted: 21 Dec 2021 07:27 AM PST The Late Devonian mass extinction (roughly 372 million years ago) was one of five mass extinctions in Earth's history, with roughly 75% of all species disappearing over its course. It happened in two 'pulses,' spaced about 800,000 years apart, with most of the extinctions happening in the second pulse. However, for one group of animals living in eastern North America, the first pulse dealt the deadlier blow. |
| Desert shrubs cranked up water use efficiency to survive a megadrought Posted: 20 Dec 2021 04:07 PM PST Shrubs in the desert Southwest have increased their water use efficiency at some of the highest rates ever observed to cope with a decades-long megadrought. Researchers found that although the shrubs' efficiency increases are unprecedented and heroic, they may not be enough to adapt to the long-term drying trend in the West. |
| Understanding human-elephant conflict and vulnerability in the face of climate change Posted: 20 Dec 2021 09:07 AM PST Researchers spent years investigating the dynamics between wildlife, people and the environment across the Kavango Zambezi Transfrontier Conservation Area, the world's largest terrestrial transboundary conservation area, extending across five African countries. |
| Fast and durable batteries to come: A promising anode material for lithium-ion batteries Posted: 20 Dec 2021 09:07 AM PST To overcome the slow charging times of conventional lithium-ion batteries, scientists have developed a new anode material that allows for ultrafast charging. Produced via a simple, environmentally sound and efficient approach involving the calcination of a bio-based polymer, this novel material also retained most of its initial capacity over thousands of cycles. The findings of this study will pave the way to fast-charging and durable batteries for electric vehicles. |
| Scientists discover White-handed gibbons that have been evolving in the south of Malaysia Posted: 20 Dec 2021 09:07 AM PST Genetic assessment of captive gibbons to identify their species and subspecies is an important step before any conservation actions. A group of wildlife researchers recently discovered a previously unknown population of white-handed gibbons (subspecies lar) from Peninsular Malaysia. |
| Years later, restored wetlands remain a shadow of former selves Posted: 20 Dec 2021 09:07 AM PST A study of restored wetlands on the Danish island of Funen reveals that plant species richness remains extremely poor many years after wetlands restoration. It is widely assumed that restored wetlands will increase local biodiversity and come to resemble natural wetlands over time. However, more must be done to catalyze recovery according to researchers behind the study. |
| Solar power: 'Wonder material' phosphorene nanoribbons live up to hype in first demonstration Posted: 20 Dec 2021 09:07 AM PST Researchers have incorporated phosphorene nanoribbons into new types of solar cells, dramatically improving their efficiency. |
| Posted: 16 Dec 2021 12:01 PM PST A study has found an association between air pollution and higher levels of deposition of beta-amyloid protein in the brain and of neurofilament light (NfL) in cerebrospinal fluid. |
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