ScienceDaily: Top Environment News

Study finds fish rubbing up against their predators — sharks

Posted: 04 Nov 2021 01:26 PM PDT

While rubbing up against a shark sounds like a risky move if you're a fish, a collaborative research team found that this behavior is frequent, widespread, and could play a previously unappreciated important ecological role for aquatic animals.

Creating solar cells and glass from wood – or a billion tons of biowaste

Posted: 04 Nov 2021 01:26 PM PDT

Scientists have taken a close look at how lignocellulose -- or plant biomass -- can be used for optical applications, potentially replacing commonly used materials like sand and plastics.

Scientists discover how mitochondria import antioxidants

Posted: 04 Nov 2021 01:25 PM PDT

A new finding offers researchers a direct way to investigate oxidative stress and its damaging effects in aging, cancer and other diseases.

New climate pledges, if fulfilled, now significantly more likely to prevent worst of global warming

Posted: 04 Nov 2021 01:25 PM PDT

New climate pledges issued ahead of COP26 boost the chances of limiting global warming to 2 degrees, according to a new study.

Scanning a single protein, one amino acid at a time

Posted: 04 Nov 2021 11:08 AM PDT

Using nanopore DNA sequencing technology, researchers have managed to scan a single protein: by slowly moving a linearized protein through a tiny nanopore, one amino acid at the time, the researchers were able to read off electric currents that relate to the information content of the protein. The new single-molecule peptide reader marks a breakthrough in protein identification, and opens the way towards single-molecule protein sequencing and cataloguing the proteins inside a single cell.

New insights into how the infant microbiome impacts early childhood behavior in boys and girls

Posted: 04 Nov 2021 11:08 AM PDT

A new study has found a direct and sex-specific association between the composition of infant microbiome and early childhood behavioral health.

Female finches are picky but pragmatic when choosing a mate

Posted: 04 Nov 2021 11:08 AM PDT

Female zebra finches are choosy but flexible when it comes to finding a mate, allowing them to avoid the fitness costs of being too selective when competition for males is high, researchers report.

Montana Lake study reveals how invasive species affect native food webs

Posted: 04 Nov 2021 11:01 AM PDT

Invasive species cause biodiversity loss and about $120 billion in annual damages in the U.S. alone. Now, thanks to a new collaborative study, there is greater insight into how invasive species progressively affect native food webs in mountain lakes.

Green transition creates new risks and rewards

Posted: 04 Nov 2021 09:13 AM PDT

Different countries face different risks and opportunities as the world switches from fossil fuels to renewable energy, researchers say.

Single molecule controls unusual ants’ switch from worker to queen-like status

Posted: 04 Nov 2021 08:53 AM PDT

Depending on the outcome of social conflicts, ants of the species Harpegnathos saltator do something unusual: they can switch from a worker to a queen-like status known as gamergate. Now, researchers have made the surprising discovery that a single protein, called Kr-h1, responds to socially regulated hormones to orchestrate this complex social transition.

Revealing the ramifications of ocean acidification for coralline algae

Posted: 04 Nov 2021 08:53 AM PDT

Researchers have revealed that most coralline algae experience negative effects from ocean acidification. Analysis of previous studies showed that changes in ocean chemistry can lead to declines in calcification rates, abundance, growth, and recruitment of coralline algae, but some species showed greater resilience than others. Ocean acidification was revealed as an important driver of change and the physiology of different species determined their response to changing conditions.

Nanoscale self-assembling salt-crystal ‘origami’ balls envelop liquids

Posted: 04 Nov 2021 08:52 AM PDT

Mechanical engineers have devised a technique of 'crystal capillary origami' where salt crystals spontaneously encapsulate liquid droplets. The process offers a new method of nanostructure encapsulation for applications in food industries, drug delivery and even medical devices.

Making aircraft fuel from sunlight and air

Posted: 04 Nov 2021 08:52 AM PDT

Scientists have built a plant that can produce carbon-neutral liquid fuels from sunlight and air. The next goal will be to take this technology to industrial scale and achieve competitiveness. Researchers now describe how this novel solar reactor functions and outline a policy framework that would provide incentives to expand the production of 'solar kerosene'.

Changes of aapa mires can be detected from Landsat satellite data

Posted: 04 Nov 2021 08:52 AM PDT

Landsat satellite data proved to be useful in the detection of the recent increase of Sphagnum mosses over wet aapa mires, a new study shows.

Forests could be key to estuarine fish conservation

Posted: 04 Nov 2021 08:50 AM PDT

The diversity of threatened fish in estuaries increases when surrounded by forest cover, whereas estuaries surrounded by farmland show the opposite effect.

Underground tests dig into how heat affects salt-bed repository behavior

Posted: 04 Nov 2021 05:15 AM PDT

Scientists have just begun the third phase of a years-long experiment to understand how salt and very salty water behave near hot nuclear waste containers in a salt-bed repository.

Pangolin trafficking: Nigeria’s illegal trade

Posted: 04 Nov 2021 05:14 AM PDT

With Asian species dangerously depleted, global black markets have turned to Africa, and Nigeria has become the continent's pangolin trafficking 'hub'. Just Nigeria-linked pangolin seizures in the last decade alone amount to at least 800,000 -- but possibly close to a million -- animals, according to a new study. The findings suggest that current global estimates for pangolin trafficking are far too small, say researchers.

Experimental drug boosts immunotherapy effectiveness in pancreatic cancer in mice

Posted: 04 Nov 2021 05:14 AM PDT

An experimental drug enhanced the benefit of an immunotherapy to fight pancreatic cancer in mice by increasing the number of immune cells in the immediate vicinity of the tumor, leading to a reduction in tumor growth, and in some mice, eliminating their cancer.

A quick, high-yield synthesis of molnupiravir, an investigational COVID antiviral pill

Posted: 03 Nov 2021 11:01 AM PDT

Molnupiravir is an investigational oral antiviral being developed for the treatment of COVID-19, and has been submitted for review by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Researchers now report that they have engineered enzymes to help manufacture the pill, resulting in a much shorter and higher-yielding synthesis than current methods.

Hand washing and sanitizing not enough: Close that toilet lid after flushing!

Posted: 03 Nov 2021 08:54 AM PDT

Leaving toilet lids open after flushing can disperse contaminated droplets beyond a metre and remain in the air for 30 minutes. This is one of the findings revealed in a global review of the risks of bacterial and viral transmission in public bathrooms.