ScienceDaily Environment Headlines
for Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Welcome to another edition of ScienceDaily's email newsletter.
'Deadly Dozen' Reports Diseases Worsened By Climate Change (October 8, 2008) -- A new report lists 12 pathogens that could spread into new regions as a result of climate change, with potential impacts to both human and wildlife health and global economies. ... > full story
How Many Earthquakes Are There? (October 8, 2008) -- Authors explore how ground motion measures scale with magnitude and explore the question: How many earthquakes are there? ... > full story
Bioengineers Fill Holes In Science Of Cellular Self-organization (October 8, 2008) -- The chemical and biological aspects of cellular self-organization are well-studied; less well understood is how cell populations order themselves biomechanically -- how their behavior and communication are affected by high density and physical proximity. Bioengineers and physicists have now begun to address these fundamental questions. ... > full story
Good News For Pig Breeders (October 8, 2008) -- There are currently two methods for artificial insemination: bull semen can be frozen to a temperature of -172 °C and may be stored indefinitely. However, pig semen must be diluted and stored liquid, and the storage capacity is only a few days. The window of opportunity for insemination is also limited. Striking the period when the sow is receptive is difficult and farmers need to inspect the animals regularly. ... > full story
Mysterious Snippets Of DNA Withstand Eons Of Evolution (October 7, 2008) -- Small stretches of seemingly useless DNA harbor a big secret, say researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine. There's one problem: We don't know what it is. Although individual laboratory animals appear to live happily when these genetic ciphers are deleted, these snippets have been highly conserved throughout evolution. ... > full story
Fishy Future Written In The Genes (October 7, 2008) -- The roadmap to the future of the gorgeously-decorated fish which throng Australia’s coral reefs may well be written in their genes. Of particular importance may be to protect ‘pioneer’ fish populations which are able to re-colonize regions of reef devastated by global warming and other impacts or settle new areas as the corals move south. ... > full story
Red Wine May Lower Lung Cancer Risk (October 7, 2008) -- Moderate consumption of red wine may decrease the risk of lung cancer in men. The most substantial risk reduction was among smokers who drank one to two glasses of red wine per day. The researchers reported a 60 percent reduced lung cancer risk in these men. ... > full story
2008 Ozone Hole Larger Than Last Year (October 7, 2008) -- The 2008 ozone hole -- a thinning in the ozone layer over Antarctica -- is larger both in size and ozone loss than 2007 but is not as large as 2006. ... > full story
Air Pollution May Increase Risk Of Appendicitis (October 7, 2008) -- Could there be a link between high levels of air pollution and the risk of appendicitis? New research suggests a novel connection. ... > full story
Impact Of Geology On The U.S. Civil War: War From The Ground Up (October 7, 2008) -- The connection between geology and the history of the Civil War has fascinated some researchers. Now they take history, military history in particular, a step deeper -- into the geology beneath the soldiers' feet. ... > full story
Gene That May Contribute To Improved Rice Yield Identified (October 7, 2008) -- Biologists have identified a gene in rice that controls the size and weight of rice grains. The gene may prove to be useful for breeding high-yield rice and, thus, may benefit the vast number of people who rely on this staple food for survival. ... > full story
Nerve Cell Actions Made Optically Visible In Mice (October 7, 2008) -- Thought processes made visible: Researchers have succeeded in optically detecting individual action potentials in the brains of living animals. The scientists introduced fluorescent indicator proteins into the brain cells of mice via viral gene vectors: the illumination of the fluorescent proteins indicates both when and which neurons are communicating with each other. ... > full story
The Green Sahara, A Desert In Bloom (October 7, 2008) -- New North African climate reconstructions reveal three ‘green Sahara’ episodes during which the present-day Sahara Desert was almost completely covered with extensive grasslands, lakes and ponds over the course of the last 120.000 years. Reconstructing the climate of the past is an important tool for scientists to better understand and predict future climate changes that are the result of the present-day global warming. ... > full story
Scientists Take Off For Southeastern Pacific Climate Study (October 7, 2008) -- During October and November 2008, some 150 scientists from 40 institutions in eight nations will take part in an international field experiment designed to make observations of critical components of the climate system of the southeastern Pacific. ... > full story
Key To Rapid Evolution In Plants: Reproduce Early And Often (October 7, 2008) -- Researchers have harnessed the power of 21st century computing to confirm an idea first proposed in 1916 -- that plants with rapid reproductive cycles evolve faster. ... > full story
Sequencing Thousand And One Genomes (October 7, 2008) -- Researchers report the simultaneous completion of the first genomes of wild Arabidopsis thaliana strains as part of the 1001 Genomes Project. ... > full story
Landmark Discovery Of 'Engine' That Drives Cell Movement (October 7, 2008) -- How a cell assembles its internal machinery required for cell movement has been revealed for the first time. The discovery is fundamental to the understanding of how a cell responds to its external environment. ... > full story
New Self-training Gene Prediction Program For Fungi Developed (October 7, 2008) -- Researchers have developed a computer program that trains itself to predict genes in the DNA sequences of fungi. The software will be freely available for academic researchers. ... > full story
Nitrogen Fertilizers Used Off-Season Help Crops Planted Later (October 7, 2008) -- Recent study results have shown have shown that using nitrogen fertilizer on off-season cover crops can not only increase the biomass of these crops, but can also have a beneficial effect on the nitrogen levels in the soil for the cash crop planted during the summer season. The results could significantly aid in preventing soil erosion in vulnerable agricultural regions. ... > full story
U.S. Navy Sonar Linked To Whale Strandings, Environmental Scientists Argue (October 6, 2008) -- With the U.S. Supreme Court due to review a series of lower court rulings that restrict the Navy's use of sonar in submarine detection training exercises off the coast of Southern California, George Mason University professor Chris Parsons discusses the links between mass strandings and military exercises worldwide in a paper in the Marine Pollution Bulletin. ... > full story
Most Alaskan Glaciers Retreating, Thinning, Or Stagnating (October 6, 2008) -- Most glaciers in every mountain range and island group in Alaska are experiencing significant retreat, thinning or stagnation, especially glaciers at lower elevations, according to U.S. Geological Survey research. ... > full story
Nearly One In Four Of World’s Mammals At Risk Of Disappearing Forever (October 6, 2008) -- The most comprehensive assessment of the world's mammals has confirmed an extinction crisis, with almost one in four at risk of disappearing forever, according to The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. ... > full story
Egalitarian Revolution In The Pleistocene? (October 6, 2008) -- Although anthropologists and evolutionary biologists are still debating this question, a new study supports the view that the first egalitarian societies may have appeared tens of thousands of years before the French Revolution, Marx and Lenin. ... > full story
Smoking And Solid Fuel Use In Homes In China Projected To Cause Millions Of Deaths (October 6, 2008) -- If current levels of smoking and biomass and coal fuel use in homes continues, between 2003 and 2033 there will be an estimated 65 million deaths from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and 18 million deaths from lung cancer in China, accounting for 19 percent and 5 percent of all deaths in that country during this period. ... > full story
Field Of The Future: Ecological Experiment Simulates Conditions In 2100 (October 6, 2008) -- A new experiment to find out how British plant ecosystems may be affected by future changes to climate and biodiversity is underway at Imperial College London. ... > full story
Earliest Animal Footprints Ever Found Show Animals Walking 30 Million Years Earlier Than Previously Thought (October 6, 2008) -- The fossilized trail of an aquatic creature suggests that animals walked using legs at least 30 million years earlier than had been thought. The tracks -- two parallel rows of small dots, each about 2 millimeters in diameter -- date back some 570 million years, to the Ediacaran period. ... > full story
Disinfectants Can Make Bacteria Resistant To Treatment (October 6, 2008) -- Chemicals used in the environment to kill bacteria could be making them stronger, according to a paper published in the journal Microbiology. Low levels of these chemicals, called biocides, can make the potentially lethal bacterium Staphylococcus aureus remove toxic chemicals from the cell even more efficiently, potentially making it resistant to being killed by some antibiotics. ... > full story
Genetic Damage In Minibacteria In Aphids And Ants Repaired By Faulty Copying (October 6, 2008) -- Aphids (plant lice) and ants carry minibacteria that produce essential amino acids and vitamins. These minibacteria have very limited genetic material and many broken genes. Now, researchers have found that repeated errors in the conversion of DNA to protein save the function of the damaged genes. ... > full story
Galloping And Breathing At High Speed (October 6, 2008) -- A team of researchers has been working to unlock the secrets of equines. Their findings may lead to better muscular horse health and a new approach to breathing devices for people. ... > full story
Type Of Plankton -- Food Source For Many Fish -- Has Ability To Survive Climate Change (October 6, 2008) -- Researchers have found that the main source of food for many fish -- including cod -- in the North Atlantic appears to adapt in order to survive climate change. Billions of Calanus finmarchicus, a plankton species, which are just a few millimeters in size, live in the waters of the North Atlantic where the research was carried out. ... > full story
Gene Expression In Alligators Suggests Birds Have 'Thumbs' (October 6, 2008) -- The latest breakthrough in a 120 year-old debate on the evolution of the bird wing was just published. Bird wings only have three fingers, having evolved from remote ancestors that, like humans and most reptiles, had five fingers. Biologists have typically used embryology to identify the evolutionary origin (homology) of structures; the three fingers of the bird wing develop from cartilage condensations that are found in the same positions in the embryo as fingers two, three and four of humans (the index, middle and ring fingers). However, the morphology of the fingers of early birds such as Archaeopteryx corresponds to that of fingers one, two and three in other reptiles (thumb, index and middle finger). ... > full story
100 Years Of Ammonia Synthesis: How A Single Patent Changed The World (October 6, 2008) -- Now it is time to invent sustainable solutions to avoid environmental damage. As a result of the Haber-Bosch process for the synthesis of ammonia from atmospheric nitrogen, billions of people have been fed, millions have died in armed conflict and a cascade of environmental changes has been set in motion, suggests a new article. ... > full story
Singing To Females Makes Male Birds' Brains Happy (October 6, 2008) -- The melodious singing of birds has been long appreciated by humans, and has often been thought to reflect a particularly positive emotional state of the singer. Researchers in Japan have now demonstrated that this can be true. When male birds sang to attract females, specific "reward" areas of their brain were strongly activated. ... > full story
Bring On The Pak Choi: Consumers Interested In Trying More Asian Vegetables (October 6, 2008) -- Asian vegetables, a diverse group of specialty vegetables grown and consumed throughout Asia, are becoming an integral part of the American diet. To gauge their familiarity with a range of Asian vegetables, consumers were asked to complete a written survey as they entered two fruit and vegetable markets in Belleville, Ill., on busy Saturday mornings. ... > full story
Pterodactyl-inspired Robot To Master Air, Ground And Sea (October 5, 2008) -- Scientists have reached back in time 115 million years to one of the most successful flying creatures in Earth's history -- the pterodactyl -- to conjure a robotic spy plane with next-generation capabilities. ... > full story
Ultra-Endurance Competitors: Lessons From Sled Dogs In The Iditarod (October 5, 2008) -- Racing sled dogs are best known for their "mushing" each March during the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, the world's longest sled race. They are the premier ultra-endurance competitors, covering 1,100 miles from Anchorage to Nome, AK, sometimes in just nine days. It is unclear how they can keep running despite heavy blizzards, temperatures as low as 40°F, and winds up to 60 mph. An expert explains what he has discovered thus far. ... > full story
DNA-based Vaccine Shows Promise Against Avian Flu (October 5, 2008) -- Though it has fallen from the headlines, a global pandemic caused by bird flu still has the United States' Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on high alert. Yet, to date, the only vaccines that have proven even semi-effective are produced in chicken eggs, take five to six months to prepare and act against a single variant of the H5N1 virus, which mutates incredibly quickly. ... > full story
Advance Offers Revolution In Food Safety Testing (October 5, 2008) -- Microbiologists have developed a new technology to detect illness-causing bacteria -- an advance that could revolutionize the food industry, improving the actual protection to consumers while avoiding the costly waste and massive recalls of products that are suspected of bacterial contamination but are perfectly safe. ... > full story
The Earth After Us: What Legacy Will Humans Leave In The Rocks? (October 5, 2008) -- What will be the lasting impression made by mankind - 100 million years hence? "From the perspective of 100 million years in the future --- a geologist's view --- the reign of humans on Earth would seem very short: we would almost certainly have died out long before then. What footprint will we leave in the rocks? What would have become of our great cities, our roads and tunnels, our cars, our plastic cups in the far distant future? What fossils would we leave behind? ... > full story
Bio-imaging Mass Spectrometry Techniques Reveal Molecular Details About Complex Systems (October 5, 2008) -- Georgia Tech's new Center for Bio-Imaging Mass Spectrometry allows researchers to visualize the spatial arrangement and relative abundance of specific molecules -- from simple metabolites to peptides and proteins -- in biological samples. The center includes biologists, chemists and engineers whose goal is to unravel the molecular complexities of biological systems. ... > full story
Topsoil's Limited Turnover: A Crisis In Time (October 5, 2008) -- Topsoil does not last forever. Records show that topsoil erosion, accelerated by human civilization and conventional agricultural practices, has outpaced long-term soil production. Earth's continents are losing prime agricultural soils even as population growth and increased demand for biofuels claim more from this basic resource. ... > full story
Meteorites From Inner Solar System Match Up To Earth's Platinum Standard (October 4, 2008) -- Some of the world's rarest and most precious metals, including platinum and iridium, could owe their presence in the Earth's crust to iron and stony-iron meteorites, fragments of a large number of asteroids that underwent significant geological processing in the early Solar System. ... > full story
Gas From The Past Gives Scientists New Insights Into Climate And The Oceans (October 4, 2008) -- In recent years, public discussion of climate change has included concerns that increased levels of carbon dioxide will contribute to global warming, which in turn may change the circulation in the Earth's oceans, with potentially disastrous consequences. Ice core and ocean deposit comparisons show complex links between carbon dioxide levels, ocean currents and climate, which may help explain past, present and future climate trends. ... > full story
Discovery Of Natural Compounds That Could Slow Blood Vessel Growth (October 4, 2008) -- Using computer models and live cell experiments, biomedical engineers have discovered more than 100 human protein fragments that can slow or stop the growth of cells that make up new blood vessels. ... > full story
Navy Confirms Sunken Submarine Is Grunion (October 4, 2008) -- A sunken vessel discovered off the coast of the Aleutian Islands is in fact the World War II submarine USS Grunion (SS 216). The submarine Grunion arrived at Pearl Harbor on June 20, 1942. ... > full story
Obesity Clue: Newly Identified Cells Make Fat (October 4, 2008) -- The discovery of an important fat precursor cell may explain how changes in the numbers of fat cells might increase and lead to obesity. ... > full story
Arctic Sea Ice Annual Freeze-up Underway (October 4, 2008) -- After reaching the second-lowest extent ever recorded last month, sea ice in the Arctic has begun to refreeze in the face of autumn temperatures, closing both the Northern Sea Route and the direct route through the Northwest Passage. ... > full story
Traits Produced By Melanin May Signal The Bearer's Capacity To Combat Free Radicals (October 4, 2008) -- Some animal species have developed conspicuous traits produced by melanin pigments (for instance, dark manes in lions, black stripes in some birds and fishes). These traits are used as signals during contests for resources and/or contribute to increase the mating opportunities. However, the efficiency of these traits as signals depends on the fact that they transmit honest information about the quality of the bearer. Scientists have now proposed a novel hypothesis suggesting that melanin-produced traits could indicate the ability of the bearer in fighting free radicals and oxidative damage. ... > full story
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