The EDGE: ScienceDaily Environment Headlines -- for Friday, August 24, 2012

ScienceDaily Environment Headlines

for Friday, August 24, 2012

Welcome to another edition of ScienceDaily's email newsletter. You can change your subscription options or unsubscribe at any time.

Indo-European languages originated in Anatolia, research suggests (August 23, 2012) -- The Indo-European languages belong to one of the widest spread language families of the world. For the last two millenia, many of these languages have been written, and their history is relatively clear. But controversy remains about the time and place of the origins of the family. New research links the origins of Indo-European with the spread of farming from Anatolia 8,000 to 9,500 years ago. ... > full story

Rock sparrows react to infidelity by singing louder (August 23, 2012) -- Rock sparrows indicate their age and their reproductive success with their songs and react to infidelity with a higher song volume. ... > full story

Archaeologists complete survey of Charleston Harbor Civil War Naval Battlefield (August 23, 2012) -- Archaeologists have dived, mapped and completed the first survey of the prolonged Civil War naval battle that took place in Charleston Harbor in 1861 - 1865. ... > full story

For juvenile moose, Momma's boys and girls fare best (August 23, 2012) -- A new study shows that if you’re a juvenile moose trying to make it in the real world, you can’t beat an overprotective mom. ... > full story

New survey of ocean floor finds juvenile scallops are abundant in Mid-Atlantic (August 23, 2012) -- Researchers are getting a comprehensive view of the ocean floor using a new instrument, and have confirmed that there are high numbers of young sea scallops off of Delaware Bay. ... > full story

Antarctic ice sheet quakes shed light on ice movement and earthquakes (August 23, 2012) -- Analysis of small, repeating earthquakes in an Antarctic ice sheet may not only lead to an understanding of glacial movement, but may also shed light on stick slip earthquakes like those on the San Andreas fault or in Haiti, according to geoscientists. ... > full story

Collective motion in schools of fish can evolve as finely tuned defense against attack from predators: Virtual fish simulation (August 23, 2012) -- Researchers have designed a video game for predatory fish that has unraveled some lingering evolutionary questions about group formation and movement in animals. ... > full story

Research on wood formation sheds light on plant biology (August 23, 2012) -- Scientists have discovered a phenomenon never seen before in plants while studying molecular changes inside tree cells as wood is formed. ... > full story

Link found between cold European winters and solar activity (August 23, 2012) -- Scientists have long suspected that the Sun's 11-year cycle influences climate of certain regions on Earth. Yet records of average, seasonal temperatures do not date back far enough to confirm any patterns. Now, armed with a unique proxy, an international team of researchers show that unusually cold winters in Central Europe are related to low solar activity – when sunspot numbers are minimal. ... > full story

Past tropical climate change linked to ocean circulation (August 23, 2012) -- A new record of past temperature change in the tropical Atlantic Ocean's subsurface provides clues as to why the Earth's climate is so sensitive to ocean circulation patterns. ... > full story

For mitochondria, bigger may not be better: Optimal length of mitochondria is essential to preventing Alzheimer's (August 23, 2012) -- Abnormalities in mitochondrial length promote the development of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's. ... > full story

Field guide to the Epstein-Barr virus charts viral paths toward cancer (August 23, 2012) -- Researchers have published the first annotated atlas of the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) genome, providing the best look yet at how EBV interacts with human genes and proteins. EBV, which is thought to be responsible for one percent of all human cancers -- including B cell lymphomas, gastric carcinomas, and nasopharyngeal carcinomas -- establishes a latent infection in nearly 100 percent of infected adult humans. ... > full story

New way to fight bacterial infections: 'Naked Darth Vader' approach could tame antibiotic resistant superbugs (August 23, 2012) -- Rather than trying to kill bacteria outright with drugs, researchers have discovered a way to disarm bacteria that may allow the body's own defense mechanisms to destroy them. "To understand this strategy one could imagine harmful bacteria being like Darth Vader, and the anti-virulence drug would take away his armor and lightsaber," explained the study's lead author. ... > full story

Human-chimp genetic differences: New insights into why humans are more susceptible to cancer and other diseases (August 23, 2012) -- Ninety-six percent of a chimpanzee's genome is the same as a human's. It's the other 4 percent, and the vast differences, that has intrigued researchers. For instance, why do humans have a high risk of cancer, even though chimps rarely develop the disease? In a new study, scientists have looked at brain samples of each species. They found that differences in certain DNA modifications, called methylation, may contribute to phenotypic changes. The results also hint that DNA methylation plays an important role for some disease-related phenotypes in humans, including cancer and autism. ... > full story

Underground solution to starving rice plants (August 23, 2012) -- Scientists have pinpointed a gene that enables rice plants to produce around 20 percent more grain by increasing uptake of phosphorus, an important, but limited, plant nutrient. ... > full story

Scientists produce hydrogen for fuel cells using an inexpensive catalyst under real-world conditions (August 23, 2012) -- Scientists have produced hydrogen, a renewable energy source, from water using an inexpensive catalyst under industrially relevant conditions (using pH neutral water, surrounded by atmospheric oxygen, and at room temperature). ... > full story

No-till could help maintain crop yields despite climate change (August 23, 2012) -- Reducing tillage for some Central Great Plains crops could help conserve water and reduce losses caused by climate change, according to studies at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. ... > full story

Sinus irrigation with tap water linked to two deaths (August 23, 2012) -- When water containing the Naegleria fowleri amoeba, a single-celled organism, enters the nose, the organisms may migrate to the brain, causing primary amebic meningoencephalitis, a very rare -- but usually fatal -- disease. A new study has described the first reported cases in the United States implicating nasal irrigation using tap water in these infections. "N. fowleri was found in water samples from both homes," researchers said, but "not found in the treatment plants or distribution systems of the municipal water systems servicing the patients' homes." ... > full story

Primate of the opera: What soprano singing apes on helium reveal about the human voice (August 23, 2012) -- Have you ever heard an opera singing ape? Researchers in Japan have discovered that singing gibbons use the same vocal techniques as professional soprano singers. The study explains how recording gibbons singing under the influence of helium gas reveals a physiological similarity to human voices. ... > full story

Cloud control could tame hurricanes, study shows (August 23, 2012) -- They are one of the most destructive forces of nature on Earth, but now environmental scientists are working to tame the hurricane. Scientists now propose using cloud seeding to decrease sea surface temperatures where hurricanes form. Theoretically, the team claims the technique could reduce hurricane intensity by a category. ... > full story

Ants 'screen' for beneficial bacteria to assist them (August 22, 2012) -- Having healthy gut bacteria could have as much to do with a strategy that insurance companies use to uncover risk as with eating the right foods - according to researchers. ... > full story

Half of the particulate pollution in North America comes from other continents (August 22, 2012) -- Roughly half the aerosols that affect air quality and climate change in North America may be coming from other continents, including Asia, Africa and Europe, according to a new study. ... > full story

Native landscaping in urban areas can help native birds (August 22, 2012) -- The study is one of the first to use quantitative measures and a systematic approach, with 24-hour video monitoring, to assess and compare foraging behavior of common backyard birds in yards in Phoenix, at the northern edge of the Sonoran Desert. ... > full story

Parasitic wasps remember better if reward is greater (August 22, 2012) -- Two parasitic wasp species show similar memory consolidation patterns in response to rewards of different quality, providing evidence that the reward value affects the type of memory that is consolidated. ... > full story

Traumatic mating may offer fitness benefits for female sea slugs (August 22, 2012) -- Female sea slugs mate more frequently than required to produce offspring, despite the highly traumatic and biologically costly nature of their copulation. ... > full story

Scientists reveal how river blindness worm thrives (August 22, 2012) -- Scientists have found that the worm which causes River Blindness survives by using a bacterium to provide energy, as well as help 'trick' the body's immune system into thinking it is fighting a different kind of infection. ... > full story

Transparent, thin and tough: Why don't insect wings break? (August 22, 2012) -- Researchers have shown that the wings of insects are not as fragile as they might look. The characteristic network of veins found in the wings of grasshoppers helps to capture cracks, similar to watertight compartments in a ship. ... > full story

Tracking infectious outbreaks by their genomes (August 22, 2012) -- A New York City patient carrying a multi-drug-resistant strain of Klebsiella pneumoniae, a microbe frequently associated with hospital-borne infections, introduced the dangerous bacteria into the 243-bed research hospital while participating in a clinical study in the summer of 2011. To get the outbreak under control, medical researchers used genome sequencing in the middle of this active hospital epidemic to learn how the microbe spread. ... > full story

Biorefinery makes use of every bit of a soybean (August 22, 2012) -- Scientists have unveiled new technology intended to move soybeans, second only to corn as the top food crop in the U.S., along the same use-to-all path of corn and crude oil as a raw material for a wider portfolio of products. ... > full story

Super-strong, high-tech material found to be toxic to aquatic animals (August 22, 2012) -- Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have potential uses in everything from medicine to electronics to construction. However, CNTs are not without risks. A new study found that they can be toxic to aquatic animals. The researchers urge that care be taken to prevent the release of CNTs into the environment as the materials enter mass production. ... > full story

Nematodes with pest-fighting potential identified (August 22, 2012) -- Formosan subterranean termites could be in for a real headache. Scientists have identified species of roundworms, or "nematodes," that invade the termite brains and offer a potential bio-based approach to controlling them. ... > full story

New climate history adds to understanding of recent Antarctic Peninsula warming (August 22, 2012) -- A recent study adds a new dimension to our understanding of Antarctic Peninsula climate change and the likely causes of the break-up of its ice shelves. ... > full story

Sky-high methane mystery closer to being solved (August 22, 2012) -- Increased capture of natural gas from oil fields probably accounts for up to 70 percent of the dramatic leveling off seen in atmospheric methane at the end of the 20th century, according to new research. ... > full story

Ready. Get set. Repress! How genes are faithfully copied (August 22, 2012) -- Scientists have manipulated the Set2 pathway to show how genes are faithfully copied. ... > full story

Early exposure to antibiotics may impact development, obesity (August 22, 2012) -- Researchers have made a novel discovery that could have widespread clinical implications, potentially affecting everything from nutrient metabolism to obesity in children. ... > full story

Microbiologists find new approach to fighting viral illnesses (August 22, 2012) -- By discovering how certain viruses use their host cells to replicate, microbiologists have identified a new approach to the development of universal treatments for viral illnesses such as meningitis, encephalitis, hepatitis and possibly the common cold. ... > full story

Ancient fossils reveal how the mollusc got its teeth (August 22, 2012) -- The radula sounds like something from a horror movie -- a conveyor belt lined with hundreds of rows of interlocking teeth. In fact, radulas are found in the mouths of most molluscs, from the giant squid to the garden snail. Now, a "prototype" radula found in 500-million-year-old fossils shows that the earliest radula was not a flesh-rasping terror, but a tool for humbly scooping food from the muddy sea floor. ... > full story

Long-standing chemistry mystery cracked (August 22, 2012) -- Chemists have answered a key question concerning the widely-used Fenton reaction – important in wastewater treatment to destroy hazardous organic chemicals and decontaminate bacterial pathogens and in industrial chemical production. ... > full story

Nutrient behind fresh water algae blooms pinpointed (August 22, 2012) -- Ecologists have reviewed data from studies of controlling human-caused algae blooms in lakes and says controlling the input of the nutrient phosphorus is the key to fighting the problem. ... > full story

First evidence from humans on how alcohol may boost risk of cancer (August 22, 2012) -- Almost 30 years after discovery of a link between alcohol consumption and certain forms of cancer, scientists are reporting the first evidence from research on people explaining how the popular beverage may be carcinogenic. The results have special implications for hundreds of millions of people of Asian descent. ... > full story

Researchers study the structure of drug resistance in tuberculosis (August 22, 2012) -- A research group is studying disease resistance in tuberculosis. The group has described the structure of a regulator that controls the expression of a pump that removes toxins from the bacteria. ... > full story

More sophisticated wiring, not just bigger brain, helped humans evolve beyond chimps, geneticists find (August 22, 2012) -- Human and chimp brains look anatomically similar because both evolved from the same ancestor millions of years ago. But where does the chimp brain end and the human brain begin? A new study pinpoints uniquely human patterns of gene activity in the brain that could shed light on how we evolved differently than our closest relative. These genes' identification could improve understanding of human brain diseases like autism and schizophrenia, as well as learning disorders and addictions. ... > full story

Survival without water: A key trait of an aquatic invader to spread (August 22, 2012) -- How can aquatic invertebrates spread among different catchments? Spanish researchers have found that an invasive snail from New Zealand (the mudsnail Potamopyrgus antipodarum) can survive up to two days out of water. This allows the species to use birds or fishing tools as vectors to invade new water bodies. ... > full story

In Fiji, marine protection gets local boost (August 22, 2012) -- A new study has found that locally managed marine protected areas within Fiji are playing an increasingly important role in the nation’s strategy to protect inshore habitats. ... > full story

Losing stream in our battle to predict and prevent invasive species (August 22, 2012) -- The predictive power of invasive species hypotheses has declined over time, presenting a challenge to policy makers and resource managers who rely on accurate risk assessment – so reports a team of international scientists. The study was published in the open-access journal NeoBiota. ... > full story

Glass offers improved means of storing nuclear waste, researchers say (August 22, 2012) -- Researchers have shown, for the first time, that a method of storing nuclear waste normally used only for high level waste, could provide a safer, more efficient, and potentially cheaper, solution for the storage and ultimate disposal of intermediate level waste. ... > full story

Good news for banana lovers: Help may be on the way to slow that rapid over-ripening (August 22, 2012) -- A solution finally may be at hand for the number one consumer gripe about bananas: their tendency to ripen, soften and rot into an unappetizing mush, seemingly in the blink of an eye. Scientists have described efforts to develop a spray-on coating that would delay the ripening of bananas. ... > full story

Natural regeneration building urban forests, altering species composition (August 22, 2012) -- Scientists have shown that on average, one in three trees in sampled cities were planted while two-thirds resulted from natural regeneration. ... > full story

This message was sent to jmabs1@gmail.com from:

ScienceDaily | 1 Research Court, Suite 450 | Rockville, MD 20850

Email Marketing by