ScienceDaily Environment Headlines
for Friday, October 14, 2011
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Climatic tipping points for tropical forest and savanna: Satellite data reveal where they are most vulnerable (October 14, 2011) -- Tropical tree cover will jump sharply between a forested state and savanna or treeless conditions rather than respond smoothly to climate change, according to a new study. ... > full story
From blue whales to earthworms, a common mechanism gives shape to living beings (October 14, 2011) -- Mice don't have tails on their backs, and their ribs don't grow from lumbar vertebrae. And for good reason. Scientists have discovered the mechanism that determines the shape that many animals take -- including humans, blue whales, and insects. ... > full story
Hospital superbug debugged (October 14, 2011) -- Scientists have uncovered how a common hospital bacterium becomes a deadly superbug that kills increasing numbers of hospital patients worldwide and accounts for an estimated .2 billion each year in health-care costs in the US alone. ... > full story
Warning signs can prevent deer-vehicle collisions, Canadian study shows (October 14, 2011) -- Collisions between wild deer and vehicles not only hinder conservation efforts but pose a serious danger to drivers. In new research, Canadian scientists examined locations and time periods of high rates of deer vehicle collision to assess the effectiveness of warning signs to prevent fatalities. ... > full story
New breeds of broccoli remain packed with health benefits (October 13, 2011) -- Scientists have demonstrated that mineral levels in new varieties of broccoli have not declined since 1975, and that the broccoli contains the same levels of calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, potassium and other minerals that have made the vegetable a healthy staple of American diets for decades. ... > full story
Does converting cow manure to electricity pay off? Successful renewable energy project in Vermont (October 13, 2011) -- Researchers in Vermont confirm that it is technically feasible to convert cow manure to electricity on farms, but the economic returns depend highly on the base electricity price; the premium paid for converted energy; financial supports from government and other agencies; and the ability to sell byproducts of the methane generation. ... > full story
Oldest fossil rodents in South America discovered; Find is 10 million years older and confirms animals from Africa (October 13, 2011) -- An international team of researchers have found the oldest rodent fossils in South America. The find confirms the animals origin in Africa and contradicts the conclusion that they spread from south to north, which was deduced from the fossil record just 20 years ago. ... > full story
Cheaper yet efficient thin film solar cells created (October 13, 2011) -- Researchers in Singapore have exploited advanced nanostructure technology to make a highly efficient and yet cheaper silicon solar cell. ... > full story
Inefficient developing world stoves contribute to 2 million deaths a year (October 13, 2011) -- An international effort to replace smoky, inefficient household stoves that people commonly use in lower and middle income countries with clean, affordable, fuel efficient stoves could save nearly 2 million lives each year, according to experts. ... > full story
Bacterial communication could affect Earth's climate, researchers discover (October 13, 2011) -- Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) scientists have discovered that bacterial communication could have a significant impact on the planet's climate. ... > full story
Certain mouth bacteria signal pancreatic cancer, study finds (October 13, 2011) -- Particular types of mouth bacteria, some of which are found in gum disease, are associated with the development of pancreatic cancer, indicates a small study. ... > full story
Borrowing from brightly-colored birds: Physicists develop lasers inspired by nature (October 13, 2011) -- Researchers are studying how two types of nanoscale structures on the feathers of birds produce brilliant and distinctive colors. The researchers are hoping that by borrowing these nanoscale tricks from nature they will be able to produce new types of lasers--ones that can assemble themselves by natural processes. ... > full story
T. rex was bigger and grew faster than previously thought, computational analysis reveals (October 13, 2011) -- A new study reveals that T. rex grew more quickly and reached significantly greater masses than previously estimated. In a departure from earlier methods, the new study uses mounted skeletons to generate body mass estimates. ... > full story
New Saudi Arabias of solar energy: Himalaya Mountains, Andes, Antarctica (October 13, 2011) -- Mention prime geography for generation of solar energy, and people tend to think of hot deserts. But a new study concludes that some of the world's coldest landscapes -- including the Himalaya Mountains, the Andes, and even Antarctica -- could become Saudi Arabias of solar. ... > full story
'Cute' chimps in ads may harm the species' survival (October 13, 2011) -- Television ads featuring cute chimpanzees wearing human clothes are likely to distort the public's perception of the endangered animals and hinder conservation efforts, according to researchers. ... > full story
Natural processes can limit spread of arsenic in water, says study (October 13, 2011) -- A new study shows that deep sediments can grab naturally occurring arsenic in groundwater and take it out of circulation -- a finding that may help to keep wells safe elsewhere, including in the United States. ... > full story
How life might have survived 'snowball Earth' (October 13, 2011) -- New research indicates that simple life in the form of photosynthetic algae could have survived a "snowball Earth" event, living in a narrow body of water with characteristics similar to today's Red Sea. ... > full story
Scientists demonstrate the power of optical forces in blood cell identification (October 13, 2011) -- Biological analysis systems that rely on labels can be costly, labor intensive, and depend upon prior knowledge of the target in question. Researchers have developed a system that can detect optical pressure differences between populations or classes of cells. ... > full story
'Dark matter' of the genome revealed through analysis of 29 mammals (October 12, 2011) -- An international team of researchers has discovered the vast majority of the so-called "dark matter" in the human genome, by means of a sweeping comparison of 29 mammalian genomes. The team has pinpointed the parts of the human genome that control when and where genes are turned on. This map is a critical step in interpreting the thousands of genetic changes that have been linked to human disease. ... > full story
Feeding the world while protecting the planet: Global plan for sustainable agriculture (October 12, 2011) -- An international team of researchers from Canada, the US, Sweden and Germany has come up with a plan to double the world's food production while reducing the environmental impacts of agriculture. ... > full story
Nuclear receptors battle it out during metamorphosis in new fruit fly model (October 12, 2011) -- Growing up just got more complicated. Biochemistry researchers have shown for the first time that the receptor for a major insect molting hormone doesn't activate and repress genes as once thought. In fact, it only activates genes, and it is out-competed by a heme-binding receptor to repress the same genes during the larval to pupal transition in the fruit fly. ... > full story
Possible trigger for volcanic 'super-eruptions' discovered (October 12, 2011) -- The "super-eruption" of a major volcanic system occurs about every 100,000 years and is considered one of the most catastrophic natural events on Earth, yet scientists have long been unsure about what triggers these violent explosions. A new model points to a combination of temperature influence and the geometrical configuration of the magma chamber as a potential cause for these super-eruptions. ... > full story
Scientists move closer to predicting who will and will not fight off severe infections (October 12, 2011) -- Why are some people prone to severe infections, while others handle them with less difficulty? A new research report attempts to answer this question by shedding light on the genetic differences that influence our ability to fight off bacterial infections. ... > full story
Biologists use Sinatra-named fly to show how to see the blues -- and the greens (October 12, 2011) -- Biologists have identified a new mechanism for regulating color vision by studying a mutant fly named after Frank ('Ol Blue Eyes) Sinatra. Their findings focus on how the visual system functions in order to preserve the fidelity of color discrimination throughout the life of an organism. They also offer new insights into how genes controlling color detection are turned on and off. ... > full story
Researchers reconstruct genome of the Black Death; Bacteria found to be ancestor of all modern plagues (October 12, 2011) -- An international team has sequenced the entire genome of the Black Death, one of the most devastating epidemics in human history. ... > full story
Significant breakthrough in study of chlamydia (October 12, 2011) -- A breakthrough in the study of chlamydia genetics could open the way to new treatments and the development of a vaccine for this sexually transmitted disease. For decades research progress has been hampered because scientists have been prevented from fully understanding these bacteria as they have been unable to manipulate the genome of Chlamydia trachomatis. ... > full story
Metal shortages alert from leading geologists: Inexorable demand for consumer goods places strain on supply of metals (October 12, 2011) -- Geologists are warning of shortages and bottlenecks of some metals due to an insatiable demand for consumer products. ... > full story
Peanut allergy turned off by tricking immune system: New approach makes allergen appear safe and prevents life-threatening reaction (October 12, 2011) -- Researchers have turned off a life-threatening allergic response to peanuts by tricking the immune system into thinking the nut proteins aren't a threat to the body, according to a new preclinical study. The peanut tolerance was achieved by attaching peanut proteins onto blood cells and reintroducing them to the body -- an approach that ultimately may be able to target more than one food allergy at a time. ... > full story
Crop improvement and human medicine: Using proteins to target and manipulate specific genes (October 12, 2011) -- Scientists are using certain proteins to target and manipulate specific genes. That could lead to breakthroughs in understanding gene function and improving traits in livestock and plants, and even treating human genetic disorders. ... > full story
Eating your greens can change the effect of your genes on heart disease (October 12, 2011) -- A long-held mantra suggests that you can't change your family, the genes they pass on, or the effect of these genes. Now, scientists are attacking that belief. The researchers discovered the gene that is the strongest marker for heart disease can actually be modified by generous amounts of fruit and raw vegetables. ... > full story
Worms among first animals to surface after K-T extinction event, study finds (October 12, 2011) -- A new study of sediments laid down shortly after an asteroid plowed into the Gulf of Mexico 65.5 million years ago, an event that is linked to widespread global extinctions including the demise of big dinosaurs, suggests that lowly worms may have been the first fauna to show themselves following the global catastrophe. ... > full story
New 'genome mining' technique streamlines discovery from nature (October 12, 2011) -- A newly developed method for microscopically extracting, or "mining," information from genomes could represent a significant boost in the search for new therapeutic drugs and improve science's understanding of basic functions such as how cells communicate with one another. ... > full story
'Ghostwriting' the Torah? New algorithm distinguishes contributors to the Old Testament with high accuracy (October 12, 2011) -- A professor has developed a new computer algorithm to help unravel the different sources that contributed to the authorship of the scriptures. Sidestepping the problems of content-based analysis, his algorithm searches for patterns in writing style to give deeper insight into ancient writings such as the Bible. ... > full story
Why climate models underestimated Arctic sea ice retreat: No Arctic sea ice in summer by end of century? (October 12, 2011) -- In recent decades, Arctic sea ice has suffered a dramatic decline that exceeds climate model predictions. The unexpected rate of ice shrinkage has now been explained. Researchers argue that climate models underestimate the rate of ice thinning, which is actually about four times faster than calculations. This model bias is due to the poor representation of the sea ice southward drift out of the Arctic basin through the Fram Strait. When this mechanism was taken into account to correct the discrepancy between simulations and observations, results from the new model suggested that there will be no Arctic sea ice in summer by the end of the century. ... > full story
Mercury pollution in the Great Lakes region: Nearly forgotten, but not gone (October 12, 2011) -- The scope and intensity of mercury pollution in the Great Lakes region is much greater than previously reported, but additional mercury controls should bring needed improvement, according to a new summary of scientific research on the subject. ... > full story
Early Celtic 'Stonehenge' discovered in Germany's Black Forest (October 11, 2011) -- A huge early Celtic calendar construction has been discovered in the royal tomb of Magdalenenberg, nearby Villingen-Schwenningen in Germany's Black Forest. This discovery was made by researchers when they evaluated old excavation plans. The order of the burials around the central royal tomb fits exactly with the sky constellations of the Northern hemisphere. ... > full story
Herbal supplements may cause dangerous drug interactions in orthopaedic surgery patients, study suggests (October 11, 2011) -- Complementary and alternative medical treatments such as herbal supplements have become increasingly popular in the United States, especially among older patients and those with chronic pain. However, many of these products can have serious and potentially harmful side effects when combined with medications prescribed during and after surgery, according to a review article. ... > full story
Which direction are herbicides heading? (October 11, 2011) -- 2,4-D is coming back. What many might consider a "dinosaur" may be the best solution for growers fighting weed resistance today, said a professor of weed physiology. Researchers now suggest that tank-mixing auxinic herbicides with glyphosate may be the best short-term option available to farmers interested in broad-spectrum, postemergence weed control. ... > full story
New computer program promises to save the whales (October 11, 2011) -- Researchers have developed a computer program that enables regulators to evaluate the ecological and economic trade-offs between marine mammal conservation, whale watching and marine transportation activities in the Saint Lawrence Estuary. ... > full story
Super-tough seed coat keeps Michaux's sumac on critically endangered list (October 11, 2011) -- It is one of the rarest shrubs in the southeastern United States, and for scientists trying to save it, the critically endangered Michaux's sumac (Rhus michauxii) is not cooperating. ... > full story
Most vertebrates -- including humans -- descended from ancestor with sixth sense (October 11, 2011) -- A new study that caps more than 25 years of work finds that the vast majority of vertebrates -- some 30,000 species of land animals (including humans) and a roughly equal number of ray-finned fishes -- descended from a common ancestor that had a well-developed electroreceptive system. ... > full story
Mushroom compound appears to improve effectiveness of cancer drugs, study suggests (October 11, 2011) -- A compound isolated from a wild, poisonous mushroom growing in a southwest China forest appears to help a cancer killing drug fulfill its promise, researchers report. ... > full story
Health benefits of broccoli require the whole food, not supplements (October 11, 2011) -- New research has found that if you want some of the many health benefits associated with eating broccoli or other cruciferous vegetables, you need to eat the real thing -- a key phytochemical in these vegetables is poorly absorbed and of far less value if taken as a supplement. ... > full story
Sexual selection by sugar molecule helped determine human origins, researchers say (October 11, 2011) -- Researchers say that losing the ability to make a particular kind of sugar molecule boosted disease protection in early hominids, and may have directed the evolutionary emergence of our ancestors, the genus Homo. ... > full story
Certain dietary supplements associated with increased risk of death in older women, study suggests (October 11, 2011) -- Consuming dietary supplements, including multivitamins, folic acid, iron and copper, among others, appears to be associated with an increased risk of death in older women, according to a new report. ... > full story
Form follows family -- not function: Humans and chimpanzees have similar long bone shape (October 11, 2011) -- Although humans and chimpanzees move quite differently, muscle attachment sites at their thighbones are similar. This result has major consequences for the interpretation of fossil hominin finds. ... > full story
Baltic Sea contributes carbon dioxide to the atmosphere, study shows (October 11, 2011) -- The Baltic Sea emits more carbon dioxide than it can bind. Local variations have increased the exposure of the Bay of Bothnia. These are the results from a study of how carbon dioxide flows between the water of the Baltic Sea and the atmosphere, carried out by scientists in Sweden. ... > full story
'Non-invasive' cultivar? Buyer beware (October 11, 2011) -- Cultivars of popular woody ornamental plants that have reduced viable seed production and are being advertised as "non-invasive" in the horticultural and nursery industries are probably nonetheless quite capable of spawning invasions, according to researchers. More rigorous testing, or complete sterility, should be required to allow claims that a cultivar of a potentially invasive species is environmentally safe. ... > full story
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