Space: Astronomy Space: Astrophysics Space: Cosmology Space: Exploration Space: General Space: Structures and Features Space: The Solar System
Published

New study identifies mechanism driving the sun's fast wind      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers used data from NASA's Parker Solar Probe to explain how the solar wind is capable of surpassing speeds of 1 million miles per hour. They discovered that the energy released from the magnetic field near the sun's surface is powerful enough to drive the fast solar wind, which is made up of ionized particles -- called plasma -- that flow outward from the sun.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Microbiology Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

To groom or not to groom: 'Triage' in the ant kingdom      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Social ants are masters of cooperative disease defense. They collectively take care of each other to prevent the spread of infections within a colony. But how does an individual ant know whom it should groom? A multidisciplinary team of researchers combined experimental and theoretical approaches to get a detailed look into ants' sanitary decision-making.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Marine Ecology: Sea Life
Published

Sea cucumbers: The marine delicacy that can deter diabetes      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

They're a marine delicacy loved across Asia, but the humble sea cucumber is also proving to be a key ingredient in preventing diabetes, according to new research.

Biology: Biochemistry Environmental: General Environmental: Water Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geography
Published

Measuring greenhouse gas from ponds improves climate predictions      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Shallow lakes and ponds emit significant amounts of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, but emissions from these systems vary considerably and are not well understood.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Microbiology
Published

Biological clocks of people and malaria parasites tick in tune      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Could the next weapon against malaria come from a better understanding of biological clocks? A new study shows that malaria parasites sync their gene activity with the circadian rhythms of their host, like two pendulum clocks with synchronized swings. If scientists can identify the molecular signals behind this mysterious synchronicity, they might be able to develop new anti-malarial drugs that throw malaria's internal clock out of step with its host, essentially 'jet-lagging' the parasites.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Zoology Environmental: General Geoscience: Environmental Issues Offbeat: Earth and Climate Offbeat: General Offbeat: Plants and Animals
Published

When pigeons dream      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Dreams have been considered a hallmark of human sleep for a long time. Latest findings, however, suggest that when pigeons sleep, they might experience visions of flight. Researchers studied brain activation patterns in sleeping pigeons, using functional magnetic resonance imaging. The study revealed that similar to mammals, most of the brain is highly active during REM sleep. However, this wake-like state might come at a cost of reduced waste removal from the brain.

Space: Astronomy Space: Astrophysics Space: Exploration Space: General Space: Structures and Features
Published

First detection of secondary supermassive black hole in a well-known binary system      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

An international team of astronomers observed the second one of the two supermassive black holes circling each other in an active galaxy OJ 287.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Botany Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Developmental Biology: Evolutionary Biology: General Biology: Genetics Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Nature Ecology: Trees Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: Ecosystems Environmental: General
Published

Older trees accumulate more mutations than their younger counterparts      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A study of the relationship between the growth rate of tropical trees and the frequency of genetic mutations they accumulate suggests that older, long-lived trees play a greater role in generating and maintaining genetic diversity than short-lived trees.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Developmental Biology: General Environmental: General
Published

Electrical synapses in the neural network of insects found to have unexpected role in controlling flight power      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A team of experimental neurobiologists and theoretical biologists has managed to solve a mystery that has been baffling scientists for decades. They have been able to determine the nature of the electrical activity in the nervous system of insects that controls their flight. They report on a previously unknown function of electrical synapses employed by fruit flies during flight.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Biology: Molecular
Published

A compound from fruit flies could lead to new antibiotics      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Research shows that the natural peptide, called drosocin, protects fruit flies from bacterial infections by binding to ribosomes in bacteria. Once bound, drosocin prevents the ribosome from making new proteins.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Botany Biology: General Biology: Zoology Ecology: Animals Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Nature Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Saving moths may be just as important as saving the bees      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Night-time pollinators such as moths may visit just as many plants as bees, and should also be the focus of conservation and protection efforts, a new study suggests.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Microbiology Biology: Molecular
Published

Muscle fibers: An unexpected organization revealed      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have just made the unexpected discovery of a novel organization of muscle fibers in Parophidion vassali, a fish that lives in the Mediterranean Sea and, like many fish, uses specialized muscles to produce sounds. This is an important discovery that could well change our understanding of muscle contraction.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Microbiology
Published

Previously unknown antibiotic resistance widespread among bacteria      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Genes that make bacteria resistant to antibiotics are much more widespread in our environment than was previously realized. A new study shows that bacteria in almost all environments carry resistance genes, with a risk of them spreading and aggravating the problem of bacterial infections that are untreatable with antibiotics.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: General Biology: Microbiology Biology: Zoology Ecology: Animals Ecology: Endangered Species
Published

How studying feces may help us boost white rhino populations      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have identified significant differences in the gut microbiome of female southern white rhinos who are reproducing successfully in captivity, as compared to females who have not reproduced successfully in captivity. The work raises questions about the role that a particular genus of gut microbes may be playing in limiting captive breeding of this rhinoceros species.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: General Biology: Microbiology Ecology: Nature Environmental: General Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geochemistry
Published

Microbes key to sequestering carbon in soil      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Microbes are by far the most important factor in determining how much carbon is stored in the soil, according to a new study with implications for mitigating climate change and improving soil health for agriculture and food production.

Biology: Biochemistry Biology: Cell Biology Biology: General Biology: Zoology Ecology: Extinction Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Nature Environmental: Biodiversity Environmental: General Geoscience: Earth Science Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Air quality stations have collected vast stores of DNA by accident, a potentially 'game-changing' discovery for tracking global biodiversity      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

The accelerating loss of biodiversity and increasing rate of species extinction is a major threat to ecosystems around the globe. And yet, quantifying those losses at a large scale hasn't been possible, in large part due to a lack of the required infrastructure. But a new study shows that a major source for such information already exists in the form of environmental DNA (eDNA), which has been inadvertently collected in filters by thousands of ambient air quality monitoring stations in countries around the world for decades.

Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Space: Astronomy Space: Astrophysics Space: Cosmology Space: Exploration Space: General Space: Structures and Features Space: The Solar System
Published

Webb Space Telescope detects universe's most distant complex organic molecules      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have detected complex organic molecules in a galaxy more than 12 billion light-years away from Earth -- the most distant galaxy in which these molecules are now known to exist. Thanks to the capabilities of the recently launched James Webb Space Telescope and careful analyses from the research team, a new study lends critical insight into the complex chemical interactions that occur in the first galaxies in the early universe.