Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Developmental Biology: Evolutionary Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Biology: Molecular Biology: Zoology
Published

Fluorescent protein sheds light on bee brains      (via sciencedaily.com) 

An international team of bee researchers has integrated a calcium sensor into honey bees to enable the study of neural information processing including response to odors. This also provides insights into how social behavior is located in the brain.

Engineering: Robotics Research Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Geology Geoscience: Oceanography
Published

Robot provides unprecedented views below Antarctic ice shelf      (via sciencedaily.com) 

With the help of an underwater robot, known as Icefin, a U.S.- New Zealand research team has obtained an unprecedented look inside a crevasse at Kamb Ice Stream -- revealing more than a century of geological processes beneath the Antarctic ice.

Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Oceanography
Published

Coastal water pollution transfers to the air in sea spray aerosol and reaches people on land      (via sciencedaily.com) 

New research has confirmed that coastal water pollution transfers to the atmosphere in sea spray aerosol, which can reach people beyond just beachgoers, surfers, and swimmers.

Archaeology: General Environmental: Ecosystems Geoscience: Environmental Issues Paleontology: Climate Paleontology: General
Published

Wisconsin cave holds tantalizing clues to ancient climate changes, future shifts      (via sciencedaily.com) 

A newly published study of a stalagmite found in Cave of the Mounds reveals previously undetected history of the local climate going back thousands of years. Researchers describe evidence for an ice age punctuated by massive and abrupt warming events across much of the Northern Hemisphere.

Biology: Biotechnology
Published

74,000 fruit fly brain images released      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Neuroscience research just got a little bit easier, thanks to the release of tens of thousands of images of fruit fly brain neurons.

Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Study forecasts tile drainage and crop rotation changes for nitrogen loss      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Midwestern agriculture contributes the vast majority of nitrogen in the Gulf of Mexico, causing an oxygen-starved hypoxic zone and challenging coastal economies. State and federal policies have tried for decades to provide solutions and incentives, but the hypoxic zone keeps coming back. A recent study offers a new way to understand Midwestern nitrogen dynamics and forecasts future nitrogen loads under various management scenarios across the region.

Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Developmental Biology: Molecular
Published

Researchers bioengineer an endocrine pancreas for type 1 diabetes      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Scientists recently developed an efficient way to transplant pancreatic islets and demonstrated that the method can effectively reverse type 1 diabetes in nonhuman primates.

Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Developmental Biology: Microbiology
Published

Pseudomonas aeruginosa Bacteria produce a molecule that paralyzes immune system cells      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Researchers have discovered a strong immunological effect of the molecule LecB -- and a way to prevent it.

Biology: Botany Ecology: Nature Ecology: Trees Environmental: Ecosystems Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

The counting of nine billion trees could help manage climate credits and nature restoration      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Researchers have developed a method that has now mapped several billion trees and their carbon uptake in Africa's Sahel. In the future, the method could be used to monitor whether climate credit purchases have a positive effect on the number of trees and whether nature restoration is working.

Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Developmental Biology: Genetics Biology: Microbiology Biology: Molecular
Published

New study unveils epigenetic 'traffic lights' controlling stop and go for gene activity      (via sciencedaily.com) 

A major new study reveals a 'traffic light' mechanism controlling genetic activity within cells -- a system which could potentially be targeted by cancer drugs already in development. The research describes how 'epigenetic' changes to the structure of DNA can act as a stop-go signal in determining whether a gene should be read. Unlike our genetic make-up, which is well understood, the world of epigenetics is still largely unexplored and referred to as the 'dark matter' of the genome.

Geoscience: Environmental Issues Geoscience: Landslides Geoscience: Oceanography Paleontology: Climate
Published

Reassessment of Storegga event: Second major landslide recognized      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Submarine landslides have a large tsunami potential and occurred on the central Norwegian shelf more frequently in the past than previously thought. Scientists investigate the Nyegga landslide off the coast of Norway. The submarine landslide occurred in the same area as the well-known Storegga event 8,150 years ago. The new findings suggest that approximately one-third of the seafloor material missing -- previously attributed to the Storegga event -- was removed by the Nyegga event 20,000 years ago. This raises questions about the frequency of large submarine landslides and their associated tsunami hazard.

Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Sustainable process for the production of vanillin from lignin makes further progress      (via sciencedaily.com) 

The demand for vanillin vastly outstrips the natural resources of this flavoring agent. A chemical process is thus used to produce the required large quantities of vanillin from petroleum, which is far less expensive than obtaining the substance from fermented genuine vanilla pods. Another alternative is to make vanillin from lignin, a waste product of the wood pulping industry. A team has now managed to further enhance their method of electrochemical production of vanillin from lignin in that they employ a 'green' oxidation method for this purpose.

Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Toilet paper is an unexpected source of PFAS in wastewater      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Wastewater can provide clues about a community's infectious disease status, and even its prescription and illicit drug use. But looking at sewage also provides information on persistent and potentially harmful compounds, such as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), that get released into the environment. Now, researchers report an unexpected source of these substances in wastewater systems -- toilet paper.

Biology: Biotechnology Biology: Evolutionary
Published

Pink + pink = gold: hybrid hummingbird's feathers don't match its parents      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Scientists thought a gold-throated hummingbird was a new species. DNA revealed that it's a hybrid of two different species, each with pink throats. The discovery sheds light on how birds produce feather colors and how hummingbirds evolved their dazzling hues.

Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Keto vs vegan: Study of popular diets finds over fourfold difference in carbon footprints      (via sciencedaily.com) 

New research has estimated the carbon footprints and diet quality of six popular diets. The vegan and vegetarian diets were found to be produce the least amount of carbon dioxide while keto and paleo diets ranked lowest in sustainability and diet quality.

Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Wastewater sector emits nearly twice as much methane as previously thought      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Researchers reveal that actual methane emissions from the wastewater treatment sector in the U.S. are nearly double what existing international guidelines would predict.

Biology: Biotechnology
Published

Your gut's microbiome, on a chip      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Researchers describe how gut-on-a-chip devices can bridge lab models and human biology. Modeling the microbiome is particularly difficult because of its unique environmental conditions, but through creative design, gut-on-a-chip devices can simulate many of these properties, such as the gut's anaerobic atmosphere, fluid flow, and pulses of contraction/relaxation. Growing intestinal cells in this environment means that they more closely resemble human biology compared to standard laboratory cell cultures.

Environmental: Wildfires Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Experts demand fire safety policy change over health impact of widely used flame retardants      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Leading environmental health experts have called for a comprehensive review of the UK's fire safety regulations, with a focus on the environmental and health risks of current chemical flame retardants.

Ecology: Animals Ecology: Endangered Species Ecology: Extinction Ecology: General Ecology: Invasive Species Ecology: Nature Ecology: Research Environmental: Biodiversity Geoscience: Environmental Issues
Published

Australia's rarest bird of prey disappearing at alarming rate      (via sciencedaily.com) 

Australia's rarest bird of prey -- the red goshawk -- is facing extinction, with Cape York Peninsula now the only place in Queensland known to support breeding populations.