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Categories: Biology: Biochemistry, Environmental: General
Published How forests smell -- a risk for the climate?
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Plants emit odors for a variety of reasons, such as to communicate with each other, to deter herbivores or to respond to changing environmental conditions. An interdisciplinary team of researchers carried out a study to investigate how biodiversity influences the emission of these substances. For the first time, they were able to show that species-rich forests emit less of these gases into the atmosphere than monocultures. It was previously assumed that species-rich forests release more emissions. The Leipzig team has now been able to disprove this assumption experimentally.
Published The solar forest
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source What would be the most effective use of a certain plot of land in terms of the climate crisis: planting a forest, which is a natural means of absorbing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, or erecting fields of solar panels, which reduce the emission of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere? This dilemma has long been debated by decision-makers around the world. Now, for the first time -- based on findings from arid areas and on comprehensive measurements of the energy flow exchanged between the ground and the atmosphere -- we may have an answer to this question.
Published Extracting uranium from seawater as another source of nuclear fuel
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Oceans cover most of Earth's surface and support a staggering number of lifeforms, but they're also home to a dilute population of uranium ions. And -- if we can get these particular ions out of the water -- they could be a sustainable fuel source to generate nuclear power. Researchers have now developed a material to use with electrochemical extraction that attracts hard-to-get uranium ions from seawater more efficiently than existing methods.
Published Saving endangered species: New AI method counts manatee clusters in real time
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Accurately counting manatee aggregations within a region is crucial yet challenging. Harnessing the power of AI, researchers are using a deep learning-based crowd counting approach to automatically count the number of manatees in a designated region, using images captured from CCTV cameras, which are readily available, as input. The pioneering study not only addresses the technical challenges of counting in complex outdoor environments but also offers potential ways to aid endangered species.
Published Study overturns conventional wisdom about wild turkey nesting survival
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A new study finds that precipitation levels during nesting season are not related to reproductive success for wild turkeys, which runs counter to the conventional wisdom regarding the role that rainfall plays in wild turkey nesting success. The findings shed new light on how climate change may affect wild turkey populations.
Published Aquatic insects in restored streams need more rocks to lay their eggs
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Likening it to providing more runways at busy airports, researchers at North Carolina State University found in a new study that adding protruding rocks to restored streams can help attract female aquatic insects that lay their eggs on the rock bottoms or sides.
Published Infection with stomach bacteria may increase risk of Alzheimer's disease
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Infection with the stomach bacterium Helicobacter pylori could increase the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease: In people over the age of 50, the risk following a symptomatic infection can be an average of 11 percent higher, and even more about ten years after the infection, at 24 percent greater risk.
Published Mice possess natural gene therapy system
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A previously mysterious small RNA molecule in mice is found to play a crucial role in gene expression, and may be the first identified member of a new class of regulatory RNAs.
Published What happens in the brain while daydreaming?
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source During quiet waking, brain activity in mice suggests the animals are daydreaming about a recent image. Having daydreams about a recently viewed image predicted how the brain would respond to the image in the future. The findings provide a clue that daydreams may play a role in brain plasticity.
Published Cell types in the eye have ancient evolutionary origins
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source In a comparative analysis across vertebrates of the many cell types in the retina -- mice alone have 130 types -- researchers concluded that most cell types have an ancient evolutionary history. Their remarkable conservation across species suggests that the retina of the last common ancestor of all mammals, which roamed the earth some 200 million year ago, must have had a complexity rivaling the retina of modern mammals.
Published A rare enzyme role change with bacterial defense system assembly
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Scientists have revealed a never-before-seen phenomenon in a protein: Alone, the enzyme processes DNA and RNA but, when bound to another protein as part of a defense system, interacts with a completely different type of compound to help bacteria commit suicide.
Published A sugar analysis could reveal different types of cancer
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source In the future, a little saliva may be enough to detect an incipient cancer. Researchers have developed an effective way to interpret the changes in sugar molecules that occur in cancer cells.
Published People who see climate change as a health threat show more interest in cancer screening
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers' findings support developing public health interventions that incorporate components of environmental health literacy alongside cancer screening efforts.
Published National policy aimed at reducing U.S. greenhouse gases also would improve water quality
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A climate policy that raises the price of carbon-intensive products across the entire U.S. economy would yield a side benefit of reducing nitrate groundwater contamination throughout the Mississippi River Basin. The Gulf of Mexico, an important U.S. fishery, also would see modest benefits from the nitrate reductions.
Published Twenty-year study confirms California forests are healthier when burned -- or thinned
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A 20-year experiment in the Sierra Nevada confirms that different forest management techniques -- prescribed burning, restoration thinning or a combination of both -- are effective at reducing the risk of catastrophic wildfire in California. These treatments also improve forest health, making trees more resilient to stressors like drought and bark beetles, and they do not negatively impact plant or wildlife biodiversity within individual tree stands, the research found.
Published Free electric vehicle charging at work? It's possible with optimum solar
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source The global surge in electric vehicle sales has prompted an Australian university to explore how it could offer free or nominal EV charging facilities to staff and students by optimizing its solar PV system and minimizing workplace electricity costs.
Published Best areas for rewilding European bison
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Simulations integrate historical records, fossils, and ancient DNA to reveal why the European bison nearly went extinct, and pinpoint optimal areas for conservation. Since the near-extinction of the European bison, enormous conservation efforts have helped to restore wild populations, and its numbers are on the rise. However, the study authors argue that ensuring the species's long-term protection and recovery requires understanding why they nearly went extinct in the first place. 'Our study also suggests areas where rewilding attempts are most likely to be successful,' said lead author July Pilowsky, currently a disease ecologist at Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies. Pilowsky completed the research while working on their PhD at University of Adelaide and University of Copenhagen.
Published Fat flies live longer on a diet at any age
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Putting even elderly, obese flies on a restricted calorie diet extends their lifespan markedly, suggesting obese humans might get similar benefits from cutting calories, even at advanced age.
Published Zapping manure with special electrode promises an efficient method to produce fertilizers, other chemicals
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source An interdisciplinary team has developed a new technique that could help farmers extract useful nutrients such as ammonia and potassium from livestock manure to efficiently make fertilizer and other useful chemical products. While the strategy still needs to be scaled up beyond a proof-of-concept stage, the group's preliminary analyses show it could offer considerable benefits by cutting water and air pollution while simultaneously creating products that farmers could use or sell.
Published Single-use e-cigarettes contain batteries that last hundreds of cycles despite being discarded
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source While the lithium-ion batteries in disposable electronic cigarettes are discarded after a single use, they can continue to perform at high capacity for hundreds of cycles, according to a new study. The analysis highlights a growing environmental threat from these increasingly popular vape pens, which are not designed to be recharged.