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Categories: Environmental: Wildfires, Offbeat: Plants and Animals

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Research attempts to quantify the value of U.S. property at risk in forested areas exposed to increased ecological disturbance associated with climate change, such as wildfire and tree mortality. Property exposed to such climate risks, especially in California, is project to climb substantially if emission-reduction measures are not taken.

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Imagine using insects as a source of chemicals to make plastics that can biodegrade later -- with the help of that very same type of bug. That concept is closer to reality than you might expect. Researchers will describe their progress to date, including the isolation and purification of the insect-derived chemicals and their conversion into their bioplastics.

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Dry lightning can still be disastrous even when conditions aren't so dry, a study has found. These cloud-to-ground strikes during little to no rainfall were previously thought to pose wildfire danger only if occurring with less than 2.5 mm of rain in a day (about 0.10 inches). A new study of lightning-ignited wildfires in the U.S. West found the strikes caused wildfires despite up to 7.7 mm (about 0.3 inches) of precipitation. While still a low amount of rain, the more accurate estimation could help responders detect fires earlier, especially those known as 'holdovers,' which can smolder for many days before exploding into full-blown wildfires.

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More mock seafood options are needed because of unsustainable fishing and aquaculture practices, which can harm the environment. Now, researchers have a new approach for creating desirable vegan seafood mimics that taste good, while maintaining the healthful profile of real fish. They 3D-printed an ink made from microalgae protein and mung bean protein, and their proof-of-concept calamari rings were air-fried into a snack.

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No amount of air pollution is good for the brain, but wildfires and the emissions resulting from agriculture and farming in particular may pose especially toxic threats to cognitive health, according to new research.

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For now, cyborgs exist only in fiction, but the concept is becoming more plausible as science progresses. And now, researchers are reporting that they have developed a proof-of-concept technique to 'tattoo' living cells and tissues with flexible arrays of gold nanodots and nanowires. With further refinement, this method could eventually be used to integrate smart devices with living tissue for biomedical applications, such as bionics and biosensing.

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Fossilized feces preserve evidence of ancient parasites that infected an aquatic predator over 200 million years ago, according to a new study.

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Researchers hope that a new, publicly available database they have created will shrink, not grow, over time. That's because it is a compendium of the thousands of understudied proteins encoded by genes in the human genome, whose existence is known but whose functions are mostly not.

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A remarkable new fossil from China reveals for the first time that a group of reptiles were already using whale-like filter feeding 250 million years ago.

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Engineers have developed nanoscale tattoos -- dots and wires that adhere to live cells -- in a breakthrough that puts researchers one step closer to tracking the health of individual cells.

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Heliconius butterflies are capable of spatial learning, scientists have discovered. The results provide the first experimental evidence of spatial learning in any butterfly or moth species.

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Researchers found that wildfires are causing a much greater warming effect than has been accounted for by climate scientists. The work, which focuses on the role of 'dark brown carbon' -- an abundant but previously unknown class of particles emitted as part of wildfire smoke -- highlights an urgent need to revise climate models and update approaches for the changing environment.

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A new study suggests that Cytochromes P450 (CYP450s) enzymes can sense and respond to stimuli, acting like soft robots in living systems.

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Wildfires are an ancient force shaping the environment, but they have grown in frequency, range and intensity in response to a changing climate. Scientists are working on several fronts to better understand and predict these events and what they mean for the carbon cycle and biodiversity.

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Chemists describe a powerful new way to create new-to-nature, 'unnatural' amino acids, which could find use in protein-based therapies and open up novel branches of organic chemistry.

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Scientists have pinpointed a genetic cause for virgin birth for the first time, and once switched on the ability is passed down through generations of females.

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To study play behaviors in animals, scientists must be able to authentically simulate play-conducive environments in the laboratory. Animals like rats are less inclined to play if they are anxious or restrained, and there is minimal data on the brain activity of rats that are free to play. After getting rats comfortable with a human playmate, tickling them under controlled conditions, then measuring the rats' squeaks and brain activity, a research team reports that a structure in rat brains called the periaqueductal gray is essential for play and laughter.

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Ancient pathogens that escape from melting permafrost have real potential to damage microbial communities and might potentially threaten human health, according to a new study.

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A hot bath is a place to relax. For scientists, it is also where molecules or tiny building blocks meet to form materials. Researchers take it to the next level and use the energy of swimming bacteria to forge materials. A recent study shows us how this works and the potential sustainability benefits that may arise from this innovative approach.

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Bees and wasps have converged on the same architectural solutions to nest-building problems, according to new research.