ScienceDaily Environment Headlines -- for Wednesday, March 7, 2012

ScienceDaily Environment Headlines

for Wednesday, March 7, 2012

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Running hot and cold in the deep sea: Scientists explore rare environment (March 6, 2012) -- It's extremely rare to find hot hydrothermal vents and cold methane seeps intersecting in one place, but that's what researchers found and explored during an expedition in 2010. A description of the scientists' findings, including a large number of mysterious, undescribed species, has just been published. ... > full story

The cutting edge: Exploring the efficiency of bladed tooth shape (March 6, 2012) -- Using a combination of guillotine-based experiments and cutting-edge computer modeling, researchers have explored the most efficient ways for teeth to slice food. Their results show just how precisely the shape of an animal's teeth is optimized to suit the type of food it eats. ... > full story

Density stratification on microorganisms in aquatic ecosystems (March 6, 2012) -- Scientists have shown that density stratification, a frequent feature of aquatic environments, has important ecological consequences on these small organisms. ... > full story

New advances in science of carbon accounting (March 6, 2012) -- Determining with precision the carbon balance of North America is complicated, but researchers have devised a method that considerably advances the science. ... > full story

Listening to the 9. 0-magnitude Japanese earthquake: Seismic waves converted to audio to study quake's traits (March 6, 2012) -- A professor has converted the seismic waves from last year's historic Japanese earthquake into audio files. The results allow experts and general audiences to “hear” what the quake sounded like as it moved through the earth and around the globe. ... > full story

Using a gun in bear encounters doesn't make you safer (March 6, 2012) -- Carrying a gun in bear country doesn't mean you're more protected in the event of a bear encounter, according to new research. Firing a gun is no more effective in keeping people from injury or death during bear attacks than not using a firearm, new research shows. ... > full story

Scientists revolutionize electron microscope: New method could create highest resolution images ever (March 6, 2012) -- Researchers have revolutionized the electron microscope by developing a new method which could create the highest resolution images ever seen. ... > full story

Vegetarian cutlet: New method to prepare a meat substitute (March 6, 2012) -- It looks like a cutlet, it's juicy and fibrous like a cutlet, and it even chews with the consistency of a real cutlet -- but the ingredients are 100 percent vegetable. Researchers are using a new method to prepare a meat substitute that not only tastes good, but is also environmentally sustainable. ... > full story

Ancient 'graffiti' unlock the life of the common man (March 6, 2012) -- A professor of classics is translating and analyzing ancient inscriptions from columns, stones, tombs, floors, and mosaics of ancient Israel to uncover the life of the common men -- and women -- of antiquity. ... > full story

Carp dominate crayfish in invasive species battleground (March 6, 2012) -- Common carp and Louisiana red swamp crayfish are some of the most invasive species on the planet yet how they interact has been poorly understood until now. Scientists investigated their relationship in the waters of Kenya's Lake Naivasha over eight years. ... > full story

Exercise and caffeine change your DNA in the same way, study suggests (March 6, 2012) -- When healthy but inactive men and women exercise for a matter of minutes, it produces a rather immediate change to their DNA. Perhaps even more tantalizing, the study suggests that the caffeine in your morning coffee might also influence muscle in essentially the same way. ... > full story

With extra gene, mice are footloose and cancer free (March 6, 2012) -- In a perfect world, we could eat to our heart's content without sacrificing our health and good looks, and now it appears that maybe we can. Mice with an extra dose of a known anti-cancer gene lose weight even as their appetites grow. Not only that, but according to new research, the animals also live longer, and that isn't just because they aren't getting cancer, either. ... > full story

How protein machinery binds and wraps DNA to start replication (March 6, 2012) -- Scientists have deciphered molecular-level details of the complex choreography by which intricate cellular proteins recognize and bind to DNA to start the DNA replication process. The research may point to ways to block unwanted cell division. ... > full story

How world's smallest DNA virus evolved in rare parakeets (March 6, 2012) -- Scientists have gained new insight into a rare virus that is threatening to wipe out the Mauritius parakeet -- one of the world’s most endangered species of parrot. ... > full story

New H5N1 viruses: How to balance risk of escape with benefits of research? (March 6, 2012) -- In the controversy surrounding the newly developed strains of avian H5N1 flu viruses, scientists and policy makers are struggling with one question in particular: what level of biosafety is best for studying these potentially lethal strains of influenza? Experts now argue their different views of how to safely handle H5N1 flu viruses. ... > full story

Hiding behavior of the scrub jay: More stress than smarts? (March 6, 2012) -- The fact that scrub jays continually move their food from one hiding place to another (known as recaching) does not necessarily imply subtle social intelligence on their part – it could simply be due to stress. ... > full story

More effective method of imaging proteins (March 6, 2012) -- Scientists have found a more effective way of imaging proteins. The next step is to film how proteins work – at molecular level. ... > full story

Predicting the spread of ticks across Canada (March 5, 2012) -- Researchers are watching as ticks that carry Lyme disease colonize Canada, but their research aims to predict the communities most likely to be hit by this sickness. ... > full story

New research supports theory of extraterrestrial impact (March 5, 2012) -- Scientists have identified a nearly 13,000-year-old layer of thin, dark sediment buried in the floor of Lake Cuitzeo in central Mexico. The sediment layer contains an exotic assemblage of materials, including nanodiamonds, impact spherules, and more, which, according to the researchers, are the result of a cosmic body impacting Earth. ... > full story

New insights into cloud formation (March 5, 2012) -- Clouds have a profound effect on the climate, but we know surprisingly little about how they form. Researcher have studied how extremely small cloud particles can dispose of excess energy. This knowledge is necessary to understand processes in the atmosphere that affect global climate change. ... > full story

The Blue Planet's new water budget: Do we have enough? (March 5, 2012) -- Investigating the history of water on Earth is critical to understanding the planet's climate. One central question is whether Earth has always had the same amount of water on and surrounding it, the same so-called "water budget". Has Earth gained or lost water from comets and meteorites? Has water been lost into space? New research into the Earth's primordial oceans revisits Earth’s historical water budget. ... > full story

Demise of early large animals caused by both humans and climate change (March 5, 2012) -- Past waves of extinctions which removed some of the world's largest animals were caused by both people and climate change, according to new research. ... > full story

Genetic link between visual pathways of hydras and humans discovered (March 5, 2012) -- What good is half an eye? Evolutionary biologists studying the origins of vision get that question a lot, and new research points to a possible answer. New findings indicate that, even in the absence of eyes altogether, some creatures display a light-sensitivity that uses the same visual pathway that allows humans to see. ... > full story

Spider silk conducts heat as well as metals (March 5, 2012) -- Researchers have discovered that spider silk is surprisingly good at transferring heat. Spider silk, in fact, conducts heat as well or better than most metals. ... > full story

Unraveling biological networks: Biological network motif discovery algorithms (March 5, 2012) -- A new approach to disentangling the complexities of biological networks, such as the way in which proteins interact in our body's cells has been developed. The new algorithm could allow biologists and biomedical researchers to unravel new clues about how cells work and what goes awry with such networks in various diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease and cancer. ... > full story

Is seaweed the future of biofuel? (March 5, 2012) -- The problem with environmentally friendly biofuels is the ever-increasing amount of farmland necessary to produce these crops diverts it from food production. Now researchers are exploring common seaweed as a viable alternative. ... > full story

Will a genetic mutation cause trouble? Ask Spliceman (March 5, 2012) -- New, free Web-based software analyzes DNA sequences to determine if mutations are likely to cause errors in splicing of messenger RNA. When gene splicing goes awry, a wide variety of diseases can result. ... > full story

Sawfishes sure can wield a saw: Saw senses electric fields to locate prey and also attack (March 5, 2012) -- Sawfishes wouldn't be sawfishes if they didn't come equipped with long toothy snouts -- their saws. Now, researchers have figured out what they use those saws for, and it turns out the answer is quite impressive. The saws themselves have tiny sensors that enable sawfishes to detect the electric fields of other nearby animals. ... > full story

Elevated carbon dioxide concentrations can increase carbon storage in the soil (March 5, 2012) -- Elevated carbon dioxide concentrations can increase carbon storage in the soil, according to results from a 12-year carbon dioxide-enrichment experiment. ... > full story

Building a beetle antifreeze (March 5, 2012) -- An Alaskan beetle beats the cold using an unusual, natural antifreeze with a novel mode of action that scientists are beginning to unravel. ... > full story

Warming of two degrees inevitable over Canada, experts say (March 5, 2012) -- Even if zero emissions of greenhouse gases were to be achieved, the world's temperature would continue to rise by about a quarter of a degree over a decade. That's a best-case scenario, according to a new article. Experts urge the public, governments and industries to wake up to a harsh new reality. ... > full story

In forests, past disturbances obscure warming impacts (March 5, 2012) -- Past disturbances, such as logging, can obscure the effects of climate change on forest ecosystems. So reports a new study. The article, exploring nitrogen dynamics, found that untangling climate impacts from other factors can be difficult, even when scientists have access to decades of data on a forest's environmental conditions. ... > full story

Rare wolverine photographed in Montana (March 5, 2012) -- Conservationists recently released ta camera-trap photo of a wolverine retrieving bait placed in a tree in Montana. ... > full story

Ice hockey feels the heat in Canada (March 5, 2012) -- The future of Canadian outdoor ice hockey – a sport synonymous with the country’s culture – is being threatened by anthropogenic climate change, new research suggests. As warmer winter temperatures restrict ice from freezing over, researchers believe the ice hockey stars of the future will have limited access to the frozen lakes and backyard rinks that have helped shape the careers of some of the greatest professional players, such as Wayne Gretzky; the Canadian considered to be the greatest of all time who started skating as a child on a rink in his backyard. ... > full story

How plants sniff out unhealthy neighbors to fight off infection (March 5, 2012) -- A new study sheds light on how plants sniff out unhealthy neighbors to fight off infection. People and animals are not the only ones who can smell. Plants are also able to perceive odors, but they process them in a very different way . While insects or mammals smell odors within a second of exposure, plants require much longer exposure times to respond. Then using this information, they react effectively to the odors emitted by infected or infested neighboring plants in order to increase their resistance to pest insects or disease. ... > full story

Standing still in running water: Lotic dragon and damselfly species less able to adapt to climate change (March 5, 2012) -- A new study throws light on the capability of individual dragonfly species to track climate change. The authors show that dragonfly species which breed in pools and ponds are better able to cope with climate change than species whose habitats are streams and rivers. The results are based on a comparison of the projected and observed distributions of European dragonfly species in 2006 and 1988.  ... > full story

Escaping parasites and pathogens (March 4, 2012) -- In nature, how do host species survive parasite attacks? This has not been well understood, until now. A new mathematical model shows that when a host and its parasite each have multiple traits governing their interaction, the host has a unique evolutionary advantage that helps it survive. ... > full story

The future of plant science: A technology perspective (March 2, 2012) -- Plant science is key to addressing the major challenges facing humanity in the 21st Century, according to experts. Researchers argue that the development of new technology is key to transforming plant biology in order to meet human needs. ... > full story

Unexpected crustacean diversity discovered in northern freshwater ecosystems (March 2, 2012) -- Freshwater ecosystems in northern regions are home to significantly more species of water fleas than traditionally thought, adding to evidence that regions with vanishing waters contain unique animal life. ... > full story

When our eyes serve our stomach (March 2, 2012) -- Our senses aren't just delivering a strict view of what's going on in the world; they're affected by what's going on in our heads. A new study finds that hungry people see food-related words more clearly than people who've just eaten. ... > full story

Gasoline worse than diesel when it comes to some types of air pollution (March 2, 2012) -- The exhaust fumes from gasoline vehicles contribute more to the production of a specific type of air pollution-secondary organic aerosols -than those from diesel vehicles, according to a new study. ... > full story

Helping protect vulnerable birds from impacts of climate change (March 2, 2012) -- Scientists have completed an innovative study of the effects of climate change on bird species of greatest concern. This novel study prioritizes which birds are most at risk and will help guide conservation measures in California. Endangered species and wetland birds are two highly vulnerable groups. ... > full story

Anthropologists’ work prompts Republic of Congo to enlarge National Park (March 2, 2012) -- Research by anthropologists has spurred the Republic of Congo to enlarge its Nouabalé-Ndoki National Park boundaries to include the Goualougo Triangle. The Goualougo Triangle is a remote, pristine forest that is home to at least 14 communities of “naïve” chimpanzees with little exposure to humans. ... > full story

Law that regulates shark fishery is too liberal, experts say (March 2, 2012) -- Shark fins are worth more than other parts of the shark and are often removed from the body, which gets thrown back into the sea. To curtail this wasteful practice, many countries allow the fins to be landed detached from shark bodies, as long as their weight does not exceed five per cent of the total shark catch. New research shows that this kind of legislation is too liberal. ... > full story

Cocoa may enhance skeletal muscle function (March 2, 2012) -- A small clinical trial found that patients with advanced heart failure and type 2 diabetes showed improved mitochondrial structure after three months of treatment with epicatechin-enriched cocoa. Epicatechin is a flavonoid found in dark chocolate. ... > full story

Effects of environmental toxicants reach down through generations (March 2, 2012) -- Scientists have now demonstrated that a variety of environmental toxicants can have negative effects on not just an exposed animal but the next three generations of its offspring. The animal's DNA sequence remains unchanged, but the compounds change the way genes turn on and off -- the epigenetic effect, according to molecular biologists. The researchers saw females reaching puberty earlier, increased rates in the decay and death of sperm cells and lower numbers of ovarian follicles that later become eggs. ... > full story

Protecting living fossil trees (March 2, 2012) -- Scientists are working to protect living fossil trees in Fiji from the impact of climate change with cutting-edge DNA sequencing technology. ... > full story

Nearby chimpanzee populations show much greater genetic diversity than distant human populations (March 2, 2012) -- Chimpanzee populations living in relatively close proximity are substantially more different genetically than humans living on different continents, according to a new study. The study suggests that genomics can provide a valuable new tool for use in chimpanzee conservation, with the potential to identify the population of origin of an individual chimpanzee or the provenance of a sample of bush meat. ... > full story