Selection,Of,Animal,And,Plant,Protein,Sources,-,Fish,,Meat,

Nearly 90% of adults in the United States believe they must eat meat, dairy, or eggs to get enough protein. This finding comes from a poll of 2,203 people who were surveyed in January 2025, and it highlights the lingering confusion around animal protein and plant-based eating.



Women and Gen Z participants were most likely to push back against the idea that animal products are required for <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/hemp-seeds-could-be-a-game-changer-as-an-alternative-protein-source/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">adequate nutrition</a>. 



<a href="https://www.pcrm.org/about-us/staff/roxanne-becker" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Dr. Roxanne Becker</a>, MBChB, DipIBLM, who is with the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, <a href="https://www.pcrm.org/news/news-releases/nearly-90-us-adults-believe-inaccurately-its-important-eat-animal-products-get" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">notes</a> that some consumers still struggle to see how plant foods can match traditional protein sources.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-can-plant-protein-replace-animal-protein">Can plant protein replace animal protein?</h2>



Consumers may worry about protein quality when moving away from animal <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/eating-more-plant-protein-lowers-the-risk-of-heart-disease/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">foods</a>. One key concern is about whether plant proteins are too low in essential amino acids.



Plant-based proteins are often linked with health perks such as high fiber and reduced levels of unhealthy fats. 



They also contain a variety of vitamins and minerals that animal products may lack, but the question about adequate essential amino acids remains.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-plant-protein-vs-animal-protein">Plant protein vs. animal protein</h2>



“Plant protein has been shown in randomized controlled trials to be as effective as animal protein for building muscle when the amounts of protein are equal. And it is full of nutrients and fiber, unlike animal-based protein sources,” clarified Dr. Becker.



There is strong support from <a href="https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10537483/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">controlled trials</a> for the benefits of plant-based eating.&nbsp;



In one <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33599941/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">study</a>, men who followed a plant-based dietary plan or an omnivorous plan experienced similar gains in muscle mass when the diet was paired with resistance training. 



Similar protein amounts produced comparable results, regardless of the protein source. 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-plant-protein-supports-better-aging">Plant protein supports better aging</h2>



Midlife nutrition habits can set the stage for quality of life decades later. An <a href="https://ajcn.nutrition.org/article/S0002-9165(23)66282-3/fulltext#tbl2" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">investigation</a> led by researchers from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health (<a href="https://hsph.harvard.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HSPH</a>) suggests that higher intake of plant protein in midlife may support healthy aging in women.



Participants in that study showed better physical and cognitive outcomes over the years when they relied on beans, nuts, and other plant-based staples. 



The findings indicate that animal protein may have a few benefits for mobility, but plant protein aligns with improved overall well-being.&nbsp;



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-practical-protein-needs">Practical protein needs</h2>



The minimum daily requirement for an adult is 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram (0.01 ounces per pound) of body weight. 



That’s about 56 grams for a 70-kilogram (2 ounces for a 155-pound) man and 46 grams for a 58-kilogram (1.6 ounces for a 128-pound) woman.



Those who exercise heavily may need up to 2 grams per kilogram (0.07 ounces per pound), especially if they’re doing strength training. 



Keeping track of these figures can guide individuals toward balanced dietary choices that nourish muscle growth and support overall health.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-maintaining-muscle-with-age">Maintaining muscle with age</h2>



“As we age, it’s important to consume enough protein to maintain our muscle mass so we can avoid frailty. Plant protein sources, which contain no artery-clogging cholesterol and are low in saturated fat, should be the go-to,” said Dr. Becker. 



Older adults might lose muscle mass over time, so feeding the body with enough protein is wise.&nbsp;



Many plant-based options are naturally free of animal fats, which can help with <a href="https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/JAHA.117.006659" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">heart health</a> in the long run. These foods are also linked to lower cholesterol levels.&nbsp;



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ways-to-replace-animal-protein">Ways to replace animal protein</h2>



Busy schedules might make it tricky for some people to figure out a <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/futuristic-food-supply-transforming-co2-into-protein/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">plant-friendly</a> menu that supplies adequate protein. 



Tofu, beans, lentils, peas, nuts and tempeh are familiar to many who want to load up on muscle-building nutrients without relying on animal <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/animals-are-suffering-from-declining-plant-quality/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">products</a>.



“Unlike animal-based protein, these foods contain zero cholesterol and tend to be low in saturated fat, making them a smart choice for long-term health. Getting enough protein is as easy as enjoying meals you already know and love,” said Xavier Toledo, a registered dietitian with the Physicians Committee.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-wider-acceptance">Wider acceptance</h2>



The survey revealed that more than half of respondents felt it was possible to gain muscle on a plant-based eating plan. 



This marks a change from older attitudes that portrayed animal <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/small-changes-in-diet-can-greatly-reduce-your-carbon-footprint/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">protein</a> as the gold standard.



Despite strong acceptance among younger adults, the broader public still lags behind on the facts. That gap could close as research keeps highlighting the flexibility and benefits of plant-based <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/plant-based-meat-less-protein-lacks-certain-nutrients/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">diets</a>.



The study is published in the <a href="https://ajcn.nutrition.org/article/S0002-9165(23)66282-3/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">American Journal of Clinical Nutrition</a>.



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Do humans need to eat animal protein to build muscle? Science has the answer

Nearly 90% of adults in the United States believe they must eat meat, dairy, or eggs to get enough protein. This finding comes from a poll of 2,203 people who were surveyed in January 2025, and it highlights the lingering confusion around animal protein and plant-based eating. Women and Gen Z participants were most likely to push back against the idea that animal products are required for adequate nutrition. Dr. Roxanne Becker, MBChB, DipIBLM, who is with the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, notes that some consumers...

Researchers have found that broadband internet has a positive effect on fertility, time spent with children, and overall life satisfaction. However, this trend is largely driven by higher-educated women, creating a digital fertility divide.

“Broadband Internet access allows higher-educated women to better reconcile work and motherhood, which in turn may promote fertility,” explained study co-author Professor Francesco Billari of <a href="https://www.unibocconi.eu/">Bocconi University</a>.

The investigation was focused on data from over 20,000 individuals collected for the research project DisCont, which is funded by the European Research Council. 

The study revealed that after gaining access to high-speed Internet, higher-educated women between the ages of 25 and 45 showed a significant increase in <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/home-chemical-pollutants-harm-fertility/">fertility</a>. Among lesser-educated women, however, there were no changes in fertility rates.

“We find that the channel through which high-speed Internet increases fertility is a better work-family balance, due to the spread of teleworking, smart working and part-time working among educated women,” said Professor Billari.

Broadband Internet also allowed higher-educated women to spend more time with children during weekdays by increasing the likelihood of working from home by almost thirty percent. Professor Billari pointed out that this allows part time mothers to return to full time employment in many cases.

“This may be particularly important in countries such as Germany, or the best part of Southern and Central-Eastern Europe, where total fertility is below replacement,” said Professor Billari.

The downside of these findings is that broadband Internet introduces a fertility digital divide that excludes lesser-educated individuals who are often working jobs that are much less flexible. 

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosgenetics/">Population Studies</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

High speed internet has led to higher fertility rates for educated women

Researchers have found that broadband internet has a positive effect...

President Trump stirred up controversy after making a bizarre statement against wind turbines during the <a href="https://www.c-span.org/video/?459408-1/president-trump-remarks-national-republican-congressional-committee-dinner">National Republican Congressional Committee Dinner</a> on Tuesday night.

“If you have a windmill anywhere near your house, congratulations, your house just went down 75% in value,” Trump said during a speech. “And they say the noise causes cancer. You tell me that one, OK?” 

The president’s claims are not true, and they caught the attention of Republican Senator Charles Grassley, who is a huge advocate for wind energy and the wind energy tax credit. 

On Wednesday, responding to reporters, the Iowa senator said that the comment was “idiotic,” according to the <a href="https://www.desmoinesregister.com/">Des Moines Register</a>. 

Grassley was also one of 19 senators to sign a bipartisan appeal for more federal wind energy funding. 

In the appeal, Grassley along with Senator Jeff Merkley hailed wind energy as an “American Success Story.” Currently, wind energy employs more than 100,000 people, and Iowa has a leader in wind energy in the US. 

According to the <a href="https://www.iaenvironment.org/our-work/clean-energy/wind-energy">Iowa Environmental Council</a>, Iowa was the first state to generate over 30 percent of electricity through wind energy. 

“Pretty simple. I wish his staff would tell him I’m the father and now the grandfather of wind energy tax credits. I don’t think he knows it, or I don’t think he’d make those comments that aren’t quite appropriate,” Grassley said.

While studies have shown that the sound disturbances from wind turbines can be a source of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/can-living-near-wind-turbines-have-an-effect-your-health/">annoyance and stress </a>to residents who live nearby, there have not been any proven links between cancer or headaches.

Wind turbines do pose a risk to migrating birds and<a href="https://www.earth.com/search-results/?search=wind+turbine"> bird populations</a>, and research into these impacts, including possible links to human health impacts are crucial to the advancement of renewables in the United States. 

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette,</a> <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Paid for by <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a>

Republican senator calls out Trump’s “idiotic” remarks on wind turbines

President Trump stirred up controversy after making a bizarre statement...

For the first time, researchers have been able to measure the therapeutic effect of experiencing the outdoors. The study has revealed that walking or sitting among nature for at least 20 minutes can significantly reduce stress hormone levels. The finding will enable healthcare practitioners to prescribe “nature pills” to relieve symptoms of <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/stress-relationships-impact-sleep/">stress</a>.

Study lead author Dr. MaryCarol Hunter is an associate professor in the School for Environment and Sustainability at the <a href="https://umich.edu/">University of Michigan</a>.

“We know that spending time in nature reduces stress, but until now it was unclear how much is enough, how often to do it, or even what kind of nature experience will benefit us,” explained Dr. Hunter. “Our study shows that for the greatest payoff, in terms of efficiently lowering levels of the stress hormone cortisol, you should spend 20 to 30 minutes sitting or walking in a place that provides you with a sense of nature.”


A prescription of nature pills could be a low-cost solution to address the negative health impacts that are associated with indoor and urban lifestyles. Dr. Hunter and her team designed an experiment to determine what would be an effective dose of nature.

Individuals who volunteered in the study were instructed to spend 10 minutes or longer in nature at least three times a week for eight weeks. Levels of the stress hormone cortisol were measured in saliva samples collected before and after the participants had a dose of nature on four separate occasions. 

“Participants were free to choose the time of day, duration, and the place of their nature experience, which was defined as anywhere outside that in the opinion of the participant, made them feel like they've interacted with nature. There were a few constraints to minimize factors known to influence stress: take the nature pill in daylight, no aerobic exercise, and avoid the use of social media, internet, phone calls, conversations and reading,” said Dr. Hunter.

“Building personal flexibility into the experiment, allowed us to identify the optimal duration of a nature pill, no matter when or where it is taken, and under the normal circumstances of modern life, with its unpredictability and hectic scheduling.”

According to the study, a twenty-minute nature experience was enough to significantly reduce cortisol levels. Between 20 and 30 minutes in nature, however, produced the greatest drop in cortisol levels. Beyond 30 minutes, the benefits continued to accumulate, but at a slower rate. 

“Healthcare practitioners can use our results as an evidence-based rule of thumb on what to put in a nature-pill prescription,” said Dr. Hunter. “It provides the first estimates of how nature experiences impact stress levels in the context of normal daily life. It breaks new ground by addressing some of the complexities of measuring an effective nature dose.”

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology">Frontiers in Psychology</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

A quick 20-minute nature break can significantly reduce stress levels

For the first time, researchers have been able to measure...

So far, 2019 has been a good year for an abundance of wildflowers.  So-called 'super blooms' have been reported in the hostile climates of <a href="https://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/03/160302-death-valley-super-bloom-wildflowers-weather/">Death Valley</a>, <a href="https://www.desertusa.com/wildflo/az.html">Phoenix</a>, and elsewhere.  According to the <a href="https://www.desertusa.com/wildflo/az.html">Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum</a>, there are some critical factors involved in how many wildflowers will bloom in any given spring.  

Desert wildflowers germinate in the fall.  A rain during the germination period is important for wildflowers in the spring.  This initial trigger rain is followed by an unusually wet winter season for a ‘super bloom’ to occur.  Spectacular blooms occur in the Sonoran and Mojave deserts about once every 10 years. Of course, perennial desert plants often flower with less rain the pickier perennials dependent on rain for germination.  Southern California has been the heart of this particular super bloom, much of the landscape being covered in a veritable sea of golden poppies.

Lake Elsinore, a Southern California town located on the shores of a lake by the same name, has been a popular destination for visitors.  Lake Elsinore is in an area long inhabited by Native Americans and until recently been a small town, now grown to a population of over <a href="https://factfinder.census.gov/faces/nav/jsf/pages/community_facts.xhtml?src=bkmk">60,000</a>.  News and social media have made this part of California especially popular.  Not only super blooms of wild flowers but also large numbers of <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/orange-butterflies-southern-california/">painted lady butterflies</a> (Vanessa cardui) are being attracted by the flowers.  The butterfly migrates from Mexico into California in one generation and further north in the next, the generation after starting a southern migration.  In 2005, during a year of exceptionally good blooms, it was estimated that there were billions of butterflies flying over Southern California, according to <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/southern-california-skies-fill-butterflies-thanks-painted-lady-migration-n982551">NBC News</a>.  Now, the city of Lake Elsinore is being crowded even more by people.  

[caption id="attachment_1870745" align="aligncenter" width="650"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Lake-Elsinore-California-USA.-March-21-2019.jpg"><img class="wp-image-1870745" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/Lake-Elsinore-California-USA.-March-21-2019.jpg" alt="" width="650" height="351" /></a> Super bloom in Lake Elsinore, California on March 21, 2019[/caption]

According to <a href="https://www.ecowatch.com/california-superbloom-poppies-2632104685.html">Ecowatch</a>, as many as 50,000 tourists visited Lake Elsinore to see the fields of poppies, nearly doubling the population.  Traffic leading to the best places to view the super blooms has been congested and slow. People trampled the flowers to get the best selfies in the fields of blooms.  Quickly, elation over natural beauty turned to discomfort caused by the massive influx of tourists. Photos captioned #superbloom by tourists were quickly followed by photos tagged #poppynightmare on social media.  The city of Lake Elsinore itself has taken to bemoaning the influx of visitors on its FaceBook page.

<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/mar/18/super-bloom-lake-elsinore-poppies-flowers">The Guardian</a> reports that the situation got so bad that Walker Canyon, one of the more popular places to visit the poppy super bloom, was closed temporarily.  In the midst of the swarms of people, not only is the city becoming crowded and the roadways congested, the poppies themselves are being loved to death.  In the frenzy to see and photograph the super bloom, people are actually trampling the flowers under foot. The problem is spread across Southern California, not just Lake Elsinore.

<a href="http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=627">Antelope Valley Poppy Reserve</a>, a California State natural reserve, is another popular place to view the super bloom.  The official website encourages visitors to come and enjoy the fields blanketed in flowers but advises those that do to stay on official trails, not bring dogs and to not pick the flowers.  Commercial or student film and photography also requires a permit. What the rules don’t explicitly say is to not land a helicopter in a poppy field.

[caption id="attachment_1870746" align="aligncenter" width="650"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/super-bloom-in-death-valley.jpg"><img class="wp-image-1870746" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/super-bloom-in-death-valley.jpg" alt="" width="650" height="373" /></a> Super bloom in Death Valley[/caption]

Recently, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/mar/27/helicopter-lands-super-bloom-california">The Guardian</a> reports, a couple did just that.  A helicopter landed in an open field of poppies and a man and woman got out and started walking around, crushing even more of the flowers than their helicopter did.  As law enforcement officials approached, the two jumped into the helicopter and quickly flew away. This act, although not described in the rules on the official reserve website, is illegal and is now being investigated.  Officials are also on the lookout for people entering the reserve illegally by ducking through barbed wire fences. With the number of visitors now, it’s easy to worry about the poppies being trampled. All this havoc is despite early preparations in California.  

At Lake Elsinore, officials knew of the possibility of crowding and damage from tourists.  In 2017, tourists arrived in large groups to view that years stunning super bloom. Observing the weather over the winter, city officials tried to prepare, reports <a href="https://www.pe.com/2019/03/01/two-years-after-stunning-wildflower-superbloom-stopped-traffic-lake-elsinore-takes-precautions/">The Press-Enterprise</a>. More law enforcement officers were made to be present and more signs were put up to warn people off the poppy fields, yet the mess seemed almost unavoidable given the power of social media.  Walker Canyon is managed for wildlife and native plants, with a few trails, so the focus isn’t on tourism or recreation but conservation, which makes managing the huge number of visitors a challenge.  

Not only the plants and wildlife suffer, but the tourists endangered themselves and others as well.  People were pulling onto the shoulder of roads to illegally take selfies. Rattlesnakes come out of hibernation around this time and at least one super bloom visitor was bitten by a snake, another was injured scrambling over rocks to flee a snake.  Unfortunately, beautiful places often suffer from people ‘loving them to death’. 

California is a huge tourist destination and many popular hiking and camping destinations there and across the west are increasingly crowded, sometimes with people unaware of proper outdoor etiquette.  Huge numbers of visitors combine with other challenges to conservation, such as climate change which may be affecting iconic plants in places such as Joshua Tree National Park and <a href="https://www.nps.gov/sagu/index.htm">Saguaro National Park</a>.  The poppies and other flowering plants part of the super bloom may be affected as well.  It may seem to some like this recent super bloom repudiates the idea of a trend towards hotter drier weather, as but <a href="https://www.desertsun.com/story/desert-magazine/2017/05/05/dont-let-super-bloom-fool-you-climate-shifts-changing-local-landscape/310810001/">Desert Sun</a> reports, it’s just an anomaly.

Fewer young Joshua Trees are growing in <a href="https://www.nps.gov/jotr/index.htm">Joshua Tree National Park</a>, one of the places to see the spectacular super bloom, despite this year’s especially wet conditions.  Annual flowers are one thing; quickly growing plants depending on only one season of good moisture to thrive – for a year.  Joshua Trees and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/decline-saguaro/">cacti</a> are another thing – slow growing plants that can establish themselves in dry hot conditions but may have a hard time when young as the climate becomes increasingly hotter.  Fewer super blooms seem likely in the future as well, despite this one and the tourists will make it harder for the flowers to continue to bloom even in the rare conditions when they can in such numbers.   

--

By <a href="mailto:zachfitzner@yahoo.com">Zach Fitzner</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Contributing Writer

As stunning super blooms spring up, tourists often get carried away

So far, 2019 has been a good year for an...

Dating tree rings, also known as dendrochronology, has helped researchers understand past climates, precipitation, and other environmental factors that have <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/earths-tropical-belt-shifting/">impacted tree growth</a> through the years.

But now in a new study, researchers from the <a href="https://www.shh.mpg.de/en">Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History</a> have used tree ring data to study early human activity and forest management practices in pre-colonial Brazil 400 years ago. 

It’s long been thought that forests in the Amazon Basin were “pristine” and that humans only sparsely inhabited the area until Europeans arrived in the 16th century. 

But archeological evidence provides proof to the contrary showing that before the arrival of Europeans, pre-Columbian societies were involved in widespread plant domestication, forest management, and landscape alteration. 

Today, the Amazon is home to many key tree species, but these forests are threatened due to climate change and human activities.

By studying these early instances of forest management, we have a better chance of preserving and managing our forests in the future considering the drastic changes that the world’s forests have undergone with the rise of industrialization. 

For the study, published in the journal <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0214128">PLOS ONE</a>, the researchers focused on a neotropical tree species, the Brazil nut tree, to show how human activities 400 years ago influenced tree growth and forest biodiversity. 

“The results of this study demonstrate that Brazil nut tree growth reflects human occupation intensity and management,” said Victor Caetano Andrade, the lead author of the study. “This is one more step to understanding the crucial interactions that led the Amazon forest to be the dynamic, humanized landscape it is today.” 

The team collected tree samples using a non-destructive method of removing small samples starting from the bark to the center of the tree in Central Amazonia near Manaus. 

The area surveyed has a rich density of Brazil nut trees, and the researchers analyzed tree ring data from the cores of 67 trees in total. 

After collecting the tree rings, the researchers compared the core data to historical data on human activity in the area dating back 400 years ago. 

What the tree ring data showed was that there was a distinct change in the forest region between pre- and post-colonization. After the Portuguese colonized the area, populations of the Mura indigenous people who had practiced forest management declined. 

This decline resulted in no new trees being planted in the area, and the researchers say this indicates a disruption in forest management.

[caption id="attachment_1870741" align="aligncenter" width="650"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/brazil-nut-fruit-and-tree-in-the-background.jpg"><img class="wp-image-1870741" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/brazil-nut-fruit-and-tree-in-the-background.jpg" alt="" width="650" height="823" /></a> Brazil nut fruit and tree in the background. Image Credit: Victor L. Caetano Andrade[/caption]

The tree ring data shows a later period of renewed tree growth and the establishment of new trees after this pause which matches modern forest management practices in the 19th and 20th century. 

Not only does the study show that pre-colonial indigenous populations domesticated Brazil nut trees and managed forests and agricultural, but also that tree rings are like time capsules that can help researchers create clear pictures of past climates, weather extremes, and human activities. 

“Our findings shed light on how past histories of human-forest interactions can be revealed by the growth rings of trees in Amazonia,” said Caetano Andrade. “Future interdisciplinary analysis of these trees, including the use of genetics and isotopes, should enable more detailed investigations into how human forest management has changed in this part of the world, through pre-colonial, colonial, and industrial periods of human activity, with potential implications for conservation.”

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Tree rings reveal pre-colonial forest management in the Amazon

Dating tree rings, also known as dendrochronology, has helped researchers...

A study from the <a href="https://www.umh.es/contenido/Visitantes/:uor_37/datos_en.html">Institute of Neurosciences CSIC-UMH</a> is providing new evidence that the brain damage caused by alcohol consumption continues to progress during abstinence. Even after individuals had quit <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/heavy-alcohol-consumption-slows-brain-development/">drinking alcohol</a> for six weeks, the researchers observed alcohol-induced changes in the white matter of the brain.

The structural brain changes associated with alcohol are known to be wide-ranging, but the diagnostic markers which characterize changes during abstinence are not fully understood. For the current study, the team used magnetic resonance imaging on patients at a German hospital.

Dr. Santiago Canals, who coordinated the research, said the results are surprising. “Until now, nobody could believe that in the absence of alcohol the damage in the brain would progress.”


The investigation was focused on 90 patients with an average age of 46, who were hospitalized for an alcohol use disorder. To compare the brain images, 36 healthy men with an average age of 41 were used as a control group.

“An important aspect of the work is that the group of patients participating in our research are hospitalized in a detoxification program, and their consumption of addictive substances is controlled, which guarantees that they are not drinking any alcohol,” noted Dr. Canals. “Therefore, the abstinence phase can be followed closely.”

“Another differential characteristic of this study is that it has been carried out in parallel in a model with Marchigian Sardinian rats with preference for alcohol, which allows to monitor the transition from normal to alcohol dependence in the brain, a process that is not possible to see in humans,” explained study first author Dr. Silvia de Santis.

The damage observed during the first weeks of abstinence was primarily located in the right hemisphere and the frontal area of the brain. The findings contradict the theory that the structural alterations associated with alcohol begin to immediately return to their previous state with abstinence.

“There is a generalized change in the white matter, that is, in the set of fibers that communicate different parts of the brain,” explained Dr. Canals. “The alterations are more intense in the corpus callosum and the fimbria. The corpus callosum is related to the communication between both hemispheres. The fimbria contains the nerve fibers that communicate the hippocampus, a fundamental structure for the formation of memories, the nucleus accumbens and the prefrontal cortex.” 

The researchers will now try to characterize the inflammatory and degenerative processes more precisely in an effort to better understand the progression of alcohol-induced damage during the early abstinence phase.


The study is published in the journal <a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapsychiatry">JAMA Psychiatry</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Alcohol-induced brain damage continues even after quitting drinking

A study from the Institute of Neurosciences CSIC-UMH is providing...

The remains of six humans recovered from a cave in France are providing new clues into the lives of <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/neanderthals-upright-posture-modern-humans/">Neanderthals</a> who lived in the region 120,000 years ago. Human teeth marks found on the bones indicate that climate change forced the Neanderthals to resort to cannibalism. 

According to researchers at the <a href="https://www.cnrs.fr/en/aboutcnrs/overview.htm">French National Centre for Scientific Research</a> (CNRS), global warming would have made the large animals hunted by Neanderthals scarce. The planet was in the midst of a major transition from an ice age to a much warmer climate.

The remains, which were initially found 20 years ago in the Moula-Guercy cave in France, showed signs that instruments were used to break open the bones to expose marrow. The skulls had also been smashed open, most likely for access to the brains. 

The analysis of the teeth collected for the study revealed that the hominids were suffering from prolonged periods of malnutrition. The study authors said their findings provide the “best evidence” of cannibalism at this time.

[caption id="attachment_1870728" align="aligncenter" width="631"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/bones-reveal-signs-of-cannibalism.jpg"><img class="wp-image-1870728 size-full" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/bones-reveal-signs-of-cannibalism.jpg" alt="" width="631" height="697" /></a> Recovered bones reveal signs of cannibalism, Image Credit: Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences[/caption]

“The work at the Moula-Guercy cave allows us for the first time to demonstrate the existence of the practice of cannibalism by European Neanderthals,” said Dr. Alban Defleur.

The researchers believe that the six humans, including two adults, two teenagers, and two children, were killed out of necessity to feed the starving population.

“Cut marks are spread over 50 percent of the human remains and distributed over the entire skeleton from the cranium, jaws, and bones in the hand,” wrote the researchers. “Percussion marks are visible on all the skulls, all the long bones and other bones of adults and children.”

The experts theorize that the bodies were first dismembered and then stripped of their meat. There is also evidence on four of the bones that they had been used by the Neanderthals as tools.

The study is published in the <a href="https://www.journals.elsevier.com/journal-of-archaeological-science">Journal of Archaeological Science</a>.

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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Paid for by <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a>

Climate change may have forced Neanderthals to resort to cannibalism

The remains of six humans recovered from a cave in...

According to a new study released by the <a href="https://www.aaas.org/">American Association for the Advancement of Science</a>, children who live close to protected areas designated by the <a href="https://www.iucn.org/ru">International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)</a> often live in healthier and wealthier households. 

The study, completed by Robin Naidoo, from the <a href="https://www.worldwildlife.org/pages/robin-naidoo-ph-d">World Wildlife Fund’s Conservation Science Program</a>, and colleagues, suggests that <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/national-parks-endangered-species/">conservation zones</a> could not only help wildlife but also global poverty and poor health.

Naidoo and his colleagues analyzed the environmental and socioeconomic conditions of over 87,000 children in 34 developing countries. 

They found that children who live within 10 kilometers of a protected zone with connected tourism attractions had 17% higher wealth levels and a 16% lower likelihood of poverty compared to children living in similar households but farther away from protected areas.

Furthermore, children aged 5 and under who lived near multiple-use protected areas — areas in which natural resources can be sustainably harvested — with associated tourism were often 10% taller than children living farther away from conservation zones, and were also 13% less likely to experience stunted growth.

The study could not find any negative aspects of children living near protected zones. Therefore, protecting more wildlife areas could benefit both humans, flora, and fauna.

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By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Children who live near protected areas live in healthier homes

According to a new study released by the American Association...

Previous <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/green-spaces-lower-mental-illness/">research has shown</a> how spending more time out in nature helps boost mental health and wellbeing. But now, a new study has found that areas with more trees and greenspace spend less money Medicare costs.

While the research does not prove a direct cause and effect between lower healthcare spending and greenspace, but the findings further emphasize the positive impact of living in areas with ample access to nature. 

The study was conducted by researchers from the <a href="https://illinois.edu/">University of Illinois</a> and published in the journal Urban Forestry and Urban Greening. 

“Previous studies have looked at any health outcomes people think might be linked to nature: depression, cardiovascular disease, physical activity levels, even recovery from surgery,” said Douglas Becker, University of Illinois graduate student and leader of the research. “But there is also a lot of work – including experimental work, which we consider to be the strongest – showing a link between exposure to green space and beneficial health effects.” 

For the study, Becker and colleagues reviewed and analyzed environmental and health data from 3,806 counties in the continental U.S. 

To assess the volume and type of greenspace present in each county, data was collected from the <a href="https://www.mrlc.gov/">National Land Cover Database</a> which shows how much forest, open space, grassland, and urban developed space cover a 30-meter square plot in a county. 

The researchers then took these plots and matched them to Medicare spending data for that county. 

“We took the average of different types of land cover and the per capita Medicare spending in a county and compared these two while controlling for several socioeconomic and demographic factors like age, sex, race, median household income, health care access, and health behaviors,” said Becker. 

For each county, one percent of forest land cover was linked to $4.32 in Medicare savings per person, per year, and this held true even when accounting for different factors the researchers found. 

“If you multiply that by the number of Medicare fee-for-service users in a county and by the average forest cover and by the number of counties in the U.S., it amounts to about $6 billion in reduced Medicare spending every year nationally,” said Becker. 

Forest and shrub cover had the most positive impact, and the researchers did not identify any links between lower Medicare costs and other types of agricultural or open space land cover. 

Becker will continue to research this relationship and next plans to focus and individual and health and environmental data. 

--

By<a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com"> Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 

Paid for by <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a>

Areas with more trees and greenspace spend less money on Medicare costs

Previous research has shown how spending more time out in...

The benefits of having a <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/pets-can-tell-time/">pet</a> are usually not lost on those who own one – whether it’s a dog or cat, or even a less common pet that comes with scales or feathers. And according to a new national poll, pets of all shapes and sizes can also help older adults cope with mental and physical health issues.

The findings from the National Poll on Healthy Aging – conducted by the<a href="https://ihpi.umich.edu/"> University of Michigan Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation</a> – showed that 55 percent of adults ages 50 to 80 have a pet, and roughly three-quarters of these pet owners claim that their animals help reduce their stress, as well as give them a sense of purpose. Additionally, two-thirds of pet owners said that their pet helps them stay physically active.

“We have long known that pets are a common and naturally occurring source of support,” says Cathleen Connell, Ph.D., a professor at the <a href="https://sph.umich.edu/">U-M School of Public Health</a>. “Although the benefits of pets are significant, social connections and activities with friends and family are also key to quality of life across the lifespan. Helping older adults find low cost ways to support pet ownership while not sacrificing other important relationships and priorities is an investment in overall mental and physical health.” 

Although the poll showed that owning a pet can be a positive influence in the lives of older adults, there are still some concerns. Some people may put their animals’ needs before their own health, and 18 percent said that having a pet puts a strain on their budget.

“More activity, through dog walking or other aspects of pet care, is almost always a good thing for older adults,” explains Preeti Malani, M.D., the poll director who has training in caring for older adults. “But the risk of falls is real for many, and six percent of those in our poll said they had fallen or injured themselves due to a pet. At the same time, given the importance of pets to many people, the loss of a pet can deal a very real psychological blow that providers, family and friends should be attuned to.” 

Malani believes that physicians and other health care providers should ask older adults about the role of pets in their lives. 

“Later life is often a time when people have more freedom to travel, and a long list of things they want to do with their free time, and sometimes having a pet can get in the way,” says Mary Janevic, Ph.D., M.P.H., an assistant research scientist at the U-M School of Public Health. “For people living on a fixed income, expenses related to health care for pets, and especially pets that have chronic health issues, can be a struggle. Older adults can also develop health problems or disabilities that make pet care difficult.”

But despite these concerns, many poll respondents indicated the companionship and social connection benefits of pet ownership. Over half said that they own a pet specifically to have a companion, and even more said they let their pets sleep in bed with them. Sixty-five percent of pet owners also said that having a pet helps them connect with other people as well. 

“Relationships with pets tend to be less complicated than those with humans, and pets are often a source of great enjoyment,” says Janevic. “They also provide older adults with a sense of being needed and loved.”

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Pets help older adults deal with health problems, but there are drawbacks

The benefits of having a pet are usually not lost...

Plastic straw bans have been popping up in cities and restaurants throughout the United States. These bans seek to address the plastic pollution crisis currently plaguing our oceans but the bans have been subject to considerable criticism.

Big companies such as Starbucks have announced plans to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/starbucks-plastic-straws/#.XKDtpOtKjOQ">phase out plastic straws</a> and California recently banned restaurants from automatically giving out plastic straws.

Critics of bans such as these often cite concerns that banning plastic straws will do little to address plastic pollution as a whole. While plastic straws are ubiquitous in our everyday life, they are not the most common pollutant of our oceans.

During an international coastal cleanup event, plastic straws were the<a href="https://oceanconservancy.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/FINAL-2018-ICC-REPORT.pdf"> seventh most common item</a> collected. In the United States, plastic straws make up<a href="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5522e85be4b0b65a7c78ac96/t/5aa0618a8165f553aa68b8b8/1520631281665/5+Gyres+BAN+List2.pdf"> 7.5%</a> of plastic litter. It seems reasonable then to wonder if we should be addressing more prevalent pollutants.

But this criticism fails to consider that plastic straw bans are a jumping off point to begin changing consumers’ behaviors more widely. Plastic straws are an easy item to ban because plastic straws are non-essential and there are currently alternatives people can use.

"We look at straws as one of the gateway issues to help people start thinking about the global plastic pollution problem," Plastic Pollution Coalition CEO Dianna Cohen explained to<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/plastic-straw-ban-why-are-there-so-many-2018-7"> Business Insider</a>.

If people find it is easy to use non-plastic alternatives to straws, the reasoning goes, they may reevaluate their use of other plastic products.

Plastic straws are also targeted because many plastic straws never make it through the recycling process despite being a recyclable product.

“Most plastic straws are too lightweight to make it through the mechanical recycling sorter. They drop through sorting screens and mix with other materials and are too small to separate, contaminating recycling loads or getting disposed as garbage,” For a Strawless Ocean says on their<a href="https://www.strawlessocean.org/faq"> website</a>.

Critics also argue that plastic straw bans take away consumer choice. Disability rights advocates have spoken out against plastic straw bans by pointing out that plastic straws are an important drinking tool for people with disabilities. The plastic straw bans in Seattle and California do allow consumers to use plastic straws upon request.

Conservatives have also cited plastic straw bans as an example of government overreach encroaching on consumer choice. Conservatives even made a<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2018/aug/03/plastic-straws-became-the-latest-victim-in-the-us-culture-wars"> social media trend</a> out of posting photos of themselves drinking out of plastic straws and a Florida Republican state representative<a href="https://www.nbcmiami.com/news/local/Florida-State-Rep-Introduces-Bill-to-Stop-Cities-From-Banning-Plastic-Straws-505297951.html"> introduced a bill</a> to prohibit cities from banning plastic straws.

Despite the criticism over plastic straw bans, the initiatives are proving to be successful. A<a href="https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Travis_Wagner/publication/329119275_ASSESSING_THE_USE_OF_DEFAULT_CHOICE_MODIFICATION_TO_REDUCE_CONSUMPTION_OF_PLASTIC_STRAWS/links/5c115874a6fdcc494ff01853/ASSESSING-THE-USE-OF-DEFAULT-CHOICE-MODIFICATION-TO-RE"> study</a> examining the impact of a plastic straw ordinance found that the use of plastic straws decreased up to 40 percent at local businesses. Additionally, an<a href="https://www.ipsos.com/en-us/news-polls/Attitudes-Toward-Plastic-Straws"> Ipsos poll</a> shows that over 40 percent of people have used fewer straws as a result of the recent attention on plastic straw pollution.

Plastic straw bans serve a greater purpose than simply tackling a small source of a big problem. These bans pave the way for greater change in the fight against the plastic pollution crisis.

--

By <a href="mailto:brianna.grant134@gmail.com">Brianna Lynne</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Contributing Writer

Why are plastic straws banned when they’re only a small part of plastic use?

Plastic straw bans have been popping up in cities and...

Our homes are filled with furniture, objects, and surfaces that contain organophosphate ester (OPE) flame retardants including cellphones and other electronic devices.

While these flame retardants serve an important purpose to reduce the risk of fire, little is known about their <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/household-toxins-poisoning-children/">health impacts</a>. This is especially worrisome because of the presence of OPEs on home surfaces, in the air, and even in the human body and because OPEs have become the main replacement for banned and harmful brominated flame retardants. 

New research presented at the <a href="https://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/meetings/national-meeting.html">American Chemical Society Spring 2019 National Meeting &amp; Exposition </a>shows that these semi-volatile compounds travel easily on our hands which helps explain why they are so abundant in the home. 

“The toxicity of OPEs is not well understood,” said Miriam Diamond, the leader of the study. “Studies are emerging that associate some OPEs with developmental effects in kids, fertility problems and possibly some types of cancer.” 

High concentrations of OPEs have been measured in indoor air and dust, but the researchers wanted to study how these compounds primarily spread through the home and where they originate. 

“We wondered if electronic devices, especially those that heat up during use, such as computers or printers, might be important sources of flame retardants and plasticizers,” said Diamond. 

For the study, the researchers collected samples from the air, dust, and surfaces of 51 homes in Canada. Urine and hand wipes were also taken from the owners of the homes, and the samples all came from female participants. Mass spectrometry was used to measure the concentrations of OPEs in the samples. 

The indoor environments from home to home had similar chemical profiles, and OPE concentrations from handheld electronic devices were the same as larger computers and electronics. 

“We went into this study expecting to find that surface wipes of different electronic devices would have elevated levels of one or a few flame retardants and plasticizers that were added to their casings during the manufacturing process,” said Diamond says. “Instead, we found that most of the OPEs, and other flame retardants and plasticizers, were in most of the surface wipes, floor dust and on participants' hands, as well as on the electronic devices.” 

Contact with cellphones was also a reliable predictor of OPE metabolite concentrations in urine which indicates that flame retardants are absorbed through the skin when people use their cellphones. 

“We believe that hands are central to moving chemicals around the indoor environment,” said Diamond. “This makes intuitive sense -- your hands touch everything. It's also consistent with how infectious organisms can be spread by hands that touch multiple surfaces.”

The researchers recommend frequently washing your hands and cleaning your cellphone to limit and reduce exposure to the potentially hazardous compounds. 

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Hands help spread potentially toxic flame retardants through the home

Our homes are filled with furniture, objects, and surfaces that...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Nushagak Bay, a large estuary in southwest Alaska. Nushagak runs mainly north to south and exits in Bristol Bay, a large body of water in the Bering Sea.



"The bay is primarily fed by the Nushagak River, which begins in the Alaska Range and flows southwest approximately 450 km. The bay is also fed by several additional rivers including the Wood, Igushik, Snake and Weary rivers," says ESA.



"The dark colors of the Nushagak River are most likely due to tannins or lignins (chemical substances found in plants). Tannins and lignins from roots, leaves, seeds, bark and soil can leach into the water and give it a brown or even black colour. The sediments then flow southwards where it is mixed with the bluer waters of the bay."



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Nushagak Bay in southwest Alaska

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> (ACS) reveals that proteins on flu viruses are actually flexible, tilting and waving in a “breath-like” motion. According to the experts, these proteins could be used to better defend against the flu.



"The main antigenic targets of influenza virus are two surface glycoproteins, hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA). Whereas the structural and dynamical properties of both glycoproteins have been studied previously, the understanding of their plasticity in the whole-virion context is fragmented," wrote the researchers.



To investigate, the team conducted detailed simulations of the influenza A H1N1 virion, or the swine flu. The experts concluded that the visualizations show many new vulnerable states of flu viruses, which could improve future vaccines and antiviral drugs.



Video/ Image Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Flu viruses are more flexible than expected

[sendtonews key="G9bUoxcjr4-2511624-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from the...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Lake Trasimeno, which is located west of Perugia in central Italy. It is the fourth largest lake in the country. While Trasimeno’s water level varies, it has a maximum depth of approximately six meters.&nbsp;



"In this Copernicus Sentinel-2 image, captured on 6 August 2022, the lake’s emerald green colour is likely due to the presence of phytoplankton. Streaks in the water, particularly visible in the west, indicate the presence of soil and sediments which have been stirred up by winds. Dark colored waters in the southern part of the lake indicate a presence of submerged and floating macrophytes (aquatic plants) as well as algae," says ESA.



"Surrounded by hills on three sides, Trasimeno is subject to heavy storms created by winds, especially from the north and west. There are three islets in the lake: Maggiore, Minore and Polvese (the largest). The lake’s shores are sparsely inhabited with only two popular villages: Castiglione del Lago and Passignano sul Trasimeno."



"Italy is experiencing its worst drought in 70 years which has affected drinking water supplies, hydroelectric power and agricultural production. High temperatures, hot winds and lack of rainfall are the main causes of drought in the Umbrian region which saw Lake Trasimeno’s drop 1.3 m, reaching the limit of the hydrometric zero in July 2022."



Video/Image Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Lake Trasimeno in Central Italy

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> describes a new self-powered nanosensor that can instantly detect mercury contamination with the tap of a finger.&nbsp;



The oxidized form of mercury can be harmful when it is ingested through contaminated water or food. This makes it necessary for experts to develop sensors that can quickly and accurately detect the presence of mercury.&nbsp;



Zong-Hong Lin and colleagues have now created a triboelectric nanosensor (TENS) that can detect mercury by simply by touching a sample. According to the researchers, their TENS could serve as the basis for similar devices to safely and remotely monitor other pollutants.



Video Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Detecting mercury contamination with the tap of a finger

[sendtonews key="LvS8v8bp9z-2564889-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from the...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> explores the ability of salt to transform the way that foods and beverages taste. Salt is known to cover up undesirable flavors, such as bitterness in coffee or beer, but how exactly does sodium chloride change the taste of other compounds?



One previous study showed that, not only does salt suppress bitterness, but also enhances sweetness and sourness. Another study revealed that bitterness reduction by salt seems to be happening at the tongue receptor level as well as in the brain.&nbsp;



While it is known that salt taste is mediated by the presence of sodium channels in the form of taste buds, experts believe that there is also an unknown receptor responsible for how we taste salt that has not yet been identified.&nbsp;



Video Credit: ACS Reactions



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

How does salt makes things taste better?

[sendtonews key="X0f6OHYoI4-2310561-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Santiago, the capital city of Chile. The city is located in the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Region, which has a population of about eight million people.&nbsp;



'The weather of Santiago resembles the Mediterranean climate with dry and warm summers with temperatures reaching up to 35°C (from October to March) and cool and humid winters that can drop to 0°C (from April to September)."



"The city lies in the centre of the country’s central valley around 80 km from the Pacific Ocean to the west and borders Argentina to the east. A tiny part of Argentina is visible in the top-right corner of the image where the mountain crest of the Andes Mountains acts as a divider between the two countries," says ESA.



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Santiago, Chile in South America

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Spiral,Galaxy,,Illustration,Of,Milky,Way

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Astronomers at <a href="https://www.jhu.edu/">Johns Hopkins University</a> have created an interactive map of the universe, including the actual position and real colors of 200,000 galaxies. The map allows the public to access data that was previously only available to scientists.



The map was developed using data collected by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. For over two decades, a telescope in New Mexico was aimed at slightly different locations to capture the night sky.&nbsp;



"Growing up I was very inspired by astronomy pictures, stars, nebulae and galaxies, and now it's our time to create a new type of picture to inspire people," said map creator Brice Ménard, a professor at Johns Hopkins. "Astrophysicists around the world have been analyzing this data for years, leading to thousands of scientific papers and discoveries. But nobody took the time to create a map that is beautiful, scientifically accurate, and accessible to people who are not scientists. Our goal here is to show everybody what the universe really looks like."



"In this map, we are just a speck at the very bottom, just one pixel. And when I say we, I mean our galaxy, the Milky Way which has billions of stars and planets. We are used to seeing astronomical pictures showing one galaxy here, one galaxy there or perhaps a group of galaxies. But what this map shows is a very, very different scale."



"From this speck at the bottom, we are able to map out galaxies across the entire universe, and that says something about the power of science."



The <a href="https://mapoftheuniverse.net/">interactive map</a> is available online, where it can be downloaded for free.



Video Credit: Johns Hopkins&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Interactive map of the universe includes 200,000 galaxies

[sendtonews key="e4ZG0Jawp3-2374785-12187" type="single"] Astronomers at Johns Hopkins University have created...

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Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky" Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features northwest Lesotho in South Africa.



According to ESA, Lesotho is the only nation in the world that lies completely above 1,000 m in elevation. The country is famous for its tall mountains and narrow valleys, and is known as Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky."



Out of a population of around two million people, about 80 percent live in rural areas. More than 75 percent of these people are engaged in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-will-have-a-global-impact-on-agriculture/">agriculture</a>, including rainfed cereal production and animal grazing.&nbsp;



ESA reports that the country’s agricultural system faces a growing number of issues, with climate-related vulnerabilities such as drought, floods and extreme temperatures occurring more frequently. 



Diamonds are amongst the minerals found in the mountains. Indeed, Lesotho can truly be called the Kingdom in the Sky. Beautiful, culturally rich, safe, affordable, and easily accessible from Durban and Johannesburg, mountainous Lesotho is a vastly underrated travel destination. the Kingdom of Lesotho (Sotho: 'Muso oa Lesotho) is an enclaved country in southern Africa. It is just over 30,000 km2 (11,583 sq mi) in size and has a population of around 2 million.



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky"

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Dublin, the capital and largest city of Ireland. Beyond its pub culture, Dublin is known as a modern culinary destination and a UNESCO City of Literature.



"Dublin is located near the midpoint of Ireland’s east coast in the province of Leinster. The city, which covers an area of around 115 square kilometers, is bordered by the Dublin Mountains, a low mountain range to the south, and is surrounded by flat farmland to the north and west," says ESA.



"The city straddles the River Liffey, which rises in the Wicklow Mountains and flows around 80 kilometers eastwards through the city of Dublin, in which it is canalised and bordered with quays. It then empties into Dublin Bay, an arm of the Irish Sea."



Dublin has an abundance of green spaces, including one of the largest enclosed public parks in any European capital city. Phoenix Park, which was originally formed as a royal hunting park in the 1660s, includes 707 hectares of green space.



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



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The city of Dublin on Ireland's east coast

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features the province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain. The image was captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission.



"Together with the provinces of Huesca and Teruel, Zaragoza formed the old kingdom of Aragon. Its capital, also called Zaragoza (not visible in this image) is home to around half of Aragon’s population," says ESA.



"The Ebro River can be seen winding its way through the province from west to east in this image. Between its source in the Cantabrian Mountains in the northwest and its delta on the Mediterranean coast, the Ebro River is fed by more than 200 tributaries as it flows 910 km across much of northern Spain."



Since rainfall is very scarce in this region, irrigation in the Ebro basin is critically important. In the valleys surrounding the Ebro River, many fields are used for growing crops such as corn, wheat, and barley.



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/">NASA Earth Observatory</a> reveals the evolution of the Columbia Glacier in southeastern Alaska. Columbia is among the fastest shrinking glaciers in the world, and the video documents its rapid retreat over the years.&nbsp;



Columbia Glacier is a large, multi-branched calving glacier that flows out of the Chugach Mountains to the Prince William Sound.&nbsp;



According to USGS, Columbia had a long history of stability prior to 1980, with a length 41 miles, and small, short-lived advances or retreats.



In the years since 1980, however, satellite images have captured Columbia’s alarming retreat. By using false-color images, scientists can distinguish between snow and ice, open water, vegetation, and rocky debris on the glacier’s surface.



The series of false-color images featured in today's video were acquired over the span of 35 years. You can see that by 2021, the glacier’s main branch had retreated about 15 miles from its initial position.



The Columbia Glacier has also lost more than 50 percent of its volume, mostly due to calving. <a href="https://www.earth.com/video/nasa-reveals-3d-visual-of-an-atmospheric-river/">NASA</a> reports that while climate change likely started the retreat, mechanical processes kept the disintegration going.



The NASA images are provided by Jesse Allen, Robert Simmon, Joshua Stevens, and Lauren Dauphin using data from Landsat satellites, from the U.S. Geological Survey, and data from MODIS on NASA’s Terra satellite. The structure of Columbia’s moraine played a large role in the stability of the glacier before 1980. 



Like other tidewater glaciers, the Columbia built up a moraine over time, and the mixture of ice and rock functioned like a dam keeping out the sea. It was supported on one end by the shoreline and by the underwater terminal moraine at the other.



Video Credit: NASA Earth Observatory/&nbsp; NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features the Pyrenees Mountains, which form a natural boundary between France and Spain in southwest Europe.



The mountain range is 430 kilometers in length. It stretches from the Mediterranean Sea on the east to the Atlantic Ocean on the west.



At an elevation of 3404 meters, Pico de Aneto is the highest mountain peak in the Pyrenees, and the third-highest peak in Spain. Pico de Aneto is located in the Posets-Maladeta Natural Park, which spans more than 82,000 acres.&nbsp;



"Geological studies have revealed that the Pyrenees Mountains have been around for longer than the Alps, with their sediments first deposited in coastal basins during the Paleozoic and Mesozoic eras," reports ESA.



"The entire mountain range formed due to the upwelling of large sedimentary rocks by the collision of the Iberian and the Eurasian plate around 100 to 150 million years ago, followed by intense erosion from ice and water."



The western Pyrenees receive more precipitation due to moisture blowing in from the Atlantic Ocean. The mountain range contains many lakes, several small glaciers, and some of the highest waterfalls in Europe.



Video &amp; Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The Pyrenees Mountains in southwest Europe

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Earth,Like,Exoplanet,3d,Render

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Today's Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes two exoplanets that are orbiting a star 218 light-years away. A team of researchers led by the University of Montreal has found evidence that these planets are "water worlds."



The experts used data from NASA’s Hubble and Spitzer Space Telescopes. They discovered that exoplanets Kepler-138 c and Kepler-138 could be composed largely of water.



"We previously thought that planets that were a bit larger than Earth were big balls of metal and rock, like scaled-up versions of Earth, and that's why we called them super-Earths," explained study co-author Björn Benneke.&nbsp;



"However, we have now shown that these two planets, Kepler-138 c and d, are quite different in nature and that a big fraction of their entire volume is likely composed of water. It is the best evidence yet for water worlds, a type of planet that was theorized by astronomers to exist for a long time."



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



Image Credit: NASA, ESA, and Leah Hustak (STScI)



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Two distant planets may be "water worlds"

[sendtonews key="QIoVYJqRBi-2434608-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from NASA...

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Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes Earth’s interconnected systems, and how this network is affected by rising temperatures.&nbsp;



During 2020, average global temperatures matched the hottest year on record. The hurricane season was also record-breaking, with many of the storms intensifying at extraordinary speeds. Hot water in the ocean is fuel for hurricanes. The satellite data shows that it's all one interconnected system showing how Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected.



According to NASA, dust swept up from Northern Africa plays a major role in the formation of hurricanes, and is also a key source of fertilization in the Amazon rainforest. As a result of<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/seagrass-wasting-disease-is-fueled-by-climate-change/"> climate</a> change, dust plumes are expected to decline, which will have an effect on vegetation far away.&nbsp;



Images from Earth-observing satellites show how the world’s plant life is affected by natural disasters, fires, and deforestation. Satellites also reveal how widespread changes in vegetation impact waterways,&nbsp; the climate, air quality. Satellites communicate by using radio waves to send signals to the antennas on the Earth. "Earth From Space" is a groundbreaking two-hour special that reveals a spectacular new space-based vision of our planet. 



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://welcome.miami.edu/">University of Miami</a> Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science explores how changes in water temperatures have affected tiger shark habitats and movements in the North Atlantic Ocean. The study reveals that rising temperatures have caused the sharks to shift toward the poles over the past 40 years.



“Tiger shark annual migrations have expanded poleward, paralleling rising water temperatures,” explained study lead author Neil Hammerschlag. “These results have consequences for tiger shark conservation, since shifts in their movements outside of marine protected areas may leave them more vulnerable to commercial fishing.”



The researchers analyzed nine years of tracking data from satellite-tagged tiger sharks, combined with four decades of conventional tag and recapture data provided by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Cooperative Shark Tagging Program.



The experts found that during the last decade of record heat, for every one-degree Celsius increase in water temperatures, tiger sharks migrated further poleward by over 400 kilometers. They also migrated two weeks earlier than usual to waters off the northeastern coast of the United States.



“Given their role as apex predators, these changes to tiger shark movements may alter predator-prey interactions, leading to ecological imbalances, and more frequent encounters with humans,” concluded Professor Hammerschlag.



Video Credit: University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Tiger sharks are shifting poleward as temperatures rise

Today’s Video of the Day from the University of Miami...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> is focused on the melt ponds that emerge during the spring and summer on the Greenland Ice Sheet, which is the largest ice mass in the northern hemisphere.



"Melt ponds are vast pools of open water that form on both sea ice and ice sheets and are visible as turquoise-blue pools of water in this Copernicus Sentinel-2 image," says ESA.



"When snow and ice melts atop glaciers, water flows in channels and streams and collects in depressions on the surface. These melt ponds can speed up the melting of the surrounding ice since they greatly reduce the ice’s ability to reflect sunlight."



"This can create a positive feedback where an increasing number of melt ponds absorb more heat which causes ice cover to melt even faster."



According to ESA, Greenland has been hit with a late-season heatwave that began in early September. This caused the type of melt event that usually occurs in the middle of summer.



"In a recent paper published in Nature Climate Change, scientists found that major sea-level rise from the melting of the Greenland ice cap is now ‘inevitable’ even if the burning of fossil fuels were to halt overnight," says ESA. "Using satellite observations of Greenland ice loss and ice cap from 2000 to 2019, the team found the losses will lead to a minimum rise of 27 cm regardless of climate change."



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Melt ponds on the Greenland Ice Sheet

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> describes a new map of Mars that is providing insight into the planet’s watery past. The map also reveals where future missions could safely land on Mars.&nbsp;



The map has been created over the last decade using observations of water-rich rocks and mineral deposits. The images were captured by ESA’s Mars Express and NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.



"A big surprise is the prevalence of these minerals, with the map revealing hundreds of thousands of water-affected locations in the oldest parts of the planet," says ESA. "The new data will help answer exciting questions about Mars’ climate history, whether water was globally persistent or confined to short, intense episodes, and whether the conditions were ever suitable for life."



"Specifically, the map shows the locations and abundances of aqueous minerals. These are from rocks that have been chemically altered by the action of water in the past, and have typically been transformed into clays and salts."



According to John Carter of the Institut d’Astrophysique Spatiale (IAS), our collective understanding of Mars has been oversimplified. He explained that planetary scientists have tended to think that only a few types of clay minerals on Mars were created during its wet period, then as the water gradually dried up, salts were produced across the planet.



The new map shows that the composition of Mars is much more complicated than what we thought. For example, while many salts formed after Martian clays, there are some salts that are presumed to be older than some of the clays.&nbsp;



“The evolution from lots of water to no water is not as clear cut as we thought, the water didn’t just stop overnight. We see a huge diversity of geological contexts, so that no one process or simple timeline can explain the evolution of the mineralogy of Mars. That’s the first result of our study. The second is that if you exclude life processes on Earth, Mars exhibits a diversity of mineralogy in geological settings just as Earth does,” said Carter.



Video Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The history of Mars is much more complex than we thought

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.stowers.org/">Stowers Institute for Medical Research</a> describes how cavefish adapted to a sedentary lifestyle over tens of thousands of years. 



The experts found that the muscle metabolism of cavefish has been genetically reprogrammed over time. As a result, the animals have experienced major changes in their morphology and behavior. Despite these changes, however, the cavefish remain healthy and fit.



The research may provide new clues about the evolutionary consequences of prolonged physical inactivity in humans.&nbsp;



“It’s no surprise that people are moving less and less as technology has advanced,” said Rohner. “With cavefish, we have a unique system where we can study what might happen if people remained couch potatoes over very, very long periods of time.”



Video Credit: Stowers Institute for Medical Research



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Cavefish are healthy despite their sedentary lifestyle

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/">NASA Earth Observatory</a> some of the most incredible waves in the world, as seen by Landsat satellites.



"With more than 370,000 miles of coastline on Earth, there are plenty of places where epic waves build up, curl over, and hurtle toward the shore.- much to the thrill of surfers," says NASA. "There are some places where these waves are so magnificent that they can be seen from space."



"With the broad perspective of satellites, we can see how these iconic waves develop into the world’s tallest, longest, fastest, and heaviest."



Video Credit: NASA Earth Observatory&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Satellites capture the world's biggest and fastest waves

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> describes why satellite images and measurements of our planet have become "essential to our survival, offering a new outlook of our world."&nbsp;



Rising sea levels pose one of the biggest societal threats associated with climate change. According to ESA, satellite altimeter missions such as Copernicus Sentinel-6 are essential in monitoring global and regional changes in sea level.



"Unbeknown to many, the island of Crete, Greece, plays an important role in the Copernicus satellite altimetry constellation and on an international stage," reports ESA.



"Satellite altimetry data have to be continuously monitored at the ESA’s Permanent Facility for Altimetry Calibration where different techniques have pioneered the use of transponders to provide the best measurements to validate satellite altimeters in space soon after launch."



Dr. Craig Donlon explains that, by understanding planet Earth through satellite measurements, we are able to find evidence of change.&nbsp;



Video Credit: European Space Agency&nbsp;



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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Satellites have become essential to our survival

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