Marriage or long-term relationships often seem like the societal norm. However, a growing number of people choose to remain single for life. While singlehood offers independence and freedom, it may also pose challenges, especially in later years.&nbsp;



A new study published in the journal Psychological Science takes a deep look at people who have stayed single their whole lives, revealing important differences in both their life satisfaction and personality traits compared to those in relationships.



The study was led by Dr. Julia Stern, a senior researcher at the University of Bremen in Germany.



Her team analyzed data from over 77,000 Europeans aged 50 and above, making it the first research of its kind to examine lifelong singles across different cultures.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-single-life-more-than-just-relationship-status">Single life: More than just relationship status</h2>



The research team didn't just look at who was currently single. They dug deeper, creating different categories: people who never lived with a partner, those who never married, and those who never had any long-term relationship.



This detailed approach revealed something fascinating - people who had never been in a serious relationship showed lower scores in extraversion, openness, and life satisfaction compared to those who were currently single but had previous <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/people-with-power-are-more-likely-to-cheat-on-their-partners/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">relationship experience</a>.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-cultural-context-matters">Cultural context matters</h2>



Your location as a single person can influence your life satisfaction. The study revealed that in countries with higher marriage rates, especially in southern Europe, single individuals tended to feel <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/social-rejection-teaches-us-valuable-lessons-about-relationships/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">less satisfied</a> with their lives.



This suggests that societal expectations around marriage might intensify feelings of isolation or inadequacy for singles in these regions. 



Surprisingly, the level of religiosity in a country didn’t significantly impact the life satisfaction of single people. This indicates that cultural norms about relationships play a more prominent role than religious influences in shaping their well-being.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-age-and-gender-of-singles">Age and gender of singles</h2>



Here's a silver lining for older singles - the research found that they tend to be happier with their single status compared to middle-aged singles. 



Women who were single also reported higher life satisfaction than single men. 



Dr. Stern suggests that older singles might find more peace with their status once they're past the age where their peers are actively starting families and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/making-a-partner-jealous-hurts-relationships-much-more-often-than-it-helps/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">getting married</a>.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-personality-differences-in-single-people">Personality differences in single people</h2>



One big question emerges: do certain personality types lead people to stay single, or does being single shape personality? The evidence points to the former. 



"It's more likely you have these selection effects: For example, people who are more extraverted are more likely to enter a relationship," explained Dr. Stern.



However, she emphasizes that these are average effects and don't apply to everyone - you'll find plenty of single extroverts and partnered introverts out there.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-single-people-report-lower-life-satisfaction">Single people report lower life satisfaction</h2>



The study's findings highlight significant health implications. 



Research has shown that life satisfaction and personality traits like extraversion and conscientiousness strongly influence health outcomes and even mortality. Individuals with higher levels of these traits tend to experience better physical and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/self-compassion-enhances-relationship-satisfaction/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">mental health</a>.



As people age and their reliance on support networks grows, these connections become even more critical. 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-addressing-the-needs-of-older-singles">Addressing the needs of older singles</h2>



Lifelong singles, who often score lower on these traits and life satisfaction, may face heightened health risks. This emphasizes the importance of addressing their specific needs to promote healthier aging and overall well-being.



"When there are differences, they might be especially important in elderly people who face more health issues and financial issues," noted Dr. Stern. "They need more help, and the help is usually the partner."



This research highlights the need for better support systems for single people, especially as they age. Dr. Stern advocates for developing new programs that consider personality differences and help older singles connect with like-minded individuals. 



"If they have people who care for them or look out for them regularly, this might help," said Dr. Stern.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-supporting-single-people">Supporting single people</h2>



As more people choose to live single lives, society needs to adapt. This research doesn't just highlight differences between singles and partnered individuals - it points to the urgent need for support systems that work for everyone, regardless of relationship status.



The findings call for creative solutions that go beyond the traditional family-centered approach to care and support. 



Whether through community programs, social networks, or healthcare systems, we need to ensure that single individuals have access to the same level of support and care that partnered people often receive through their relationships.



This research from <a href="https://www.uni-bremen.de/en/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Bremen</a> marks an important step toward understanding and addressing the unique challenges faced by lifelong singles. As our society continues to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/where-does-love-live-in-the-brain/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">evolve</a>, these insights could help shape more inclusive support systems that serve everyone, regardless of their relationship status.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/09567976241286865" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Psychological Science</a>.



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Why do some people stay single their whole lives?

Marriage or long-term relationships often seem like the societal norm. However, a growing number of people choose to remain single for life. While singlehood offers independence and freedom, it may also pose challenges, especially in later years.&nbsp; A new study published in the journal Psychological Science takes a deep look at people who have stayed single their whole lives, revealing important differences in both their life satisfaction and personality traits compared to those in relationships. The study was led by Dr. Julia Stern, a senior researcher at...

South Carolina National Guard aids Southeast Texas after Hurricane Harvey

An international team of researchers has found that most of the drowning deaths in the Houston area during <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/hurricane-harvey-global-warming/">Hurricane Harvey</a> occurred outside of high-risk flood zones. 

In August of 2017, Hurricane Harvey causing unprecedented flooding and killed dozens of people in Texas. Rainfall totals in the week following the arrival of the hurricane were among the highest recorded in the history of the country.

The researchers found that only 22 percent of fatalities in the Harris County area of Houston occurred within 100-year floodplains. These zones are designated by the United States government for insurance purposes and development standards.


“The number of fatalities outside of the floodplains highlights how widespread flooding from Harvey really was,” said study co-author Antonia Sebastian of <a href="http://www.rice.edu/">Rice University</a>.


The researchers found that 37 of the 70 deaths attributed to Hurricane Harvey were in Harris County. Among those deaths, eight were in the 100-year floodplain, 10 fell within the larger 500-year floodplain, and 19 occurred outside the 100- and 500-year zones.


The study also revealed that over 80 percent of the fatalities caused by Hurricane Harvey were drownings. The second largest causes of death were electrocution and lack of medical treatment.

Overall, 70 percent of those killed by the hurricane were men. The team said that this may be explained by the fact that men tend to show more risk-taking behavior, such as driving through flooded crossings or helping in rescue efforts.

The researchers hope that the findings of this study will encourage authorities to identify high-risk areas outside of the designated floodplains. They also believe that further measures must be taken to prevent drowning deaths in future storms, such as closing low water crossings and underpasses during extreme flood events.

Sebastiaan Jonkman is a professor at <a href="https://www.tudelft.nl/en/">Delft University of Technology</a> in the Netherlands and the study’s lead author. He explained that floodplains should not be disregarded as an indicator of high-risk areas, but that current flood maps need to be improved.

The study is published in the European Geosciences Union journal <a href="https://www.natural-hazards-and-earth-system-sciences.net/">Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: Air National Guard photo by Staff Sgt. Daniel J. Martinez

Most Hurricane Harvey deaths occurred outside flood risk zones

An international team of researchers has found that most of...

Researchers have long believed that modern humans first reached the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/reconstruction-tsunami-social-divide/">Indonesian</a> island of Sulawesi around 34,000 years ago. But now, scientists are reporting that a previously unknown population of humans seems to have actually lived in the region first.

The researchers believe that the mysterious people could be a species of “archaic human” that is now extinct. Evidence recovered from a limestone rock shelter on the island indicates that the ancient hunter-gatherers were distinguishably different from modern humans.

According to the study, the “distinct human species” could have lived on Sulawesi as far back as 54,000 years ago. This region is considered to be a gateway to the extensive group of oceanic islands that lie between continental Asia and Australia. Because of its position, the island was likely an important dispersal route for early humans.

In 1975, fossils recovered at the Leang Burung cave established that modern humans arrived at Sulawesi between 25,000 and 34,000 years ago. For the current investigation, Australian scientists dug approximately 3 meters deeper at the same site to recover more artifacts.

Ancient tools and animal remains unearthed from the deeper sediment included archaic cobble-based cores and flakes.

Dr. Adam Brumm is an archaeologist at Griffith University's <a href="https://www.griffith.edu.au/environmental-futures-research-institute/research-centre-human-evolution">Australian Research Centre for Human Evolution</a>.


“We have uncovered archaeological evidence for an ancient population of 'Ice Age’ hunter-gatherers that inhabited Leang Burung 2 rock-shelter around 50,000 years ago,” said Dr. Brumm. 

The research team noted a lack of sophisticated cave art, which was characteristic of the humans that inhabited similar caves 40,000 years ago. Dr. Brumm explained: “The first inhabitants of this site may not only have been members of a different culture but also a distinct human species.”

The study is published in the journal <a href="http://journals.plos.org/plosone/">PLOS ONE</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Mysterious separate human species may have lived in Indonesia

Researchers have long believed that modern humans first reached the...

Wasting food is almost an inevitable part of the American way of life. We often throw out food that has spoiled, rotted, or landed on our plate in too high a quantity. But have you ever thought about how much food the average American wastes? 

A study published in <a href="http://journals.plos.org/plosone/">PLOS ONE</a> has determined that – between 2007 and 2014 – Americans wasted almost 150,000 tons of food per day, which is close to a pound of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/people-pay-unhealthy-foods-crave/">food</a> per person each day. They estimate that this food waste is equivalent too the use of 30 million acres of land every year, and 4.2 trillion gallons of irrigation water annually.

This is the first study to analyze the relationships between diet quality, food waste, and environmental impacts. In order to investigate these relationships, the researchers collected data on food intake and diet quality from the 2015 Healthy Eating Index and USDA’s What We Eat in America (WWEIA) database, as well as available food waste data.

Through their analysis, they found an interesting connection. It turns out that, while healthy eating may be better for you, it may also lead you to waste more food. Fruits and vegetables were the most wasted of all the food groups studied, followed by dairy and meat.

“Higher quality diets have greater amounts of fruits and vegetables, which are being wasted in greater quantities than other food,” says Meredith Niles, an assistant professor at the <a href="https://www.uvm.edu/">University of Vermont</a> and co-author of the study. “Eating healthy is important, and brings many benefits, but as we pursue these diets, we must think much more consciously about food waste.”

The study also determined that healthier diets used less cropland than unhealthy diets, but ultimately led to more waste in irrigation water and pesticides. Researchers estimate that consumer food waste is linked to harvests produced with the use of 780 million pounds of pesticide and 1.8 billion pounds of nitrogen fertilizer each year. In both cases, there is a significant effect on the environment.

So how do we combat this problem? The study’s authors believe that education on preparing and storing fresh fruits and vegetables – as well as education on the difference between abrasion and spoilage – will be critical if we want to reduce waste.

Lead author Zach Conrad of the <a href="https://www.ars.usda.gov/plains-area/gfnd/gfhnrc/">ARS Grand Forks Human Nutrition Research Center</a> explains, “Food waste is an issue that plays out at many different levels. Looking at them holistically will become increasingly important to finding sustainable ways of meeting the needs of a growing world population.”

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Americans waste a pound of food per person each day

Wasting food is almost an inevitable part of the American...

Archaeologists have found evidence that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/neanderthals-compassionate/">ancient humans</a> attacked massive bears and took over their caves. The findings are the result of an analysis of over 1,700 bear bones which date back to the Ice Age around 50,000 to 43,000 years ago. 

Study lead author Dr. Marco Peresani and his team examined the remains of approximately 50 bears that had been recovered from the Rio Secco and Fumane caves in northeastern Italy.

According to an report in <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/index.html">MailOnline</a>, the bears weighed around 1,300 pounds, which is over twice the size of a grizzly bear. “The last Neanderthals targeted these large animals for recovering pelts and furs but above all for eating them,” Dr. Peresani told the news outlet.

Hundreds of stone tools retrieved from the caves appeared to have left some of the cut marks on the bones, which exhibited signs of blunt force trauma. The bones also showed signs of Neanderthal teeth marks and burns, indicating that the bears had been cooked and eaten.

“These cave bears were hunted and butchered by Neanderthals,” said Dr. Peresani. He explained that the bears were likely targeted and caught off guard as they emerged from winter hibernation.

Females, some of whom had given birth at the end of the slumbering season, would have been tired, weak, and generally more vulnerable to attack. The fossil evidence suggested that adult males, newborns, and cubs were targeted as well.

While researchers have speculated that ancient Neanderthals preyed on cave bears in Europe, this is the first study to provide significant evidence of this behavior.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Massive cave bears were hunted and killed by Neanderthals

Archaeologists have found evidence that ancient humans attacked massive bears...

Scientists at the <a href="https://www.engineering.uiowa.edu/">University of Iowa College of Engineering</a> recently set out to investigate which types of polychlorinated biphenyl compounds (PCBs) could be detected in various parts of the home. Airborne PCBs, which are widely known to cause cancer, were found to be surprisingly common in kitchens.

PCBs are classified by the International Agency for Research on Cancer as human carcinogens, and the manufacturing of these harmful substances was banned in the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-megadroughts/">United States</a> in 1979. However, these chemicals are still being produced as byproducts and remain detectable in offices and schools. Furthermore, PCBs have been found to linger longer in the environment because they do not break down easily.

The current study was focused on the inside and outside of 16 homes in Iowa. The researchers measured concentrations of PCBs using polyurethane-equipped passive air samplers for six weeks from August of 2017 to October of 2017.

Neurotoxic PCB-47 and PCB-51, as well as PCB-68, were found in high concentrations. The study also revealed a link between levels of these chemicals and the year the house was built, with higher levels in more recent years. 

When the experts tested stoves, floors, walls, and other areas in the household for PCB emissions, they established that the chemicals originated in the cabinets.

According to the researchers, the substances were most likely generated by the breakdown of 2,4-dichlorobenzoyl peroxide, a common ingredient in modern cabinet sealants. 

This is the first time that this particular source of toxic chemicals in the home has ever been identified. Many other building materials such as paints, stains, and insulation can also release harmful chemicals into the air. 

The study is published in the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a>'s journal <a href="https://pubs.acs.org/toc/esthag/52/1">Environmental Science &amp; Technology ACS</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Modern kitchen cabinets are emitting carcinogenic compounds

Scientists at the University of Iowa College of Engineering recently...

A recent study from <a href="https://www.chapman.edu/">Chapman University</a> has found that men are much more willing to punish co-workers in an effort to move up the career ladder. The experts believe that this merciless behavior may help to explain why <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/men-perceive-themselves-smarter/">men</a> make more money than women on average.

The study was focused on 96 undergraduate students. A series of economic games played by the participants revealed that ambitious men were twice as likely to financially penalize their peers when the effort would earn them a higher rank in the game. 

The enterprising males even punished players who had fully cooperated and had done nothing wrong in an effort to advance their status in the game.

Dr. Terence Burnham is an associate professor in Chapman's Economic Science Institute and the lead author of the study.

“Outside the laboratory, high-powered punishment and rank-based reward may be the norm,” said Dr. Burnham. “This study connects academic research to current headlines including the #metoo movement.”

According to the researchers, men may use punishment more often than women because men favor physical conflict when they consider behavior to be unfair.

Furthermore, the gender differences in punishment that were clearly demonstrated in this study could be due to the fact that men are naturally less generous and less cooperative than women. 

Research published last year in Nature Human Behavior revealed that cooperation and prosocial behavior activate the brain's reward center, or the ventral striatum, in women. On the other hand, men were found to have more stimulation in the reward region of the brain as a result of selfish behavior.

The current study was published in the journal <a href="http://journals.sagepub.com/home/srd">Socius</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Men more likely to mistreat co-workers to get ahead

A recent study from Chapman University has found that men...

A recent study is shedding new light on how our expectations and biases influence the music that we enjoy. The researchers found that people responded differently to the same <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/music-influences-social-connections/">music</a> when they were told the musicians were professionals or students, and the prejudiced responses were recorded in their brain activity.

The investigation was focused on 20 participants who had no formal music training. 

The individuals were presented with eight pairs of musical excerpts, which included two different performances of the same excerpt. The matching songs were performed by musicians who were introduced as either a “conservatory student of piano” or a “world-renowned professional pianist.”

The participants listened to the music while inside of a functional magnetic imaging (fMRI) machine at the Brain Imaging Research Center at the <a href="https://uconn.edu/">University of Connecticut</a>. The fMRI scans were used to examine regions of the brain associated with cognitive control, pleasure and reward, and auditory processing.

Similar to how <a href="https://vacuum-tubes.com/">vacuum tubes</a> once amplified and distorted sound, our minds amplify and distort our perception of music based on preconceived notions.

In order to evaluate the potential for bias, the student musicians and professionals were reversed so that participants thought they were listening to a student when it was actually a professional and vice versa.

The researchers compared the brain activity of the participants who gave higher ratings to the “professional” compositions with the brain activity of those who preferred the “student” excerpts. 

The experts found that, when a participant preferred the professional player, there was heightened activity in the primary auditory cortex and a region of the brain associated with pleasure and reward before the music even began. This activity remained consistent throughout the performance, which indicates that the simple belief that these participants were hearing a professional had biased their entire music experience.

The other group of participants, who preferred the songs by “students,” were found to have more activity in a region of the brain related to cognitive control and deliberative thinking throughout the song. These individuals also had stronger connectivity between the areas of their brain linked to cognitive control and reward processing.


“It was different when people listened carefully enough to realize we were fooling them - that is, when they realized they liked the performance labeled 'student' better,” said neuroscientist and co-author Edward Large.

“The participants who could resist the bias (who decided they liked the performance primed as student or disliked the one primed as professional) had to recruit regions devoted to executive control - it looked like work for them to suppress the bias,” said study co-author Elizabeth Margulis.

The researchers explained that the results of this study have implications beyond music preferences.

“Our findings are relevant for behavioral economists, psychologists and artists alike, as they demonstrate that 'deliberative and effortful thinking' can play a crucial role in overcoming cognitive heuristics related to socially constructed concepts and stereotype.”

The research is published in the journal in <a href="http://www.nature.com/srep/">Scientific Reports</a>.

--

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

Biases about music are deeply rooted, study reveals

A recent study is shedding new light on how our...

<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/mice-birds-bats-pollination/">Mice</a> scurrying around your home are more than just a nuisance, as they can also be a health and safety concern.

A new study has found that mice in New York City carry potentially harmful disease-causing gastrointestinal bacteria which may be resistant to antibiotics. 

When it comes to rodent problems in New York, most would assume that rats are the worst offenders for carrying diseases. 

Researchers from <a href="https://www.mailman.columbia.edu/research/center-infection-and-immunity">Center for Infection and Immunity (CII) </a>at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health found that often overlooked house mice may carry more risks. 

“New Yorkers tend to focus on rats because they are larger and we see them scurrying around in streets or subways; however, from a public health vantage point, mice are more worrisome because they live indoors and are more likely to contaminate our environment, even if we don't see them,” said Ian Lipkin, MD, the senior author of the new study. 

The findings were published in the journal mBio. 

For the study, the researchers collected 416 mice from residential buildings at seven sites across New York City. The mice were gathered over a year and the researchers analyzed the mice’s droppings. 

The researchers found. C. difficile, E. coli, Shigella, and Salmonella bacteria in the droppings, all of which cause gastrointestinal diseases.

Salmonella is one of the leading causes of food poisoning in the U.S with 1.4 million reported cases every year. Salmonella can even be life-threatening in some instances. 

Along with the different kinds of bacteria, the researchers discovered antimicrobial resistance to several common antibiotics in the droppings. 

“Our study raises the possibility that serious infections--including those resistant to antibiotics--may be passed from these mice to humans, although further research is needed to understand how often this happens, if at all,” said Simon H. Williams, the study’s lead author. 

Another study that was also published in the journal mBio examined viruses that can be found in mice droppings. 

The results of that study showed that none of the 36 viruses found can infect humans, but they could potentially infect dogs, chicken and pigs. 

The new research raises concerns about house mice and the possibilities that mice could cause cases of antibiotic resistant gastrointestinal diseases in humans. 

--

By<a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com"> Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

House mice in New York City carry antibiotic-resistance bacteria

Mice scurrying around your home are more than just a...

Advertising can be very effective – whether you realize it or not, and it can be especially effective on children. A new study published in the <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/14401754">Journal of Paediatrics and Child Health</a> has found that junk food ads are shown more frequently on TV during times when lots of children are watching. The study determined that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/children-judge-behavior-race/">children</a> were exposed to twice as much junk food advertising as healthy food advertising.

Through building a bespoke TV monitoring system – potentially the first of its kind – <a href="https://www.adelaide.edu.au/">University of Adelaide</a> associate professor Lisa Smithers and her team were able to capture an entire year’s worth of television and ads from one free-to-air commercial TV network in South Australia. The results showed that children who watch over 80 minutes of TV per day could possibly view more than 800 junk food ads each year.

“This is the most robust data we’ve seen anywhere. It is the largest dataset ever used by health researchers for examining food advertising in Australia, and probably the world,” says Smithers. “Most research in this area is based on only a few days of data, and there are no Australian studies taking seasonality into account.”

Among the most frequently advertised foods, snack foods, crumbed/battered meats, fast food, and sugary drinks were most often advertised. Furthermore, during children’s peak viewing times, the frequency and duration of junk food advertising was more than two times higher each hour than for healthy foods.

“Diet-related problems are the leading cause of disease in Australia, and the World Health Organization has concluded that food marketing influences the types of foods that children prefer to eat, ask their parents for, and ultimately consume,” explains Smithers. 

In Australia, all advertising during children’s TV programming has to meet the Children’s Television Standards, but any codes aimed at limiting children’s exposure to junk food ads are voluntary. However, other countries and regions have implemented children’s television advertising bans – like in Quebec, Canada – and junk food advertising bans – such as Norway. France even has requirements to publish healthy eating messages when unhealthy foods are advertised.

The research group is focused on how these policies may be implemented in Australia, as “policy experts agree that reducing children's exposure to junk food ads is an important part of tackling obesity and there is broad public support for stronger regulation of advertising to protect children,” says Smithers.

Smithers also states that their uniquely designed system – which uses a digital television tuner attached to a computer – could potentially be used across all Australian markets and internationally. “This is the kind of thing that would be fairly easy to set up to monitor change over time and to evaluate the impact of different policies,” she says.

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Junk food advertising hits hardest with children

Advertising can be very effective – whether you realize it...

When <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/false-news-stories-twitter/">Twitter</a> isn’t the breeding ground of unique viral stories or contentious political debates, it can actually be a useful tool of productive collaboration. This was on display in an interaction between <a href="https://www.bucknell.edu/">Bucknell University</a> Professor Chris Martine and his Twitter followers.

While searching for the Pennsylvania state-endangered golden corydalis on steep cliffs this past summer, Martine came across some specimens of what he believed to be Heuchera americana. He took a quick picture of a bumblebee on the plant, and tweeted it out. The interactions spurred by this post led Ryan Folk of the <a href="https://www.floridamuseum.ufl.edu/">Florida Museum of Natural History</a> to correct Martine, informing him that it was actually Heuchera alba, which is “quite rare.” This may be the first record of this plant in the state of Pennsylvania. 

Upon returning from collecting specimens they gathered rappelling up and down the cliffs, the research team examined historical collections held at Bucknell University. Through their analysis, they determined that local botanists have been misidentifying this species for over 100 years. With this new information, the researchers were able to discover seven additional populations of H. alba, which indicates a major range expansion for a species that has only been known to exist in small populations in the mountains of West Virginia and Virginia.

[caption id="attachment_1212945" align="aligncenter" width="996"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/167881.jpg"><img class="size-large wp-image-1212945" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/167881-1024x784.jpg" alt="" width="996" height="763" /></a> Image Credit: Christopher T. Martine[/caption]

The research team has recorded their observations – as well as tips for how other can locate and protect more H. alba populations – in the open access journal <a href="https://phytokeys.pensoft.net/">PhytoKeys</a>. 

This combination of scientific work with modern social media platforms points towards a more modern way of conducting field research. If scientists can use these platforms to better collaborate, it may help expedite discoveries such as these. 

“Importantly, this discovery is not just a cool showcase for how science and modern communications outlets can work together, it also gave us key information on the status of H. alba that can guide future conservation efforts,” explains Martine.

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image: <a href="https://twitter.com/martinebotany?lang=en">@MartineBotany</a> on Twitter

Twitter post leads to discovery of endangered plant population

When Twitter isn’t the breeding ground of unique viral stories...

The links between caffeine and an increased risk of heart disease are not well defined, and there is a great deal of conflicting research on how exactly caffeine affects heart problems like arrhythmias. 

Arrhythmias can increase the risk of sudden cardiac arrest and Atrial fibrillation (AFIb) and can cause strokes. Patients with atrial or ventricular arrhythmias are often advised against having caffeine. 

However, researchers from the <a href="https://www.thermh.org.au/">Royal Melbourne Hospital</a> and <a href="https://www.alfredhealth.org.au/">Alfred Hospital </a>in Melbourne, Australia have found that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/coffee-cannabis-brain-health/">coffee</a> and tea don’t increase the risk of cardiac arrest and actually decrease the frequency of arrhythmias in some people.

“There is a public perception, often based on anecdotal experience, that caffeine is a common acute trigger for heart rhythm problems,” said Peter Kistler, the review's lead author. “Our extensive review of the medical literature suggests this is not the case.”

The study, published in the journal JACC: Clinical Electrophysiology, sheds light on how caffeine influences cardiac rhythm. 

The researchers analyzed multiple population-based studies trying to determine the impact of caffeine on atrial and ventricular arrhythmias.

What the researchers found were consistent results pointing to a decrease in AFib with an increase in caffeine, suggesting that several cups of coffee a day may not be harmful to patients with heart rhythm disorders.

One analysis showed the frequency of AFib decreased by six percent in people who regularly drank coffee, and another evaluation found a 13 percent reduced risk of AFib in 115,993 patients. 

The researchers were able to determine that caffeine does not impact ventricular arrhythmias and that drinking up to six cups of coffee a day did not make ventricular arrhythmias any more severe or frequent. 

“Caffeinated beverages such as coffee and tea may have long-term antiarrhythmic properties mediated by antioxidant effects and antagonism of adenosine,” said Kistler. “In numerous population-based studies, patients who regularly consume coffee and tea at moderate levels have a lower lifetime risk of developing heart rhythm problems and possibly improved survival.”

The effects of caffeine may differ from person to person, so the researchers note that people who are susceptible to caffeine should continue to avoid it.

The results of the study help clarify the links between caffeine and some heart conditions, and possibly proves that coffee, to some extent, is beneficial for people with heart arrhythmias. 

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By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Drinking 3 cups of coffee per day could be good for your heart

The links between caffeine and an increased risk of heart...

It has long been assumed that higher levels of wealth and comfort were the main factors driving longer and healthier lives. But now, a recent investigation from the <a href="http://www.iiasa.ac.at/">International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis</a> has revealed that an individual's level of education is a much better predictor of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/big-gaps-life-expectancy/">life expectancy</a>.

Study co-authors Wolfgang Lutz and Endale Kebede set out to determine whether income or education is more important in how long people live using data collected between 1970 and 2015 from 174 countries.

When Lutz and Kebede plotted life expectancy against the average years of schooling among adults, the curve created was much more linear. There was no upward shift of the curve that would have required explanation by other factors, indicating a clear association between educational level and life expectancy

According to the researchers, improved cognition leads to better health-related choices and behaviors. In recent years, there has been a shift from more infectious to more chronic diseases, which are largely caused by lifestyle choices. The link between education, better health decisions, and longevity is expected to become more noticeable over time.

“This paper is more radical than previous analyses in terms of challenging the ubiquitous view that income and medical interventions are the main drivers of health,” said Lutz. “It even shows that the empirical association between income and health is largely spurious.”


The connection between health and income can be explained by the fact that higher education results in better health and higher income.

“The findings matter for the entire global health research community, and they matter for everybody in global development and deciding on funding allocations for the different aspects of development,” said Lutz. He pointed out that funding for quality education should be a much higher priority.

The study is published in the journal <a href="http://www.popcouncil.org/research/population-and-development-review">Population and Development Review</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Education has more of an impact on life expectancy than income

It has long been assumed that higher levels of wealth...

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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



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Flu viruses are more flexible than expected

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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



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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?

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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

[sendtonews key="JRaP49ISmm-2357509-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

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

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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



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 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



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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

[sendtonews key="6HyfrAJTBI-1831843-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

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"

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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



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Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected

[sendtonews key="JbW4VsY53O-1632195-12187" type="single"] Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected...

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



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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

[sendtonews key="761m2QQvR1-2035772-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...