Santa,Claus,Sitting,Near,The,Fireplace,And,Christmas,Tree,With

Every December, colorful lights and festive tunes remind kids, and adults, that Santa Claus is on his way. Families fill their homes with decorations, children write wish lists, and a sense of anticipation hangs in the air. 



Parents have long told their kids that if they behave well, Santa will bring them just what they asked for. Until recently, few studies examined whether this belief actually influenced how kids act.



In a new project, researchers decided to see if <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/irregular-bedtimes-disrupt-the-well-being-and-behavior-of-children/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">children</a> truly become more considerate when they think Santa is watching. 



They explored whether kids act better because of the story of Santa or because of everything else going on during the holiday season. 



Professor Kapitány from the <a href="https://www.ox.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Oxford</a> led the investigation along with colleagues from <a href="https://www.durham.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Durham</a>, <a href="https://www.ed.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Edinburgh</a>, and <a href="https://www.leeds.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Leeds</a>.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-kids-santa-and-surprises">Kids, Santa, and surprises</h2>



The study tracked 533 kids between ages four and nine over three separate Christmases and visits from Santa. Families <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/kids-with-behavioral-issues-have-high-cortisol-levels-in-their-hair/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">reported on behaviors</a> like sharing, helping others, and following rules. 



Parents also described whether their kids believed in Santa and took part in festive traditions. According to the data, there was no direct link between Santa belief alone and an increase in kindness.



Instead, good behavior rose as Christmas neared when families engaged in activities such as decorating their homes, singing carols, and enjoying special treats.&nbsp;



The study noted that these experiences led to small but consistent boosts in generous and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/kindergarten-conduct-childhood-behavioral-problems-will-cost-society-later/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">respectful actions</a>. 



This shift also came with a bump in more rowdy moments, highlighting that heightened excitement can show up in many ways.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-power-of-festive-rituals">The power of festive rituals</h2>



For many families, hanging ornaments or baking Christmas cookies is more than just a fun holiday pastime. 



These rituals offer children a chance to feel a sense of togetherness and excitement that breaks up their usual routine. 



The study suggests that these shared activities have a greater <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/children-consider-their-own-past-actions-before-judging-others/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">effect on kindness</a> than the idea of being judged by a mysterious gift-giver in a red suit.



Parents often say they remind kids to be on their best behavior so Santa will reward them. Yet the findings show it’s the holiday atmosphere itself that has the strongest pull. 



One researcher described it by saying “the magic is in the time of year, so to speak, not in the claim over the supernatural big man.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-supernatural-beliefs-and-morality">Supernatural beliefs and morality</h2>



Some scholars point out that Santa is often placed on the same pedestal as other powerful beings in certain cultures. 



Parents treat him as a figure who can watch children from afar, keep track of good deeds, and decide on gifts. 



This study adds to conversations about how belief in unseen forces might shape moral choices.



Other work shows that religious ideas can sometimes bring out prosocial behavior. Hearing about rules or promises of rewards can prompt more cooperation.&nbsp;



In the case of Santa, though, the results suggest that the presence of traditions might play a bigger role in guiding kids toward friendly, generous actions.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-contrasting-philosophies-on-kids-and-santa">Contrasting philosophies on kids and Santa</h2>



Philosophers have different views on whether parents should even promote Santa’s story. 



Dr. Joseph Millum from the <a href="https://www.st-andrews.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of St. Andrews</a> worries it “breaches trust,” calling Santa a “preposterous lie.” Others feel that Santa can be a healthy way to bring joy into children’s lives. 



Tom Whyman, a lecturer in philosophy at the <a href="https://www.liverpool.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Liverpool</a>, says that “kids need Santa.” 



These opinions highlight the varying attitudes people have toward a figure whose influence has become an enduring feature of holiday culture.



When parents choose whether to encourage this tale, they grapple with how it shapes their children’s sense of wonder and truth. 



Some families see Santa as <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/pretend-play-builds-the-foundation-for-learning-and-relationships/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">harmless make-believe</a>, while others wonder if creating a magical visitor might later undermine a child’s trust. 



The study reminds us that cultural myths carry weight, yet they may not fully explain shifts in children’s behavior.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-implications-for-holiday-traditions">Implications for holiday traditions</h2>



The research shows that singing festive songs, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/christmas-trees-have-unique-strategies-to-survive-freezing-winters/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">placing ornaments on a tree</a>, or preparing traditional foods creates a distinct environment. That environment is linked with both extra kindness and occasional bursts of negative behavior. 



While the belief in Santa himself did not correlate directly with improved conduct, the coordinated celebration of the season proved to be more powerful.



Families can consider how these moments <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/personality-traits-are-not-strongly-inherited-from-parents/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">bring the household closer</a>. Children who help bake cookies or watch a classic Christmas movie often feel a greater sense of involvement. 



This sense of participation aligns with the study’s findings that holiday events can be a driving force behind thoughtful gestures, cooperation, and cheer.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-bigger-questions-about-childhood-and-culture">Bigger questions about childhood and culture</h2>



Santa’s modern image traces back to a blend of folklore, marketing campaigns, and traditions inspired by Saint Nicholas. 



For countless children, the idea of a kindhearted figure traveling the skies in a single night is a highlight of December. 



This study encourages us to think about how such stories fit into broader questions about parenting approaches and cultural myths. 



Many communities celebrate special figures who reward the nice and ignore or punish the naughty. 



In each case, children experience stories they can hold onto, if only for a few magical years. The current research suggests that these stories may matter less than the rituals and music, but they still add color to the season.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-does-any-of-this-matter">Why does any of this matter?</h2>



Plenty of families continue to share the Santa story, watch Christmas movies, and maintain lively traditions. 



The researchers point out that more studies could explore how different cultural celebrations, and the potential <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/holiday-stress-is-higher-this-year-compared-to-2023/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">stress levels surrounding them</a>, ultimately help shape child development. 



From the outside, it might seem obvious that gatherings, songs, and decorations encourage bright and kind behavior, yet measuring these elements takes careful planning.



Some psychologists are curious about whether similar patterns show up around other holidays or special events with strong rituals.&nbsp;



The core message remains that communal practices, family bonding, and joyful anticipation often spark gentler and more considerate behavior in children. 



The Santa myth is part of that puzzle, but it may not be the only factor making kids play nicely.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-did-we-learn-about-kids-and-santa">What did we learn about kids and Santa?</h2>



The takeaway here is that Christmas is a powerful backdrop for <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/many-parents-use-threats-to-discipline-children-but-its-not-effective-in-the-long-run/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">shaping how children behave</a>. 



A lively household filled with festive foods, carols, and colorful decorations can steer kids toward more thoughtful choices, even if the well-known Santa story doesn’t stand alone as a motivator. 



Traditions that families share appear to matter more than the promise of presents under the tree.



These observations offer a new way to think about how myths and rituals come together to create a meaningful holiday experience.&nbsp;



Children may still look forward to Santa’s arrival each year, but the real spark for positive behavior lies in those precious moments spent enjoying the season.



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://osf.io/preprints/osf/e8jm6" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">OSF Pre-prints</a>.



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Does believing in Santa really make kids behave better? A new study found out

Every December, colorful lights and festive tunes remind kids, and adults, that Santa Claus is on his way. Families fill their homes with decorations, children write wish lists, and a sense of anticipation hangs in the air.  Parents have long told their kids that if they behave well, Santa will bring them just what they asked for. Until recently, few studies examined whether this belief actually influenced how kids act. In a new project, researchers decided to see if children truly become more considerate when they think...

Scientists have moved the Doomsday Clock another 30 seconds forward, and it’s now just 2 minutes to midnight. This marks the closest we as humanity has come to a possible apocalypse since the Cold War. 

The Doomsday Clock was originally created by the <a href="https://thebulletin.org/">Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists</a>, a group of Manhattan Project veterans who were fearful of the consequences their work on nuclear weapons would have. 

The Doomsday Clock was first formed in response to the looming threats of nuclear warfare, and its movement is determined by the state of global affairs, the nuclear arsenals onhand, and the power wielded by government rulers

Today the Bulletin of Atomic Scientists is a wide-reaching organization of nuclear experts, scientists, and even Nobel Laureates who regularly meet to discuss the current global political and economic climate and the increased risks of nuclear threats. 

The Bulletin has also taken climate change into consideration, calling it as big a threat to humanity as nuclear weapons.

 In 2007, it was <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-removed-websites/">climate change</a> that inspired the move to five minutes to midnight. 

Today the clock lurched another 30 seconds forward thanks to rising temperatures and the increased rhetoric involving nuclear warfare. 

It's now two minutes to midnight, a sobering move since that last time the clock was that close to midnight, the panic of the Cold War was at its peak. 

One of the driving forces cited by the experts leading up the clock’s new position was the clashing of President Trump and Kim Jong Un, who have been locked in a seemingly petty quarrel while carelessly waving the threat of nuclear weapons back and forth. 

“We have members of Congress, White House advisers, and even the president implying that they think war with a nuclear state is not only likely, but potentially desirable,” Alex Wellerstein, an expert in nuclear weapon history told the <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/speaking-of-science/wp/2018/01/25/after-a-missile-scare-and-insult-war-with-north-korea-its-time-to-check-the-doomsday-clock/?utm_term=.179f2804012b">Washington Post</a>. “That's unusual and disturbing.”

If the Doomsday Clock moves any closer to midnight, we as a globe will be in uncharted territory, even though the clock is not a predictor of the apocalypse, but a reflection of current events and imminent risks. 

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette,</a> <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

The Doomsday Clock ticks closer to midnight apocalypse

Scientists have moved the Doomsday Clock another 30 seconds forward,...

Few things are more satisfying than swatting a particularly annoying <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/mosquitoes-suck-blood-noticing/">mosquito</a> that’s been buzzing around you on a hot, summer day. And while it may seem like a missed swat attempt is a lost opportunity to get rid of the offending insect, new research finds that this may not be the case. 

A recent study published in <a href="http://www.cell.com/current-biology/home">Current Biology</a> found that mosquitoes were able to learn to associate a particular odor with the unpleasant feeling of being swatted — causing them to avoid the scent in the future. 

It’s been known that mosquitoes don’t exactly bite at random, as they show clear preferences for some people over others. They are also know to alternate hosts seasonally, generally feeding on birds in the summer and mammals and birds during the rest of the year. Researcher Jeffrey Riffell of the <a href="http://www.washington.edu/">University of Washington, Seattle</a> wanted to find out more about what factors influence a mosquitoes’ biting preferences.

Riffell and his colleagues trained mosquitoes by combining the odor of a specific person or animal species with a mechanical shock, simulating the shock by using a vortexer machine. Surprisingly, the insects quickly learned to associate a host odor with the mechanical shock, and would fly away from the odor once this association was made. “Once mosquitoes learned odors in an aversive manner, those odors caused aversive responses on the same order as responses to DEET, which is one of the most effective mosquito repellents,” says Riffell. “Moreover, mosquitoes remember the trained odors for days.”

It is well known that in many animals learning depends on dopamine in the brain. To test this in mosquitoes, the researchers glue the insects to a custom 3D-printed holder that allowed the insects to fly in place while the neuronal activity in the olfactory center of their brains was recorded. The neurons in the olfactory center of genetically modified mosquitoes lacking dopamine receptors were less likely to fire compared to normal mosquitoes. Because of this, these mosquitoes showed a decreased ability to process and learn from odor information.

These findings could have important implications for mosquito control and the eradication of mosquito-borne diseases that affect millions each year. 

“By understanding how mosquitoes are making decisions on whom to bite, and how learning influences those behaviors, we can better understand the genes and neuronal bases of the behaviors,” explains Riffell. “This could lead to more effective tools for mosquito control.”

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By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Swatting mosquitoes helps them learn to avoid your scent

Few things are more satisfying than swatting a particularly annoying...

As <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/legal-recreational-marijuana-california/">marijuana</a> becomes increasingly legalized in states across the United States, it has created new challenges to policing the impairment level of drivers on the road. While recent studies have identified new biomarkers that can be used to estimate an individual’s cannabinoid intake, a commentary published by toxicologists in the journal <a href="http://www.cell.com/trends/molecular-medicine/home">Trends in Molecular Medicine</a> says that using these markers to judge cognitive and behavioral impairment can be complex.

“There is no one blood or oral fluid concentration that can differentiate impaired and not impaired,” explains Marilyn Huestis, who spent over 20 years leading cannabinoid-related research projects at the<a href="https://www.drugabuse.gov/"> National Institute on Drug Abuse</a>. “It’s not like we need to say, ‘Oh, let’s do some more research and give you an answer.’ We already know. We’ve done the research.”

Whether the primary psychoactive agent in cannabinoids – ∆9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) – is inhaled or consumed, there are a variety of factors that can influence how impaired an individual may be. And although alcohol can impair a driver more than cannabis, impairment is still a problem when it comes to driving while high.

One problem with trying to use blood tests for THC is that it quickly leaves the bloodstream. An occasional user may be impaired for 6 to 8 hours, but blood THC concentrations can drop to zero after just 2.5 hours, according to previous research by Huestis. “If someone is driving impaired, by the time you get their blood sample, you've lost 90% or more of the drug. So, we have to change what we do at the roadside,” she says.

Furthermore, long-term daily cannabis users – such as those who use medical marijuana – present additional challenges. THC accumulates in body tissues and then slowly releases over time. This means that chronic users can test positive for marijuana even if they’ve gone 30 days without using. Additionally, psychomotor impairment can be observed even three weeks after the last dose. “You want people to be taking medicinal cannabinoids and now you know that their driving is going to be impacted,” says Huestis. “So how do you handle that problem?”

Like most researchers, Huestis doesn’t support a legal driving limit for marijuana, like the one in place for blood alcohol concentrations. Rather, she believes the best solution is to train police officers to identify behavioral signs of impairment, accompanied by less invasive biological marker tests that can be immediately performed at the roadside to confirm the presence of a cannabinoid. Recent research has identified new blood and urine biomarkers to that end. Tests using breath and saliva markers are also under development.

Beyond just catching drivers who are under the influence, these new markers and tests may also be used to help treat drug dependence, as they can determine appropriate therapeutic levels of medical marijuana. They could also be used to help women monitor cannabinoid levels if they’re trying to become pregnant. While potentially tricky and complex, this new research is helping people who use or need medical marijuana, as well as the general public that want to stay safe on the road.

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Developing a roadside marijuana DUI test has proven tricky

As marijuana becomes increasingly legalized in states across the United...

Musical genres, tastes, and sounds vary across cultures and serve a wide variety of purposes, from evoking the need to dance to expressing love or lulling a baby to sleep. It is a widely held belief that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/musical-training-perception-speech/">music</a> is mainly shaped by culture, but researchers from <a href="https://www.harvard.edu/">Harvard University</a> weren’t entirely sure that was the whole picture. Throughout the animal kingdom, vocalization carries links between form and function between different species – there’s a reason we experience fear after hearing a bear or lion roar. The researchers wanted to see if this same relationship between form and function was true for our human music.

After analyzing recordings from around the world, the research team found vocal songs tend to sound similar to one another, no matter which culture they come from. Their study involved two separate experiments to determine a relation between form and function in music, and the findings were published in <a href="http://www.cell.com/current-biology/home">Current Biology</a>.

The first experiment involved 750 internet users in 60 countries being asked to listen to brief song recordings. These sound bites were selected pseudo-randomly from 86 predominantly small-scale societies – from hunter-gatherers to subsistence farmers. After listening to each piece, participants answered six questions indicating what they believe the function of each song to be on a six-point scale. These questions determined the degree to which the listener thought a song was used for dancing, soothing a baby, healing an illness, expressing love, mourning the dead, or telling a story. None of the songs were actually used in mourning or to tell a story, but these answers were included to discourage listeners from assuming each song fit into only four types.

Despite the participants’ lack of familiarity with the songs and their societies of origin, their ratings showed accurate and cross-culturally reliable inferences about the purposes of these songs. 

“We show that our shared psychology produces fundamental patterns in song that transcend our profound cultural differences,” says co-first author of the study Manvir Singh, of Harvard University. “This suggests that our emotional and behavioral responses to aesthetic stimuli are remarkably similar across widely diverging populations.”

In the second experiment, 1,000 internet users from the U.S. and India were asked to rate these same excerpts for three “contextual” features: number of singers, gender of singer(s), and number of instruments. They also rated them for seven “subjective” musical features: melodic complexity, rhythmic complexity, tempo, steady beat, arousal, valence, and pleasantness. The results of this second experiment showed that there was some relationship between these features and song function, but it could not explain the way people in the first experiment reliably detected a song’s function.

Overall, these findings are consistent with the existence of universal links between form and function in vocal music. 

“Despite the staggering diversity of music influenced by countless cultures and readily available to the modern listener, our shared human nature may underlie basic musical structures that transcend cultural differences,” says co-author Samuel Mehr, also of Harvard University.

The researchers are now conducting these tests in listeners who live in isolated, small-scale societies and have never heard music outside of their own culture. They are also continuing to analyze the music of many cultures in order to figure out how certain musical features relate to function, and whether those features themselves might be universal.

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Science proves that music is truly a universal language

Musical genres, tastes, and sounds vary across cultures and serve...

There has always been debate surrounding whether people are born “smartypants” or if intelligence something that is attained through hard work and focus. Are human behaviors and development found in our DNA or do external environmental factors shape us? 

These questions make up the basis of the nature versus nurture debate, which has long been of interest to many in the scientific community. But now, new research has found that to some extent, intelligence is in our genes. 

The study was conducted by researchers from the <a href="https://www.ed.ac.uk/">University of Edinburgh</a> and is the first-ever study to show how genetic differences, or variants as they are called, in DNA can determine intelligence. 

For the study, the researchers analyzed genetic markers in the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/dna-onvict-rhinoceros-hunters/">DNA</a> of 20,000 people looking specifically for any indicators that would match higher or lower IQs or reflect intelligence. 

The researchers identified rare genetic variants that appeared to have a determining effect on whether someone was intelligent or not, and these combined variants explained half of the differences in intelligence between the subjects in the study. 

The study examined and analyzed both common and rare variants, but it was the rare variants that appeared to have a greater impact on intelligence. 

“We used two methods to measure the effect that rare variants had on intelligence,” said Dr. David Hill, a member of the research team. “By combining the effect of both rare and common variants, more than 50% of the differences in intelligence between people could be traced to their genes.” 

While a person certainly can’t be born with information or an education, the new research shows that perhaps some get a headstart simply through a genetic gift.

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>,<a href="https://www.earth.com/"> Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Intelligence can be inherited through our genes

There has always been debate surrounding whether people are born...

Valence is a term used to describe the good and bad feelings that neurons assign to different experiences, tastes, or sensations in the amygdala part of the brain. 

Valence helps us discern bad smells and bitter tastes from good ones by assigning emotions to them. But how does the brain define good and bad tastes and experiences? 

Now, new study examines exactly how valence assignment occurs in the amygdala and the neural circuitry involved. 

The study was conducted by researchers from the <a href="https://picower.mit.edu/">Picower Institute for Learning and Memory </a>and published in the journal Cell Reports. 

The researchers focused on the basolateral amygdala and were able to show which neurons were involved in the valence processing circuitry, how the neurons interacted, and where the neural response was located and projected to in the brain. 

For the study, the researchers gave trained lab mice sucrose and quinine drops to activate bitter and sweet tastes. 

The two tastes were given a different sound tone so the mice learned to associate the tastes with sound. After playing the tones, the researchers identified which neurons responded and mapped its corresponding valence assignment. 

Once the key neurons involved in valence assignment were identified, the researchers were able to make them responsive to pulses of light, which showed how the different neurons interacted in the basolateral amygdala and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/brain-records-body-weight/">brain</a>. 

The results showed that positive valence was associated with the nucleus accumbens region of the brain and negative valence assignment was connected to the central amygdala. 

The inner workings of valence assignment could help with treatments and therapies for mental health disorders. 

“Perturbations of emotional valence processing is at the core of many mental health disorders,” said Kay Tye, the leader of the study. “Anxiety and addiction, for example, may be an imbalance or a misassignment of positive or negative valence with different stimuli.” 

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

How the brain discerns between like and dislike

Valence is a term used to describe the good and...

Researchers from the <a href="http://www.cheori.org/">Eastern Ontario Research Institute</a> have found a link between social media use and sleep deprivation in teens. The study was focused on over 5,000 Canadian students between the ages of 11 and 20. The experts demonstrated that greater use of social media directly corresponded with a lack of sleep.

This research adds to a growing collection of evidence that screen time is having a negative effect on young adults. For example, a recent analysis from <a href="https://www.sdsu.edu/">San Diego State University</a> revealed that students who spent more time online were <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/teens-phones-less-happy/">less happy</a> than those who engaged more often in non-screen activities. The researchers believe that screen time is driving unhappiness, and not the other way around.

For the current study, 63.6 percent of participants reported sleeping less than recommended, while 73.4 percent of students reported using social media for at least one hour per day.

In a separate study, researchers at the <a href="http://www.pitt.edu/">University of Pittsburgh</a> found that sleep deprivation lowers activity in the brain's reward system. They demonstrated that a chronic lack of sleep drives both depression and addiction, particularly in teens. In addition, sleep deprivation can cause major health issues including obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.
“The impact social media can have on sleep patterns is a topic of great interest given the well-known adverse effects of sleep deprivation on health,” said senior author Dr. Jean-Philippe Chaput. “Electronic screen devices are pervasive in today's society and we are just starting to understand their risks and benefits.”

The current study is published in the journal <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1111/(ISSN)1651-2227">Acta Paediatrica</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

Teens are literally losing sleep over social media

Researchers from the Eastern Ontario Research Institute have found a...

Our DNA contains specialized sections known as telomeres, which allow chromosomes to be accurately copied during cell division. As our cells divide over time, our telomeres shorten, which results in a gradual loss of genomic stability. Loss of telomere length has been linked to cancer, heart disease, cognitive decline, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/anti-aging-hormone/">aging</a>, and premature death. Needless to say, maintaining longer telomere length is likely to be important to our overall health.

A study from <a href="https://www.mailman.columbia.edu/">Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health</a> has found that air pollution may shorten telomere length in newborns. The research team analyzed telomere length in the umbilical cord blood of 255 newborns. Half of the newborns were born before the closure of a coal-burning plant in Tongliang, China in 2004, while the other half were conceived and born after. 

High levels of air pollution in Tongliang resulted in the government shutting down the local coal-burning power plant in 2004 in an effort to improve community health. 

The study’s findings showed that babies born pre-closure had higher levels of PAH-DNA cord adducts, which is a biomarker for exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. These hydrocarbons are a toxic component of air pollution from coal plants. Increased levels of these adducts in cord blood were linked to shorter telomeres, as well as lower levels of brain-derived neurotropic factor (BDNF) – a protein involved in neuronal growth.

“An individual’s telomere length at birth is known to influence their risk for disease decades later during adulthood,” says Deliang Tang, professor of Environmental Health Sciences at the Mailman School. “Further follow-up is needed to assess the role telomere length plays in health outcomes in the context of early life exposure to air pollution.”

The researchers did not find any association between telomere length and developmental score in the 210 children they tested at age 2. However, they stress that this finding does not rule out telomere length-related neurodevelopmental problems as the children age. In previously published research, the authors found that newborns born after the plant closure had lower levels of PAH-DNA adducts, lower rates of various health outcomes, and increased levels of BDNF.

“The new study adds to the evidence that closing this coal-burning power plant was beneficial to the health and future well-being of newborns there,” says Frederica Perera, director of the <a href="http://ccceh.org/">Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health</a> and a professor of Environmental Health Sciences at the Mailman School. “Moreover, we know that lowering exposure to air pollution anywhere will be beneficial to children's health and long-term potential.”

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By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Air pollution linked to newborns with shortened telomeres

Our DNA contains specialized sections known as telomeres, which allow...

Researchers from <a href="https://www.nyu.edu/">New York University</a> and the <a href="http://www.uva.nl/">University of Amsterdam</a> have investigated how <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/kids-healthy-self-esteem/">children</a> between 5 and 6 years old perceive people of other races. They found that a child's environment, rather than skin color, has the biggest impact on how they view others.

The outcome of this research challenges the theory that feelings of prejudice develop early in childhood. Furthermore, the study revealed that the extent to which children adopted prejudiced beliefs depended on the environments in which they were raised. Such beliefs were particularly affected by the diversity in a child's neighborhood.

“Our findings suggest that beliefs about race develop over time and in response to particular environments,” said lead author Tara M. Mandalaywala. “And that these beliefs vary for children of different backgrounds.”

The investigation was focused on 203 children living in New York City and 430 adults from across the United States. The participants were asked whether they saw skin color as something that could be inherited, and whether they believed that race determines what people will grow up to be like.

The study revealed that children viewed skin color as something that was inherited, and that the younger participants did not support the types of beliefs about skin color that contributed to stereotyping in adults. Instead, this group believed that the environment in which another individual was raised would determine their behavioral and psychological properties.

In addition, children who grew up in less diverse neighborhoods held stronger beliefs that race determined behavior than children in more diverse neighborhoods. This indicated to the researchers that these types of beliefs are primarily affected by a child's environment.

“Our research suggests that beliefs about race that contribute to prejudice take a long time to develop - when they do - and that their development depends to some extent on the neighborhoods in which children grow up,” said study co-author Marjorie Rhodes. “An important question our study raises is whether such attitudes in children are responsive to exposure to diversity in child care and school settings as well as to diversity in neighborhood environments.”

The study is published in the journal <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1111/(ISSN)1467-8624">Child Development</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.google.com/earth/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Children judge others by their behavior, not race

Researchers from New York University and the University of Amsterdam...

<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/grown-penguins-mooch-parents/">Millennials</a> are often accused of being selfish, lazy, and delaying the realities of growing up, but new research could redefine exactly when adolescents cross into adulthood. 

Young adults today are studying longer, leaving home later, and getting married and older ages. By all accounts, the young adult is settling into the classic definitions of “adulthood” much later in life than previous generations. 

Researchers from the <a href="https://www.rch.org.au/">Royal Children's Hospital</a> in Melbourne, Australia say this should be taken into account when defining adolescence, and that the ages from puberty to adulthood should be 10 to 24 years old instead of 14 to 19 years old.

These days puberty starts earlier, which is part of what motivated the Melbourne team to look into what ages would better suit the gap between childhood and adulthood. 

The researchers published their findings in the Lancet Child &amp; Adolescent Health Journal.

Even though puberty starts earlier, the research also highlights the changing perceptions of adulthood, and how many millennials are now delaying typical adult milestones like parenthood and marriage.

Not only will extending adolescence to 24 years of age reflect the evolution of adulthood in today’s younger generations, but also will help ensure policies properly support young people.

“'Although many adult legal privileges start at age 18 years, the adoption of adult roles and responsibilities generally occurs later,” said Susan Sawyer, first author of the paper. “An expanded and more inclusive definition of adolescence is essential for developmentally appropriate framing of laws, social policies, and service systems.” 

Of course, not everyone agrees with Sawyer, as some experts are concerned that extending the ages of adolescence will further hinder development and the transition to adulthood.  

But regardless of personal opinion on these changes, the new research could simply help characterize what appears to be an undeniable trend.

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

The ages of adolescence are now being redefined

Millennials are often accused of being selfish, lazy, and delaying...

A new study has revealed that too much screen time makes teenagers unhappy. The young adults who spent more time on activities such as playing games on a computer, using social media, and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/addiction-smartphones-imbalances-brain/">texting</a> were found to be significantly less happy than those who invested more time in non-screen activities such as playing sports and engaging in face-to-face conversation.

Jean M. Twenge is a psychology professor at <a href="https://www.sdsu.edu/">San Diego State University</a> and the study's lead author. She said that teens whose eyes are habitually glued to their smartphones are markedly unhappier.

The research team collected data from the Monitoring the Future (MtF) longitudinal study, which surveyed more than a million 8th, 10th, and 12th-graders in the United States. The students reported on how often they spent time on their phones, tablets, and computers, and answered questions about non-screen social interactions and their overall happiness.


Based on the results of the study, Twenge believes that screen time is driving unhappiness and not the other way around.

“Although this study can't show causation, several other studies have shown that more social media use leads to unhappiness, but unhappiness does not lead to more social media use,” said Twenge.

The study revealed that eliminating screen time altogether does not lead to happiness either. The happiest teens used digital media just under an hour each day. 

“The key to digital media use and happiness is limited use,” Twenge said. “Aim to spend no more than two hours a day on digital media, and try to increase the amount of time you spend seeing friends face-to-face and exercising--two activities reliably linked to greater happiness.”

After looking at trends in teenagers since the 1990s, the research team noted that the advancement of screen devices corresponded with a decline in the levels of happiness reported by teens. They found that young adults had noticeably lower life satisfaction after 2012, which is the same year that there was a significant jump in how many Americans owned smartphones.

“By far the largest change in teens' lives between 2012 and 2016 was the increase in the amount of time they spent on digital media, and the subsequent decline in in-person social activities and sleep,” said Twenge. “The advent of the smartphone is the most plausible explanation for the sudden decrease in teens' psychological well-being.”

The study is published in the journal <a href="http://www.apa.org/pubs/journals/emo/">Emotion.</a>

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Teens who are addicted to their phones are less happy

A new study has revealed that too much screen time...

The Pentagon and the Empire State Building are both decades old, but parts of the two iconic buildings are a whole lot older. About 340 million years old, to be exact, made by ancient microbes that predated the dinosaurs.

Oolitic limestone has been used in the construction of buildings all over the globe, including the Empire State Building and the Pentagon. The popular material is made up primarily of tiny, millimeter-sized spheres of carbonate known as “ooids.”

Now, a new study led by researchers at the <a href="http://www.anu.edu.au/">Australian National University</a> found that ooids are not made up of layers of sediments, as previously believed. Instead, they’re layer upon layer of mineralized microbes.

"We have proposed a radically different explanation for the origin of ooids that explains their definitive features," Dr. Bob Burne, a co-researcher in the study, said in a press release. "Our research has highlighted yet another vital role that microbes play on Earth and in our lives."

Oolitic limestone has been found all over the world, in the U.S., Europe, China and Australia. 

Because the limestone is sturdy and lightweight, humans have been using it as a building material for millennia. Along with the Empire State Building and the Pentagon – both made with Mississippian oolitic limestone – the stone has been used in the construction of Buckingham Palace, St. Paul’s Cathedral, the British Museum and much of the city of Bath in England.

The researchers found their mathematical formula for analyzing the limestone’s ooids in an unlikely place: neuroscience.

"Our mathematical model explains the concentric accumulation of layers, and predicts a limiting size of ooids," said Dr. Murray Batchelor, a co-researcher from ANU. "We considered the problem theoretically using an approach inspired by a mathematical model developed in 1972 for the growth of some brain tumors."

The team’s research has been published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-017-18908-4">Scientific Reports</a>.

—

By <a href="mailto:kcathey@earth.com">Kyla Cathey</a>, <a href="http://www.earth.com">Earth.com</a> staff writer

Image credit: <a href="http://www.anu.edu.au/">Australian National University</a>

Empire State Building, Pentagon built with ancient microbes

The Pentagon and the Empire State Building are both decades...

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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

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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

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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



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

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