Wish,To,Meet,Santa,Claus.,Merry,Christmas,And,Happy,New

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 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...

Sexual harassment has been leading the news as of late, with numerous claims being made against political figures and the Hollywood power players. 

It’s important to note that no matter the kind of harassment, physical or verbal, it is still abuse and can have a lasting, damaging effect on the victims. 

A new study conducted by researchers from the<a href="https://www.ntnu.edu/"> Norwegian University of Science and Technology </a>set out to distinguish between physical and nonphysical sexual harassment and show that non-physical abuse can be also detrimental to health and well-being. 

“Being exposed to non-physical sexual harassment can negatively affect symptoms of anxiety, depression, negative body image and low self-esteem," said Mons Bendixen and Leif Edward Ottesen Kennair, the co-authors of the study. 

The researchers focused their study on teens and found that harassment was not exclusively aimed at girls, boys were also just as likely to be targeted with verbal abuse. 

The researchers conducted two different studies asking high school students about their experience with sexual harassment in the previous year. The researchers had responses from nearly 3,000 students, and both studies had similar results. 

The researchers felt it was important to distinguish between different forms of harassment so they divided the types of harassment into two different groups, physically coercive behavior, and non-physical harassment. 

“As far as we know, this is the first study that has distinguished between these two forms and specifically looked at the effects of non-physical sexual harassment," said Bendixen.

The team conducted two different studies surveying high school students on their experiences with sexual harassment. Because some slurs and slang terms might not be offensive to everyone, the researchers left it to the students to determine if they were offended by certain comments. 

The first study was done in 2007 and involved 1,384 h<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/friendships-impact-mental-health/">igh school students</a>, and the second was conducted in 2013-2014 and included 1,485 students. 

The results of both studies show that non-physical sexual harassment is damaging and has a negative effect on the receiver. 

The researchers note that methods to combat harassment have been largely ineffective. 

“This has been studied for years and in numerous countries, but no studies have yet revealed any lasting effects of measures aimed at combating sexual harassment," said Bendixen. “We know that attitude campaigns can change people's attitudes to harassment, but it doesn't result in any reduction in harassment behavior.” 

The researchers plan to conduct an upcoming study that further explores why sexual harassment is so pervasive in society, and how to reduce instances of harassment.

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com </a>Staff Writer

Both verbal and physical sexual harassment cause lasting damage

Sexual harassment has been leading the news as of late,...

When looking to buy a home or rent an apartment, one of the first deciding factors is the neighborhood the property is located in. Is it a relatively safe neighborhood? What are the other families like?

Now, a new study has found that neighborhood environment has a profound effect on children through their teens. Poor environments can influence behavioral problems in young kids and adolescents. 

The study was conducted by researchers from the <a href="https://www.jhsph.edu/">Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health</a> and published in the journal Social Science &amp; Medicine. 

The results show that problem behaviors like fighting, stealing, and destroying property can be linked to external surroundings and is exacerbated by poor a home environment. 

For the study, the researchers examined survey data that was collected between 1997 and 2007 on 3,563 children. The researchers also asked the parents of the children surveyed to rate their neighborhoods as “excellent,” “good,” “fair,” or “poor.” 

The researchers also reviewed data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics, a study that surveyed families over multiple generations since 1968. 

The survey focused on economic, social, and health factors that impacted the different families. Parents were also asked to rate behavioral problems they observed in their <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/dogs-kids-eczema-asthma/">children</a> as well as neighborhood quality. 

Children who lived in neighborhoods rated as poor were much more likely to show behavioral problems, and those problems continued into adolescence. 

The researchers note that the longer a child is exposed to a poor neighborhood the stronger the influence of that environment. 

The study also found that behavioral problems exhibited early on can predict damaging patterns of addiction, violence, and substance abuse later in life. 

Anne Riley, the study’s lead author, hopes that these sobering results will help shape housing policies and community investment decisions. 

“I think this is a wakeup call for understanding the power of neighborhoods to contribute to the crime and behavior problems that we see in our society,” said Riley. “Our results suggest that neighborhood effects are something that we need to tune into in a much more explicit and purposeful way.” 

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Neighborhoods influence how kids behave into their teens

When looking to buy a home or rent an apartment,...

What exactly influences which <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/dirty-laundry-attracts-bed-bugs/">bugs</a> join us to live inside of the house? An international team of scientists set out to investigate how physical factors of our homes, ranging from the floor plan to our level of cleanliness, affect the diversity of the insects living among us. 

"We are just beginning to realize--and study--how the home we create for ourselves also builds a complex, indoor habitat for bugs and other life," said lead author Dr. Misha Leong. "We're hoping to better understand this age-old coexistence, and how it may impact our physical and mental well-being."

Researchers from the <a href="https://www.calacademy.org/">California Academy of Sciences</a>, <a href="https://www.ncsu.edu/">North Carolina State University</a>, and the <a href="http://snm.ku.dk/english/">Natural History Museum of Denmark</a> teamed up for the study, which focused on 50 homes in Raleigh, North Carolina. The analysis revealed that a larger number of insect species were found in rooms with more outdoor accessibility, such as windows and doors.

"We're beginning to see how houses can be a passive go-between for insects traveling through the surrounding landscape," said senior author Dr. Michelle Trautwein. "The more numerous the entry points of windows and doors, the more diverse the community that thrives inside."

The researchers also found that ground floors harbored the most insect diversity, and that more varieties of insects existed in carpeted rooms as opposed to rooms with bare floors.

"While the idea of uninvited insect roommates sounds unappealing, bugs in houses may contribute to health in a roundabout way," said Dr. Trautwein. "A growing body of evidence suggests some modern ailments are connected with our lack of exposure to wider biological diversity, particularly microorganisms--and insects may play a role in hosting and spreading that microbial diversity indoors."

The insects discovered in the study varied from room to room. Common areas like living rooms had more diverse bug communities compared to bedrooms, kitchens, and bathrooms. Basements also held a larger variety of insects, which were typically cave-dwelling species that thrive in damp, dark spaces like spiders and crickets.

Every room in the home contained a complex habitat of predator and prey. Scavenger species, strays from outdoors, and temporary go-betweens all played key roles in a room's ecological structure. 

"Even though we like to think of our homes as shielded from the outdoors, wild ecological dramas may be unfolding right beside us as we go about our daily lives," said Dr. Leong. "We're learning more and more about these sometimes-invisible relationships and how the homes we choose for ourselves also foster indoor ecosystems all their own."

Species diversity within the home tends to mirror the life thriving outside, according to the researchers. Tidiness played no significant role in what insects were found indoors. The presence of pets, houseplants, pesticides, and dust also had no notable impact on insect diversity, indicating that indoor bug communities are more strongly influenced by the environment outside the window than our cats, dogs, or cleaning habits.

The study is published 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

Different houses and lifestyles attract different types of bugs

What exactly influences which bugs join us to live inside...

The negative effects of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/china-air-pollution-years/">air pollution</a> on health are relatively well noted and understood, but new research points towards yet another health risk associated with exposure to air pollution. A recent study from <a href="https://www.mailman.columbia.edu/">Columbia University</a> has found that exposure to air pollution is linked to osteoporosis-related loss of bone mineral density and increased risk of bone fractures. 

Osteoporosis is a disease that causes bones to become weak and brittle due to the body losing more bone mass than it can rebuild. It is also the most common reason for broken bones amongst the elderly.

In the United States alone, there are an estimated 2 million osteoporosis-related bone fractures. Research shows that in the year following a bone fracture in an elderly individual, risk of death increases by as much as 20 percent, and only 40 percent of individuals regain their independence. Needless to say, osteoporosis is a scourge on public health as well as national health costs.

For their study, the researchers assessed osteoporosis-related fracture hospital admissions in 9.2 million Medicare enrollees from the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic regions of the U.S. between 2003 and 2010. The findings show that even a small increase in levels of ambient particulate matter (PM2.5) may lead to an increase in bone fractures in older adults.

They simultaneously ran an analysis of eight years of follow-up among almost 700 middle-aged, low-income adults in the Boston Area Community Health/Bone Survey cohort. The findings of the latter study showed that participants living in areas with higher levels of PM2.5 and black carbon had lower levels of parathyroid hormone. This hormone is a key calcium and bone-related hormone, necessary for retention of bone mass.

PM2.5 is also known to cause systemic oxidative damage and inflammation, which they believe may accelerate bone loss and increase risk of bone fractures in the older population.

“Decades of careful research has documented the health risks of air pollution, from cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, to cancer, and impaired cognition, and now osteoporosis,” says Andrea Baccarelli, chair of Environmental Health Sciences at the <a href="https://www.mailman.columbia.edu/">Mailman School</a> and the study’s senior author. “Among the many benefits of clean air, our research suggests, are improved bone health and a way to prevent bone fractures.”

--

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 osteoporosis-related bone fractures

The negative effects of air pollution on health are relatively...

Given the news and social media landscape of this past presidential election, it probably won’t be surprising to hear that even small news outlets can influence a discussion across both social media and public opinion. But the amount of influence these outlets have may surprise you.

A recent large-scale study reports that if only three small news outlets wrote about a topic such as jobs, the environment, or immigration, the discussion of that topic would increase across <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/social-media-helping-communities-manage-fires/">social media</a> and public opinion on the topic could be changed by several percentage points.

The results were published by the <a href="https://www.aaas.org/">American Association for the Advancement of Science</a>. 

These results were consistent across varying political affiliations, geographies, and other similar subgroups. Gary King and his colleagues quantitatively explored this subject by taking advantage of the massive conversation recorder that is social media. The researchers recruited 48 mostly small news media outlets and had groups of two to five outlets write articles on approved subjects and publish on random assigned dates. 

Through comparing outcomes in the weeks these stories ran (called “treatment weeks”) to a normal “control” week, the authors were able to determine the influence of these news stories. They found that the average cluster of stories increased discussion in each subject area by over 60%. Even more interesting – and perhaps terrifying – was that the story clusters were able to shift the balance of opinion by an average of 2.3% in the direction of the opinion of the published articles. 

With our current political and news-cycle climate, these results aren’t necessarily surprising. However, they are legitimately concerning. The study’s findings just go to show that now more than ever we should be careful in believing everything we read.

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Even small news outlets can have a big impact on public opinion

Given the news and social media landscape of this past...

A new study from <a href="https://www.utmb.edu/">The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston</a> has revealed that drinking alcohol negatively affects a key region of the brain where new cells develop. Chronic alcohol drinking kills brain stem cells and weakens the production of new nerve cells, and the damage is far worse for females.

It was previously thought that the adult brain had a fixed number of nerve cells from early in life. Alcohol-induced damage to the brain could only be treated by protecting the remaining nerve cells.

"The discovery that the adult brain produces stem cells that create new nerve cells provides a new way of approaching the problem of alcohol-related changes in the brain," said study co-author Dr. Ping Wu. "However, before the new approaches can be developed, we need to understand how alcohol impacts the brain stem cells at different stages in their growth, in different brain regions and in the brains of both males and females."

The research team set out to observe the impact of long-term <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/drinking-easier-speak-language/">alcohol</a> consumption on brain stem cells. They used a technique that allowed them to tag brain stem cells of adult mice and monitor how they develop into nerve cells over time.

The study showed that consistent alcohol consumption had varying effects on different regions of the brain. The region found to be most susceptible to the effects of alcohol was one of two brain regions where new brain cells are created.

The researchers also noted that brain stem cells in key brain regions of adult mice responded differently to alcohol exposure. The scientists identified for the first time that these changes vary between males and females.

Dr. Wu said that chronic alcohol drinking killed most brain stem cells and reduced the production and development of new nerve cells. The female mice showed more severe deficits than males. The females had displayed behavior which indicated they were more severely intoxicated, and their pool of stem cells was much more greatly reduced.

The scientists will use the findings of this research to learn more about how alcohol interacts with brain stem cells. This may ultimately lead to improved treatment for alcoholism.

The study is published in <a href="http://www.cell.com/stem-cell-reports/home">Stem Cell Reports</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Long-term heavy drinking kills brain stem cells

A new study from The University of Texas Medical Branch...

Researchers have found that a psychedelic drug called Ayahuasca that is often used in the Amazon region gives people an improved sense of wellbeing, and may be an effective treatment for alcoholism and depression.

Ayahuasca is a potent brew used in healing ceremonies as a spiritual medicine that contains dimethyltryptamine (DMT), a psychedelic drug. DMT is classified as a Schedule 1 drug in the United States and is illegal in almost every country.

A growing collection of research suggests that psychedelic drugs such as <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/magic-mushrooms-depression-brain/">magic mushrooms</a> and LSD can help treat alcoholism and depression. Researchers from the <a href="https://www.exeter.ac.uk/">University of Exeter</a> and <a href="https://www.ucl.ac.uk/">University College London</a> analyzed Global Drug Survey data from more than 96,000 people worldwide to examine the potential therapeutic benefits of ayahuasca.

The study revealed that ayahuasca users reported significantly lower alcohol issues than people who took LSD or magic mushrooms. In addition, those who took ayahuasca reported higher overall well-being in the year leading up to the survey.

"These findings lend some support to the notion that ayahuasca could be an important and powerful tool in treating depression and alcohol use disorders," said lead author Dr. Will Lawn. “Recent research has demonstrated ayahuasca's potential as a psychiatric medicine, and our current study provides further evidence that it may be a safe and promising treatment.”

Dr. Lawn pointed out that ayahuasca users still reported high drinking levels, and that further research is needed “to fully examine ayahuasca's ability to help treat mood and addiction disorders.” He added that, this study is still important because it is most likely “the largest survey of ayahuasca users completed to date."

The acute effects of ayahuasca last around six hours, and are felt most intensely one hour after ingestion. Most people surveyed reported taking the drug with a healer or a shaman.

"If ayahuasca is to represent an important treatment, it is critical that its short and long-term effects are investigated, and safety established,” said senior author Celia Morgan.

Of the survey participants, 527 were ayahuasca users, 18,138 used LSD or magic mushrooms, and 78,236 did not take psychedelic drugs.

"In this work, long-term ayahuasca use has not been found to impact on cognitive ability, produce addiction or worsen mental health problems,” said Morgan. "In fact, some of these observational studies suggest that ayahuasca use is associated with less problematic alcohol and drug use, and better mental health and cognitive functioning."

The study is published in the Nature journal <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

Ayahuasca may be effective treatment for alcoholism, depression

Researchers have found that a psychedelic drug called Ayahuasca that is...

When you’re in the middle of a stressful or challenging situation, you may wonder why you feel so disoriented.

But new research published in <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/behavioral-neuroscience">Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience</a> has found that stressful situations make it harder for the brain to understand where you are and what’s happening around you.

In the study, researchers showed participants videos of a positive, negative, and neutral situation, after which they asked them to take tests measuring their unconscious ability to acquire information about where and when things had happened. The results showed that participants performed worse on these tests after watching the challenging videos, both positive and negative. The researchers believe that this shows challenging situations cause the brain to pass on nuanced, context-based cognition and focus on reflexive action instead.

“We aimed to make this change measurable on a behavioral level, to draw conclusions on how behavior in everyday life and challenging situations is affected by variations in arousal,” says researcher Thomas Maran.

This involved using video clips that had been used previously to elicit reactions in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/watching-sports-heart-stress/">stress</a> studies. The videos consisted of one violent scene (negative), one sex scene (positive), and one neutral control scene. Results showed that both the sex scene and the violent scene affected the participants’ ability to memorize where objects had been and notice patterns in two different tasks.

The researchers believe that these challenging situations decrease our ability to pick up context cues because of some neurophysiological changes in the hippocampus region of the brain. However, only the behavioral impacts were analyzed in this study.

“Changes in cognition during high arousal states play an important role in psychopathology,” explains Maran. He believes that further research could improve our understanding of potential therapeutic and forensic applications for these findings. Additionally, it may help us better understand others’ reactions to challenging situations – such as witnessing a crime or experiencing war. 

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Stressful situations change the way our brains process information

When you’re in the middle of a stressful or challenging...

Even with swift climate change mitigation, heatwaves are projected to get worse. The number of lives lost to heatwaves depends on how sensitive our bodies are to heat, and a new study has found that we are much more sensitive to heat than you might expect.

Worldwide, over 800 deadly <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/deadly-heatwaves-rise-emission/">heatwaves</a> have been documented since 1980, which collectively claimed the lives of tens of thousands of people. The European heatwave of 2003 killed 70,000 people alone.

Camilo Mora from the <a href="https://manoa.hawaii.edu/">University of Hawaii at Manoa</a> is the lead author of the study.

"We know of many case examples when people have died as a result of heatwaves," said Mora. "However, why people died is a question whose answer is scattered."

For the study, the research team reviewed all of the known ways that heat kills people. They identified five physiological mechanisms which impact seven vital organs. Out of 35 possible interactions between these mechanisms and organs, the researchers found medical evidence to support 27 interactions that could be a fatal result of heat.

Ischemia and heat cytotoxity are conditions that can terminally interfere with the functioning of the brain, heart, kidneys, liver, or guts. Although both conditions can be deadly by themselves, the set of physiological responses to those two attacks pose an even greater risk of death. The attack on the body from ischemia and heat cytotoxity can lead to systemic inflammatory response, for example, which is related to organ failure.

Internal complications created by ischemia, heat cytotoxity and systemic inflammatory response can cause clots that cut off the blood supply to the brain, kidneys, liver, or lungs. As a result, the depletion of clotting proteins can trigger fatal hemorrhaging even without injury. 

The conditions of ischemia and heat cytotoxity can also be worsened with strenuous activity, which causes the breaking of skeletal muscle cells. This results in the leakage of myoglobin, which is toxic to the kidneys, liver, and lungs.

"Dying during a heatwave is like a terror movie with 27 bad endings to choose from," said Mora. "It is remarkable that humanity overall is taking such a complacency on the threats that ongoing climate change is posing."

The findings of the research suggest that all heat damaging mechanisms can be triggered any time there is substantial heat. This puts everyone at risk, with an even greater threat to those with physical ailments or who cannot afford life saving resources, like air conditioning.

The study is published in the American Heart Association journal <a href="http://circoutcomes.ahajournals.org/">Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Scientists identify 27 ways that heatwaves can kill you

Even with swift climate change mitigation, heatwaves are projected to...

Selecting the best possible people to spend time with is the secret to happiness, according to a new study. Neuroscience Professor Moran Cerf from <a href="http://www.northwestern.edu/">Northwestern University</a> has found through his research that when two people spend a lot of time together, their brain waves begin to look just alike.

Because our brain waves synchronize with people we communicate most frequently with, they start to actually resemble those of our <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/birds-friends-longer-lives/">friends</a>. This level of comprehension is actually happening beyond what we realize, and so we adopt ways of looking at things and behaviors of close friends without noticing.

“The more we study engagement, we see time and again that just being next to certain people actually aligns your brain with them,” says Dr. Cerf. “This means the people you hang out with actually have an impact on your engagement with reality beyond what you can explain. And one of the effects is you become alike.”

Previous studies have shown this type of neural coupling is a key part of mutual communication that results from understanding each other. 

For example, when we are communicating most effectively with a partner and we are on the same wavelength, we can even anticipate what they are going to say. The evolutionary advantage of this is stronger teamwork.

According to the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/">Business Insider</a>, Dr. Cerf says the best way to achieve long-term satisfaction is to surround yourself with the right people.

Dr. Cerf believes that people generally do not make good decisions. We do things we normally would not do based on social cues and also let our emotions turn rational decisions into irrational ones. Therefore, we should minimize decision-making altogether and simply decide to surround ourselves with the right friends. 

Dr. Cerf says that instead of wasting our time focused on decisions that do not bring life satisfaction, such as where to go or what to wear, we should instead focus on the one decision that most affects our happiness - who to go with. 

Ultimately, Dr. Cerf feels that we can achieve the utmost happiness and minimize the amount of exhausting decisions that need to be made in life by surrounding ourselves with friends who epitomize what we strive to be. If you want to exercise more or simply be a kinder person, for example, make friends with someone who embodies these traits and you will pick them up naturally.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Friends synch brain waves and live happier lives, study finds

Selecting the best possible people to spend time with is...

Immigration policy is a subject of much contention today, and many refugees and immigrants are faced with hostility not just from American citizens, but from the rhetoric of policy makers and our country's leaders. 

Now, a new study has now found that unregistered immigrants living near the California-Mexico border have a lifetime history of trauma and psychological distress.

The study was conducted by<a href="http://www.rice.edu/"> Rice University</a> psychologists and is the first population-based study to show the impact that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/wall-u-s-mexico-border-environment/">living near the border</a> has on unregistered Mexican immigrants.

The results of the study show that 82 percent of participants experienced a long history of trauma, including witnessing violence or living in poverty.  

Almost half of the immigrants interviewed for the study showed signs of clinically significant psychological distress. 

“Our findings are alarming, the prevalence of traumatic events among undocumented immigrants in our study is much higher compared with estimates for other U.S. populations,” said Luz Garcini, the lead author. 

For the study, Garcini interviewed 248 Mexican immigrants, ranging from 18 to 45 years of age, from high-risk neighborhoods near the California-Mexico border. The participants had also lived in the U.S for more than ten years. 

The city where the study was conducted is listed as one of the most conservative in the United States, with many residents strongly opposed to immigrants and in favor of disciplinary actions against undocumented immigrants.

Garcini asked the participants to undergo clinical interviews conducted by psychology doctoral trainees. The interviews were then analyzed and assessed for traumatic experiences. 

Overall, one-third of those interviewed had experienced six or more traumatic events, and nearly 50 percent of the participants showed signs of clinically significant psychological distress. 

59 percent of participants with psychological distress had also reported a history of experiencing domestic violence or bodily injury. 56 percent said they had witnessed violence toward others.

The study shows the stress and trauma that unregistered immigrants face over their lifetime. Garcnini hopes her results will help improve treatment options for those living in similar high-risk situations and spur policy change meant to protect human rights. 

“Revisiting immigration policies to devise solutions grounded in evidence and advocating support mechanisms aimed at protecting the human rights of this immigrant population are essential to prevent the negative consequences of trauma for these immigrants and the broader communities in Mexico and the U.S.,” Garcini said.

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com </a>Staff Writer

Immigrants living on the US-Mexico border endure life of trauma

Immigration policy is a subject of much contention today, and...

Surprising new research reveals that the time of day an injury is sustained affects the rate at which it will heal. Scientists have discovered that the body's internal clock causes wounds such as cuts and burns to heal around twice as quickly if the injury happened during the day rather than at night.

The study, led by scientists from the <a href="http://www2.mrc-lmb.cam.ac.uk/">Medical Research Council (MRC) Laboratory of Molecular Biology</a> in Cambridge, is the first to show how the internal body clock regulates wound healing and optimizes conditions for daytime healing.

A person's circadian rhythm controls nearly every cell in the body. Tests in both mice and skin cells showed that while the body’s internal clock is in daytime mode, wounds to the skin heal almost twice as efficiently as wounds suffered at night.

The research team also analyzed the records of 118 patients with burn injuries and found more evidence to support their findings. Using a database from all major burns units in England and Wales, the experts determined that burns sustained at night took an average of 60 percent longer to heal than burns that occurred during the day. 

Daytime burns were classified as 95 percent healed after 17 days, while night-time burns took an average of 28 days to reach the same level of progress. The researchers determined that one reason for the accelerated daytime healing was that skin cells moved to the site of the wound to repair it much faster during those hours.

There was also more collagen present at the wound site in daytime hours, which continued for up to two weeks after the wound was inflicted. Human and mouse skin cells grown in a lab dish exhibited this same response, indicating that the process is not initiated by signals transmitted throughout the body but by the body's natural <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/day-drinking-feels-different/">circadian rhythm</a>.

Dr. John O'Neill is the senior author on the paper from the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology.

"This is the first time that the circadian clock within individual skin cells has been shown to determine how effectively they respond to injuries,” said Dr. O’Neill. “We consistently see about a 2-fold difference in wound healing speed between the body clock's day and night. It may be that our bodies have evolved to heal fastest during the day when injuries are more likely to occur.”

Lead author Dr. Ned Hoyle said, “Further research into the link between body clocks and wound healing may help us to develop drugs that prevent defective wound healing or even help us to improve surgery outcomes."

The study is published in <a href="http://stm.sciencemag.org/">Science Translational Medicine</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Daytime wounds heal much faster than those suffered at night

Surprising new research reveals that the time of day an...

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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



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

Detecting mercury contamination with the tap of a finger

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

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



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



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



Video Credit: ACS Reactions



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



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

How does salt makes things taste better?

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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



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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



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Two distant planets may be "water worlds"

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

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&nbsp;



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



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

Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected

[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



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...