The term "aging" generally conjures up images of graying hair, slowing pace, and the eventual appearance of wrinkles. Yet, beyond these physical markers, aging is a fundamentally cellular and molecular process, even for organisms like bacteria, which also experience age-related changes.



From humble single-celled organisms to complex mammalian systems, all living organisms experience the impact of passing time, according to a recent report from the <a href="https://asm.org/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">American Society for Microbiology</a>.



As they age, cells accumulate damage that impairs function, leading to numerous age-related disorders in humans. But what about bacteria? Can these single-celled entities feel the passage of time?



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-bacteria-age-and-binary-fission-factor">Bacteria age and binary fission factor</h2>



<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/bacteria-use-biological-clocks-to-predict-and-survive-cold-weather/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Bacteria</a>, being single-celled organisms, propagate differently from humans. Rather than sexual reproduction, they undergo a process known as binary fission. 



In this process, they duplicate their DNA and divide into two, resulting in rapid replication. Interestingly, the fastest-growing bacterium can split in less than 10 minutes.



Historically, it was believed that bacteria, thanks to binary fission's symmetrical nature, did not age. After all, this process results in a parent and offspring identical in age, leading to a concept dubbed "functional immortality."



Aging, it was assumed, required an asymmetric division where the parent is older than the offspring.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-aging-of-bacteria">Aging of bacteria</h2>



Contrary to the longstanding belief, evidence emerged in 2005, suggesting that, like us, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/bacteria-and-imprint-new-era-dna-transformation/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">bacteria</a> do age. The researchers found that Escherichia coli (E. coli) exhibit differences between "old" and "new" (parent and offspring) cells.



These distinctions became evident as scientists watched the cells divide under a microscope, noting that older cells' growth rate and offspring production decline over time. 



Moreover, the senior cells died more frequently than their younger counterparts. Clearly, despite similar appearances, cells underwent divisions that left them functionally asymmetric and susceptible to aging.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-asymmetry-to-the-rescue">Asymmetry to the rescue</h2>



So, how does this asymmetry help? It turns out, this type of division is crucial for the population's overall fitness. 



An asymmetric division maintains variance, the variety upon which natural selection acts. More variation typically means a better chance of survival under changing conditions.



One of the key players in this aging process is protein aggregation. This process occurs in bacteria and eukaryotic cells and is associated with age-related diseases in humans, such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, where harmful protein clumps can lead to cell death.



In <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/hungry-bacteria-will-devour-plastic-waste/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">bacteria</a>, scientists found a smart way of dealing with this problem. As a feature of asymmetric division, older cells accumulate these proteins segregating age-related damage and keeping their offspring looking "younger" at the molecular level.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-cellular-states-of-stress">Cellular states of stress</h2>



Another culprit contributing to aging, both in humans and bacteria, is stress. E. coli cells activate a stress state inside the cell to survive mutations accumulated over their lifetimes. 



Some of these mutations, while not lethal, can negatively impact the cell's fitness by causing a critical protein to lose its function.



In a study analyzing the effects of over 60 different nonlethal loss-of-function mutations in E. coli, researchers found that these mutants increased their metabolic activity to compensate for lost protein function. 



Still, this adaptation comes at a cost. These cells grow slower and enter a state similar to purgatory faster than non-mutants, especially in nutrient-poor environments.



The findings suggest an "aging cost" associated with maintaining resistance to stress on a population level. Could understanding bacterial aging lead us to new antibiotic targets? Might this ancient mechanism of aging shed light on certain human diseases perpetuated through cellular stress states?



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-complexities-of-aging">Complexities of aging</h2>



Time and age certainly doesn't stand still for anyone, humans and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-soil-bacteria-contribute-to-atmospheric-co2/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">bacteria</a> included. But perhaps bacteria's susceptibility to aging is a blessing in disguise. 



These hardy organisms make excellent subjects for studying the nuances of aging, given their rapid growth and the ability to observe numerous generations in a single experiment. After all, understanding the complexity of aging is inherent to unlocking the mysteries of life itself.



The discovery that bacteria are not eternal beings, as once thought, but vulnerable to aging like all living organisms, signifies the interconnectedness of life at every level.



The concept of time, aging, and the decline in function straddle across the biological spectrum, making it possible to draw parallels between the simplest life forms and the most complex ones.



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Do bacteria age or are they immortal?

The term "aging" generally conjures up images of graying hair, slowing pace, and the eventual appearance of wrinkles. Yet, beyond these physical markers, aging is a fundamentally cellular and molecular process, even for organisms like bacteria, which also experience age-related changes. From humble single-celled organisms to complex mammalian systems, all living organisms experience the impact of passing time, according to a recent report from the American Society for Microbiology. As they age, cells accumulate damage that impairs function, leading to numerous age-related disorders in humans. But what...

Because of its distinctive coat of hard shells, the pangolin, or scaly anteater, has been called the world's most heavily trafficked mammal. More than 1 million have been poached in the past decade, threatening the creature with extinction, according to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature.
Although a global wildlife summit last week banned all trade of pangolins, doubts remain whether that will stop their illegal traffic in Africa fueled by growing demand from Asian consumers, particularly in China.
Commercial trade is now forbidden in all eight pangolin species, according to decisions made last week at the conference in Johannesburg of the Convention on Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, or CITES.
In Vietnam and some parts of China, pangolin meat is considered a delicacy, while its scales of keratin, the protein in fingernails and rhino horn, are widely used in traditional Chinese medicine. Demand for the two products is causing rampant poaching that is decimating the pangolin population in East and Central Africa.
The poaching discovered in Uganda and other African countries is only "the tip of the iceberg," said Anne-Marie Weeden, general manager at the Uganda Conservation Foundation. Poverty and lack of conservation awareness encourage poaching, as poor rural people do not see value in protecting animals that can be sold to traffickers for hundreds, even thousands, of dollars.
"People need to have a meaningful alternative source of income and have to benefit from the national parks they live next door to," Weeden said.
Traffickers from Kampala, Uganda's capital, usually drive from village to village to get whole pangolins or scales directly from the locals. The traffickers then sell them with a bigger margin to middlemen in Kampala or directly to Chinese buyers, who are connected to corrupt agents at airports and border points who turn a blind eye to their shipment of scales.
Recently, poachers could sell 1 kilogram of pangolin scales for about $45 to a middleman, who in turn could sell it for much more, between $73 and $100, to agents for Chinese buyers. Prices jump again once the scales reach Asia.
The scales account for about 20 percent of a pangolin's weight.
The illegal trade of pangolins is "booming," said Abel Ahabwe, head of investigations for the conservation network. "The problem is getting worse. One day you are coming up with one way to catch them, but they keep changing their methods."
In April, four men were caught trying to sell two live pangolins in Uganda's northern city of Kitgum for about $15,000. One was a local policeman, who was acquitted while the other three received a three-month prison sentence. Many traffickers are connected to the police or military forces, Ahabwe said.
The Uganda Wildlife Authority said it is aware of the problem. "We are moving in the right direction, with awareness, sensitization, and we think we will be able to deal with this," said Edgar Buhanga, its deputy director of planning. A new wildlife conservation law is being considered that will have stiffer penalties and prison sentences for traffickers.
However, Uganda's wildlife authority itself has come under fire for corruption, notably when 1.5 tons of ivory vanished from government storerooms in 2014. The authority's executive director was suspended and then reinstated a few months later.
Denis Odong, a ranger at Kidepo Valley National Park, close to South Sudan, has seen only one pangolin in his eight years of service.
"Pangolin scales are worth a lot on the market," he said. He is researching whether the park's policy of sharing its revenue with surrounding communities actually decreases poaching. Uganda's parks distribute 20 percent of their entrance fees to local communities.
Although he admitted to once having eaten pangolin meat at a restaurant a few years ago, Odong said he has changed his mind: "Pangolins need to be protected."
---
The International Women's Media Foundation supported Franchineau in her reporting in Uganda as part of its Africa Great Lakes Initiative.
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Meet the pangolin: The world's most trafficked mammal

Because of its distinctive coat of hard shells, the pangolin,...

The federal government is using a new assessment of mineral resources on 10 million acres in six Western states to decide whether to ban potential mining on the land to protect an imperiled bird.
Scientists completed the 800-page review that looked at areas with high numbers of sage grouse and high-quality habitat for the bird. The review, requested by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, was released Tuesday.
The BLM says the study will help it evaluate the economic and environmental trade-offs of withdrawing the public lands from mining in Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah and Wyoming for 20 years.
"The report is critical to give us an idea of what the potential is for development," said BLM spokesman Mark Mackiewicz.
The agency plans to release a draft environmental impact statement in December outlining possible alternatives.
Sage grouse are found in 11 Western states. About 200,000 to 500,000 remain, down from a peak population of about 16 million.
The proposed withdrawal of the lands - subject to an 1872 mining law meant to encourage development of Western land - is part of new U.S. policies announced in late 2015. At the same time, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said sage grouse didn't need federal protections under the Endangered Species Act, a decision that will be reviewed in about four years.
Under the 1872 mining law, federal officials don't have the discretion to deny mining claims. Withdrawing the 10 million acres from being subject to that law would allow BLM officials to block mining claims.
The 10 million acres are already under a temporary freeze from new mining claims while the BLM prepares the environmental impact statement. The freeze doesn't affect mining claims already in place.
The U.S. Geological Survey in preparing the report examined the potential mineral development in remaining sage grouse strongholds. The study found that in Wyoming, key sage grouse habitat sits atop bentonite.
The Wyoming Mining Association says bentonite has many uses, including drilling fluids and sealants, and that Wyoming is the nation's leading producer of it and cutting off access would harm the state.
"If that's the trajectory that this goes, we're absolutely going to oppose such a measure," said Travis Deti, the group's acting executive director. "We would certainly hope they would not use this as a tool to place more burdens on the mining industry in our state."
Ranchers and officials in Utah, Idaho and Nevada mounted legal challenges contending that sage grouse-related restrictions imposed on land use last year will impede economic development. Environmental groups have sued contending restrictions don't go far enough.
John Freemuth, a Boise State University professor and public lands expert, said the Geological Survey study could provide the scientific backing for whatever the BLM ultimately decides.
"You've got a trade-off between it being key habitat and it having some valuable resource," he said, "and they're going to have to figure out how to deal with that."
The publicly accessible study put together by more than 60 Geological Survey workers over about a year is expected to be a valuable resource for land managers. It will also be of interest to miners as it identifies potential mineral deposits.
"We've done all the heavy lifting of getting all the relevant data together in one easy-to-access package," said Larry Meinert, head of the USGS Mineral Resources Program. "That's a valuable resource for anybody."
© 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Learn more about our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

Feds weigh mineral mining ban to save the endangered sage grouse

The federal government is using a new assessment of mineral...

<div>In a comment in this week's science journal Nature, an international group of researchers from nine countries call for a grand challenges strategy to set global priorities for developing renewable energy.</div>
The authors argue that greenhouse gas emissions are not dropping fast enough to meet even the modest goals set out in last year's Paris Agreement on climate change. They call for a targeted, internationally coordinated effort to identify and solve the scientific, policy and economic challenges standing in the way of widespread adoption of renewable energy.

"Renewable energy ... is a difficult, urgent global problem that has been neglected in terms of public research and investment. It requires big thinking, multidisciplinary approaches and supportive policies to compete with existing systems. And it is tightly coupled to global challenges, such as food and water security, poverty and health," the authors write.

They suggest an approach modeled on the Grand Challenges in Global Health Initiative to combat neglected diseases, launched in 2005 by the Bill &amp; Melinda Gates Foundation, the Wellcome Trust, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Foundation for the US National Institutes of Health. The initiative identified 14 priority areas, including developing a genetic strategy to incapacitate insects that spread diseases such as yellow fever and Zika virus.

The authors suggest that national governments, funding partners, philanthropic foundations and other private-sector actors come together and appoint an international science board of distinguished researchers, policymakers, industry leaders and engaged citizens from developed and developing countries. The board would create a detailed list of renewable energy challenges in areas including energy harvesting and storage, smart grids and transmission, policy levers and economic models.

"Such a shared purpose ... would accommodate the many disciplines needed across the natural and social sciences, and galvanize the best investigators - regardless of country - to work together to help solve one of the world's most pressing problems," the authors conclude.

A copy of the commentary is available upon request. A complete list of signatories follows.

The comment, "Renewables need a grand-challenge strategy," will be published Thursday, Oct. 6 in Nature.
###
About CIFAR

CIFAR creates knowledge that is transforming our world. Established in 1982, the Institute brings together interdisciplinary groups of extraordinary researchers from around the globe to address questions and challenges of importance to the world. Our networks help support the growth of research leaders and are catalysts for change in business, government and society. CIFAR is generously supported by the governments of Canada, British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario and Quebec, Canadian and international partners, as well as individuals, foundations and corporations.

Contact:
Kurt Kleineer
Managing Editor
Canadian Institute for Advanced Research
<a href="mailto:kurt.kleiner@cifar.ca">kurt.kleiner@cifar.ca</a>
416-971-4257

List of authors and co-signatories:

Main authors:

Alan Bernstein, CIFAR President and CEO, Toronto, Canada;

Edward H. Sargent, CIFAR Senior Fellow and Director of the Bio-Inspired Solar Energy Program; and Edward S. Rogers Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada;

Alán Aspuru-Guzik, CIFAR Senior Fellow, Professor of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, USA;

Richard Cogdell, CIFAR Advisor, Hooker Professor of Botany, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK;

Graham R Fleming, Melvin Calvin Distinguished Professor of Chemistry, Kavli Energy Nanoscience Institute, UC Berkeley, Molecular Biophysics and Integrated Bio-imaging Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, USA;

Rienk Van Grondelle, CIFAR Senior Fellow, Professor of Biophysics, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands;

Mario Molina, Professor, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California, San Diego and President, Mario Molina Centre for Strategic Studies on Energy and the Environment, Mexico.

Co-signatories:

Curtis P. Berlinguette, CIFAR Senior Fellow, Professor of Chemistry and Chemical &amp; Biological Engineering, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada;

Fekadu Beyene, President, Ethiopian Civil Service University, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia;

Kanzunari Domen, Professor of Chemical Systems Engineering, School of Engineering, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan;

Shaffiq Jaffer, VP Corporate Science and Technology Projects, TOTAL American Services, Inc. Boston, USA;

Can Li, Professor, State Key Laboratory of Catalysis, Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences; Director, Dalian National Laboratory for Clean Energy, Dalian, China;

Gregory D. Scholes, CIFAR Senior Fellow, William S. Tod Professor of Chemistry, Princeton University, Princeton, USA;

Vivian Wing-Wah YAM, Professor of Chemistry, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong.

Researchers call for global grand challenge to develop renewable energy

In a comment in this week's science journal Nature, an...

<div>New research from <a href="http://www.ncsu.edu" target="_blank" rel="noopener">North Carolina State University</a> finds that urban warming reduces growth and photosynthesis in city trees. The researchers found that insect pests are part of the problem, but that heat itself plays a more significant role.</div>
<div>

"Earlier studies have shown that urban warming increases pest abundance in street trees," says Emily Meineke, lead author of a paper describing the work. "We wanted to know how urban warming and pest abundance affect tree growth, since trees pull carbon out of the atmosphere and convert it into biomass. This is important, because we know that high levels of atmospheric carbon play a role in climate change." Meineke did the work while a Ph.D. student at NC State. She is now a postdoctoral researcher at Harvard.

To explore this issue, researchers went to 20 pairs of willow oak trees (Quercus phellos) across Raleigh, North Carolina. At each site, one tree was treated with an oil that kills insect pests, and the second tree was left untreated. The sites were located across a variety of different urban temperatures, and air temperature was monitored at each site over the course of the experiment.

The researchers tracked the growth of all 40 trees for two years. Growth was assessed in two ways: by measuring the circumference of each tree's trunk, and by measuring how much specific branches grew on each tree. The researchers also measured each tree's photosynthesis, which is how trees capture carbon from the atmosphere and is a key marker of tree health.

The researchers found that scale insects and spider mites - well known tree pests - were more abundant at hotter sites. Specifically, they found that spider mite populations more than doubled when a site's average temperature crossed a threshold of 16.4 degrees Celsius (61.5 degrees Fahrenheit). Scale insects, however, showed a linear relationship with temperature. In other words, the hotter it got, the more scale insects there were.

The researchers also found that warming negatively affected tree photosynthesis and growth, regardless of whether pests were present.

"Trees that didn't have pests had more branch growth than trees with pests," Meineke says. "But trees at warmer sites had less trunk growth, which accounts for more tree biomass, regardless of pests."

The researchers then plugged these results into a model to determine the extent to which urban warming impacted carbon storage for all of the willow oaks in Raleigh.

"We found that urban warming reduced carbon storage by all of Raleigh's willow oaks by 12 percent, or 27 metric tons per year," Meineke says.

"We think the findings are generalizable to other tree species and other cities, especially hotter cities like Atlanta, but additional work needs to be done to determine whether that's the case," Meineke says.
###
The paper, "Urban warming reduces aboveground carbon storage," is published in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B. The paper was co-authored by Elsa Youngsteadt, an entomology research associate at NC State; Rob Dunn, a professor of applied ecology at NC State; and Steve Frank, an associate professor of entomology and plant pathology at NC State. The work was supported by the Department of the Interior's Southeast Climate Science Center, under cooperative agreement numbers G11AC20471, G13AC00405 and G15AP00153; by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture, under grant number 2013-02476; and by the National Science Foundation under grants 0953390 and 1136703.

</div>

Urban warming slows tree growth and photosynthesis

New research from North Carolina State University finds that urban...

<div>Over 1 million dams exist worldwide. These structures have numerous environmental effects, and there is no shortage of research on the various ecological consequences of dams. However, the bulk of the research effort has been narrowly focused on river ecosystems. Writing in <a href="http://bioscience.oxfordjournals.org/lookup/doi/10.1093/biosci/biw117" target="_blank" rel="noopener">BioScience</a>, Bridget R. Deemer of the School of the Environment at Washington State University Vancouver and an international team of researchers elucidate another major threat: the release of greenhouse gases from reservoirs.</div>
<div>

Researchers first raised the possibility that dam-created reservoirs might significantly contribute to climate change some 16 years ago, but since then, efforts to pinpoint the severity of the effect have been hampered by a lack of data and inconsistent measurement techniques. Deemer and her colleagues embarked on a systematic effort to synthesize reservoir data, with three goals in mind: "(1) to generate a global estimate of greenhouse gas emissions from reservoirs, (2) to identify the best predictors of these emissions, and (3) to consider the effect of methodology on emission estimates."

Their results were striking. The authors estimate a yearly release of 0.8 gigaton of carbon dioxide equivalent from reservoirs. This amounts to 1.3% of total human-caused greenhouse gas releases--a quantity that Deemer and her colleagues argue should be included in global inventories of human-caused greenhouse gas emissions. Furthermore, the authors caution: "with the current boom in global dam construction, reservoirs will represent an even larger fraction of anthropogenic carbon dioxide equivalent emissions in the coming years."

Although it is unlikely that dam construction will soon abate, the authors point to possible ways to alleviate greenhouse gas releases. For instance, by siting dams upstream of large inputs of pollution, managers may be able to create reservoirs with lower emissions. According to the authors, such careful siting of new reservoirs, in combination with better management of existing ones, "may help balance the positive ecosystem services that reservoirs provide against the greenhouse gas emission costs."
###
BioScience, published monthly by Oxford Journals, is the journal of the American Institute of Biological Sciences (AIBS). BioScience is a forum for integrating the life sciences that publishes commentary and peer-reviewed articles. The journal has been published since 1964. AIBS is a meta-level organization for professional scientific societies and organizations that are involved with biology. It represents nearly 160 member societies and organizations. Follow BioScience on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/BioScienceAIBS">@BioScienceAIBS</a>.

Oxford Journals is a division of Oxford University Press. Oxford Journals publishes well over 300 academic and research journals covering a broad range of subject areas, two-thirds of which are published in collaboration with learned societies and other international organizations. The division been publishing journals for more than a century, and as part of the world's oldest and largest university press, has more than 500 years of publishing expertise behind it. Follow Oxford Journals on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/OxfordJournals">@OxfordJournals</a>.

</div>

Reservoirs are a major source of greenhouse gases

Over 1 million dams exist worldwide. These structures have numerous...

Experts are hoping to stop the world's favorite fruit, the banana, from disappearing from our shops.

Fungal disease and rising costs of production threaten the supply of the most important fruit crop in the world. More than five billion bananas are purchased in Britain each year, and the UK accounts for seven per cent of the global export market.

Biologists and economists will work together to develop solutions to save banana crops from disease and help retailers cope with the impact of increased costs.

Panama disease, which kills banana plants, is spreading around the world thanks to increased trade and transport links between nations. If it spreads to more banana-producing nations there is a risk of shortages for retailers and consumers, and devastation for the millions of plantation workers, small-scale producers and their families whose livelihoods depend on the global banana trade.

Only one variety of banana, Cavendish, is internationally traded. A previous variety grown for export, Gros Michel, was eliminated by Panama disease in the 1950s. Now a new strain of the disease is spreading from Asia and threatens the production of Cavendish. If it reaches Latin America and the Caribbean supply to the EU and US could collapse. There are no alternative varieties of banana available as yet for international trade.

Biologists and economists from the University of Exeter, University of Oxford, UN Food and Agriculture Organization, the NGO BananaLink, and consultancy 3Keel will work to assess the risk of “bananageddon”. They will calculate the shortages of the fruit the public and retailers can expect, the impact of climate change and disease on banana yield and supply.

Members of the research team will also undertake work to examine how to help banana plants resist fungal disease. They will work with retailers to develop new economic models of pricing bananas and examine how consumers will respond to changes in price. They will also work with public health bodies to examine the impact on people’s diets if bananas were less readily available.

The three-year project, which begins this month, has been given £1.2m of funding by partners including the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBRSC).

Dr Dan Bebber, who is leading the study, said: “We want to estimate the impact of the various biological and economic shocks on the cards for banana production, and develop strategies to reduce the impact of diseases and climate change on production.

“We believe there would be public health implications if bananas became more expensive, as people might switch to less healthy snacks, along with serious economic impacts on producers in the developing world.”

Dr Adam Staines, from the BBSRC, said: “The threat of crop diseases and the potential for one disease to wipe out an entire crop supply chain is ever increasing with globalisation, changing climates, resistance to antimicrobial agents, and reliance on a more narrow diversity of crops; and as such addressing crop diseases are a key priority area for BBSRC and the other funding partners.

“Bananas are an excellent source of nutrition for the UK and globally, and an economically important crop in many countries. By using a truly multi-disciplinary approach, this research will provide an understanding of future disease threats, work on potential new anti-fungalagents to stop these diseases, and understand the socio-economic context of disease outbreaks.”

---

<a href="http://www.exeter.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">University of Exeter</a>

Saving the planet from 'bananageddon'

Experts are hoping to stop the world's favorite fruit, the banana,...

Some of the most iconic giants of the animal kingdom, such as the imperious African elephant and the majestic lion, are most vulnerable to the detrimental impact of human expansion, new research has shown.

A team of scientists, led by Lewis Bartlett from the University of Exeter, have studied the alarming extent changes to the natural environment - through activities such as farming, expansion and climate change - have on the local ecosystem.

In particular, the team studied the influence that habitat loss and fragmentation – where once great swathes of land are broken into smaller, isolated patches - can have on native wildlife.

They discovered that larger animals, such as the elephant, are more vulnerable to changes to their natural surroundings – and so be most exposed to the threat of extinction.

The research team believe the pivotal new study, which is published in the highly respected journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B, could help conservationists and scientists more accurately predict the effect that human activity will have on the natural world.

Lewis Bartlett, lead author of the paper from the Centre of Ecology and Conservation at the University of Exeter’s Penryn Campus, Cornwall said: “At a time when some of our biggest and most iconic animals are facing multiple routes to extinction, every new piece of information helps. By using computer simulations – with the help of Microsoft Research’s supercomputer cluster – we’ve shown that these biggest animals are the ones most threatened by habitat loss and fragmentation”.

The team of scientists use the world-leading ‘Madingley Model’ – which can simulate all life on Earth on land and oceans – to conduct their study, focusing on a large area of the broad Kenyan plains.

The team divided the area into a series of 100 small grid sections, and studied how the area and its wildlife reacted to localised changes to the vegetation levels – for example through effects like wildfire, human expansion or over grazing.

They discovered that habitat fragmentation , caused when small ‘patches’ of vegetation are removed rather than one, larger section, has an alarmingly detrimental effect on the ability of larger animals to survive.

Furthermore, the effects of fragmentation are magnified when experienced in conjunction with a greater intensity of land change use through human activity – which in turn leads to more changes to the ecosystem.

The research team suggest that studying ecosystems across a wide expansive area, rather than individually, enables scientists to better predict the expected outcomes of such vegetation changes.

Furthermore, they believe that analyses such as this can help scientists predict what will happen if humans pursue particular activities in localised areas – and also help identify the threshold at which ecosystems would not be able to recover.

Lewis added: “We hope that being able to forecast how to meet demands for more land and space, whilst minimising the impact to ecosystems, will help achieve the best outcomes for nature and people.”

---

<a href="http://www.exeter.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">University of Exeter</a>

Large animals are most vulnerable to human expansion

Some of the most iconic giants of the animal kingdom,...

<div>A popular recreational and commercial fish - the native walleye - is at risk of disappearing as invasions of the competitive, predatory smallmouth bass move into Ontario lakes, a new study from York University has found.</div>
<div>

Walleye fish populations are diminishing as climate change warms the waters allowing smallmouth bass to move into more northern Ontario lakes, competing for similar food resources and adding walleye young to their menu choices. Smallmouth bass prefer warmer water and the colder northern lakes were historically a deterrent, but that's changing.

The findings by biology Professor Sapna Sharma in York U's Faculty of Science and Thomas Van Zuiden, a recent Master's degree graduate of Sharma's who is now a data manager and statistical analyst in her lab, have important implications. As climate change facilitates smallmouth bass invasions, fisheries in the Great Lakes region are at greater risk of collapse.

"Walleye play an important role in lake-ecosystem dynamics as top predators, and are also popular angling targets for commercial and recreational fisheries," said Van Zuiden. "Climate change poses a serious threat to their survival in Ontario lakes, and our study shows that the invasion of smallmouth bass is exacerbating the problem."

Analyzing data from 722 lakes in Ontario, Van Zuiden and Sharma found that smallmouth bass prefer different environmental conditions than walleye. However, when walleye and smallmouth bass are in the same lakes, there are three times fewer walleye. Under future scenarios of climate change, the researchers predict that the co-occurrence of the two fish species may increase as much as 332 per cent by the year 2070, increasing the vulnerability of walleye populations across the province.

"The future is looking dim for walleye in Ontario lakes under climate change because of both habitat loss and competition from invading smallmouth bass," says Sharma. "As climate change continues to facilitate smallmouth bass invasions into new lakes, Canada's native fisheries, such as walleye and lake trout, are at greater risk of collapse. Our study illustrates the importance of including multiple environmental stressors in statistical models when attempting to understand changes in biodiversity."
###
The study, "Examining the effects of climate change and species invasions on Ontario walleye populations: can walleye beat the heat," is published in the October print edition of the journal Diversity and Distributions.

York University is known for championing new ways of thinking that drive teaching and research excellence. Our students receive the education they need to create big ideas that make an impact on the world. Meaningful and sometimes unexpected careers result from cross-discipline programming, innovative course design and diverse experiential learning opportunities. York students and graduates push limits, achieve goals and find solutions to the world's most pressing social challenges, empowered by a strong community that opens minds. York U is an internationally recognized research university - our 11 faculties and 26 research centres have partnerships with 200+ leading universities worldwide. Located in Toronto, York is the third largest university in Canada, with a strong community of 53,000 students, 7,000 faculty and administrative staff, and more than 295,000 alumni.

</div>

Climate change and species invasions are decimating walleye populations

A popular recreational and commercial fish - the native walleye...

Oceans might not be thought of as magnetic, but they make a tiny contribution to our planet’s protective magnetic shield. Remarkably, ESA’s Swarm satellites have not only measured this extremely faint field, but have also led to new discoveries about the electrical nature of inner Earth.

The magnetic field shields us from cosmic radiation and charged particles that bombard Earth from the Sun. Without it, the atmosphere as we know it would not exist, rendering life virtually impossible.

Scientists need to learn more about our protective field to understand many natural processes, from those occurring deep inside the planet, to weather in space caused by solar activity. This information will then yield a better understanding of why Earth’s magnetic field is weakening.

Although we know that the magnetic field originates in different parts of Earth and that each source generates magnetism of different strengths, exactly how it is generated and why it changes is not fully understood.

This is why, in 2013, ESA launched its trio of Swarm satellites.

While the mission is already shedding new light on how the field is changing, this latest result focuses on the most elusive source of magnetism: ocean tides.

When salty ocean water flows through the magnetic field, an electric current is generated and this, in turn, induces a magnetic response in the deep region below Earth’s crust – the mantle. Because this response is such a small portion of the overall field, it was always going to be a challenge to measure it from space.

[caption id="attachment_88511" align="alignleft" width="150"]<img class="size-thumbnail wp-image-88511" src="http://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Magnetic_field_sources_1big_esa-150x150.jpg" alt="Sources of Earth's magnetic field" width="150" height="150" /> Sources of Earth's magnetic field[/caption]

Last year, scientists from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, ETH Zurich, showed that if it could be measured from space – never done before – it should also tell us something about Earth’s interior. However, this all remained a theory – until now.

Thanks to Swarm’s precise measurements along with those from Champ – a mission that ended in 2010 after measuring Earth’s gravity and magnetic fields for more than 10 years – scientists have not only been able to find the magnetic field generated by ocean tides but, remarkably, they have used this new information to image the electrical nature of Earth’s upper mantle 250 km below the ocean floor.

Alexander Grayver, from ETH Zurich, said, “The Swarm and Champ satellites have allowed us to distinguish between the rigid ocean ‘lithosphere’ and the more pliable ‘asthenosphere’ underneath.”

The lithosphere is the rigid outer part of the earth, consisting of the crust and upper mantle, while the asthenosphere lies just below the lithosphere and is hotter and more fluid than the lithosphere.

“Effectively, ‘geo-electric sounding from space’, this result is a first for space exploration,” he continues.

“These new results are important for understanding plate tectonics, the theory of which argues that Earth’s lithosphere consists of rigid plates that glide on the hotter and less rigid asthenosphere that serves as a lubricant, enabling plate motion.”

Roger Haagmans, ESA’s Swarm mission scientist, explained, “It’s astonishing that the team has been able to use just two years’ worth of measurements from Swarm to determine the magnetic tidal effect from the ocean and to see how conductivity changes in the lithosphere and upper mantle.

“Their work shows that down to about 350 km below the surface, the degree to which material conducts electric currents is related to composition.

“In addition, their analysis shows a clear dependence on the tectonic setting of the ocean plate. These new results also indicate that, in the future, we could get a full 3D view of conductivity below the ocean.”

Rune Floberghagen, ESA’s Swarm mission manager, added, “We have very few ways of probing deep into the structure of our planet, but Swarm is making extremely valuable contributions to understanding Earth’s interior, which then adds to our knowledge of how Earth works as a whole system.”

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<a href="http://www.esa.int" target="_blank" rel="noopener">European Space Agency</a>

Oceans contribute to Earth's magnetic shield

Oceans might not be thought of as magnetic, but they...

Several 80-million-year-old fossils found in Alabama are from a species of sea turtle that is the oldest known member of the lineage that gave rise to all modern species of sea turtles, according to new research from the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

Researchers from the College of Arts and Sciences’ Department of Biology worked with two relatively complete turtle skeletons, along with several smaller pieces, that are housed at Birmingham’s McWane Science Center, to unearth the evolutionary clues tying the ancient turtles to modern sea turtles, and confirm the existence of that ancient species, previously known only from a few isolated fragments.

The McWane fossils help solve a long-standing debate as to whether this animal was a unique species. They also provide insights into the evolutionary history of living species of sea turtles, including the Kemp’s Ridley, Loggerhead and the endangered Green sea turtle.

According to research published in the Journal of Systematic Palaeontology, the fossils belong to Ctenochelys (tee-no-key-lees) acris, a marine-adapted turtle that lived in the shallow, subtropical sea that once covered most of Alabama. By dating the rock formation from which these fossils were recovered, C. acris is presumed to have lived more than 80 million years ago, during the Late Cretaceous, a period of time when sea turtle diversity was at an all-time high.

“Climatic warming during the mid-Cretaceous resulted in elevated sea levels and temperatures that, in turn, provided an abundance of new niches for marine turtles to invade,” said Drew Gentry, a UAB biology doctoral student and the lead researcher on the project. “Represented today by only seven living species, sea turtles were once one of the most diverse lineages of marine reptiles. Before the cataclysm that claimed the dinosaurs, there may have been dozens of specialized species of sea turtle living in different oceanic habitats around the world.”

[caption id="attachment_88493" align="alignleft" width="150"]<img class="size-thumbnail wp-image-88493" src="http://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/sea-turtle-Ctenochelys-acris-illustration_1big_UAB-150x150.jpg" alt="Silhouette of Ctenochelys acris" width="150" height="150" /> Silhouette of Ctenochelys acris[/caption]

Before this research, so little fossil evidence for C. acris had been documented that most paleontologists doubted the species was real. Not only do the newly discovered fossils prove C. acris existed, they may also be a critical piece in a much larger puzzle of sea turtle evolution.

“There is strong evidence which indicates freshwater turtles may have evolved to occupy marine environments at several points in the past,” Gentry said. “But most of those lineages went extinct, making the exact origins of living or ‘true’ sea turtles somewhat of a mystery.”

Evidence gathered from the fossils of C. acris suggests the earliest ancestors of modern sea turtles may have come from the Deep South. By comparing the skeleton of C. acris with those of both extinct and living species of turtles, Gentry discovered that C. acris possessed traits of both sea turtles and their closest living turtle relatives, snapping turtles.

“This animal was a bottom-dwelling sea turtle that fed primarily on mollusks and small invertebrates,” he said. “Unlike the ‘rudder-like’ hind-limbs of today’s sea turtles, C. acris had large, powerful hind-limbs to help push it through the water, a lot like a modern-day snapping turtle.

“Data from C. acris tell us not only that marine turtles are capable of occupying specialized oceanic niches, but also that many of the sea turtles we know today may have gotten their evolutionary start as something similar to an oversized snapping turtle in what eventually became the southeastern United States.”

Studying the diversity and evolutionary history of sea turtles during previous periods of climate change can provide meaningful insights into what effects climate and environmental changes might have on modern marine turtle populations.

“An important, yet often overlooked, aspect of sea turtle research is their evolutionary history,” Gentry said. “By analyzing the remains of fossil species, we can begin to understand the origins of these animals and how they’ve adapted to different environments over time.”

The fossils that led to this research were discovered in 1986 and contributed to what was then the Red Mountain Museum. The McWane Science Center was founded in 1998 by the merger of the Red Mountain Museum and a nearby children’s museum, Discovery Place.

The paleontological and archaeological collection at McWane is one of the largest in the southeastern U.S. and houses a number of significant finds from across Alabama, including the recently announced Eotrachodon, a type of duck-billed dinosaur.

“We are always making discoveries from the specimens housed at McWane that give us new respect for the individuals who contributed to this collection,” Gentry said.

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<a href="http://www.uab.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">UAB</a>

Sea turtles originated in the United States

Several 80-million-year-old fossils found in Alabama are from a species...

<div>
<div class="img-wrapper">The ocean circulation that is responsible for England's mild climate appears to be slowing down. The shift is not sudden or dramatic, as in the 2004 sci-fi movie "The Day After Tomorrow," but it is a real effect that has consequences for the climates of eastern North America and Western Europe.</div>
Also unlike in that movie, and in theories of long-term climate change, these recent trends are not connected with the melting of the Arctic sea ice and buildup of freshwater near the North Pole. Instead, they seem to be connected to shifts at the southern end of the planet, according to a recent <a href="http://www.washington.edu" target="_blank" rel="noopener">University of Washington</a> study in the journal Geophysical Research Letters.

"It doesn't work like in the movie, of course," said Kathryn Kelly, an oceanographer at the UW's Applied Physics Laboratory. "The slowdown is actually happening very gradually, but it seems to be happening like predicted: It does seem to be spinning down."

The study looked at data from satellites and ocean sensors off Miami that have tracked what's known as the Atlantic overturning circulation for more than a decade. Together they show a definite slowdown since 2004, confirming a trend suspected before then from spottier data.

Looking at other observations to determine the cause, the researchers ruled out what had been the prime suspect until now: that massive melting and freshening in the North Atlantic could stop water from sinking and put the brakes on the overturning circulation, which moves warmer water north along the ocean's surface and sends cold water southward at depths.

"It appears that this 10-year slowdown is not related to salinity," Kelly said. In fact, despite more ice melt, surface water in the Arctic is getting saltier and therefore denser, she said, because of less precipitation. "That means the slowdown could not possibly be due to salinity -- it's just backwards. The North Atlantic has actually been getting saltier."

Instead, the authors saw a surprising connection with a current around the southern tip of South Africa. In what's known as the Agulhas Current, warm Indian Ocean water flows south along the African coast and around the continent's tip toward the Atlantic, but then makes a sharp turn back to join the stormy southern circumpolar current. Warm water that escapes into the Atlantic around the cape of South Africa is known as the Agulhas Leakage. The new research shows the amount of leakage changes with the quantity of heat transported northward by the overturning circulation.

"We've found that the two are connected, but I don't think we've found that one causes the other," Kelly said. "It's more likely that whatever changed the Agulhas changed the whole system."

She believes atmospheric changes may be affecting both currents simultaneously.

"Most people have thought this current should be driven by a salinity change, but maybe it's the [Southern Ocean] winds," Kelly said.

The finding could have implications for northern European and eastern U.S. climates, and for understanding how the world's oceans carry heat from the tropics toward the poles.

"I think it changes how we think about the whole Atlantic overturning circulation, of which the Gulf Stream is a part," said co-author LuAnne Thompson, a UW professor of oceanography. "It brings back the role of the atmosphere into what's controlling the climate in the high latitudes, that it's not all driven by what's happening in the oceans."

And while a slowdown of the Gulf Stream and broader overturning circulation, for whatever reason, would bring less warm water to eastern North America and Western Europe, any effects are overwhelmed by the overall warming due to global climate change.

"So that whole concept in the movie of New York harbor freezing doesn't make any sense," Kelly said. "If the Gulf Stream doesn't carry as much heat from the tropics, it just means that the North Atlantic is not going to warm up as fast as the rest of the ocean -- it's not going to cool down."
###
The study was funded by NASA and the U.K.'s Natural Environment Research Council. Other co-authors are Kyla Drushka at the UW Applied Physics Laboratory, Dewi Le Bars at the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute and Elaine McDonagh at the U.K.'s University of Southampton.

&nbsp;

</div>
<div></div>

Ocean circulation in the Atlantic is slowing down

The ocean circulation that is responsible for England's mild climate...

<div>
<div class="img-wrapper">Vertical wind shear has the ability to tear a tropical cyclone apart, but recently formed Tropical Storm Nicole in the western Atlantic Ocean is holding fast to its strength despite being battered by wind shear. The wind shear is being caused by the outflow of Hurricane Matthew that moved over western Haiti on Oct. 4 and was moving toward the Bahamas on Oct. 5.</div>
Nicole formed at 11 a.m. EDT on Oct. 4 and westerly vertical wind shear was already battering the storm at 1 p.m. EDT (17:00 UTC) when NASA's Aqua satellite passed over the western Atlantic Ocean. The visible-light image from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectoradiometer or MODIS instrument aboard Aqua saw the bulk of Nicole's clouds were being pushed to the east of the center.

On Oct. 5, Forecaster Cangialosi of the National Hurricane Center (NHC) noted "Nicole continues to hold its strength despite strong wind shear. Satellite images show a rather robust circulation, with a small area of deep convection near the center and a larger band to the east of the center."

At 5 a.m. EDT (0900 UTC), the center of Tropical Storm Nicole was located near 24.3 degrees north latitude and 61.8 degrees west longitude. That's about 490 miles (790 km) north-northeast of San Juan, Puerto Rico. It was moving to the west-northwest near 6 mph (9 kph). A turn toward the northwest is expected later today, followed by a turn toward the north by late Thursday.

Maximum sustained winds remain near 50 mph (85 kph) with higher gusts. Little change in strength is forecast during the next 48 hours. Tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 70 miles (110 km) east of the center. The estimated minimum central pressure is 1005 millibars.

The NHC forecast noted that Nicole is expected to remain in strong wind shear conditions caused by the outflow of Hurricane Matthew during the next few days, which should prevent the storm from strengthening. After that time, Nicole is expected to interact with a mid- to upper-level low pressure area and could acquire some subtropical cyclone characteristics over the weekend of Oct. 8 and 9.

--

<a href="http://www.nasa.gov" target="_blank" rel="noopener">NASA</a>


</div>
<div></div>

Tropical Storm Nicole seen holding fast in the Atlantic

Vertical wind shear has the ability to tear a tropical...

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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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

Nushagak Bay in southwest Alaska

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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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



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

Flu viruses are more flexible than expected

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

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



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



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



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



Video/Image Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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

Lake Trasimeno in Central Italy

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



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



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



Video Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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



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

Detecting mercury contamination with the tap of a finger

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

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Kainji Lake, a reservoir on the Niger River.



In 1968, Kainji Lake was created by the construction of the Kainji Dam. The Niger River, the third longest in Africa, enters the lake in the north.&nbsp;



According to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/rivers-in-the-american-west-are-a-lifesaving-resource-for-birds/">ESA</a>, the creation of the lake submerged Foge Island and the town of Bussa and permanently flooded other riverine settlements, leaving around 50,000 people displaced.&nbsp;



Large parts of Foge Island are temporarily exposed during low water tides, and the land is often used by migrating fishermen. Kainji Dam is a dam across the Niger River in Niger State of Central Nigeria. 



Wild mammals occur at relatively low densities due to illegal hunting. Lake Kainji has suffered a dramatic decline as a fishery due to the high numbers of artisanal and subsistence fisherfolk using the lake. It has been suggested that a period of closure, together with controlled fishing rights may help improve fish stocks.



Kainji Lake National Park is the oldest of its kind in Nigeria. The park contains three distinct areas: a part of the Kainji Lake, the Borgu Game Reserve to the west of the lake, and the Zugurma Game Reserve to the southeast. The park is home to around 65 mammal species, 350 bird species, and 30 species of reptiles and amphibians. 



Video/ Image Credit: European Space Agency&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.

Kainji Lake in north central Nigeria

[sendtonews key="iuA5mpp3jv-1641775-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.igb.illinois.edu/">Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology</a> reveals how scientists can modify common crops like soybean, rice, and wheat to protect them from heat stress.



“We need to double crop production by 2050 to feed a growing global population, and not only are we not on track to do that, but climate change is further complicating things,” said Amanda Cavanagh, a lecturer at the University of Essex. 



The study is part of Realizing Increased Photosynthetic Efficiency (RIPE), an international research project that aims to develop food crops that turn the sun’s energy into food more efficiently.



“Using an engineering approach we designed multiple alternative metabolic pathways to photorespiration. Testing them in the field showed increases in productivity which led Amanda to significantly move the project forward by showing our engineered plants can withstand pretty extreme temperature stress,” said study co-author and RIPE researcher Paul South.&nbsp;



“As the climate changes and temperature stresses increase the pressure on our global food supply, farmers will need every tool available including engineering approaches like the synthetic biology used here to maintain safe and productive harvests.”



The experts tested plants modified to have more efficient photorespiration to see if they were better adapted to warmer temperatures.&nbsp;



The team found that the engineered plants produced 26 percent more biomass than the wild-type plants exposed to the same temperatures, and had 15 percent less yield loss under the higher temperatures.



Video Credit: Amanda Nguyen/University of Illinois



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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.

Designing crops that can beat the heat

[sendtonews key="QGPzYnXEtN-1712599-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from Carl...

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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

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: Johns Hopkins&nbsp;



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



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

Interactive map of the universe includes 200,000 galaxies

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

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Today's Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes the first comprehensive estimate of carbon density in the Saharan, Sahel, and Sudanian zones of Africa. In an effort to measure the amount of carbon stored across these drylands, a team of scientists used high-resolution satellite images and artificial intelligence to map nearly 10 billion individual trees. 



"The high spatial resolution (50 cm) combined with AI and field measurements used in this study is key to improving tree inventories in drylands," said Pierre Hiernaux, a French researcher working for NASA. "The ever-increasing availability of very high-resolution satellite imagery will make it possible to assess carbon pools and their dynamics at the individual tree level on a global scale."



"This study is exceptional because it is pioneering a type of approach that will revolutionize the monitoring of trees and forests on a global scale: in the short term, it will be possible to map the world's trees from the centre of the Amazon to our schoolyards," said <a href="https://www.inrae.fr/en">INRAE</a> researcher Jean-Pierre Wigneron.



"Many fields of application will become much more efficient and accurate, such as tracking carbon stocks, biodiversity, monitoring logging and protection against illegal forest degradation, in near real time.”



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&nbsp;



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



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Remote sensing will revolutionize the way we monitor trees

[sendtonews key="EjmSP20gQK-2593093-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from NASA...

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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



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The city of Dublin on Ireland's east coast

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



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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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



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

The province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain

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Today's Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> features a visual dataset of.methane emissions from wetlands across the globe. Atmospheric methane levels have reached record highs in recent years, and wetlands are a major source of these emissions.&nbsp;



"Methane is an important greenhouse gas that contributes substantially to global warming. On a molecule by molecule basis, methane is much more efficient at trapping heat than carbon dioxide, the main driver of warming," says NASA.



"Though human activities, including agriculture, oil and natural gas production and use, and waste disposal, collectively contribute the majority of methane to the atmosphere, about a third of total methane emissions comes from wetlands."&nbsp;



According to NASA, understanding methane emissions from wetlands and other natural sources is critically important for scientists and policymakers who are working to combat climate change by reducing emissions from human activities.



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



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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.

Wetlands are a major source of methane emissions

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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

The rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video &amp; Image Credit: ESA



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



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

The Pyrenees Mountains in southwest Europe

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.stowers.org/">Stowers Institute for Medical Research</a> describes why experts are studying zebrafish to gain a better understanding of how the immune system responds to injury. Zebrafish have the ability to repair and regenerate organs.



“Organ regeneration offers an exciting opportunity for studying the immune system and to inquire why some species can regenerate organs like the heart or missing limbs while others like humans cannot,” explained Dr. Tatjana Piotrowski.



Zebrafish sensory organ hair cells are an ideal system to investigate the pathways and cell types involved in regeneration since they are easily destroyed with antibiotics and begin regenerating within five hours. This enabled the researchers to identify the exact timing and genetic programs for each anti-inflammatory macrophage activation state.&nbsp;



“Our hypothesis is that human macrophages do not receive the proper chemical activation 'cocktail' to instruct pro-regenerative processes,” said Dr. Nicolas Denans. “Identifying the molecular recipe of macrophage activation in zebrafish may one day enable us to design regenerative immunotherapies in humans.”&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;



“The new evidence is a valuable resource for comparative studies on the genetic programs involved in macrophage-mediated repair and regeneration. In other words, different types of injuries may induce different kinds of inflammatory responses. We want to decipher whether this 'language' is universal or if there are a variety of dialects."



Video Credit: Stowers Institute for Medical Research&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.

How the immune system responds to injury

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Today's Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes how record-breaking heat expressed itself around the world in 2022.



Scientists have determined that 2022 was the 5th warmest year since 1880. Furthermore, the last nine consecutive years have been the warmest on record.



From devastating floods and wildfires to natural disasters like Hurricane Ian, 2022 showed us yet again how a warming climate affects people across the globe.&nbsp;



"As we look back at 20:22 and years past, we see that each year we better understand the challenges we face and how important it is to meet them," says NASA.



Video/ Image Credit: NASA Goddard



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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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2022 illustrated the consequences of a warming climate

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Earth,Like,Exoplanet,3d,Render

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



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



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



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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

[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...