ScienceDaily: Top Environment News

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• Tenth of quirky creature's active genes are foreign: Believed to 'ingest' DNA from other simple organisms
• How insects domesticate bacteria to live symbiotically: Symbiotic microbes' origin discovered after man impales hand on branch
• NASA rover providing new weather and radiation data about Mars
• Scientists improve dating of early human settlement
• New way for antibiotic resistance to spread
• Archaeologists identify oldest spear points: Used in hunting half-million years ago
• Key to super-sensory hearing? Newly identified hearing organ in bushcrickets' ears may inspire acoustic sensors
• How bacteria inactivate immune defenses
• Airborne particles smuggle pollutants to far reaches of globe
• America's ancient hurricane belt and the U.S.-Canada equator
• Tracking brain gene response to territorial aggression
• Streams show signs of degradation at earliest stages of urban development
• Saving salmon from deadly sea lice
• Protein-making machinery can switch gears with a small structural change process; Implications for immunity and cancer therapy
• Tapping into carbon dioxide storage potential of mine waste
• At least one-third of marine species remain undescribed
• Researchers use GPS tracking to monitor crab behaviour
• Meteorites reveal warm water existed on Mars
• Ingredient in diarrhea medicine leads to sustainable new farm fertilizer
• Nanoparticles pose greater danger to small animals than previously thought, water flea study suggests

Tenth of quirky creature's active genes are foreign: Believed to 'ingest' DNA from other simple organisms Posted: 15 Nov 2012 02:20 PM PST Up to 10 percent of the active genes of an organism that has survived 80 million years without sex are foreign, a new study reveals. The asexual organism, the bdelloid rotifer, has acquired a tenth of its active genes from bacteria and other simple organisms like fungi and algae.

How insects domesticate bacteria to live symbiotically: Symbiotic microbes' origin discovered after man impales hand on branch Posted: 15 Nov 2012 02:13 PM PST Two years ago, a 71-year-old Indiana man impaled his hand on a branch after cutting down a dead crab apple tree, causing an infection that led scientists to discover a new bacterium and solve a mystery about how bacteria came to live inside insects.

NASA rover providing new weather and radiation data about Mars Posted: 15 Nov 2012 01:48 PM PST Observations of wind patterns and natural radiation patterns on Mars by NASA's Curiosity rover are helping scientists better understand the environment on the Red Planet's surface.

Scientists improve dating of early human settlement Posted: 15 Nov 2012 01:28 PM PST Archaeologists have significantly narrowed down the time frame during which the last major chapter in human colonization, the Polynesian triangle, occurred.

New way for antibiotic resistance to spread Posted: 15 Nov 2012 11:18 AM PST Researchers have found an unlikely recipe for antibiotic resistant bacteria: Mix cow dung and soil, and add urine infused with metabolized antibiotic. The urine will kill off normal E. coli in the dung-soil mixture. But antibiotic-resistant E. coli will survive in the soil to recolonize in a cow's gut through pasture, forage or bedding.

Archaeologists identify oldest spear points: Used in hunting half-million years ago Posted: 15 Nov 2012 11:15 AM PST A collaborative study found that human ancestors were making stone-tipped weapons 500,000 years ago at the South African archaeological site of Kathu Pan 1 -- 200,000 years earlier than previously thought.

Key to super-sensory hearing? Newly identified hearing organ in bushcrickets' ears may inspire acoustic sensors Posted: 15 Nov 2012 11:15 AM PST Researchers have identified a new hearing organ which provides the missing link to understanding how sound is transmitted within the ears of bushcrickets. This discovery will make a valuable contribution to creating bio-inspired acoustic sensors of the future, from medical imaging equipment in hospitals to developing improved hearing aid devices.

How bacteria inactivate immune defenses Posted: 15 Nov 2012 11:15 AM PST Scientists have identified a way in which Salmonella bacteria, which cause gastroenteritis and typhoid fever, counteract the defense mechanisms of human cells.

Airborne particles smuggle pollutants to far reaches of globe Posted: 15 Nov 2012 11:14 AM PST Pollution from fossil fuel burning and forest fires reaches all the way to the Arctic, even though it should decay long before it travels that far. Now, lab research can explain how pollution makes its lofty journey: rather than ride on the surface of airborne particles, pollutants snuggle inside, protected from the elements on the way. The results will help scientists improve atmospheric air-quality and pollution transport models.

America's ancient hurricane belt and the U.S.-Canada equator Posted: 15 Nov 2012 10:37 AM PST The recent storms that have battered settlements on the east coast of America may have been much more frequent in the region 450 million years ago, according to scientists.

Tracking brain gene response to territorial aggression Posted: 15 Nov 2012 10:37 AM PST With a mate and a nest to protect, the male threespined stickleback is a fierce fish, chasing and biting other males until they go away. Now researchers are mapping the genetic underpinnings of the stickleback's aggressive behavior. Armed with tools that allow them to see which genes are activated or deactivated in response to social encounters, a team from the University of Illinois has identified broad patterns of gene activity that correspond to aggression in this fish.

Streams show signs of degradation at earliest stages of urban development Posted: 15 Nov 2012 10:37 AM PST The loss of sensitive species in streams begins to occur at the initial stages of urban development, according to a new study. The study found that streams are more sensitive to development than previously understood.

Saving salmon from deadly sea lice Posted: 15 Nov 2012 10:35 AM PST Biologists have some positive news for British Columbia's pink salmon populations, and the salmon farming industry that has struggled to protect both captive and wild salmon from sea lice infestations.

Protein-making machinery can switch gears with a small structural change process; Implications for immunity and cancer therapy Posted: 15 Nov 2012 10:34 AM PST For the past several years, research has focused on the intricate actions of an ancient family of catalytic enzymes that play a key role in translation, the process of producing proteins. In a new study, scientists have shown that this enzyme can actually also work in another fundamental process in humans.

Tapping into carbon dioxide storage potential of mine waste Posted: 15 Nov 2012 10:33 AM PST Economic value should be placed on the CO2 storage potential of mine waste, experts say.

At least one-third of marine species remain undescribed Posted: 15 Nov 2012 10:31 AM PST At least one-third of the species that inhabit the world's oceans may remain completely unknown to science. That's despite the fact that more species have been described in the last decade than in any previous one, according to a new report that details the first comprehensive register of marine species of the world -- a massive collaborative undertaking by hundreds of experts around the globe.

Researchers use GPS tracking to monitor crab behaviour Posted: 15 Nov 2012 10:30 AM PST Researchers used GPS satellites for a long-term behavioral monitoring of land crab migration on Christmas Island. The scientists used a GPS-based telemetric system to analyze movements of freely roaming robber crabs, which is the first large-scale study of any arthropod using GPS technology to monitor behavior.

Meteorites reveal warm water existed on Mars Posted: 15 Nov 2012 10:30 AM PST Hydrothermal fractures around Martian impact craters may have been a habitable environment for microbial life. New research into evidence of water on Mars determined that water temperatures on the Red Planet ranged from 50°C to 150°C. Microbes on Earth can live in similar waters, for example in the volcanic thermal springs at Yellowstone Park, the scientists behind the research point out.

Ingredient in diarrhea medicine leads to sustainable new farm fertilizer Posted: 14 Nov 2012 08:38 AM PST The search for a sustainable slow-release fertilizer -- a key to sustaining global food production at a time of burgeoning population growth -- has led scientists to an ingredient used in some diarrhea medicines. They describe use of the substance, attapulgite, as a "carrier" for plant nutrients.

Nanoparticles pose greater danger to small animals than previously thought, water flea study suggests Posted: 14 Nov 2012 05:38 AM PST Nanoparticles are more harmful to small animals than tests have indicated to date, according to a new study. The offspring of water fleas (Daphnia magna) exposed to nanoparticles of titanium dioxide reacted significantly more sensitively than the offspring of parents from a control group, even though the offspring themselves were not exposed to the nanoparticles.

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