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Wednesday, January 30, 2013

ScienceDaily: Top Science News

ScienceDaily: Top Science News


Spring may come earlier to North American forests, increasing uptake of carbon dioxide

Posted: 29 Jan 2013 02:14 PM PST

Trees in the con­ti­nen­tal US could send out new leaves in the spring up to 17 days ear­lier in the com­ing cen­tury than they did before global tem­per­a­tures started ris­ing, accord­ing to a new study. . These climate-driven changes could lead to changes in the com­po­si­tion of north­east­ern forests and give a boost to their abil­ity to take up car­bon dioxide.

In-brain monitoring shows memory network

Posted: 29 Jan 2013 11:48 AM PST

Working with patients with electrodes implanted in their brains, researchers have shown for the first time that areas of the brain work together at the same time to recall memories. The unique approach promises new insights into how we remember details of time and place.

Antarctic lake beneath the ice sheet tested

Posted: 29 Jan 2013 09:19 AM PST

In a first-of-its-kind feat of science and engineering, scientists have successfully drilled through 800 meters (2,600 feet) of Antarctic ice to reach a subglacial lake and retrieve water and sediment samples that have been isolated from direct contact with the atmosphere for many thousands of years.

Fossilized conduits suggest water flowed beneath Martian surface

Posted: 29 Jan 2013 09:19 AM PST

Networks of narrow ridges found in impact craters on Mars appear to be the fossilized remnants of underground cracks through which water once flowed, according to a new analysis. The study bolsters the idea that the subsurface environment on Mars once had an active hydrology and could be a good place to search for evidence of past life.

Cultural evolution changes bird song

Posted: 29 Jan 2013 09:19 AM PST

Thanks to cultural evolution, male Savannah sparrows are changing their tune, partly to attract "the ladies." According to a study of more than 30 years of Savannah sparrows recordings, the birds are singing distinctly different songs today than their ancestors did 30 years ago -- changes passed along generation to generation, according to a new study.

New evidence highlights threat to Caribbean coral reef growth: Many Caribbean coral reefs are starting to erode

Posted: 29 Jan 2013 08:14 AM PST

Coral reefs build their structures by both producing and accumulating calcium carbonate, and this is essential for the maintenance and continued vertical growth capacity of reefs. Researchers have discovered that the amount of new carbonate being added by Caribbean coral reefs is now significantly below rates measured over recent geological timescales, and in some habitats is as much as 70 percent lower.

Real angry birds 'flip the bird' before a fight: Biologists use robots to study attacks of male swamp sparrows

Posted: 29 Jan 2013 07:02 AM PST

Male sparrows are capable of fighting to the death. But a new study shows that they often wave their wings wildly first in an attempt to avoid a dangerous brawl.

Survival of the prettiest: Sexual selection can be inferred from the fossil record

Posted: 29 Jan 2013 05:02 AM PST

Detecting sexual selection in the fossil record is not impossible. The term "sexual selection" refers to the evolutionary pressures that relate to a species' ability to repel rivals, meet mates and pass on genes. We can observe these processes happening in living animals, but how do palaeontologists know that sexual selection operated in fossil ones?

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