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Saturday, March 9, 2013

ScienceDaily: Top Environment News

ScienceDaily: Top Environment News


Plankton adjusts to changing ocean temperatures

Posted: 08 Mar 2013 10:30 AM PST

3-D imaging reveals that marine plankton automatically adjusts swimming technique in dense viscosity, but only due to temperature changes, not pollution.

Specialised germanium surface as universal protein adapter

Posted: 08 Mar 2013 08:13 AM PST

Researchers have developed a new method for attaching proteins to the surface of germanium crystals -- for the first time also membrane proteins. This enables time-resolved tracking of the interactions between molecules using infrared spectroscopy in a way that is accurate down to atomic resolution.

Carbon footprint of grid-scale battery technologies calculated

Posted: 08 Mar 2013 08:13 AM PST

Solar and wind power pose a challenge for the U.S. electrical grid, which lacks the capacity to store surplus clean electricity and deliver it on demand. Researchers are developing grid-scale storage batteries, but the fossil fuel required to build these technologies could negate some of the environmental benefits of new solar and wind farms, say scientists.

'Marshall Plan' for African wildlife?

Posted: 08 Mar 2013 07:34 AM PST

African lions and villagers would benefit from fences to protect them from each other, according to a new study.

New fish species described from the streams of Manyas Lake basin, Turkey

Posted: 08 Mar 2013 07:34 AM PST

A new fish species, Alburnoides manyasensis, has been described from the Koca Stream drainage of Lake Manyas, Marmara Sea basin in Anatolia and is currently associated with only this specific locality. The new species belongs to the very large and widely distributed Cyprinidae family, which includes carps and the minnows and their related species. The study was published in the open access journal Zookeys.

India: Leopards in the backyard

Posted: 08 Mar 2013 06:38 AM PST

A new camera-trapping study in India has revealed that leopards can occur at high densities in densely-populated and heavily-modified agricultural environments.

Genetic study of house dust mites demonstrates reversible evolution

Posted: 08 Mar 2013 06:34 AM PST

In evolutionary biology, Dollo's law states that evolution is unidirectional and irreversible. But this "law" is not universally accepted and is the topic of heated debate among biologists. Now a research team has used a large-scale genetic study of the lowly house dust mite to uncover an example of reversible evolution that appears to violate Dollo's law.

New light shed on role of climate in influenza transmission

Posted: 07 Mar 2013 04:06 PM PST

Two types of environmental conditions -- cold-dry and humid-rainy -- are associated with seasonal influenza epidemics, according to an epidemiological study. The article presents a simple climate-based model that maps influenza activity globally and accounts for the diverse range of seasonal patterns observed across temperate, subtropical and tropical regions.

Tracking sediments' fate in largest-ever dam removal

Posted: 07 Mar 2013 11:57 AM PST

Any day now, the world's largest dam-removal project will release a century's worth of sediment. For marine geologists, it's a unique opportunity to study natural and engineered river systems.

'Gateway' in nucleus has second important job no one noticed before

Posted: 07 Mar 2013 11:54 AM PST

Medical researchers have discovered that the "gateway" known to control the movement of molecules in and out of a cell's nucleus appears to play another critically important role -- one no one had noticed until now.

Scientists improve transgenic 'Enviropigs'

Posted: 07 Mar 2013 09:48 AM PST

A new line of transgenic pigs can digest phosphorus more efficiently. Researchers say the new line is healthy and can pass the transgenic trait to new generations.

When food is scarce, a smaller brain will do

Posted: 07 Mar 2013 09:39 AM PST

A new study explains how young brains are protected when nutrition is poor. The findings reveal a coping strategy for producing a fully functional, if smaller, brain. The discovery, which was made in larval flies, shows the brain as an incredibly adaptable organ and may have implications for understanding the developing human brain as well, the researchers say.

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