ScienceDaily: Top Environment News

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• What color is your night light? It may affect your mood
• Study questions nature's ability to 'self-correct' climate change
• Dolphins keep lifelong social memories, longest in a non-human species
• One tree's architecture reveals secrets of a forest
• Hormone receptors may regulate effect of nutrition on life expectancy not only in roundworms, but perhaps also in humans
• How plants avoid sunburn: Findings could lead to crops with increased protection from bright light and enhanced photosynthesis
• Evolutionary relationships among species of 'magic' mushrooms shed light on fungi
• 'Beetle in spider's clothing:' Quaint new species from Philippine Rainforest Creeks
• Soil carbon 'blowing in the wind'
• From harmless colonizers to virulent pathogens: Microbiologists identify what triggers disease
• Timber rattlesnakes indirectly benefit human health: Not-so-horrid top predator helps check Lyme disease
• Rapid diversification despite morphological stasis: A snail's pace in a snail's place?
• 'Nursery nests' are better for survival of young black-and-white ruffed lemurs
• Breakdown of fat 'on hold': Biochemists discover 'parking position' of fat-burning enzymes

What color is your night light? It may affect your mood Posted: 06 Aug 2013 05:31 PM PDT When it comes to some of the health hazards of light at night, a new study in hamsters suggests that the color of the light can make a big difference.

Study questions nature's ability to 'self-correct' climate change Posted: 06 Aug 2013 05:31 PM PDT Forests have a limited capacity to soak up atmospheric carbon dioxide, according to a new study.

Dolphins keep lifelong social memories, longest in a non-human species Posted: 06 Aug 2013 05:31 PM PDT Dolphins can recognize their old tank mates' whistles after being separated for more than 20 years — the longest social memory ever recorded for a non-human species.

One tree's architecture reveals secrets of a forest Posted: 06 Aug 2013 02:16 PM PDT Behind the dazzling variety of shapes and forms in trees lies a remarkably similar architecture based on fundamental, shared principles, ecologists have discovered. The findings allow scientists to draw realistic conclusions about the ecological impacts of trees across landscapes by sampling just a few individuals.

Hormone receptors may regulate effect of nutrition on life expectancy not only in roundworms, but perhaps also in humans Posted: 06 Aug 2013 11:54 AM PDT A reduced caloric intake increases life expectancy in many species. But how diet prolongs the lives of model organisms such as fruit flies and roundworms has remained a mystery until recently. Scientists have now discovered that a hormone receptor is one of the links between nutrition and life expectancy in the roundworms. The receptor protein NHR-62 increases the lifespan of the animals by twenty per cent if their calorie intake is reduced. Furthermore, another study showed that the hormone receptor NHR-8 affects development into adulthood as well as the maximum lifespan of the worms. It may be possible that receptors related to these are also responsible for regulating life expectancy in human beings.

How plants avoid sunburn: Findings could lead to crops with increased protection from bright light and enhanced photosynthesis Posted: 06 Aug 2013 10:29 AM PDT Scientists have discovered a group of stress-related proteins that explains how plants avoid sunburn in intense light, a finding that one day could help biotechnologists to develop crops that can better cope with hotter, drier conditions occurring in climate change.

Evolutionary relationships among species of 'magic' mushrooms shed light on fungi Posted: 06 Aug 2013 10:28 AM PDT "Magic" mushrooms are known for their hallucinogenic properties. New research helps uncover the evolutionary past of a fascinating fungi that has wide recreational use and is currently under investigation for a variety of medicinal applications. Using new molecular and computational techniques, researchers have produced the first multi-gene evaluation of Psilocybe, which constitutes a major step in classifying and naming "magic" mushrooms.

'Beetle in spider's clothing:' Quaint new species from Philippine Rainforest Creeks Posted: 06 Aug 2013 08:13 AM PDT The extremely long-legged Spider Water Beetles have received increasing attention in science and media lately. Biologists have now discovered two new species, emphasizing their usefulness as water quality bioindicators. Important steps towards their use as monitoring organisms in the Philippines were accomplished by providing DNA barcodes, identification keys and detailed descriptions of the relevant larval and adult stages.

Soil carbon 'blowing in the wind' Posted: 06 Aug 2013 08:12 AM PDT Australian soils are losing about 1.6 million tons of carbon per year from wind erosion and dust storms affecting agricultural productivity, our economy and carbon accounts, according to new research.

From harmless colonizers to virulent pathogens: Microbiologists identify what triggers disease Posted: 06 Aug 2013 08:10 AM PDT The bacteria Streptococcus pneumoniae harmlessly colonizes the mucous linings of throats and noses in most people, only becoming virulent when they leave those comfortable surroundings. Now, researchers reveal how that happens.

Timber rattlesnakes indirectly benefit human health: Not-so-horrid top predator helps check Lyme disease Posted: 06 Aug 2013 06:18 AM PDT Biologists found timber rattlesnakes, which prey on mice and other small mammals, help check humans' exposure to the tick-borne Lyme disease.

Rapid diversification despite morphological stasis: A snail's pace in a snail's place? Posted: 06 Aug 2013 06:16 AM PDT Evolutionary biologists have found an unusual system that allows narrowing the gap in the study of evolutionary processes, working on living African freshwater snails and their fossil ancestors.

'Nursery nests' are better for survival of young black-and-white ruffed lemurs Posted: 06 Aug 2013 06:16 AM PDT Research shows it is easier for female ruffed lemurs to raise their young using a system of communal nesting and crèches. Young Malagasy black-and-white ruffed lemurs are more likely to survive when they are raised in communal crèches or "nursery nests" in which their mothers share the draining responsibility of feeding and caring for their offspring.

Breakdown of fat 'on hold': Biochemists discover 'parking position' of fat-burning enzymes Posted: 06 Aug 2013 06:15 AM PDT Fat is a curse and a blessing at the same time. While we would rather not have any fat deposits on our body, especially in summer, accumulated fats in plants are desirable as they make them especially nutritious. Biologists have found that enzymes are "parked" under certain conditions and suspend the breakdown of fat.

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