ScienceDaily: Top Environment News

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• Primates and patience: Evolutionary roots of self control
• Ancient giant sperm discovered at Riversleigh World Heritage Fossil Site
• Breathe easy, Iowa. Your air is (relatively) healthy
• Unusual fish larva linked to new species of sea bass from Curacao
• Scientists reveal new picture in the evolution of flightless birds
• Evolutionary biologists glimpse early stages of Y-chromosome degeneration
• Surprising global species shake-up discovered
• Novel technique enables air-stable water droplet networks
• Surviving storms: Coral reefs are critical for risk reduction and adaptation
• A tiny, toothy catfish with bulldog snout defies classification
• Fossil palm beetles 'hind-cast' 50-million-year-old winters
• Complex interplay between alcohol, social behavior illuminated by fish study
• Molecule blocks cancer growth in mice: New drug candidate disrupts key interaction of two proteins by mimicking one to trick the other
• Comet theory false: Doesn't explain Ice Age cold snap, Clovis changes, animal extinction
• MEMS nanoinjector for genetic modification of cells
• The physics of ocean undertow: Creating more robust and sustainable beaches
• Dangerous nitrogen pollution could be halved
• Humans and companion animals harbor the same types of MRSA infections
• No ocean-borne radiation from Fukushima detected on West Coast shoreline, kelp analysis finds
• Bird invaders 'moving in' to UK's nature reserves
• Student study: Future climate warming could lead to 15 day delay in monsoon onset in Southeast Asia
• Plastic pollution: Another threat for seabirds
• Breakthrough in controlling T cell activation
• Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome: New gene expression mechanism of PRRS virus discovered
• Multilayer nanofiber face mask helps to combat pollution
• Try this allergy test: Three little-known facts about indoor allergies
• Majority of pets overweight; how to tell if your furry friend is packing extra pounds
• Nanostructures to facilitate the process to eliminate organic contaminants in water
• Inactive yeast to preserve aroma of young wines
• Plastics to dust: Easy-to-compost plastic bags move closer to mainstream

Primates and patience: Evolutionary roots of self control Posted: 13 May 2014 05:46 PM PDT Some primate species will wait more than two minutes if they know they will get a larger serving of food -- while others are unable to wait more than a few seconds. A new study probes the evolutionary reasons for the difference.

Ancient giant sperm discovered at Riversleigh World Heritage Fossil Site Posted: 13 May 2014 05:46 PM PDT Preserved giant sperm from tiny shrimps that lived about 17 million years ago have been discovered in Queensland, Australia. They are the oldest fossilized sperm ever found in the geological record. The shrimps lived in a pool in an ancient cave inhabited by thousands of bats, and the presence of bat droppings in the water could help explain the almost perfect preservation of the fossil crustaceans.

Breathe easy, Iowa. Your air is (relatively) healthy Posted: 13 May 2014 02:52 PM PDT Iowa's air quality falls within government guidelines for cleanliness, based on data gathered at five locations statewide, researchers have found. The study analyzed air quality and pollution sources in the state and is the first to compare air quality in urban versus rural areas. This is an important distinction, because a higher percentage of the population in the Midwest lives in rural areas, when compared with other regions in the U.S., the researchers note. In Iowa, 44 percent of residents live in the country.

Unusual fish larva linked to new species of sea bass from Curacao Posted: 13 May 2014 02:52 PM PDT Identifying larval stages of marine fishes in the open ocean is difficult because the young fishes often bear little or no resemblance to the adults they will become. Confronted with a perplexing fish larva collected in the Florida Straits, scientists turned to DNA barcoding, which yielded an unexpected discovery -- a match between the mysterious fish larva and adults of a new species of sea bass discovered off the coast of Curacao.

Scientists reveal new picture in the evolution of flightless birds Posted: 13 May 2014 02:52 PM PDT Because of their far-flung geography and colorful examples including the African ostrich, Australian emu, New Zealand kiwi and long lost giants such as the New Zealand moa, researchers have examined a fascinating part in the story of the avian tree of life: flightless birds, or ratites.

Evolutionary biologists glimpse early stages of Y-chromosome degeneration Posted: 13 May 2014 01:17 PM PDT In many species, X and Y chromosomes determine whether an individual develops into a male or female. This sex determination system has evolved multiple times and a striking feature of its evolution is that Y chromosomes have lost many genes over time. What isn't well understood is what happens to them during this evolution. Now researchers have been able to study the early stages of degeneration, by investigating the process in plants.

Surprising global species shake-up discovered Posted: 13 May 2014 01:16 PM PDT Scientists re-examined 100 world-wide monitoring studies and were surprised to discover that, over decades, the number of species in many places has not changed much -- or has increased. But the researchers did discover that almost 80% of the communities showed changes in species composition. This shows that a rapid global turnover of species is happening, resulting in novel biological communities. The scientists conclude that biodiversity change may be as large a concern as biodiversity loss.

Novel technique enables air-stable water droplet networks Posted: 13 May 2014 01:16 PM PDT A simple new technique to form interlocking beads of water in ambient conditions could prove valuable for applications in biological sensing, membrane research and harvesting water from fog.

Surviving storms: Coral reefs are critical for risk reduction and adaptation Posted: 13 May 2014 11:21 AM PDT Stronger storms, rising seas, and flooding are placing hundreds of millions people at risk around the world, and big part of the solution to decrease those risks is just off shore. A new study finds that coral reefs reduce the wave energy that would otherwise impact coastlines by 97 percent.

A tiny, toothy catfish with bulldog snout defies classification Posted: 13 May 2014 10:27 AM PDT Kryptoglanis shajii is a strange fish -- and the closer scientists look, the stranger it gets. This small subterranean catfish sees the light of day and human observers only rarely, when it turns up in springs, wells and flooded rice paddies. Scientists have recently provided a detailed description of this fish's bizarre bone structures.

Fossil palm beetles 'hind-cast' 50-million-year-old winters Posted: 13 May 2014 10:26 AM PDT Fifty-million-year-old fossil beetles that fed only on palm seeds are giving biologists new information about ancient climates. These fossil beetles indicate that during a period of global warming in the geological past, there were mild, frost-free winters extended even in the uplands of ancient western North America.

Complex interplay between alcohol, social behavior illuminated by fish study Posted: 13 May 2014 10:26 AM PDT Research is helping unravel the complex interplay between alcohol and social behavior. In what may be the first experiment to allow ethanol-exposed and untreated zebrafish to swim freely together, those exposed to certain alcohol concentrations nearly doubled their swimming speeds when in a group --suggesting that the presence of peers substantially impacts social behavior. Most remarkably, unexposed fish modulated their behavior in the presence of a shoalmate exposed to alcohol.

Molecule blocks cancer growth in mice: New drug candidate disrupts key interaction of two proteins by mimicking one to trick the other Posted: 13 May 2014 08:36 AM PDT Scientists have developed a small molecule that interferes with cancer progression with minimal side effects. The new cancer-fighting drug prevents two critical proteins from interacting by mimicking the surface topography of one protein -- like wearing a mask -- which tricks the other protein into binding with it.

Comet theory false: Doesn't explain Ice Age cold snap, Clovis changes, animal extinction Posted: 13 May 2014 08:36 AM PDT New research has demonstrated again that a comet didn't spark climate change at the end of the Ice Age, killing the Clovis peoples and causing mass animal extinction. Supposed impact indicators are too old or too young to indicate an ancient comet that proponents claim sparked a late Ice Age calamity, according to new research. The researchers found previous dating of Ice Age boundary layers by proponents contained widespread errors.

MEMS nanoinjector for genetic modification of cells Posted: 13 May 2014 08:32 AM PDT The ability to transfer a gene or DNA sequence from one animal into the genome of another plays a critical role in a wide range of medical research—including cancer, Alzheimer's disease, and diabetes. But the traditional method of transferring genetic material into a new cell, called "microinjection," has a serious downside. It involves using a small glass pipette to pump a solution containing DNA into the nucleus of an egg cell, but the extra fluid can cause the cell to swell and destroy it -- resulting in a 25 to 40 percent cell death rate.

The physics of ocean undertow: Creating more robust and sustainable beaches Posted: 13 May 2014 08:32 AM PDT People standing on a beach often feel the water tugging the sand away from under their feet. This is the undertow, the current that pulls water back into the ocean after a wave breaks on the beach. Large storms produce strong undertows that can strip beaches of sand. By predicting how undertows interact with shorelines, researchers can build sand dunes and engineer other soft solutions to create more robust and sustainable beaches.

Dangerous nitrogen pollution could be halved Posted: 13 May 2014 06:25 AM PDT The most important fertilizer for producing food is, at the same time, one of the most important risks for human health: nitrogen. Chemical compounds containing reactive nitrogen are major drivers of air and water pollution worldwide, and hence of diseases like asthma or cancer. If no action is taken, nitrogen pollution could rise by 20 percent by 2050 in a middle-of-the-road scenario, according to a new study.

Humans and companion animals harbor the same types of MRSA infections Posted: 13 May 2014 06:25 AM PDT A shared population of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bacteria circulates both in humans and companion animals, according to a new study. Researchers also observed that samples from the same veterinary hospitals clustered together genetically, suggesting that as in human hospitals, MRSA can be readily transmitted in veterinary hospital settings.

No ocean-borne radiation from Fukushima detected on West Coast shoreline, kelp analysis finds Posted: 13 May 2014 06:23 AM PDT Scientists working together on Kelp Watch 2014 announced today that the West Coast shoreline shows no signs of ocean-borne radiation from Japan's Fukushima nuclear power plant disaster, following their analysis of the first collection of kelp samples along the western U.S. coastline.

Bird invaders 'moving in' to UK's nature reserves Posted: 13 May 2014 06:23 AM PDT Nature reserves and other areas specially protected for wildlife, as well as being vital for native species, are very important for helping European birds to expand their ranges into Britain naturally.  The catch is that protected areas are also at increasing risk of invasion by species that have been introduced from further afield.

Student study: Future climate warming could lead to 15 day delay in monsoon onset in Southeast Asia Posted: 13 May 2014 06:23 AM PDT New research concluded that future climate warming could lead to a 15 day delay in the monsoon onset in Southeast Asia by the start of the next century. A published student investigated how global and regional temperature and rainfall anomalies affect rainfall patterns and the South East Asian Monsoon.

Plastic pollution: Another threat for seabirds Posted: 13 May 2014 06:17 AM PDT Plastic ingestions affects around 94% of Cory's shearwaters on the Catalan coast, according to new research. In the case of Yelkouan shearwaters and Balearic shearwaters, scientists show that 70% of studied birds were affected by plastic ingestion.

Breakthrough in controlling T cell activation Posted: 13 May 2014 06:11 AM PDT The discovery of a crucial mechanism that controls the activation of T cells, a blood cell whose primary job is to fight infection in the body, may enable the development of new drugs to treat autoimmune disease, transplant rejection, and similar disorders in which T cells play a major role.

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome: New gene expression mechanism of PRRS virus discovered Posted: 12 May 2014 06:38 PM PDT Researchers have discovered a new gene expression mechanism in porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome, or PRRS, virus — an important swine pathogen that costs the U.S. pork industry more than $600 million a year. The discovery provides a new avenue for scientists to explore strategies to control and prevent the disease.

Multilayer nanofiber face mask helps to combat pollution Posted: 12 May 2014 11:22 AM PDT Researchers have developed a ground-breaking filter technology that guards against the finest pollutants in the air. Haze is usually composed of pollutants in the form of tiny suspended particles or fine mists/droplets emitted from vehicles, coal-burning power plants and factories. Continued exposure increases the risk of developing respiratory problems, heart diseases and lung cancer. Can we avoid the unhealthy air?

Try this allergy test: Three little-known facts about indoor allergies Posted: 12 May 2014 10:48 AM PDT Outdoor pollen might have you running for cover behind closed windows and doors, but allergists say indoor allergens are just as much trouble. One expert discusses 3 allergy misconceptions that could be making things worse.

Majority of pets overweight; how to tell if your furry friend is packing extra pounds Posted: 12 May 2014 08:12 AM PDT While you're counting calories and getting in extra exercise, you probably should be doing the same thing for your pets. About 53 percent of dogs are either overweight or obese according to a recent survey. A veterinarian explains how to keep pets at a healthy weight.

Nanostructures to facilitate the process to eliminate organic contaminants in water Posted: 12 May 2014 07:15 AM PDT Researchers have developed nanostructures that assist in the process of decontaminating water. The nanostructures are coated in titanium oxide to which nitrogen has been added. This allows sunlight, rather than ultraviolet radiation, to trigger the process involving the chemical reaction and destruction of contaminants.

Inactive yeast to preserve aroma of young wines Posted: 12 May 2014 07:15 AM PDT The usage of inactive yeast preparations rich in glutathione can preserve the aroma of young wines during their storage, research has shown. The fresh, fruity and floral aroma of young wines (white and rosé) can quickly disappear during their storage because of the oxidation process. Additionally, young wines can change their color due to the formation of polymers producing orange and brown color tones. Apart from the loss of pleasant aromas, this process can produce unpleasant aromas similar to some aged wines.

Plastics to dust: Easy-to-compost plastic bags move closer to mainstream Posted: 12 May 2014 07:12 AM PDT Bags meet requirements of disintegrating to particles less than 2 millimeters in size in 180 days. Since the bags are made of all-natural components, they can be composted just like any other plant-based material.

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