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PhysOrg.com
Long-term study shows effect of climate change on animal diversity (PhysOrg.com) -- Two species of giraffe, several rhinos and five elephant relatives, along with multitudes of rodents, bush pigs, horses, antelope and apes, once inhabited what is now northern Pakistan. But when climate shifted dramatically there some eight million years ago, precipitating a major change in vegetation, most species became locally extinct rather than adapting to the new ecosystem, an extensive, long-term study of mammal fossils spanning a five-million-year period reveals. Noogoora burr throws researchers a curve ball (PhysOrg.com) -- What do you do when a weed fights back? Noogoora burr in Australia`s tropical north has done just that but CSIRO scientists aren`t letting it get away with it. Stem cell advance may help transfusion supplies (AP) -- Scientists say they've found an efficient way to make red blood cells from human embryonic stem cells, a possible step toward making transfusion supplies in the laboratory. New climate record shows century-long droughts in eastern North America A stalagmite in a West Virginia cave has yielded the most detailed geological record to date on climate cycles in eastern North America over the past 7,000 years. The new study confirms that during periods when Earth received less solar radiation, the Atlantic Ocean cooled, icebergs increased and precipitation fell, creating a series of century-long droughts. Infection blocks lung's protective response against tobacco smoke An infection that often goes undetected can block the lung's natural protective response against tobacco smoke, according to researchers at National Jewish Health. The findings, recently published online and scheduled to appear in the October issue of Infection and Immunity, suggest one mechanism that may cause smokers to develop chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Controlling the size of nanoclusters Melissa Patterson, a W. Burghardt Turner Fellow at Stony Brook University (SBU), will give a talk at the American Chemical Society's national meeting in Philadelphia on controlling the size of nanoclusters, research she performed using a new instrument at the U.S. Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory. Built by Brookhaven Lab and SBU scientists, the instrument enables researchers to make nanoclusters of 10 to 100 atoms with atomic precision. Algae: Biofuel of the future? University of Virginia researchers have a plan to greatly increase algae oil yields by feeding the algae extra carbon dioxide (the main greenhouse gas) and organic material like sewage, meaning the algae could simultaneously produce biofuel and clean up environmental problems. Catalyst mystery unlocked Different keys are not supposed to fit the same lock, but in biological systems multiple versions of a catalyst all make a reaction go, according to a new study that explains the phenomenon. Scheduled for online publication in PNAS Early Edition sometime after Aug. 18, the study challenges entrenched ideas about the workings of catalysts. Fish cancer gene linked to pigment pattern that attracts mates Though skin cancer is deadly to male fish, it also has one perk: The black melanoma splotches arise from attractive natural markings that lure female mates. A new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences this week shows that the melanoma gene can be conserved in swordtail fish because of its beneficial role in sexual selection. Novel fungus helps beetles to digest hard wood A little known fungus tucked away in the gut of Asian longhorned beetles helps the insect munch through the hardest of woods according to a team of entomologists and biochemists. Researchers say the discovery could lead to innovative methods of controlling the invasive pest, and potentially offer more efficient ways of breaking down plant biomass for generating biofuels. ... |