A lightning strike in New Port Richey, Florida, led to a chemical reaction creating a new material that is transitional between space minerals and minerals found on Earth. High-energy events, such as lightning, can cause unique chemical reactions. In this instance, the result is a new material -- one that...
Trees in areas prone to hurricanes have strong ability to survive even after severe damage
The island of Dominica took a direct hit from Category 5 Hurricane Maria. Nine months afterward, researchers found that while 89% percent of trees located in nine previously documented forest stands were damaged, but only 10 percent had immediately died. The most common damage was stem snapping and major branch...
Perfume component helps lure male moth pests
A small amount of a perfume component -- nonanal -- added to a traditional blend of sex pheromones captures the attention of male fall armyworm moths looking for a good time.
Temperature is stronger than light and flow as driver of oxygen in US rivers
The amount of dissolved oxygen in a river is a matter of life or death for the plants and animals living within it, but this oxygen concentration varies drastically from one river to another, depending on their unique temperature, light and flow. To better understand which factor has the greatest...
The 2022 Durban floods were the most catastrophic yet recorded in KwaZulu-Natal
Research shows flooding events in the province have doubled in the last century.
Male yellow crazy ants are real-life chimeras
Researchers discovered that males of the yellow crazy ant have maternal and paternal genomes in different cells of their body and are thus chimeras.
Stowaways in the genome
Scientists have discovered over 30,000 viruses by using the high-performance computer cluster 'Leo' and sophisticated detective work. The viruses hide in the DNA of unicellular organisms. In some cases, up to 10% of microbial DNA consists of built-in viruses.
Warm liquid spewing from Oregon seafloor comes from Cascadia fault, could offer clues to earthquake hazards
Oceanographers discovered warm, chemically distinct liquid shooting up from the seafloor about 50 miles off Newport. They named the unique underwater spring 'Pythia's Oasis.' Observations suggest the spring is sourced from water 2.5 miles beneath the seafloor at the plate boundary, regulating stress on the offshore subduction zone fault.
Cities will need more resilient electricity networks to cope with extreme weather
Dense urban areas amplify the effects of higher temperatures, due to the phenomenon of heat islands in cities. This makes cities more vulnerable to extreme climate events. Large investments in the electricity network will be necessary to cool us down during heatwaves and keep us warm during cold snaps, according...
Early crop plants were more easily ‘tamed’
Borrowing a page from what we know about animal behavior, archaeologists say that we should reassess our understanding of the process of plant domestication.