Researchers have used advanced ocean modelling techniques to reveal how greenhouse gas emissions contribute to warmer oceans and resulting melting of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet.
Simulations explain Greenland’s slower summer warming
Climate changes in the tropical Pacific have temporarily put the brakes on rapid warming and ice melting in Greenland.
Neolithic made us taller and more intelligent but more prone to heart disease
After the Neolithic, European populations showed an increase in height and intelligence, reduced skin pigmentation and increased risk of cardiovascular disease due to genetic changes that lowered concentrations of 'good' HDL cholesterol. The changes reflect ongoing evolutionary processes in humans and highlight the impact the Neolithic revolution had on our...
Flood risk for Iowa farmland
Researchers have created a detailed set of maps examining the flood risk for all farmland in Iowa. The maps show 450,000 acres of crops in areas with a 50% chance of flooding, and losses from flooding averaging $230 million annually.
Earthworms like to eat some plastics, but side effects of their digestion are unclear
Earthworms are a welcome sight for gardeners and farmers because the wriggling invertebrates recycle nutrients from soil, making them more accessible to plants. As worms burrow, they consume almost everything in their path, including microscopic plastic pollution. Now, researchers have observed that earthworms actually prefer soil with some types of...
Achilles’ heel of dangerous hospital pathogen
Researchers have shed light on the structure of an enzyme important in the metabolism of the pathogenic bacterium Acinetobacter baumannii. The enzyme 'MtlD' is critical for the bacterium's synthesis of the sugar alcohol mannitol, with which it protects itself against water loss and desiccation in dry or salty environments such...
U.S. trees may provide over $100 billion dollars in savings via environmental benefits — but face growing threats
The concept of ecosystem services allows researchers to quantify the benefits that nature contributes to people into monetary units. A new study suggests that trees provide greater economic value when used to regulate climate and air quality than the value they produce as wood products, food crops, and Christmas trees.
The pleasant smell of wet soil indicates danger to bacteria-eating worms, researchers find
Researchers have found that geosmin is made by certain kinds of bacteria that are known toxin producers. This acts as a warning to C. elegans, a common type of worm, that the bacteria they are about to graze on is poisonous. The chemical is an aposematic signal that triggers the...
Treated plastic waste good at grabbing carbon dioxide
Rice University chemists treat waste plastic to absorb carbon dioxide from flue gas streams more efficiently than current processes.
Engineers point the way to more affordable, sustainable urban neighborhoods
Analysis presents a first-of-its-kind framework to design the most efficient mix of urban buildings along with integrated systems to supply power and water services. The approach could significantly reduce costs and pollution compared to traditional systems.