The way ice forms is a lot more interesting than you think. This basic physical process, among the most common in nature, also remains somewhat mysterious despite decades of scientific scrutiny.
An analysis of beeswax in managed honeybee hives in New York finds a wide variety of pesticide, herbicide and fungicide residues, exposing current and future generations of bees to long-term toxicity.
Making decisions is hard. Even when we know what we want, our choice often leaves something else on the table. For a hungry mouse, every morsel counts. But what if the decision is more consequential than choosing between crumbs and cheese?
Scientists have unlocked the genetic basis underlying the remarkable variation in body size observed in song sparrows, one of North America’s most familiar and beloved songbirds. This discovery also provides insights into this species’ capacity to adapt to the challenges of climate change.
New maps of more than 1,000 deep-seated landslides in the Puget Lowlands of Washington State provide evidence of the last major earthquake along the Seattle Fault about 1,100 years ago—and may also hold traces of older earthquakes along the fault.
Sage grouse and cows can coexist on the same land without declines in greater sage grouse nest success or insect abundance, according to a 10-year University of Idaho study.
Officially established in 1983, today Tufts Wildlife Clinic provides medical care for thousands of orphaned, sick, and injured New England wildlife each year. It serves as a regional information resource on wildlife health for the public, state and federal agencies, wildlife biologists, veterinarians, and health professionals, among others.
Researchers have sequenced the genome of the fungus causing tar spot on corn and identified key genes involved in disease development. This information will help researchers develop better disease management strategies.
Using global satellite data, a research team has mapped the tree cover of the world’s protected areas. The study shows that regions with abundant large herbivores in many settings have a more variable tree cover, which is expected to benefit biodiversity overall.
People feel more positive about planting trees and protecting rainforests as a means of combating climate change than they do about employing technological solutions, according to a new research paper in Global Environmental Change.
As climate scientist Don Falk was hiking through a forest, the old, green pines stretched overhead. But he had the feeling that something was missing. Then his eyes found it: a seedling, brittle and brown, overlooked because of its lifelessness.
Researchers have developed a novel oil separation technique using solar thermal energy that is environmentally friendly, cost-effective, and highly efficient.
BeeBDC, a new tool to consolidate bee pollinator occurrences around the globe, addresses major gaps in public bee data, especially from Africa and Asia.
Chimpanzees use high ground to conduct reconnaissance on rival groups, often before making forays into enemy territory at times when there is reduced risk of confrontation, a new study suggests.
Beer is usually made from barley, leaving those with a gluten allergy unable to enjoy. Sorghum could be an alternative, but complex preparation steps hamper its adoption. A team reporting in ACS’ Journal of Proteome Research has uncovered an enzyme that could improve sorghum-based beers' future.
When rivers began catching on fire, the U.S. government knew it was time to act. So Congress passed the Clean Water Act of 1972. It remains the guiding legislation for regulating America’s water quality. But new research from the University of Georgia suggests parts of it may not be working.
New research led by a Florida State University professor shows that potential adaptive responses by sea turtles, such as shifting the timing of when they nest, may not be enough to counteract the projected impacts from climate change on hatchling production.
A team of animal scientists from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign is set to deliver a potential game changer for subsistence farmers in Tanzania: cows that produce up to 20 times the milk of indigenous breeds.
The planet’s demand for salt comes at a cost to the environment and human health, according to a new scientific review led by University of Maryland Geology Professor Sujay Kaushal.
A RUDN University mathematician and a colleague developed a theoretical model of mass extinction. The model for the first time took into account two important factors - the inverse effect of vegetation on climate change and the evolutionary adaptation of species.
Long before Antarctica froze over, rivers carved valleys through mountains in the continent’s east. Millions of years later, researchers have discovered a remnant of this ancient highland landscape thanks to an aerial survey campaign led by the University of Texas Institute for Geophysics (UTIG).
Russian scientists analyzed the process of accumulation of heavy metals in sediments of lakes of polar and subpolar regions of the world. Researchers found out that lead and antimony are well accumulated even in lakes situated far from direct sources of pollution.
With summerlike temperatures on their way out and cooler temperatures moving in, homeowners may start to see more uninvited guests inside, particularly the brown marmorated stink bug. Virginia Tech experts say not only are these bugs a nuisance, they also pose an economic threat to farmers. But, there are some positives to having them around as well.
Powassan cases are on the rise in parts of the U.S., says an expert at Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University. Powassan is a life-threatening illness that can cause severe neurological symptoms.
Plant biologists at Brookhaven National Laboratory have engineered enzymes to modify grass plants so their biomass can be more efficiently converted into biofuels and other bioproducts.
Noctilionoid bat species evolved wildly different faces as they adapted to exploit diverse food sources -- including insects, fruit, nectar, blood and fish. New research shows that those adaptations include dramatic, but also consistent, modifications to tooth number, size, shape and position.
The tropical wood type ipê is popular for building exclusive wooden decks, and in North America and Europe, the demand for the material has increased sharply. Now, a study from Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden, shows that more than three-quarters of all ipê from the top producing region in Brazil could have been harvested illegally. "The study reveals where in the chain the greatest risks lie. It can be a tool to counteract illegal logging," says Caroline S.S. Franca, PhD student at Chalmers.
Oak Ridge National Laboratory scientists identified a gene “hotspot” in the poplar tree that triggers dramatically increased root growth. The discovery supports development of better bioenergy crops and other plants that can thrive in difficult conditions while storing more carbon belowground.
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Russian hydrophysicists elaborated a method for research of salinity of the Azon Sea with the help of data from the remote sensing. Scientists matched satellite images of water surface with field measurements and discovered that they can prognose salinity of water with an accuracy to 95%.
To keep fruit from getting coated in fuzzy mold, researchers in ACS’ Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry report that compounds from sunflower stems could help. They suggest the food industry could use these natural compounds to protect against postharvest diseases.
Research has found that bumblebees make foraging choices to collect the most sugar from flowers in the shortest time – even if that means using more energy in the process – to provide an immediate energy boost for the colony.
To better understand important dynamics at play in flood-prone coastal areas, Oak Ridge National Laboratory scientists working on simulations of Earth’s carbon and nutrient cycles paid a visit to experimentalists gathering data in a Texas wetland.
Diamonds contain evidence of the mantle rocks that helped buoy and grow the ancient supercontinent Gondwana from below, according to new research from a team of scientists led by Suzette Timmerman.