Increase in marine heat waves threatens coastal habitats
Heat waves—like the one that blistered the Pacific Northwest last June—also occur underwater. A new study in Frontiers in Marine Science paints a worrisome picture of recent and projected trends in marine heat waves within the nation's largest.....»»
Elephant seal numbers drop after avian flu outbreak: First report of transmission between marine mammals
The sounds of barking elephant seals are again in the air along the breeding grounds of Península Valdés, Argentina—but it's quieter. Almost exactly a year after a massive outbreak of H5N1 highly pathogenic avian influenza killed more than 17,000.....»»
Heat hardiness: Scientists identify key phase for tomato heat tolerance
By studying tomato varieties that produce fruit in exceptionally hot growing seasons, biologists at Brown University identified the growth cycle phase when tomatoes are most vulnerable to extreme heat, as well as the molecular mechanisms that make th.....»»
Everything you need to know before buying a space heater
Space heaters are a popular way to heat up your home, but they come with serious risks. Here's what to know before adding one to your home......»»
Report: Countries must dramatically increase climate adaptation efforts and bridge the finance gap
As climate impacts intensify and hit the world's most vulnerable hardest, the "Adaptation Gap Report 2024: Come hell and high water," from the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), finds that nations must dramatically increase climate adaptation.....»»
Chemists find easier way to produce biodiesel from waste oil
UC Santa Cruz chemists have discovered a new way to produce biodiesel from waste oil that both simplifies the process and requires relatively mild heat. This discovery has the potential to make the alternative fuel source much more appealing to the m.....»»
How prisons fall short in protecting the incarcerated from climate disasters
Blistering heat, freezing cold, and overflowing sewage water: These were the living conditions that formerly incarcerated people in Colorado said they suffered inside the state's prisons and jails......»»
Ancient unicellular organism indicates embryonic development might have existed prior to animals" evolution
Chromosphaera perkinsii is a single-celled species discovered in 2017 in marine sediments around Hawaii. The first signs of its presence on Earth have been dated at over a billion years, well before the appearance of the first animals......»»
Making farming better for bees: Can we breed crops that produce more nectar and pollen?
Where once there were vast areas of forest and other natural habitats, farmland now covers much of Earth—including 70% of the UK. This transition has helped feed a growing number of people......»»
Making "stressed" potatoes more climate-resilient
Heat, dry spells and flooding—the whole of nature is under stress, and potatoes are no exception. As a food staple, there is particular interest in getting potatoes fit for the new climate reality. As part of the EU's four-year ADAPT project, an in.....»»
Food security in Africa: Managing water will be vital in a rapidly growing region
Sub-Saharan Africa's population is growing at 2.7% per year and is expected to reach two billion by the year 2050. The region's urban population is growing even faster: it was at 533 million in 2023, a 3.85% increase from 2022......»»
Braving sharks and hordes of urchins, scientists are growing kelp one forest at a time
The weathered UC Davis Marine Laboratory looms in thick fog on the edge of the ocean near Bodega Bay. Inside, an experiment is playing out that gives a badly-needed boost to Northern California's kelp forests—underwater cathedrals of green and gold.....»»
GoZone ransomware accuses and threatens victims
A new ransomware dubbed GoZone is being leveraged by attackers that don’t seem to be very greedy: they are asking the victims to pay just $1,000 in Bitcoin if they want their files decrypted. The GoZone HTML ransom note (Source: SonicWall) The.....»»
Anthropic’s Haiku 3.5 surprises experts with an “intelligence” price increase
Anthropic’s smallest AI model now beats its older largest LLM, Opus, at some tasks. On Monday, Anthropic launched the latest version of its smallest AI model, Claude 3.5 Haiku,.....»»
Helping the most vulnerable stay cool in extreme heat
The health effects of heat waves hit some communities harder than others. People with preexisting health conditions, as well as those who have low income or are physically or socially isolated, very old or very young, from racial or ethnic minority g.....»»
Boeing strike ends after workers vote to accept “life-changing” wage increase
Workers vow to restore Boeing's iconic legacy as costly strike ends. More than 33,000 Boeing workers reached a tentative agreement Monday night to end a weekslong strike that quic.....»»
Scientists have figured out why Martian soil is so crusty
On November 26, 2018, NASA's Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy, and Heat Transport (InSight) mission landed on Mars. This was a major milestone in Mars exploration since it was the first time a research station had been deplo.....»»
Another season of highs and lows as 2024 Australian humpback migration ends
Each year, the annual humpback whale migration up and down the East Australian Coastline brings with it a multitude of highs and lows for marine scientists such as Griffith University whale expert, Dr. Olaf Meynecke......»»
Moon waves goodbye to Hera
As ESA's Hera mission for planetary defense departed its homeworld, it looked back to Earth to show the moon orbiting around it. In this sequence of images the terrestrial disk gradually shrinks as the spacecraft recedes away from it, and the moon mo.....»»
Reconstructing plesiosaur swimming styles with a bio-inspired control system
A research group may have unraveled the mystery behind the locomotion of the ancient marine reptile, the plesiosaur, by recreating a bio-inspired control system that accounts for motion adjustment......»»
Spraying rice with zinc oxide nanoparticles protects yields during heat waves, study finds
A small team of horticulturists in China and the U.S. has found that spraying rice plants with a zinc oxide nanoparticle solution helps them better handle the stress of a heat wave. In their study, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of.....»»