Incubator or barrier? Exploring the links between agriculture, biodiversity and the spread of pathogens
Many pathogens, including the virus that causes COVID-19, are thought to have originated in wild animals before spilling into human populations......»»
Decreasing biodiversity may promote spread of viruses
How are environmental changes, loss of biodiversity, and the spread of pathogens connected? The answer is a puzzle. Scientists from Charité—Universitätsmedizin Berlin in cooperation with the Leibniz-IZW have now described one piece of that puzzle.....»»
Exploring the effect of water on seismic wave attenuation in the upper mantle
The oceanic lithosphere, which constitutes the top layer including Earth's crust and mantle below the oceans, has long intrigued scientists due to its peculiar behavior. This layer appears to glide over a weaker region below called the asthenosphere,.....»»
Genetically engineering associations between plants and diazotrophs could lessen dependence on synthetic fertilizer
Nitrogen is an essential nutrient for plant growth, but the overuse of synthetic nitrogen fertilizers in agriculture is not sustainable......»»
Chromosomal instability in cancer cells causes DNA damage and promotes invasiveness: Study
Chromosomal instability is a phenomenon characterized by rapid changes in the number and structure of chromosomes during cell division. It is very common in solid tumors and it is linked to the aggressive spread of cancer, that is to say, metastasis......»»
Genomics detective work reveals pest moth travels
The fall armyworm moth (Spodoptera frugiperda) is a notorious pest in agriculture. It devastates essential food crops and threatens global food security. It has been reported to feed on more than 350 plant species, ranging from maize to cotton and ve.....»»
Ancient Shangzhai people consumed broomcorn millet, meat and dairy of ruminants during the Middle to Late Neolithic
As the crossroads of prehistoric cultures, the Beijing region is an important area for studying the exchange of prehistoric culture and the spread of millet agriculture, while there is a gap of approximately 2,000 years between millet remains founded.....»»
Exploring the existence of life at 50°C
There are an estimated 8.7 million eukaryotic species on the planet. These are organisms whose cells contain a nucleus and other membrane-bound organelles. Although eukaryotes include the familiar animals and plants, these only represent two of the m.....»»
Wind energy projects in North America are more likely to be opposed by white, wealthy communities, finds study
Wind energy is, by far, the most common type of clean energy. And transitioning to clean energy is critical to addressing the climate crisis. Yet local opposition poses a significant barrier to the deployment of wind energy projects......»»
ChatGPT’s new upgrade finally breaks the text barrier
The AI brand announced on Monday it will be making its images and voice features available to ChatGPT Plus and Enterprise users......»»
Exploring the existence of life at 125°F
There are an estimated 8.7 million eukaryotic species on the planet. These are organisms whose cells contain a nucleus and other membrane-bound organelles. Although eukaryotes include the familiar animals and plants, these only represent two of the m.....»»
Livestock farmers from Sweden to Greece test paths to greener agriculture
Livestock farmers in Germany, Italy, Sweden and the UK are trying a new method to produce milk and meat: feeding their cows mainly or only grass......»»
The deep genetic structure of Africa reveals unique ancestry of inhabitants of the Angolan Namib
Africa is the birthplace of modern humans and the continent with the highest level of genetic diversity. While ancient DNA studies are revealing some aspects of the genetic structure of Africa before the spread of food production, issues concerning D.....»»
Negative "retweets" appear to add to voter fraud conspiracy theories
A team of behavioral scientists using big data and a simulation-based model to analyze social media "tweets" around the 2020 presidential election found that the spread of voter fraud conspiracy theories on Twitter (now called X) was boosted by a neg.....»»
Researchers develop tool to quickly and accurately identify mobile genetic elements like plasmids and virus
Mobile genetic elements (MGEs) are genetic entities that seek to replicate themselves and spread from cell to cell. Two of the most common forms of MGEs are viruses and plasmids. They can be found in virtually all of Earth's ecosystems......»»
Exploring the relationship between thermalization dynamics and quantum criticality in lattice gauge theories
Researchers from the University of Science and Technology of China(USTC) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) have developed an ultra-cold atom quantum simulator to study the relationship between the non-equilibrium thermalization process and qua.....»»
Peru"s Operation Mercury stopped most illegal gold mining in one biodiversity hotspot—then the COVID-19 pandemic hit
Artisanal and small-scale gold mining is a lifeline for many who live in Madre de Dios, a region in southeastern Peru, where poverty is high and jobs are scarce. But the economic development in this part of the Amazon basin comes at a cost, as it cau.....»»
Exploring Earth"s mantle through microseisms
The ocean is constantly whirring with activity. The pressure from this constant roiling and swelling is one cause of microseisms—random, nearly imperceptible vibrations of Earth that also can be produced by human activities like vehicular traffic......»»
Greenwashing: A threat to a "nature positive" world
Researchers have identified the threat greenwashing poses to a "nature positive" world, one where environmental decline halts and biodiversity outcomes improve. The research is published in Nature Ecology & Evolution......»»
Climate change may affect 40% of biodiversity in semi-arid portion of Brazil"s Northeast by 2060
The consequences of climate change in the Caatinga, the semi-arid shrubland and thorn forest biome in Brazil's Northeast region, will include species loss, substitution of rare plants by more generalist vegetation, biotic homogenization (in which pre.....»»
Disrupting a core metabolic process in T cells may improve their therapeutic efficacy
In exploring an aspect of how killer T cells generate the raw materials required for their proliferation, a Ludwig Cancer Research study has uncovered an unexpected link between the immune cells' metabolism, regulation of gene expression, persistence.....»»