This Cow and Pig Influenza Virus Could Infect Humans: What We Know So Far
Influenza D is only known to sicken cattle and pigs, but it “has everything it needs” to jump into people.....»»
Q&A: Professor explains what municipal governments are doing as climate change accelerates
July 2023 was the hottest month globally since humans began keeping records. People all over the U.S. experienced punishingly high temperatures this summer. In Phoenix, there were a record-setting 31 consecutive days with a high temperature of 110°F.....»»
New analysis suggests human ancestors nearly died out
Study claims 99% of human ancestors died off 930,000 years ago. Enlarge (credit: Getty Images) Multiple lines of evidence indicate that modern humans evolved within the last 200,000 years and spread out of Africa startin.....»»
Newly discovered fungus helps destroy a harmful food toxin
Patulin (C7H6O4), a mycotoxin produced by several types of fungi, is toxic to a variety of life forms, including humans, mammals, plants, and microorganisms. In particular, environments lacking proper hygienic measures during food production are susc.....»»
Early ancestral bottleneck could"ve spelled the end for modern humans
How a new method of inferring ancient population size revealed a severe bottleneck in the human population which almost wiped out the chance for humanity as we know it today......»»
Writing in water using an ion-exchange bead as a pen
Writing is an age-old cultural technique. Thousands of years ago, humans were already carving signs and symbols into stone slabs. Scripts have become far more sophisticated since then but one aspect remains the same: Whether the writer is using cunei.....»»
Bird flu kills scores of sea lions in Argentina
Scores of sea lions have died from bird flu in Argentina, officials said Tuesday, as an unprecedented global outbreak continues to infect mammals, raising fears it could spread more easily among humans......»»
Climate change threatens the rights of children. The UN just outlined the obligations states have to protect them
Climate change is not just an environmental crisis, it's a human rights crisis. And the humans to be most affected by climate catastrophe are the youngest ones: children......»»
Climate-changing human activity could lead to 1 billion deaths over the next century, according to new study
If global warming reaches or exceeds two degrees Celsius by 2100, University of Western Ontario's Joshua Pearce says it is likely that mainly richer humans will be responsible for the death of roughly one billion mainly poorer humans over the next ce.....»»
Researchers help create "guiding principles" to address homelessness at airports
In recent years, there has been an increase in the number of people experiencing unsheltered homelessness in the United States. People who are in this situation have nowhere to go at night or during bad weather, except places not designed for humans.....»»
Research explores first defense against devastating ToCSV tomato virus at a molecular genetics level
How tomato plants defend themselves against a devastating 'young' Southern African virus has now been investigated at a molecular genetics level for the first time by researchers at the University of Johannesburg (UJ)......»»
COVID-19 virus is evolving rapidly in white-tailed deer, new research finds
White-tailed deer across Ohio have been infected with the virus that causes COVID-19, new research has found—and the results also show that viral variants evolve about three times faster in deer than in humans......»»
How dangerous is extreme heat to humans?
The media reporting around heat waves that have hammered the northern hemisphere has been unequivocal: the simultaneous record-breaking heat has "pushed the limits of human survival.".....»»
The 30 best period dramas to stream your way through history
Period dramas are a perfect example of the phrase "truth is stranger than fiction." Humans have been weird for as long as they've been around, and historical TV shows do their part in shining a light on so much of that weirdness — or at least a.....»»
Sediment movement during Hurricane Harvey could negatively impact future flooding, prove costly to Houston
Enormous amounts of sediment, or sand and mud, flowed through Houston waterways during Hurricane Harvey in 2017, due in part to modifications made by humans to bayous, rivers and streams over the past century, that could seriously impact future flood.....»»
Bonobos found to grow similarly to humans
Until now, there has been a broad consensus that the human adolescent growth spurt in body length is evolutionarily unique and absent in other primates. However, such adolescent growth spurt occurs in many primate species in body weight, including hu.....»»
Trees discovered at record-breaking altitudes highlight why we should restore Scotland"s mountain woodland
The Scottish Highlands are celebrated for wide-open views of spectacular glens (valleys) and rugged peaks. After centuries of landscape change, particularly deforestation caused by humans, it is easy to forget how well trees can thrive there. But new.....»»
Living with wildfire: How to protect more homes as fire risk rises in a warming climate
Humans have learned to fear wildfire. It can destroy communities, torch pristine forests and choke even faraway cities with toxic smoke......»»
IBM’s generative AI tool aims to refactor ancient COBOL code for its mainframes
Humans are still "in the driver's seat," but it could make code more modular. Enlarge / COBOL 73, as seen (inside Windows) in the IRS's Austin, Texas, offices in 2022. (credit: Washington Post / Getty Images) There are h.....»»
Birds living on a university campus found to be less afraid of humans after the pandemic closure
When UCLA shifted to remote instruction during the early days of COVID-19, the campus was much less populated—but it wasn't totally empty. Several species of animals continued to go about their daily lives, just with far fewer disturbances from hum.....»»
Forest Service, Seattle Fire Department report "significant increase" in human-caused fires
A "significant increase" in wildfires has been caused by humans in National Forest lands in Oregon and Washington this year, according to the U.S. Forest Service......»»