Physicists at CERN study the characteristics of enigmatic particles

Posted on July 16, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Physicists have been intrigued by χc1(3872), also known as X(3872), since its discovery two decades ago. They have been exploring whether it is a conventional charmonium state composed of two quarks or an exotic particle made up of four quarks. The LHCb collaboration at CERN’s Large Hadron Collider (LHC) set out to find the answer.

Artist's impression of a tetraquark, made up of two charm quarks and an up and down antiquark. Image courtesy of CERN.

In the quark model of particle physics, there are heavy particles (composed of three quarks), mesons (consisting of quark-antiquark pairs), and exotic particles (comprising an unusual number of quarks).

To determine the composition of χc1(3872), physicists must measure properties like mass and quantum numbers.

According to theory, χc1(3872) could be a standard charmonium state made of a charm quark and an anticharm quark, or it could be an exotic particle consisting of four quarks.

These exotic particles could be tightly bound tetraquarks, molecular states, cc-gluon hybrid states, vector glueballs, or a combination of various possibilities.

Recent measurements by LHCb physicists revealed that its quantum number is 1++, and in 2020 they obtained precise data on the particle’s width (lifetime) and mass.

They also examined low-energy scattering parameters.

Their findings indicated that the mass of χc1(3872) is slightly less than the combined masses of the D0 and D*0 mesons.

These results have sparked debate within the theoretical community, with some proposing that χc1(3872) is a molecular state made up of spatially separated D0 and D*0 mesons.

However, this hypothesis faces challenges, as physicists anticipate molecular matter to be suppressed in hadron-hadron collisions, yet significant amounts of χc1(3872) are produced.

Other theorists suggest that the particle contains “compact” components, indicating a smaller size and potentially consisting of tightly bound charmonium or tetraquarks.

One method to uncover the composition of χc1(3872) is to calculate the branching ratio, which involves the probabilities of decay into different lighter particles.

By comparing the decay into a photon of the excited charmonium state, physicists can gain insights into the nature of the particle.

A key theoretical indicator is a non-zero ratio, suggesting the presence of compact components and countering a purely molecular model.

Using data from LHC Run 1 and Run 2, LHCb scientists found significant ratios beyond six standard deviations, ruling out a pure D0D*0 molecular hypothesis for χc1(3872).

Instead, the results support various predictions based on alternative hypotheses for the structure of χc1(3872, such as a mix of conventional (compact) charmonium, tetraquarks, light quarks, or molecules with a substantial compact core element.

Thus, the findings provide compelling evidence in favor of a χc1(3872) structure including a compact component.

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R. Aiji others (LHCb Collaboration). 2024. Probing the properties of the χc1(3872) state using radiative decay. arXiv: 2406.17006

This article is based on the original release from CERN.

Source: www.sci.news

Study Shows Environmental Threat Posed by ‘Forever Chemicals’ in Lithium-Ion Batteries

Posted on July 14, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Toxic PFAS ‘forever chemicals’ used in lithium-ion batteries that are essential to the clean energy transition New research findings As the emerging industry expands, it will pose threats to the environment and human health.

The multifaceted, peer-reviewed study focused on a little-studied and unregulated subclass of PFAS called bis-FASIs, which are used in lithium-ion batteries.

Researchers have found alarming levels of chemicals in the environment near manufacturing plants and in remote locations around the world, found that they can be toxic to living organisms, and found that battery waste in landfills is a major source of contamination.

“The nation faces two important challenges — minimizing water pollution and increasing access to clean, sustainable energy — and both are worthwhile,” said Jennifer Gelfo, a researcher at Texas Tech University and co-author of the study.

“But there is a bit of a tug-of-war between the two, and this study highlights that there is now an opportunity to better incorporate environmental risk assessments as we expand our energy infrastructure,” she added.

PFAS are a group of about 16,000 man-made compounds that are most commonly used to make products that are resistant to water, stains, and heat. PFAS are known as “forever chemicals” because they do not break down naturally and are known to accumulate in the human body. PFAS have been linked to cancer, birth defects, liver disease, thyroid disease, a dramatic drop in sperm count, and a variety of other serious health problems.

As the transition unfolds, public health advocates have begun sounding the alarm about the need to find alternatives to toxic chemicals used in clean energy technologies like batteries and wind turbines.

The paper notes that few end-of-life standards exist for PFAS battery waste, and most ends up in municipal waste sites, where it can leach into waterways, accumulate locally or be transported long distances.

When historical leachate samples were examined for the presence of the chemical, no detections were found in samples taken before the mid-1990s, when the chemical was commercialized.

The study points out that while BisFASI can be reused, previous research has shown that only 5% of lithium batteries are recycled. Unless battery recycling is dramatically scaled up to keep up with demand, it is predicted that 8 million tonnes of battery waste will be generated by 2040.

“This shows we need to look more closely at this class of PFAS,” Guelfo said.

Little toxicity data exists on bis-FASI, so the study also looked at its effects on invertebrates and zebrafish. Effects were seen even at low levels of exposure, suggesting it may be as toxic as other PFAS compounds known to be dangerous.

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Researchers also took water, soil and air samples around a 3M plant in Minnesota and other large facilities known to make the chemical. Guelfo said the levels in the soil and water are of concern, and that detection of the chemical in the snow suggests it could easily travel through the air.

This could help explain why the chemicals have been found in China’s seawater and other remote locations not close to production plants.

The most commonly used definition of PFAS worldwide includes bis-FASIs, but one division of the EPA considers them to not belong to a chemical class, and therefore they are not included in the list of compounds monitored in U.S. waters. The EPA’s narrow definition of PFAS has been criticized by public health advocacy groups for excluding some chemicals at the urging of industry.

But the new study, combined with previous evidence, shows that bisFASI, like most other PFAS, is persistent, mobile and toxic, said co-author Lee Ferguson, a researcher at Duke University.

“This classification, coupled with the massive increase in clean energy storage that we’re seeing, should at the very least sound alarm bells,” he said.

Source: www.theguardian.com

Study reveals last common ancestor lived 4.2 billion years ago

Posted on July 12, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

The Last Universal Common Ancestor (LUCA) is a hypothetical common ancestor of all modern cellular life, from single-celled organisms such as bacteria to giant sequoia trees and even to us humans. Our understanding of LUCA therefore has implications for our understanding of the early evolution of life on Earth.

Probabilistic inference of metabolic networks for modern organisms present in LUCA. Image courtesy of Moody others., doi: 10.1038/s41559-024-02461-1.

LUCA is a node on the tree of life from which the basic prokaryotic domains (Archaea and Bacteria) branch off.

Modern life evolved from LUCA from a variety of different sources: the same amino acids used to build proteins in all cellular organisms, a shared energy currency (ATP), the presence of cellular machinery such as ribosomes involved in creating proteins from information stored in DNA, and even the fact that all cellular organisms use DNA itself as a way to store information.

In the new study, University of Bristol scientist Edmund Moody and his colleagues compared all the genes in the genomes of modern species and counted the mutations that had occurred in the sequences over time since a common ancestor called LUCA.

The time when some species split off is known from the fossil record, and the team used a genetic equivalent of a familiar equation used in physics to calculate speed to determine when LUCA existed, arriving at 4.2 billion years ago – just 400 million years after Earth and the solar system formed.

“The evolutionary history of genes is complicated by the exchange of genes between lineages,” Dr Moody said.

“Reconciling the evolutionary history of genes with species lineages requires the use of complex evolutionary models.”

“We didn't expect LUCA to be so old, within just a few hundred million years of Earth's formation,” said Dr Sandra Alvarez-Carretero, also from the University of Bristol.

“But our findings are consistent with modern views of the habitability of early Earth.”

The study authors also traced the lineage of life back to LUCA and modeled the physiological traits of modern species to elucidate LUCA's biology.

“One of the real advantages here is that we applied the gene tree and species tree reconciliation approach to a highly diverse dataset representing the major domains of life: Archaea and Bacteria,” said Dr Tom Williams from the University of Bristol.

“This allows us to make statements with some confidence about how LUCA lived and to assess that level of confidence.”

“Our study shows that LUCA was a complex organism not too different from modern prokaryotes, but what's really interesting is that LUCA clearly had an early immune system, indicating that by 4.2 billion years ago our ancestors were in an arms race with viruses,” said Professor Davide Pisani, from the University of Bristol.

“LUCA clearly used and transformed its environment, but it is unlikely to have lived alone,” said researcher Dr Tim Lenton, from the University of Exeter.

“That waste would then serve as food for other microorganisms, such as methanogens, helping to create a recycling ecosystem.”

“The insights and methods provided by this study will also inform future studies looking in more detail at the subsequent evolution of prokaryotes in the context of Earth's history, including the less-studied archaea and their methanogens,” said Professor Anja Spang, researcher at the Royal Netherlands Institute for Marine Research.

“Our study brings together data and methods from multiple disciplines, revealing insights into the early Earth and life that could not be achieved by any single discipline alone,” said Professor Philip Donoghue, from the University of Bristol.

“It also shows how quickly ecosystems were established on the early Earth.”

“This suggests that life may thrive in an Earth-like biosphere somewhere in the universe.”

This study paper Published in the journal today Natural Ecology and Evolution.

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ERR Moody othersThe nature of the last universal common ancestor and its impact on the early Earth system. Nat Ecol EvolPublished online July 12, 2024, doi: 10.1038/s41559-024-02461-1

This article is a version of a press release provided by the University of Bristol.

Source: www.sci.news

Study finds ancient genome structure preserved in 52,000-year-old mammoth skin

Posted on July 12, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Scientists from Baylor College of Medicine and other institutions have announced the discovery of ancient chromosome subfossils in a female mammoth fossil.Mammutus primigeniusThe mammoth, a species of mammoth known as the pygmy mammoth, died 52,000 years ago in what is now Siberia. The fossil preserves the structure of its ancient chromosomes down to the nanometer (billionth of a meter) scale. Researchers hypothesize that the cold of Siberia naturally freeze-dried the mammoth's skin, causing a glass transition that preserved the fossil.

Sandoval Velasco othersAssembled the genome and 3D chromosome structure of a 52,000-year-old woolly mammoth. Image courtesy of Sandoval Velasco. others., doi: 10.1016/j.cell.2024.06.002.

“This is a new type of fossil, one whose scale far exceeds that of individual ancient DNA fragments, with sequences a million times larger,” said Dr. Erez Lieberman Aiden, director of the Center for Genome Architecture at Baylor College of Medicine.

“This is also the first time that an ancient sample has been karyotyped.”

Knowing the three-dimensional structure of a genome gives us a lot of additional information beyond its sequence, but most ancient DNA specimens are made up of very small, jumbled up pieces of DNA.

Building on their work mapping the 3D structure of the human genome, Dr Aiden and his colleagues reasoned that the same strategy could be used to assemble ancient genomes, provided suitable ancient DNA samples were found.

The researchers tested dozens of samples over a five-year period, eventually locating an unusually well-preserved woolly mammoth that was unearthed in September 2018 near Belaya Gora, in the Sakha Republic in northeastern Siberia.

“We believe that the freeze-drying occurred naturally shortly after death, and the nuclear structures in the dried samples can remain viable for an incredibly long period of time,” said Dr. Olga Dudchenko of the Center for Genome Structure at Baylor College of Medicine.

To reconstruct the mammoth's genome structure, the authors extracted DNA from skin samples taken from behind the mammoth's ears.

They are, High C This allows them to detect which parts of DNA are in spatial proximity and likely to interact in their natural state within the nucleus.

“Imagine having a puzzle with 3 billion pieces, but not having the final puzzle picture at hand,” said Professor Marc-Marty-Renom, a structural genomicist at the National Center for Genome Analysis and Genomic Regulation.

“Hi-C allows me to get a rough idea of what the picture looks like before I start putting the puzzle pieces together.”

They then combined the physical information from the Hi-C analysis with DNA sequences to identify interacting DNA sections and produced a neat map of the mammoth genome using the modern elephant genome as a template.

The analysis revealed that mammoths had 28 chromosomes, the same number as modern Asian and African elephants.

Remarkably, the fossilized mammoth chromosomes retained a great deal of physical integrity and detail, including the nanoscale loops that contact transcription factors with the genes they control.

By examining the compartmentalization of genes within the nucleus, the scientists were able to identify active and inactive genes in the mammoth skin cells, a proxy for epigenetics and transcriptomics.

Compared with skin cells from the mammoth's closest relative, the Asian elephant, the mammoth's skin cells showed different gene activation patterns, including genes that may be related to fur and cold tolerance.

“For the first time we have mammoth tissue where we can roughly tell which genes are on and which are off,” said Professor Martti Renom.

“This is a surprising new type of data, the first time we've measured cell-specific genetic activity of genes in ancient DNA samples.”

Team result Published in today's journal cell.

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Marcela Sandoval Velasco others2024. A 52,000-year-old mammoth skin sample contains 3D genome structure. cell 187(14):3541-3562; doi:10.1016/j.cell.2024.06.002

Source: www.sci.news

New study suggests Ancient Mars was cold and had moderate levels of water

Posted on July 12, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

In a new study, planetary scientists have found strong similarities between the soil of Gale Crater on Mars and that of the cold, sub-Arctic climate of Newfoundland, Canada.

X-ray amorphous material comprises 15-73% by weight of the sedimentary rocks and eolian deposits in Gale Crater. This material is siliceous and high in iron and low in aluminum. The presence of volatiles is consistent with the presence of early weathering products. To better understand the impact of this material on past water conditions on Mars, Feldman and others used bulk and selective dissolution techniques, X-ray diffraction, and transmission electron microscopy to investigate the formation and lifetime of X-ray amorphous material in terrestrial iron-rich soils of different ages and environmental conditions. Image courtesy of M. Kornmesser / ESO.

Scientists often use soil to portray environmental history, as the minerals it contains can tell the story of a landscape's evolution over time.

Understanding more about how these materials formed could help answer long-standing questions about the Red Planet's historical conditions.

The soil and rocks in Gale Crater are a record of a climate that existed 3 to 4 billion years ago, when Mars was relatively water-rich, coinciding with the time when life first emerged on Earth.

“Gale Crater is an ancient lake bed and clearly water was present, but what were the environmental conditions like when the water was there?” said Dr Anthony Feldman, a soil scientist and geomorphologist at the Desert Institute.

“We'll never find a direct analogue on the Martian surface because conditions on Mars and Earth are so different, but we can look at trends under Earth conditions and apply them to problems on Mars.”

NASA's Curiosity rover has been exploring Gale Crater since 2011 and has found large amounts of soil material known as X-ray amorphous material.

These components of soil lack the typical repeating atomic structure that characterizes minerals and therefore cannot be easily characterized using traditional techniques such as X-ray diffraction.

For example, when a crystalline material like diamond is hit with X-rays, the rays scatter at characteristic angles based on the mineral's internal structure.

However, X-ray amorphous materials do not produce these characteristic fingerprints.

This X-ray diffraction method was used by the Curiosity rover to demonstrate that soil and rock samples tested in Gale Crater consisted of 15-73% X-ray amorphous material.

“Think of X-ray amorphous material as being like jelly, which is a soup of different elements and chemicals that slide around one another,” Dr. Feldman said.

Curiosity also conducted chemical analysis of soil and rock samples and found that the amorphous material was rich in iron and silica and deficient in aluminum.

Beyond limited chemical information, scientists don't yet understand what this amorphous material is or what its presence means about Mars' historical environment.

Uncovering more information about how these enigmatic materials formed and persist on Earth could help answer long-standing questions about the Red Planet.

Dr. Feldman and his colleagues visited three locations in their search for similar X-ray amorphous material: the Tablelands of Gros Morne National Park in Newfoundland, the Klamath Mountains in Northern California, and western Nevada.

All three sites contain serpentinite soils that the researchers predicted would be chemically similar to the X-ray amorphous material in Gale Crater, meaning it would be rich in iron and silicon but poor in aluminum.

The three locations also recorded ranges of rainfall, snowfall and temperatures, which could help provide insight into the types of environmental conditions that produce amorphous material and promote its preservation.

At each site, the team examined the soil using X-ray diffraction analysis and transmission electron microscopy, allowing them to see the soil material at a more detailed level.

The subarctic climate of Newfoundland produced materials chemically similar to those found at Gale Crater, but lacked the crystalline structure, whereas soils produced in warmer climates such as California and Nevada did not produce the crystalline structure.

“This tells us that you need water there to form these materials,” Dr. Feldman said.

“But to preserve the amorphous material in the soil, the average annual temperature needs to be cold, close to freezing.”

Amorphous materials are often considered to be relatively unstable, meaning that at the atomic level, the atoms have not yet organized into a final crystalline form.

“Something is happening in the rates, or kinetics, of the reactions that slows them down so that these materials are preserved over geological timescales,” Dr Feldman said.

“What we're suggesting is that very cold conditions, close to freezing, are the specific kinetic limiting factors that allow these materials to form and be preserved.”

“This research improves our understanding of the Martian climate.”

“The results suggest that the abundance of this material in Gale Crater is consistent with subarctic conditions similar to those found in Iceland, for example.”

Team work Published in a journal Communication Earth and the Environment.

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A.D. Feldman othersIn 2024, iron-rich X-ray amorphous material will record Mars' past climate and the persistence of water. Community Global Environment 5, 364; doi: 10.1038/s43247-024-01495-4

This article is based on a press release from the Desert Research Institute.

Source: www.sci.news

Study finds that hippos can run so fast that they can leap into the air

Posted on July 3, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

If you struggle to picture a two-ton, wingless creature hovering, you’re not alone. However, a recent study shows that hippos (or hippopotamuses, to use the full name) can reach speeds that rival flying.

Although hippos are amphibious, they are some of the largest land animals, often weighing over 2,000 kg (2.2 tonnes). Due to their aquatic lifestyle, little is known about their terrestrial movement.

In a surprising discovery, researchers found that hippos can remain airborne for short periods, representing about 15 percent of their stride cycle, or approximately 0.3 seconds. This suggests that they move differently on land than previously thought.

In this image from the researchers’ footage, all four of the hippo’s legs are off the ground, giving the appearance of floating. – Image credit: Johan Vermeulen

While some animals like horses are known to leap into the air at high speeds, it’s rare for large animals like hippos to do so. This unique movement pattern sets them apart from elephants, which never lift all four legs off the ground simultaneously.

Prior studies were inconclusive about the hippo’s gait pattern, but recent research from the Royal Veterinary College reveals that hippos predominantly trot, regardless of their speed. This uniformity in movement is uncommon among land mammals and sheds light on how hippos navigate their environment.

Studying hippos is challenging due to their dangerous nature, making them elusive subjects for scientific research. Professor John Hutchinson, lead author of a study on hippos, emphasized the difficulty in studying these creatures due to their habitat and behavior.

To overcome these obstacles, researchers analyzed video footage of hippos at Flamingo Land Resort in Yorkshire, observing their movement patterns in detail. Their findings not only contribute to our understanding of terrestrial mammals but also have potential implications for veterinary medicine.

By uncovering how hippos walk and run, this study provides valuable insights into their behavior and capabilities. Hutchinson expressed admiration for the hippos’ surprising agility on land, highlighting the incredible nature of these animals.

Learn more:

Source: www.sciencefocus.com

Humans definitively responsible for extinction of large animals, study finds

Posted on July 3, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Over the past 50,000 years, terrestrial vertebrate faunas have experienced severe declines in large species (megafauna), with most extinctions occurring during the Late Pleistocene and early to mid-Holocene. Importantly, this extinction event is unique in its strong size bias compared to other Cenozoic extinctions (past 66 million years). For example, of 57 species of large herbivores (weighing over 1,000 kg), only 11 have survived to the present day. Debate regarding the causes has continued for over two centuries.

Svenning othersGlobal extinction patterns, as well as fine-scale spatiotemporal and mechanistic evidence, show little evidence of a significant climate influence. Conversely, there is growing evidence of strong human pressure as the primary driver of these extinctions, with the initial onset linked to pre-global warming.Homo sapiens Hominins before the Late Pleistocene. Image courtesy of Svenning others., doi: 10.1017/ext.2024.4.

“The massive and selective disappearance of large animals over the past 50,000 years is unprecedented in the past 66 million years,” said Professor Jens Christian Svenning from Aarhus University.

“Past climate changes have not led to large-scale selective extinctions, arguing that climate played a major role in the extinction of large animals.”

“Another important pattern supporting the lack of a role for climate is that recent megafauna extinctions have hit climatically stable regions as hard as climatically unstable regions.”

Archaeologists have found traps designed to hunt very large animals, and isotope analysis of protein residues on ancient human bones and spear points reveals that they hunted and ate the largest mammals.

“Early modern humans were able to effectively hunt even the largest animal species and clearly had the capacity to reduce large animal populations,” Prof Svenning said.

“These large animals were and remain especially vulnerable to over-exploitation because they have long gestation periods, give birth to very small litters and take many years to reach sexual maturity.”

The analysis found that human hunting of large animals, such as mammoths, mastodons and giant sloths, was widespread and consistent around the world.

It also shows that the species went extinct at very different times and at different rates around the world.

In some areas it happened quickly, but in others it took more than 10,000 years.

But everywhere, it happened after the arrival of modern humans or, in the case of Africa, after human cultural advancement.

Species became extinct on every continent except Antarctica, and in every type of ecosystem, from tropical forests and savannas to Mediterranean and temperate forests and steppes, to Arctic ecosystems.

“Many extinct species could have thrived in a variety of environments,” Prof Svenning said.

“Therefore, their extinction cannot be explained by climate change that caused the disappearance of certain ecosystem types such as the Mammoth Steppe, which also contained only a few large animal species.”

“Most species live in temperate to tropical climates and would have actually benefited from the warming at the end of the last ice age.”

The researchers say the decline of large animals has serious ecological implications.

Macrofauna play a central role in ecosystems by influencing vegetation structure (e.g. the balance between dense forest and open areas), seed dispersal and nutrient cycling.

Their disappearance has led to major changes in ecosystem structure and function.

“Our findings highlight the need for active conservation and restoration efforts,” Professor Svenning said.

“Reintroducing large mammals can help restore ecological balance and maintain the biodiversity that evolved in ecosystems rich in large animals.”

of study Published in the journal Cambridge Prism: Extinction.

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Jens Christian Svenning others2024. Late Quaternary megafauna extinctions: patterns, causes, ecological impacts and implications for ecosystem management in the Anthropocene. Aarhus University. Cambridge Prism: Extinction 2: e5; doi: 10.1017/ext.2024.4

This article has been edited based on the original release from Aarhus University.

Source: www.sci.news

Fruit bats demonstrate episodic memory and mental time travel capabilities, study reveals

Posted on July 2, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Episodic memory and mental time travel have been considered uniquely human traits. This view has begun to change with the development of behavioral criteria to assess what is called episodic memory in animals. Key findings range from evidence of “what, where, when” memory in jays, mice and bees to episodic memory and future-oriented behavior in wild, free-foraging animals. In a new study, scientists investigated episodic memory and future-oriented behavior in wild, free-foraging animals. Egyptian fruit bat (Rusetus aegyptiacus)The team found that fruit bats rely on mental time maps to display future-oriented behaviour when foraging, and that time-mapping ability requires experience and is lacking in inexperienced bats.

Egyptian fruit bat (Rusetus aegyptiacus) track tree phenology and estimate fruit availability since their previous visit. Bats exhibit future-oriented behavior, flying to trees rich in specific proteins, while flying past many familiar sugar-rich trees. Young bats must learn tree phenology through experience. Image courtesy of Harten others., doi:10.1016/j.cub.2024.05.046.

“For many years, the cognitive abilities to recall and plan personal experiences (episodic memory) have been thought to be uniquely human,” Tel Aviv University.

“However, a growing body of research suggests that various animals also have such abilities, although nearly all of these studies have been carried out in laboratory settings, as field studies on this issue are difficult to conduct.”

“To test these capabilities in wildlife, we designed a unique experiment using a wild colony of flying foxes.”

The researchers surmised that bats that depend on fruit trees for survival need to develop the ability to track food availability both spatially (where are the fruit trees?) and temporally (when does each tree bear fruit?).

As you navigate a landscape with numerous fruit and nectar trees, you'll need to mentally keep track of resources in order to revisit them at the right time.

To test this hypothesis, they fitted each bat with a small, high-resolution GPS tracker, allowing them to record their flight routes and the trees they visited over several months.

The vast amount of data collected in this way was thoroughly analyzed, yielding surprising results.

“Our first research question was: do bats form mental maps of time?” says Dr Lee Harten from Tel Aviv University.

“To investigate this issue, we confined bats to their colonies for various periods of time, ranging from one day to a week.”

“We wanted to see if the bats would recognise that time had passed and behave accordingly.”

“We found that after one day in captivity, the bats would return to the trees they had visited the previous night. But after a full week, the older bats, based on their past experience, began to avoid trees that had stopped bearing fruit in the meantime.”

“In other words, they could estimate how much time had passed since they last visited each tree, and thus know which trees only bore fruit for a short time and were no longer worth visiting.”

“Younger, inexperienced bats were unable to do this, suggesting that this is an acquired skill that must be mastered.”

“The first research question was about past experience, but the second question was about the future. Do bats exhibit future-oriented behavior? Can they plan for the future?”

“To address this issue, the researchers observed the route each bat took to reach the first tree in the evening, which could indicate a plan made before leaving the colony.”

“We found that bats usually fly directly to specific trees they know, sometimes up to 20-30 minutes away,” said Dr Chen Xin from Tel Aviv University.

“They're hungry, so they fly faster the further away the trees are, which suggests they're planning where they're going.”

“Furthermore, because they are so focused on their chosen target, they pass by other trees and even good sources of information that they only visited yesterday, demonstrating their ability to postpone gratification.”

“We also found that the first bats to leave the colony chose trees with fruits high in sugar, while those who left later sought out fruits with protein.”

The findings suggest that bats plan their foraging before they leave the colony, knowing exactly where they'll be flying and what nutrients they'll be looking for.

“The gap between human and animal cognition is one of the most fascinating questions in science,” Professor Yobel said.

“Our study demonstrates that flying foxes are able to carry out highly complex decision-making processes involving three questions that demonstrate cognitive capabilities: 'where?' (the location of each tree), 'when?' (when the trees will bear fruit) and 'what?' (what nutrients the trees provide, sugars or proteins).”

“Once again, the gap wasn't clearly carved out, and we find that humans are not as special as some think.”

“Apparently, humans and animals all lie on a spectrum, and almost all human abilities can also be found in animals.”

a paper The findings were published in the journal. Current Biology.

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Lee Harten othersTime mapping and future-oriented behavior in free-ranging wild fruit bats. Current BiologyPublished online June 20, 2024; doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.05.046

This article is a version of a Tel Aviv University press release.

Source: www.sci.news

Study shows that snacking on baby carrots can have positive impacts on health

Posted on June 30, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

A recent study has shown that including just three baby carrots in your weekly diet can boost levels of beneficial carotenoids in your skin, particularly in young people.

These findings suggest that making small changes to your diet can have a significant impact on your health.

Researchers at Samford University conducted a study that revealed how incorporating baby carrots into your diet can increase carotenoids in your skin, which have various health benefits. When baby carrots were combined with a multivitamin containing beta-carotene, the levels of carotenoids in the skin increased even more significantly.

Carotenoids are compounds responsible for the vibrant colors of fruits and vegetables like red, orange, and yellow. They can only be obtained through diet and are used as an indicator of fruit and vegetable intake.

According to Mary Harper Simmons, a nutrition master’s student at Samford University and the study author, higher carotenoid intake leads to higher levels of antioxidants in the body, reducing inflammation and lowering the risk of chronic diseases like heart disease and cardiovascular disease.

Previous research has shown that consuming three times the recommended daily intake of fruits and vegetables for three weeks can increase carotenoids in the skin. This study aimed to create a convenient snack rich in carotenoids that people enjoy.

Results of the study were presented at the American Academy of Nutrition’s annual meeting in Chicago. Participants were randomly assigned to different dietary intervention groups, including consuming baby carrots, a multivitamin supplement, or a combination of both. The group that ate baby carrots saw a 10.8% increase in skin carotenoid scores, while the combination group had a 21.6% increase.

Going forward, the research team plans to explore different populations and other carotenoid-rich foods like sweet potatoes and green leafy vegetables.

About our experts

Mary Harper Simmons: A master’s student in nutrition at Samford University and presenter of the talk “Effect of a 4-week intervention with baby carrots or a multivitamin supplement on skin carotenoid scores in young adults” at the NUTRITION 2024 conference.

Read more:

Source: www.sciencefocus.com

Study indicates that women’s cognitive abilities may enhance during menstruation

Posted on June 29, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

According to a bold study, women might excel at certain cognitive tasks during their menstrual period. New Research from University College London (UCL) and the Institute of Sport, Exercise and Health (ISEH) sheds light on this phenomenon.

Published in the peer-reviewed journal Neuropsychology, this study is the first of its kind to explore sports-related cognition throughout different phases of the menstrual cycle.

The study involved 241 participants who underwent various cognitive tests simulating mental processes relevant in team sports, such as recognizing expressions, attention, reaction time, and spatial awareness.

Participants also used a menstrual cycle tracking app to determine their phase during the testing period.

Surprisingly, contrary to their expectations, participants demonstrated faster reaction times and lower error rates during their period. For instance, their timing accuracy during a task improved by 10 milliseconds on average (12%) compared to other times.

Lead study author Dr. Flaminia Ronca from UCL Department of Surgery and Interventional Science and ISEH noted that the findings challenge assumptions about women’s capabilities during menstruation.

Conversely, during the luteal phase, participants showed slightly slower reaction times but maintained consistent error rates.

The authors highlighted that even a small difference of 10 milliseconds could impact performance outcomes significantly.

Dr. Megan Lawley, another author of the study, emphasized the importance of further research in understanding how women’s cognitive abilities affect athletic performance at different menstrual cycle stages.

About the Experts

Flaminia Ronca: Associate Professor in the Department of Targeted Interventions at UCL, with research interests in body-brain interaction through movement.

Megan Lawley: Senior Sports Scientist specializing in female athlete health and previously involved in research on athlete performance factors at UK Sport and Bangor University.

Read More:

Source: www.sciencefocus.com

Ammonites did not decrease before end-Cretaceous extinction, study finds

Posted on June 29, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

A team of British and American paleontologists has analysed the fossil record of ammonites (marine mollusks best known as snails) from the Late Cretaceous period (105 to 66 million years ago), a period that some scientists characterise as a period of decline before their complete extinction at the Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary. The study suggests that, far from disappearing before this, ammonites were still going strong around the world during the Late Cretaceous.

An ammonite basking in the sun from the Late Cretaceous period. Image courtesy of Callum Pursall.

Ammonites thrived in the Earth’s oceans for more than 350 million years before becoming extinct in the same chance event that wiped out the dinosaurs 66 million years ago.

Some paleontologists argue that the extinction of ammonites (the last major lineage of ammonoids) was inevitable, and that ammonite diversity declined long before their extinction at the end of the Cretaceous.

But new research suggests that ammonites’ fate is not sealed; rather, the final chapter of their evolutionary history is more complicated.

“Understanding how and why biodiversity has changed over time is extremely difficult,” said Dr Joseph Flannery Sutherland, a palaeontologist from the Universities of Birmingham and Bristol.

“The fossil record tells us part of the story, but it’s often an unreliable narrator.”

“Patterns of diversity may simply reflect sampling patterns — essentially when and where new fossil species were discovered — rather than actual biological history.”

“Analysing the extant Late Cretaceous ammonite fossil record as if it were a complete global story is probably why previous researchers have thought of ammonites as being in a long-term ecological decline.”

To overcome this problem, Dr. Flannery Sutherland and his colleagues have built a new database of Late Cretaceous ammonite fossils to fill sample gaps in the record.

“We used museum collections to provide new sources of specimens rather than relying on what has already been published,” said researcher Cameron Crossan of the University of Bristol.

“By doing this, we’re confident that we’ll get a more accurate picture of the biodiversity before it went extinct.”

The paleontologists used the database to analyze how ammonite speciation and extinction rates changed in different regions of the planet.

If ammonites had declined throughout the Late Cretaceous, their extinction rate would have generally been higher than their speciation rate in every region the team studied.

What the researchers found instead was that the balance between speciation and extinction has shifted through geological time and between different geographic regions.

“These differences in ammonite diversification around the world are an important reason why the story of the Late Cretaceous has been misunderstood,” said Dr James Witts, a palaeontologist at the Natural History Museum in London.

“The fossil record in some parts of North America is very well-sampled, but looking at it alone it might seem like North America was struggling while other parts were thriving.”

“Their extinction was an accident, not a foreseeable event.”

To understand why ammonites continued to thrive throughout the Late Cretaceous, scientists investigated factors that may have changed ammonite diversity over time.

They were particularly interested in whether ammonite speciation and extinction rates were driven primarily by environmental conditions such as ocean temperature and sea level, or by biological processes such as pressure from predators and competition between ammonites themselves.

“We found that the causes of ammonite speciation and extinction were as geographically diverse as their rates,” said Dr. Colin Myers, a paleontologist at the University of New Mexico.

“You can’t look at the whole fossil record and say, for example, that diversity is entirely driven by changes in temperature.”

“In reality it was more complicated and it depended on where in the world they lived.”

Team result Published in a journal Nature Communications.

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JT Flannery Sutherland others2024. Late Cretaceous ammonites show regional heterogeneity in drivers of diversification. Nat Community 15, 5382; doi: 10.1038/s41467-024-49462-z

Source: www.sci.news

New study sheds light on amino acid metabolism and transport in tea plants

Posted on June 25, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

High concentrations of free amino acids in tea leaves are important for tea’s flavor and health functions, but their biosynthesis, transport and turnover in the tea plant have remained unknown.

A practical model of nitrogen assimilation, amino acid synthesis, transport, and decomposition/recycling in tea plants. Image courtesy of Yu others., doi: 10.1093/hr/uhae060.

“Amino acids are essential for plant growth and have a significant impact on the flavor and health benefits of tea,” Professor Zhao Jian Hunan Agricultural University and colleagues.

“Especially the tea trees Camellia sinensis exhibits a unique amino acid profile that contributes to its distinctive taste and nutritional value.”

“Although the importance of amino acids such as theanine and glutamine (Gln) is known, the detailed dynamics of their synthesis, transport and degradation in tea plants remain unknown.”

“These challenges require intensive research to be carried out to understand the complex metabolic pathways and spatial distribution of amino acids within the tea plant.”

In the study, Professor Zhao and his co-authors analyzed the spatial dynamics of amino acid biosynthesis, transport and turnover in tea plants.

“This study provides a detailed analysis of the metabolic pathways and gene expression that control these processes,” the researchers said.

“By understanding these mechanisms, we hope to improve tea cultivation and enhance the quality of tea beverages.”

“This study revealed that nitrogen assimilation occurs mainly in the roots, where glutamate, theanine and arginine (Arg) are actively synthesized. These amino acids are then transported through the plant’s vascular system.”

“Transcriptome analysis revealed that genes involved in Arg synthesis are highly expressed in roots, whereas genes involved in Arg transport and degradation are expressed in stems and young leaves. This indicates that there is a sophisticated amino acid management system within the plant.”

“One of the key findings is the role of the CsGSIa gene, which is crucial for the synthesis, transport and recycling of amino acids.”

“Overexpression and knockdown experiments of CsGSIa in transgenic tea plants demonstrated significant effects on the levels of Gln and theanine.”

“The study also revealed that Arg, Gln, glutamic acid (Glu), and theanine are the major amino acids transported through xylem sap, facilitating long-distance nitrogen transport from roots to leaves.”

“Our findings provide a detailed map of amino acid metabolism in the tea plant, which is of vital importance for both basic science and applied agricultural practice,” Dr Zhao said.

“Understanding these metabolic pathways opens up new possibilities for breeding tea varieties with enhanced flavor and health benefits.”

The team’s findings have important implications for the tea industry.

“By elucidating the pathway of amino acid metabolism, our study paves the way for the development of tea plants with higher contents of beneficial amino acids, enhancing both flavour and nutritional value,” the researchers said.

“These insights can be applied to breeding programs and cultivation practices to produce superior tea varieties.”

“Furthermore, understanding these metabolic processes can help us develop strategies to improve nitrogen use efficiency, contributing to more sustainable and productive tea farms.”

of study Published in the journal Horticultural Research.

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Shuwei Yu others2024. Analysis of spatial dynamics of biosynthesis, transport and metabolism of major amino acids in tea plants (Camellia sinensis). Horticultural Research 11(5):uhae060; doi:10.1093/hr/uhae060

Source: www.sci.news

Expedition to study human adaptation to extreme heat in the face of climate change

Posted on June 25, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Walking on hot red sand is hard work, especially when the temperature exceeds 40°C (104°F). After about 40 minutes you are soaked, dehydrated and exhausted. It is hard to imagine doing this for 40 days with all your gear, including 40 liters of water for five days, on a two-wheeled trolley. But that is exactly what my traveling companions did.

I'm in the Nahud Desert, a vast expanse of sand and rocky wilderness in northern Saudi Arabia, to experience the almost unbearable heat and meet up with 20 other people who are part of an expedition. Deep ClimateHe is dedicated to understanding how humans respond to extreme situations. “The aim is to study how humans adapt to new kinds of environments,” he says. Christian Clotteleader of the expedition and director of the French Institute of Human Adaptation.

This problem becomes even more pressing as the climate gets warmer: even in the most optimistic scenarios, heatwaves exceeding 40°C, as observed in southern Europe and across the United States over the past few months, will become the norm in many parts of the world.

So the question of what happens to our brains and bodies, and how well the human physiology can handle extreme heat, is a question that matters to millions of people. “We're going to see large swaths of densely populated areas rise to unprecedented temperatures that nobody has seen in historical climates,” he said. Tim Renton He is a researcher at the University of Exeter in the UK and recently co-authored a research paper titled “…

Source: www.newscientist.com

New study finds solid wood surfaces exhibit natural antiviral characteristics

Posted on June 20, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

In a recent study, researchers from the University of Jyväskylä and the University of Eastern Finland examined the antiviral properties of different types of wood, including coniferous and deciduous trees, against coronaviruses and enteroviruses.

Shroff othersScots pine and Norway spruce were found to have excellent antiviral activity, especially against enveloped viruses, with onset within 10-15 minutes. In contrast, other hardwoods showed mixed efficacy, and oak showed effectiveness against enteroviruses. Image courtesy of Schroff. others., doi: 10.1021/acsami.4c02156.

Since ancient times, wood has played a vital role in tools, utilities, and construction.

The 20th century witnessed a depletion of wood resources, prompting the emergence of alternatives like plastics and metals for interior surfaces and fixtures.

A growing concern for sustainability and the unique qualities of wood has led to a resurgence in its use across various applications.

The 21st century has brought new health challenges, including viral outbreaks like SARS and COVID-19, emphasizing the importance of surface hygiene.

Viruses can persist on surfaces as fomites, with enveloped viruses having shorter survival times compared to non-enveloped viruses.

Wood has been known for its antibacterial and antifungal properties, but its antiviral capabilities were not thoroughly explored until this study.

Researchers investigated how different types of wood affect the infectivity of enveloped and non-enveloped viruses.

The study found that certain types of wood could significantly reduce viral infectivity within hours, showcasing their potential as natural antiviral materials.

Their research paper was published in the journal ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces.

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Reference: Sailey Shroff et al. (2024). Inactivation of coronaviruses and enteroviruses on solid wood surfaces depending on wood species. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, 16(23), 29621-29633. doi:10.1021/acsami.4c02156

Source: www.sci.news

Study shows wave activity causing erosion along the coastlines of Titan’s largest lakes and oceans

Posted on June 20, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Titan, Saturn’s largest moon, is the only known planet other than Earth that still retains liquid water. Liquid hydrocarbons fed by rain from Titan’s thick atmosphere form rivers, lakes, and oceans, most of which are found in the polar regions. In a new study, a team of MIT geologists surveyed Titan’s coastline and found that the moon’s large lakes and oceans were likely formed by waves.

Artist’s rendering of the surface of Saturn’s largest moon, Titan. Image by Benjamin de Bivort, debivort.org / CC BY-SA 3.0.

The existence of waves on Titan has been a somewhat controversial topic ever since NASA’s Cassini spacecraft discovered liquid puddles on Titan’s surface.

“Some people who have looked for evidence of waves haven’t seen any waves at all and have said, ‘The ocean is as smooth as a mirror,'” said Dr. Rose Palermo, a geologist with the U.S. Geological Survey. “Others have said they saw some roughness in the water but didn’t know if it was caused by waves.”

“Knowing whether there is wave activity in Titan’s oceans can provide scientists with information about the moon’s climate, including the strength of the winds that generate such waves.”

“Wave information could also help scientists predict how the shape of Titan’s ocean will change over time.”

“Rather than looking for direct signs of wave-like features in Titan images, we wanted to take a different approach and see if just looking at the shape of the coastline could tell us what it is that is eroding the coast.”

Titan’s oceans are thought to have formed when rising waters flooded a landscape crisscrossed by river valleys.

The researchers zeroed in on three scenarios for what happened next: no coastal erosion, wave-driven erosion, and uniform erosion caused by either dissolution, where liquids passively dissolve coastal material, or a mechanism where the coast gradually peels away under its own weight.

They simulated how different coastline shapes would change under each of the three scenarios.

To simulate wave erosion, the researchers took into account a variable called “fetch,” which describes the physical distance from one point on the shoreline to the other side of a lake or ocean.

“Wave erosion depends on the height and angle of the waves,” Dr Palermo said.

“We used the fetch to estimate wave height because the bigger the fetch, the further away the wind will blow and the bigger the waves will be.”

Cassini observed Titan’s surface with microwaves and found several grooves that are deep canyons filled with liquid hydrocarbons, including Vid Fulmina, a branching network of thin lines in the upper left quadrant of the image. Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / ASI.

To test how coastline shape would differ between the three scenarios, the scientists started with a simulated ocean area with a flooded river valley all around it.

For wave erosion, we calculated the fetch distance from every point along the coastline to every other point and converted that distance to wave height.

They then ran simulations to see how waves would erode the original shoreline over time.

They compared this to how the same coastline would change due to erosion caused by uniform erosion.

The authors repeated this comparative modelling for hundreds of different initial shoreline configurations.

They found that the shape of the termini varies greatly depending on the underlying mechanism.

Most notably, uniform erosion produced a bulging shoreline that was evenly distributed all around, even in flooded river valleys, whereas wave erosion smoothed out portions of the shoreline exposed primarily to long downstream distances, leaving the flooded valleys narrow and rough.

“Although the initial coastline was the same, we found that uniform erosion and wave erosion resulted in very different final shapes,” Dr Perron said.

“Although it looks like a flying spaghetti monster because of the flooded river valley, the endpoints created by the two types of erosion are very different.”

This image is a composite of images taken during two flybys of Titan in 2006. A large circular feature near the center of Titan’s disk may be the remnant of a very old impact basin. The mountain range southeast of the circular feature and the long, dark linear feature northwest of the old impact site may be the result of deformation of Titan’s crust caused by energy released when the impact occurred. Image credit: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona.

Dr. Perron and his colleagues verified their results by comparing their simulation results with actual lakes on Earth.

They found the same shape differences between Earth’s lakes known to have been eroded by waves and those affected by homogeneous erosion, such as dissolved limestone.

Their modelling revealed distinct and distinctive shapes depending on the mechanism by which the shoreline evolved.

So they wondered: Where does Titan’s coastline fit into these distinctive shapes?

In particular, they focused on four of Titan’s largest and best-mapped oceans: Kraken Mare, which is comparable in size to the Caspian Sea; Ligeia Mare, which is larger than Lake Superior; Punga Mare, which is longer than Lake Victoria; and Lake Ontario, which is about 20% the size of the land-based lake of the same name.

The researchers used Cassini’s radar images to map the coastlines of each of Titan’s oceans, and then applied their model to the coastlines of each ocean to see which erosion mechanisms best explain their shape.

They found that all four oceans fit closely to the wave-induced erosion model, meaning that waves created the closest coastlines to Titan’s four oceans.

“We found that when the shoreline is eroding, its shape is more consistent with wave-driven erosion than uniform erosion or no erosion,” Dr Perron said.

Scientists are trying to figure out how strong Titan’s winds would need to be to churn up waves strong enough to repeatedly scrape away the shoreline.

They also hope to learn from the shape of Titan’s coastline which direction the winds primarily blow from.

“Titan shows us that this case is completely pristine,” Dr. Palermo said.

“It may help us learn more fundamental things about how coasts erode without human influence, which in turn may help us better manage coastlines around the world in the future.”

of Investigation result Published in today’s journal Scientific advances.

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Rose V. Palermo others2024. Evidence of wave erosion on Titan’s coast. Scientific advances 10(25); Source: 10.1126/sciadv.adn4192

Source: www.sci.news

Scientists Study Pest-Killing Fungus by Collecting Sexually-Excited Zombie Cicadas

Posted on June 20, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

With their bulging red eyes and alien-like mating sounds, periodical cicadas may seem scary and weird, but some of them are speed-freak, sex-crazed zombies that have been hijacked by super-sized fungi.

West Virginia University mycology professor Matt Casson, his 9-year-old son Oliver, and graduate student Angie Macias have been tracking a pesky fungus called Massospora cicadina, the only fungus on Earth that can hijack an animal’s body to make amphetamines (a drug known as speed)—and sure enough, it’s taking over cicadas, increasing their sex drive and spreading a parasite that’s transmitted sexually.

“They’re zombies, totally at the mercy of the fungus,” says John Cooley, a cicada researcher at the University of Connecticut.

The fungus has the largest genome of any known fungus—about 1.5 billion base pairs, Casson says, making it about 30 times longer than any common fungus we know—and while the periodical cicada lives underground for 17 years (13 years in the southern U.S.), its spores typically remain underground as well.

“It’s been a mycological oddity for a long time,” says Casson, “and it has the largest genome, produces wild compounds, keeps its host active, and has a whole host of other strange characteristics.”

Matt Cusson, a professor of mycology at West Virginia University, dissects fungal tissue from the posterior abdomen of a female periodical cicada infected with the fungus Massospora cicadina.Carolyn Custer/AP

This year, Casson decided to ask people to send him infected cicadas from around the country, and despite his injured leg, he, his son, and Mathias traveled from West Virginia to the Morton Arboretum outside Chicago, where they reported a fungus that takes over the lower half of the cicada’s body, discarding its reproductive organs and replacing them with a rather conspicuous mass that’s white, sticky but flaky. The spores then spill out like salt from a shaker.

Infected cicadas can be hard to spot.

Ten seconds after jumping off the golf cart, Macias was in the trees, looking around. She triumphantly raised the semi in the air and shouted, “I got it!”

“That was just luck,” Oliver complained.”

“Luck, eh? Good luck,” Macias replies.

Ten seconds later, Oliver spotted another bird in the bushes next to him, and a little later the photographer spotted a third.

Casson is tracking the only bacteria on Earth that produces amphetamines in living organisms when it takes control of them.Carolyn Custer/AP

Kasson and his small team collected 36 infected cicadas during a quick trip around Chicago, and another 200 or so have been sent in from elsewhere. He’s still waiting for the results of an RNA analysis of the fungus.

Some cicada experts estimate that one in every 1,000 periodical cicadas is infected with the fungus, but that’s just a guess, says Gene Kritsky, a biologist at Mount St. Joseph University who has written a book about the fungus. This year’s unique double appearanceHe said the numbers could be skewed because healthy cicadas tend to stay higher in trees.

“This year’s fungal situation is business as usual and not particularly unusual,” Cooley said in an email.

Scientists debate whether the fungus burrows deep underground and then infects the cicadas that emerge after 13 or 17 years, or whether it infects newly hatched larvae as they make their way underground for more than a decade.

The fungus isn’t a parasite that kills its host, but rather needs to keep it alive, Casson said. Infected cicadas will try to mate with other cicadas, spreading the spores to their mates/victims. Males may also become hypersexual and pose as females to lure and infect other males, Casson said.

Test tubes containing live periodical cicadas infected with the fungus Massospora cicadina await field processing at the Morton Arboretum in Lisle, Illinois, on June 6, 2024.Carolyn Custer/AP

A related species of the fungus that infects annual cicadas in the West also produces psychoactive compounds in the cicadas that are more similar to hallucinogens like magic mushrooms, Kasson said. That’s why some people, even experts, confuse the amphetamines produced by infected 17- and 13-year cicadas with the highly hallucinogenic compounds in the annual insects, he said.

Either way, don’t try this at home. The cicada itself is edible, Not many people are infected.

Out of scientific curiosity, Casson experimented on one during this emergence, ensuring that it was taken from the body of a female, which was more sterile.

“It was really bitter,” Cason said, explaining that she quickly rinsed her mouth. “It tasted like poison.”

Source: www.nbcnews.com

New study suggests Jupiter’s Great Red Spot may not be the permanent feature reported by Cassini

Posted on June 19, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Jupiter’s Great Red Spot is perhaps the best-known atmospheric feature and a popular icon among the solar system’s objects. Its large oval shape, contrasting red color, and long lifespan make it easily visible with a small telescope. A new study led by scientists from the University of the Basque Country, based on historical measurements of its size and motion, shows that the present-day Great Red Spot was probably first reported in 1831 and is not a permanent spot observed by Giovanni Domenico Cassini and others between 1665 and 1713.

The Permanent Spot (PS) and the early Great Red Spot (GRS): (a) drawing of the PS by GD Cassini on 19 January 1672, (b) drawing by S. Swave on 10 May 1851, showing the GRS area as a clear ellipse bounded by a depression (depicted by a dashed red line). (c) photograph taken by AA Common on 3 September 1879 using a 91 cm reflecting telescope at Ealing (London). The GRS appears as a clear "dark" ellipse because it is red and the photographic plate is sensitive to violet-blue wavelengths. (d) photograph taken at Lick Observatory on 14 October 1890 using a yellow filter. All figures show astronomical images of Jupiter (south at top, east at left) to preserve the notes on the drawings. Image courtesy of Sánchez-Lavega others., doi: 10.1029/2024GL108993.

Jupiter’s Great Red Spot is the largest and longest-lasting known vortex of any planet in the solar system.

The formation mechanism that produced this feature is unknown, and its longevity is controversial.

It was also unclear whether the Great Red Spot was the dark oval nicknamed the “Eternal Spot” that astronomer Giovanni Domenico Cassini and others reported between 1665 and 1713.

“Speculation about the origin of the Great Red Spot dates back to the first telescopic observations by Giovanni Domenico Cassini, who in 1665 discovered a dark oval at the same latitude as the Great Red Spot, which he named a permanent spot, because it was observed by Cassini and other astronomers until 1713,” said Professor Agustin Sánchez Lavega from the University of the Basque Country.

“For the next 118 years, traces of it were lost, and it was only after 1831 that S. Schwabe again observed a clear, almost elliptical structure at the same latitude as the GRS. This can be considered the first observation of the present-day GRS, possibly of the infant GRS.”

“Since then, the Great Red Spot has been regularly observed by telescopes and by various space probes that have visited the planet up to the present day.”

In their study, the authors analysed the change in the size of the Great Red Spot over time, its structure, and the behaviour of two meteorological structures, the former permanent spot and the Great Red Spot.

To do so, they used historical sources dating back to the mid-17th century, shortly after the telescope was invented.

“Based on our measurements of its size and motion, we infer that it is highly unlikely that the current Great Red Spot is the permanent spot observed by Cassini,” Professor Sanchez LaVega said.

“The permanent spot probably disappeared sometime between the mid-18th and 19th centuries, which would put the lifespan of the red spot at least 190 years.”

“The Red Spot, which in 1879 measured 39,000 kilometres along its longest axis, has now shrunk to about 14,000 kilometres and is becoming rounder at the same time.”

“Furthermore, since the 1970s, several space missions have studied this weather phenomenon in detail.”

“Recently, various instruments on the Juno spacecraft in orbit around Jupiter have shown that the Great Red Spot is shallow and thin compared to its horizontal length. Its vertical length is about 500 km.”

To understand how this giant whirlpool formed, the astronomers ran numerical simulations using two complementary models of the behavior of thin vortices in Jupiter’s atmosphere.

Powerful winds prevail on this giant planet, flowing along parallels that alternate in direction and latitude.

To the north of the Great Red Spot, winds blow westward at 180 km/h, while to the south, winds blow in the opposite direction, eastward at 150 km/h.

This creates huge north-south shear in the wind speed, which is the fundamental element that allows vortices to grow internally.

The study explored a variety of mechanisms to explain the formation of the Great Red Spot, including the eruption of a giant superstorm like those rarely observed around its twin planet Saturn, or the merging of several smaller vortices caused by sheared winds.

The results show that although anticyclones form in both cases, their shapes and dynamic characteristics are different from those of the present-day Great Red Spot.

“We believe that if one of these anomalies had occurred, it, or its effects in the atmosphere, would have been observed and reported by astronomers at the time,” Prof Sanchez Lavega said.

In a third set of numerical experiments, the researchers investigated how the GRS may arise from known instabilities in the winds that they believe could produce elongated cells that surround and trap the GRS.

Such cells were early red spots, the proto-Great Red Spot, whose subsequent shrinkage would give rise to the compact, rapidly rotating Great Red Spot observed in the late 19th century.

The formation of large elongated cells has already been observed during the emergence of other major vortices on Jupiter.

“In our simulations, thanks to supercomputers, we were able to find that elongated cells are stable when they rotate around the Great Red Spot at the speed of Jupiter’s winds, which is what you would expect to form due to this instability,” said Dr Enrique García Melendo, an astronomer at the Polytechnic University of Catalonia.

Using two different numerical models, the scientists concluded that if the GRS rotated slower than the surrounding winds, it would break up and the formation of a stable vortex would be impossible.

And if it were very high, the properties of the primordial Great Red Spot would be different from those of the current Great Red Spot.

“Future studies will aim to reconstruct the Great Red Spot’s shrinkage over time and elucidate in more detail the physical mechanisms underlying its persistence,” the authors wrote.

“At the same time, we try to predict whether the Great Red Spot will collapse and disappear when it reaches its size limit, as happened with Cassini’s permanent spot, or whether it will remain stable at its size limit and persist for many years.”

of result Published in a journal Geophysical Research Letters.

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Agustin Sanchez Lavega others2024. Origin of Jupiter’s Great Red Spot. Geophysical Research Letters 51(12):e2024GL108993; doi:10.1029/2024GL108993

Source: www.sci.news

Study indicates that Earth’s inner core started decelerating in 2010

Posted on June 15, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

The movement of Earth’s inner core has been a topic of debate in the scientific community for the past 20 years, with some studies suggesting that the inner core rotates faster than the Earth’s surface. However, a new study has presented clear evidence that the inner core started to slow down around 2010 and is now moving at a slower pace compared to the Earth’s surface.

king othersIt shows that Earth’s inner core gradually super-rotated from 2003 to 2008, then repeated a slower rotation 2-3 times along the same path from 2008 to 2023. Image by USC Graphic/Edward Sotelo.

“When I first saw the earthquake records suggesting this change, I was puzzled,” said John Bedale, a professor at the University of Southern California.

“But when we found 24 more observations showing the same pattern, the result was inevitable.”

“The inner core is slowing down for the first time in decades.”

“Other scientists have recently proposed similar or different models, but our latest work offers the most plausible solution.”

The inner core is believed to be rotating and moving relative to the Earth’s surface, as it is now moving slightly slower than Earth’s mantle after about 40 years of moving faster.

Compared to the rates observed over the past few decades, the inner core is now slowing down.

The inner core is a solid iron-nickel sphere surrounded by a liquid iron-nickel outer core.

Located more than 4,828 km (3,000 miles) beneath the Earth’s surface, the inner core is roughly the size of the Moon and poses a challenge for researchers as it cannot be visited or directly observed.

Scientists rely on seismic waves from earthquakes to study the movement of the inner core.

In contrast to previous studies, Professor Vidale and his team used waveforms and repeating earthquakes in their research.

Repeating earthquakes are seismic events that occur in the same location and produce identical earthquake records.

The study analyzed recorded seismic data from 121 repeating earthquakes around the South Sandwich Islands between 1991 and 2023, as well as data from Soviet and nuclear tests from the early 1970s and other studies on the inner core.

“The slowing down of the inner core is attributed to the churning of the liquid iron outer core that surrounds it. This churning creates a gravitational pull from the Earth’s magnetic field and the dense region of the rocky mantle above,” Prof Vidale explained.

“We can only speculate on how these changes in the inner core’s movement will impact the Earth’s surface.”

“The retreat of the inner core could briefly alter the length of the day. This alteration lasts for milliseconds and is almost imperceptible amid the noise of the ocean and atmosphere,” he added.

The study was published in the journal Nature.

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Wang others Retrograde motion of the inner core due to reversal of seismic waveform changes. Nature. Published online June 12, 2024, doi: 10.1038/s41586-024-07536-4

Source: www.sci.news

Researchers are releasing faux birds into simulated aircraft for study

Posted on June 13, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Mid-air collision

To find out whether air taxi passengers need to worry about collisions with birds, a number of tests were carried out by a German emergency program.

Colliding a real air taxi with a real bird would be complicated and dangerous, so perfection was impossible, so experimenters made do by dropping artificial “bird bullets” onto a rigged metal plate that allowed them to measure the force of the impact.

Aditya Devta and Isabelle Metz of the German Aerospace Center and Sophie Armani of the Technical University of Munich described these violent encounters as follows: Preprint paper(Thanks to reader Mason Porter for pointing this out.)

This study was, necessarily, a rough step toward definitively answering the big questions.

The report said the bird shots were dropped manually and faced various challenges, including “inconsistency and lack of repeatability” due to human involvement. Future efforts should “eliminate human involvement and [so as to] “Improve the accuracy and repeatability of force measurements.”

Collision in the middle of the track

Speaking of experiments involving birds and flying taxis, have you heard of the moose and bullet train experiment? Yong Peng and his colleagues from Central South University in China began investigating what happens when these heavy animals meet at high speed.Analysis of moose movement trajectory after collision between bullet train and moose” “.

The questions go beyond the initial simple collision: the scientists mention two possible complications: “If the moose lies on the tracks after the collision, it could increase the risk of train derailment” and “if the moose is thrown into the air during the collision, it could strike and damage the pantograph, disrupting train operation.”

Previous investigations have relied on mathematical simulations using finite element methods and less-heavy experiments, using fresh beef muscle tissue (from cows, not elk) and a type of stress-strain testing machine called a “split-Hopkinson pressure bar.”

Essentially, the force of the impact “depends on the area of contact between the train and the moose,” the scientists report.

Regarding these complexities, the report states: “The moose will not be pushed aside by the V-shaped locomotive and derail, and the moose will not be thrown into the air to the height of the pantograph, causing no damage to the Shinkansen pantograph.”

The study suggests something bigger is on the way: “Only a scenario of a train crossing the tracks at 110km/h hitting a moose was simulated, which cannot fully reflect the risk of a train-moose collision. Therefore, further speeds and attitudes are needed to enhance ongoing research.”

Feeling cheeky

Slowly and gently, new findings about sources are coming in from readers. These concern the off-label use of ketchup and other sticky foods to make electrocardiogram (ECG) electrodes work better (Feedback, May 25).

Brian Leffin Smith adds a musical note: “You don’t need human skin to test whether ketchup electrodes are better than regular gel electrodes. I have equipment that applies a low voltage to plant leaves (or anything else) and converts the varying current into a MIDI signal that can be sent to a computer or synthesizer to play sounds… Anyway, in a statistically insignificant but anecdotally and culinarily interesting test, I found that low-salt ketchup placed between an ECG electrode and a chili leaf produced a fairly high E, while the proper gel placed on the adjacent leaf produced a G. I thought this might be useful, but now I don’t think so.”

Dave Hardy makes a point about practicality: “In the early 1970s, my GP said that gel was ridiculously expensive, but that strawberry jam would work just as well. I don’t know if he tried a range of options or just used what he had on hand (this was in the Falkland Islands).”

Death of a Star

It is surprising how few people are hailed as “famous pathologists.” news The paper reported on the death of one of them: “Dr. Cyril Wecht, the prominent pathologist who argued that more than one shooter killed JFK, has died at age 93.”

One of the first celebrated pathologists, Bernard Spilsbury (1877-1947), helped establish London’s reputation as a hotbed of fascinating and intricate murder mystery investigations.

Royal College of Physicians RevealedAfter his death, he said that Spilsbury’s career had been a truly dramatic one: “The famous Crippen trial in which he was involved [William] Wilcox’s attempts to prove that the murders were committed with hyoscine hydrobromide first attracted him to public attention, and he lamented it at every trial he subsequently attended, which no doubt accounted for his stern and cold demeanor towards all but his closest friends.

Spilsbury’s attitude was by no means contemptible. One aspect of the job of dissecting a corpse is the terrible stench of rotting bodies, which can put off sensitive people. Spilsbury was not a sensitive person in this respect. His colleagues were amazed at how enthusiastic he was about dissecting a corpse. Obituary To put it politely, it was an “olfactory disorder.”

Marc Abrahams is the founder of the Ig Nobel Prize ceremony and co-founder of the journal Annals of Improbable Research. He previously worked on unusual uses of computers. His website is Impossible

Do you have a story for feedback?

You can submit articles for Feedback by emailing feedback@newscientist.com. Please include your home address. This week’s and past Feedback can be found on our website.

Source: www.newscientist.com

Study suggests women experience enhanced cognitive abilities during menstruation

Posted on June 12, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

A recent study suggests that women may have improved cognitive performance during their menstrual cycle. The research conducted by University College London (UCL) and the Institute of Sport, Exercise and Health (ISEH) sheds light on this phenomenon.

Published in the peer-reviewed journal Neuropsychology, this study is the first to analyze sports-related cognition throughout the menstrual cycle phases.

241 participants took cognitive tests simulating mental processes common in team sports, such as recognizing emotions, attention, reaction time, and spatial awareness.

Participants also tracked their menstrual cycle using an app to identify their phase during testing. Surprisingly, participants performed better in reaction time and made fewer errors during menstruation, contrary to their expectations.

For example, their timing accuracy in a ball collision task was 10 milliseconds better during menstruation. Similarly, their error rates were 25% lower in an inhibition task involving smiles and winks.

Lead researcher Dr. Flaminia Ronca from UCL Department of Surgery and ISEH noted the unexpected performance enhancement during menstruation.

During the luteal phase, reaction times slightly decreased, but error rates remained stable. These findings emphasize the importance of understanding how menstrual cycle phases impact cognitive abilities in sports performance.

Co-author Dr. Megan Lawley highlights the need for more research in this area to improve performance discussions between coaches and athletes.

About the Experts

Flaminia Ronca, an Associate Professor at UCL, focuses on the body-brain interaction through movement in her research. She is also a leader at UCL’s Movement Neuroscience Research Group (ENRG).

Megan Lawley, a Senior Sports Scientist, specializes in female athlete health and performance factors. Her previous research at UK Sport and Bangor University delved into the complexities of athletes’ success in high-performance environments.

Read more:

Source: www.sciencefocus.com

Study finds that Jupiter’s polar lows are driven by processes reminiscent of those on Earth

Posted on June 11, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Planetary scientists first became aware of the connection between Earth and Jupiter in 2018, when they noticed striking similarities in images of Jupiter's giant cyclones and turbulent ocean currents. In 2022, they Analyzed High-resolution infrared image of a cyclone on Jupiter taken by NASA's Juno spacecraft. Analysis reveals that a type of convection similar to that seen on Earth helps sustain Jupiter's storms, which can be thousands of miles wide and last for years. The 2022 study focused directly on Jupiter's cyclones, but the authors also saw thin tendrils called filaments in the spaces between the vortices of gas. These filaments have analogues on Earth, and the authors used Juno's detailed images to study whether this similarity to Earth's oceanic and atmospheric processes is merely superficial.

This composite image, created from data collected by the JIRAM instrument on NASA's Juno spacecraft, shows a central cyclone at Jupiter's north pole and eight surrounding cyclones. JIRAM collects data in infrared, and the colors in this composite represent radiated heat. The yellow (thinnest) clouds have a brightness temperature of about -9 degrees Fahrenheit (-13 degrees Celsius), while the dark red (thickest) clouds have a brightness temperature of about -181 degrees Fahrenheit (83 degrees Celsius). Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / SwRI / ASI / INAF / JIRAM.

Fronts are often featured in weather forecasts (for example, cold fronts and storm fronts) and apply to both gases and liquids.

A front is a boundary between masses of gas or liquid that have different densities due to differences in properties such as temperature.

In the ocean, fronts can also form due to differences in salinity, which, along with temperature, affects the density of seawater.

The main characteristic of a front is that its leading edge is characterized by strong vertical speed and can generate wind and currents.

To understand the role of the filaments clearly visible during Jupiter's cyclones in the Juno images, Dr. Leah Siegelman of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography and Dr. Patrice Klein of the California Institute of Technology examined a series of infrared images from Juno.

The series of images was taken 30 seconds apart of Jupiter's north polar region.

Because the images were taken in infrared, the team was able to calculate the temperature, finding that brighter areas were warmer and darker areas were cooler.

On Jupiter, the hotter parts of the atmosphere correspond to thin clouds, while the cooler parts are covered by thicker clouds that block more of the heat emanating from Jupiter's superheated core.

The researchers then tracked the movement of the clouds and filaments over the 30-second intervals between photos to calculate horizontal wind speeds.

These two pieces of information allowed the scientists to apply methods from ocean and atmospheric science to Jupiter to calculate vertical wind speeds that correspond to the temperatures and horizontal wind speeds the researchers derived from the images.

Calculating vertical wind speeds, they found that Jupiter's filaments do in fact move like Earth's fronts.

The vertical wind speeds at the edges of Jupiter's fronts also mean that the fronts transport energy in the form of heat from the planet's hot interior to the upper atmosphere, potentially generating large cyclones.

Although convection is the primary driving force, fronts account for a quarter of the total kinetic energy powering Jupiter's cyclones and 40 percent of the vertical heat transport.

“These cyclones at Jupiter's poles have continued since they were first observed in 2016,” Dr Siegelman said.

“These filaments between the larger vortices are relatively small, but they are a key mechanism for maintaining cyclones.”

“It's intriguing that fronts and convection exist and influence Earth and Jupiter, suggesting that these processes may also exist on other turbulent fluid bodies in the universe.”

“Jupiter's enormous scale and Juno's high-resolution images allow us to more clearly visualize how small-scale phenomena like fronts connect with larger-scale phenomena like cyclones and the atmosphere. These connections are often difficult to observe on Earth because they are much smaller and more ephemeral.”

“But the long-awaited new satellite, SWOT, will make observing these ocean phenomena much easier.”

“There's a kind of cosmic beauty in knowing that these physical mechanisms on Earth exist on other planets far, far away.”

Team paper Published in the journal Natural Physics.

_____

L. Siegelman & P. Klein. Frontogenesis at high latitudes on Jupiter. National Physical SocietyPublished online June 6, 2024; doi: 10.1038/s41567-024-02516-x

Source: www.sci.news

New study uncovers how African elephants give each other distinct names

Posted on June 11, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

WASHINGTON — African elephants communicate through calls and respond to their own names, a behavior rarely observed in the wild, according to a new study published Monday.

These names are embedded in the elephants’ distinctive low-pitched vocalizations that carry across the savanna, suggesting that animals with intricate social structures, where family units frequently disband and reunite, are more likely to have individual names.

Ecologist Stuart Pimm from Duke University, who was not involved in the study, remarked, “If you’re managing a large family, you need to be able to call out, ‘Hey, Virginia, come over here!'”

The phenomenon of animals calling each other by name is exceptionally rare in the wild. Humans have names, allowing us to call out to others, and pets like dogs also respond to their names. Baby Dolphin Birds have their own unique names, known as signature whistles, while parrots may also utilize names.

These named species possess the ability to learn and produce distinct sounds throughout their lives, a skill elephants also share.

Biologists conducted research on wild ecology and evolution using machine learning to identify name usage in audio recordings of savanna elephant vocalizations captured in Kenya’s Samburu National Reserve and Amboseli National Park.

By observing the elephants from vehicles, researchers were able to determine which elephants were calling and responding to each other, such as a mother calling for her calf or an older female reaching out to a stray elephant later rejoining the group.

The computer model, analyzing the audio data likely containing names, accurately predicted the addressed elephant 28% of the time, compared to just 8% with meaningless data.

Lead author Mickey Pardo, a biologist at Cornell University, explained, “Like humans, elephants utilize names, but we can’t rely on them entirely as they likely don’t use names in the majority of their vocalizations.”

Elephants incorporate sounds beyond the human hearing range in their calls, leaving scientists uncertain about the specific vocal components that form an elephant’s name.

To validate their findings, researchers played the recordings to individual elephants. The elephants showed heightened responses, including ear flapping and trunk lifting, to recordings containing their names. Some elephants even disregarded vocalizations meant for other elephants.

“Elephants are highly social beings, constantly communicating and interacting, and this system of naming could be a fundamental aspect of their communication abilities,” noted co-author George Wittemyer, an ecologist at Colorado State University and a science advisor for Save the Elephants.

“We’ve provided a glimpse into the elephant’s cognitive world.”

Source: www.nbcnews.com

Study suggests that high consumption of fruit may lower risk of depression

Posted on June 6, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

A new study led by scientists at the University of New South Wales confirms that eating fruit can help ward off depression – but eating vegetables does not.

High fruit intake is associated with a reduced risk of developing depression.

Depression is a major public health concern: the global impact of depressive disorders is estimated to be over 50 million years of life lived with disability, making depression the largest contributor to non-fatal disease burden.

More than 80% of this burden is borne by low- and middle-income countries.

Compared with depression in younger adults, depression in older adults has a greater impact on physical and cognitive abilities and is associated with reduced quality of life and increased all-cause mortality.

A growing body of evidence suggests that diet, particularly increasing fruit and vegetable intake, may be important in reducing the risk of depression.

“The aim of this new study was to examine the relationship between fruit and vegetable consumption and depression in adults aged 45 and over,” said researcher Dr Annabel Mattison, from the University of New South Wales.

The study involved 7,801 non-depressed, community-dwelling adults from multiple sites across six continents, including the United States, Sweden, Brazil, Nigeria, Malaysia and Australia.

The results showed a beneficial association between higher fruit intake and a lower risk of depression over a nine-year period.

“This intriguing finding of a protective relationship between fruit consumption and risk of depression points to the need for greater emphasis on diet in healthcare,” said Dr Mattison.

The results suggested a benefit to vegetable consumption, but the benefit was not statistically significant.

“The reason we found a beneficial association with fruit consumption but not with vegetable consumption may be because fruits are typically consumed raw, whereas vegetables are typically consumed cooked, which may affect their nutritional value,” Dr Mattison said.

“Fruit and vegetable intake was self-reported via a comprehensive food frequency questionnaire, a short food questionnaire, or a dietary history.”

“Depressive symptoms were assessed using validated scales, and depression was defined by applying validated cut-offs.”

“We used Cox regression to examine the association between baseline fruit and vegetable intake and incident depression over 3- to 9-year follow-up periods.”

It has been suggested that the high antioxidant, dietary fiber, and vitamin content of fruits and vegetables may have beneficial effects on depression through a variety of mechanisms, including their role in inflammation, oxidative stress, and gut microbiota.

Because fruits and vegetables contain different nutrients, it is also possible that different types of fruits and vegetables may have different effects on depression risk.

The evidence that citrus fruits and green leafy vegetables reduce the risk of depression is particularly strong.

“Future studies that take into account consumption of different types of fruit and vegetables using standardized measures and focus on a larger number of older people, particularly in low- and middle-income countries, are definitely needed,” Professor Henry Brodaty, from the University of New South Wales, said.

“The expanding research currently being conducted into genes associated with dietary intake provides a promising avenue for influencing fruit and vegetable intake.”

“To better understand the association, the types of fruits and vegetables consumed also need to be taken into account, and studies need to be designed to be more comparable across cohorts.”

of study Published in Journal of Affective Disorders.

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Annabelle P. Mathison others2024. Associations between fruit and vegetable intake and incident depression in middle-aged and older adults in 10 diverse international longitudinal cohorts. Journal of Affective Disorders 359: 373-381; doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2024.05.096

Source: www.sci.news

Study finds that the Earth is warming at an unprecedented rate

Posted on June 6, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Earth’s Speed It’s getting warmer 2023 is the highest on record, beating last year’s astonishing 92%. Record-breaking heatwave Leading scientists have calculated that the cause is human.

A group of 57 scientists from around the world used UN-approved methods to investigate what’s behind it. Last year’s heatwaveThey said that even if the rate of warming has increased, they found no evidence of a significant acceleration of human-induced climate change beyond increased burning of fossil fuels.

Last year’s record temperatures were so extraordinary that scientists have been debating what’s behind the spike, whether climate change is accelerating or if other factors are at play.

“When we see the world accelerating or going through a major tipping point, things aren’t happening,” said Piers Forster, a climate scientist at the University of Leeds and lead author of the study. “Temperatures are rising and things are getting worse exactly as we predicted.”

A person sprays water at passersby on a hot summer day in Karachi, Pakistan on May 30, 2024.
Asif Hassan/AFP via Getty Images

This can mostly be explained by the buildup of carbon dioxide from increased fossil fuel use, he and his co-authors said.

Last year’s warming rate was 0.26C (0.47F) per decade, up from 0.25C (0.45F) the year before. Forster said that’s not a huge difference, but this year’s rate is the highest on record.

Still, outside scientists said the report paints a more alarming picture than ever before.

“While whether or not to tackle climate is a politically contentious issue, this report should remind people that it is actually a fundamentally life-saving choice,” said Andrea Dutton, a climate scientist at the University of Wisconsin who was not part of the international research team. “To me, that’s something worth fighting for.”

Ocean Beach in San Francisco during a heat wave warning in California on June 4, 2024.
Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images

The authors, who formed to provide an annual scientific update between major UN scientific assessments every seven to eight years, concluded that last year’s temperature was 1.43 degrees Celsius higher than the 1850-1900 average, of which 1.31 degrees was due to human activities. The remaining 8 percent of warming was Mainly due to El NiñoThese include natural, temporary warming in the central Pacific Ocean that changes weather around the world, as well as unusual warming along the Atlantic Ocean and other weather randomness.

Looking at longer time frames — decade-by-decade, which scientists prefer over annual periods — the world has warmed about 1.19 degrees Celsius (2.14 degrees Fahrenheit) since pre-industrial times, the report said. Earth System Science Data Journal found.

The report also says that if the world continues to burn coal, oil and natural gas, the planet is likely to reach a point within four and a half years where it will become unavoidable to cross internationally accepted warming thresholds. 1.5℃ (2.7℃) ).

Students experience extreme heat at an elementary school in Banda Aceh, Indonesia, on May 7, 2024.
Chaidir Mahyudin/AFP via Getty Images

This is consistent with previous studies that project that if emissions trajectory remains unchanged, the planet will reach at least 1.5 degrees Celsius of warming by early 2029. While reaching 1.5 degrees may be years away, it seems inevitable once all the carbon is used, Forster said.

Scientists say that going over 1.5 degrees won’t mean the end of the world or humanity, but it will be pretty dire. Past UN Studies Large-scale changes to Earth’s ecosystems are expected to become more likely with a warming of between 1.5 and 2 degrees Celsius, ultimately resulting in the loss of the planet’s coral reefs, Arctic sea ice, plant and animal species, as well as more extreme and life-threatening weather events.

Last year’s temperature rise wasn’t just a minor spike — September was particularly unusual, said study co-author Sonia Seneviratne, head of the land climate dynamics department at ETH Zurich in Switzerland.

A caged howler monkey receives treatment during a heatwave in Cunduacan, Mexico, on May 24, 2024. The heat was so severe that the monkey fell from a tree and died.
Jose Torres/Anadolu via Getty Images

Seneviratne said this year was at the higher end of the range but within expectations.

“If there was an acceleration, it would be even worse, perhaps a worst-case scenario, where the world would reach a tipping point,” Seneviratne said. “But what’s happening now is already very bad, and we’re already seeing big impacts. We’re in the middle of a crisis.”

Jonathan Overpeck, dean of the University of Michigan’s School of Environmental Studies, and Zeke Hausfather, a global climate scientist at the University of Berkeley, neither of whom worked on the study, said they still see an acceleration in warming, which Hausfather noted is much faster than the 0.18 degrees Celsius (0.32 degrees Fahrenheit) per decade that occurred from 1970 to 2010.

Medical workers treat a dehydrated patient in Austin, Texas, 2023.
Brandon Bell/Getty Images file

The scientists Big increase in SeptemberHausfather called that “staggering.” Wednesday’s report didn’t find enough warming from other potential causes. It said that while reduced sulfur pollution from ships had some cooling effect on the atmosphere, that was offset last year by carbon particles released into the atmosphere by Canadian wildfires.

The report also noted that undersea volcanoes, which released huge amounts of heat-trapping water vapor into the atmosphere, also spewed cooling particles, with the two forces roughly cancelling each other out.

“The future is in our hands,” said Katherine Hayhoe, a climate scientist at Texas Tech University and chief scientist at the Nature Conservancy. “It’s up to us, humans, not physicists, to decide how fast and how much the Earth will warm.”

Source: www.nbcnews.com

Study finds that Internet addiction alters brain chemistry in young people

Posted on June 5, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Studies indicate that adolescents with internet addiction exhibit alterations in brain chemistry that can contribute to further addictive behaviors.

In a study published in PLOS Mental Health, researchers analyzed fMRI studies to explore how brain regions interact in individuals with internet addiction.

The findings revealed changes in neural network activity in the brains of young individuals, with increased activity during rest and reduced connectivity in areas involved in cognitive functions like memory and decision-making.

These alterations were linked to addictive behaviors, mental health issues, cognitive abilities, and physical coordination in adolescents.

The study reviewed 12 prior studies involving 237 young individuals diagnosed with internet addiction from 2013 to 2023.

Recent surveys show that nearly half of British teens feel addicted to social media platforms.

Lead researcher Max Zhang from the University of London emphasized the vulnerability of adolescents to internet addiction due to developmental changes during this crucial stage.

The study suggests that early intervention for internet addiction is essential to mitigate negative impacts on adolescent behavior and development.

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Experts recommend targeted treatments focused on specific brain regions or therapies to combat internet addiction symptoms.

Parental education plays a crucial role in preventing internet addiction, enabling better management of screen time and impulsive online behaviors.

Lead author Eileen Li from GOS ICH emphasizes the importance of setting boundaries on internet usage and being mindful of its effects on mental and social well-being.

Source: www.theguardian.com

Study confirms recent volcanic activity on Venus

Posted on May 29, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Using radar data NASA’s Magellan Project Planetary scientists have detected volcano-related flow features in two different regions of Venus: on the western slope of Sif Mons and in western Niobe Planitia.

This image shows the Schiffmons region with active volcanic areas highlighted in red. Image courtesy of Davide Sulcanese, IRSPS – Università d’Annunzio.

Venus’s thick atmosphere makes it difficult to make direct observations of the planet’s surface.

However, although global radar mapping performed by the Magellan spacecraft in the 1990s showed that Venus’s surface is covered with many volcanoes and was likely formed by extensive volcanic activity in the past, the role of volcanism in Venus’s geological present remained unclear.

However, 2023 Magellan data confirmed evidence of more recent activity from one volcanic vent on the planet’s surface.

In the new study, Davide Sulcanese, a researcher at D’Annunzio University, and his colleagues analyzed two sets of Magellan radar data taken in 1990 and 1992 to look for evidence of volcanic activity.

They found surface changes that could indicate volcanic activity in two areas with volcanic-related features: on the western slope of Mount Sif and in western Niobe Planitia.

After analyzing a range of possible causes, the authors suggest that these fluctuations were likely caused by fresh lava flows.

They suggest that not only is Venus currently a geologically active planet, but that volcanic activity is currently quite widespread.

They also suggest that volcanic activity on Venus is comparable to that on Earth, indicating that Venus is more volcanically active than previously thought.

Artist’s impression of an erupting volcano on Venus. Image courtesy of ESA / AOES Medialab.

“These maps suggest that Venus may be much more volcanically active than previously thought,” Dr Sulcanese said.

“Analysis of lava flows observed at two locations on Venus suggests that volcanic activity on Venus may rival that on Earth.”

“We interpret these signals as flows along the slopes and volcanic plains that, like fluids, may bypass obstacles such as shield volcanoes,” added Dr Marco Mastrogiuseppe, a researcher at Sapienza University of Rome.

“After ruling out other possibilities, we determined that the best interpretation is that these are new lava flows.”

“These new findings about Venus’s recent volcanic activity provide compelling evidence for the types of regions NASA’s upcoming VERITAS mission should target when it arrives at Venus,” said Dr. Suzanne Smrekar, a research scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory and VERITAS principal investigator.

“Our spacecraft has a suite of approaches to identify surface changes with much more comprehensiveness and resolution than Magellan’s images.”

“Finding evidence of activity even in the low-resolution Magellan data has great potential to revolutionize our understanding of this mysterious world.”

of result Published in this week’s journal Natural Astronomy.

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D. Sulcanese othersEvidence of ongoing volcanic activity on Venus revealed by Magellan radar. Nat AstronPublished online May 27, 2024, doi: 10.1038/s41550-024-02272-1

Source: www.sci.news

Study suggests ellagic acid as a promising dietary option for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease

Posted on May 27, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Ellagic acid is a polyphenolic, non-flavonoid compound found naturally in a variety of fruits, including pomegranates, raspberries, strawberries, and grapes, as well as nuts, including pistachios, pecans, walnuts, and acorns.

Senavirasna othersResearchers are investigating the effects of ellagic acid, an antioxidant found in pomegranates, raspberries, strawberries, grapes and nuts, in preventing and potentially reversing the damage caused by fatty liver disease. Image courtesy of Engin Akyurt.

Obesity is epidemic in many parts of the world and contributes to increasing rates of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).

This rapidly expanding epidemic is the most common chronic liver disease worldwide.

The prevalence of NAFLD increased from 25.24% in 2015 to 29.38% in 2021.

NAFLD represents a range of pathologies from simple fatty liver (nonalcoholic fatty liver, NAFL) to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), which can progress to more severe conditions including fibrosis.

Currently, no cure exists for the long-term management of NAFLD/NASH, but dietary interventions containing several polyphenolic compounds have been investigated for the treatment of NASH. Ellagic acid is one such compound.

“Ellagic acid, found in a variety of foods including raspberries, pomegranates, blackberries and pecans, is widely known for its antioxidant properties but has also demonstrated anti-inflammatory, anti-fibrotic and anti-cancer properties,” said researcher Lois Balmer and doctoral student Tarani Senaviratna, both from Edith Cowan University.

“Ellagic acid stands out as a remarkable polyphenolic compound with a wide range of pharmacological properties that may be promising for the treatment of various chronic diseases, including NAFLD.”

“Edible plants containing ellagic acid and its derivatives are recognized as valuable functional foods that promote human health due to their pleiotropic biological effects.”

“Furthermore, evidence suggests that ellagic acid may exert synergistic therapeutic effects when combined with other antioxidant dietary supplements, making it a potential candidate for combination therapy.”

The authors were involved in a previous pilot study investigating the effects of several polyphenolic compounds on NAFLD, with ellagic acid showing the most promise in reducing inflammation.

“Ellagic acid exerts its hepatoprotective properties mainly through scavenging free radicals, modulating cytokine production, and regulating lipid metabolism,” the researchers said.

“Ellagic acid, a potent antioxidant, combats reactive oxygen species (ROS) and activates the NrF2 pathway to reduce oxidative stress and protect the liver.”

“Surprisingly, ellagic acid also inhibits the Nf-kB and MAPK pathways, reducing inflammation during NAFLD/NASH.”

“Evidence also shows that ellagic acid can lower both triglyceride and cholesterol levels and combat de novo lipogenesis, a significant risk factor in the progression of NASH.”

“Test-tube findings suggest that ellagic acid has the ability to reduce fibrosis.”

“Urolithins, the main microbial metabolites of ellagic acid, have been shown to improve the gut microbiota in several mouse models of obesity.”

“Specifically, Urolithin A has been shown to lower LDL and increase HDL levels and is also involved in improving lipid metabolism through gene regulation, while Urolithin C activates the hepatic AMPK pathway, countering the pathophysiology of NAFLD.”

“While the health benefits of ellagic acid and urolithins in NAFLD/NASH are being debated, their biological effects on the liver are still poorly understood.”

“Given that lipid metabolism, oxidative stress, inflammation, and insulin resistance play a role in the development of NASH, the results of this review suggest that ellagic acid may be a potential dietary intervention for NASH, potentially suppressing and even reversing the pathological symptoms of NAFLD/NASH.”

of study Published in the journal Antioxidants.

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Tarani Senavilasna others2024. Elucidation of the therapeutic effects of ellagic acid on nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis. Antioxidants 13(4):485; doi:10.3390/antiox13040485

Source: www.sci.news

New Study Reveals Australian Marsupials Are More Afraid of Humans Than Other Predators

Posted on May 24, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Researchers from the University of Tasmania and Western University have conducted experiments to show that Australian marsupials such as kangaroos and wallabies are most afraid of human “super predators,” fleeing from them 2.4 times more frequently than from other predators.

Recent experiments have demonstrated that carnivores and ungulates from Africa, Asia, Europe, and North America fear human “superpredators” much more than they do other predators. Australian mammals have been the focus of research into predator ignorance because they are suspected of exhibiting atypical responses. To experimentally test whether Australian mammals are also most afraid of humans, McGann others quantified responses of four native marsupials (eastern grey kangaroo, Bennett’s wallaby, Tasmanian pademelon, and brushtail possum) and taught fallow deer to playback predator (human, dog, Tasmanian devil, wolf) or non-predator control (sheep) vocalizations. Image courtesy of Pen_ash.

There is a widespread fear of humans among wildlife in Africa, Asia, Europe, and North America, reflecting the reality that humans are “super-predators,” far more dangerous than other predators worldwide.

Australian marsupials have been traditionally seen as naive to predators, based on their reactions to non-human threats.

“Our results significantly contribute to the growing body of experimental proof that wildlife globally view humans as the most feared predators on the planet,” stated Professor Liana Zanetto of Western University, a co-senior author of the study published in the journal Nature Proceedings of the Royal Society B.

“The strong fear of humans found in this study, as well as in similar recent experiments, is expected to have significant ecological repercussions, as additional research indicates that fear itself can reduce wildlife populations and that fear of humans can lead to cascading effects on multiple species across entire regions.”

To conduct their study, Professor Zanette and colleagues designed a hidden automated camera-speaker system in a sheep pasture in central Tasmania known as the Bowfront.

The five species they observed (eastern grey kangaroo, Bennett’s wallaby, Tasmanian pademelon, brushtail possum, and fallow deer) are the most prevalent native herbivores in the area.

As the animals came close (about 10 meters, 30 feet), the cameras captured their responses to non-threatening stimuli such as calm human speech, a barking dog, growling Tasmanian devil, howling wolf, or bleating sheep.

Native marsupials reacted by fleeing more frequently when exposed to the sound of their next most feared predator (dogs) compared to human voices, and were over twice (2.4 times) more likely to flee from humans (44.3% vs. 18.6% of trials).

These findings present conservation challenges but also offer insights for managing native marsupials in regions where they are overpopulated.

“Global studies have shown that humans kill prey at a much higher rate than other predators, making us ‘super-predators,’ and the intense fear of our presence in all wildlife species aligns perfectly with our inherent deadliness,” noted Professor Zanette.

“Humans are the ‘invisible killer.’ We may not perceive ourselves as the primary predator, let alone the most dangerous, but wild animals clearly see us for what we truly are.”

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Catherine McGann et al. 2024. Fear of human “super-predators” in Australia’s native marsupials and invasive deer. Proceedings of the Royal Society B 291 (2023): 20232849; doi: 10.1098/rspb.2023.2849

Source: www.sci.news

Study shows ability to capture solar radiation at 1,922 degrees Fahrenheit

Posted on May 16, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

As the world focuses on decarbonizing power and transportation, reducing heat emissions from industrial processes remains a challenge. Although using solar energy is an attractive alternative, current solar converters have poor performance and are expensive when process temperatures above 1,000 degrees Celsius (1,832 degrees Fahrenheit) are required. In a new study, scientists at ETH Zurich show that the heat-trapping effect caused by exposing common translucent materials (such as quartz or water) to solar radiation absorbs sunlight by suppressing radiation losses at high temperatures. We have shown how the viability of the photoreceiver can be increased. They demonstrated this effect experimentally at industrially relevant temperatures of 1,050 degrees Celsius (1,922 degrees Fahrenheit).

Casati other. The solar capture effect was experimentally demonstrated at temperatures as high as 1,050 degrees Celsius. They performed stagnation experiments under concentrated thermal radiation and achieved a steady-state temperature difference of about 600 degrees Celsius between the absorber and the outer surface by using quartz as a volumetric absorption medium.Image credit: Casati other., doi: 10.1016/j.device.2024.100399.

“To tackle climate change, we need to decarbonize energy in general,” said Dr. Emiliano Casati, a researcher at ETH Zurich.

“Electricity can only be thought of as energy, but in reality, about half of that energy is used as heat.”

Glass, steel, cement, and ceramics are at the heart of modern civilization, essential to the construction of everything from car engines to skyscrapers.

However, manufacturing these materials requires temperatures in excess of 1,000 degrees Celsius and relies heavily on the combustion of fossil fuels for heat. These industries account for approximately 25% of global energy consumption.

Researchers have been exploring clean energy alternatives using solar receivers that concentrate and store heat with thousands of sun-tracking mirrors.

However, this technology has difficulty transmitting solar energy efficiently at temperatures above 1,000 degrees Celsius.

To increase the efficiency of solar receivers, Dr. Casati and his colleagues turned to translucent materials such as quartz that can trap sunlight. This is a phenomenon called the thermal trap effect.

The researchers created a heat-trapping device by attaching synthetic quartz rods to opaque silicon disks as energy absorbers.

When the device was exposed to an energy flux equivalent to 136 solar rays, the absorber plate reached a temperature of 1,050 degrees Celsius, while the other end of the quartz rod remained at 600 degrees Celsius (1,112 degrees Fahrenheit).

“Previous studies have only been able to demonstrate heat-trapping effects up to 170 degrees Celsius (338 degrees Fahrenheit),” Dr. Casati said.

“Our research shows that solar heat capture works not only at low temperatures, but also at temperatures well above 1,000 degrees Celsius. This is very important to demonstrate its potential in real-world industrial applications. is.”

The scientists also simulated the heat-trapping efficiency of quartz under various conditions using a heat transfer model.

The model showed that the heat trap achieves the target temperature at a lower concentration with the same performance, or the same concentration and higher thermal efficiency.

For example, a state-of-the-art (unshielded) receiver has an efficiency of 40% at 1,200 degrees Celsius (2,192 degrees Fahrenheit) and a concentration of 500 suns.

A 300 mm quartz shielded receiver achieves 70% efficiency at the same temperature and concentration.

A concentration of at least 1,000 suns is required for equivalent performance with an unshielded receiver.

The authors are currently optimizing the heat trapping effect and investigating new applications of the method. So far, their research is promising.

By studying other materials, such as various fluids and gases, even higher temperatures could be reached.

They also noted that the ability of these translucent materials to absorb light and radiation is not limited to solar radiation.

“Energy issues are fundamental to the survival of our society,” Dr. Casati said.

“Solar energy is readily available and the technology already exists.”

“To truly accelerate industry adoption, we need to demonstrate the economic viability and benefits of this technology at scale.”

The team's results were published online today. journal device.

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Emiliano Casati other. Captures solar heat over 1,000℃. device, published online on May 15, 2024. doi: 10.1016/j.device.2024.100399

Source: www.sci.news

Study reveals sperm whale communication is more intricate than previously believed

Posted on May 9, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Sperm whale (physeter macrocephalus) They are highly social mammals that use clicks to communicate. New research shows that, just like in human language, they can combine and coordinate different clicks and rhythms to create complex calls.

Sperm whale (physeter macrocephalus). Image credit: Gabriel Barathieu / CC BY-SA 2.0 Certificate.

Communication is important for social animals to make group decisions and coordinate collaborative tasks such as foraging and raising children.

Sperm whales are social mammals that communicate with each other by clicking repeatedly.

Little else is known about sperm whales' communication systems, although some of their clicks have previously been shown to communicate their identity.

“Cetaceans are an important group for studying evolution and the development of sophisticated communication systems,” said Pratyusha Sharma, a researcher at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and colleagues.

“Among cetaceans, long-term observational studies of sperm whales describe both a culturally defined, multilayered matrilineal society and a socially transmitted communication system.”

“Sperm whales are known for their complex social and foraging behaviors, as well as their collective decision-making.”

“They communicate using codas, stereotypical sequences of three to 40 broadband clicks. Codas are exchanged when whales interact with each other and during long, deep dives foraging. .”

For the study, the authors Dominican Sperm Whale Projectthe largest repository of sperm whale data.

They analyzed the records of about 60 different whales from the eastern Caribbean sperm whale clan and used them to define a “sperm whale phonetic alphabet” of click combinations from this clan's records.

They discovered that whales' communication systems are more complex and have greater information-transfer capabilities than previously thought.

We found that the combination and structure of the generated click sequences depended on the context of the individual's conversation.

Scientists also identified a “combinatorial structure” in whale language. Whales can combine and coordinate different clicks and rhythms to create complex vocalizations, similar to human language.

“Although the function and meaning of the click combinations are still unknown, the sperm whale language could potentially express a large number of meanings,” the researchers said.

Their paper It was published in the magazine nature communications.

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P. Sharma other. 2024. Contextual and combinatorial structure in sperm whale calls. Nat Commune 15, 3617; doi: 10.1038/s41467-024-47221-8

Source: www.sci.news

A New Study Estimates the Volume of Water Flowing Through Earth’s Rivers

Posted on April 30, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Accurate assessments of global river flows and water storage are important to inform water management practices, but current estimates of global river flows represent a significant spread, and river storage Estimates remain sparse. Estimates of river flow and water storage are hampered by uncertainty in land runoff, an unobserved quantity that provides water withdrawal to rivers. In a new study, geoscientists at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and elsewhere leverage an ensemble of global streamflow observations and land surface models to create a globally gauge-corrected monthly streamflow and storage dataset. Generating. They estimate the average global river storage capacity to be 2,246 km .³ (This is equivalent to half of the water in Lake Michigan, about 0.006% of all fresh water, which itself is equivalent to 2.5% of the Earth's volume) and 37,411 km of the world's continental streams.³ per year.

collins other. Estimates flows through 3 million river segments characterized by intense human water use, including the Colorado River, Amazon River, Orange River, and parts of the Murray-Darling River basin (shown here in gray) identified locations around the world. Image credit: NASA.

Rivers are considered the most renewable, most accessible, and therefore most sustainable sources of fresh water.

Therefore, several studies have attempted to quantify the world's river waters.

However, surprisingly little is known about the average and temporal variation in global river water storage, and even more so, about the temporal variation in global river discharge.

“Over the years, researchers have made numerous estimates of how much water flows from rivers to the ocean, but estimates of how much water rivers collectively hold (known as water storage) “There are fewer and more uncertainties,” said Dr. Cedric David. A researcher at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

“We don't know how much water we have in our accounts. Population growth and climate change are further complicating the problem.”

“There are many things we can do to manage our water usage and ensure there is enough water for everyone, but the first question is: How much water do we have? It's the basis of everything else. is.”

In this study, Dr. David and colleagues used a new methodology that combines flow meter measurements with computer models of about 3 million river segments around the world.

They identified the Amazon Basin as the region with the most river water storage, with approximately 850 km of water storage.³ Water amount – approximately 38% of global estimates.

The same basin discharges the most water into the ocean: 6,789 km³ per year. This corresponds to 18% of the emissions into the world's oceans, which average 37,411 km.³ Years from 1980 to 2009.

Although it is impossible for a river to have a negative flow rate, the study's computational approach does not take into account upstream flows, but it is possible that some river segments receive less water than they enter. It may leak.

Researchers found similar findings in parts of the Colorado, Amazon, and Orange river basins, as well as the Murray-Darling basin in southeastern Australia. These negative flows mainly indicate heavy water use by humans.

“These are places where we see evidence of water management,” says Dr. Elissa Collins, a researcher at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

of study Published in a magazine natural earth science.

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Elle Collins other. Global patterns of river water storage dependent on residence time. nut.earth science, published online March 15, 2024. doi: 10.1038/s41561-024-01421-5

Source: www.sci.news

Recent study uncovers prehistoric salmon with fang-like teeth akin to a “saber-toothed tiger”

Posted on April 25, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

An extinct species of giant salmon called Oncorhynchus lastrosus They boasted a pair of front teeth that protruded like fangs from the sides of their mouths, according to new research.

Oncorhynchus lastrosus: (A) CT model of the holotype. (B) Holotype seen from the front of the skull, before complete preparation and CT scanning. (C) Artist-rendered male iconic fish skull with accurate spike-tooth configuration. (D) Artist's rendering of a complete female iconic fish with precise spike tooth configuration. Scale bar blocks – 1 cm each.Image credit: Clairson other., doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0300252.

Oncorhynchus lastrosus It lived along the Pacific coast of North America (California, Oregon, and Washington) about 11 million to 5 million years ago.

This extinct species was first described in the 1970s from fossils discovered in the freshwater Gateway locality of the Madras Formation near the town of Gateway, Jefferson County, Oregon.

The fish was 2.4 to 2.7 meters (7.9 to 8.9 feet) long and weighed, by some estimates, close to 177 kilograms (400 pounds), making it the largest known member of its family. Salmonidae To live forever.

This species migrated from the Pacific Ocean to inland rivers to spawn, much like salmon today. And it was placophagous based on its numerous gill rakes and few small teeth.

but Oncorhynchus lastrosus It had two upper teeth, 2–3 cm (0.8–1.2 in) long.

Initially, paleontologists thought that these oversized teeth were oriented backwards in the mouth, like fangs, mainly because the tooth fossils were found separated from the rest of the skull. was. This led to the common name “saber-toothed tiger.”

However, through new CT scans and various analyses, Oncorhynchus lastrosus Using fossils collected over the years, Professor Kellyn Cresson of the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine and her colleagues were able to confirm that the fish's teeth did indeed point sideways out of its mouth, like a warthog.

“As a result, this species should be renamed 'spine-toothed salmon,'” the paleontologists said.

“It is unclear exactly what these teeth were used for, but it is likely that they were used for fighting other spiny-toothed salmon, for defense against natural predators, or as tools for digging nests. ”

“It is also possible that the teeth were used for multiple purposes,” the researchers added.

“However, the teeth were probably not used to capture prey. Oncorhynchus lastrosus It is believed that it was a filter feeder that fed on plankton. ”

“We've known for decades that these extinct salmon in Central Oregon were the largest of all time. Discoveries like ours mean they're probably more than just gentle giants. It shows that there was no such thing,” Professor Cresson said.

“The giant spines on the tips of their snouts would have helped them protect themselves from predators, compete with other salmon, and eventually build nests to incubate their eggs.”

“We are pleased to be able to give a new face to the giant spiny salmon and bring knowledge from the Oregon field to the world,” said University of Oregon researcher and director Dr. Edward Davis. Condon Collection, University of Oregon Museum of Natural and Cultural History.

“We also emphasize that females and males alike had huge fang-like teeth. So both sexes were equally terrifying,” said Professor Brian Sidlauskas, curator of fishes at Oregon State University. said.

team's result It was published in the magazine PLoS ONE.

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KM watercress other. 2024. From the saber to the spike: Reconstruction of an ancient giant sexually dimorphic Pacific salmon from a new angle. Oncorhynchus lastrosus (Salmonidae: Salmonini). PLoS ONE 19 (4): e0300252; doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0300252

Source: www.sci.news

Study: Io, Jupiter’s moon, has been erupting volcanically continuously since its formation

Posted on April 24, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Sulfur and chlorine isotopes in Io’s atmosphere indicate that Io has been volcanically active throughout the solar system’s 4.57 billion-year history.

This global map of Io was obtained in January 1999 by NASA’s Galileo spacecraft. Image credit: NASA/JPL/University of Arizona.

Jupiter’s moon Io is the most volcanically active body in the solar system.

Io’s volcanic activity is the result of tidal heating due to friction that occurs within the moon’s interior as it is pulled between Jupiter and its neighboring moons Europa and Ganymede.

However, it is not fully understood how long this moon has hosted such extensive volcanic activity.

Due to the Moon’s current level of volcanic activity, Io’s surface is constantly being reworked, leaving only the most recent 1 million years of its geological record.

Stable isotope measurements of volatile elements in Io’s atmosphere could provide information about Io’s volcanic history.

“Io is a moon of Jupiter and is the most volcanically active body in the solar system,” says Dr. Ellie Hughes, a volcanic fluid geochemist at GNS Science.

“Io is in orbital resonance with Jupiter’s other two large moons, Europa and Ganymede.”

“For every time Ganymede orbits Jupiter once, Europa orbits twice and Io orbits four times.”

“This configuration causes Io’s orbit around Jupiter to be elliptical rather than circular, causing Jupiter’s gravity on Io to change periodically.”

“This change in gravity causes something called tidal heating on Io, just as the moon causes ocean tides on Earth, which causes volcanic activity.”

“However, it is unclear whether volcanic activity has occurred on Io over a long period of time or how this activity has changed over Io’s 4.57 billion year history.”

“Io has experienced so much volcanic activity that its surface is constantly being updated, leaving little trace of its past.”

“Fortunately, we can study Io back in time by studying sulfur and its isotopes.”

In the new study, Hughes, Caltech researcher Catherine de Clare, and colleagues used the Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array (ALMA) to observe gases in Io’s tenuous atmosphere. , we measured stable isotope radio waves of sulfur and chlorine. Carries molecules.

Scientists believe that both elements have lower concentrations of heavier isotopes compared to the solar system average due to the loss of lighter isotopes from the upper atmosphere as material is continually recycled between Io’s interior and atmosphere. I discovered that it is very plentiful.

The findings show that Io lost 94% to 99% of its sulfur through this outgassing and recycling process.

This would require that Io maintained its current level of volcanic activity throughout its lifetime.

“Sulfur is released into the atmosphere from Io’s interior by tidal heating from volcanic activity,” Hughes said.

“Some of the sulfur is lost to space by Jupiter’s magnetosphere, a bundle of charged particles swirling around Jupiter that continuously bombards Io’s atmosphere.”

“The sulfur that is left behind will eventually be buried back inside Io, ready to start the cycle again.”

“Isotopes of the same element have different weights from each other, so they can behave slightly differently during this cycle.”

“We found that the sulfur lost to space on Io is a little lighter isotopically than the sulfur that is recycled into Io’s interior.”

“Thus, over time, the sulfur left on Io becomes isotopically heavier and heavier. How heavy it gets depends on how long the volcanic activity has been occurring.”

“We found much more isotopically heavy sulfur in Io’s atmosphere than the solar system average. This requires that Io has lost almost all of its original sulfur.”

“Based on numerical modeling, this means that Io has been volcanically active for billions of years, and that tidal heating and orbital resonance have also occurred for most of Io’s history.”

“In the future, variability in atmospheric sulfur isotopic composition may help quantify Io’s average tidal heating rate.”

of study appear in the diary science.

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katherine de clair other. Isotopic evidence for long-lived volcanism on Io. science, published online on April 18, 2024. doi: 10.1126/science.adj0625

Source: www.sci.news

Study reveals 25% of UK toddlers aged three and four have their own smartphone

Posted on April 19, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

In the UK, a quarter of three and four-year-olds now own a smartphone, and even children under 13 have smartphones, according to new data. As ministers consider banning mobile phone ownership for children under 16, half of children are already using social media.

Reports from the communications regulator Ofcom show a significant increase in online activity among toddlers to school-age children, with social media usage among 5 to 7-year-olds rising from 30% to 38% in the past year. Furthermore, 76% of children in this age group are using tablets.

These findings support the arguments of those close to Rishi Sunak, urging him to regulate young children’s phone and social media usage. Discussions on potential measures are expected to begin in the coming weeks, with proposals including banning the sale of mobile phones to under-16s, enhancing parental control capabilities, and raising the minimum age for social media platforms to 16.

It is concerning that despite the age requirement of 13 for social media apps, half of children aged 3 to 12 are using at least one social media platform. Michelle Donnellan, the Tech Secretary, emphasized the importance of implementing online safety laws to protect children.

The figures underscore the negative impact of widespread social media use on children’s mental health, with a significant increase in depression and anxiety among adolescents. Experts like Jonathan Haidt recommend delaying smartphone ownership until the age of 16 to address these issues.

Tech Secretary Michelle Donnellan said the figures showed why the Government’s online safety laws were essential. Photo: Andy Lane/EPA

Child safety advocates urge action to enforce age restrictions on social media platforms. Organizations like the Molly Rose Foundation and NSPCC emphasize the need for stronger regulations to protect children online.

New data from Ofcom also reveals an increase in messaging and calling among 5 to 7-year-olds, with more children using apps like WhatsApp and TikTok. The vast majority of children aged 3 to 17 are now online, with younger children favoring tablets and older children owning smartphones.

The smartphone ownership statistics are based on a survey of 2,480 parents with children aged 3 to 17. Ofcom defines smartphones as devices that enable app download, web browsing, and online activity.

Source: www.theguardian.com

Study finds that competition between species was a significant factor in the growth and fall of human populations

Posted on April 19, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Traditionally, climate has been thought to be the cause of the emergence and extinction of human species. However, interspecific competition is known to play an important role in most vertebrates. A new study shows for the first time that competition has been the basis of speciation (the rate at which new species emerge) over five million years of human evolution.It also means that our speciation patterns homo The pedigree was different from most others.

a homo heidelbergensis, Neanderthals and Cro-Magnons. Image credit: SINC / Jose Antonio Peñas.

“We have ignored how competition between species has shaped our own evolutionary tree,” says Dr Laura van Holstein, an anthropologist at the University of Cambridge.

“The effects of climate on the human species are only part of the story.”

“In other vertebrates, species form to fill ecological niches. Darwin's finches, for example, have evolved large beaks for cracking nuts, while others have evolved large beaks for eating certain insects. Some have evolved small beaks to accommodate them. Once their respective resource niches are filled, competition ensues, no new finches emerge, and extinction takes over.”

Dr Van Holstein and Professor Robert Foley from the University of Cambridge used Bayesian modeling and phylogenetic analysis to show that, like other vertebrates, most species of humans formed when competition for resources and space was low. It was shown that

“The pattern seen in many early humans is similar to all other mammals,” van Holstein says.

“The speciation rate increases, then levels off, at which point the extinction rate begins to increase. This suggests that competition between species was a major evolutionary factor.”

However, when the authors analyzed our group, homothe findings were “bizarre.”

for homo The pattern of evolution of the lineage leading to modern humans suggests that interspecific competition actually led to the emergence of even newer species, a complete departure from trends seen in almost all other vertebrates. It's a reversal.

“The more types there are, the more homo The more there are, the higher the rate of speciation,” Dr. van Holstein said.

“So once those niches were filled, something caused more species to emerge. This is almost unprecedented in evolutionary science.”

The closest comparison she found was a species of beetle that lives on the island. On islands, confined ecosystems can produce unusual evolutionary trends.

“The evolutionary patterns we see across species are homo “The direct link to modern humans is more closely related to island beetles than to other primates or other mammals,” Dr van Holstein said.

www.sci.news

According to a study, Arabica coffee has been traced back to its origins in Ethiopia over 600,000 years ago.

Posted on April 17, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

An international team of scientists has generated the highest quality reference genome to date for coffee arabica, the world's most popular coffee species (arabica coffee tree). Their results suggest that this species developed through natural hybridization between two other coffee species in the forests of Ethiopia more than 600,000 years ago. coffee tree and robusta coffee (Coffea genus).

arabica coffee tree. Image credit: Sci.News.

Arabica is the source of approximately 60% of all coffee products in the world, and its seeds help millions of people start their day and stay up late.

Arabica populations waxed and waned throughout millennia of Earth's heating and cooling periods, eventually being cultivated in Ethiopia and Yemen and then spreading around the world.

Professor Victor Albert of the University at Buffalo said: “We are using genomic information from living plants to go back in time and map the long history of Arabica as accurately as possible, and to understand how modern cultivars have evolved. “We have clarified whether the two are interrelated.'' .

From a new reference genome created using state-of-the-art DNA sequencing technology and advanced data science, Professor Albert and his colleagues identified 39 Arabica species and the 18 that Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus used to name the species. Even century specimens could be sequenced.

“Although other public references exist on Arabica coffee, the quality of our team's research is very high,” said Dr. Patrick Descombe from Nestlé Research.

“We used state-of-the-art genomics approaches, including long-read and short-read high-throughput DNA sequencing, to create the most advanced, complete and continuous Arabica reference genome to date.”

arabica coffee tree It is formed as a natural hybrid between Coffea genus and coffee treethen received two sets of chromosomes from each parent.

Scientists have struggled to pinpoint exactly when and where this allopolyploidization phenomenon occurred, with estimates ranging from 10,000 years ago to 1 million years ago.

To find evidence of the original event, the researchers ran the genomes of various Arabica species through a computational modeling program, looking for traces of the species' foundation.

The model shows three population bottlenecks in the history of Arabica, the oldest of which occurred about 29,000 generations, or 610,000 years ago.

this suggests arabica coffee tree It was formed shortly before that, between 610,000 and 1 million years ago.

“So the hybridization that produced Arabica was not human-made. It is clear that this polyploidy phenomenon predates modern humans and coffee cultivation,” Professor Albert said.

Coffee trees were long thought to have developed in Ethiopia, but the varieties the researchers collected around the Great Rift Valley, which stretches from southeastern Africa to Asia, showed a clear geographic divide.

The wild species studied all originate from the western side, whereas all cultivated varieties originate from the eastern side, closest to the Bab al-Mandab strait that separates Africa and Yemen.

This is consistent with evidence that coffee cultivation may have originated primarily in Yemen around the 15th century.

Indian monk Baba Budhan believed it Around 1600 AD, the legendary “seven seeds” were smuggled out of Yemen, establishing the Indian Arabica variety and setting the stage for today's global spread of coffee.

“It appears that Yemen's coffee diversity may be the originator of all of today's major varieties,” Dr. Descombe said.

“Coffee is not a crop that has been highly hybridized to create new varieties, like corn or wheat.”

“People mainly chose their favorite varieties and grew them. So the varieties we have today have probably been around for a long time.”

East Africa's geo-climatic history is well documented through research on human origins, allowing researchers to understand how climate change and wild and cultivated Arabica populations have fluctuated over time. can be compared.

Modeling shows a long period of low population size between 20,000 and 100,000 years ago, combined with a prolonged drought that is thought to have hit the region between 40,000 and 70,000 years ago. This almost corresponds to a cold climate.

The population then increased during the Wet Period in Africa, about 6,000 to 15,000 years ago, and growing conditions are thought to have become more favorable.

Around the same time, about 30,000 years ago, wild species diverged from the varieties that would eventually become domesticated by humans.

“They still occasionally breed with each other, but this probably stopped around 8,000 to 9,000 years ago, around the end of the African Humid Period and the widening of the straits due to rising sea levels,” said Yarko, a researcher at the Southern Ocean Institute of Technology. Dr. Sarojärvi said. University.

of result Published in an online journal this week natural genetics.

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J. Sarojärvi other. 2024. Allopolyploid genomes and population genomics arabica coffee tree Uncovering the history of modern coffee variety diversification. Nat Genet 56, 721-731; doi: 10.1038/s41588-024-01695-w

Source: www.sci.news

New study shows tardigrades display unusual responses to ionizing radiation

Posted on April 17, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Tardigrades can withstand amazing amounts of ionizing radiation, about 1,000 times more lethal than humans. How they do so is not fully understood. In a new study, scientists at the University of North Carolina found that tardigrade species Hypsibius exemplaris Gamma irradiation causes DNA damage, but that damage can be repaired. This study shows that this species has a specific and strong response to ionizing radiation. In short, irradiation induces rapid upregulation of many DNA repair genes.

Artist's impression of tardigrade species Hypsibius exemplaris.

First discovered in 1773, tardigrades are a diverse group of microscopic invertebrates famous for their ability to withstand extreme conditions.

Also known as tardigrades or moss piglets, they can live up to 60 years, grow to a maximum size of 0.5 mm, and are best seen under a microscope.

Tardigrades can survive for up to 30 years without food or water at temperatures as low as -272 degrees Celsius (-457 degrees Fahrenheit) or as hot as 150 degrees Celsius (-302 degrees Fahrenheit) and for a few minutes at temperatures as low as -20 degrees Celsius. can. Minus 4 degrees Celsius (minus 4 degrees Fahrenheit) continues for decades.

It can withstand pressures from virtually 0 atmospheres in outer space to 1,200 atmospheres at the bottom of the Mariana Trench.

It is also resistant to radiation levels up to 5,000-6,200 Gy.

“What we saw surprised us. Tardigrades are behaving in ways we didn’t expect,” said researcher Professor Bob Goldstein from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

In their research, Professor Goldstein and his colleagues Hypsibius exemplaris Tardigrades can also withstand strong radiation.

The researchers found that although tardigrades are not immune to DNA damage, and that radiation damages their DNA, tardigrades can repair extensive damage.

They were surprised to discover that tardigrades can increase production of DNA repair genes.

Unlike humans, they are able to produce extremely high levels of DNA repair gene products, making them some of the most abundant gene products of any animal.

“These animals have an incredible response to radiation, and that seems to be the secret to their extreme survivability,” said Dr. Courtney Clark-Hachtel, a researcher at the University of North Carolina at Asheville. Ta.

“What we’re learning about how tardigrades overcome radiation stress could lead to new ideas about how we try to protect other animals and microorganisms from harmful radiation. “

of findings appear in the diary current biology.

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Courtney M. Clark Hucktell other.Tardigrade Hypsibius exemplaris Dramatically upregulates DNA repair pathway genes in response to ionizing radiation. current biology, published online on April 12, 2024. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.03.019

Source: www.sci.news

Study finds that astronauts possess extraordinary skills in orienting themselves and calculating distances while in space

Posted on March 29, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

New research has implications for crew safety in space and could give clues about how aging affects the balance systems of people on Earth.

horges other. We addressed the question of whether body posture influences humans' perception of self-motion and distance. They found that the same amount of optical flow can elicit the sensation of traveling farther when lying on one's back and when sitting upright; that is, optical flow We found evidence that it is more effective in eliciting the sensation of movement. This constitutes evidence that visual and nonvisual cues are at least partially integrated, even when self-movement is presented only visually. However, we found no significant differences in performance in microgravity on Earth and on the ISS, suggesting that vestibular stimulation is not important, if any, in estimating visually presented self-motion.

The study's lead author, Professor Lawrence Harris from the University of York, said: “The perception of gravity has been repeatedly shown to influence perceptual abilities.”

“The most profound way to study the effects of gravity is to remove it. That's why we brought our research into space.”

“We have had a steady presence in space for nearly a quarter of a century, but our efforts in space are ever-increasing as we plan to return to the moon and beyond, ensuring health and safety. It is becoming increasingly important to answer questions about

“Based on our findings, it appears that humans are surprisingly able to use vision to adequately compensate for the lack of Earth's normal environment.

For the study, Professor Harris and his colleagues surveyed more than a dozen astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS), which orbits about 400 kilometers above the Earth's surface.

“Here, Earth's gravity is almost canceled out by the centrifugal force generated by the station's orbit. In the resulting microgravity, the movement of people becomes close to flight,” Professor Harris said.

“People had previously reported anecdotally that they felt like they were traveling faster or farther than they were actually in space, so this actually motivated us to record this.”

The authors compared the performance of 12 astronauts (six men and six women) before, during, and after a year-long mission to the space station and found out how far they traveled. I discovered that my sense of what I had done was almost intact.

Space missions were hectic endeavors, and it took several days for researchers to make contact with the astronauts after arriving at the space station.

“Our study may not have captured early adaptations that may have occurred during the first few days. Because whatever adaptations occur, they occur very quickly. This remains a good news message,” Professor Harris said.

Space missions are not without risks. Because the ISS orbits around the Earth, small objects can occasionally collide with it and enter the ship, where astronauts must move to safety.

“During the experiment, the ISS had to take many evasive maneuvers,” Professor Harris said.

“Astronauts need to be able to get to safety or escape through a hatch on the ISS in an emergency. So to see that they were actually able to do this with great precision was very exciting. I felt relieved.”

“Our research shows that exposure to microgravity mimics the aging process primarily at a physiological level, including bone and muscle wasting, changes in hormonal function, and increased susceptibility to infections. However, this paper found that self-movement was largely unaffected, suggesting a balance problem.''The problem, which often comes from old age, may have nothing to do with the vestibular system. ”

“This suggests that the mechanisms of movement perception in older people should be relatively unaffected, and that the problems associated with falls are probably more to do with this than in terms of perception of distance traveled. How can they translate that into a balance reflex? ”

of study Published in npj magazine microgravity.

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B. Horges other. 2024. Effects of long-term exposure to microgravity and body orientation relative to gravity on perceived distance traveled. NPJ microgravity 10, 28; doi: 10.1038/s41526-024-00376-6

Source: www.sci.news

Sea buckthorn berries discovered to be packed with natural antioxidants in recent study.

Posted on March 22, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

berry Sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides) The Canadian-grown fruit shows promising health benefits driven by its rich and diverse polyphenol profile and should be considered for further commercial expansion as a bioactive-loaded superfruit.

Sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides). Image credit: Svdmolen / CC BY-SA 3.0 Certificate.

Sea buckthorn is a deciduous, spiny plant that grows along the coasts of northwestern Europe and in temperate regions of central Asia.

Its fruits and leaves are widely used Sea buckthorn oil has nutritional, medicinal, and functional properties and is rich in omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids, vitamins E, B, A, and polyphenols.

The plant was introduced in Canada in the early 2000s following research into the crop's commercial potential by government agencies.

“Sea buckthorn is a unique crop with great potential for use,” said Dr. Renan Danielski. student at the University of Newfoundland.

“Popular in Asia and northwestern Europe, there is an opportunity to replicate this success in North America by leveraging the unique qualities of locally grown varieties.”

Danielski and Professor Fereydoun Shahidi of Memorial University of Newfoundland were motivated by the experimental status and limited commercialization of sea buckthorn in North America to date, and research on the antioxidant properties of Canadian cultivars. We set out to characterize the unique composition of polyphenols, a type of chemical compound.

“Understanding how our varieties compare globally will help us communicate our benefits to consumers and establish our presence in the market,” Professor Shahidi said.

The findings highlight the presence of key polyphenolic compounds in sea buckthorn pomace and seeds, each boasting potential health benefits ranging from cardiovascular protection to anti-inflammatory properties. .

Importantly, geographic factors influence the polyphenol profile of sea buckthorn berries, and researchers found that several different compounds with enhanced bioactivity are present only in sea buckthorn varieties grown in Newfoundland. is that we have identified.

Additionally, sea buckthorn extract has demonstrated promise in vitro It has anti-diabetic and anti-obesity potential, paving the way for further research into its mechanisms and potential therapeutic applications.

“This is a first step toward understanding how sea buckthorn polyphenols can modulate our physiology in beneficial ways,” Danielski said.

“Future research should focus on understanding the mechanisms behind those effects and further experiments using animal models and humans.”

“If these effects are confirmed, in vivoWe can imagine using sea buckthorn polyphenols for therapeutic and pharmacological purposes to help prevent and treat diabetes, obesity, and many other conditions. ”

of result Published in Journal of Food and Agriculture Science.

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Renan Danielski & Fereydoun Shahidi. Phenolic composition and biological activity of sea buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides L.) Fruits and Seeds: Non-Conventional Sources of Natural Antioxidants in North America. Food and Agriculture Science Journal, published online on February 15, 2024. doi: 10.1002/jsfa.13386

Source: www.sci.news

New Study Suggests That Venus’ Clouds Could Potentially Support Life

Posted on March 21, 2024 by Igor Mitreski

Planetary scientists have long speculated that Venus' potential habitability lies not in its hot surface but in a cloud layer at an altitude of 48 to 60 kilometers, where temperatures match those of Earth's surface. However, it is commonly believed that Venusian clouds cannot support life because their chemical composition is concentrated sulfuric acid, a highly aggressive solvent. In the new study, chemists studied 20 biogenic amino acids across a range of sulfuric acid concentrations and temperatures in the Venus cloud. After four weeks, the researchers found that 19 of the biogenic amino acids tested were either unreactive or chemically modified only in their side chains. Their main discovery is that the amino acid backbone remains intact in concentrated sulfuric acid.

This composite image taken by JAXA's Akatsuki spacecraft shows Venus. Image credit: JAXA / ISAS / DARTS / Damia Bouic.

“What is quite surprising is that concentrated sulfuric acid is not a universally hostile solvent for organic chemistry,” said MIT researcher Dr. Janusz Petkowski.

“We found that the building blocks of life on Earth are stable in sulfuric acid, which is very interesting as we consider the possibility of life on Venus,” said Sarah Seager of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. the professor added.

“That doesn't mean life there will be the same as it is here. In fact, we know it's unlikely. But this study suggests that Venus' clouds support the complex chemicals necessary for life. We advance the idea that there is a possibility that

The search for life in Venus' clouds has gained momentum in recent years, spurred by the detection of the controversial molecule phosphine, a molecule thought to be a signature of life, in the planet's atmosphere. There is.

Although the discovery remains debated, the news reignited old questions about whether life could actually exist on Earth's sister planet.

In search of answers, scientists are planning several missions to Venus. That includes the first largely privately-funded mission to Venus, backed by California-based launch company Rocket Lab.

The mission, for which Professor Seeger is the principal scientist, aims to send a spacecraft into the planet's clouds and analyze their chemistry for signs of organic molecules.

Ahead of the mission's launch in January 2025, Professor Seager and his colleagues will test various materials in concentrated sulfuric acid to find out whether debris from life on Earth might be stable in Venus' clouds. I've been testing molecules. The most acidic place on earth.

“People have a perception that concentrated sulfuric acid is a very aggressive solvent that will tear everything apart, but we are finding that this is not necessarily true,” Dr. Petkowski said.

In fact, the authors have previously shown that complex organic molecules, such as some fatty acids and nucleic acids, are surprisingly stable in sulfuric acid.

They are careful to emphasize, as they do in the current paper, that complex organic chemistry is of course not life, but without organic chemistry there is no life.

In other words, if certain molecules can survive in sulfuric acid, Venus' highly acidic clouds are probably habitable, if not necessarily habitable.

In the new study, researchers focused on 20 biogenic amino acids, amino acids that are essential for all life on Earth.

They dissolved each type of amino acid in a vial of sulfuric acid mixed with water at concentrations of 81% and 98%, representing the range found in Venus' clouds.

They then used a nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometer to analyze the structure of the amino acids in sulfuric acid.

After analyzing each vial several times over a four-week period, they found that the basic molecular structure, or “skeleton,” of 19 of the 20 amino acids was stable and unaltered, even under highly acidic conditions.

“Just because this skeleton was shown to be stable in sulfuric acid does not mean there is life on Venus,” said Dr. Maxwell Seager, a researcher at Worcester Polytechnic Institute.

“But if we had shown that this spine was compromised, there would have been no possibility of life as we know it.”

of study Published in this week's magazine astrobiology.

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Maxwell D. Seeger other. Stability of 20 biogenic amino acids in concentrated sulfuric acid: Implications for the habitability of Venusian clouds. astrobiology, published online March 18, 2024. doi: 10.1089/ast.2023.0082

Source: www.sci.news

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