ScienceDaily Environment Headlines
for Saturday, November 6, 2010
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New statistical model moves human evolution back three million years (November 5, 2010) -- Evolutionary divergence of humans from chimpanzees likely occurred some 8 million years ago rather than the 5 million year estimate widely accepted by scientists, a new statistical model suggests. ... > full story
New fish feeds made from fish byproducts (November 5, 2010) -- Fish byproducts may be a new source of fish feed. The scientists are taking fish parts that would normally be discarded-head, tail, bone, skin and internal organs-and fashioning them into feeds for shrimp and fish. ... > full story
Hard work improves the taste of food, study shows (November 5, 2010) -- It's commonly accepted that we appreciate something more if we have to work hard to get it, and a new study bears that out, at least when it comes to food. The study seems to suggest that hard work can even enhance our appreciation for fare we might not favor, such as the low-fat, low calorie variety. ... > full story
Insects learn to choose the right mate (November 5, 2010) -- Researchers have shown that damselflies learn how to choose the right mate when two species co-exist locally. The choice of mate is not only a matter of genetic and instinctive behavior, as has often been assumed for such small and short-lived creatures. ... > full story
Air pollution exposure increases risk of severe COPD (November 5, 2010) -- Long term exposure to low-level air pollution may increase the risk of severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, according to researcher s in Denmark. While acute exposure of several days to high level air pollution was known to be a risk factor for exacerbation in pre-existing COPD, until now there had been no studies linking long-term air pollution exposure to the development or progression of the disease. ... > full story
Evolution by religious selection: Mexican cavefish develop resistance to toxin (November 5, 2010) -- A centuries-old religious ceremony of an indigenous people in southern Mexico has led to small evolutionary changes in a local species of fish, according to researchers from Texas A&M University. ... > full story
Fly stem cells on diet: Scientists discovered how stem cells respond to nutrient availability (November 5, 2010) -- Researchers have revealed that stem cells can sense a decrease in available nutrients and respond by retaining only a small pool of active stem cells for tissue maintenance. When, or if, favorable conditions return, stem cell numbers multiply to accommodate increased demands on the tissue. ... > full story
Decoding the genome of Chlorella microalgae, a promising genus for biofuel production (November 5, 2010) -- The analysis of the complete genome of Chlorella microalgae, a promising genus for biofuel production, has now been completed. The detailed elucidation of the Chlorella genome, also widely used as a food supplement, will make it possible to rationalize its industrial use. This analysis has also brought to light unexpected findings at the fundamental level: it suggests that Chlorella could have a sexual cycle (which had gone unnoticed so far) and that a virus probably gave it the capacity to synthesize chitin-rich cell walls a unique property in algae. ... > full story
Neanderthals were more promiscuous than modern humans, fossil finger bones suggest (November 5, 2010) -- Fossil finger bones of early human ancestors suggest that Neanderthals were more promiscuous than human populations today, researchers have found. ... > full story
Human-specific evolution in battling bugs and building babies (November 5, 2010) -- Researchers have described qualitative killer cell immunoglobulin-like receptor differences, acquired after humans and chimpanzees separated 6 million years ago and mainly a consequence of innovation in the human line. These differences open up an exciting avenue for explaining the differential susceptibility of humans and chimpanzees to devastating infectious diseases such as HIV/AIDS and malaria. ... > full story
Volcanoes have shifted Asian rainfall (November 5, 2010) -- Scientists have shown that eruptions also affect rainfall over the Asian monsoon region, where seasonal storms water crops for nearly half of earth's population. Tree-ring researchers showed that big eruptions tend to dry up much of central Asia, but bring more rain to southeast Asian countries including Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Thailand and Myanmar -- the opposite of what many climate models predict. ... > full story
To punish or not to punish: Lessons from reef fish and saber-tooth blennies (November 5, 2010) -- Researchers have experimentally shown that some species of reef fish will enact punishment on the parasitic saber-tooth blennies that stealthily attack them from behind and take a bite, even though their behavior offers no immediate gain. The study shows that punishment ultimately serves all members of the reef fish species well. ... > full story
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