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Categories: Ecology: General, Engineering: Graphene
Published Forest, stream habitats keep energy exchanges in balance, global team finds



Forests and streams are separate but linked ecosystems, existing side by side, with energy and nutrients crossing their porous borders and flowing back and forth between them. For example, leaves fall from trees, enter streams, decay and feed aquatic insects. Those insects emerge from the waters and are eaten by birds and bats. An international team has now found that these ecosystems appear to keep the energy exchanges in balance -- a finding that the scientists called surprising.
Published Monitoring and measuring biodiversity require more than just numbers; scientists advocate for change



Scientists advocate for change to promote standardized practices in the field -- a practice that has been missing from the science.
Published Researchers investigate how freshwater diatoms stay in the light



Researchers sought to understand how diatoms -- microscopic, photosynthetic algae that make up an estimated 20 percent of global carbon sequestration and oxygen production -- are able to bloom in an ice-covered Lake Erie and how ice decline across the Great Lakes is impacting the algae.
Published Artificial streams reveal how drought shapes California's alpine ecosystems



Researchers have used a series of artificial stream channels to mimic the behavior of headwater creeks under future climate change scenarios. They found that drier conditions shifted the life cycles of the algae and insects that form the base of the alpine food web. However, because species adjusted to the shifts in a variety of ways, the stream ecosystems were generally resilient to the changing conditions.
Published Arctic nightlife: Seabird colony bursts with sound at night



Acoustic recordings of a colony of little auks reveal their nocturnal activities and offer valuable monitoring means for avian biology in the Arctic.
Published A new world of 2D material is opening up



Materials that are incredibly thin, only a few atoms thick, exhibit unique properties that make them appealing for energy storage, catalysis and water purification. Researchers have now developed a method that enables the synthesis of hundreds of new 2D materials.
Published Marine heat waves disrupt the ocean food web in the northeast Pacific Ocean



Marine heat waves in the northeast Pacific Ocean create ongoing and complex disruptions of the ocean food web that may benefit some species but threaten the future of many others, a new study has shown.
Published Spiral wrappers switch nanotubes from conductors to semiconductors and back



By wrapping a carbon nanotube with a ribbon-like polymer, researchers were able to create nanotubes that conduct electricity when struck with low-energy light that our eyes cannot see. In the future, the approach could make it possible to optimize semiconductors for applications ranging from night vision to new forms of computing.
Published Rainforest's next generation of trees threatened 30 years after logging



Rainforest seedlings are more likely to survive in natural forests than in places where logging has happened -- even if tree restoration projects have taken place, new research shows.
Published Halloween toy among plastics swallowed by sea turtles



A Halloween toy was among hundreds of plastic items found in the guts of dead sea turtles in the Mediterranean, a new study reveals.
Published Good news for coral reef restoration efforts: Study finds 'full recovery' of reef growth within four years



While the majority of the world's reefs are now under threat or even damaged potentially beyond repair, a new study offers some encouraging news: efforts to restore coral reefs not only increase coral cover, but they can also bring back important ecosystem functions, and surprisingly fast.
Published Reptile roadkill reveals new threat to endangered lizard species



The chance sighting of a dead snake beside a sandy track in remote Western Australia, and the investigation of its stomach contents, has led researchers to record the first known instance of a spotted mulga snake consuming a pygmy spiny-tailed skink, raising concerns for a similar-looking, endangered lizard species.
Published Loss of nature costs more than previously estimated



Researchers propose that governments apply a new method for calculating the benefits that arise from conserving biodiversity and nature for future generations.
Published Microbes impact coral bleaching susceptibility



A new study provides insights into the role of microbes and their interaction as drivers of interspecific differences in coral thermal bleaching.
Published Marine algae implants could boost crop yields



Scientists have discovered the gene that enables marine algae to make a unique type of chlorophyll. They successfully implanted this gene in a land plant, paving the way for better crop yields on less land.
Published Herbivores, displaced by ocean warming, threaten subtropical seagrass meadows



The findings suggest that subtropical seagrasses are less resilient to heavy grazing from marine herbivores, in part because they receive less sunlight relative to their tropical counterparts. As tropical herbivores move into subtropical waters, overgrazing may prevent subtropical seagrass meadows from persisting in these environments.
Published Using light to precisely control single-molecule devices



Researchers flip the switch at the nanoscale by applying light to induce bonding for single-molecule device switching.
Published Umbrella for atoms: The first protective layer for 2D quantum materials



As silicon-based computer chips approach their physical limitations in the quest for faster and smaller designs, the search for alternative materials that remain functional at atomic scales is one of science's biggest challenges. In a groundbreaking development, researchers have engineered a protective film that shields quantum semiconductor layers just one atom thick from environmental influences without compromising their revolutionary quantum properties. This puts the application of these delicate atomic layers in ultrathin electronic components within realistic reach.
Published Measuring electrical conductivity in microorganisms, approaching understanding of microbial ecosystems



Researchers have developed an innovative methodology for measuring the electrical conductivity of microbial communities. This methodology holds promise for the development of batteries and electrochemical sensors using microorganisms and may serve as a pivotal tool in elucidating the role of electricity within microbial ecosystems.
Published Lake ecosystems: Nitrogen has been underestimated



An ecological imbalance in a lake can usually be attributed to increased nutrient inputs. The result: increased phytoplankton growth, oxygen deficiency, toxic cyanobacterial blooms and fish kills. Until now, controls in lake management have focused primarily on phosphorus inputs to counteract this effect. Now, this dogma is shaken by a study showing that nitrogen is also a critical driver for phytoplankton growth in lakes worldwide.