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Categories: Ecology: General, Engineering: Robotics Research
Published Road salt pollution in many US lakes could stabilize at or below thresholds set by the EPA
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source For lakes in areas with light to moderate road density, the authors found that holding road salt application rates steady could help lakes stabilize below 230 mg/l of chloride per liter of water, the threshold designated by the EPA to protect aquatic life. Reducing application could yield additional environmental and economic benefits without threatening road safety.
Published Climate scientist finds new way to measure the Earth's ability to offset carbon emissions
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Scientists have determined how the Earth responds as it heats up due to climate change. Their study is the first to find the temperature-carbon dioxide release relationship at the landscape level. Plants that currently take up a quarter to a third of humanity's carbon emissions might not be able to maintain the rate of carbon dioxide removal.
Published Robot preachers get less respect, fewer donations
(via sciencedaily.com) As artificial intelligence expands across more professions, robot preachers and AI programs offer new means of sharing religious beliefs, but they may undermine credibility and reduce donations for religious groups that rely on them.
Published Picturing where wildlands and people meet at a global scale
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers have created the first tool to map and visualize the areas where human settlements and nature meet on a global scale. The tool could improve responses to environmental conflicts like wildfires, the spread of zoonotic diseases and loss of ecosystem biodiversity.
Published Allowing robots to explore on their own
(via sciencedaily.com) Scientists have developed a suite of robotic systems and planners enabling robots to explore more quickly, probe the darkest corners of unknown environments, and create more accurate and detailed maps. The systems allow robots to do all this autonomously, finding their way and creating a map without human intervention.
Published Understanding the many different ways animals are evolving in response to fire could help conservation efforts
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source In our modern era of larger, more destructive, and longer-lasting fires -- called the Pyrocene -- plants and animals are evolving quickly to survive. By synthesizing the wide body of research about rapid animal evolution in response to fire, a multidisciplinary team of ecology experts hopes to leverage what we already know to help foster evolution-informed conservation plans. In this way, they suggest, we can try to harness the ways in which fire impacts animals to protect vulnerable species -- working with evolution instead of against it.
Published Some corals may survive climate change without paying a metabolic price
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source If, as the saying goes, 'nothing in life is free,' then corals might pay a price for being resilient to climate change. Indeed, the prevailing belief among scientists has been that corals must suffer reduced growth or other tradeoffs when they partner with symbiotic algae that help them tolerate warmer water. Yet, new research demonstrates that certain corals can have their cake and eat it too, and as a result, these coral-symbiont partnerships may come to dominate reef ecosystems in a climate-changed future.
Published A faster way to teach a robot
(via sciencedaily.com) A new technique enables a human to efficiently fine-tune a robot that failed to complete a desired task with very little effort on the part of the human. Their system uses algorithms, counterfactual explanations, and feedback from the user to generate synthetic data it uses to quickly fine-tune the robot.
Published Bot inspired by baby turtles can swim under the sand
(via sciencedaily.com) This robot can swim under the sand and dig itself out too, thanks to two front limbs that mimic the oversized flippers of turtle hatchlings. It's the only robot that is able to travel in sand at a depth of 5 inches. It can also travel at a speed of 1.2 millimeters per second--roughly 4 meters, or 13 feet, per hour. This may seem slow but is comparable to other subterranean animals like worms and clams.
Published Into the unknown: NASA space laser provides answers to a rainforest canopy mystery
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source The space laser GEDI has allowed researchers to 3D map Earth's rainforests for the first time ever, helping us understand the forest canopy and providing vital information for understanding Earth's carbon cycle and how it is changing.
Published Robotics: New skin-like sensors fit almost everywhere
(via sciencedaily.com) Researchers have developed an automatic process for making soft sensors. These universal measurement cells can be attached to almost any kind of object. Applications are envisioned especially in robotics and prosthetics.
Published In Florida, endangered coral finds a way to blossom
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source In a new study, researchers have found that the restoration efforts of the critically endangered species elkhorn coral depend largely on the animal's location, microbiome, and the right conditions to provide an abundance of food.
Published Form and function of island and mainland plants
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Oceanic islands provide useful models for ecology, biogeography and evolutionary research. Many ground-breaking findings -- including Darwin's theory of evolution -- have emerged from the study of species on islands and their interplay with their living and non-living environment. Now, an international research team has investigated the flora of the Canary Island of Tenerife. The results were surprising: the island's plant-life exhibits a remarkable diversity of forms. But the plants differ little from mainland plants in functional terms. However, unlike the flora of the mainland, the flora of Tenerife is dominated by slow-growing, woody shrubs with a 'low-risk' life strategy.
Published Multiple uses of tropical mosaic landscapes
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Many landscapes in the tropics consist of a mosaic of different types of land use. How people make use of these different ecosystems, with their particular plant communities, was unclear until now. Researchers, many of them from Madagascar, have now investigated this. When considering biodiversity, forests often get the most attention. But this research shows that rural households use a wide range of plant species and services provided by many nearby ecosystem types.
Published ROSE: Revolutionary, nature-inspired soft embracing robotic gripper
(via sciencedaily.com) Soft robotic grippers could greatly increase productivity in many fields. However, currently existing designs are overly complex and expensive. A research team has developed ROSE, a novel embracing soft gripper inspired by the blooming and closing of rose flowers. Bearing a surprisingly simple, inexpensive, and scalable design, ROSE can pick up many kinds of objects without damaging them, even in challenging environments and conditions.
Published Small-winged and lighter colored butterflies likely to be at greatest threat from climate change
(via sciencedaily.com) Small-winged and lighter colored butterflies likely to be at greatest threat from climate change. The family, wing length and wing colour of tropical butterflies all influence their ability to withstand rising temperatures, say ecologists. The researchers believe this could help identify species whose survival is under threat from climate change.
Published Alien invasion: Study reveals alarming economic costs of biological invasions to the European Union
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Biological invasions are a major threat to ecosystems, biodiversity, and human well-being, resulting in ecosystem degradation and causing economic costs in the multi-trillions of euros globally. A study sheds light on the stark economic cost resulting from biological invasions in the European Union (EU).
Published Surgical and engineering innovations enable unprecedented control over every finger of a bionic hand
(via sciencedaily.com) For the first time, a person with an arm amputation can manipulate each finger of a bionic hand as if it was his own. Thanks to revolutionary surgical and engineering advancements that seamlessly merge humans with machines, this breakthrough offers new hope and possibilities for people with amputations worldwide. A study presents the first documented case of an individual whose body was surgically modified to incorporate implanted sensors and a skeletal implant. A.I. algorithms then translated the user's intentions into movement of the prosthesis.
Published Robot team on lunar exploration tour
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Engineers are training legged robots for future lunar missions that will search for minerals and raw materials. To ensure that the robots can continue to work even if one of them malfunctions, the researchers are teaching them teamwork.
Published Salinity changes threatening marine ecosystems
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A groundbreaking study reveals the critical yet severely understudied factor of salinity changes in ocean and coastlines caused by climate change.