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Categories: Ecology: Research, Energy: Technology
Published Kangaroo Island ants 'play dead' to avoid predators
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source They're well known for their industrious work, but now a species of ant on Kangaroo Island is also showing that it is skilled at 'playing dead', a behavior that researchers believe is a recorded world first.
Published Water warming study shows unexpected impact on fish size
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source The theory that water-breathing animals such as fish will shrink due to global warming has been called into question by a new study.
Published Beetles and their biodiversity in dead wood
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Which energy type promotes the biodiversity of beetles living in dead wood in the forest? That depends entirely on where the beetles are in the food chain.
Published Exploring the underground connections between trees
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Fungal networks interconnecting trees in a forest is a key factor that determines the nature of forests and their response to climate change. These networks have also been viewed as a means for trees to help their offspring and other tree-friends, according to the increasingly popular 'mother-tree hypothesis'. An international group of researchers re-examined the evidence for and against this hypothesis in a new study.
Published Small wildlife surveys can produce 'big picture' results
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Small-scale wildlife surveys can reveal the health of entire ecosystems, new research shows.
Published Viruses could reshuffle the carbon cycle in a warming world
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source The roles microbes play in ecosystems are changing with global warming. Microbes are also affected by infection by viruses, but scientists know relatively little about how these viral infections could change how microbes react to warming. In this study, scientists describe different ways that increasing temperatures could affect viruses and their microbial hosts. Their preliminary models show that viruses could alter carbon balance, causing some ecosystems to switch from net carbon sources to net carbon sinks.
Published Exciton fission: One photon in, two electrons out
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Photovoltaics, the conversion of light to electricity, is a key technology for sustainable energy. Since the days of Max Planck and Albert Einstein, we know that light as well as electricity are quantized, meaning they come in tiny packets called photons and electrons. In a solar cell, the energy of a single photon is transferred to a single electron of the material, but no more than one. Only a few molecular materials like pentacene are an exception, where one photon is converted to two electrons instead. This excitation doubling, which is called exciton fission, could be extremely useful for high-efficiency photovoltaics, specifically to upgrade the dominant technology based on silicon. Researchers have now deciphered the first step of this process by recording an ultrafast movie of the photon-to-electricity conversion process, resolving a decades-old debate about the mechanism of the process.
Published Archaea in a warming climate become less diverse, more predictable
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Using a long-term multifactor experimental field site researchers showed that experimental warming of a tallgrass prairie ecosystem significantly altered the community structure of soil archaea and reduced their taxonomic and phylogenetic diversity.
Published Vanishing glaciers threaten alpine biodiversity
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source With glaciers melting at unprecedented rates due to climate change, invertebrates that live in the cold meltwater rivers of the European Alps will face widespread habitat loss, warn researchers. Many of the species are likely to become restricted to cold habitats that will only persist higher in the mountains, and these areas are also likely to see pressures from the skiing and tourism industries or from the development of hydroelectric plants.
Published Indo-Pacific corals more resilient to climate change than Atlantic corals
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source In the face of global warming and other environmental changes, corals in the Atlantic Ocean have declined precipitously in recent years, while corals in the Pacific and Indian Oceans are faring better. By describing several species of symbiotic algae that these corals need to grow, an international team has found that these mutualistic relationships from the Indo-Pacific may be more flexible and ultimately resilient to higher ocean temperatures than those in the Atlantic.
Published 'Gluing' soft materials without glue
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source If you're a fan of arts and crafts, you're likely familiar with the messy, sticky, frustration-inducing nature of liquid glues. But researchers now have a brand-new way to weld squishy stuff together without the need for glue at all. They've demonstrated a universal, 'electroadhesion' technique that can adhere soft materials to each other just by running electricity through them.
Published Engineers tap into good vibrations to power the Internet of Things
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source In a world hungry for clean energy, engineers have created a new material that converts the simple mechanical vibrations all around us into electricity to power sensors in everything from pacemakers to spacecraft.
Published Self-folding origami machines powered by chemical reaction
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Scientists have harnessed chemical reactions to make microscale origami machines self-fold -- freeing them from the liquids in which they usually function, so they can operate in dry environments and at room temperature.
Published Fossil find in California shakes up the natural history of cycad plants
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source According to researchers, a new analysis of an 80-million-year-old permineralized pollen cone found in the Campanian Holz Shale formation located in Silverado Canyon, California, offers a more accurate cycad natural history -- one where the plants diversified during the Cretaceous.
Published Quantum entanglement of photons doubles microscope resolution
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Using a "spooky" phenomenon of quantum physics, researchers have discovered a way to double the resolution of light microscopes.
Published Prolonged power outages, often caused by weather events, hit some parts of the U.S. harder than others
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source New research found that Americans already bearing the brunt of climate change and health inequities are most at risk of impact by a lengthy power outage.
Published Previously unknown intercellular electricity may power biology
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers have discovered that the electrical fields and activity that exist through a cell's membrane also exist within and around another type of cellular structure called biological condensates. Like oil droplets floating in water, these structures exist because of differences in density. Their foundational discovery could change the way researchers think about biological chemistry. It could also provide a clue as to how the first life on Earth harnessed the energy needed to arise.
Published Early-nesting ducks at increased risk due to changes in climate, land use
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Each year approximately 10 million waterfowl fly north to their breeding grounds in the Prairie Pothole Region of North America, but the landscape that greets them has changed. Weather patterns and agricultural practices have significantly transformed the pothole-dotted native grasslands that waterfowl have used for thousands of years.
Published Is the ocean a solution for ushering in the era of environmentally friendly energy?
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers confirm the superiority of seawater batteries that use chelating agents.
Published How the Amazon rainforest is likely to cope with the effect of future drought
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A major collaboration involving 80 scientists from Europe and South America has identified the regions of the Amazon rainforest where trees are most likely to face the greatest risk from drier conditions brought about by climate change. Based on the analysis, the scientists predict trees in the western and southern Amazon face the greatest risk of dying. They also warn that previous scientific investigations may have underestimated the impact of drought on the rainforest because those studies focused on the central-eastern part of the forest, which is the least vulnerable to drought.