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Categories: Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry, Ecology: Nature

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Nitrogen is such a crucial nutrient for plants that vast quantities of nitrogen-containing fertilizers are spread on farmlands worldwide. However, excess nitrogen in the soil and in drainage run-off into lakes and rivers causes serious ecological imbalances. A recent study has uncovered the regulatory mechanisms at work when plants utilize nitrogenous fertilizers in their roots, a positive step in the quest to generate crops that require less fertilizer while still producing the yields needed to feed the world.

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Most conservation efforts are reactive. Typically, a species must reach threatened status before action is taken to prevent extinction, such as establishing protected areas. A new study shows that we can use existing conservation data to predict which currently unthreatened species could become threatened and take proactive action to prevent their decline before it is too late.

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Researchers to get a better look at how peroxides on the surface of copper oxide promote the oxidation of hydrogen but inhibit the oxidation of carbon monoxide, allowing them to steer oxidation reactions.

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A new look at decades of data from museum collections and surveys of leaf-litter ants in Florida reveals a steady decline in native ants and simultaneous increase in nonnative ants -- even in protected natural areas of the state, researchers report.

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Newly synthesized organic molecules can be tuned to emit different colors depending on their molecular structures in crystal form.

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Research shows that environmental impact reports hugely underestimate the consequences of new developments for wildlife. This is because they don't take into account how birds and other animals move around between different sites. The research shows how a planned airport development in Portugal could affect more than 10 times the number of Black-tailed Godwits estimated in a previous Environmental Impact Assessment. The team have been studying these Godwits across Europe for over 30 years but they say that any species that moves around is likely to be under-represented by such reports.

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In an advance they consider a breakthrough in computational chemistry research, chemical engineers have developed a model of how catalytic reactions work at the atomic scale. This understanding could allow engineers and chemists to develop more efficient catalysts and tune industrial processes -- potentially with enormous energy savings, given that 90% of the products we encounter in our lives are produced, at least partially, via catalysis.

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To manage atmospheric carbon dioxide and convert the gas into a useful product, scientists have dusted off an archaic -- now 120 years old -- electrochemical equation.

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A new study of squirrels in California's Sierra Nevada mountains finds that climate is just one factor impacting where species make their homes in a changing world.

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A research team has discovered how catalysts and many other nanoplatelets can be produced in an environmentally friendly way from readily available materials and in sufficient quantities.

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Climate change might compromise how permanently forests are able to store carbon and keep it out of the air. In a new study, researchers found that the regions most at risk to lose forest carbon through fire, climate stress or insect damage are those regions where many forest carbon offset projects have been set up. The authors assert that there's an urgent need to update these carbon offsets protocols and policies.

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Researchers have discovered a new single-element ferroelectric material that alters the current understanding of conventional ferroelectric materials and has future applications in data storage devices.

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Ponderosa pine forests in the Sierra Nevada that were wiped out by western pine beetles during the 2012-2015 megadrought won't recover to pre-drought densities, reducing an important storehouse for atmospheric carbon.

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Researchers have developed a way to create photonic time crystals and shown that these bizarre, artificial materials amplify the light that shines on them. These findings could lead to more efficient and robust wireless communications and significantly improved lasers.

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A framework has been developed to test disgust and its associated disease avoidance behaviors across various animal species, social systems, and habitats. Over 30 species have been predicted to exhibit disease avoidance strategies in the wild. With these predictions, the team accounts for models of specific ecological niches, sensory environments and social systems for a number of species including the native common octopus and the invasive red-eared slider, which are both relevant to Japan.

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A recently discovered catalyst, can convert carbon dioxide (CO2) into useful methanol at room temperature and low-pressure conditions. This novel compound, which is thermally and chemically stable in air, represents a new milestone in CO2 conversion via hydrogenation and could be key to slow down climate change.

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Researchers created a new way to estimate the abundance of invasive 'sleeper' species in freshwater ecosystems and help guide management strategies.

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Researchers developed a computational approach to predict which metal-organic framework (MOF) structures will be the most stable, and therefore the best candidates for applications such as capturing greenhouse gases.

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What defines the habitat -- the ecological niche -- of a microorganism? It is a combination of environmental factors such as temperature, moisture, and nutrient content. But the exact contribution of each of these factors is difficult to predict. A research team has redefined microbial niches by determining which microorganisms live together.

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A recent study has provided a library of those various molecular clusters for future metal building blocks of MOFs, and suggested practical synthetic strategies.