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Categories: Environmental: Water, Geoscience: Geomagnetic Storms
Published Next-generation sustainable electronics are doped with air
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Semiconductors are the foundation of all modern electronics. Now, researchers have developed a new method where organic semiconductors can become more conductive with the help of air as a dopant. The study is a significant step towards future cheap and sustainable organic semiconductors.
Published Scientists develop an affordable sensor for lead contamination
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A new system could enable simple, low-cost detectors for monitoring water for lead contamination, and potentially other heavy metals as well.
Published Petroleum, chlorine mix could yield harmful byproducts
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A new study shows that chlorine mixed with petroleum in water can potentially produce inadvertent byproducts harmful to human health.
Published How wildfires change soil chemistry
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Severe wildfires can drive chemical changes in soil that affect ecosystem recovery and risks to human health. A new study finds broader surveillance and modeling of these changes could inform strategies for protecting lives, property and natural resources, and managing wildlife.
Published How do genetically identical water fleas develop into male or female?
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers have used a novel combination of short-read and long-read RNA sequencing to identify the different isoforms of genes expressed in the crustacean Daphnia magna. Males and females are genetically identical, but using this technique the team revealed genes that switch the predominant isoform in a male-female-dependent manner. This study may help further advance technologies in crustacean aquaculture.
Published New 'forever chemical' cleanup strategy discovered
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A method has been discovered to treat water heavily contaminated with unhealthful forever chemicals, known by chemists as PFAS or poly- and per-fluoroalkyl substances. It involves treating heavily contaminated water with ultraviolet (UV) light, sulfite, and a process called electrochemical oxidation. It breaks up strong fluorine-to-carbon bonds in the PFAS compounds and other concentrated organic compounds in heavily polluted water. The reaction also occurs at room temperature without a need for additional heat or high pressure. This method is expected to be useful in cleanups of PFAS pollution from decades of fire suppressant foam use at military facilities.
Published Transformation of ocean management is underway
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Despite its benefits and recognition as a keystone practice of ocean stewardship and conservation, adoption of ecosystem-based management has been slow to take hold. To support this change in ocean management, a group of researchers and practitioners investigated the global progress of marine EBM initiatives.
Published How climate change will affect malaria transmission
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A new model for predicting the effects of climate change on malaria transmission in Africa could lead to more targeted interventions to control the disease according to a new study. Previous methods have used rainfall totals to indicate the presence of surface water suitable for breeding mosquitoes, but the new research used several climatic and hydrological models to include real-world processes of evaporation, infiltration and flow through rivers. This groundbreaking approach has created a more in-depth picture of malaria-friendly conditions on the African continent.
Published Manganese sprinkled with iridium: a quantum leap in green hydrogen production
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers report a new method that reduces the amount of iridium needed to produce hydrogen from water by 95%, without altering the rate of hydrogen production. This breakthrough could revolutionize our ability to produce ecologically friendly hydrogen and help usher in a carbon-neutral hydrogen economy.
Published Getting dirty to clean up the chemical industry's environmental impact
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source The global chemical industry is a major fossil fuel consumer and climate change contributor; however, new research has identified how the sector could clean up its green credentials by getting dirty.
Published Saturated soils could impact survival of young trees planted to address climate change
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source New research has looked into the potential effects of increased rainfall in regions being earmarked for expansion of temperate rainforests. Amid global calls for more trees to be planted as part of efforts to combat climate change, this study highlights the importance of factoring in soil conditions when looking at where and how to create the temperate rainforests of the future.
Published Human activity is making it harder for scientists to interpret oceans' past
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source New research shows human activity is significantly altering the ways in which marine organisms are preserved, with lasting effects that can both improve and impair the fossil record.
Published Climate resilience strategies in urban, rural areas
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Local decision-makers looking for ways to reduce the impact of heat waves on their communities have a valuable new capability at their disposal: a new study on vegetation resilience. Scientists completed a study of how well vegetation survived extreme heat events in both urban and rural communities across the country in recent years. The analysis informs pathways for climate mitigation, including ways to reduce the effect of urban heat islands.
Published Limited adaptability makes freshwater bacteria vulnerable to climate change
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Freshwater bacteria with small genomes frequently undergo prolonged periods of adaptive stagnation. Based on genomic analyses of samples from European lakes, researchers uncovered specific evolutionary strategies that shape these bacteria's lifestyles. Understanding the evolutionary dynamics of aquatic microbial communities is key to safeguarding ecosystem services.
Published Swarms of miniature robots clean up microplastics and microbes, simultaneously
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source When old food packaging, discarded children's toys and other mismanaged plastic waste break down into microplastics, they become even harder to clean up from oceans and waterways. These tiny bits of plastic also attract bacteria, including those that cause disease. Researchers describe swarms of microscale robots (microrobots) that captured bits of plastic and bacteria from water. Afterward, the bots were decontaminated and reused.
Published Millions in costs due to discharge of scrubber water into the Baltic Sea
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Discharge from ships with so-called scrubbers cause great damage to the Baltic Sea. A new study shows that these emissions caused pollution corresponding to socio-economic costs of more than EUR 680 million between 2014 and 2022. At the same time, the researchers note that the shipping companies' investments in the much-discussed technology, where exhaust gases are 'washed' and discharged into the sea, have already been recouped for most of the ships. This means that the industry is now making billions of euros by running its ships on cheap heavy fuel oil instead of cleaner fuel.
Published Turbid waters keep the coast healthy
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source To preserve the important intertidal areas and salt marshes off our coasts for the future, we need more turbid water. That is one of the striking conclusions from a new study.
Published The Clues for Cleaner Water
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source By using experimental electrochemical analyses, mass spectrometry, and computational quantum chemistry modeling, the researchers created an 'atomic-scale storyline' to explain how ozone is generated on NATO electrocatalysts. They identified that some of the nickel in NATO is probably leaching out of the electrodes via corrosion, and these nickel atoms, now floating in the solution near the catalyst, can promote chemical reactions that eventually generate ozone.
Published Lake tsunamis pose significant threat under warming climate
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source The names might not be familiar -- Cowee Creek, Brabazon Range, Upper Pederson Lagoon -- but they mark the sites of recent lake tsunamis, a phenomenon that is increasingly common in Alaska, British Columbia and other regions with mountain glaciers. Triggered by landslides into small bodies of water, most of these tsunamis have occurred in remote locations so far, but geologists say it may just be a matter of time before a tsunami swamps a more populated place.
Published Did a magnetic field collapse trigger the emergence of animals?
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers uncovered compelling evidence that Earth's magnetic field was in a highly unusual state when the macroscopic animals of the Ediacaran Period -- 635 to 541 million years ago -- diversified and thrived. Their study raises the question of whether these fluctuations in Earth's ancient magnetic field led to shifts in oxygen levels that may have been crucial to the proliferation of life forms millions of years ago.