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Categories: Geoscience: Geology, Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology
Published Earth's stability and ability to support civilization at risk: Six of nine planetary boundaries exceeded
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A new study updates the planetary boundary framework and shows human activities are increasingly impacting the planet and, thereby, increasing the risk of triggering dramatic changes in overall Earth conditions.
Published Super antifreeze in cells: The ability to survive in ice and snow developed in animals far earlier than we thought
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source More than 400 million years ago, an insect-like animal called the springtail developed a small protein that prevents its cells from freezing.
Published Scientific ocean drilling discovers dynamic carbon cycling in the ultra-deep-water Japan Trench
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Hadal trenches, with their deepest locations situated in the so-called hadal zone, the deepest parts of the ocean in water depth >6km, are the least-explored environment on Earth, linking the Earth's surface and its deeper interior. An international team conducting deep-subsurface sampling in a hadal trench at high spatial resolution has revealed exciting insights on the carbon cycling in the trench sediment.
Published Bursting air bubbles may play a key role in how glacier ice melts
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source New research has uncovered a possible clue as to why glaciers that terminate at the sea are retreating at unprecedented rates: the bursting of tiny, pressurized bubbles in underwater ice.
Published 'Monstrous births' and the making of race in the nineteenth-century United States
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source From the Middle Ages to the Enlightenment, 'monstrous births' -- malformed or anomalous fetuses -- were, to Western medicine, an object of superstition. In 19th-century America, they became instead an object of the 'modern scientific study of monstrosity,' a field formalized by French scientist Isidore Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire. This clinical turn was positioned against the backdrop of social, political, and economic activity that codified laws governing slavery, citizenship, immigration, family, wealth, and access to resources.
Published Fossil spines reveal deep sea's past
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Right at the bottom of the deep sea, the first very simple forms of life on earth probably emerged a long time ago. Today, the deep sea is known for its bizarre fauna. Intensive research is being conducted into how the number of species living on the sea floor have changed in the meantime. Some theories say that the ecosystems of the deep sea have emerged again and again after multiple mass extinctions and oceanic upheavals. Today's life in the deep sea would thus be comparatively young in the history of the Earth. But there is increasing evidence that parts of this world are much older than previously thought.
Published Human shoulders and elbows first evolved as brakes for climbing apes
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers report that the flexible shoulders and elbows that allow us to throw a football or reach a high shelf may have evolved as a natural braking system that let our primate ancestors get out of trees without dying. The researchers used sports-analysis software to compare the climbing movements of chimpanzees and small monkeys called mangabeys. While the animals climb up trees similarly, the researchers found that the shallow, rounded shoulder joints and shortened elbow bones that chimps have -- similar to humans -- allow them to fully extend their arms above their heads when climbing down, holding onto branches like a person going down a ladder to support their greater weight. When early humans left forests for the grassy savanna, these versatile appendages would have been essential for gathering food and using tools for hunting and defense. The findings are among the first to identify the significance of 'downclimbing' in the evolution of apes and early humans.
Published Two out of three volcanoes are little-known. How to predict their eruptions?
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source What is the risk of a volcano erupting? To answer this question, scientists need information about its underlying internal structure. However, gathering this data can take several years of fieldwork, analyses and monitoring, which explains why only 30% of active volcanoes are currently well documented. A team has developed a method for rapidly obtaining valuable information. It is based on three parameters: the height of the volcano, the thickness of the layer of rock separating the volcano's reservoir from the surface, and the average chemical composition of the magma.
Published The scent of the afterlife unbottled in new study of ancient Egyptian mummification balms
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A team of researchers has recreated one of the scents used in the mummification of an important Egyptian woman more than 3500 years ago.
Published Tiny mineral inclusions picture the chemical exchange between Earth's mantle and atmosphere
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Using synchrotron techniques, scientists have unveiled important information on The Great Oxidation Event by studying apatite inclusions in zircon crystals from old magmas.
Published Three-eyed distant relative of insects and crustaceans reveals amazing detail of early animal evolution
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Scientists use cutting edge scanning technology to reconstruct 'fossil monster' that lived half a billion years ago. The creature's soft anatomy was well-preserved, allowing it to be imaged almost completely: It fills a gap in our understanding of the evolution of arthropods such as insects and crustaceans.
Published Enhanced chemical weathering: A solution to the climate crisis?
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Could blending of crushed rock with arable soil lower global temperatures? Researchers study global warming events from 40 and 56 million years ago to find answers.
Published Newly discovered 'primitive cousins of T rex' shed light on the end of the age of dinosaurs in Africa
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Researchers have discovered the fossils of two new abelisaurs in Morocco, showing the diversity of dinosaurs in this region at the end of the Cretaceous period.
Published Researchers extract ancient DNA from a 2,900-year-old clay brick, revealing a time capsule of plant life
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source For the first time, a group of researchers have successfully extracted ancient DNA from a 2,900-year-old clay brick. The analysis provides a fascinating insight into the diversity of plant species cultivated at that time and place, and could open the way to similar studies on clay material from other sites and time periods.
Published Did sabertooth tigers purr or roar?
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source When a sabertooth tiger called out, what noise did it make -- a mighty roar or a throaty purr? A new study examined the data behind the arguments for each vocalization and found that the answer was more nuanced than they thought -- and that it could depend on the shape of a few small bones.
Published Iceman Ötzi: Dark skin, bald head, Anatolian ancestry
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A research team has used advanced sequencing technology to analyze Ötzi's genome to obtain a more accurate picture of the Iceman's appearance and genetic origins.
Published 'Resurrecting' the legendary figure behind Count Dracula
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Vlad III, known as Vlad the Impaler, was a 15th century prince and military leader who was so terrifying, he's thought to have inspired the creation of the literary vampire, Count Dracula. Now, a scientific examination of his letters is giving new insights into his health. Researchers say the results suggest that Vlad probably had skin and respiratory conditions and could have even cried literal tears of blood.
Published Fossil feces infested with parasites from over 200 million years ago
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source Fossilized feces preserve evidence of ancient parasites that infected an aquatic predator over 200 million years ago, according to a new study.
Published Drops of seawater contain traces of an ancient world
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source New research links chemical changes in seawater to volcanic activity and changes.
Published Whale-like filter-feeding discovered in prehistoric marine reptile
(via sciencedaily.com) Original source A remarkable new fossil from China reveals for the first time that a group of reptiles were already using whale-like filter feeding 250 million years ago.