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Released: 23-Sep-2016 12:05 PM EDT
Antarctic Mystery Solved?
Northern Illinois University

Scientists say ocean fossils found in mountains are cause for concern over future sea levels

20-Sep-2016 8:00 AM EDT
What’s Happening Beneath Greenland?
University at Buffalo

An expert comments on a new study on the Greenland Ice Sheet that provides valuable insight on climate change. The research uses unique research methods to establish new estimates of ice loss for both modern and ancient times, the expert explains.

Released: 20-Sep-2016 3:05 PM EDT
Ancient Skeleton Discovered on Antikythera Shipwreck
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

An international research team discovered a human skeleton during its ongoing excavation of the famous Antikythera Shipwreck (circa 65 B.C.).

16-Sep-2016 11:45 AM EDT
Revealing Earth’s Early Secrets: Scientists Uncover Insights Into the Formation of Earth’s Oldest Continental Crust
University of Alberta

Addressing fundamental unknowns about the earliest history of Earth’s crust, scientists have precisely dated the world’s oldest rock unit at 4.02 billion years old. Driven by the University of Alberta, the findings suggest that early Earth was largely covered with an oceanic crust-like surface.

Released: 15-Sep-2016 1:00 PM EDT
Hubble Takes Close-Up Look at Disintegrating Comet
Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI)

Astronomers have captured the sharpest, most detailed observations of a comet breaking apart 67 million miles from Earth, using NASA's Hubble Space Telescope. This study of Comet 332P is published online in The Astrophysical Journal Letters.

14-Sep-2016 2:00 PM EDT
Researchers Identify Oldest Textile Dyed Indigo, Reflecting Scientific Knowledge From 6,200 Years Ago
George Washington University

A George Washington University researcher has identified a 6,200-year-old indigo-blue fabric from Huaca, Peru, making it one of the oldest-known cotton textiles in the world and the oldest known textile decorated with indigo blue.

12-Sep-2016 1:35 PM EDT
All Polar Bears Across the Arctic Face Shorter Sea Ice Season
University of Washington

A new University of Washington study finds a trend toward earlier sea ice melt in the spring and later ice growth in the fall across all 19 polar bear populations, which can negatively impact the feeding and breeding capabilities of the bears. The paper is the first to quantify the sea ice changes in each polar bear subpopulation across the entire Arctic region using metrics that are specifically relevant to polar bear biology.

6-Sep-2016 2:30 PM EDT
Chemistry Says Moon Is Proto-Earth’s Mantle, Relocated
Washington University in St. Louis

The leading theory for the moon's formation got in trouble recently when it was revealed that the moon and Earth are isotopic twins. Now highly precise measurements of the isotopes of an element that was still condensed at the "cut off" temperature when material started to fall back to Earth suggest a dramatic solution to the problem.

Released: 9-Sep-2016 9:55 AM EDT
Scientists Expect to Calculate Amount of Fuel Inside Earth by 2025
University of Maryland, College Park

With three new detectors coming online in the next several years, scientists are confident they will collect enough geoneutrino data to measure Earth's fuel level

Released: 8-Sep-2016 2:05 PM EDT
Kill Them with Cuteness: The Adorable Thing Bats Do to Catch Prey
 Johns Hopkins University

Researchers find that a bat’s head waggles and ear wiggles synch with its sonar vocalizations to help it hunt, demonstrating how movement can enhance senses like sight and hearing – not just in bats, but in dogs and cats, and even in humans.

8-Sep-2016 12:05 PM EDT
Study: A Tenth of the World’s Wilderness Lost Since the 1990s
Wildlife Conservation Society

Researchers reporting in the journal Current Biology show catastrophic declines in wilderness areas around the world over the last 20 years.

Released: 6-Sep-2016 12:05 PM EDT
Brown Dwarfs Hiding in Plain Sight in Our Solar Neighborhood
Carnegie Institution for Science

Cool brown dwarfs are a hot topic in astronomy right now. Smaller than stars and bigger than giant planets, they hold promise for helping us understand both stellar evolution and planet formation. New work from a team including Carnegie's Jonathan Gagné has discovered several ultracool brown dwarfs in our own solar neighborhood. Their findings are published in The Astrophysical Journal.

Released: 6-Sep-2016 10:00 AM EDT
Genetics of African Khoesan Populations Maps to Kalahari Desert Geography
Genetics Society of America

Geography and ecology are key factors that have influenced the genetic makeup of human groups in southern Africa, according to new research discussed in the journal GENETICS, a publication of the Genetics Society of America. By investigating the ancestries of twenty-two KhoeSan groups, including new samples from the Nama and the ≠Khomani, researchers conclude that the genetic clustering of southern African populations is closely tied to the ecogeography of the Kalahari Desert region.

Released: 1-Sep-2016 1:00 PM EDT
Clues in Ancient Mud Hold Answers to Climate Change
University of Notre Dame

New research from the University of Notre Dame suggests that Africa has gradually become wetter over the past 1.3 million years — instead of drier as was thought previously.

Released: 31-Aug-2016 9:05 AM EDT
Technique Could Assess Historic Changes to Antarctic Sea Ice and Glaciers
University of Plymouth

Historic changes to Antarctic sea ice could be unravelled using a new technique pioneered by scientists at Plymouth University.

25-Aug-2016 10:05 AM EDT
A Rare Small Specimen Discovered From the Age of Flying Giants
University of Southampton

A rare small-bodied pterosaur, a flying reptile from the Late Cretaceous period approximately 77 million years ago, is the first of its kind to have been discovered on the west coast of North America.

Released: 30-Aug-2016 12:00 PM EDT
New Research Suggests Global Warming Began Decades Earlier
Northern Arizona University

According to NAU Scientists, and their new study, global warming began in the Arctic and tropical oceans before thermometers were widespread enough to record the early signal.

Released: 29-Aug-2016 10:05 PM EDT
Milky Way Had a Blowout Bash 6 Million Years Ago
Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian

The center of the Milky Way galaxy is currently a quiet place where a supermassive black hole slumbers, only occasionally slurping small sips of hydrogen gas. But it wasn't always this way. A new study shows that 6 million years ago, when the first human ancestors known as hominins walked the Earth, our galaxy's core blazed forth furiously. The evidence for this active phase came from a search for the galaxy's missing mass.

Released: 29-Aug-2016 3:05 PM EDT
Interactive Map Shows Where Animals Will Move Under Climate Change
University of Washington

The University of Washington and The Nature Conservancy have created an animated map showing where mammals, birds and amphibians are projected to move in the Western Hemisphere in response to climate change.

Released: 29-Aug-2016 12:05 PM EDT
Earth-Mass Planet Right Next Door
Weizmann Institute of Science

A potentially habitable planet – Proxima Centauri b – has been found virtually next door to Earth: about four light years away. The Weizmann Institute’s Dr. Aviv Ofir is a member of the “Pale Red Dot” project; the team found that the new planet may have balmy temperatures and liquid water, albeit a fast orbit. Can it host life? Further research is underway.

Released: 24-Aug-2016 10:05 PM EDT
One of the Most Significant Etruscan Discoveries in Decades Names Female Goddess Uni
Southern Methodist University

Archaeologists translating a very rare inscription on an ancient Etruscan temple stone have discovered the name Uni -- an important female goddess.

Released: 24-Aug-2016 1:05 PM EDT
Planet Found in Habitable Zone Around Nearest Star
European Southern Observatory (ESO)

Astronomers using ESO telescopes and other facilities have found clear evidence of a planet orbiting the closest star to Earth, Proxima Centauri. The long-sought world, designated Proxima b, orbits its cool red parent star every 11 days and has a temperature suitable for liquid water to exist on its surface. This rocky world is a little more massive than the Earth and is the closest exoplanet to us — and it may also be the closest possible abode for life outside the Solar System. A paper describing this milestone finding will be published in the journal Nature on 25 August 2016.

9-Aug-2016 8:00 AM EDT
252nd American Chemical Society National Meeting & Exposition August 21-25, 2016
American Chemical Society (ACS)

Anyone can view the press conferences, but to chat online, you must sign in first with a Google Account.

Released: 24-Aug-2016 1:05 AM EDT
Darwin's Theory About 'Impassable' Marine Barrier Holds True for Coral Larvae in the Pacific
University of Miami, Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric and Earth Science

MIAMI--An international team of scientists used a state-of-the-art computer model, a high-powered supercomputer, and five billion 'virtual' coral larvae to test Charles Darwin's 1880 hypothesis that marine species cannot cross the Eastern Pacific's "impassable" marine barrier. The team, which included University of Miami (UM) Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science Associate Professor Claire Paris, found that Darwin's theory still hold true today even under extreme El Niño conditions known to speed up ocean currents.

Released: 23-Aug-2016 1:05 PM EDT
New Tiny Species of Extinct Australian Marsupial Lion Named After Sir David Attenborough
University of New South Wales

The fossil remains of a new tiny species of marsupial lion which prowled the lush rainforests of northern Australia about 18 million years ago have been unearthed in the Riversleigh World Heritage Area of remote north-western Queensland.

Released: 22-Aug-2016 4:05 PM EDT
'Cyclops' Beetles Hint at Solution to 'Chicken-and-Egg' Problem in Novel Trait Evolution
Indiana University

Beetles with cyclops eyes have given Indiana University scientists insight into how new traits may evolve through the recruitment of existing genes -- even if these genes are already carrying out critical functions.

Released: 22-Aug-2016 1:05 PM EDT
Logged Rainforests Can Be an 'Ark' for Mammals, Extensive Study Shows
Imperial College London

Research reveals that large areas of 'degraded' forest in Southeast Asia can play an important role in conserving mammal diversity.

Released: 21-Aug-2016 2:05 AM EDT
UCLA Physicists Discover 'Apparent Departure From the Laws of Thermodynamics'
University of California Los Angeles (UCLA)

According to the basic laws of thermodynamics, if you leave a warm apple pie in a winter window eventually the pie would cool down to the same temperature as the surrounding air.

Released: 18-Aug-2016 5:05 PM EDT
Research Flights Lay the Groundwork for Teaching Unmanned Aircraft to Detect and Avoid Obstacles
Virginia Tech

Virginia Tech researchers and scientists from Brigham Young University have equipped an unmanned aircraft with a newly designed radar system and optical video cameras to collect data that will help aerospace engineers develop avoidance technology. This technology will enable unmanned aircraft to accurately sense and avoid obstacles like trees, power lines, and other aircraft.

Released: 18-Aug-2016 4:05 PM EDT
Tool or Weapon? IU Research Throws Light on Stone Artifacts' Use as Ancient Projectiles
Indiana University

IU Bloomington professor Geoffrey Bingham and colleagues in the United Kingdom and United States contend that ancient stones discovered at an archeological site nearly 30 years ago served not as tools, as previously thought, but as weapons for defense and hunting. The research is reported in the journal Scientific Reports.

Released: 18-Aug-2016 2:05 PM EDT
University of Washington Paleontologists Discover Major T. Rex Fossil
University of Washington

Paleontologists with the University of Washington's Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture have discovered a Tyrannosaurus rex, including a very complete skull. The find, which paleontologists estimate to be about 20 percent of the animal, includes vertebrae, ribs, hips and lower jaw bones.

Released: 18-Aug-2016 12:05 PM EDT
Venus-Like Exoplanet Might Have Oxygen Atmosphere, but Not Life
Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian

The distant planet GJ 1132b intrigued astronomers when it was discovered last year. Located just 39 light-years from Earth, it might have an atmosphere despite being baked to a temperature of around 450 degrees Fahrenheit. But would that atmosphere be thick and soupy or thin and wispy? New research suggests the latter is much more likely.

Released: 18-Aug-2016 12:05 AM EDT
Fossil Reveals Ostrich Relatives Once Lived in North America
American Museum of Natural History

New research reveals that 50-million-year-old bird fossil specimens, some of which are on display in the Museum’s special exhibition Dinosaurs Among Us, are from a previously unknown relative of the modern-day ostrich.

Released: 16-Aug-2016 2:05 PM EDT
Big Fish — and Their Pee — Are Key Parts of Coral Reef Ecosystems
University of Washington

Large, carnivorous fish excrete almost half of the key nutrients, phosphorus and nitrogen, that are essential for the survival of coral reefs.

Released: 16-Aug-2016 11:05 AM EDT
Elbows of Extinct Marsupial Lion Suggest Unique Hunting Style
University of Bristol

Scientists from the Universities of Bristol and Málaga have proposed that the long extinct marsupial lion hunted in a very unique way - by using its teeth to hold prey before dispatching them with its huge claws.

Released: 15-Aug-2016 3:05 PM EDT
The Most Complete Catalog of Proteins in King Cobra Venom Yet
American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (ASBMB)

Seven milliliters of a king cobra’s venom can kill 20 people. But what exactly is in the snake’s venom? Researchers have pursued that question for decades.

Released: 15-Aug-2016 2:05 PM EDT
UCI Physicists Confirm Possible Discovery of Fifth Force of Nature
University of California, Irvine

Recent findings indicating the possible discovery of a previously unknown subatomic particle may be evidence of a fifth fundamental force of nature, according to a paper published in the journal Physical Review Letters by theoretical physicists at the University of California, Irvine.

11-Aug-2016 5:05 PM EDT
SLAC, Stanford Gadget Grabs More Solar Energy to Disinfect Water Faster
SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory

Researchers at the Department of Energy’s SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory and Stanford University have created a nanostructured device, about half the size of a postage stamp, that disinfects water much faster than the UV method by also making use of the visible part of the solar spectrum, which contains 50 percent of the sun’s energy.

Released: 13-Aug-2016 2:05 AM EDT
Is Earthly Life Premature From a Cosmic Perspective?
Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian

Cambridge, MA - The universe is 13.8 billion years old, while our planet formed just 4.5 billion years ago. Some scientists think this time gap means that life on other planets could be billions of years older than ours. However, new theoretical work suggests that present-day life is actually premature from a cosmic perspective.

Released: 11-Aug-2016 11:05 PM EDT
The Aztec Treasure Unearthed: New Earth Snake Species Discovered in Mexico
Pensoft Publishers

A new gem has been added to the vast treasure of Mexican reptiles. Mexican scientists recently described a new and strikingly colored species of earth snake from the mountains of Puebla and Veracruz in east-central Mexico.

Released: 11-Aug-2016 1:00 PM EDT
Hubble Uncovers a Galaxy Pair Coming in From the Wilderness
Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI)

Hubble has captured the glow of new stars in the small, ancient galaxies Pisces A and Pisces B. They should've produced the bulk of their stars long ago, but these dwarf galaxies dwelled for billions of years in the Local Void, a region of the universe sparsely populated with galaxies. Now the tiny galaxies have moved into a region packed with galaxies and intergalactic gas triggering star birth.

Released: 11-Aug-2016 12:05 PM EDT
Unearthed: The Cannibal Sharks of a Forgotten Age
Trinity College Dublin

Dublin, Ireland, Thursday 11th August, 2016 - Scientists have discovered macabre fossil evidence suggesting that 300 million-year-old sharks ate their own young, as fossil poop of adult Orthacanthus sharks contained the tiny teeth of juveniles. These fearsome marine predators used protected coastal lagoons to rear their babies, but it seems they also resorted to cannibalising them when other food sources became scarce.

Released: 11-Aug-2016 12:05 PM EDT
NASA Climate Modeling Suggests Venus May Have Been Habitable
NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

Venus may have had a shallow liquid-water ocean and habitable surface temperatures for up to 2 billion years of its early history, according to computer modeling of the planet's ancient climate by scientists at NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) in New York.

Released: 10-Aug-2016 1:05 PM EDT
Methane-Filled Canyons Line Titan's Surface, Study Finds
American Geophysical Union (AGU)

Liquid methane-filled canyons hundreds of meters deep with walls as steep as ski slopes etch the surface of Titan, researchers report in a new study. The new findings provide the first direct evidence of these features on Saturn's largest moon, and could give scientists insights into Titan's origins and similar geologic processes on Earth, according to the study's authors.

Released: 10-Aug-2016 11:05 AM EDT
Unraveling the Jaw-Dropping Goblin Shark
Hokkaido University

A research team, led by Emeritus Professor Kazuhiro Nakaya of Japan's Hokkaido University, analyzed world-first footage captured by public broadcaster NHK in which two goblin sharks separately captured prey on a total of five occasions. The research has unraveled a century-old mystery surrounding how the deep-sea shark utilizes its protruding jaws, among other factors, to feed itself.

Released: 10-Aug-2016 11:05 AM EDT
Stellar lab in Sagittarius
European Southern Observatory (ESO)

Messier 18 was discovered and catalogued in 1764 by Charles Messier -- for whom the Messier Objects are named -- during his search for comet-like objects [1]. It lies within the Milky Way, approximately 4600 light-years away in the constellation of Sagittarius, and consists of many sibling stars loosely bound together in what is known as an open cluster.

9-Aug-2016 10:05 AM EDT
Research Reveals Effectiveness of Stones Thrown as Weapons by Stone Age Hunters
Leeds Beckett University

Stone objects collected by prehistoric hunters were effective as throwing weapons to hunt animals, research at Leeds Beckett University reveals.

Released: 10-Aug-2016 2:05 AM EDT
1967 Solar Storm Nearly Took US to Brink of War
American Geophysical Union (AGU)

A solar storm that jammed radar and radio communications at the height of the Cold War could have led to a disastrous military conflict if not for the U.S. Air Force's budding efforts to monitor the sun's activity, a new study finds.

Released: 9-Aug-2016 11:05 AM EDT
Why Are New England’s Wild Blue Mussels Disappearing?
University of California, Irvine

The Gulf of Maine coastline, historically home to one of the richest shellfish populations in the U.S., is undergoing a dramatic change, with once-flourishing wild blue mussels all but disappearing, according to a study led by University of California, Irvine ecologists.

Released: 9-Aug-2016 11:05 AM EDT
Origin of the Turtle Shell Lies in Digging
University of Zurich

In today's turtles the shell has a key protective function. The animals can withdraw into it and protect themselves against predators. No other group of vertebrates has modified its physique to such an extent to develop an impenetrable protective structure.



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