Young aspen trees in Yellowstone are doing something they have not done in almost 100 years. Rather than sprouting and being eaten back to nubs by elk and bison, they're actually growing into tall, adult forest trees rising up towards the canopy.



This matters more than it might seem, because it shows what happens when a missing piece of an ecosystem returns.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-yellowstone-aspens-and-elk">Yellowstone, aspens, and elk</h2>



In the 1920s, people <a href="https://www.yellowstone.org/wolf-project/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">eliminated wolves in Yellowstone</a>. At the time, with limited scientific knowledge, managers believed it was the right thing to do.



<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/from-wolves-to-dogs-did-domestication-begin-without-human-help/">Without wolves</a>, elk herds grew very large. Elk love to eat aspen shoots - the tender young growth is highly palatable to them.



For roughly 70 years, elk browsed aspen sprouts down to stub height, and the trees couldn't grow. 



If you had walked through Yellowstone in the 1980s, you would have seen many tiny aspen shoots covering the ground, but almost no young trees gaining height. 



The forest's regeneration was stalled. Old trees died, and no new ones replaced them.



In 1995 and 1996, park managers reintroduced wolves into the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/yellowstone-supervolcano-eruption-study-sparks-new-debate-on-where-and-when-it-will-erupt/">Yellowstone Park ecosystem</a>. Scientists hoped and wondered whether this would change anything for the trees.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-aspen-matter-to-yellowstone">Why aspen matter to Yellowstone</h2>



Aspen groves provide habitat for many species. Birds nest in them. Beavers eat the bark and use the wood for dams. Butterflies and moths lay eggs on the leaves. 



Their canopy admits enough light for wildflowers and shrubs to grow beneath. When it rains, aspen groves hold water in the soil better than some other forest types.



In short, when aspen return, dozens of other species benefit. More trees support more insects, which in turn support more birds, enriching the ecosystem.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-checking-the-trees-three-decades-later">Checking the trees three decades later</h2>



<a href="https://fwcs.oregonstate.edu/users/luke-painter" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Luke Painter</a>, an ecologist at <a href="https://oregonstate.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Oregon State University</a>, sought clear answers. His team returned to 87 aspen stands across Yellowstone that scientists had previously surveyed. 



They measured thousands of young trees, looked for bite marks, and counted how many stems were tall enough that elk could no longer reach the tips.



About a third of these stands now have many tall young aspens pushing toward the canopy. 



"About 26 of the 87 aspen stands we examined had large numbers of tall saplings throughout, a remarkable change from the 1990s when surveys found none at all," Painter said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-wolves-matter-to-yellowstone-aspens">Why wolves matter to Yellowstone aspens</h2>



Breaking it all down, the conclusions of this study are pretty simple. 



<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/wolves-move-pups-across-mountains-to-adapt-to-climate-pressure/">Wolves hunt elk</a>. When wolves came back, two things happened. First, elk numbers declined from unusually high levels. Second, elk changed their behavior. They spent less time in the same areas feeding.



With fewer elk and shorter feeding bouts, more aspen shoots survived long enough to exceed the browsing zone - about six to seven feet high. 



Once a sapling reaches that height, elk cannot easily reach the growing tip. The tree continues to grow.



"The reintroduction of large carnivores has initiated a recovery process that had been shut down for decades," Painter explained.



Scientists call this a <a href="https://www.nature.com/scitable/knowledge/library/trophic-cascades-across-diverse-plant-ecosystems-80060347/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">trophic cascade</a> - when adding or removing one species causes changes that ripple through the whole system.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-some-places-recover-others-don-t">Some places recover, others don't</h2>



Unfortunately, not every aspen stand has recovered yet. Some valleys still have many short, heavily browsed shoots, because it's not only elk eating them anymore. 



<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/yellowstones-iconic-bison-have-merged-into-a-single-herd/">Bison herds have grown</a>, and bison browse on aspen as well. They are strong enough to break young trees. 



"Increasing numbers of bison may be emerging as a new constraint to aspen in some areas," Painter confirmed.



Additionally, winter snow depth varies; droughts stress trees; bears and mountain lions also hunt elk; and hunting outside the park influences elk distribution. 



All of these factors interact, which is why some sites show strong recovery, others show moderate recovery, and a few have changed very little.



The key pattern is that places with many tall saplings experience little browsing, and aspen groves that remain popular eating grounds today stay short. 



This fact is the strongest indication that tree recovery is linked directly to wolf presence, not solely to weather or soil conditions.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-proof-in-the-measurements">Proof in the measurements</h2>



Painter's team did not rely on casual observation. They used the same methods as earlier researchers, measuring the same plots. 



They counted recruitment - when young trees surpass browsing height and begin progressing toward maturity. This measure is crucial. Sprouts are insufficient if they never grow; without recruitment, the forest cannot replace itself.



The results are robust. After being stalled for most of a century, Yellowstone's aspens are increasing in height. In recovering stands today, you will see saplings - six, eight, or ten feet tall - that were not present in the 1990s.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-future-of-yellowstone-s-aspens">The future of Yellowstone's aspens</h2>



"This is a remarkable case of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/giant-viruses-found-in-yellowstones-hot-springs-may-be-near-the-root-of-all-life-on-earth/">ecological restoration</a>," Painter concluded. "Wolf reintroduction is yielding long-term ecological changes contributing to increased biodiversity and habitat diversity."



Trees grow slowly, so even with wolves restored, it will take decades for these young aspens to form a full-grown forest. 



Some areas might never fully recover if bison numbers continue to rise or if the climate becomes too hot and dry.



Thanks to the work of Painter and his team, scientists are now certain that restoring the Yellowstone predator has restarted aspen forest regeneration. Not everywhere and not perfectly, but enough to be measured, creating hope for the future.



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0378112725004499?via%3Dihub" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Forest Ecology and Management</a>.



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Yellowstone's aspen trees are growing again thanks to the reintroduction of wolves

Young aspen trees in Yellowstone are doing something they have not done in almost 100 years. Rather than sprouting and being eaten back to nubs by elk and bison, they're actually growing into tall, adult forest trees rising up towards the canopy. This matters more than it might seem, because it shows what happens when a missing piece of an ecosystem returns. Yellowstone, aspens, and elk In the 1920s, people eliminated wolves in Yellowstone. At the time, with limited scientific knowledge, managers believed it was the right...

It happened when researchers examined the puzzle of how young zebra finches pick mentors for learning new sounds. These curious birds sometimes face competing choices but still pick certain older zebra finches as role models.



<a href="https://loop.frontiersin.org/people/1400325/overview" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Tomoko Fujii</a> and <a href="https://w-rdb.waseda.jp/html/100001998_en.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Masashi Tanaka</a> from Waseda University observed a behavior in zebra finches where the youngsters often gravitate toward tutors who sing for longer stretches.



These young males appear to care less about how often the teacher <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/dopamine-fuels-learning-in-young-songbirds/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">sings</a> and more about quality time spent listening.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-social-learning-in-finches">Social learning in finches</h2>



Zebra finches are small, social songbirds found mostly in Australia. Many <a href="https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/10.1146/annurev.neuro.22.1.567" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">researchers</a> use them to study vocal development because these birds learn by copying more experienced finches during a brief developmental window.



They hear complex melodies, store them in memory, and practice until they can produce a near match. Once their songs take shape, these patterns rarely change, which makes them useful for investigating learning styles.



In many ways, this process is similar to how human babies pick up speech sounds from caregivers. That parallel has drawn special interest in the biology of finch brains.



Some scientists track the finch’s daily <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/zebra-finch-female-birds-choose-mates-who-can-sing-most-complex-songs/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">progress</a> to watch subtle shifts in the notes they repeat. These shifts hint at the mental adjustments they make after each tutoring session.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-amygdala-guides-tutor-choice-nbsp">Amygdala guides tutor choice&nbsp;</h2>



The <a href="https://nyaspubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1749-6632.1999.tb09271.x" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">amygdala</a> is often discussed in connection with emotions, motivation, and social interactions in mammals. Researchers wondered if this structure served a comparable role in birds.



In this new <a href="https://www.jneurosci.org/content/early/2025/05/01/JNEUROSCI.2435-24.2025" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">study</a>, scientists removed that region in young male finches and watched how it influenced social preferences. 



The young birds still managed to imitate their teachers’ songs but showed a less predictable pattern of tutor selection.



This suggests that the amygdala does not directly handle song production or mimicry skills. It seems to shape the urge to focus on one tutor over another.



The results shine a light on social learning, hinting that the amygdala steers <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/birds-express-their-personalities-through-song/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">social</a> choices even if it does not hamper the bird’s ability to master new notes.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-finches-learn-better-with-social-bonds">Finches learn better with social bonds</h2>



Social motivation can dictate whose example a youngster follows. It can also influence how well the bird’s final tune matches the source.



Finches that really latch onto one teacher tend to produce clear imitations. When that attachment weakens, they may not give as much attention to a single mentor, resulting in more varied copying.



It is possible that certain <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/birds-learn-songs-like-humans-learn-languages/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">birds</a> with an altered amygdala roam among different tutors without forming a strong bond. That lack of focus could shuffle which song pattern they end up practicing the most.



Some observers think this approach-avoidance pattern may apply to other behaviors. Future data may show whether that region helps them pick favored flock mates beyond the singing context.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-finches-help-us-learn-about-humans">Finches help us learn about humans</h2>



Rodent <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30549185/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">studies</a> have shown that amygdala activity affects social engagement and emotional learning. This has been explored by giving mice tasks that measure how they respond to peers or stressful events.



The new work on zebra finches might strengthen those mammalian findings by offering a different vantage point. Birds do not share all brain structures with mammals, yet they can display parallel behaviors.



For humans, the amygdala is often linked with the ability to read facial expressions, understand social signals, and process fear. Scientists have long tried to connect these concepts with language development.



If the amygdala’s function in birds is to modulate social learning, it raises questions about how certain early-life experiences might shape speech acquisition in children. It also hints that multiple species rely on motivation to guide whom they imitate.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-researchers-will-test-next">What researchers will test next</h2>



Some experts hope to see whether partial lesions or subtle chemical changes produce the same effect in other birds. Others want to see if repeated interactions with the same tutor might strengthen or weaken a finch’s approach.



Researchers also wonder about the possibility of reversing these amygdala disruptions to restore normal selection patterns. There may be ways to modulate brain chemistry to spark more consistent tutor preferences.



The next step could be to compare multiple species of songbirds and see if each uses similar neural pathways for social learning. These comparisons might uncover brain components unique to specific species.



Wider testing may also reveal how hormone levels or environmental factors interact with neural changes. That added layer of detail might show why some finches keep returning to a single teacher.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-imitation-shapes-behavior">How imitation shapes behavior</h2>



Learning by imitation is widespread across the animal kingdom. It shapes behavior from primate grooming rituals to complex dances in certain bird species.



This study underscores the importance of a guiding force behind selective imitation. It suggests that even in a small songbird, a specialized brain region can sway how social preferences form.



Some humans with atypical social skills may have insights to gain from these bird observations. If the amygdala in birds is a core part of social choice, it might help us untangle similar processes in human social development.



Many who follow neuroscience find this example of finch learning to be a valuable blueprint for future human studies. It combines clear behavioral changes with an accessible brain structure.



The study from <a href="https://w-rdb.waseda.jp/search?m=home&amp;l=en" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Waseda University</a> is published in <a href="https://www.jneurosci.org/content/early/2025/05/01/JNEUROSCI.2435-24.2025" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">JNeurosci</a>.



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Birds learn songs by copying their favorite melodies from other birds

It happened when researchers examined the puzzle of how young...

Monarch butterflies are icons of long-distance migration, drifting each autumn from inland western states to sheltered groves on California’s coast. 



Yet some in the growing butterfly population now skip the journey, living and breeding year-round among neighborhood gardens.



New research from the <a href="https://www.ucdavis.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of California, Davis</a> has found that these "stay-at-home" <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/monarch-butterflies-are-delaying-their-migration-in-a-warmer-climate/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">monarch butterflies</a> represent a largely self-contained group - neither helping nor harming their declining migratory cousins.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-some-monarchs-stay-at-home">Why some monarchs stay at home</h2>



Historically, western monarchs spent spring and summer in places such as Arizona, Nevada, and Idaho, then flew to coastal California for the winter. 



Over the past decade, winter counts of those migrants have collapsed, sparking alarm among conservationists. At the same time, sightings of monarchs flitting through San Francisco Bay Area streets in January and February have multiplied.



One suspected driver is the popularity of tropical <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/milkweed-gardens-are-needed-to-save-monarch-butterflies/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">milkweed</a> in urban yards. Unlike California’s native milkweed species, which die back in winter, the evergreen tropical variety offers continuous foliage and flowers.



The tropical milkweed is a tempting resource that can encourage butterflies to breed instead of migrate. Critics worry the practice fosters parasite outbreaks and disrupts the century-old monarch butterfly <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/creating-new-forests-to-assist-monarch-butterfly-migration/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">migration</a>.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-success-story-or-a-disaster">Success story or a disaster?</h2>



Elizabeth Crone is the study's author and a professor in UC Davis’ Department of Evolution and Ecology.



“Although in many ways monarchs seem to be doing just fine in cities, there are a lot of concerns that these non-migratory populations build up high levels of parasites, even to the point that some counties have outlawed planting the non-native evergreen milkweeds that monarch butterflies use in winter,” said Professor Crone.



“We were curious about whether the establishment of these resident populations was a conservation success story or a conservation disaster.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-monarch-surveys-in-cities">Monarch surveys in cities</h2>



To test the connection, Crone’s team walked fifteen three-mile routes across East Bay suburbs every month in 2022 and 2023. 



They recorded milkweed plants - native and non-native - in yards and roadsides, counted monarch eggs, caterpillars, and adults, and briefly netted butterflies to check for a debilitating <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/millions-of-monarch-butterflies-are-killed-by-parasites-yearly/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">protozoan parasite</a>.



Surveys showed milkweed abundant year-round, peaking in summer. Monarch butterfly activity matched an urban breeding cycle rather than seasonal migration.



Adults were most numerous in summer and scarcer in winter; heavily infected butterflies mirrored that pattern, with high parasite burdens in late summer and autumn but far fewer during the colder months.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-little-overlap-with-migratory-monarchs"><a></a>Little overlap with migratory monarchs</h2>



"These resident monarchs in urban areas are almost unconnected from the migratory population, so helping resident monarchs likely doesn't help or hurt the migratory population,” said lead author Emily Erickson. She completed the work while a postdoctoral fellow in Crone’s lab.



Because the two groups show minimal exchange, local bans on tropical milkweed may be misplaced, the researchers argue.



“I think it's reasonable to focus on planting native milkweeds, but ripping out all of the milkweeds in urban gardens in the Bay Area or in Los Angeles does not need to be the immediate focus for monarch conservation," Erickson added.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-urban-gardens-help-all">Urban gardens help all</h2>



The study suggests resident monarchs bring other advantages. “Having people see monarch butterflies every day makes them want to invest in the conservation of butterflies, and in conservation in general,” Erickson said.



“And no matter what milkweed you're planting, native or non-native, it supports a lot of things beyond monarchs.”



Crone likewise noted that urban habitat can complement broader recovery strategies. “Some people believe that these resident populations are a major cause of monarch butterfly populations declining, but our research suggests it's a bit of a red herring,” she said.



“Our results highlight the potential for <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/urban-biodiversity-is-not-a-luxury-it-is-attainable-for-everyone/">urban ecosyst</a><a href="https://www.earth.com/news/urban-biodiversity-is-not-a-luxury-it-is-attainable-for-everyone/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">e</a><a href="https://www.earth.com/news/urban-biodiversity-is-not-a-luxury-it-is-attainable-for-everyone/">ms</a> to contribute to the conservation of some species. In the West, resident monarchs can persist in urban gardens without impacting fluctuations in migratory monarchs.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tech-joins-butterfly-research">Tech joins butterfly research</h2>



Funding for the project came from Google, which has supported monarch habitat initiatives since 2021. “We are really grateful to Google,” Crone said.



“It was a unique opportunity - it's the first time in my 28 years of being a professor that a corporation has reached out to us and said that they're interested in butterfly conservation and asked how they can help.”



While the Bay Area’s resident butterflies won’t by themselves rescue the declin­ing migratory population, they illustrate how adaptable some wildlife can be in city landscapes.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-urban-gardens-and-migration">Urban gardens and migration</h2>



The authors emphasize that large-scale monarch recovery will still depend on restoring native milkweed and nectar sources across inland <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/monarch-butterflies-shift-to-winter-breeding-for-survival/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">breeding</a> grounds and coastal overwintering sites. Yet urban gardens can play a complementary role, sustaining local biodiversity and fostering public engagement.



Thus, while some people see tropical milkweed and resident monarchs as villains, data shows they’re not the cause of migratory decline.



Instead, they offer an unexpected bright spot: proof that cities, when planted thoughtfully, can support thriving butterfly populations. This happens without undermining the grand monarch migration scientists are working so hard to save.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://esajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ecs2.70259" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Ecosphere</a>. -----



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Why some monarch butterflies are skipping migration

Monarch butterflies are icons of long-distance migration, drifting each autumn...

Caffeine is woven into daily life, turning up not just in morning coffee but in tea, chocolate, soda, and energy drinks.



Yet the same stimulant that keeps billions of people alert may also be changing the way the sleeping brain resets itself overnight, according to new research from the <a href="https://www.umontreal.ca/en/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Montréal</a>.



In a recent study, scientists combined electroencephalography with artificial-intelligence tools to reveal that evening caffeine drives the brain into a more active and less restorative mode during <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/sleep-rewires-the-brain-to-strengthen-memories/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">sleep</a>. Researchers also found the effect is most pronounced in people under 30.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-probing-the-sleeping-brain"><a></a>Probing the sleeping brain</h2>



The research team, led by doctoral trainee Philipp Thölke in the Cognitive and Computational Neuroscience Laboratory (CoCo Lab), recorded the nighttime brain activity of 40 healthy volunteers.



Each participant slept in the lab twice: one night after caffeine and another night after placebo, both taken before bed.



Throughout the night, electroencephalogram (EEG) electrodes tracked the electrical chatter of neurons, while sophisticated algorithms searched for subtle patterns.



“We used advanced statistical analysis and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ai-shows-better-emotional-intelligence-than-humans/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">artificial intelligence</a> to identify subtle changes in neuronal activity,” Thölke said. 



His project involved a collaboration with Karim Jerbi, the director of CoCo Lab and a professor of psychology, and sleep-and-aging specialist Julie Carrier.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-caffeine-heightens-brain-activity">Caffeine heightens brain activity</h2>



When the researchers compared the caffeine nights with the placebo nights, they saw a clear jump in what neuroscientists call signal complexity. The EEG traces looked more intricate, less predictable, and closer to the patterns typical of wakefulness.



The team also measured an increase in “criticality,” a concept that Professor Jerbi likens to an orchestra finding its perfect pitch. “Criticality describes a state of the brain that is balanced between order and chaos,” he said.



“It's like an orchestra: too quiet and nothing happens, too chaotic and there's cacophony. Criticality is the happy medium where brain activity is both organized and flexible. In this state, the brain functions optimally: it can process information efficiently, adapt quickly, learn and make decisions with agility.”



Caffeine, he noted, nudges the brain into that same poised, ready-to-learn condition useful at noon, perhaps unwelcome at midnight.



“Caffeine stimulates the brain and pushes it into a state of criticality, where it is more awake, alert, and reactive. While this is useful during the day for concentration, this state could interfere with rest at night: the brain would neither relax nor recover properly,” Carrier explained.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-caffeine-s-impact-on-sleep">Caffeine's impact on sleep</h2>



Beyond complexity metrics, the EEG recordings showed noteworthy shifts in traditional sleep rhythms.



Under the influence of caffeine, the slow theta and alpha waves crucial for repair and memory were suppressed in non-REM sleep. Meanwhile, faster beta activity, typical of mental engagement while awake, appeared more often.



“These changes suggest that even during sleep, the brain remains in a more activated, less restorative state under the influence of caffeine,” Jerbi said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-age-makes-a-difference"><a></a>Age makes a difference</h2>



The volunteers ranged from 20 to 58 years old, allowing the team to see how age influences caffeine’s punch.



Young adults from 20 to 27 exhibited the strongest boost in criticality and the greatest suppression of slow waves, especially during REM sleep. That age skew likely stems from biology. Youngsters have more <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/damage-from-blue-light-exposure-increases-with-age/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">adenosine receptors</a> in the brain, giving caffeine - an adenosine blocker - extra leverage.



“Adenosine receptors naturally decrease with age, reducing caffeine's ability to block them and improve brain complexity, which may partly explain the reduced effect of caffeine observed in middle-aged participants,” Carrier said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-caffeine-use-at-night">Caffeine use at night</h2>



Taken together, the findings suggest that an after-dinner espresso may not only delay sleep but also reduce its quality. For students and young professionals who lean on late-day lattes, the data raise particular concerns, since their brains appear most sensitive.



Yet the study’s authors are cautious about sweeping prescriptions. They note that caffeine’s popularity - consumed by an estimated 80 percent of adults worldwide - makes nuanced guidance essential.



Future work will need to unravel how the observed neural changes translate into next-day performance, long-term <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/mind-diet-may-protect-cognitive-health/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">cognitive health</a>, and individual differences tied to genetics or existing sleep disorders.



Still, the research shows that sleep is not simply unconscious downtime. The brain finely tunes its overnight choreography, and stimulants can shift its rhythm.



As the researchers continue to explore how common substances alter criticality and complexity, they hope to inform personalized recommendations. This could help coffee lovers balance the perks of daytime alertness with the necessity of deep, restorative sleep.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s42003-025-08090-z" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature Communications Biology</a>.



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Caffeine at night disrupts sleep patterns, preventing the brain from resetting

Caffeine is woven into daily life, turning up not just...

New research shows that cancer deaths caused by alcohol have almost doubled in the United States since 1990, reaching more than 23,000 lives lost each year.



Investigators examined national mortality records for malignancies known to be fueled by alcohol, including tumors of the breast, liver, colon, mouth, throat, voice box, and esophagus. They charted how those figures changed between 1990 and 2021.



The researchers discovered that the overall number of deaths attributable to drinking rose from just under 12,000 to just over 23,000 during that span. The surge is especially pronounced among men older than 55, whose alcohol-related cancer mortality has risen a little more than one percent each year since 2007.



The analysis is led by the <a href="https://umiamihealth.org/locations/sylvester-comprehensive-cancer-center" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center</a> at the University of Miami. It draws on three decades of data from the <a href="https://www.healthdata.org/research-analysis/gbd" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Global Burden of Disease</a> database. 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-public-awareness-still-lags">Public awareness still lags</h2>



Lead author Chinmay Jani, a hematology-oncology fellow at Sylvester, described the trend as “a big and concerning rise.” He noted that public understanding lags far behind the science. 



Although the carcinogenic effects of alcohol have been clear to researchers for years, a 2019 survey by the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/quitting-smoking-greatly-reduces-the-risk-of-deadly-cancers/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">American Institute for Cancer Research</a> found that fewer than half of U.S. adults knew drinking raises cancer risk. In contrast, nearly nine of ten recognize the danger of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/quitting-smoking-greatly-reduces-the-risk-of-deadly-cancers/">smoking</a>.



Jani hopes the new analysis, which earned an ASCO Merit Award, will prompt physicians as well as patients to take the link more seriously.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-men-hit-hardest-by-alcohol">Men hit hardest by alcohol</h2>



Looking beyond national figures, the researchers broke down the data by gender and disease site. Alcohol-related cancer mortality among women has modestly declined since 1990, thanks to earlier detection and better treatments.



In men, however, the burden continues to inch upward, erasing any gains made through medical advances. Liver, colorectal, and esophageal cancers show the steepest increases in alcohol-linked deaths; <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/western-diet-identified-as-major-cause-of-colon-cancer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">colorectal</a> and esophageal cancers also show the largest proportional increases relative to their total mortality.



The experts then asked how much of today’s cancer mortality can be caused by alcohol. Even for tumor types where overall death rates have fallen, the proportion attributable to drinking has climbed.



Across all cancers combined, alcohol now accounts for nearly fifty percent more deaths than it did thirty years ago. Other factors may lower fatalities, but alcohol is increasingly responsible for the remaining cancer deaths.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-geography-and-regional-disparities"><a></a>Geography and regional disparities</h2>



Geography adds another layer. State-level analysis shows wide variation: the District of Columbia and Texas top the chart for alcohol-related cancer mortality, while Utah, where religious norms curtail drinking, reports the lowest burden.



The investigators suggest that local drinking culture, socioeconomic status, and access to health care probably all influence these differences.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-alcohol-causes-cancer"><a></a>How alcohol causes cancer</h2>



At the biological level, alcohol promotes cancer through several pathways. Ethanol and its metabolite acetaldehyde can damage DNA and hamper genetic repair mechanisms; chronic drinking also alters hormone levels and fosters inflammation, especially in the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/experts-say-this-is-the-best-fruit-to-eat-for-a-healthier-liver/">liver</a>.



People vary in how their bodies process alcohol, so genetic background may modulate individual risk. 



Senior author Gilberto Lopes, medical director for Sylvester’s international programs, says a deeper understanding of these mechanisms could eventually allow doctors to identify patients who are unusually susceptible and tailor screening or preventive advice accordingly.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-limited-alcohol-warnings">Limited alcohol warnings</h2>



Public-health experts note that alcohol’s contribution to mortality dwarfs more familiar hazards. 



The surgeon general recently reported that drinking is implicated in roughly 100,000 new U.S. cancer diagnoses each year. It also contributes to about 20,000 deaths, numbers that far outstrip fatalities from drunk driving.



Yet government campaigns have historically focused on road safety while devoting far less effort to educating people about alcohol’s carcinogenic potential.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-new-call-for-action">A new call for action</h2>



The scientists recommend a multipronged response. First, routine medical visits should include frank discussions of alcohol intake and its cancer risks, much as physicians already counsel patients about smoking.



Second, consumer awareness could be boosted through warning labels on alcoholic beverages and mass-media campaigns modeled on successful anti-tobacco efforts.



Third, evidence suggests that excise taxes, limits on retail hours, and restrictions on outlet density all lower community-level consumption and could help curb cancer deaths.



Finally, targeted outreach to older men in high-burden states could combine cancer screening with programs that support reduced drinking.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-cancer-fight-must-include-alcohol">Cancer fight must include alcohol</h2>



While these policy levers are familiar, their application has been uneven. Many U.S. jurisdictions maintain low alcohol taxes; few require explicit cancer warnings at the point of sale. 



Even in oncology clinics, conversations often revolve around chemotherapy side effects, genetic testing, and surgery rather than <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/simple-lifestyle-changes-could-prevent-half-of-all-cancer-deaths/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">lifestyle factors</a>.



Jani argues that the new data underline how behavioral choices can undermine medical progress. If the upward trend continues, alcohol will increasingly drive cancer mortality, offsetting gains from improved treatments as the population ages.



Lopes echoes that concern, emphasizing that alcohol consumption is a modifiable risk. The study’s message, he says, is straightforward: every drink carries more than social consequences; for tens of thousands of families each year, it is part of a chain that ends in a cancer ward.



Confronting that reality - through education, clinical practice, and public policy - will be essential if the nation hopes to keep pushing cancer deaths downward rather than letting alcohol erase hard-won victories in treatment and prevention.



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Alcohol-related cancer deaths rise steeply in the United States

New research shows that cancer deaths caused by alcohol have...

Weather patterns across the Middle East are shifting as the planet warms, and new findings suggest these shifts could undermine wind energy potential in surprising ways. 



While some areas may see slight boosts at ground level, several wind hotspots could lose strength where turbines typically operate, affecting key development <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/earth-day-2025-our-power-our-planet/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">plans</a>.



The research, led by Melissa Latt from the <a href="https://www.kit.edu/english/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Karlsruhe Institute of Technology</a> and Assaf Hochman from the <a href="https://en.huji.ac.il" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Hebrew University of Jerusalem</a>, explored future climate conditions.



High-resolution models revealed that surface breezes might climb by about 1.6 miles per hour, yet wind speeds at around 490 feet could dip by up to 2.2 miles per hour.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-shifting-wind-heights-and-energy-potential">Shifting wind heights and energy potential</h2>



The scientists used a regional climate model with about 5-mile resolution to capture details of summer wind flows in deserts, coastlines, and mountain ranges. 



By comparing past climate data to projections through 2070, they found that shifts in sea-level temperature contrasts could boost ground-level winds in certain spots.



“This is a critical component of the region’s sustainable future, and understanding how climate change reshapes wind patterns is key to smart, long-term investment,” said Dr. Hochman. 



However, turbine-height currents could weaken across much of the region, leading to a possible loss of roughly 6.64 million Btu of wind energy within six hours.&nbsp;



Many planners focus on land-based wind installations, so these changes raise concerns about cost-effective energy placement in the coming decades. A few zones, such as parts of the Red Sea coast, still show promising wind capacity, but inland sites might struggle to maintain previous productivity.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-surface-winds-rise-but-energy-may-slow">Surface winds rise but energy may slow</h2>



Across the Middle East, daytime heat is already punishing for communities trying to handle drought, crop losses, and rising power demands for cooling. 



With surface breezes possibly rising by around 1.6 miles per hour, some areas may get a little break from the scorching sun, though that won’t reverse larger <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/earth-day-honors-success-in-clean-energy-and-wildlife-recovery/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">warming</a> trends.



This midday breeze could serve as a minor relief for people enduring brutal heat, but it may not offer enough for stable energy output. 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-models-predict-wind-energy-potential">Models predict wind energy potential </h2>



Projections indicate that larger-scale wind systems at higher altitudes, which power turbines, could fade just when the region needs reliable power the most.



This contrast between stronger near-ground gusts and weaker turbine-level winds shows why experts recommend more comprehensive models for future-proof energy investment. 



The models can factor in local geography, shifting large-scale patterns, and the height-specific wind measurements that separate a gentle breeze from a solid power source.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-climate-change-also-weakens-mangroves">Climate change also weakens mangroves</h2>



Changing atmospheric conditions also matter for coastal mangroves, which safeguard coastlines, store carbon, and provide habitats for marine life. 



A recent international <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41561-025-01701-8" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">study</a> showed that El Niño and La Niña patterns influence over half of the world’s mangrove forests, suggesting broad vulnerabilities to climate shifts.



“We wanted to know whether these events were isolated or part of a broader pattern. Our findings confirm that ENSO has large-scale, recurring effects on mangrove ecosystems around the world,” said <a href="https://sse.tulane.edu/zhen-zhang" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Zhen Zhang</a>, a postdoctoral scholar at Tulane School of Science and Engineering.&nbsp;



This insight highlights a key message: distinct climates worldwide are interlinked through processes like ocean temperature swings and atmospheric patterns.



Just as turbines lose precious wind resources in one location, mangroves can wither in another, reflecting how climate variability crosses boundaries with real impacts.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-new-strategies-may-balance-wind-losses">New strategies may balance wind losses</h2>



Countries seeking more wind power in the Middle East may consider diversified <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/earth-day-2025-innovation-takes-the-lead-in-environmental-action/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">strategies</a>, including better mapping of low-level gusts and possibly exploring offshore sites. Offshore turbines, while more complex to install, might tap into steadier breezes and circumvent certain weaknesses found in land-based wind corridors.



Another option involves pairing solar and wind projects to balance each resource’s output, maximizing returns even if wind potential dips at key hours. 



On extremely hot afternoons with lagging turbine performance, solar panels can fill the gap, especially where sunlight is abundant and power grids are expanding.



Strategic planning also means prioritizing regions that maintain consistent upper-level winds despite temperature shifts, which may demand carefully sited towers or advanced turbine technology. 



Collaborative research among meteorologists, engineers, and policy experts is underway to refine predictions and develop equipment that handles changing gust patterns more effectively.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-future-energy-needs-smarter-choices">Future energy needs smarter choices</h2>



Shifting wind forecasts in the Middle East connect to bigger themes about how climate change can disrupt longstanding assumptions around energy, ecosystems, and daily life. 



As the Tulane study on mangroves shows, small variations can trigger significant damage when combined with hotter temperatures or shifting water levels.



Ramping up resilience measures will demand local knowledge, technological innovation, and flexible policies that respond to these changes in real time.



The ongoing research demonstrates how each shift in wind strength can ripple through entire energy systems and leave big impacts on local communities. 



With careful planning and fresh technology, officials can still turn climate challenges into opportunities for more resilient and balanced energy production.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10584-025-03951-2" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Climatic Change</a>.



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Wind energy potential could drop as climate changes

Weather patterns across the Middle East are shifting as the...

RNA may have played a central role in the origin of life, helping early molecules copy and store information. It's a type of molecule that also plays a central role in how cells function.



Scientists believe that, long before DNA and proteins, RNA strands carried the instructions needed for life to exist. But exactly how these early molecules managed to replicate without the help of enzymes has puzzled researchers for decades.



Now, a new study sheds light on this mystery. Scientists from <a href="https://www.london.ac.uk/federation/ucl">University College London</a> (UCL) and the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology have found a way to get RNA to replicate itself under simple, natural conditions. 



The research opens a window into understanding what the very first steps of life might have looked like.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-rna-replication-puzzle">The RNA replication puzzle</h2>



For life to emerge, molecules had to store and copy information. RNA, a close cousin to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/everyday-dna-damage-requires-constant-repair-by-cells-to-prevent-disease/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">DNA</a>, was likely the first molecule to take on this task. But RNA strands naturally pair up into a stable double helix - much like Velcro that’s hard to pull apart. 



Once zipped together, it becomes almost impossible for the strands to separate and copy themselves. This has made it difficult to recreate early life’s processes in the lab.



The researchers tackled this challenge by using "triplet" RNA building blocks, or trinucleotides, in water. They added acid and heat to the solution, which forced the RNA double strands apart. Afterward, they neutralized and froze the solution.



As the water froze, tiny gaps formed between the ice crystals. These gaps provided the perfect space for the triplets to bind to the separated <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/rna-world-unraveling-mysteries-life-origin/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">RNA strands</a>, preventing them from snapping back together too quickly.



By thawing and repeating this freeze-thaw cycle, they created changing pH and temperature conditions. These conditions are common in nature, like those caused by day and night shifts or geothermal activity. 



Over time, the RNA began to replicate again and again, producing strands long enough to serve biological functions.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-data-dilemma-for-life">Data dilemma for life</h2>



“Life is separated from pure chemistry by information, a molecular memory encoded in the genetic material that is transmitted from one generation to the next,” said Dr. Philipp Holliger of the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology. 



“For this process to occur, the information must be copied, i.e., replicated, to be passed on.”



Dr. James Attwater, lead author from UCL Chemistry and the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, emphasized how essential replication is to biology. 



“<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/did-the-building-blocks-of-life-replicate-on-their-own/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Replication</a> is fundamental to biology. In one sense, it is why we are here. But there’s no trace in biology of the first replicator," said Dr. Attwater.



“Even the single-celled organism that is the ancestor of all known life, the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/luca-last-universal-common-ancestor-progenitor-all-life-on-earth/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Last Universal Common Ancestor</a> (LUCA), is a pretty complex entity, and behind it lies a lot of evolutionary history that is hidden from us."



“Our best guess is that early life was run by RNA molecules. But a big problem for this hypothesis is that we haven’t been able to get a molecule of RNA to replicate itself in a way that could have occurred before life began several billion years ago."



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-early-rna-replication">Early RNA replication</h2>



Instead of relying on complex enzymes like modern cells do, the team used simple environmental changes to spark replication. 



“The changing conditions we engineered can occur naturally, for instance with night and day cycles of temperature, or in geothermal environments where hot rocks meet a cold atmosphere,” Dr. Attwater explained.



Interestingly, the team pointed out that the triplet building blocks they used do not exist in modern biology. 



“The triplet or three-letter building blocks of RNA we used, called trinucleotides, do not occur in biology today, but they allow for much easier replication," noted Dr. Attwater. “The <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-much-life-has-inhabited-earth-since-the-very-first-cell-scientists-found-out/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">earliest forms of life</a> are likely to have been quite different from any life that we know about."



“The models of biological species we are trying to build need to be simple enough to have emerged from the chemistry of early Earth."



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-life-s-freshwater-origins">Life's freshwater origins</h2>



While their study focused on chemistry, the researchers suggested that freshwater ponds or lakes - especially near geothermal sites - could have provided the right conditions. 



The team also discovered that freezing and thawing in saltwater would not work. Salt interferes with the freezing process and prevents the RNA building blocks from reaching the concentration needed for replication.



Although evaporation from puddles could also concentrate RNA, high heat would likely destroy the molecules. This makes the freeze-thaw cycles in freshwater a more realistic scenario.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-more-than-just-rna">More than just RNA</h2>



The study also points out that RNA alone likely wasn't enough for life to begin. Scientists believe that life emerged from a mix of ingredients: RNA, peptides (short chains of amino acids), enzymes, and lipids that form protective barriers.



Other teams at UCL and the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology have been working on this broader picture.



In recent years, researchers led by Dr. John Sutherland at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology and Professor Matthew Powner at UCL Chemistry have shown how early Earth chemistry could create many key ingredients for life. 



The experts have demonstrated how nucleotides (the building blocks of RNA and DNA), amino acids, peptides, simple lipids, and vitamin precursors could form from simple, abundant molecules.



Together, these studies bring us closer to understanding how life’s first spark might have come from the most basic materials on Earth.



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41557-025-01830-y" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature Chemistry</a>.



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RNA breakthrough sheds light on the beginning of life

RNA may have played a central role in the origin...

We didn’t just grow taller for no reason. Our ancestors didn’t just burn energy from meat out of nowhere. Something shifted, deep in our biology - and meat had everything to do with that energy.



A new study published in the journal Cell Genomics dives into this change. It shows how a single genetic tweak, one <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/stone-tool-flint-discovery-challenges-theory-of-human-cultural-evolution/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ancient</a> variant, may have helped drive two things we now take for granted: our height and how much energy our bodies use when at rest.



You might not expect metabolism and height to share roots, but they do. And the story starts with meat.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-meat-and-human-metabolism">Meat and human metabolism </h2>



"The dietary shift from a primarily plant-based diet to increased meat consumption marks a major milestone in human evolution," noted co-corresponding authors Jin Li and He Huang of Fudan University.



"Previous studies have suggested that this shift influenced many <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/human-ancestor-paranthropus-robustus-walked-upright-2-million-years-ago/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">traits</a> and phenotypes in anatomically modern humans. It is therefore not surprising that height may also have been affected."



Meat did more than change dinner. It may have changed DNA. Specifically, a variant called rs34590044-A, which affects a gene named ACSF3. 



This gene lives in our cells’ energy factories - the mitochondria - and helps manage how we break down amino acids, especially those found in meat. When ACSF3 expression goes up, so does metabolism. Bones also seem to grow more.



The researchers didn’t guess. They had data from nearly half a million people. They dug into the UK Biobank and found over 6,000 genetic variants that connect height and basal metabolic rate. But one kept flashing bright red: rs34590044-A.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-meat-based-diets-altered-human-height">Meat-based diets altered human height</h2>



The team ran tests on computer models and in real cells and living mice. When mice got the ACSF3 variant and ate a meat-mimicking diet, they grew longer and used more energy. That’s not a fluke - it’s a functional effect. The gene works harder when meat is around.



Without the variant, metabolism slowed. Bones didn’t grow as much. Mice burned less energy. But once scientists dialed ACSF3 expression back up, everything changed - again. This time, growth returned. So did energy use. But only with the right amino acids in the diet.



"In anatomically modern humans, basal metabolic rate and stature exhibit notable evolutionary <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/worlds-oldest-wooden-structure-completely-rewrites-early-human-history/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">divergence</a> compared to non-human apes," said Shaohua Fan of Fudan University in Shanghai, China.



"Although both traits, particularly height, have been extensively investigated, the evolutionary mechanisms driving these changes remain comparatively underexplored. That's why we decided to focus on these two traits together."



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-meat-gene-spread-with-human-migration">Meat gene spread with human migration</h2>



It wasn’t just today’s bodies that told the story. Ancient DNA backed it up. The researchers traced the variant through time. They found it often in meat-eating cultures, like the Yamnaya, and rarely in early plant-farming groups. 



The gene didn’t spread randomly - it rode the wave of meat consumption across continents and centuries. As farming spread, the variant dipped in frequency. Then, over the past 5,000 years, it came back even stronger. 



Populations that reintroduced meat or mixed with meat-eaters showed higher levels again. Evolution doesn’t forget what works.



This mutation isn’t loud. It doesn’t code for muscle or bone directly. It tweaks regulation - how much of ACSF3 gets made. That’s enough to tilt the body’s internal balance: more ACSF3, more energy, more bone.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-new-look-at-human-evolution">A new look at human evolution</h2>



ACSF3 doesn’t act alone. It reduces toxic byproducts like methylmalonic acid (MMA). That’s important because MMA buildup messes with mitochondria. If your cells can’t breathe, they can’t grow or fuel the body properly. The gene, in a way, cleans the engine before it revs.



When they took ACSF3 out in mice, those animals struggled. Their energy dropped and their bones stopped stretching. But put it back - and give them threonine, an amino acid from meat - and everything reversed. Growth and heat returned.



"This research reveals the intricate interplay between the genetic, environmental, and demographic factors that have contributed to the emergence and evolution of anatomically modern humans," noted Fan.



"It also has important implications for understanding susceptibility and resistance in contemporary metabolic disorders like type 2 diabetes, obesity, and metabolic syndrome."



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-more-energy-and-warm-bodies">More energy and warm bodies</h2>



This isn’t the first time diet shaped us with energy from meat. Our ability to digest milk, for example, only emerged in some farming groups. Starch-digesting genes exploded in others. ACSF3 joins that list - powered by meat, driving energy. A quiet change, with big consequences.



The gene didn’t just help us survive meat - it let us thrive on it. More energy meant better movement, warmer bodies, and longer limbs. 



That matters when the world turns cold or when food gets scarce. A fast-burning engine beats a sluggish one when every calorie counts.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-dietary-changes-in-modern-humans">Dietary changes in modern humans </h2>



The research team plans to keep going. They want to find more <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/28000-year-old-hybrid-child-confirms-interbreeding-between-humans-and-neanderthals/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">traits</a> that co-evolved, just like height and metabolism. They’ll keep digging into ancient genomes, testing in labs, and matching genes to diets.



The researchers are especially interested in how our bodies maintain balance. Metabolic homeostasis, the fancy term for it, may have shaped more traits than we realize. 



And as diets continue to change today, our ancient genetic choices could still be nudging us in new directions.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.cell.com/cell-genomics/fulltext/S2666-979X(25)00111-9" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Cell Genomics</a>.



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Early humans took a giant evolutionary leap when they started eating meat

We didn’t just grow taller for no reason. Our ancestors...

Clay,Brain,Model,Surrounded,By,Variously,Colored,Pills,On,A

More than 55 million people around the world experience neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease. These illnesses often compromise a person's memory and leave them and their families feeling overwhelmed and desperate for treatment options.



Scientists at Case Western Reserve University may have uncovered a new way to maintain healthy brain function in Alzheimer’s and other related <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/finger-prick-method-could-simplify-alzheimers-testing/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">disorders</a>. 



According to Andrew Pieper, a psychiatrist and neuroscientist at <a href="https://www.uhhospitals.org/locations/uh-cleveland-medical-center" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center</a>, the research was focused on a lesser-studied area of the brain’s “border” instead of neurons.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-brain-s-barrier-may-be-key-in-memory-loss">Brain’s barrier may be key in memory loss</h2>



The blood-brain barrier (<a href="https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/body/24931-blood-brain-barrier-bbb" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">BBB</a>) is a protective layer of cells that keeps out toxins and dangerous particles. It plays a crucial role in regulating which substances can pass from the bloodstream into the brain.



The team discovered that the enzyme <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-023-36463-7" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">15-PGDH</a> was particularly active in the BBB in mouse models of Alzheimer’s. They noticed that high levels of 15-PGDH were linked with serious damage in the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/preventing-dementia-scientists-say-three-factors-matter-most/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">brain</a>.



The researchers tested a drug called <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37285764/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">SW033291</a> which blocks this enzyme and watched what happened next.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-blocking-enzyme-protects-memory">Blocking enzyme protects memory </h2>



“In these mouse models treated with the drug the BBB remained completely undamaged,” said Pieper. 



He explained that the mice maintained their brain cells and showed normal memory on tests, which suggests that targeting the BBB might be more promising than only looking at <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/amyloid" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">amyloid</a>, the sticky protein that is often linked with Alzheimer’s.



The team also studied a similar effect in traumatic brain injury, an event that sometimes raises the risk of future dementia. Lab mice with a concussion-like injury were given the drug a day after the trauma.



The mice did not show the usual decline in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/preventing-dementia-scientists-say-three-factors-matter-most/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">memory</a> and movement, giving hope that BBB support could be relevant in multiple disorders.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-fresh-approach-to-brain-care">A fresh approach to brain care</h2>



“Notably, SW033291 didn’t change how much amyloid was in the brain,” said Sanford Markowitz at <a href="https://case.edu" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Case Western Reserve</a> and University Hospitals. 



He explained that this is different from recent Alzheimer’s medicines, many of which only lower amyloid in the brain.



The researchers see this enzyme-blocking strategy as a new direction for Alzheimer’s, traumatic brain injury, and possibly more conditions that involve the BBB. 



This line of thinking focuses on limiting damage from within, so that the rest of the brain can keep functioning as well as possible.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-targeting-amyloid-may-not-be-enough">Targeting amyloid may not be enough</h2>



For decades, Alzheimer’s treatments have focused mostly on removing amyloid plaques, the protein clumps often seen in patient brains. 



While these plaques are associated with the disease, clearing them has not consistently improved memory or thinking ability. 



Some of the latest approved drugs that reduce amyloid can also cause serious side effects, like brain swelling or bleeding.



The 15-PGDH inhibitor, by contrast, does not affect amyloid levels at all, and still appears to prevent memory loss in mice.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-new-alzheimer-s-drug-protects-memory">New Alzheimer’s drug protects memory</h2>



At the moment, there are few therapies that offer meaningful relief for Alzheimer’s patients, which means that any innovation is welcomed by scientists and sufferers alike. If future clinical trials confirm these results, families dealing with memory loss may have more hope.



This concept could also spark additional interest in drugs that strengthen the blood-brain barrier. The research may ultimately open the door for simpler, safer methods to slow or stop mental decline at earlier stages.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-testing-the-memory-drug-on-people">Testing the memory drug on people</h2>



Many questions remain, including whether <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-025-94660-4" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">BBB-focused treatments</a> can help people in advanced stages of memory loss or those with other neurodegenerative diagnoses. 



It will be important to find out whether blocking 15-PGDH in humans is safe in the long-term, and how soon a therapy might become available.



Researchers aim to move the work forward by refining the drug’s design and planning more advanced animal studies. Only time will tell whether this new approach will be part of routine care for Alzheimer’s or concussion-like injuries.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-memory-fix-beyond-alzheimer-s">Memory fix beyond Alzheimer’s </h2>



The benefits seen in individuals with traumatic brain injury suggest that 15-PGDH inhibition might help in conditions beyond Alzheimer’s. 



Disorders like <a href="https://www.ninds.nih.gov/health-information/disorders/parkinsons-disease" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Parkinson’s disease</a>, <a href="https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/multiple-sclerosis-ms#:~:text=Multiple%20sclerosis%20(MS)%20is%20a,may%20have%20only%20mild%20symptoms." target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">multiple sclerosis</a>, and even long COVID may involve similar inflammation and BBB disruption.



If future studies confirm these links, SW033291 or similar drugs could play a role in treating a range of brain disorders - not by targeting disease symptoms directly, but by keeping the brain's defense system intact.



The study is published in the <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2417224122" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</a>.



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New drug helps protect memory in brain diseases like Alzheimer's

More than 55 million people around the world experience neurodegenerative...

Nearly five million dried seahorses have been seized in smuggling operations over a ten-year period. The estimated value of these illegal hauls is about $21 million. Yet experts warn that the true scale of the trade could be far greater than the numbers suggest.



The findings come from a study led by researchers at the <a href="https://www.ubc.ca/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of British Columbia</a> (UBC) and OceansAsia. The team analyzed online seizure records from 2010 to 2021 and found smuggling incidents across 62 countries.



Customs officers most commonly intercepted dried seahorses, which are often used in traditional medicine, at airports. They were found tucked into passenger baggage or hidden in sea cargo.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-global-seahorse-smuggling-network">A global seahorse smuggling network</h2>



Dr. Sarah Foster is a conservation scientist who has been a research associate at UBC’s Project Seahorse for more than 20 years. 



“The nearly 300 seizures we analyzed were based only on online records and voluntary disclosures including government notices and news stories," said Dr. Foster. "This means that what we’re seeing is just the tip of the iceberg.”



The study revealed that seahorses are not smuggled alone. They are often found alongside other illegally <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/experts-are-using-forensic-science-to-fight-wildlife-trafficking/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">traded wildlife</a> products like elephant ivory and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/world-pangolin-day-project-launched-to-save-the-elusive-mammal/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">pangolin</a> scales. This highlights that marine life is deeply entangled in the same illicit trade networks that move terrestrial animals around the globe.



There was also a notable shift in trade routes. While China and Hong Kong remain major destinations, dried seahorses are now moving through Europe and Latin America more frequently. 



“Trade routes appear to be diversifying, and so must enforcement efforts,” added Syd Ascione, an undergraduate research biologist at Project Seahorse.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-legal-loopholes-fuel-smuggling">Legal loopholes fuel smuggling</h2>



Seahorses can legally be traded under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), provided traders have permits showing that their activities do not harm wild populations. CITES has 184 member countries, including Canada and the European Union.



However, securing these permits can be challenging. Traders must prove that their seahorse harvests are sustainable, a barrier that often pushes the business underground. As a result, many shipments bypass legal channels entirely.



Enforcement efforts tend to focus on large, charismatic animals like <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/african-elephants-will-soon-become-extinct-without-immediate-international-help/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">elephants</a> or tigers. This leaves marine species like seahorses vulnerable due to limited data and lower visibility in conservation efforts.



“All countries must step up with strong deterrents - good detective work, determined enforcement, and meaningful penalties - to shut down the illegal seahorse trade,” said Dr. Teale Phelps Bondaroff, director of research at OceansAsia.



“At the same time, we must continue using innovative research and investigation methods to uncover hidden networks and outpace traffickers.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-seahorse-smuggling-hotspots">The seahorse smuggling hotspots</h2>



Most seizures happened not at the point of origin but in transit or at the destination. Airports were hotspots for enforcement, with passenger baggage accounting for the majority of cases. 



Yet, authorities seized the largest volumes of seahorses in sea cargo, signaling the need to sharpen their vigilance at maritime borders as well.



Customs and enforcement agencies were responsible for most of the seizures. However, just seven percent of cases reported legal penalties, making it hard to determine how often offenders face consequences.



The team also analyzed financial records tied to these busts. Using 34 available records, they estimated the value of a single seahorse at around $5. This led them to project the total seized market value to $21 million over the decade.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-balancing-conservation-and-livelihoods">Balancing conservation and livelihoods</h2>



Seahorses hold significant value in traditional medicine and are a vital income source for some fishing communities. This dual role makes combating <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/north-koreas-wildlife-trade-targets-endangered-animals/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">illegal trade</a> a delicate task.



“We need to make sustainable, legal trade viable enough that people obey the laws, and ensure that we also have sufficient deterrents to stop illegal activity,” said Dr. Foster.



She emphasized the importance of protecting seahorses not only for <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/effective-conservation-efforts-key-to-saving-biodiversity/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">conservation</a> but also for communities that rely on them. 



“Seahorses are a symbol of ocean biodiversity and protecting them helps everyone involved. We’ve done work with traditional medicine traders in Hong Kong, and when we ask them, ‘How long do you want seahorses around?’, they say ‘Forever, they’re really important!’ And we agree.”



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/cobi.70047" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Conservation Biology</a>.



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Seahorse smuggling exposed: Millions seized over a decade

Nearly five million dried seahorses have been seized in smuggling...

Paleontologists are introducing us to a stunning new dinosaur called Lokiceratops - and it’s unlike anything we’ve seen before. This horned giant from the Late Cretaceous era stood out with an eye-catching frill and dramatic, twisted horns that likely turned heads 78 million years ago. 



In that lush setting, herds of horned dinosaurs thrived, yet teasing apart who lived where - and why - has long been tricky because fossil beds are scattered and uneven.



A partial skull discovered in northern Montana, just south of the U.S.–Canada border, is changing that picture. The fossil belongs to a one-of-a-kind ceratopsian hints that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/100-million-year-old-dinosaur-eggs-show-glimpses-of-life-in-jurassic-america/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">dinosaur neighborhoods</a> were busier and more partitioned than anybody expected.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-crowded-northern-neighborhood">A crowded northern neighborhood</h2>



Two paleontologists, Mark Loewen of the Natural History Museum of Utah (<a href="https://nhmu.utah.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">NHMU</a>) and Joseph Sertich of the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (<a href="https://stri.si.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">STRI</a>), pieced the skull together from plate-sized fragments. 



When the last chunk clicked into place, the pair realized they had something no one had ever cataloged. 



“The dinosaur now has a permanent home in Denmark, so we went with a Norse god. In the end, doesn't it just really look like Loki with the curving blades?” Loewen said. 



The name they chose - Lokiceratops rangiformis - translates to “Loki’s horned face that looks like a caribou.”



Lokiceratops shared its habitat with four other horned species of similar build. Finding that many related giants in one slice of rock is unusual, almost like stumbling onto five kinds of modern rhinos grazing the same valley. 



Those companions never turned up outside the region, pointing to tight geographic ranges along the ancient shoreline of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_Interior_Seaway" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Western Interior Seaway</a>.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-meet-lokiceratops-rangiformis">Meet Lokiceratops rangiformis</h2>



At roughly 22 feet long and tipping the scales near 11,000 pounds, Lokiceratops is the heavyweight champion of North American centrosaurines. Its frill sports sweeping, blade-shaped spikes plus two asymmetrical horns that jut out like crooked antlers. 



Even more surprising, the dinosaur lacks the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/sasayamagnomus-saegusai-tiny-triceratops-relative-shakes-up-dinosaur-migration-theories/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">short nose horn</a> typical of its cousins, trading it for a cleaner facial profile that draws every eye to its ornate neck shield.



“These skull ornaments are among the keys to unlocking horned dinosaur diversity and demonstrate that evolutionary selection for showy displays contributed to the dizzying richness of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/discovery-of-a-cretaceous-ostrich-mexidracon-longimanus-with-extremely-long-arms/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Cretaceous ecosystems</a>,” Sertich explained during the fossil’s unveiling. 



<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-full"><a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/dinosaur_lokiceratops_ornate_skull_credit-Museum-of-Evolution_1m.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/dinosaur_lokiceratops_ornate_skull_credit-Museum-of-Evolution_1s.webp" alt="The skull of Lokiceratops rangiformis, mounted and on exhibit at the Museum of Evolution in Maribo, Denmark. Credit: Museum of Evolution" class="wp-image-1971812"/></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">The skull of Lokiceratops rangiformis, mounted and on exhibit at the Museum of Evolution in Maribo, Denmark. Click image to enlarge. Credit: Museum of Evolution</figcaption></figure>



A full-scale replica now greets visitors there, while the original fossil rests safely at the <a href="https://www.museumofevolution.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Museum of Evolution</a> in Denmark. 



“It's one of those stories with a happy ending where it didn't go to somebody's mansion,” Sertich said. “It ended up in a museum, where it will be preserved forever so people can study it and enjoy visiting it.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-lokiceratops-used-horns-as-social-signals">Lokiceratops used horns as social signals</h2>



The team’s analysis lists Lokiceratops as the owner of the largest frill horns ever documented in a ceratopsian. Sertich likens that flamboyance to a peacock’s tail rather than battlefield weaponry. 



“We think that the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/triceratops-dinosaurs-seem-to-have-developed-complex-social-structures/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">horns on these dinosaurs</a> were analogous to what birds are doing with displays,” Sertich said. “They're using them either for mate selection or species recognition.” 



<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-full"><a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/dinosaur_lokiceratops_ornate_illustration_credit-Fabrizio-Lavezzi_1m.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/dinosaur_lokiceratops_ornate_illustration_credit-Fabrizio-Lavezzi_1s.webp" alt="Reconstruction of Lokiceratops in the 78-million-year-old swamps of northern Montana, as two Probrachylophosaurus move past in the background. Credit: Fabrizio Lavezzi" class="wp-image-1971810"/></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Reconstruction of Lokiceratops in the 78-million-year-old swamps of northern Montana, as two Probrachylophosaurus move past in the background. Click image to enlarge. Credit: Fabrizio Lavezzi</figcaption></figure>



Given that closely related species lived side by side, clear visual cues would have been essential to avoid courting the wrong partner - or sparring with the wrong rival.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-staying-close-to-home">Staying close to home</h2>



Modern birds and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/world-hirola-day-celebrating-a-rare-and-endangered-antelope-species/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">antelope</a> show how flashy ornaments can blossom rapidly when populations split into pockets. 



The new fossil suggests that the same evolutionary sprint unfolded in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/jaw-fossil-reveals-fruit-eating-mammal-from-the-dinosaur-age/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Late Cretaceous</a> North America, turning each basin along Laramidia’s shoreline into an evolutionary hothouse for horn design.



Lokiceratops emerged from the same rock horizon as its four neighbors, meaning all five grazed the wetlands together. 



“Finding five living together represents unheard-of diversity, similar to what you would see on the plains of East Africa today with different horned ungulates,” Sertich noted. 



Despite their bulk, these animals seem to have stayed in their respective postal codes instead of roaming from Montana to Mexico the way elk or bison wander today.



The climate along the seaway likely shifted over short distances, offering distinct plant communities every few dozen miles. 



Competition among similarly sized herbivores would then reinforce local loyalty, while sexual selection for novel horn shapes pushed each isolated population down its own artistic path.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-rewriting-the-family-tree">Rewriting the family tree</h2>



The study adds fresh branches to the centrosaurine family tree, extending the roster of known species and clarifying their relationships. 



Lokiceratops slots in among northern relatives, while southern cousins evolved their own ornament styles. 



Twelve million years later, by the time Triceratops appeared, that local specialization had faded, leaving just two widespread horned forms across the continent - perhaps because climates grew more uniform.



<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-full"><a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/dinosaur_centrosaurines-comparison_illustration_credit-Fabrizio-Lavezzi_1m.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><img src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/dinosaur_centrosaurines-comparison_illustration_credit-Fabrizio-Lavezzi_1s.webp" alt="Portrait reconstructions of all four centrosaurine dinosaurs that lived together in the Kennedy Coulee Assemblage of northern Montana and southern Alberta. Credit: Fabrizio Lavezzi Evolutionsmuseet, Knuthenborg" class="wp-image-1971808"/></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Portrait reconstructions of all four centrosaurine dinosaurs that lived together in the Kennedy Coulee Assemblage of northern Montana and southern Alberta. Click image to enlarge. Credit: Fabrizio Lavezzi Evolutionsmuseet, Knuthenborg</figcaption></figure>



“Lokiceratops helps us understand that we are only scratching the surface when it comes to the diversity and relationships within the family tree of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/rare-triassic-fossil-gondwanax-paraisensis-may-rewrite-history-of-dinosaurs/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">horned dinosaurs</a>,” Loewen said. 



The team’s updated phylogeny hints that many more region-locked species await description, their remains still buried in unprospected outcrops.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-lokiceratops-still-matters-today">Why Lokiceratops still matters today</h2>



Every new ceratopsian teaches paleontologists how evolution tinkers with anatomy under different pressures. 



Lokiceratops highlights the role of social display in driving diversity - even among animals weighing as much as a delivery truck. 



It also reminds us that North America’s sprawling herds of Triceratops were the exception, not the rule, with earlier communities split into tight neighborhoods that would have felt foreign just a day’s walk away.



Beyond pure science, the discovery shows the value of keeping fossils in public trust. 



Thanks to its museum home, researchers worldwide can test new ideas against the real bones, while visitors young and old stand eye to horn with a creature that turned vanity into art. And vanity, it seems, never goes out of style.



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://peerj.com/articles/17224/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">PeerJ</a>.



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Scientists say this new horned dinosaur species is the 'largest and most ornate' of its kind ever found

Paleontologists are introducing us to a stunning new dinosaur called...

Yeast may seem unremarkable at first glance. Most of us know it as the stuff behind bread and beverages, yet there is more to these tiny organisms than meets the eye.



A new study reveals that genetic <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/yeast-in-forests-reveals-a-story-of-ancient-human-migration/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">diversity</a> and temperature tolerance are closely linked, offering fascinating insights into how certain species might endure in a rapidly changing world. 



The findings come from work led by <a href="https://www.su.se/english/profiles/jemo1068-1.650245" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Jennifer Molinet</a> and <a href="https://www.su.se/english/profiles/rstel-1.321100" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Rike Stelkens</a>, both researchers in the Department of Zoology at Stockholm University.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-yeast-helps-us-study-evolution">Yeast helps us study evolution</h2>



Yeast is actually a <a href="https://www.cancer.gov/publications/dictionaries/cancer-terms/def/microorganism" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">microorganism</a> that belongs to the kingdom of fungi. It has been essential to humankind’s cooking and fermentation processes for centuries. 



Scientists also use it in the lab to investigate big questions in ecology and evolution because it reproduces quickly and is easy to grow under controlled <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/humans-and-bakers-yeast-have-similar-dna/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">conditions</a>.



These qualities helped researchers watch adaptation unfold over 600 generations. A temperature increase from 77°F to 104°F provided a model of future warming.



This setup allowed them to see how eight different yeast species, each with unique histories, handled steamy conditions without stepping outside the lab.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-yeast-handles-heat">How yeast handles heat</h2>



The team monitored the growth and development of these yeast populations and took note of shifts in temperature tolerance. They gathered data about how each species performed at various points along the heat spectrum. 



This continuous observation offered a window into <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0169534712001425" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">experimental evolution</a>, where small changes can accumulate into noticeable differences.



“We found that different species use different evolutionary <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/brewing-beer-in-space-the-future-of-fermentation/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">strategies</a> to adapt to heat: some species, already warm-tolerant, did not improve their performance, but rather expanded their temperature range," said Molinet.



"Other species, more adapted to the cold, were able to withstand higher temperatures, but this came at the cost of reduced overall fitness," she added. No single adaptation path appeared across all species. 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-yeast-s-changing-abilities">Yeast's changing abilities</h2>



Certain yeast species excelled at handling the heat but lost out in other areas. Those with cooler preferences had room to push their upper limit, though they sacrificed maximum growth in the process. 



This pattern hints that there might be trade-offs for any population facing an environmental <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/a-new-window-into-the-early-evolution-of-flowering-plants/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">shift</a>. Some species broadened their tolerance without boosting their ability to thrive at hot temperatures. 



Others raised their limit for warmth but ended up less efficient when it came to peak growth. That distinction may be critical when predicting how biodiversity fares in changing environments.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-warming-threatens-biodiversity">Warming threatens biodiversity</h2>



<a href="https://www.un.org/en/climatechange/science/climate-issues/biodiversity" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Biodiversity</a> is the variety of life that enriches ecosystems around the world. Studies like this one show how organisms can adapt under stressful conditions. 



The research also hints that species already equipped for warmer climates might keep improving, while those that like cooler spots could struggle to keep up. Small genetic changes can make a big difference in how a species responds to environmental stress. 



Over time, genetic adaptations could alter entire ecosystems if certain microbes become more common. This raises a puzzle about who wins and who loses when heat becomes the norm.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-climate-change-lessons-from-yeast">Climate change lessons from yeast</h2>



The same group has looked at other organisms too. In a separate <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40379980/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">publication</a>, they studied temperature adaptation in seed beetles. 



This sort of comparative approach shows how different species, from insects to fungi, adjust to new extremes.



It all comes down to how well an organism’s <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S037810979900292X" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">evolutionary potential</a> can keep pace. <a href="https://imet.usmd.edu/activities/what-genetic-diversity" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Genetic diversity</a> forms the bedrock that allows populations to respond to new pressures. With more variation comes a higher chance that some individuals carry traits well-suited for a hot future.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-yeast-shows-how-microbes-may-shift">Yeast shows how microbes may shift</h2>



One of the most interesting points of the study is that it highlights the unique paths organisms including yeast take in response to climate change. This could guide us in anticipating how microbes, and possibly pathogens, might shift their ranges or behaviors. 



Early insight can help researchers stay a step ahead in tracking which strains pose threats or benefits under higher temperatures.



Adaptation isn’t uniform. We cannot assume that every organism will simply become more heat-tolerant. Some will expand their temperature ranges, while others will change their optimal growth zone.



If entire populations head in different directions, future ecosystems could look very different.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-past-shapes-future-evolution">The past shapes future evolution</h2>



“If temperatures change in the future, it is still the history in our genes that determines if and how we can adapt,” said Dr. Stelkens. The past leaves a stamp on the present. 



The findings underline how the unique background of a species can limit or boost its path forward. That sense of individuality is a reminder that no two species are alike. Each carries genetic memories of ancient environments.



Some are better equipped for certain extremes, while others are at a disadvantage when conditions shift too far from what their ancestors experienced.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ongoing-yeast-and-climate-research">Ongoing yeast and climate research</h2>



Experiments with yeast and other microbes allow researchers to explore how life’s building blocks respond to new challenges including climate change.



There is still much to learn about specific genetic mechanisms behind heat tolerance and how trade-offs affect survival. Future work may reveal ways to preserve vulnerable species as conditions change.



Adaptation studies can also help scientists predict whether new strains might develop harmful traits. This can be pivotal for fields like medicine and agriculture, where a small genetic tweak in a microbe can affect disease spread or crop production. 



Ultimately, staying informed on such developments might protect our well-being.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2423262122" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</a>.



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Yeast evolution reveals limits to surviving climate change

Yeast may seem unremarkable at first glance. Most of us...

Sleep might seem disconnected from the natural world these days. Our lives are ruled by alarms, smartphones, and overhead lights - not sunrise or sunset. But our bodies tell a different story. 



A new study finds that our internal clocks and sleep schedule still march to the beat of sunlight, even in today’s high-tech world.



Scientists from the <a href="https://umich.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Michigan</a> (U-M) found that our <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/colors-of-sunset-and-sunrise-reset-our-circadian-rhythms/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">circadian rhythms</a> continue to respond to seasonal changes in daylight.



Even when our daily routines are shaped by artificial lighting and unpredictable schedules, the cycles of dawn and dusk still leave their mark.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-sunlight-shapes-our-sleep">How sunlight shapes our sleep</h2>



The research has major implications for mental and physical health. It offers a new way to look at seasonal affective disorder, a form of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/alcohol-and-depression-study-challenges-self-medication-theory/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">depression</a> triggered by the changing seasons.



"Humans really are seasonal, even though we might not want to admit that in our modern context," said Ruby Kim, U-M postdoctoral assistant professor of mathematics. "Day length, the amount of sunlight we get, it really influences our physiology." 



"The study shows that our biologically hardwired seasonal timing affects how we adjust to changes in our daily schedules."



Previous studies have shown a link between mood and how well our sleep matches our internal clock. This new work builds on that.



"This work shows a lot of promise for future findings," Kim said. "This may have deeper implications for mental health issues, like mood and anxiety, but also metabolic and cardiovascular conditions as well."



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-inherited-sleep-struggles">Inherited sleep struggles</h2>



The study also uncovered something else: a genetic factor. Our response to changing day length might be partially inherited. That could help explain why some people feel fine after a time change, while others struggle for weeks.



Daniel Forger, who led previous sleep studies, is an U-M professor of math and director of the Michigan Center for Applied and Interdisciplinary Mathematics. 



"For some people they might be able to adapt better, but for other people it could be a whole lot worse," he said.



Figuring out how this genetic piece fits in will take more time. But it opens the door to understanding why some people are more vulnerable to sleep disruptions than others. The research also suggests that our bodies may not operate on a single <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/sleep-circadian-disturbances-trigger-mental-health-disorders/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">sleep-wake</a> clock.



"A lot of people tend to think of their circadian rhythms as a single clock," Forger said. "What we're showing is that there's not really one clock, but there are two. One is trying to track dawn and the other is trying to track dusk, and they're talking to each other."



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-sleep-disruptions-meet-seasonal-clocks">Sleep disruptions meet seasonal clocks</h2>



To observe these rhythms in action, the researchers turned to a large dataset: thousands of medical residents participating in the Intern Health Study. 



The interns wore health trackers like Fitbits and submitted data over the course of their demanding first year of training.



Medical interns often work long, irregular hours that conflict with natural <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/irregular-sleep-cycles-linked-to-greater-diabetes-risk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">sleep cycles</a>. Despite these disruptions, the study found that their circadian rhythms still showed a clear seasonal pattern. That makes a strong case for how deeply embedded this response is in humans.



This kind of seasonal response has long been observed in animals - from fruit flies to mice. Until now, though, strong real-world evidence for this in humans had been limited.



"I think it actually makes a lot of sense. Brain physiology has been at work for millions of years trying to track dusk and dawn," Forger said. "Then industrialization comes along in the blink of evolution's eye and, right now, we're still racing to catch up."



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-dna-linked-to-rest">DNA linked to rest</h2>



Interns in the study also provided saliva samples for DNA analysis. The team identified a small group of participants who had a variation in a gene already known to affect circadian rhythms in animals. 



This variation made it harder for their sleep cycles to stay in sync with the seasonal shifts in sunlight.



That means shift work could be especially harmful to certain individuals - raising new questions about how genetics and work schedules affect our health. The researchers plan to investigate this further.



For now, the study shows that even with busy lives and bright lights, we still carry a deep connection to the sun. Our internal clocks haven’t forgotten what millions of years of evolution taught them - and neither should we.



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41746-025-01678-z" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">npj Digital Medicine</a>.



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Sunlight plays a critical role in human sleep

Sleep might seem disconnected from the natural world these days....

<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2E0mn5mTvhQ
</div><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">'Death Star' moon Mimas conceals a 15-million-year-old ocean that scientists never expected.</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-hidden-waters-beneath-ancient-craters">Hidden waters beneath ancient craters</h2>



Scientists have made a startling discovery that challenges everything we thought we knew about <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/saturn-moon-mimas-has-remarkably-young-ocean/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Saturn's moon Mimas</a>. Beneath the heavily cratered surface that earned it the nickname "Death Star" lies a global ocean that formed just 5 to 15 million years ago—a remarkably young age by cosmic standards.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-cassini-data-reveals-orbital-secrets">Cassini data reveals orbital secrets</h2>



The discovery, led by Dr. Valéry Lainey of the <a href="https://observatoiredeparis.psl.eu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Observatoire de Paris</a>, emerged from careful analysis of <a href="https://www.nasa.gov" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">NASA</a>'s Cassini spacecraft data. By studying subtle irregularities in Mimas's orbit around Saturn, researchers detected the gravitational signature of liquid water hidden 20 to 30 kilometers beneath the moon's icy shell.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-an-unlikely-ocean-world">An unlikely ocean world</h2>



At only 400 kilometers in diameter, Mimas seemed like the least likely candidate to harbor a subsurface ocean. Unlike other ocean moons such as Europa and Enceladus, which show clear surface signs of internal activity, Mimas displays no obvious hints of the liquid water beneath its ancient, crater-scarred exterior.



"Mimas is a small moon, and its heavily cratered surface gave no hint of the hidden ocean beneath," explained Dr. Nick Cooper from <a href="https://www.qmul.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Queen Mary University of London</a>, a study co-author.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-implications-for-astrobiology">Implications for astrobiology</h2>



The ocean's recent formation makes Mimas a prime target for studying how oceans develop and potentially support life. This discovery adds another member to the exclusive club of ocean worlds in our solar system, each offering unique insights into the conditions necessary for habitability.



The research, published in <a href="https://www.nature.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature</a> journal, demonstrates how advanced orbital analysis can reveal hidden features of celestial bodies, opening new possibilities for understanding ocean formation throughout the cosmos.



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Scientists discover unexpected young ocean on Saturn's cratered moon Mimas

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2E0mn5mTvhQ 'Death Star' moon Mimas conceals a 15-million-year-old ocean that...

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Y4eLFNYrKE
</div></figure>



On the unforgiving landscape of North Greenland, temperatures drop and sunlight barely penetrates through the polar winter. It was here, however, that an international team of scientists found <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/predatory-worms-were-terror-beasts-half-a-billion-years-ago/#google_vignette" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">evidence of sea monsters</a> that would change our understanding of ocean life in the past.



This video captures the discovery of Timorebestia fossils that had been hidden for more than 500 million years in the Sirius Passet formation. The "terror beasts," as they are called, are a hidden chapter in the evolutionary history of <a href="https://www.earth.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Earth</a>, showing that sophisticated predator-prey interactions occurred much earlier than previously envisioned.



Dr. Jakob Vinther and his research team at the <a href="https://www.bristol.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Bristol</a>, in collaboration with researchers at the <a href="https://eng.kopri.re.kr/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Korean Polar Research Institute</a>, braved extreme weather conditions at 82.5 north latitude to locate these giant creatures. Using sophisticated electron microprobe analysis, they revealed the detailed anatomy of the animals, including their muscle and nerve tissues.



The find upsets the traditional timeline of sea predators. Although we've long appreciated that Cambrian oceans were at one time ruled by <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jWI3-UgA3_o&amp;list=PL1QLQMW9MWDwpkFOnvgAmu7wT6rZmYqdJ&amp;index=19" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">arthropods</a>, these discoveries indicate that relatives of arrow worms were first to dominate the seas. These worms were building sophisticated food webs several million years before other predator groups arose.



Each fossil is a story of ancient hunger, with fossil stomach contents revealing these meter-long beasts dined on heavily armored arthropods regularly, cementing their place as the ocean's first apex predators.



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Worms dominated seas before dinosaurs

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Y4eLFNYrKE On the unforgiving landscape of North Greenland, temperatures drop...

<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ow3JH03PqEQ
</div><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">New York is the site of the world's oldest forest.</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-385-million-year-old-trees-discovered">385-million-year-old trees discovered</h2>



Scientists have uncovered something extraordinary just two hours north of New York City. The <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/worlds-oldest-forest-discovered-close-to-new-york-city/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">world's oldest forest</a>, dating back 385 million years, offers a window into how Earth's first complex forests shaped our planet's atmosphere.



Located near <a href="https://townofcairo.com/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Cairo, New York</a>, in Greene County, these weren't merely primitive plants struggling to survive. These were sophisticated trees with root systems remarkably similar to modern forests. This ancient woodland predates dinosaurs by 140 million years.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-cairo-forest-discovery">The Cairo forest discovery</h2>



385 million years ago, upstate New York was a tropical paradise near the equator. Thanks to continental drift, this ancient forest has traveled thousands of miles to its current location.



The fossil forest sits in an abandoned quarry, roughly half the size of a football field. This represents just a slice of what was likely a massive forest system stretching from New York into Pennsylvania.



Charles Ver Straeten, curator of sedimentary rocks at the <a href="https://www.nysm.nysed.gov/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">New York State Museum</a>, made the discovery in 2009. While scouting the former highway department property, his trained eye spotted wandering patterns in the stone that looked like marine features.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-revolutionary-age-and-preservation">Revolutionary age and preservation</h2>



The site contains 385-million-year-old rocks with fossilized woody roots forming horizontal patterns up to 18 feet (5.5 meters) wide. As Christopher Berry, a paleobotanist at Cardiff University, explains: "You are walking through the roots of ancient trees."



This discovery pushes back advanced tree evolution by millions of years. The research, published in <a href="https://www.cell.com/current-biology/home" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Current Biology</a> in December 2019, fundamentally changes our understanding of when complex forests first emerged.



Researchers believe a massive flood buried the forest floor, creating perfect fossilization conditions. Over millions of years, sediment hardened into rock, preserving these root patterns like nature's time capsule.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-meet-archaeopteris-the-first-modern-tree">Meet Archaeopteris: the first modern tree</h2>



The star of this ancient forest is Archaeopteris – not to be confused with the feathered dinosaur Archaeopteryx. This tree was far older and more revolutionary.



William Stein from <a href="https://www.binghamton.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Binghamton University</a> describes the roots as "strikingly modern, essentially what you'd see outside in my yard right now." These weren't simple root systems you'd expect from ancient plants.



Some fossilized roots are six inches (15 centimeters) in diameter, forming 36-foot-wide (11-meter) patterns. These giants grew up to 65 feet (20 meters) tall with five-foot-diameter (1.5-meter) trunks.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-climate-changing-impact">Climate-changing impact</h2>



These trees fundamentally changed Earth's environment. Kevin Boyce, a Stanford University geoscientist, explains how their deep roots triggered "weathering," chemical reactions that pulled carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.



This process dropped atmospheric CO2 levels from 10-15 times higher than today to roughly modern concentrations. These ancient trees helped create atmospheric conditions that made complex life possible.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-ancient-forest-ecosystem">Ancient forest ecosystem</h2>



The forest was remarkably diverse. Scientists identified Eospermatopteris, palm tree-like plants with short roots that reached 30 feet (9 meters) tall but lacked woody structure. The forest also housed cladoxylopsids and a mysterious third species still being studied.



All reproduced through spores rather than seeds – millions of years before seeds evolved. This tropical environment had no grass, flowers, or flying insects, just towering trees creating Earth's first complex forest canopy.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-scientific-significance">Scientific significance</h2>



Before this finding, the Gilboa forest, located 25 miles (40 kilometers) away, held the "oldest forest" title. Cairo's trees are 2-3 million years older, showing that complex forest ecosystems developed much faster than scientists believed possible.



Patricia Gensel, a <a href="https://www.unc.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of North Carolina</a> paleobotanist, notes: "The size of those root systems is really changing the picture. Even 20 years ago, researchers assumed trees with such complex root systems didn't evolve so early."



The Cairo site presents three unique root systems, suggesting Devonian period forests were diverse ecosystems with different trees occupying different environmental niches, much like today's forests.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-modern-preservation-efforts">Modern preservation efforts</h2>



In 2022, New York State Senator Michelle Hinchey secured a $170,000 grant for the town of Cairo to construct specialized fencing around the fossil forest site. The town plans to conduct a feasibility study exploring the possibility of creating an educational center and working lab on-site.



Joe Hasenkopf, chair of the Cairo Planning Board, hopes to partner with educational institutions to create a research facility serving scientists, students, and the public.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-lessons-for-today-s-climate">Lessons for today's climate</h2>



Why does a 385-million-year-old forest matter today? It shows how dramatically forests can change Earth's climate. These ancient woodlands created the atmospheric conditions supporting complex life.



Understanding how prehistoric forests transformed the planet helps us appreciate modern forests' critical role in addressing climate change. Forests remain Earth's most effective carbon capture systems.



These prehistoric trees changed Earth's atmosphere by pulling massive amounts of carbon dioxide from the air. As we face modern climate challenges, this ancient forest reminds us of trees' incredible power to transform our planet's environment.



The next time you walk through a forest, remember you're experiencing an ecosystem whose blueprint was established 385 million years ago in upstate New York. These ancient pioneers didn't just survive – they thrived and changed the world forever.



The full study was published in the journal Current Biology.



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Earth's oldest forest found in the United States

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ow3JH03PqEQ New York is the site of the world's oldest...

<figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prrq8Ql81zk
</div><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Acid rain and a crisis solved.</figcaption></figure>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-don-t-we-ever-hear-about-acid-rain-anymore-the-environmental-crisis-that-was-solved">Why don't we ever hear about "acid rain" anymore? The environmental crisis that was solved</h2>



Remember the 1980s when acid rain dominated headlines? Dire warnings about rain eating buildings, killing fish, and destroying forests filled every news cycle. Then, almost like magic, acid rain vanished from public discourse. What happened? Did we actually solve one of the late 20th century's most pressing environmental challenges?



The answer might surprise you. Unlike many environmental issues that drag on indefinitely, acid rain represents one of modern history's most successful ecological recovery stories. It's a tale of science, politics, and technology working together to tackle what seemed impossible.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">What was acid rain?</h2>



Acid rain isn't regular rain having a bad day – it's precipitation that became significantly more acidic due to air pollution. When power plants, factories, and vehicles burn fossil fuels, they release sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) into the atmosphere.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">The science behind it</h2>



Think of acid rain as nature's chemistry experiment gone wrong. These compounds react with water, oxygen, and other chemicals to form sulfuric and nitric acids. When mixed with water vapor in clouds, they create precipitation with dangerously low pH levels.



While clean rain has a pH of about 5.6, acid rain could drop as low as 4.2 to 4.4 – roughly as acidic as tomato juice or coffee. According to US Geological Survey documentation, Scottish chemist Angus Smith first coined "acid rain" in 1872, but it didn't become a household phrase until the 1960s and 1970s when Swedish scientist Svante Odén documented its devastating effects on Scandinavian lakes and European forests.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">The crisis at its peak</h2>



During the height of public concern, environmental damage was both widespread and visible. This wasn't some abstract future threat – people could see destruction happening in real-time.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Environmental devastation</h2>



The most dramatic impacts were impossible to ignore. Research documented by the Adirondack Lakes Survey Corporation and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation shows that in the Adirondack Mountains, more than 200 lakes became so acidic they couldn't support fish life. The Adirondack Council reports that 409 lakes once supported brook trout, but many lost their fish populations due to acid rain.



By 1976, when scientists cataloged all acidified lakes in the Adirondack Park, researchers found that half of the lakes over 2,000 feet above sea level had no fish, according to studies published in environmental journals. The acidification process worked like a slow-motion disaster. As acid rain fell into watersheds, it gradually lowered pH levels. Fish couldn't survive in acidic water, and their food sources died off too.



Trees at high elevations showed stress directly linked to acid rain. It weakened them by leaching nutrients and making them susceptible to disease. Historical records show Germany's Black Forest saw nearly half its trees damaged by the mid-1980s.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Economic impact</h2>



Acid rain wasn't just environmental – it was expensive. Acidic precipitation corroded infrastructure, buildings, and monuments. Historic stone structures deteriorated at accelerated rates. Tourism suffered as lakes became fishless and forests declined. EPA economic analyses from the period documented repair costs mounting into billions annually.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">The solution: government action and technology</h2>



Transformation from crisis to success required unprecedented cooperation between governments, industries, and environmental groups.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">The Clean Air Act of 1990</h2>



The turning point came with the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990, signed by President George H.W. Bush. This represented a fundamentally new approach to environmental regulation, as documented in EPA historical records.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Cap-and-trade success</h2>



Instead of mandating specific technologies, the 1990 amendments introduced something revolutionary: a cap-and-trade system for sulfur dioxide emissions. EPA program documentation shows this market-based approach set overall limits but allowed companies to trade emission allowances.



The genius was harnessing market forces to find cost-effective pollution reduction. Companies reducing emissions cheaply could sell excess allowances to those facing higher costs. Research published in environmental economics journals and EPA progress reports shows this resulted in dramatic SO2 reduction at a fraction of projected costs.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Technology advances</h2>



Policy provided the framework, but technology made reductions possible. Studies in atmospheric science journals document the widespread adoption of flue gas desulfurization systems ("scrubbers") that removed sulfur dioxide before it reached the atmosphere. By the 2000s, new installations could remove over 95% of SO2 emissions, according to EPA technical reports.



The push coincided with cleaner energy development. Natural gas produces fewer sulfur compounds than coal. Wind and solar, emerging in the 1990s, captured growing market share, reducing reliance on high-sulfur coal.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-we-don-t-hear-about-it-today">Why we don't hear about it today</h2>



Why did acid rain disappear from headlines? Simple: the problem was largely solved.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Success doesn't make news</h2>



There's an old journalism saying: "If it bleeds, it leads." Environmental success stories don't generate urgency like crisis reporting. Media attention shifted to other challenges: climate change, plastic pollution, and biodiversity loss. There's only so much environmental anxiety the public can absorb, and newer concerns replaced acid rain.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Mission accomplished</h2>



The primary reason is beautifully simple: interventions worked. EPA monitoring data shows sulfur dioxide emissions dropped over 90% since 1990. Academic research published in environmental science journals confirms pH levels in formerly affected areas returned closer to normal. This represents one of history's most dramatic environmental recoveries. Studies by the Adirondack Lakes Survey Corporation show fishless lakes now support healthy populations. Forests recovered, and building damage slowed dramatically.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-is-it-really-gone">Is it really gone?</h2>



The crisis is largely resolved, but monitoring data shows the problem isn't completely eliminated – it's managed to acceptable levels. Some areas still experience occasional events during high pollution periods. International environmental research indicates that rapidly industrializing Asian countries face similar problems to what we experienced decades ago, though they're implementing successful strategies.



EPA research shows nitrogen oxide emissions proved more challenging than sulfur dioxide, coming from vehicles and mobile sources. Climate science studies suggest changing weather patterns add complexity to how acid rain forms and falls.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">What this teaches us</h2>



The acid rain experience proves that seemingly intractable environmental problems can be solved with scientific understanding, political will, and technological innovation. Environmental monitoring data shows recovery speed was remarkable – within a decade, measurable improvements appeared in air quality and ecosystem health.



Success came from bipartisan support across party lines. Policy analysis studies show the market-based approach appealed to those preferring economic incentives while achieving environmental goals. This support created lasting policy surviving political changes.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Conclusion</h2>



Acid rain's disappearance from public consciousness represents environmental science's greatest success stories. Through effective regulation, technological innovation, and international cooperation, we transformed an overwhelming crisis into a manageable challenge.



Today's silence isn't because we forgot – it's because we solved it. The 1990 Clean Air Act, combined with technology and energy market changes, reduced acid rain emissions over 90%, according to comprehensive EPA data analysis.



This success offers hope for current challenges. It proves complex problems can be solved when science, policy, and technology work together. As we face climate change and plastic pollution, acid rain reminds us that dramatic positive change is possible.



Next time someone asks whether environmental regulations work, remember acid rain. It's proof that sometimes, we get it right.



<hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity"/>



Sources: This article draws from EPA official documentation and progress reports, peer-reviewed research published in environmental and atmospheric science journals, historical data from the Adirondack Lakes Survey Corporation, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation records, US Geological Survey publications, policy analysis studies, and environmental monitoring data collected over three decades.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading">Frequently Asked Questions</h2>



1. Is acid rain completely gone? No, but EPA monitoring shows it's reduced to manageable levels. US sulfur dioxide emissions dropped over 90% since 1990, making acid rain much less severe than the 1980s crisis.



2. How long did solving take? Environmental monitoring data shows significant improvements began within 5-10 years of 1990s emission controls. Full ecosystem recovery took longer – some areas need 20-30 years for complete recovery.



3. What made the solution successful? Clear scientific understanding, visible damage motivating action, bipartisan support, available technology, and innovative market-based policies like cap-and-trade.



4. Do other countries have acid rain problems? Yes, particularly rapidly industrializing Asian countries. However, international environmental research shows many implement similar successful control strategies.



5. Could acid rain return? Potentially, if regulations weaken or we return to high-sulfur coal without controls, though effects would take years to become severe according to environmental projections.



6. Can you recommend any teaching tools on the subject of "acid rain"? The United States Environmental Protection Agency produced a wonderful teacher's guide for ages 14 and under that you can find on the EPA website here: <a href="https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2017-03/documents/teachersguide.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2017-03/documents/teachersguide.pdf</a>



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The environmental problem we actually solved

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=prrq8Ql81zk Acid rain and a crisis solved. Why don't we...

Fresh,Radish,Harvest,On,Soil,In,Garden.

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https://youtu.be/Fi2OeEwuzRM?si=vTyd2m9FMmtyWkex
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Mid-July is an opportune time to kick-start a thriving fall garden, and this guide lays out the best vegetables and herbs to plant now for a fruitful autumn harvest. 



Fast-growing leafy greens such as spinach, lettuce, kale, and arugula perform especially well in the waning summer heat, with harvests beginning as soon as 30 days. 



These cool-season crops relish the transition into fall, offering repeated yields with cut-and-come-again methods.



Root vegetables like radishes, carrots, and beets also excel during this period. Radishes deliver satisfaction in under a month, while carrots and beets mature in about two months. Employing succession planting ensures a continuous stream of produce deep into the cooler months. 



For a boost of fresh flavor, herbs like cilantro, basil, dill, and chervil are excellent picks. These heat-loving varieties flourish in July’s warmth and are harvest-ready in about 30 days, especially when sown continuously.



Gardeners in zones 6 through 9 can benefit from planting bush beans and snap peas, which don’t require trellising and are ideal for compact plots. 



Maturing in 50–60 days, they’re a smart choice for quick, protein-rich harvests. For those in hotter regions, heat-tolerant crops such as okra and southern peas provide reliable yields and thrive in scorching conditions.



This guide emphasizes more than crop selection—it highlights the importance of timing, soil preparation, and ongoing sowing techniques. 



With thoughtful planning and attention to regional climate needs, even late-summer gardeners can enjoy fresh salads, hearty stews, and the satisfaction of a robust, homegrown harvest well into fall.



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What to plant in your garden in mid-July

https://youtu.be/Fi2OeEwuzRM?si=vTyd2m9FMmtyWkex Mid-July is an opportune time to kick-start a thriving...

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A new long-term study in Monkton, Vermont, reveals that wildlife tunnels significantly reduce amphibian road mortality during seasonal migrations. 



Frogs and salamanders often cross roads to reach breeding ponds each spring, but many are killed by vehicles. 



Researchers from the <a href="https://www.uvm.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Vermont</a>, in collaboration with local citizens and the Vermont Agency of Natural Resources, installed two underpass tunnels in 2015. 



Over a 12-year monitoring period, they observed an 80.2% reduction in amphibian deaths, and up to 94% for non-climbing species like salamanders. 



The study used a before-after-control-impact design and documented more than 5,200 amphibians, highlighting the tunnels’ effectiveness even in nearby buffer zones.



Funded at $342,397 - far cheaper than wildlife crossings for large mammals - the project showcased the power of community-led conservation.



Local groups initiated the effort after observing mass amphibian deaths. Wildlife cameras later captured over 2,200 amphibians using a tunnel in just one spring, along with other species like raccoons and bobcats, indicating wider ecosystem benefits.



This marks the first peer-reviewed, long-term data set in the northeastern U.S. confirming amphibian-specific underpasses work. 



The study urges transportation departments to incorporate these designs into road planning and highlights how community action, thoughtful infrastructure, and persistence can make a real difference for biodiversity.



The full study was published in the <a href="https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S1617138125000780" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Journal for Nature Conservation</a>.



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Wildlife tunnels save millions of amphibians

https://youtu.be/XYgiPzmNBTU?si=eFYY7gPHU1JznLvU A new long-term study in Monkton, Vermont, reveals that...

Scientists are transforming chocolate into a functional food by infusing it with probiotics and prebiotics, aiming to create a treat that satisfies cravings while supporting gut health. 



The challenge lies in maintaining chocolate's beloved texture and flavor while adding health benefits.



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Probiotics - beneficial microbes that balance gut bacteria and aid digestion - are typically fragile and can be destroyed by stomach acid or processing. 



Prebiotics act as food for these microbes, helping them thrive. Together, they form "synbiotics," a powerful health combination.



Researchers Smriti Gaur and Shubhi Singh from India's Jaypee Institute of Information Technology took an innovative approach, using natural prebiotics like corn and honey instead of complex processing methods. 



They created five chocolate varieties: a control and four synbiotic versions containing different combinations of prebiotics, probiotics (Lactobacillus strains), and flavor enhancers (cinnamon or orange).



Laboratory simulations of human digestion showed the probiotics remained viable for over five hours, suggesting they could survive long enough to benefit gut health.



Taste tests were positive, with researchers particularly enjoying the orange-flavored variety, describing it as having "vibrant citrus notes" complementing the "rich cocoa" with a "luxurious" texture.



This research represents just the beginning. With further refinement of strains, textures, and flavors, chocolate could evolve beyond mere indulgence to become a functional food that nourishes while it delights.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acsfoodscitech.4c00741" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ACS Food Science &amp; Technology</a>.

Is chocolate the next nutritional powerhouse?

Scientists are transforming chocolate into a functional food by infusing...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Nushagak Bay, a large estuary in southwest Alaska. Nushagak runs mainly north to south and exits in Bristol Bay, a large body of water in the Bering Sea.



"The bay is primarily fed by the Nushagak River, which begins in the Alaska Range and flows southwest approximately 450 km. The bay is also fed by several additional rivers including the Wood, Igushik, Snake and Weary rivers," says ESA.



"The dark colors of the Nushagak River are most likely due to tannins or lignins (chemical substances found in plants). Tannins and lignins from roots, leaves, seeds, bark and soil can leach into the water and give it a brown or even black colour. The sediments then flow southwards where it is mixed with the bluer waters of the bay."



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Nushagak Bay in southwest Alaska

[sendtonews key="0ynNMYkMKa-2340414-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> (ACS) reveals that proteins on flu viruses are actually flexible, tilting and waving in a “breath-like” motion. According to the experts, these proteins could be used to better defend against the flu.



"The main antigenic targets of influenza virus are two surface glycoproteins, hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA). Whereas the structural and dynamical properties of both glycoproteins have been studied previously, the understanding of their plasticity in the whole-virion context is fragmented," wrote the researchers.



To investigate, the team conducted detailed simulations of the influenza A H1N1 virion, or the swine flu. The experts concluded that the visualizations show many new vulnerable states of flu viruses, which could improve future vaccines and antiviral drugs.



Video/ Image Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Flu viruses are more flexible than expected

[sendtonews key="G9bUoxcjr4-2511624-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from the...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Lake Trasimeno, which is located west of Perugia in central Italy. It is the fourth largest lake in the country. While Trasimeno’s water level varies, it has a maximum depth of approximately six meters.&nbsp;



"In this Copernicus Sentinel-2 image, captured on 6 August 2022, the lake’s emerald green colour is likely due to the presence of phytoplankton. Streaks in the water, particularly visible in the west, indicate the presence of soil and sediments which have been stirred up by winds. Dark colored waters in the southern part of the lake indicate a presence of submerged and floating macrophytes (aquatic plants) as well as algae," says ESA.



"Surrounded by hills on three sides, Trasimeno is subject to heavy storms created by winds, especially from the north and west. There are three islets in the lake: Maggiore, Minore and Polvese (the largest). The lake’s shores are sparsely inhabited with only two popular villages: Castiglione del Lago and Passignano sul Trasimeno."



"Italy is experiencing its worst drought in 70 years which has affected drinking water supplies, hydroelectric power and agricultural production. High temperatures, hot winds and lack of rainfall are the main causes of drought in the Umbrian region which saw Lake Trasimeno’s drop 1.3 m, reaching the limit of the hydrometric zero in July 2022."



Video/Image Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Lake Trasimeno in Central Italy

[sendtonews key="3upvlAaHgO-2256633-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> describes a new self-powered nanosensor that can instantly detect mercury contamination with the tap of a finger.&nbsp;



The oxidized form of mercury can be harmful when it is ingested through contaminated water or food. This makes it necessary for experts to develop sensors that can quickly and accurately detect the presence of mercury.&nbsp;



Zong-Hong Lin and colleagues have now created a triboelectric nanosensor (TENS) that can detect mercury by simply by touching a sample. According to the researchers, their TENS could serve as the basis for similar devices to safely and remotely monitor other pollutants.



Video Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Detecting mercury contamination with the tap of a finger

[sendtonews key="LvS8v8bp9z-2564889-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from the...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> explores the ability of salt to transform the way that foods and beverages taste. Salt is known to cover up undesirable flavors, such as bitterness in coffee or beer, but how exactly does sodium chloride change the taste of other compounds?



One previous study showed that, not only does salt suppress bitterness, but also enhances sweetness and sourness. Another study revealed that bitterness reduction by salt seems to be happening at the tongue receptor level as well as in the brain.&nbsp;



While it is known that salt taste is mediated by the presence of sodium channels in the form of taste buds, experts believe that there is also an unknown receptor responsible for how we taste salt that has not yet been identified.&nbsp;



Video Credit: ACS Reactions



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

How does salt makes things taste better?

[sendtonews key="X0f6OHYoI4-2310561-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Santiago, the capital city of Chile. The city is located in the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Region, which has a population of about eight million people.&nbsp;



'The weather of Santiago resembles the Mediterranean climate with dry and warm summers with temperatures reaching up to 35°C (from October to March) and cool and humid winters that can drop to 0°C (from April to September)."



"The city lies in the centre of the country’s central valley around 80 km from the Pacific Ocean to the west and borders Argentina to the east. A tiny part of Argentina is visible in the top-right corner of the image where the mountain crest of the Andes Mountains acts as a divider between the two countries," says ESA.



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Santiago, Chile in South America

[sendtonews key="JRaP49ISmm-2357509-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

Spiral,Galaxy,,Illustration,Of,Milky,Way

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Astronomers at <a href="https://www.jhu.edu/">Johns Hopkins University</a> have created an interactive map of the universe, including the actual position and real colors of 200,000 galaxies. The map allows the public to access data that was previously only available to scientists.



The map was developed using data collected by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. For over two decades, a telescope in New Mexico was aimed at slightly different locations to capture the night sky.&nbsp;



"Growing up I was very inspired by astronomy pictures, stars, nebulae and galaxies, and now it's our time to create a new type of picture to inspire people," said map creator Brice Ménard, a professor at Johns Hopkins. "Astrophysicists around the world have been analyzing this data for years, leading to thousands of scientific papers and discoveries. But nobody took the time to create a map that is beautiful, scientifically accurate, and accessible to people who are not scientists. Our goal here is to show everybody what the universe really looks like."



"In this map, we are just a speck at the very bottom, just one pixel. And when I say we, I mean our galaxy, the Milky Way which has billions of stars and planets. We are used to seeing astronomical pictures showing one galaxy here, one galaxy there or perhaps a group of galaxies. But what this map shows is a very, very different scale."



"From this speck at the bottom, we are able to map out galaxies across the entire universe, and that says something about the power of science."



The <a href="https://mapoftheuniverse.net/">interactive map</a> is available online, where it can be downloaded for free.



Video Credit: Johns Hopkins&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Interactive map of the universe includes 200,000 galaxies

[sendtonews key="e4ZG0Jawp3-2374785-12187" type="single"] Astronomers at Johns Hopkins University have created...

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Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky" Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features northwest Lesotho in South Africa.



According to ESA, Lesotho is the only nation in the world that lies completely above 1,000 m in elevation. The country is famous for its tall mountains and narrow valleys, and is known as Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky."



Out of a population of around two million people, about 80 percent live in rural areas. More than 75 percent of these people are engaged in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-will-have-a-global-impact-on-agriculture/">agriculture</a>, including rainfed cereal production and animal grazing.&nbsp;



ESA reports that the country’s agricultural system faces a growing number of issues, with climate-related vulnerabilities such as drought, floods and extreme temperatures occurring more frequently. 



Diamonds are amongst the minerals found in the mountains. Indeed, Lesotho can truly be called the Kingdom in the Sky. Beautiful, culturally rich, safe, affordable, and easily accessible from Durban and Johannesburg, mountainous Lesotho is a vastly underrated travel destination. the Kingdom of Lesotho (Sotho: 'Muso oa Lesotho) is an enclaved country in southern Africa. It is just over 30,000 km2 (11,583 sq mi) in size and has a population of around 2 million.



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky"

[sendtonews key="uV9Lh2fQbV-1760058-12187" type="single"] Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky" Today’s...

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Dublin, the capital and largest city of Ireland. Beyond its pub culture, Dublin is known as a modern culinary destination and a UNESCO City of Literature.



"Dublin is located near the midpoint of Ireland’s east coast in the province of Leinster. The city, which covers an area of around 115 square kilometers, is bordered by the Dublin Mountains, a low mountain range to the south, and is surrounded by flat farmland to the north and west," says ESA.



"The city straddles the River Liffey, which rises in the Wicklow Mountains and flows around 80 kilometers eastwards through the city of Dublin, in which it is canalised and bordered with quays. It then empties into Dublin Bay, an arm of the Irish Sea."



Dublin has an abundance of green spaces, including one of the largest enclosed public parks in any European capital city. Phoenix Park, which was originally formed as a royal hunting park in the 1660s, includes 707 hectares of green space.



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The city of Dublin on Ireland's east coast

[sendtonews key="qjvhBOBnY8-2426650-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from the...

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features the province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain. The image was captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission.



"Together with the provinces of Huesca and Teruel, Zaragoza formed the old kingdom of Aragon. Its capital, also called Zaragoza (not visible in this image) is home to around half of Aragon’s population," says ESA.



"The Ebro River can be seen winding its way through the province from west to east in this image. Between its source in the Cantabrian Mountains in the northwest and its delta on the Mediterranean coast, the Ebro River is fed by more than 200 tributaries as it flows 910 km across much of northern Spain."



Since rainfall is very scarce in this region, irrigation in the Ebro basin is critically important. In the valleys surrounding the Ebro River, many fields are used for growing crops such as corn, wheat, and barley.



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain

[sendtonews key="oL4FnPTGCV-2384527-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from the...

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/">NASA Earth Observatory</a> reveals the evolution of the Columbia Glacier in southeastern Alaska. Columbia is among the fastest shrinking glaciers in the world, and the video documents its rapid retreat over the years.&nbsp;



Columbia Glacier is a large, multi-branched calving glacier that flows out of the Chugach Mountains to the Prince William Sound.&nbsp;



According to USGS, Columbia had a long history of stability prior to 1980, with a length 41 miles, and small, short-lived advances or retreats.



In the years since 1980, however, satellite images have captured Columbia’s alarming retreat. By using false-color images, scientists can distinguish between snow and ice, open water, vegetation, and rocky debris on the glacier’s surface.



The series of false-color images featured in today's video were acquired over the span of 35 years. You can see that by 2021, the glacier’s main branch had retreated about 15 miles from its initial position.



The Columbia Glacier has also lost more than 50 percent of its volume, mostly due to calving. <a href="https://www.earth.com/video/nasa-reveals-3d-visual-of-an-atmospheric-river/">NASA</a> reports that while climate change likely started the retreat, mechanical processes kept the disintegration going.



The NASA images are provided by Jesse Allen, Robert Simmon, Joshua Stevens, and Lauren Dauphin using data from Landsat satellites, from the U.S. Geological Survey, and data from MODIS on NASA’s Terra satellite. The structure of Columbia’s moraine played a large role in the stability of the glacier before 1980. 



Like other tidewater glaciers, the Columbia built up a moraine over time, and the mixture of ice and rock functioned like a dam keeping out the sea. It was supported on one end by the shoreline and by the underwater terminal moraine at the other.



Video Credit: NASA Earth Observatory/&nbsp; NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

[sendtonews key="0879czfG3k-1785905-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from NASA...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features the Pyrenees Mountains, which form a natural boundary between France and Spain in southwest Europe.



The mountain range is 430 kilometers in length. It stretches from the Mediterranean Sea on the east to the Atlantic Ocean on the west.



At an elevation of 3404 meters, Pico de Aneto is the highest mountain peak in the Pyrenees, and the third-highest peak in Spain. Pico de Aneto is located in the Posets-Maladeta Natural Park, which spans more than 82,000 acres.&nbsp;



"Geological studies have revealed that the Pyrenees Mountains have been around for longer than the Alps, with their sediments first deposited in coastal basins during the Paleozoic and Mesozoic eras," reports ESA.



"The entire mountain range formed due to the upwelling of large sedimentary rocks by the collision of the Iberian and the Eurasian plate around 100 to 150 million years ago, followed by intense erosion from ice and water."



The western Pyrenees receive more precipitation due to moisture blowing in from the Atlantic Ocean. The mountain range contains many lakes, several small glaciers, and some of the highest waterfalls in Europe.



Video &amp; Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The Pyrenees Mountains in southwest Europe

[sendtonews key="6HyfrAJTBI-1831843-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

Earth,Like,Exoplanet,3d,Render

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Today's Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes two exoplanets that are orbiting a star 218 light-years away. A team of researchers led by the University of Montreal has found evidence that these planets are "water worlds."



The experts used data from NASA’s Hubble and Spitzer Space Telescopes. They discovered that exoplanets Kepler-138 c and Kepler-138 could be composed largely of water.



"We previously thought that planets that were a bit larger than Earth were big balls of metal and rock, like scaled-up versions of Earth, and that's why we called them super-Earths," explained study co-author Björn Benneke.&nbsp;



"However, we have now shown that these two planets, Kepler-138 c and d, are quite different in nature and that a big fraction of their entire volume is likely composed of water. It is the best evidence yet for water worlds, a type of planet that was theorized by astronomers to exist for a long time."



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



Image Credit: NASA, ESA, and Leah Hustak (STScI)



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Two distant planets may be "water worlds"

[sendtonews key="QIoVYJqRBi-2434608-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from NASA...

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