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...

People have been drinking alcohol for thousands of years. From Sumer to the Andes, alcohol was not just a beverage. It was a cultural force in many societies.



In ancient Sumer, beer was sacred and strategic. It was offered to gods, paid to workers, and served by elites to show status and power. Even the&nbsp;Epic of Gilgamesh&nbsp;celebrates its civilizing role.



Edward Slingerland’s “drunk hypothesis,” proposed in his book&nbsp;Drunk: How We Sipped, Danced, and Stumbled Our Way to Civilization, takes this idea further. 



Slingerland argues that alcohol helped build civilization. It created bonds, improved cooperation, and sparked creativity. But could <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/cure-for-alcohol-addiction-was-discovered-by-accident/">drinking</a> really shape political systems?



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-alcohol-helped-societies-grow">Alcohol helped societies grow</h2>



Researchers at the <a href="https://www.mpg.de/153644/social-anthropology" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Max Planck Institute</a> tested the hypothesis using a large global dataset. 



"The drunk hypothesis is really intriguing, but so far it has not been quantitatively tested across cultures", said Václav Hrnčíř, the study’s lead author.



The team collected data on 186 mostly non-industrial societies. They tracked the presence of indigenous fermented drinks and analyzed how this related to political complexity, defined by the number of governing layers.



Their method used Bayesian regression models and controlled for multiple variables like environment, agriculture, and shared ancestry. They tested five models, from the simplest (<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/drunk-decisions-alcohol-affects-men-and-women-differently/">alcohol</a> alone) to the most comprehensive (alcohol, agriculture, and environment).



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-alcohol-helped-but-farming-helped-more">Alcohol helped, but farming helped more</h2>



The results of the study revealed a clear, though relatively modest, pattern. Societies that produced and consumed their own traditional fermented alcoholic beverages often displayed greater levels of political complexity. 



This included more layers of administrative organization, suggesting a link between <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/alcohol-has-a-hidden-impact-on-heart-health/">alcohol</a> use and the growth of structured governance systems. However, the influence of alcohol was not the strongest factor observed.



When the researchers accounted for other important variables - especially the role of agriculture - the direct impact of alcohol became less pronounced. 



Model-based predictions showed that, on average, the presence of alcohol corresponded with a 0.77 unit increase in political complexity. But once agriculture and environmental productivity were factored in, the estimated effect dropped to just 0.27 units.



This suggests that while alcohol may have played a role in shaping early political systems, it was likely one among several contributing elements. The ability to cultivate crops and produce food surpluses had a more powerful and consistent influence. 



Ultimately, alcohol supported social evolution to some degree, but agriculture remained the primary engine behind the rise of complex societies.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-fermented-drinks-bonded-people">Fermented drinks bonded people</h2>



Traditional fermented beverages served more than just intoxication. They built group identity, forged political bonds, and helped leaders gain loyalty. 



Feasts with alcohol could mobilize labor, reinforce social roles, and sustain elite power. Hunter-gatherers may have begun farming not just for food, but for <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/heavy-drinking-among-students-is-fueled-by-misperceptions/">alcohol</a>. 



Grains like barley, rice, and sorghum, key brewing ingredients, show up early in agricultural history. Yet evidence suggests alcohol came after agriculture in most places, not before.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-cultural-context-shapes-the-outcome">Cultural context shapes the outcome</h2>



Alcohol’s role in society has not been uniform. Its impact varied greatly depending on cultural norms, settings, and the type of beverages consumed. In many traditional societies, alcohol use was tightly woven into community life. 



People drank together during communal gatherings, religious ceremonies, seasonal festivals, and social rituals. These occasions helped reinforce shared values, create unity, and mark significant events. 



Drinking was public, structured, and often guided by long-standing customs. Because of this, disruptive behavior and negative consequences were relatively uncommon.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-strong-alcohol-had-damaging-effects">Strong alcohol had damaging effects</h2>



In contrast, societies where alcohol use became more individualistic experienced different outcomes. 



The introduction of stronger, distilled spirits and the rise of solitary drinking practices, especially in modern or colonized contexts, often led to harmful effects.



These included social tension, increased violence, and addiction. Without the cultural frameworks that shaped and limited alcohol use, its consumption became more unpredictable and damaging.



The study behind the drunk hypothesis made a clear distinction here. It focused only on traditional, low-alcohol fermented beverages made before colonial contact. These included drinks like cereal beers, fruit wines, and honey meads. 



Modern industrial alcohol - especially high-proof liquors - was excluded from the analysis. That form of alcohol tends to have stronger, often more destructive, social consequences and operates outside the traditional settings that once regulated its use.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-alcohol-and-complex-societies">Alcohol and complex societies</h2>



Alcohol likely played a supporting role in the rise of complex societies. It was one among many social technologies, like music, ritual, religion, and dance, that helped humans cooperate and thrive.



"Getting drunk was probably not the main driver behind the rise of complex societies", said Hrnčíř. But it may have made the hard work of civilization a little easier and a lot more social.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41599-025-05503-6" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Humanities and Social Sciences Communications</a>.



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Drinking alcohol helped ancient people build better societies, according to a new study

People have been drinking alcohol for thousands of years. From...

In ant colonies, caste means everything. A queen grows wings, lays eggs, and lives a life of reproduction. A worker stays wingless, handles all the labor, and rarely reproduces. But how do ants end up with such different fates when they all start out the same?



For a long time, scientists knew that both genes and the environment played a role in shaping ant castes. What wasn’t clear was how the two interacted - or whether body size and caste could be separated.



A new study from scientists at <a href="https://www.rockefeller.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">The Rockefeller University</a> shows that body size plays a key role in determining caste. Larger ants tend to develop queen-like traits, while smaller ones become workers.



But <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ant-genes-show-how-evolution-created-perfect-teamwork/">genes</a> also set the rules by determining when, and if, a particular size tips the balance toward becoming a queen.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-queens-aren-t-just-bigger-ants">Queens aren't just bigger ants</h2>



A queen is not just a large worker ant. That distinction is critical. <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ant-queens-have-a-secret-weapon-to-slow-down-aging/">Queens</a> don’t just grow bigger - they sprout wings, develop complex eyes, and grow large ovaries to lay eggs. Workers don’t. 



And yet, in many ant species, queens and workers come from the same genetic background. It’s one of the clearest examples of how the same genome can lead to very different outcomes.



This kind of flexibility is called developmental plasticity. Female ants, in particular, are a great model to study how environmental cues - like food, temperature, or <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ant-queen-behavior-changes-based-on-social-environment/">social surroundings</a> - shape the development of an organism.



Some scientists had suggested that in ants, body size and caste might be decoupled, just like in fruit flies and other insects where environmental signals influence specific traits without necessarily affecting overall size. But ants seem different. In most cases, caste traits and body size go hand in hand.



“It’s a hotly debated topic, at least among ant biologists,” said Patrick Piekarski, a postdoctoral researcher at Rockefeller's Laboratory of Social Evolution and Behavior. 



“We wanted to resolve this question, by determining whether it is possible to uncouple size from something like ovary development or eye development.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-meet-the-clonal-raider-ant">Meet the clonal raider ant</h2>



The team used a special kind of ant to get answers: the clonal raider ant, <a href="https://www.cell.com/current-biology/abstract/S0960-9822(24)01576-8" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Ooceraea biroi</a>. These ants reproduce asexually, producing genetically identical offspring. They also go through their life stages in sync, which makes them perfect for controlled experiments.



The clonal raider ant doesn’t have traditional queens. Instead, some individuals - called intercastes - develop queen-like features. 



They’re larger, have more developed ovaries, rudimentary eyes, and even the beginnings of wings. These intercastes serve as stand-ins for queens in the study.



“We work with this unusual ant species because, otherwise, we would not be able to control the genotype of the ant,” explained <a href="https://www.rockefeller.edu/our-scientists/heads-of-laboratories/988-daniel-kronauer/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Daniel Kronauer</a>, the Stanley S. and Sydney R. Shuman Professor at Rockefeller.



“With clonal raider ants, we can do the equivalent of a massive identical twin study to determine how the environment impacts the adult phenotype.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-environment-sets-the-stage-for-queen-ants">Environment sets the stage for queen ants</h2>



The first part of the study tested how much the environment affects caste. 



The researchers kept the ants' genetics the same and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/earths-quiet-engineers-what-happens-when-common-ant-species-disappear/">changed their surroundings</a>. They varied food supply, temperature, and even the types of ants that cared for the larvae.



Each of these changes impacted how the ants developed - but only by influencing their final size. For example, less food meant smaller ants, which almost always became workers. 



But if a larva reached a certain size, it still developed queen-like features, even under harsh conditions.



Size, it turned out, was the switch.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-genes-still-pull-the-strings">Genes still pull the strings</h2>



Then the team flipped the question. What happens when ants have different genes but grow up in the same environment? Here’s where it got interesting.



Ants from a genetic line labeled “M” grew smaller on average than the ones from line “A.” But when M ants and A ants were the same size, M ants were more likely to develop <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ants-hold-a-grudge-against-aggressive-rivals/">queen-like traits</a>. 



In other words, genes didn’t just affect how big an ant got - they changed the significance of that size.



“An interesting illustration of that is that you have certain genotypes that start to look more queen-like at smaller body sizes,” Piekarski says.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-two-paths-same-size">Two paths, same size</h2>



The big takeaway? Size still predicts caste, but genes determine the rules for what size counts as “queen material.” 



Some ants are genetically wired to tip into queen-like development at smaller sizes. Others need to grow bigger before that switch is flipped.



“If some environmental factor affects caste, it will affect size too. It can’t induce change in one and not the other,” commented Piekarski. 



“As far as we can tell, no matter which environmental variable you manipulate, the relationship between ant body size and caste remains unchanged and is instead genetically encoded.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-evolution-of-social-roles">Evolution of social roles</h2>



Understanding how body size ties into caste is about more than measuring ants. For Kronauer, this research is part of a much bigger picture.



“One of our goals is to understand how an insect society functions,” Kronauer explains. “Studying how individuals differentiate in a colony can inform our understanding of the types of caste systems, from queens to workers to soldiers, that can evolve in the thousands of ant species out there.”



His lab sees ant <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ant-queens-turn-to-cannibalism-recycle-bodies-for-colony-disease-control/">colonies</a> as <a href="https://www.cell.com/current-biology/pdf/S0960-9822(08)01676-X.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">superorganisms</a> - living systems that are made up of many individuals, each playing a role. 



The more we understand how those roles develop, the better we can grasp the biology of cooperation, division of labor, and even the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-many-ants-live-on-earth-at-any-point-in-time-total-number-is-astounding/">evolution of complex societies</a>.



“The brains of a queen and a worker are quite different, and this is correlated with striking differences in behavior,” Kronauer stated. 



“Workers leave the nest to forage, take care of the larvae, build and expand the nest; the queen mostly just mates and lays eggs."



Identifying how body size relates to becoming a queen ant or a worker opens the door to understanding how social roles, brain function, and colony dynamics develop and evolve together.



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2501716122" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</a>.



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How do ant colonies crown a queen? Scientists found out

In ant colonies, caste means everything. A queen grows wings,...

Researchers have conducted the world’s most extensive bird diversity survey across Colombia. They recorded 971 species from forests and pasturelands over more than a decade. 



The survey accounted for nearly 10% of all bird species worldwide, but the findings went far beyond bird <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/hundreds-of-bird-species-could-vanish-in-the-next-century/">counts</a>.



Combining fieldwork with species data, the researchers discovered that biodiversity loss from clearing forests for pasture is 60% worse than earlier local estimates suggested. This is not just a local concern - it is a national alarm.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-local-surveys-miss-bird-diversity">Local surveys miss bird diversity</h2>



Until now, most biodiversity assessments relied on small local surveys. These studies ignore what happens when forests are lost across entire regions.



“When people want to understand the wider impact of deforestation on biodiversity, they tend to do a local survey and extrapolate the results,” said Professor David Edwards from the <a href="https://www.cam.ac.uk" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Cambridge</a>. 



“But the problem is that tree clearance is occurring at massive spatial scales, across all sorts of different habitats and elevations.”



By studying 13 different eco-regions, the team revealed that single-region estimates miss the mark badly. The real <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/birds-may-be-using-quantum-physics-for-migration/">biodiversity</a> loss becomes visible only when you zoom out to a national scale.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-birds-vanish-with-deforestation">Birds vanish with deforestation</h2>



Tropical forests are not just rich in species. They are also rich in species turnover, what scientists call beta-diversity. That means two nearby forests can host very different bird communities.



When forests are cleared and replaced with pasture, many species with small ranges vanish. In contrast, a few wide-ranging species adapt and spread. 



The result is what researchers call biotic homogenization, where different areas end up with the same handful of generalist species. This makes large-scale biodiversity damage invisible at the local level. 



In Colombia, some regions like the Caquetá and Napo moist forests, with dense and specialized bird populations, showed the greatest losses. Meanwhile, pasture areas, regardless of location, often hosted the same disturbance-tolerant birds.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-bird-diversity-tracked-by-sound">Bird diversity tracked by sound</h2>



The team used sound recordings across Colombia’s forests, mountains, and pasturelands. In 80% of cases, birds were heard but not seen. 



These recordings allowed the researchers to identify species and predict which others shared the habitat.



Data was analyzed from over 24,000 detections and modeled occupancy for 1,614 bird species using habitat, range, and trait data. This enabled the team to estimate how each <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/all-birds-one-tree-complete-evolutionary-map-reveals-hidden-links/">species</a> responds to forest conversion with high spatial detail.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-many-regions-show-bird-losses">Many regions show bird losses</h2>



The study revealed that sampling just one or two eco-regions is not enough. It takes data from at least six or seven biogeographic zones to get within 5% of the true, national-scale <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/birds-are-struggling-to-keep-pace-with-a-warming-climate/">biodiversity</a> impact.



In fact, when looking at highly sensitive species, those in the 75th percentile of conversion impact, national losses were 67% higher than local estimates. These species are often rare, specialized, and cannot adapt to pasture.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-most-pastures-are-harmful">Most pastures are harmful</h2>



The researchers studied traditional cattle pastures with scattered trees and hedgerows. These low-productivity pastures dominate Colombia's agricultural land. 



Even with scattered forest remnants, these areas showed major declines in species richness and diversity.



Silvopastoral systems, pastures combined with trees, can reduce damage, but they still do not support forest-dependent species. Thus, agriculture-friendly designs alone will not save biodiversity.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-bird-diversity-declines-across-regions">Bird diversity declines across regions</h2>



Some areas like Santa Marta appeared less sensitive to forest loss, but appearances can be deceiving. This region includes 24 bird species found nowhere else. So, even a small reduction in forest there risks wiping out irreplaceable species.



Beta-diversity also explained why losses soared at scale. In forests, bird communities change greatly across space and elevation. 



In pastures, these differences collapse. Over 200 kilometers [124 miles], pasture communities barely differ, showing how homogenized they become.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-lessons-for-conservation-and-policy">Lessons for conservation and policy</h2>



The study warns against relying on global meta-analyses based on local data. Most deforestation studies still ignore regional variation in biodiversity. This leads to dangerously low estimates of environmental cost.



“The food we eat comes with a much great environmental cost than we thought,” said Edwards. “We need policy makers to think much more about the larger scale biodiversity impact of deforestation.”



The authors call for regionally structured monitoring systems, better land-use planning, and policies that prioritize biodiversity across elevation and habitat types.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-every-forest-patch-counts">Every forest patch counts</h2>



The research changes the way we understand <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/tropical-birds-migrate-without-riding-the-wind/">birds</a> and biodiversity loss. The message is clear. Protecting one forest patch is not enough. Protecting whole regions matters.



Colombia’s birds tell a simple story. When forests fall, many voices go silent - especially those that once sang from the shadows, highlands, and far corners of this rich tropical land.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41559-025-02779-4" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nature Ecology &amp; Evolution</a>.



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Land-use change is hurting bird diversity far more than we realized

Researchers have conducted the world’s most extensive bird diversity survey...

Between 2014 and 2016, something very unsettling happened off the west coast of North America. For over two years, ocean waters from California to Alaska were unusually warm - 3.6°F to 10.8°F hotter than normal.&nbsp;



This wasn’t a one-off fluke or a seasonal shift. It was the longest and most intense <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/record-heat-of-2024-triggered-a-surge-in-sea-level-rise/">marine heatwave</a> ever recorded in the region.



The heat lingered, spreading across thousands of miles of ocean. This event reshaped life in the water in devastating ways. 



Kelp forests collapsed and entire food chains were thrown off balance. Animals appeared in places they had never been spotted before, and many of them died.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-an-ongoing-coastal-crisis">An ongoing coastal crisis</h2>



The <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ocean-temperatures-are-rising-faster-than-expected-and-likely-to-accelerate/">warm water</a> pushed marine life out of their comfort zones - literally. According to newly published research, 240 species were found far beyond their usual ranges during the heatwave, many of them showing up more than 600 miles farther north than normal.



Northern right whale dolphins and small sea slugs like Placida cremoniana were spotted well outside their typical territory. For some species, the shift was temporary. For others, it hinted at a more permanent change.&nbsp;



As <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ocean-warming-broke-records-for-450-straight-days/">ocean waters</a> heat up, many organisms are following the temperature they’re adapted to - heading toward cooler, northern waters in a bid to survive. But during the historic heatwave in the Pacific, some animals could not move fast enough.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-pacific-heatwave-unraveled-ecosystems">Pacific heatwave unraveled ecosystems</h2>



Seagrass beds and kelp forests are critical habitats for fish, invertebrates, and marine mammals. When the kelp disappeared, so did the shelter and food it provided.&nbsp;



Sea stars, once common along rocky shores, were hit especially hard. A key predator, the sunflower sea star, nearly vanished. Scientists traced the problem to a disease that spread more aggressively in the warmer waters: sea star wasting disease.



Without these predators to keep other populations in check, a domino effect played out across the ecosystem.&nbsp;



Plankton communities shifted. Forage fish - small species that provide energy to bigger fish, birds, and mammals - declined in number and in nutritional quality. As a result, predators from seabirds to whales had a harder time finding enough to eat.



Many marine mammals experienced unusual mortality events, with entire groups dying off unexpectedly. It wasn’t always clear why - sometimes it was disease or a lack of food, and sometimes it was both.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-impacts-rippled-ashore">The impacts rippled ashore</h2>



The damage didn’t stop at the water’s edge. When the ocean food web was thrown off, it hit fisheries hard.



Fishers along the Pacific coast saw multiple closures as fish disappeared or disease spread. Entire harvests were lost.&nbsp;



The economic impact of these changes, including declines in crabbing, salmon, and shellfish industries, added up to hundreds of millions of dollars in losses.



What was once a thriving coastal economy built around marine resources suddenly faced deep uncertainty. Boats stayed docked, and communities that depended on the ocean felt the heat in more ways than one.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-window-into-future-oceans">A window into future oceans</h2>



The study that pulled all of this information together comes from a team of researchers who reviewed 331 published studies and government reports.&nbsp;



Study lead author Samuel Starko is a former postdoctoral fellow at the <a href="https://www.uvic.ca/">University of Victoria</a>.&nbsp;



“The marine heatwave resulted in unprecedented ecological disturbance across thousands of kilometers of North America's west coast,” said Starko.&nbsp;



“Our comprehensive synthesis of the ecological impacts of the heatwave helps us to better understand its overall impacts and how these fit into the broader context of other marine heatwaves.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-pacific-heatwave-triggered-complex-changes">Pacific heatwave triggered complex changes</h2>



What stood out wasn’t just the number of species affected - it was the complexity of the change. Some impacts were direct. Warm water stressed or killed vulnerable species.&nbsp;



Other impacts were harder to untangle. One loss led to another, setting off chain reactions that rewrote entire <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ocean-climate-fixes-could-worsen-the-oxygen-crisis/">ecosystems</a>.



“As heatwaves become more frequent and intense under climate change, the 2014-16 Northeast Pacific marine heatwave provides a critical example of how climate change is impacting ocean life, and how our future oceans may look,” said Julia Baum, marine ecologist and climate advisor at the University of Victoria.



The authors point to a need for smarter marine conservation efforts that take the whole ecosystem into account. This includes making space for species that are shifting ranges and preparing for the kinds of disease outbreaks that warmer oceans can bring.



The 2014-2016 marine heatwave was not just an anomaly - it was a <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/record-ocean-warming-in-2024-is-a-warning-for-our-planet/">warning</a>. The results paint a clear picture of how climate-driven ocean warming is already reshaping marine ecosystems.



The study is <a href="https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/oa-edit/10.1201/9781003589600-2/ecological-responses-extreme-climatic-events-systematic-review-2014%E2%80%932016-northeast-pacific-marine-heatwave-samuel-starko-graham-epstein-lia-chalifour-kevin-bruce-daisy-buzzoni-matthew-csordas-sean-dimoff-rebecca-hansen-dominique-maucieri-jennifer-mchenry-kristina-tietjen-brian-timmer-julia-baum">published</a> in the journal Oceanography and Marine Biology: An Annual Review.&nbsp;



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How a marine heatwave transformed life along the Pacific coast

Between 2014 and 2016, something very unsettling happened off the...

After flames tore across the Brazilian Pantanal in 2020, destroying over 11 million acres of forest and wetland, most would expect a drop in wildlife. But something strange happened in one remote stretch of this vast landscape - jaguars didn’t just survive. More showed up.



This patch of wetland, a 36,700-acre floodplain deep in the northern Pantanal, already held the highest concentration of jaguars ever recorded anywhere. Then came the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/fast-wildfires-are-gaining-even-more-speed/">fires</a>.&nbsp;



As smoke settled and camera traps kept rolling, researchers were stunned to find not only that local jaguars stuck around, but their numbers actually grew. New jaguars had moved in.



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



There are no roads or towns here. To get to the site, the researchers traveled five hours by boat, swatting through clouds of biting insects just to check their equipment. But the isolation appears to be part of its strength.



This stretch of wetland has been studied since 2014 by a team that includes researchers from <a href="https://oregonstate.edu/">Oregon State University</a> and their partners in Brazil. The group has learned that jaguars here are different.&nbsp;



Jaguars in the Pantanal behave more like tolerant neighbors than rivals and have a surprising diet: they mainly hunt fish and caiman, the small alligator-like reptiles common in the area. This means less competition over land animals and fewer territorial disputes.



This behavior may help explain why the area could absorb so many newcomers without descending into chaos.



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



“Finding even more jaguars and other mammals in the study area following the 2020 wildfire and extreme drought suggests that it may serve as a <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/life-oasis-provided-refuge-for-plants-during-earths-worst-extinction-event/">climate refuge</a>, buffering the effects of extreme climate events,” said Charlotte Eriksson, a post-doctoral scholar who has worked on the project for years.



To understand the full picture, the researchers examined footage from camera traps before, during, and after the fire. They also collected nearly 175 scat samples to analyze what the jaguars were eating. The results showed a striking pattern.



Jaguars that were living in the area before the fires continued to appear on camera afterward at about the same rate. They hadn’t fled or died out.&nbsp;



Instead, their numbers grew with the arrival of migrant jaguars - some possibly pushed out of their home territories by the fires or drought elsewhere. New cubs were also born in the area within a year of the disaster, further boosting the population.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-surprising-level-of-resilience-nbsp">A surprising level of resilience&nbsp;</h2>



The kind of resilience seen in the Pantanal is rare for big cats. Typically, large <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/snow-leopards-the-carnivores-that-eat-plants/">carnivores</a> are solitary and territorial. Seeing them so concentrated, and so tolerant of one another, is highly unusual.&nbsp;



According to Eriksson, seeing a jaguar that often on camera would be similar to most frequently seeing a cougar or mountain lion on cameras in North America instead of deer.



Eriksson said that whenever she got off the boat, she would see jaguar tracks. One of her cameras recorded a jaguar just seven minutes after she set it up.



“I have never been to a place where the presence of a large carnivore is so obvious,” said Eriksson.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-beyond-jaguar-survival">Beyond jaguar survival </h2>



The study didn’t just focus on jaguar survival. The researchers were also curious about how other <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/mammal-evolution-kicked-off-with-daring-experiments/">mammals</a> responded to the fire and prolonged drought.&nbsp;



The team found that the richness and abundance of mammals increased over time. But here’s the twist: this trend started in 2018 - two years before the fires. That suggests drought, not fire, may have been the main factor driving changes in wildlife numbers.&nbsp;



Species seemed to move in or flourish as water patterns shifted, not necessarily in direct response to the flames. There also wasn’t a clear difference between burned and unburned camera sites in terms of species richness.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-jaguar-survival-after-the-fires">Jaguar survival after the fires</h2>



Still, fire did have some short-term effects. Right after the blaze, jaguar activity dropped, likely due to disturbance and smoke. But it rebounded quickly. Over time, the population didn’t just recover - it grew.



And through all this, the jaguars stuck to their unusual diet. Despite more mammals being around, they kept hunting aquatic prey, especially fish and caiman.&nbsp;



The researchers noted that their preference for wetland prey likely eases pressure on land animals, allowing more species to coexist in this space.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-fragile-edge-of-the-world">A fragile edge of the world</h2>



The Pantanal is the world’s largest tropical <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/restored-wetlands-cut-carbon-fast-without-the-methane-problem/">wetland</a>, but that doesn’t mean it’s invincible. Even in protected zones like this one, climate pressures are mounting.&nbsp;



Extreme drought, record heat, and increased human activity all helped fuel the 2020 fires. The devastating outbreak was responsible for the estimated loss of 17 million vertebrates.



The study highlights how some landscapes - especially those with water, rich habitat, and limited human interference - may serve as essential <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/where-mammals-live-depends-more-on-climate-than-human-activities/">climate</a> refuges. These are places where animals can ride out the worst of a warming world.



But that doesn’t mean they’re safe. The researchers warned against assuming that what works here will work everywhere.&nbsp;



The Pantanal has unique protections and geography that make it special. Without careful planning and proactive fire management, even this rare refuge could be at risk.



The research is published in the journal <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/gcb.70344">Global Change Biology</a>.



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Jaguars offer a glimpse of survival in a changing world

After flames tore across the Brazilian Pantanal in 2020, destroying...

In the search for life beyond Earth, few places are as intriguing as Saturn’s largest moon, Titan. It's the only spot in the solar system where there are lakes and seas on the surface - only they're not made of water. 



<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/why-does-saturns-moon-titan-have-rivers-but-not-deltas-scientists-have-an-idea/">Titan's lakes</a> overflow with liquid methane and ethane, producing a cold, bizarre, and mysterious world. Scientists have been exploring if life could emerge in such conditions.



Now, a new study from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">NASA</a> offers a possible pathway for how tiny compartments called vesicles - which are critical in the early steps of cellular life - could naturally form in Titan’s frigid lakes.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-vesicles-in-titan-s-methane-lakes">Vesicles in Titan's methane lakes</h2>



On Earth, life as we know it began in water. That’s where molecules came together in structures, got organized, and began to carry out the most fundamental functions of living cells. One of the first moves in this direction was the creation of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vesicle_(biology_and_chemistry)" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">vesicles</a>.



Vesicles are small sacs, like tiny bubbles, composed of molecules with one end that adores water and the other that shuns it. 



These <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/micrometeorites-may-have-helped-create-life-billions-of-years-ago/">amphiphiles</a> arrange themselves spontaneously in the form of spheres in water, with the water-attracting parts pointing outward and the water-repelling parts safely inside.



Over time, some of these spheres developed a second outer layer, creating a <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK26871/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">bilayer membrane</a>. This gave them the structure of a cell, able to enclose materials and protect them from the outside. 



But Titan isn’t <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-much-life-has-inhabited-earth-since-the-very-first-cell-scientists-found-out/">Earth</a>. There’s no liquid water. The chemistry and environment are entirely different.



That’s what makes this research so interesting. It suggests that vesicles might still form - just not in water. Instead, they could take shape in Titan’s methane and ethane-rich lakes through a different, but equally natural, process.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-titan-is-a-moon-with-weather">Titan is a moon with weather</h2>



Titan isn’t just the biggest of <a href="https://science.nasa.gov/saturn/moons/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Saturn’s moons</a>. It’s also the only one with a thick atmosphere. The orange haze surrounding it is mostly nitrogen, but it also includes <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/titans-weather-resembles-earths-but-runs-on-methane-instead-of-water/">methane</a>. 



This methane forms clouds, creates rainstorms, and carves rivers and lakes into the icy surface - just like water does on Earth.



NASA’s Cassini mission, which orbited Saturn from 2004 to 2017, gave us our first real look at this weather system in action. 



<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-full"><a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Titan-surface_Huygens-probe_33000-feet_NASA_1m.jpg"><img src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Titan-surface_Huygens-probe_33000-feet_NASA_1s.webp" alt="Huygens captured this aerial view of Titan from an altitude of 33,000 feet. Credit: ESA/NASA" class="wp-image-1978881"/></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Huygens captured this aerial view of Titan from an altitude of 33,000 feet. Click image to enlarge. Credit: ESA/NASA</figcaption></figure>



What it saw changed our understanding of Titan forever. The methane doesn’t just sit there - it moves through a full cycle of evaporation, condensation, and precipitation. Along the way, it also fuels complex chemistry <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/saturns-moon-titan-has-a-mysterious-atmospheric-tilt/">in the atmosphere</a>.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-complex-organic-molecules-form-on-titan">Complex organic molecules form on Titan</h2>



Sunlight breaks down methane molecules, which then recombine into more complex organic molecules. Some scientists believe this chemistry could be similar to what happened on early Earth, long before life began. 



If we want to understand how life started here, Titan might be one of our best laboratories in the solar system.



The study focused on how vesicles might form under Titan-like conditions. Instead of relying on water, it looked at how droplets of liquid, tossed into the air by splashing methane raindrops, might mix with molecules coating the surface of lakes.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-making-vesicles-in-titan-s-methane-lakes">Making vesicles in Titan's methane lakes</h2>



Imagine a small droplet being launched into the air, its surface covered with <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/materials-science/amphiphile" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">amphiphiles</a>. When it lands back on the lake - which is also covered with these molecules - the two layers meet. That contact forms a vesicle with a double-layered membrane, trapping the droplet inside.



Now imagine this happening over and over again, with thousands or millions of these vesicles forming, spreading, and even interacting. It’s not life - but it could be the kind of chemical structure that life starts from.



<figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-full"><a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Titan_cell-vesicle-formation_organic-material_life-building-blocks_nasa_1m.jpg"><img src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Titan_cell-vesicle-formation_organic-material_life-building-blocks_nasa_1s.webp" alt="An artist’s concept of the proposed mechanism for vesicle formation on Titan. (1) Methane lakes and seas on Titan’s surface become coated with a film of amphiphiles. (2) Methane raindrops splash the lake surface. (3) Splashes create a mist of droplets coated in the same film. (4) Droplets settle back onto the lake and sink, becoming coated in a bilayer which becomes a vesicle. Credit: Christian Mayer (Universität Duisburg-Essen) and Conor Nixon (NASA Goddard)" class="wp-image-1978879"/></a><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">An artist’s concept of the proposed mechanism for vesicle formation on Titan. (1) Methane lakes and seas on Titan’s surface become coated with a film of amphiphiles. (2) Methane raindrops splash the lake surface. (3) Splashes create a mist of droplets coated in the same film. (4) Droplets settle back onto the lake and sink, becoming coated in a bilayer which becomes a vesicle. Click image to enlarge. Credit: Christian Mayer (Universität Duisburg-Essen) and Conor Nixon (NASA Goddard)</figcaption></figure>



“The existence of any vesicles on Titan would demonstrate an increase in order and complexity, which are conditions necessary for the origin of life," said Conor Nixon from NASA’s <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Goddard Space Flight Center</a> in Greenbelt, Maryland.



"We’re excited about these new ideas because they can open up new directions in Titan research and may change how we search for life on Titan in the future.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-future-missions-to-titan">Future missions to Titan</h2>



Although this research is still theoretical, it’s a huge step towards thinking outside the box about what life could be like elsewhere. 



Titan’s lakes are not on the agenda for NASA’s next <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/dragonfly-space-mission-saturn-moon-titan-gets-greenlight/">Dragonfly mission</a>, but the rotorcraft will investigate other areas of the surface. It'll fly between sites, gaining information on the composition of Titan, its atmosphere, and the possibility of habitability.



<a href="https://science.nasa.gov/mission/dragonfly/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Dragonfly</a> will not have the equipment to directly detect vesicles, but its journey may serve to verify if Titan’s chemistry is suitable for them to exist.



If it does, we’ll be one step closer to answering one of the biggest questions of all: Are we alone, or can life begin in places completely unlike our own?



The study is published in the <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/international-journal-of-astrobiology/article/proposed-mechanism-for-the-formation-of-protocelllike-structures-on-titan/F4093F34F6FD80380CEE909C37B2CECE" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">International Journal of Astrobiology</a>.



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Study explains how living cells could form in methane lakes on Saturn's moon Titan

In the search for life beyond Earth, few places are...

When thinking about the future, optimists - people who generally expect positive outcomes - may actually share more than just hope. 



According to a new study from Kobe University, optimists’ brains behave in notably similar ways. Pessimists - those who generally expect negative outcomes or focus on worst-case scenarios - show much more variation in brain activity. 



This difference may explain why optimists are often seen as more sociable and better connected.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-is-there-a-reason-for-the-similarities">Is there a reason for the similarities?</h2>



"Recent studies showed that the brains of people who occupy central social positions react to stimuli in similar ways," said psychologist Yanagisawa Kuniaki, from <a href="https://www.kobe-u.ac.jp/en/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Kobe University</a>, who led the research.



"So it may be that people who share a similar <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/our-decisions-are-shaped-by-optimistic-and-pessimistic-neurons/">attitude</a> towards the future, too, truly envision it similarly in their brains and that this makes it easier for them to understand each other’s perspectives.” 



The team’s two-part study used advanced techniques to measure how individuals mentally simulate future events.



They combined representational similarity analysis and multidimensional scaling to visualize <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/your-brain-literally-changes-based-on-daily-activities-and-lifestyle/">brain patterns</a>. Optimism levels were assessed through standard personality tests.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-merging-brain-scans-and-psychology">Merging brain scans and psychology</h2>



The study joins social psychology with cognitive neuroscience. Yanagisawa built a team to investigate what he called a neglected question. 



“The main reason why this question has remained untouched until now is that it exists in a gap between social psychology and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/an-optimistic-outlook-can-break-the-vicious-cycle-of-procrastination/">neuroscience</a>," he said. "However, the intersection of these two fields enabled us to open this black box."



Participants were asked to imagine future scenarios while undergoing fMRI scans. These scenarios included positive, neutral, negative, and death-related events. Scenarios were shown with either a self or partner perspective. 



This broad design helped reveal how differently brains reacted, depending on the type of future imagined and the emotional tone.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-brain-activity-of-optimists">Brain activity of optimists </h2>



The team observed something striking: optimists showed similar patterns of brain activity, especially in a region called the medial prefrontal cortex (<a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/medial-frontal-cortex" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">MPFC</a>).



This region is linked to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/science-of-self-deception-how-cheating-can-make-us-feel-smarter/">self-reflection </a>and imagining the future. Pessimists, in contrast, displayed highly varied brain responses. 



These observations matched the <a href="https://technologyandsociety.org/the-anna-karenina-principle/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Anna Karenina model</a>. Only pairs of highly optimistic individuals showed high neural similarity when imagining the future.



Across two separate studies, higher optimism scores consistently linked with greater closeness in brain activity. Visual models showed that optimists clustered together in a shared brain-space, while pessimists scattered widely.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-optimists-are-literally-thinking-alike">Optimists are literally thinking alike</h2>



“What was most dramatic about this study is that the abstract notion of ‘thinking alike’ was literally made visible in the form of patterns of brain activity,” Yanagisawa noted.



But this similarity wasn't only about imagining any future. Optimists distinctly separated good from bad futures in their minds. 



Using a method called INDSCAL, the team found that optimists mentally pulled positive events away from negative ones more sharply than pessimists did.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-optimists-brains-buffer-negative-futures">Optimists' brains buffer negative futures</h2>



This suggests that more optimistic people perceive a clear distinction between good and bad futures in their brains. In other words, optimism does not involve positive reinterpretation of negative events. 



"Optimistic <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/experts-identify-the-simple-emotion-that-gives-life-meaning-and-its-not-happiness/">individuals</a> typically process negative scenarios in a more abstract and psychologically distant manner, thus mitigating the emotional impact of such scenarios,” Yanagisawa said.



This neural distancing helps keep bad events from hitting too hard. At the same time, optimists picture good futures more vividly and concretely. This double approach could be one reason for their emotional resilience.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-thinking-alike-builds-connection">Thinking alike builds connection</h2>



The MPFC’s role in shaping optimism may also explain its link to social bonds. Previous research found that people in central social positions often have brain responses that echo each other. 



This shared processing likely strengthens group understanding. Yanagisawa’s study shows that the same applies to optimism. Optimists may literally “think alike,” making it easier to build trust and connection.



“The everyday feeling of ‘being on the same wavelength’ is not just a metaphor," Yanagisawa said.



"The brains of optimists may in a very physical sense share a common concept of the future. But this raises new questions. Is this shared mechanism something they are born with or is it woven in later, for example through experience and dialogue?” 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-optimism-s-neural-roots-in-the-brain">Optimism’s neural roots in the brain</h2>



Yanagisawa hopes future research will explore whether this shared brain style is learned or innate. 



“I believe that elucidating the process by which this shared reality emerges is a step towards a society where people can communicate better,” he said.



By uncovering how optimism shapes brain activity, this work opens new paths to understanding social connection, emotional health, and cognitive style. It turns out that optimism is not just a mindset. It is a shared neural signature.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2511101122" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</a>.



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Optimists share similar brain patterns - but what about pessimists?

When thinking about the future, optimists - people who generally...

Space changes people in surprising ways. One of the most puzzling shifts that astronauts have experience on long missions is blurry vision. 



Many found themselves needing stronger reading glasses the longer they stayed aboard the International Space Station. Researchers began to investigate and found a pattern. The astronauts' <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthpedia-articles/eye/">eyes</a> were changing shape.



Optic discs - where the optic nerve connects to the eye - were swelling. Eventually, these symptoms were grouped under one name: Space-Associated Neuro-Ocular Syndrome, or <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/reference/risk-of-spaceflight-associated-neuro-ocular-syndrome-sans/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">SANS</a>.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-microgravity-messes-with-astronaut-vision">Microgravity messes with astronaut vision</h2>



Scientists began digging deeper into what causes these eye problems. The key issue appears to be the effect of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/microgravity-causes-big-problems-with-human-gene-expression/">microgravity</a>. 



In space, fluids in the body shift upward toward the head. Blood and cerebrospinal fluid don’t settle as they do on Earth. This headward fluid shift is now thought to be one of the main reasons behind SANS.



To test how this works, researchers launched the Thigh Cuff investigation. The study explores whether wearing snug cuffs around the upper thighs can redirect fluid away from the head. 



If effective, these cuffs could offer a simple, noninvasive way to prevent vision problems in space. And not just in orbit - this approach could also help patients on Earth who experience fluid buildup due to illness or extended bed rest.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-eye-data-from-300-astronauts">Eye data from 300 astronauts</h2>



From 2015 through 2020, a project called Fluid Shifts documented how blood drains from the brain differently in space. 



Around the same time, the Vision Impairment and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/long-space-missions-in-microgravity-take-a-toll-on-astronauts-eyes/">Intracranial Pressure</a> (VIIP) study tested whether increased brain fluid pressure played a role in SANS.



To get answers, scientists used clinical eye exams - both with and without dilation - as well as imaging of the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/rare-retinal-cells-explain-complex-color-perception/">retina</a>, optic nerve, and surrounding blood vessels. 



Noninvasive scans helped measure the thickness of different eye structures. They also collected MRI data and surveyed nearly 300 astronauts about how their vision changed during missions.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-understanding-astronaut-vision-issues">Understanding astronaut vision issues</h2>



In a paper published from this research, scientists noted that these tools have improved the understanding of SANS. They also discussed a new idea: a head-mounted virtual reality device that could someday assess SANS in real time using multiple types of data.



Another research group looked into the optic nerve sheath. They discovered that measuring its diameter might be a reliable way to track vision changes during space travel. 



The team also urged fellow scientists to standardize how these tests are done to make future studies easier to compare and repeat.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-one-astronaut-s-unusual-vision-case">One astronaut’s unusual vision case</h2>



One study focused on a single <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/astronauts-can-survive-mars-space-journey-but-their-kidneys-will-be-permanently-damaged/">astronaut</a> who experienced more severe symptoms than most after a six-month mission. 



In this case, the symptoms began to improve mid-mission - possibly due to two factors: vitamin B supplements and a drop in cabin carbon dioxide levels after some crew members left the station.



“While a single case does not allow researchers to determine cause and effect, the magnitude of the improvements suggest this individual may be more affected by environmental conditions," said the researchers.



They noted that this may have been the first attempt to mitigate SANS with inflight B vitamin supplementation.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-is-eye-tissue-softer-in-space">Is eye tissue softer in space?</h2>



Another study, SANSORI, which was led by the Canadian Space Agency, used <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK554044/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Optical Coherence Tomography</a> to explore whether softer eye tissue might be part of the problem. On Earth, a loss of tissue stiffness is linked to aging and diseases like glaucoma or myopia.



Scientists found that long stays in space affected the stiffness of tissues around the eyeball. That change might help explain why eyes start to lose their shape during spaceflight. 



The results could also help doctors better understand vision problems in older adults here on Earth.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-genes-mice-and-artificial-gravity">Genes, mice, and artificial gravity</h2>



Meanwhile, researchers in Japan ran the <a href="https://osdr.nasa.gov/bio/repo/data/payloads/MHU-8" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">MHU-8</a> experiment. They looked at how space travel affects gene expression in mice. 



After the mice returned to Earth, the team found changes in their optic nerves and retinas. 



Interestingly, the experts also tested whether artificial gravity might reduce these changes - and it did. This raises the possibility of using rotating habitats or other tools to simulate gravity during future missions.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-protecting-vision-in-space">Protecting vision in space</h2>



SANS is still being studied, but every experiment brings scientists closer to understanding how space affects the human body - and how to protect it. 



The hope is that one day, astronauts headed to the Moon or Mars won’t have to worry about vision loss. And the same discoveries may help people on Earth too.



Information for this article was obtained from a NASA <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/missions/station/iss-research/vision-changes-on-space-station/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">press release</a>.



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Why astronauts get blurry vision in space

Space changes people in surprising ways. One of the most...

Recent archaeological discoveries challenge the idea that new technologies inevitably disrupt traditional ways of life. Japanese pots from the early rice farming period have preserved more than just traces of food. They hold memories of meals, choices, and cultural traditions.



Research from the University of York, the University of Cambridge, and Japan’s <a href="https://www.nabunken.go.jp" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Nara National Research Institute</a> reveals something striking. When rice farming spread from Korea to Japan 3,000 years ago, it did not immediately alter how people cooked or ate.



Cooking pot residue from early Japanese settlements tells a story of cultural resistance. Despite the introduction of rice and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/bronze-age-people-abandoned-meat-for-millet-3500-years-ago/">millet</a>, fish-based meals stayed central to the Japanese diet. 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-rice-farming-in-japan">Rice farming in Japan</h2>



Rice farming arrived in Japan through contact with the Korean Peninsula. Migrants from Korea brought rice and millet together. But while rice became widespread over time, millet faded from Japanese meals. This puzzled researchers.



“Organic residue analysis has been crucial to our investigation into the earliest <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/ideas-traveled-farther-than-people-in-the-early-days-of-farming/">impacts</a> of rice and millet agriculture. It allows us to capture how these crops were actually used, offering a direct window into the culinary practices and crop interactions of early Japanese society," noted Dr. Jasmine Lundy from the <a href="https://www.york.ac.uk" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of York</a>.



Seed impressions on pottery from the Final Jomon and Yayoi periods confirm both grains existed in Japan. Yet millet, a staple in Korean Bronze Age cuisine, rarely appeared in Japan’s food remains. Archaeologists wanted to understand why.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-japanese-people-chose-traditional-foods">Japanese people chose traditional foods</h2>



The absence of millet was not due to climate. Millet thrives in Japan’s environment, just as it does in Korea. 



“The absence of millet from Japanese food residues and human bones was a surprise to us, given that we knew both rice and millet had been introduced at this time,” said Professor Oliver Craig from the University of York.



“We know from isotope analysis of fats and oils in cooking pots that millet was a major part of the Korean diet, and continues to be eaten to this day, but it seemed that it made no impact on early Japanese cuisine."



“Environmental factors could be ruled out because we know that millet grows just as well in Japan as it does in Korea, so there was something else going on that provided a barrier to this <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/birth-of-farming-driven-by-humans/">crop</a> being adopted in Japanese cooking.”



This suggests social or culinary preferences shaped what foods were accepted. Even with Korean farming tools and pottery styles present in Japan, food habits stayed rooted in local customs.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-fish-stayed-the-main-food-in-japan">Fish stayed the main food in Japan</h2>



The team found that fish-based meals remained dominant, even as rice farming expanded. Cooking pots showed continued use for fish and wild foods. Few pots showed signs of cooking rice.



“There is evidence of Korean-style pottery and farming tools in Japan, but this didn’t line-up with changes to the way people cooked and ate. Yayoi pots were still used to cook fish and other wild foods, and few show signs of being dedicated to rice-cooking,” noted study co-author Dr. Shinya Shoda.



The findings reveal that technology alone does not reshape food habits. Even as tools and crops arrived, Japanese cooks kept preparing familiar dishes. Cultural memory and culinary <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/cave-discovery-of-ancient-avocados-could-rescue-a-global-crop/">tastes</a> held firm.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-lessons-from-japanese-rice-farming">Lessons from Japanese rice farming</h2>



This phenomenon is not unique to Japan. In Southern Scandinavia, people kept fishing and gathering wild food long after farming arrived. By contrast, foragers in Britain quickly embraced agriculture.



“Whilst we see changes in pottery styles and other forms of material culture in Japan with the arrival of rice and millet, food culture remains remarkably consistent," said Professor Craig.



"And whilst Japan’s culinary history eventually catches up with the ‘rice boom’ that we see in Korea, it may have taken some time to have impacted everyday practices, suggesting food culture is deeply embedded and can survive major technological shifts."



These insights urge us to think differently about change. New tools may reach communities, but that does not guarantee quick transformation. Food culture, in particular, often moves at its own pace.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-studying-the-spread-of-farming">Studying the spread of farming</h2>



The research supports the work of the ENCOUNTER project, led by Dr. Enrico Crema at the <a href="https://www.cam.ac.uk" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Cambridge</a>, which studies how farming spread and influenced life across ancient Japan.



“These latest findings add to our body of work in the <a href="https://www.arch.cam.ac.uk/research/projects/current-projects/encounter" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ENCOUNTER</a> project, which has so far shown the diffusion rates of farming within the Japanese archipelago, the demographic impact of farming, and how different cultural traits might have been conditioned by marriage practices,” said Dr. Crema.



The study is published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.



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Japanese food traditions held strong despite the arrival of farming

Recent archaeological discoveries challenge the idea that new technologies inevitably...

The Dead Sea is one of the most unique bodies of water on the planet. Sitting at the lowest point on Earth's land surface, it's known for its extreme salinity and incredible density. But there's more happening beneath its surface than meets the eye. 



Among the many unusual things scientists are learning about this <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/great-salt-lake-agriculture-is-draining-a-natural-wonder/">hypersaline lake</a> is the ongoing formation of what they call “salt giants” - massive underground salt deposits.



“These large deposits in Earth's crust can be many, many kilometers horizontally, and they can be more than a kilometer thick in the vertical direction,” noted Eckart Meiburg, a professor of mechanical engineering at UC Santa Barbara..



“How were they generated? The Dead Sea is really the only place in the world where we can study the mechanism of these things today.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-salt-formation-in-the-dead-sea">Salt formation in the Dead Sea</h2>



While salt formations have been found under other seas - including the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/why-the-shores-of-the-red-sea-turn-pink-every-year/">Red Sea</a> and the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/the-mediterranean-nearly-lost-all-of-its-water-6-million-years-ago/">Mediterranean</a> - only the Dead Sea lets scientists observe them forming right now. 



This gives researchers a rare chance to understand the actual physical processes behind these deposits, especially how their thickness changes across space and time.



A recent paper published by researchers at <a href="https://www.ucsb.edu/">UC Santa Barbara</a> and the Geological Survey of Israel explains how evaporation, water temperature, and salt saturation all combine to build these structures. 



Because the Dead Sea is a terminal lake - one with no outlet - water can only leave by evaporation. As that water vanishes, salt stays behind, accumulating layer by layer.



This process has been going on for millennia, shrinking the lake and increasing salinity. The damming of the Jordan River, the lake's main water source, has sped up this decline, with the lake now dropping by about one meter (three feet) per year.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-layers-of-salt-and-shifting-temperatures">Layers of salt and shifting temperatures</h2>



Temperature also plays a crucial role. The Dead Sea used to be what scientists call "meromictic," with a stable layering of warm, less salty water on top and cooler, saltier water at the bottom.



“It used to be such that even in the winter when things cooled off, the top layer was still less dense than the bottom layer,” Meiburg explained. “And so as a result, there was a <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/lakes-are-struggling-to-maintain-oxygen-as-temperatures-rise/">stratification</a> in the salt.”



That changed in the early 1980s when water levels fell and surface salinity caught up to deeper levels. 



Mixing between the layers began, turning the lake from meromictic to holomictic - meaning it now undergoes full mixing in the water column each year. Today, the Dead Sea stays stratified only during the warmer eight months of the year.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-salt-snow-in-the-summer">Salt snow in the summer</h2>



In 2019, scientists made a surprising discovery: halite crystals - or "salt snow" - were forming in the lake during the summer, not just in winter as expected. 



Halite, or rock salt, forms when water can no longer dissolve salt due to high concentrations. Normally, this happens in the colder, deeper parts of the lake. But in summer, something unusual was happening. 



The top layer of the lake grew even saltier due to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/light-can-vaporize-water-cause-evaporation-without-heat/">evaporation</a>. At the same time, its warm temperature allowed it to keep dissolving salt. This led to a special process known as "double diffusion." 



In this process, salty warm water from the top cools and sinks, while slightly less salty cool water below warms and rises. When the upper layer cools, the salt falls out, like underwater snowfall.



The constant shift in density and temperature, along with other factors like waves and currents, creates salt deposits in all kinds of shapes and sizes. 



Unlike other shallow salt lakes where this happens mostly in dry seasons, the Dead Sea sees the most salt formation in winter. This year-round activity helps explain the birth of the salt giants.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-lesson-from-the-distant-past">A lesson from the distant past</h2>



The process happening in the Dead Sea today may also explain salt formations from long ago. Around 5.96 to 5.33 million years ago, the Mediterranean Sea dried up during what’s known as the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/massive-flood-refilled-the-mediterranean-sea-millions-of-years-ago/">Messinian Salinity Crisis</a>.



“There was always some inflow from the North Atlantic into the Mediterranean through the Strait of Gibraltar,” Meiburg said. “But when tectonic motion closed off the Strait of Gibraltar, there couldn't be any water inflow from the North Atlantic.” 



The sea level dropped dramatically - up to 5 kilometers (about 3 miles) - due to evaporation, leaving behind thick salt crusts. These can still be found beneath parts of the Mediterranean. Later, the Strait of Gibraltar reopened, and the sea filled again.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-salt-features-of-the-dead-sea">Salt features of the Dead Sea </h2>



The Dead Sea continues to be full of surprises. Springs on its floor and varying salt flows create even more formations - including salt domes and chimneys.



Beyond learning how these features form, the study of the Dead Sea could have broader implications. 



Watching how sediment moves on the newly exposed beaches may help scientists understand how coastlines in dry regions respond to sea level changes. It could also point to new ways to manage resources from such salty environments.



With its strange physics and active processes, the Dead Sea gives researchers a rare look at how massive salt deposits grow - one underwater snowflake at a time.



The full study was published in the journal <a href="https://www.annualreviews.org/content/journals/10.1146/annurev-fluid-031424-101119">Annual Review of Fluid Mechanics</a>.



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How the Dead Sea builds 'salt giants' beneath its waters

The Dead Sea is one of the most unique bodies...

For decades, obesity was thought to take only one form and has been measured and managed using body mass index (BMI) - a simple calculation of weight in relation to height. 



While this method has helped categorize individuals into weight-related risk groups, it has not fully explained the complex biological roots or forms of obesity. New research now suggests that the condition is far more intricate than previously assumed.



The study suggests there may be at least 11 biological forms, each driven by different genetic pathways. 



These findings challenge how we classify, study, and treat obesity. The research pushes beyond just BMI. It focuses on the underlying biology and how that biology affects <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/global-childhood-obesity-rate-is-expected-to-soar-by-2050/">health risks</a>.



“It’s not just about the body mass index or the body appearance; it’s more about the biology behind it and how that is related to risk factors,” says Akl Fahed at the <a href="https://www.broadinstitute.org" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Broad Institute</a>.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-understanding-bmi-the-basics">Understanding BMI - the basics</h2>



<a href="https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/calculate-your-bmi" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Body Mass Index</a> is a quick and easy tool doctors use to get a general sense of whether someone’s weight might be impacting their health. 



They calculate it by dividing your weight by your height squared (in metric units), and that gives them a number. 



Based on where that number lands, you get placed into a category - underweight, normal, overweight, or obese. It’s not perfect, but it helps flag potential issues at a glance, especially when they’re screening large numbers of patients.



Doctors don’t use BMI as the final word, though, because they know it doesn’t tell the whole story. 



It doesn’t show how much muscle you have, where you carry fat, or what your lifestyle looks like. But it does give them a starting point. 



If your BMI’s on the higher end, for example, they might want to check your <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-you-position-your-arm-can-alter-blood-pressure-readings-according-to-scientists/">blood pressure</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/eggs-and-cholesterol-a-new-twist-in-an-old-debate/">cholesterol</a>, or <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/squats-vs-walking-the-definitive-winner-for-reducing-blood-sugar/">blood sugar</a> next. It’s kind of like a heads-up - not a diagnosis.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-bmi-alone-isn-t-enough">Why BMI alone isn’t enough</h2>



BMI has long been the standard for diagnosing obesity, but it doesn’t reflect every obesity form or health risk. 



For example, some people with certain obesity forms never develop breathing problems or heart issues. Others do. 



That led researchers to propose a new category called “preclinical” obesity. This split groups people into those who already show <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/obesity-is-linked-more-to-food-than-fitness/">symptoms</a> and those who don’t yet but might in the future.



However, Fahed’s study shows this two-part system may be too simple.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-genetic-map-of-obesity">The genetic map of obesity</h2>



The team analyzed genetic data from over 2 million people with obesity. These individuals came from diverse backgrounds. 



They examined links between BMI and body measurements like waist-to-hip ratios. This helped them identify 743 regions in the genome tied to obesity. Of these, 86 were previously unknown.



Researchers then investigated how genes in these regions affected body tissues. Some influenced how the body makes insulin. Others affected hormone levels, fat storage, or immune <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/why-is-obesity-difficult-to-reverse-it-starts-in-the-brain/">responses</a>.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-obesity-may-take-11-distinct-forms">Obesity may take 11 distinct forms</h2>



Using this method, the researchers identified <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.06.30.25330607v1" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">11 distinct genetic clusters</a>, each linked to specific biological mechanisms behind obesity.



Two of these clusters fall under broad categories: metabolically unhealthy obesity, which is associated with conditions like high blood pressure and insulin resistance, and metabolically healthy obesity, where individuals have excess body fat but relatively normal metabolic <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/childhood-obesity-rates-are-surging-worldwide/">health</a>. 



Six of the clusters are connected to different aspects of insulin production and regulation, highlighting how variations in blood sugar control contribute to obesity. 



The remaining three clusters involve disruptions in immune system function, hormonal control of hunger and body weight, and how the body processes and stores fats.



Instead of calling these clusters “subtypes,” the researchers use the term “endotypes” because they are not mutually exclusive - an individual can have multiple endotypes that interact and influence their overall condition.



“It is clear that there many forms of obesity,” says <a href="https://www.pbrc.edu/research-and-faculty/faculty/Greenway-Frank-MD.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Frank Greenway</a> at Louisiana State University (<a href="https://www.lsu.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">LSU</a>). Some people don’t respond to GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic or Wegovy. This suggests those drugs may not treat the biological cause for everyone.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-treatments-may-vary-by-obesity-form">Treatments may vary by obesity form</h2>



Better understanding of obesity could lead to more precise treatments. 



“In acknowledging that there are many different types of obesity, it may be possible to better target treatments and preventative interventions to provide more personalized care,” says <a href="https://sheffield.ac.uk/smph/people/academic/population-health/laura-gray" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Laura Gray</a> at the <a href="https://sheffield.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Sheffield</a>.



Since six of the endotypes relate to insulin, some treatments might work across those types. However, other forms may require very different approaches.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-more-obesity-forms-may-be-found">More obesity forms may be found</h2>



The research used data from the <a href="https://www.massgeneralbrigham.org/en/research-and-innovation/participate-in-research/biobank" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Mass General Brigham Biobank</a> to confirm the 11 endotypes. Yet, this may not be the final number. 



“I think it’s possible that additional endotypes may be uncovered in the future, as genetic discovery continues,” says <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/min-seo-kim-91a0b81a1/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Min Seo Kim</a> from the Broad Institute.



Gray agrees and says the limit of 11 is likely due to the data size and our current knowledge. Still, some researchers urge caution.



“I like the ideas of obesity clusters, but they have to be more refined in the future to be helpful in the clinics,” says Henriette Kirchner at the <a href="https://www.uni-luebeck.de/en/university/university.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Lübeck</a>. She adds that further studies will clarify how many endotypes actually exist.



This evolving picture may reshape how we design future obesity research and interventions by focusing on each obesity form. Treating obesity as a single form might soon be a thing of the past.



The study is published in <a href="https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.06.30.25330607v1">medRxiv</a>.



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Obesity is much more complicated than we thought, manifesting in 11 different forms

For decades, obesity was thought to take only one form...

Goldenrod plants swaying in the breeze may not strike us as champions of innovation. Yet, hidden in their stems lies an evolutionary story shaped by decades of human agricultural influence. What if simply adding fertilizer to soil could rewire the way plants defend themselves?



A study led by researchers at the <a href="https://umich.edu" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Michigan</a> shows that nutrient-rich environments can push goldenrod to adopt a fascinating plant defense: stem nodding. Professor Mia Howard and her team explored how nitrogen fertilization influences goldenrod defense traits.



"One of the exciting things about this finding is that there are so many hypotheses and theories predicting that resources would affect the evolution of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-future-climate-conditions-will-transform-plant-growth/">plant</a> defenses, and here we have the first experimental evidence to show that it does," she said.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-is-stem-nodding">What is stem nodding?</h2>



Goldenrod plants face an annual threat from insects like gall midges. These insects inject eggs into the plant's tip, triggering growth of protective galls where larvae mature. Goldenrod counters with nodding: a bend in the stem that hides the vulnerable tip during peak insect <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/scientists-finally-learn-what-makes-plants-roots-grow-faster-and-stronger-autophagy/">activity</a>.



This trait is genetically encoded, not influenced by soil nutrients. Plants either nod or they don't. That consistency makes goldenrod ideal for studying genetic responses to environmental changes.



"If the plant is a nodder, it's going to nod. It's also really easy to phenotype because you can just look at it," Howard explained.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-nitrogen-and-goldenrod-nodding">Nitrogen and goldenrod nodding</h2>



The team surveyed goldenrod in six paired plots (fertilized and unfertilized) set up in 1989. 



Fertilized plots received nitrogen equivalent to what’s used in agriculture. In 2016, 2021, and 2022, they recorded significantly more nodding goldenrod in treated plots. In fact, nodding morphs were 3 to 6 times more common in fertilized areas.



The researchers observed a clear trend: as nitrogen exposure increased over the decades, the frequency of nodding goldenrod also rose. 



This wasn’t just a short-term shift. It indicated a genetic change, likely caused by the spread of nodding clones in the high-nitrogen plots.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-bigger-plants-get-attacked-more">Bigger plants get attacked more</h2>



Fertilized goldenrod grew 30 to 40% taller than unfertilized ones. In 2022, they also produced about 50% more biomass. This growth made them more noticeable to insects. 



As expected, galling increased - twice as many <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/earth-day-2025-innovation-takes-the-lead-in-environmental-action/">plants</a> were galled in fertilized plots that year.



Interestingly, stem nodding didn’t always help. In 2021 and 2022, galling rates were similar in nodders and non-nodders. This suggests insects may have adapted, or other factors (like antibiotic defenses) could be at play. 



Still, in 2016, nodding did reduce gall presence. Defense effectiveness seems to vary year by year.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-plants-bend-to-defend-themselves">Plants bend to defend themselves</h2>



Even if nodding fails sometimes, it persists. One reason is its low cost. Unlike chemical defenses that require energy, nodding is a simple structural adjustment. It does not reduce plant size, and in some studies, nodders grew taller and produced more seeds.



In nutrient-rich settings, plants must grow fast and outcompete neighbors for light. Howard’s team suggests nodding may be a defense that supports rapid growth. That makes it especially useful in fertilized environments where tall <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/plant-roots-could-be-key-to-fighting-climate-change/">plants</a> are more visible to herbivores.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-plants-evolve-to-defend">How plants evolve to defend</h2>



This study highlights why long-term experiments matter. Evolution unfolds over decades. Without this three-decade setup, scientists wouldn’t have spotted the subtle shifts in goldenrod genetics.



"We were really fortunate that <a href="https://www.kbs.msu.edu" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Kellogg biological station</a> had started this experiment and continued to maintain it for three decades. Having these long term experiments is really valuable," Howard said. 



"You might not see a lot of differences in plant populations in the early years, but I think they are becoming a really good resource for studying evolution."



Goldenrod reminds us that even small changes - like bending a stem - can be part of nature’s slow but powerful evolutionary story. Nitrogen, a simple nutrient, may shape how plants fight back for generations to come.



The research was made possible by three decades of continuous fieldwork at the Kellogg Biological Station, with support from multiple institutions, including <a href="https://www.nsf.gov" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">NSF</a> and <a href="https://www.usda.gov" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">USDA</a>.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://nsojournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/oik.11181" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Oikos</a>.



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Nitrogen exposure is changing the way plants defend themselves

Goldenrod plants swaying in the breeze may not strike us...

<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=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.

<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://youtu.be/Fi2OeEwuzRM?si=vTyd2m9FMmtyWkex
</div></figure>







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...

Green,Ecoduct,Over,An,Empty,Highway,During,Sunset.

<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://youtu.be/XYgiPzmNBTU?si=eFYY7gPHU1JznLvU
</div></figure>



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.



<figure class="wp-block-embed aligncenter 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://youtu.be/Ug657J67iEo?si=w96YjGMsg939LD_3
</div></figure>



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...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="0ynNMYkMKa-2340414-12187" type="single"]</div>



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...

<div class="wp-block-sendtonews-playerselector">[sendtonews key="G9bUoxcjr4-2511624-12187" type="single"]</div>



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



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Flu viruses are more flexible than expected

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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

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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

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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?

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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

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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

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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"

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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

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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

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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

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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

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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"

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Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes Earth’s interconnected systems, and how this network is affected by rising temperatures.&nbsp;



During 2020, average global temperatures matched the hottest year on record. The hurricane season was also record-breaking, with many of the storms intensifying at extraordinary speeds. Hot water in the ocean is fuel for hurricanes. The satellite data shows that it's all one interconnected system showing how Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected.



According to NASA, dust swept up from Northern Africa plays a major role in the formation of hurricanes, and is also a key source of fertilization in the Amazon rainforest. As a result of<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/seagrass-wasting-disease-is-fueled-by-climate-change/"> climate</a> change, dust plumes are expected to decline, which will have an effect on vegetation far away.&nbsp;



Images from Earth-observing satellites show how the world’s plant life is affected by natural disasters, fires, and deforestation. Satellites also reveal how widespread changes in vegetation impact waterways,&nbsp; the climate, air quality. Satellites communicate by using radio waves to send signals to the antennas on the Earth. "Earth From Space" is a groundbreaking two-hour special that reveals a spectacular new space-based vision of our planet. 



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&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.

Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected

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