Once upon a time, you went to a florist for a bouquet. Now you can grab one next to the spinach, at the pharmacy counter, even by the chips at a gas station. As fresh flowers have spilled out of specialty shops and into everyday retail, their place in our lives - and who’s buying them - has changed fast.



Researchers at the <a href="https://www.caes.uga.edu/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">University of Georgia</a> College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences wanted to know what, exactly, is going on. 



They teamed up across horticulture and agricultural economics to look not just at what people buy, but why they buy it, how often, and what those habits reveal about the modern consumer.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-flowers-move-beyond-florists">Flowers move beyond florists</h2>



Drawing on a nationally representative survey of more than 8,500 people, the team found remarkable variety rather than a single archetype. Using marketing-style cluster analysis, they identified 13 distinct kinds of flower buyers.



Some are the classic date-night crowd: heavy on roses, big on Valentine’s Day. Others show up once a year for anniversaries and otherwise keep their wallets shut. 



A growing slice is buying flowers solely for themselves - home-use-only shoppers who treat stems like candles or throw pillows, a mood boost for the living room. 



And then there’s the “everything” group: people who purchase for all kinds of occasions and tend to spend the most overall.



Ask people what flowers mean and the responses span the spectrum. Word clouds from open-ended answers lit up with “beauty” and “smell,” but also “expensive” and “waste.”



Even so, buyers describe tangible upsides. Those who’d purchased flowers in the past year were more likely to report feeling better at home and at work - <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/simple-and-self-guided-nature-program-quickly-improves-mood-and-reduces-stress/">improved mood</a>, less stress, higher morale. The effect was strongest among recent purchasers.



As agricultural economist Ben Campbell put it, “there’s a perceived benefit of buying flowers - whether it’s real or not. People feel they’re getting something valuable from the experience.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-covid-changed-how-we-buy-flowers">Covid changed how we buy flowers</h2>



Behind the scenes, the cut-flower supply chain is both global and intricate. Imports - especially roses from Colombia - still dominate U.S. shelves. But the domestic picture has shifted in surprising ways.



When <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/covid-19-lockdowns-weakened-our-immune-systems/">COVID-19</a> hit, weddings and funerals vanished overnight. Growers plowed under fields. Florists closed their doors. 



And then, stuck at home, people started buying flowers anyway - to brighten kitchen tables and Zoom backgrounds, to mark time when weeks blurred together. Grocery stores and even convenience stores leaned into the demand.



“It became almost like therapy,” said Julie Campbell, the study’s lead author and a horticulture professor. “The habit stuck around.”



That collective turn inward sparked new growth outdoors. From 2017 to 2022, open-field flower acreage in the U.S. more than doubled. 



Much of that expansion came from small and mid-sized farms growing stems that don’t ship well - zinnias, dahlias, snapdragons - varieties that explode with color but wilt on long-haul flights.



Rather than compete with mass-produced roses from the Andes, these growers staked out a complementary niche: seasonal, local, and often more diverse.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-local-farms-find-their-niche">Local farms find their niche</h2>



Today’s bouquets are often a collage of origins. One sleeve might hold Ecuadorian roses, California ranunculus, and Georgia-grown <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/urban-wildflowers-may-be-harming-bees/">wildflowers</a>, all in the same mix.



Consumers seem comfortable with that blend, and many are learning to read seasonality the way they do with produce: peonies in late spring, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/sunflower-family-tree-explains-evolution-of-flower-symmetry/">sunflowers</a> in midsummer, chrysanthemums in fall.



For domestic growers, that seasonality is an advantage. It allows them to sell what travels poorly and tell a fresher story - field to vase instead of farm to table. For retailers, it’s an opportunity to meet shoppers where they already are.



The UGA study suggests that people inclined to toss a bouquet in the cart also value other small home upgrades. In other words, flowers are converging with the broader “home as haven” mindset that accelerated during the pandemic and never really retreated.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-flowers-are-no-longer-just-gifts">Flowers are no longer just gifts</h2>



If there’s one throughline in the data, it’s diversity of intent. Flowers are still gifts, of course, but self-purchase is no longer niche. 



The “everything” buyers - those who grab stems for birthdays, apologies, Tuesdays, and everything in between - anchor the market, yet the once-a-year romantics and the treat-yourself crowd matter too.



That mix is why bouquets now show up in so many retail formats. A pharmacy endcap might catch the anniversary buyer; a grocery display might tempt the self-care shopper who wants tulips with their tomatoes.



It also helps explain the emotional payoffs respondents described. <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/flower-quality-is-a-critical-driver-of-bee-abundance/">Fresh flowers</a> are a fast, visible change in a room and an affordable luxury compared to furniture or renovations. 



That hit of beauty, scent, and novelty can feel outsize relative to the spend, which reinforces repeat purchases.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-where-the-industry-goes-next"><a></a>Where the industry goes next</h2>



Policy and logistics will continue to shape the landscape - trade agreements, air freight costs, and climate impacts all ripple into what appears in the bucket by the checkout. But the UGA team’s work points to a few practical implications now.



Retailers can segment more intelligently, tailoring assortments and messaging to different buyer types rather than assuming a single use case. 



Growers can lean into their strengths - distinctive, local, and seasonal - without trying to displace imports that excel at year-round volume. 



And marketers can speak to well-being without overpromising: flowers won’t solve life’s problems, but they routinely make spaces feel better, and people notice.



Perhaps the biggest takeaway is the simplest: Americans are still buying flowers - and not just to hand to someone else.



Whether it’s a dozen <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/why-do-delicate-roses-have-such-harsh-prickles/">roses</a> flown in from Colombia or a handful of dahlias clipped from a nearby farm, fresh stems have become an everyday indulgence. 



They sit by the sink, brighten a desk, bookend the produce aisle, and remind us, in small ways, why bringing a bit of the outside in still resonates.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://journals.ashs.org/view/journals/horttech/35/3/article-p286.xml" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">HortTechnology</a>.



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Why more people are buying flowers for everyday therapy

Once upon a time, you went to a florist for a bouquet. Now you can grab one next to the spinach, at the pharmacy counter, even by the chips at a gas station. As fresh flowers have spilled out of specialty shops and into everyday retail, their place in our lives - and who’s buying them - has changed fast. Researchers at the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences wanted to know what, exactly, is going on. They teamed up across horticulture and agricultural...

Agriculture,,Sugarcane,Field,At,Sunset.,Sugarcane,Is,A,Grass,Of

Bioenergy is derived from the use of materials produced by living organisms. It is considered to be more environmentally friendly than fossil fuels because it is sustainable and does not add any extra carbon dioxide to the atmosphere than would be added if the organism had been left to die and decay. Corn and sugar cane, for example, can be used to produce combustible materials such as pellets for fuel once the corn kernels and sugar have been removed.&nbsp;



Although there have been debates about using land to grow <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/some-crops-have-higher-yields-in-an-urban-environment/">crops</a> for bioenergy at the expense of growing crops for human food, biofuels such as sustainably grown wood, ethanol from sugar cane and corn, and methane gas from decomposing manure, are all currently produced and used in various parts of the world. It is clear that biofuels provide a useful alternative to fossil fuels and could form part of a strategy for reducing dependence on petrochemicals while at the same time still producing enough energy to meet demand.



However, research led by scientists at the <a href="https://www.york.ac.uk/">University of York</a> has found that climate change is likely to reduce the availability of biomass for energy production because crop yields will decrease in future. The experts warn that as temperatures rise, the window of opportunity to maximize the use of biomass from plants, wood and waste as a renewable energy source and an alternative to petrochemicals will start closing.



“Biomass fuels and feedstocks offer a renewable source of energy and a viable alternative to petrochemicals, but the results of our study act as a stark warning about how climate change will put their availability at risk if we continue to allow global temperatures to rise," said study co-author &nbsp;<a href="https://www.york.ac.uk/chemistry/staff/academic/a-c/jclark/">Professor James Clark</a>.



“There is a tipping point where climate change will severely impede our ability to mitigate against its worst effects. Biomass with carbon capture and storage, including the manufacture of bio-based chemicals, must be used now if we are to maximize its advantage."



In the latest report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and in many assessments of climate mitigation, bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) has been highlighted as a crucial element of the strategy for meeting the target of 2 °C or 1.5 °C warming set out in the Paris Agreement. BECCS is a geo-engineering <a href="https://www.fern.org/fileadmin/uploads/fern/Documents/Fern%20BECCS%20briefing_0.pdf">technique</a> that, in addition to being an alternative for fossil fuel energy, stores carbon and prevents it from entering the atmosphere as carbon dioxide (CO2). This makes it a negative emissions technology.



The IPPC has suggested that the potential range of negative emissions from BECCS is between 0 and 22 gigatons per year, but as of 2019 only five facilities around the world were actively using BECCS technologies. In total they were capturing approximately 1.5 million tons of CO2 per year.&nbsp;



The researchers found that if urgent action is not taken to reduce fossil fuels in favor of bioenergy and other renewables, climate change will decrease crop yields - reducing the availability of biomass in future. Declining food production is also likely to lead people to clear natural landscapes in favor of croplands, which will further increase greenhouse gas emissions from land use change and further accelerate the rate of climate change.&nbsp;



For example, the modeling showed that when the implementation of large-scale BECCS technology is delayed from 2040 to 2060, the yields of agricultural residue for use in biomass technologies would be reduced and this would negatively impact the capacity of BECCS to be effective. The experts said that this would lead to an increase in global warming from 1.7 to 3.7°C by 2200, which would cause crops to be less productive, resulting in a decrease in global average daily crop calories per capita from 2.1 million calories to 1.5 million calories.



The researchers calculate that in this scenario, the scale of the food trade would need to increase by 80 percent from 2019 levels in order to avoid severe food shortages in many parts of the developing world worst affected by climate change.&nbsp;



Professor Clark added: “If negative-carbon mitigation technologies relying on biomass could be widely deployed in the short term, there is still hope that we can alleviate global warming and a global food crisis.”



The study is published in the journal <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41586-022-05055-8">Nature</a>.



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By <a href="mailto:bosman@truewan.co.za">Alison Bosman</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Bioenergy can slow climate change - but the window is closing

Bioenergy is derived from the use of materials produced by...

A new study led by the <a href="https://www.calpoly.edu/">California Polytechnic State University</a> and the <a href="http://www.unm.edu/">University of New Mexico</a> (UNM) has found that stock market investors predict that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/cannabis-legalization-reduces-designer-drug-poisonings/">cannabis legalization</a> may reduce conventional pharmaceutical sales by billions of dollars. 



By analyzing how the stock market returns of publicly traded pharmaceutical firms responded to medical and recreational cannabis legalization events, the experts discovered that stock market returns were 1.5 to two percent lower at ten days following a cannabis legalization event, and that the implication for the annual sales from this reduction were in the billions of dollars.



While previous studies have investigated how cannabis access reduces the consumption of various types of medications, such as opioids, or focused on its impact on certain groups, like Medicaid patients, this is the first study to comprehensively analyze the overall effect of cannabis legalization on pharmaceutical firms across all products and types of patients.&nbsp;



Since the cost of pharmaceutical products remains a critical barrier to healthcare for many Americans, cannabis could offer a more affordable solution. Moreover, unlike other drugs which are designed to target specific health conditions, cannabis is used to treat a wide variety of problems – ranging from headaches and muscle spasms to depression or anxiety. These factors could make cannabis a major competitor in drug markets, which – in a scenario of full federal legalization – could reduce conventional pharmaceutical sales by 11 percent, regardless of the fact that currently, there is no standardization, clear dosing instructions, or health insurance coverage related to cannabis use.



&nbsp;“Currently, cannabis patients and their providers have little information to guide them towards the most effective treatment for their condition,” said study co-author Sarah Stith, an expert in Applied Microeconomy at UNM. 



“The future of cannabis medicine lies in understanding the prevalence and effects of the plants’ components beyond THC and CBD and identifying ways to categorize cannabis by measurable characteristics that are known to yield specific effects. Mimicking conventional pharmaceuticals through standardization may not be the optimal endpoint for cannabis, as the variability inherent in the cannabis plant is likely driving its ability to treat so many conditions.”&nbsp;



Thus, conventional pharmaceutical manufacturers may benefit from investing in cannabis markets rather than lobbying against them, while regulatory policies should facilitate further research to clarify the risks and benefits of using cannabis for both medical and recreational purposes.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0272492">PLoS ONE</a>.



&nbsp;---



By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer&nbsp;&nbsp;

Pharmaceutical companies could lose billions to cannabis

A new study led by the California Polytechnic State University...

Corn earworm (Helicoverpa zea) is considered by some to be the most costly crop pest in North America. Also known as tomato fruitworm, sorghum headworm, vetchworm, and cotton bollworm, this pest feeds on over a hundred different plant species, favoring the buds, flowers and fruits for forage. This results in extensive damage to many important <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/soil-quality-can-help-crops-survive-rising-temperatures/">crops</a> each year. The pest is not a worm, but the larva of a moth that flies strongly and is able to migrate up to 400km in its lifetime, depositing eggs along the way.



In the past, corn earworms have been found to occur in North America up to the latitude of around 40o. Further north than this was always too cold for the larvae to survive the winter. However, with climate changing it is possible that the species’ distribution on the continent will change and that farmers, whose crops were previously spared the ravages of this insect, may find themselves in the line of sight. Although the species feeds preferentially on corn ears, it also infests crops such as tomatoes, peas, cabbage, lettuce, okra, peppers, spinach, pumpkin and sweet potatoes.&nbsp;



A new study from scientists at the <a href="https://www.ncsu.edu/">North Carolina State University</a> has proposed that soil temperature can help predict the success of corn earworm pests and therefore prepare farmers to protect their crops as global warming advances. The research, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, shows that soil temperature can be a good predictor of where the pest will survive successfully over the winter, and this will enable farmers in those areas to use pesticides more effectively, thus reducing the financial and environmental impacts of this practice.&nbsp;



The researchers combined historical soil temperature data with long-term population data on corn earworms, along with information on how the pest survives cold conditions in a lab setting to better understand “overwintering success,” or how well the pest can survive underground during the colder winter months.&nbsp;



Greater overwintering success can expand the areas where the pest can live and thrive, the researchers say, as the pest can migrate long distances. Generally, greater overwintering success in more northern latitudes increases the potential for crop damage from this pest further north. Climate change also affects overwintering success.



“There is a preconceived notion that pests have little overwintering success north of 40 degrees latitude,” said study co-author Douglas Lawton, a former NC State postdoctoral researcher. “That may have been true in the 1930s, but now we have more data-guided evidence to ask and answer the question, ‘Where can this species actually overwinter?’”



The researchers identified three overwintering suitability zones throughout North America, based on four decades of soil temperature data. These geographic zones included a “Southern Range” where pests predictably survive over the winter months, a “Northern Limits” area where pests are generally unable to survive during winter months, and a “Transitional Zone” in between the northern and southern areas, where pests may or may not survive the winter depending on the weather.&nbsp;



“These areas are biologically relevant and supported through studies in the lab and the academic literature,” Lawton said.



The researchers used the three zones to show historical trends for corn earworm populations, and then used a model to make predictions about pest spread in future.&nbsp; They show that the Southern Range has expanded by 3 percent since 1981; strikingly, the model predicts that this region, where corn earworm survival is a given, will double in size by the end of the century and will shift well to the north. The other two zones are predicted to shrink in size during this time.&nbsp;



“As the climate changes, the overwintering zones are likely to shift northward,” said Anders Huseth, assistant professor of entomology at NC State and the paper’s other co-corresponding author.



These changes suggest larger populations of the pest may persist at higher latitudes in the future due to reduced low temperature lethal events during winter. In addition, because H. zea is a highly migratory pest, predicting when populations accumulate in one region can inform the likely population changes in other regions, explain the authors.&nbsp;



“This is the canary in the coal mine for agricultural pests,” said Professor Huseth. “Making sense of what’s taking place with this pest is really important for agricultural producers. We’ve shown here the element of uncertainty that can have demonstrable effects on farmers and potentially new opportunities for pesticide resistance selection. Our models visualize that change and provide touchstones for pest management.”



“Now we’d like to come up with a better forecasting tool for this pest, along with a risk-prediction model, in order to give growers better information about pest spread. Success here could reduce both costs for farmers and pesticide into the environment.”



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By <a href="mailto:bosman@truewan.co.za">Alison Bosman</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Crop pest will spread northward as soil temperatures warm

Corn earworm (Helicoverpa zea) is considered by some to be...

A new study led by the <a href="https://www.exeter.ac.uk/">University of Exeter</a> has revealed that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/bumblebees-are-waking-up-too-early-from-hibernation/">honeybees</a> are not just looking for colors, but also patterns, while hunting for flowers to feed on.&nbsp;



Honeybees can see at a resolution that is about 100 times lower than humans. This low-resolution vision does not allow them to see a flower's pattern clearly until they are within a few centimeters.&nbsp;



But now, the Exeter team has discovered that bees can distinguish between different flowers by using a combination of color and pattern.



For the investigation, the researchers set out to gain a better understanding of how bees see flowers. In a series of tests, the bees rarely ignored flower patterns while foraging. This indicates that bees do not rely on color alone to find flowers.&nbsp;



"We analyzed a large amount of data on plants and bee behavior," said Professor Natalie Hempel de Ibarra, from Exeter's Centre for Research in Animal Behaviour. "By training and testing bees using artificial patterns of shape and colour, we found they relied flexibly on their ability to see both of these elements."



"Showing how insects see color and learn color patterns is important to understand how pollinators may, or may not, create evolutionary 'pressures' on the colors and patterns that flowers have evolved."



"Our findings suggest that flowers don't need to evolve too many different petal colors, because they can use patterns to diversify their displays so bees can tell them apart from other flowers."



The experts also noticed one striking feature that consistently stood out to them among flowers: the outside edges usually contrasted with the plant's foliage, but this contrast was not found in the center of the flower. This may help bees identify color differences quickly.&nbsp;



Professor Hempel de Ibarra emphasized that understanding more about bees – and the threats they face – means that we need to see the world "through the eyes of a bee and the mind of a bee."



The research is published in a special issue of the journal <a href="https://royalsocietypublishing.org/journal/rstb">Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B</a>.



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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

Flower patterns help honeybees find food

A new study led by the University of Exeter has...

The crapemyrtle bark scale is an <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/pitcher-plants-harness-rain-energy-to-capture-insects/">insect</a> pest that destroys trees by feeding on their sap. The insect has long mouth parts that penetrate the tree bark, and a protective wax on its back that shields the pest from insecticides. After it was introduced from Asia to Texas in 2004, the invasive insect has rapidly spread across 17 states in the Southern US.



In a new study from the <a href="https://www.tamu.edu/">Texas A&amp;M</a> College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, researchers have developed a remote system to identify host plants of crapemyrtle bark scale. The monitoring system, which uses electrical penetration graph (EPG) and custom software, could potentially eliminate the need for intensive greenhouse studies.



According to the researchers, crapemyrtle sales have an annual economic value of $69.5 million. The crapemyrtle bark scale has managed to cut this market in half.&nbsp;



“It’s imperative to control this pest because it can spread quickly and potentially threaten the green industry and ecosystem,” said study lead author Dr. Bin Wu. “Our research is to figure out the host range, or what kind of plant species besides crapemyrtle are exposed to this."



Using the EPG monitoring system, the team can track the probing activities of the insect. The EPG waveforms allow the researchers to observe what nutrients the crapemyrtle bark scale insect extracts from its host.



“Through those observations and determining what nutrients were being taken away, we were able to consider which were most likely host plants,” explained Wu.



Study co-author Dr. Runshi Xie said scale insects such as the crapemyrtle bark scale are interesting species with diverse genetic systems, and some of them reproduce asexually.



“The female leads a very sedentary lifestyle,” said Xie. “They are pretty much waiting on the male, which is a fly, to instigate mating behavior. For the male to find a female, the female must release a sex pheromone. Our next research project will seek out what compounds are released, and how to use them to disrupt mating."



“Right now, the control of this insect is the use of systemic pesticides. But the insects are protected by scale covering, which makes spraying ineffective. To treat chemically, we need to drench the soil to deliver the chemicals into plants, and insects feeding on the sap will die. However, this practice is also detrimental to pollinators. Our focus will be to see if we can come up with novel systems that control insects without relying too much on pesticides.”



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/journal/insects">Insects</a>.



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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

Remote monitoring may save crapemyrtles from invasive pests

The crapemyrtle bark scale is an insect pest that destroys...

Monitoring forest ecosystems is highly challenging, since it generally needs a combination of software, collection systems, and computing environments which require increasing amounts of energy to function properly. Now, a research team from the University of Maine’s <a href="https://umaine.edu/wisenetlab/">Wireless Sensor Networks (WiSe-Net) Laboratory</a> has developed an innovative method of using artificial intelligence and machine learning algorithms to make monitoring soil moisture more energy- and cost-efficient.



Soil moisture is an important variable in both forested and agricultural ecosystems, particularly under drought conditions, such as Maine experienced over the past summers. However, regardless of the robust soil moisture monitoring networks and the large, freely available databases, the high costs of using such technologies can be prohibited for researchers, farmers, or foresters investigating these issues.



By designing a wireless sensor network that uses artificial intelligence to learn how to be more energy efficient in monitoring soil moisture and processing the data, the scientists hope to significantly reduce the costs involved in such activities.&nbsp;



“AI can learn from the environment, predict the wireless link quality and incoming solar energy to efficiently use limited energy and make a robust low cost network run longer and more reliably,” explained study co-author Adi Abedi, a professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Maine.



“Soil moisture is a primary driver of tree growth, but it changes rapidly, both daily as well as seasonally,” added study co-author Aaron Weiskittel, the director of the <a href="https://crsf.umaine.edu/">Center for Research on Sustainable Forests</a> at the University of Maine.&nbsp;



“We have lacked the ability to monitor effectively at scale. Historically, we used expensive sensors that collected at fixed intervals — every minute, for example — but were not very reliable. A cheaper and more robust sensor with wireless capabilities like this really opens the door for future applications for researchers and practitioners alike.”



Although this newly designed system focuses only on soil moisture, scientists hope that the same methodology could be extended to other types of sensors that could reliably measure features such as ambient temperature or snow depth.



The study is published in the <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10776-022-00572-9">International Journal of Wireless Information Networks</a>.&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer&nbsp;&nbsp;

Experts are using AI to monitor forests in Maine

Monitoring forest ecosystems is highly challenging, since it generally needs...

Avocado <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/pheromones-could-help-get-deadly-palm-weevils-under-control/">weevils</a> are small beetles with long snouts that drill through fruit to lay their eggs, with their grubs or larvae boring into avocado seeds to feed, and rendering these fruits inedible. Now, a team of researchers from the <a href="https://www.ucr.edu/">University of California, Riverside</a> (UCR) has set to find ways of preventing the “evil” weevils from destroying California’s supply of avocadoes.&nbsp;



“They’re extremely hard to control because they spend most of their time deep inside the fruit, where they’re very well protected from insecticides and natural enemies,” said UCR entomologist Mark Hoddle.



Since these insects are highly reclusive, they are rather understudied, with information about them hard to come by. “All books on avocado pest management will tell you these weevils are bad. They’re well recognized, serious pests of avocados, but we know practically nothing about them,” Hoddle explained.



While a common strategy of controlling weevils is to introduce other insects that feed on them, it will most likely fail to work in this case, since the natural enemies of these pests are extremely rare in areas where weevils are native, such as Mexico. Thus, to combat avocado weevils in Mexico and to prevent them from being introduced into California, Hoddle and his colleagues set to identify these creatures’ specific pheromones – chemicals insects produce and release into the environment to be “smelled” by their conspecifics in order to guide their foraging or mating behaviors.



“We could flood avocado orchards with so much pheromone that males and females can’t find each other, and therefore can’t reproduce,” Hoddle said. “This would reduce damage to fruit and enable growers to use less insecticides.”&nbsp;



Other pheromone-directed control strategies could include mass trappings, using the pheromones as a lure, or an “attract-and-kill” approach, where the pheromones attract the weevils to small but lethal sources of insecticide.



In an initial phase of this project, the scientists collected weevil pheromones from an area in Mexico with large weevil populations, and attempted to synthesize them in the laboratory. “Weevil pheromones have complicated structures. When they’re made in a lab, they can have left- or right-handed forms,” said Hoddle.&nbsp;



Until now, the team made a mixture of both forms to see if the blend would work as an attractant. However, weevils did not seem to be particularly attracted to it, suggesting that one of the forms in the blend could be antagonizing the response to the other. In a next step, the researchers aim to synthesize the individual forms of the chemicals and test the weevil’s response to each in Mexican avocado orchards.&nbsp;



---



By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer&nbsp;&nbsp;

Weevil pheromones could save California’s avocado orchards

Avocado weevils are small beetles with long snouts that drill...

Edible seaweed is a superfood that contains a large variety of vitamins, minerals and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/olive-varieties-contain-different-levels-of-antioxidants/">antioxidants</a>. Now scientists at <a href="https://english.tau.ac.il/">Tel Aviv University</a> are exploring ways to enrich seaweed and use it as a global, sustainable food crop.&nbsp;



Led by PhD student Doron Ashkenazi, the team has been carrying out research on a local algae, Ulva gracilaria. The researchers are growing the seaweed near fish farming operations where it becomes "enriched" and especially nutritious.&nbsp;



“Seaweed can be regarded as a natural superfood, more abundant in the necessary components of the human diet than other food sources,” said Ashkenazi. “Through the technological approach we developed, a farm owner or entrepreneur will be able to plan in advance a production line of seaweed rich in the substances in which they are interested, which can be used as health foods or nutritional supplements; for example, seaweed with a particularly high level of protein, seaweed rich in minerals such as iron, iodine, calcium, magnesium, and zinc, or in special pigments or antioxidants."&nbsp;



"The enriched seaweed can be used to help populations suffering from malnutrition and nutritional deficiencies, for example disadvantaged populations around the world, as well as supplements to a vegetarian or vegan diet.”



Seaweed farming has advantages over traditional crops when it comes to growing as well. Unlike most agriculture, the aquaculture of seaweed requires no large amounts of land and no freshwater inputs. Seaweed grown near coasts also acts as a buffer, reducing nutrient loading, often due to fertilizer runoff.&nbsp;



Overall, seaweed is a “green” crop that lowers greenhouse gas emissions. Therefore, it could be the perfect crop to feed a growing world population in a time of environmental crises.&nbsp;



“Technologies of this type are undoubtedly a model for a better future for humanity, a future where humans live in idyll and in health in their environment," said Ashkenazi.



This research was published in the journal <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1466856422001527">Innovative Food Science &amp; Emerging Technologies</a>.



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By <a href="mailto:nire518@gmail.com">Erin Moody </a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Seaweed “superfood” could help ease global food crisis

Edible seaweed is a superfood that contains a large variety...

Hydroquinine is an organic compound, closely related to quinine, that has proven anti-malarial and anti-arrhythmia properties. It occurs naturally in the bark of some tree species and has been the focus of attention by researchers recently because they thought it may have the potential to fight against antibiotic resistant <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/antibiotic-resistant-bacteria-can-jump-between-healthy-pets-and-owners/">bacteria</a>. The phenomenon of multi-drug resistant microbes has become a global health burden in the past few decades, and there is a pressing need for the development of new antimicrobial drugs to combat infections.



When bacteria are exposed to an antibiotic multiple times, new strains of the bacteria evolve that are resistant to the drug. This means that the resistant bacteria are no longer controlled or killed by the antibiotics. In fact, they survive and are even able to multiply in the presence of an antibiotic to which they have developed resistance. As a consequence of this, the treatment of bacterial infections has become more complex and less effective. Researchers are constantly searching for new types of antimicrobial drugs to take the place of those that no longer work against the resistant strains.



Scientists from the <a href="https://www.port.ac.uk/">University of Portsmouth</a> and the Naresuan and Pibulsongkram Rajabhat Universities in Thailand have now investigated whether hydroquinine is effective at inhibiting the growth or reproduction of eight different strains of bacteria, including Streptococcus aureus,&nbsp;Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Enterobacter cloacae. These pathogens are commonly resistant to multiple drugs and cause infections in patients with burn wounds, cystic fibrosis, skin lesions and pneumonia, both in hospital settings and in communities. Although hydroquinine is a tried and tested remedy against malaria, its antibacterial properties have not yet been determined.



In the findings of this research, published in the journal <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/tropicalmed7080156">Tropical Medicine and Infectious Disease</a>, the scientists show that hydroquinine inhibited all the strains of bacteria tested, and even killed them if the concentration of the compound was high enough. &nbsp;



“Using bacterial killing experiments, we found that hydroquinine was able to kill several microorganisms, including the common multidrug-resistant pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa," said <a href="https://researchportal.port.ac.uk/en/persons/robbie-baldock">Dr. Robert Baldock</a>&nbsp;from the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.port.ac.uk/about-us/structure-and-governance/organisational-structure/our-academic-structure/faculty-of-science-and-health/school-of-pharmacy-and-biomedical-sciences">School of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences</a>&nbsp;at the University of Portsmouth.



"Characteristically, we also discovered that one of the main mechanisms used by these bacteria to escape killing activity of the drug was upregulated with treatment – indicating a robust response from the bacteria.”



“By studying this compound further, our hope is that it may in future offer another line of treatment in combatting bacterial infections,” he added.&nbsp;



Drug-resistant bacteria occur in more than 2.8 million infections and are responsible for 35,000 deaths per year. Common antibiotic-resistant “superbugs” cause diseases including sepsis, urinary tract infections, and pneumonia. Statistics show bloodstream infections by the bacterium P. aeruginosa can be associated with high mortality rates of between 30 and 50 percent.&nbsp;



The experts conclude that hydroquinine has antibacterial properties and can inhibit and kill several strains of clinically important bacteria. However, the researchers emphasize that further research is necessary in order to understand the mechanism by which the compound acts in order to have the observed effect on the pathogens. They also recommend that future studies address the potential side effects of using hydroquinine.&nbsp;



Dr Jirapas Jongjitwimol from the Department of Medical Technology at Naresuan University added: “Our future research aims to uncover the molecular target of hydroquinine. This would help our understanding of how the compound works against pathogenic bacteria and how it could potentially be used in a clinical setting.”



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By <a href="mailto:bosman@truewan.co.za">Alison Bosman</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Tree compound can kill drug-resistant bacteria

Hydroquinine is an organic compound, closely related to quinine, that...

An international team of researchers led by the <a href="https://www.uni-halle.de/?lang=en">Martin Luther University, Halle-Wittenberg</a> (MLU) has&nbsp;recently conducted an analysis of worldwide patterns of plant species richness, based on the largest collection of global vegetation-plot data ever compiled. The results have been published in the journal&nbsp;<a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41467-022-32063-z">Nature Communications</a>&nbsp;and could be used to focus conservation efforts in areas where the diversity of plant species is the highest.&nbsp;



The experts analyzed species richness of vascular plants counted in around 170,000 vegetation plots from all of the Earth’s climate zones. The data included information on all of the vascular plant species found at a location and the coordinates of the respective area under study. The data was taken from the globally unique vegetation database called “sPlot,” which is located at <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_Centre_for_Integrative_Biodiversity_Research_(iDiv)">iDiv</a>, and species richness in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/past-variability-may-help-forests-cope-with-climate-change/">forests</a> and non-forests were considered separately. 



“Most studies on global biodiversity are conducted on a relatively large scale, for example at a state or provincial scale. We wanted to find out how much results differ when smaller areas are examined,” explained Professor Helge Bruelheide from MLU. The team used artificial intelligence to investigate, among other things, the relationship between the number of plant species and the size of the area under study.&nbsp;They considered species richness in plots of 400m2, 1,000m2, and 1ha (10,000m2) in area, with the aim of identifying areas where species richness is consistently high at all these scales, and areas where species richness varies depending on the scale of sampling.&nbsp;



The results showed that some forest areas - such as in Borneo, New Guinea, Madagascar, eastern South Africa and the Andean-Amazonian foothills - are hotspots for plant biodiversity irrespective of the size of the sample plots. Conversely, the researchers observed high plant diversity when plot size was small, but low plant diversity when plot size was large, in many temperate regions including the Eastern European forest-steppe belt, East Asia and southeastern Australia.



The researchers state that there are areas on Earth where focusing on large study plots only provides a limited understanding of the distribution of biodiversity: sometimes small areas can have a relatively high biodiversity, for example in the steppes of Eastern Europe, in Siberia and in the Alpine countries of Europe. At fine spatial scales, the large difference in biodiversity between the tropics, like the Amazon, and the temperate climate zones nearly disappears.&nbsp;



The same applies to the African tropics, which were previously considered an exception in the tropical plant world. “The tropics have always been among the most biodiverse areas in the world. We wondered why this shouldn’t also apply to Western Africa,” explained Dr. Francesco Maria Sabatini who led the study while at MLU and is now an assistant professor at the University of Bologna. In fact, the distribution of plant species varies greatly in the African tropics, noted Dr. Sabatini. These species are distributed over very large distances, so that they are not always recorded when a small sampling area is examined. “To correctly recognize the high biodiversity in Western Africa many small areas are required."



The current research also enabled the scientists to identify which environmental and biogeographic factors drive species diversity of vascular plants. Interestingly enough, although ecoregion, annual mean temperature, and temperature of the warmest and wettest quarters of the year explained some of the variation in species richness patterns globally, the factor with the largest influence in shaping diversity patterns was the size of the sample plot.&nbsp;



Although the study was based on a very large collection of global vegetation-plot data, there are still many biogeographical regions where vegetation data is not available. Most of the data points were in Europe and other countries with a strong tradition of vegetation surveys, while the coverage of tropical areas, especially the Amazon and equatorial Africa, was poor.



Despite these limitations, the researchers feel that their analysis provides important insights and is a step forward in mapping global plant diversity. The results are also important when it comes to protecting species. “Ecosystems whose high biodiversity is spread out over a large area cannot be protected through the traditional patchwork of nature reserves. In contrast, ecosystems that have a high biodiversity within a small area could benefit well from several distinct protected zones,” concluded Bruelheide. &nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:bosman@truewan.co.za">Alison Bosman</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Plant biodiversity hotspots can be found on small scales

An international team of researchers led by the Martin Luther...

A widespread stereotype of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/cannabis-use-is-up-by-20-percent-in-states-where-its-legal/">cannabis</a> users – possibly emerging from a variety of movies and TV series - is that they are generally lazy, apathetic, and largely unable to enjoy life. However, a new study led by the <a href="https://www.cam.ac.uk/">University of Cambridge</a> and <a href="https://www.kcl.ac.uk/">King’s College London</a> has found that adult and adolescent users are no more likely than non-users to lack motivation or experience pleasure, suggesting that there is no scientific basis for the stereotype often portrayed in the media.



The scientists recruited 274 adult and adolescent who had used cannabis at least weekly over the past three months (with an average of four times per week) and compared them with a cohort of non-users of the same age and gender to test whether users show higher levels of apathy (loss of motivation) and anhedonia (loss of interest in or pleasure from rewards). While users scored slightly lower on anhedonia, there was no difference when it came to apathy.



“We were surprised to see that there was really very little difference between cannabis users and non-users when it came to lack of motivation or lack of enjoyment, even among those who used cannabis every day. This is contrary to the stereotypical portrayal we see on TV and in movies,” said study lead author Martine Skumlien, a doctoral student in Psychiatry at Cambridge.



Although adolescents tended to score higher than adults on anhedonia and apathy in both cannabis user and non-user groups, cannabis did not seem to significantly augment this this difference.&nbsp;



“There’s been a lot of concern that cannabis use in adolescence might lead to worse outcomes than cannabis use during adulthood. But our study, one of the first to directly compare adolescents and adults who use cannabis, suggests that adolescents are no more vulnerable than adults to the harmful effects of cannabis on motivation, the experience of pleasure, or the brain’s response to reward,” explained study co-author Will Lawn, an expert in addiction at King’s College.



“In fact, it seems cannabis may have no link – or at most only weak associations – with these outcomes in general. However, we need studies that look for these associations over a long period of time to confirm these findings.”



This confirms the results of a previous <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41386-022-01316-2">study</a> that used functional magnetic resonance imagery (fMRI) to assess cannabis’ impact on the brain’s reward processing centers, and found no relationship between activity in this brain region and cannabis use.



“We’re so used to seeing ‘lazy stoners’ on our screens that we don’t stop to ask whether they’re an accurate representation of cannabis users. Our work implies that this is in itself a lazy stereotype, and that people who use cannabis are no more likely to lack motivation or be lazier than people who don’t. Unfair assumptions can be stigmatizing and could get in the way of messages around harm reduction. We need to be honest and frank about what are and are not the harmful consequences of drug use,” Dr. Skumlien concluded.



The study is published in the International Journal of <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/ijnp/pyac056">Neuropsychopharmacology</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:andrei.ionescu5891@gmail.com">Andrei Ionescu</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer&nbsp;&nbsp;

Cannabis users do not lack motivation or enjoyment

A widespread stereotype of cannabis users – possibly emerging from...

Forests are in a delicate dance with climate change. They absorb massive amounts of carbon dioxide and host abundant biodiversity, but are increasingly threatened by disturbances associated with climate change, such as extreme weather and wildfires.&nbsp;



A new study quantifies risks to forests across carbon storage, biodiversity and forest loss from disturbance, such as fire or drought. The results show that in some regions, forests are experiencing clear and consistent risks. In other regions, the risk profile is less clear.



“Large uncertainty in most regions highlights that there's a lot more scientific study that's urgently needed,” explained William Anderegg, inaugural director of the University of Utah’s <a href="https://wilkescenter.utah.edu/">Wilkes Center for Climate Science and Policy</a>.



Anderegg assembled a team of researchers from the United Kingdom, Germany, Portugal and Sweden. Their task was to assess climate risks to the world’s forests that span many continents and host vastly different biodiversity.



Previous research has investigated one dimension of climate risk, either carbon storage, biodiversity, or risk of forest loss. For this new global analysis the team went after all three dimensions.



“These dimensions of risk are all important and, in many cases, complementary. They capture different aspects of forest resilience or vulnerability,” said Anderegg.&nbsp;&nbsp;



Carbon storage: Forests absorb about a quarter of the carbon dioxide that’s emitted into the atmosphere, buffering the planet from the effects of rising atmospheric carbon dioxide. The results showed that global gains in carbon storage can be expected by the end of the century. The researchers also found higher risk of carbon loss in southern boreal (just south of the Arctic) forests and the drier regions of the Amazon and African tropics.



Biodiversity: the researchers found that the highest risk of ecosystems shifting from one “life zone” to another due to climate change could be found at boundaries of biomes – at the current transition between temperate and boreal forests. Forests of the boreal regions and western North America faced the greatest risk of biodiversity loss.



Disturbance: The risk of events like drought, fire or insect damage that could wipe out forests. Using satellite data and observations of disturbances between 2002 and 2014, the researchers projected future temperatures and precipitation to see how much more frequent these events could become. The boreal forests, again, face high risk under these conditions - as well as the tropics.&nbsp;&nbsp;



“Forests store an immense amount of carbon and slow the pace of climate change,” said Anderegg. “They harbor the vast majority of Earth's biodiversity. And they can be quite vulnerable to disturbances like severe fire or drought. Thus, it's important to consider each of these aspects and dimensions when thinking about the future of Earth's forests in a rapidly changing climate.”



Based on these results, Western North America seems to have a consistently high risk to forests. Preserving these forests will require action.&nbsp;



“First we have to realize that the quicker we tackle climate change, the lower the risks in the West will be,” said Anderegg. “Second, we can start to plan for increasing risk and manage forests to reduce risk, like fires.”



The recently-launched Wilkes Center for Climate Science and Policy at the University of Utah aims to provide cutting-edge science and tools for decision-makers in the US and across the globe. For this study, the authors built a <a href="https://wilkescenter.utah.edu/tools/globalforestclimaterisk/">visualization tool of the results</a> for stakeholders and decision-makers.&nbsp;&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:katherinebucko@gmail.com">Katherine Bucko</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Climate risks threaten the future of the world's forests

Forests are in a delicate dance with climate change. They...

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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

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

<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.

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Mid-July is an opportune time to kick-start a thriving fall garden, and this guide lays out the best vegetables and herbs to plant now for a fruitful autumn harvest. 



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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What to plant in your garden in mid-July

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

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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Wildlife tunnels save millions of amphibians

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

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



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



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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...

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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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

Nushagak Bay in southwest Alaska

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

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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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



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Flu viruses are more flexible than expected

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

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



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



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



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



Video/Image Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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

Lake Trasimeno in Central Italy

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

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



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



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



Video Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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



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

Detecting mercury contamination with the tap of a finger

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

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



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



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



Video Credit: ACS Reactions



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



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

How does salt makes things taste better?

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

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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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



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

Santiago, Chile in South America

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

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: Johns Hopkins&nbsp;



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



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

Interactive map of the universe includes 200,000 galaxies

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

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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;&nbsp;



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



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

Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky"

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

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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



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

The city of Dublin on Ireland's east coast

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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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