Earth News, Earth Science, Energy Technology, Environment News

January 21, 2016

Nearing the limits of life on Earth
Montreal, Canada (SPX) Jan 20, 2016
It took Jackie Goordial over 1000 Petri dishes before she was ready to accept what she was seeing. Or not seeing. Goordial, a post-doctoral fellow in the Department of Natural Resource Sciences at McGill University has spent the past four years looking for signs of active microbial life in permafrost soil taken from one of the coldest, oldest and driest places on Earth: in University Valley, located in the high elevation McMurdo Dry Valleys of Antarctica, where extremely cold and dry conditions have per ... read more

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Assessing the impact of human-induced climate change The past century has seen a 0.8C (1.4 F) increase in average global temperature, and according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the overwhelming source of this increase has b ... more		Study maps temperature increases caused by CO2 Earth's temperature has increased by 1C over the past century, and most of this warming has been caused by carbon dioxide emissions. But what does that mean locally? A new study published in Nature ... more		200 million-year-old Jurassic dinosaur uncovered in Wales A new carnivorous dinosaur species named Dracoraptor hanigani uncovered in the south of Wales is possibly the oldest known Jurassic dinosaur from the UK, according to a study published January 20, 2 ... more
				Newly discovered photosynthetic bacteria is surprisingly abundant A bacterium found in the remote Gobi Desert has shown talents for using the sun's light as energy, and now researchers reveal that it can be found in surprisingly many different places, including wa ... more		Researchers find microbial heat islands in the desert Deserts are often thought of as barren places that are left exposed to the extremes of heat and cold and where not much is afoot. But that view is being altered as new research keeps revealing the i ... more

Water supplies in Tibet set to increase in the future The Tibetan Plateau has long been seen as a "hotspot" for international environmental research, and there have been fears that water supplies in the major Asian rivers would drastically decline in t ... more		Memory capacity of brain is 10 times more than previously thought Salk researchers and collaborators have achieved critical insight into the size of neural connections, putting the memory capacity of the brain far higher than common estimates. The new work also an ... more		Rise of the robots: the promise of physical AI Amazon robotics lead casts doubt on eye-catching humanoids 'Western tech dominance fading' at Lisbon's Web Summit		Exercise helps young baleen whales develop ability to store oxygen for extended dives Baleen whale calves develop oxygen-carrying myoglobin as they mature, and exercise may drive the key component of early development, according to a study published January 20, 2016 in the open-acces ... more
				Obama hosts mayor of US city at center of water crisis President Barack Obama met at the White House on Tuesday the mayor of Flint, the Michigan city at the center of a health scare over tainted tap water, triggered by budget cuts. ... more		Rare muriqui monkey hideout found in Brazil A recent survey of Brazil's Caparao National Park turned up a rare discovery - a new group of northern muriqui, one the planet's most threatened primate species. ... more

Military Radar Summit 2016 - Washington DC - February 29

Tempur-Pedic Mattress Comparison & Memory Foam Mattress Review

Italian group to build five hospitals in Iran Italian group BTP said Tuesday it had signed a preliminary agreement with Iran to build five hospitals, just after the lifting of economic sanctions against Tehran in a deal over its nuclear programme. ... more		Planet shatters warming records, 2015 hottest 'by far' Blistering heat blanketed the Earth last year like never before, making 2015 by far the hottest year in modern times and raising new concerns about the accelerating pace of climate change. ... more		'The war of tomorrow will begin in space': Macron UN watchdog calls on Iran to urgently allow 'long overdue' uranium stockpile verification How drones are altering contemporary warfare		Hong Kong students skip classes to protest at 'pro-Beijing' appointment Students protested on the campus of Hong Kong's leading university Wednesday after a pro-Beijing official was appointed to a senior role, as fears grow of increasing political interference in education. ... more
Climate change fuels bushfire risk as Australia heats up "A sunburnt country... with a pitiless blue sky", so the famous poem goes, but where once Australia could rely on "steady, soaking rain", a trend of hotter and drier weather as the climate warms is making it more vulnerable to severe bushfires. ... more		'The Cove' dolphin activist Ric O'Barry detained in Japan: supporters US animal rights activist Ric O'Barry who featured in "The Cove", a documentary about dolphin slaughter in a Japanese town, has been detained in Tokyo by immigration authorities after being denied entry to the country, his supporters said Wednesday. ... more		Bird flu scare hits French foie gras production Already assailed by animal-rights groups, France's foie gras industry now faces a fight on a second front: bird flu. ... more		EU has 'deep concerns' about China's detention of Europeans The European Union's ambassador to China said Wednesday it was "deeply concerned" about Beijing's detention of EU citizens, hours after state media broadcast the purported confession of a Swedish activist held by authorities. ... more

	Most Chinese cities fail air quality standards in 2015: Greenpeace Nearly 300 Chinese cities failed to meet national standards for air quality last year, Greenpeace said Wednesday, despite marginal improvements in some of the worst-hit areas. ... more		UN reduces size of peacekeeping force in Ivory Coast The UN Security Council decided Wednesday to reduce the size of the UN peacekeeping force in Ivory Coast in light of an improved security situation and last October's successful presidential elections. ... more

China's Shenzhou-20 astronauts return to Earth after delay

Blue Origin launches NASA Mars mission and nails booster landing

Race for first private space station heats up as NASA set to retire ISS

11 swine flu deaths in Syria since September: health ministry		Charities warn of 'desperate' plight of refugees in snow		Harmful mutations have accumulated during early human migrations out of Africa		Breakthrough in human cell transformation could revolutionize regenerative medicine		Livermore scientists find global ocean warming has doubled in recent decades
Scientists detect deep carbon emissions associated with continental rifting		Living fossils and rare corals revealed		Study finds 30 percent of global fish catch is unreported		Photos show elusive bush dog to be widespread in Panama		Eating less meat might not be the way to go green

New framework sheds light on how, not if, climate change affects cold-blooded animals

Volunteers send water as S.African temperatures soar

New experiments determine effective treatments for box jelly stings

China clothing tycoon back at work after vanishing

France to probe risks taken by soldiers in deadly avalanche

More than 1,200 flee as Indonesia volcano spews ash, gas

Swedish activist detained in China accused of 'inciting opposition'

Plenty of fish in the sea? Maybe not, says study

A tree or not a tree? India's Goa rows over coconut status

US officials heads to Africa on anti-poaching campaign

Team develops wireless, dissolvable sensors to monitor brain

Fires did not destroy (as fast as we thought)

SpaceX launches US-French oceans satellite

Tiny electronic implants monitor brain injury, then melt away

University of Alberta researcher tracks tyrannosaur's trail

Shell lease requests offshore Alaska face scrutiny

Belgium's ageing nuclear plants worry neighbours

Automakers' green push lifts use of hemp, citrus peel

Nitrogen May Be A Sign of Habitability

Charging a car could soon be as quick as filling a tank

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