207 articles from FRIDAY 12.2.2021

More trees do not always create a cooler planet, geographer finds

New research by Christopher A. Williams, an environmental scientist and professor in Clark University's Graduate School of Geography, reveals that deforestation in the U.S. does not always cause planetary warming, as is commonly assumed; instead, in some places, it actually cools the planet. A peer-reviewed study by Williams and his team, "Climate Impacts of U.S. Forest Loss Span Net Warming to...

TESS discovers new worlds in a river of young stars

Using observations from NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), an international team of astronomers has discovered a trio of hot worlds larger than Earth orbiting a much younger version of our Sun called TOI 451. The system resides in the recently discovered Pisces-Eridanus stream, a collection of stars less than 3% the age of our solar system that stretches across one-third of the...

Star-shaped brain cells may be linked to stuttering

Astrocytes -- star-shaped cells in the brain that are actively involved in brain function -- may play an important role in stuttering, a study led by an expert on stuttering has found. The study also suggests that treatment with the medication risperidone leads to increased activity of the striatum in persons who stutter.

'Colder and deeper’: Scientists close in on spot to drill Antarctic ice core 1.5m years old

Australian Antarctic Division will drill 3,000 metres deep in bid to improve ancient climate records and future modelsAntarctic scientists are close to finalising a drilling location deep in the frozen continent’s interior that could reveal a continuous record of the Earth’s climate going back 1.5 million years.After almost a decade of work, scientists at the Australian Antarctic Division are...

Epidemic possibly caused population collapse in Central Africa 1400-1600 years ago

A new study published in the journal Science Advances shows that Bantu-speaking communities in the Congo rainforest underwent a major population collapse from 1600 to 1400 years ago, probably due to a prolonged disease epidemic, and that significant resettlement did not restart until around 1000 years ago. These findings revise the population history of no less than seven present-day African...

NASA's TESS Discovers New Worlds in a River of Young Stars

Portal origin URL: NASA's TESS Discovers New Worlds in a River of Young StarsPortal origin nid: 468318Published: Friday, February 12, 2021 - 14:00Featured (stick to top of list): noPortal text teaser: NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) has discovered a trio of hot worlds larger than Earth orbiting a young version of our Sun called TOI 451Portal...

Diving into the mysteries of mate selection

In your quest for true love and that elusive happily ever after, are you waiting for the 'right' person to come along, or do you find yourself going for the cutest guy or girl in the room, hoping things will work out? Do you leave your options open, hoping to 'trade-up' at the next opportunity, or do you invest in your relationship with an eye on the cost-benefits analysis?