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1,472 articles from PhysOrg
NASA confirms heavy rainfall, strengthening of tropical storm Marie
Tropical Storm Marie has formed in the Eastern Pacific Ocean and NASA satellite data helped confirm the strengthening of the storm. In addition, using a NASA satellite rainfall product that incorporates data from satellites and observations, NASA estimated Marie's rainfall rates the provided more clues about intensification.
Disease-spreading ticks keep marching north as weather stays warmer
Ticks are among nature's most hardy survivors. They've been around for at least 100 million years and used to feast on dinosaur blood. Their bodies contain anti-freeze to help them survive cold weather and their two front legs have carbon dioxide and infrared sensors to help detect when a warm-blooded mammal is approaching. Tiny hairs on their legs increases friction and allows ticks to latch onto...
Arnhem Land Maliwawa rock art opens window to past
zStunning Arnhem Land rock art images including three rare depictions of bilbies and a dugong have been described by researchers in a new paper in Australian Archaeology this week.
There's a giant 'Green Banana' off Florida's coast, and researchers have finally gotten to the bottom of it
If you haven't heard of the "Green Banana blue hole" you might imagine a tropical cocktail you can order in Key West, or a dessert you ordered after a night on Bourbon Street.
Network reveals large variations in shaking in LA basin after Ridgecrest earthquake
The 2019 Ridgecrest earthquake sequence has revealed areas of the Los Angeles basin where the amplification of shaking of high-rise buildings is greatest, according to a new report in Seismological Research Letters.
Voter reactions to #MeToo scandals: Sexism, not partisanship, has the largest impact
Sexist attitudes influence how politicians accused of sexual misconduct are viewed, even more than partisanship, according to a Dartmouth study. The findings are published in Research & Politics.
Developing the fastest and most sensitive graphene microwave bolometer
Bolometers are devices that measure the power of incident electromagnetic radiation thru the heating of materials, which exhibit a temperature-electric resistance dependence. These instruments are among the most sensitive detectors so far used for infrared radiation detection and are key tools for applications that range from advanced thermal imaging, night vision, infrared spectroscopy to...
As rats swarm California cities, Gov. Newsom bans popular poison to protect wildlife
California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill Tuesday that seeks to protect mountain lions and other wildlife from being poisoned by a popular form of pesticide.
6 dolphins found dead in 'historic' stranding in Alabama after Hurricane Sally
Six dolphins were found dead in an Alabama marsh last week in what experts call an "historic mass stranding."
Acropora spp. coral still thrives in the holdout refuge of Coral Gardens, Belize
Coral Gardens Reef in Belize remains a refuge for Acropora spp. coral despite widespread devastation in other areas of the western North Atlantic/Caribbean, according to a study published September 30, 2020 in the open-access journal PLOS ONE by Lisa Greer from Washington and Lee University, Virginia, U.S., and colleagues.
Millions of Latinos at risk of job displacement by automation
The potential acceleration of job automation spurred by COVID-19 will disproportionately affect Latinos in U.S. service sector jobs, according to a new UCLA report, which also urges state and local officials to start planning now to implement programs to support and retrain these workers.
Solar orbiter's first science data shows the sun at its quietest
Three of the Solar Orbiter spacecraft's instruments, including Imperial's magnetometer, have released their first data.
The Arctic hasn't been this warm for 3 million years–and that foreshadows big changes for the rest of the planet
Every year, sea ice cover in the Arctic Ocean shrinks to a low point in mid-September. This year it measures just 1.44 million square miles (3.74 million square kilometers) – the second-lowest value in the 42 years since satellites began taking measurements. The ice today covers only 50% of the area it covered 40 years ago in late summer.
Stellar explosion in Earth's proximity
When the brightness of the star Betelgeuse dropped dramatically a few months ago, some observers suspected an impending supernova—a stellar explosion that could also cause damage on Earth. While Betelgeuse has returned to normal, physicists from the Technical University of Munich (TUM) have found evidence of a supernova that exploded near the Earth around 2.5 million years ago.
Pandemic provides unique opportunity for atmospheric chemists
As the COVID-19 pandemic slowed travel and business around the world, pollution emission rates dropped in response. With fewer cars on the road and clearer skies, atmospheric chemists jumped at the opportunity to study the impact of reduced emissions outside the lab. A news story in Chemical & Engineering News, the weekly newsmagazine of the American Chemical Society, details early findings, which...
Problems with reproduction in birds
In birds and other species alike, pairs can face considerable difficulties with reproduction. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Ornithology in Seewiesen have now shown in an extensive analysis of 23,000 zebra finch eggs that infertility is mainly due to males, while high embryo mortality is more a problem of the females. Inbreeding, age of the parents and conditions experienced when...
Scientists synthesise a material capable of degrading nerve agents in water
A team from the Institute of Molecular Science (ICMol) of the University of Valencia has succeeded in synthesizing a new porous material that enables and guides the degradation of compounds analogous to nerve agents used in chemical warfare. This material will make it possible to capture and degrade this type of compounds that until now could not be eliminated. The work has been published in...
Ocean warming and acidification effects on calcareous phytoplankton communities
A new study led by researchers from the Institute of Environmental Science and Technology of the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (ICTA-UAB) warns that the negative effects of rapid ocean warming on planktonic communities will be exacerbated by ocean acidification.
Ceramics uncovered in 3000-year-old trading network
The tiny island of Tavolara off the coast of Sardinia may have been a trading place in the Early Iron Age (9th to 8th centuries BCE) where the original inhabitants of Sardinia, the Nuragic people, exchanged goods with people from the central Italian mainland—members of the Villanova culture. Archaeometric analyses of 3000-year-old pottery from the archaeological site of Spalmatore di Terra on...
Biodiversity: where the world is making progress–and where it's not
The future of biodiversity hangs in the balance. World leaders are gathering to review international targets and make new pledges for action to stem wildlife declines. Depending on whether you are a glass half-full or half-empty person, you're likely to have different views on their progress so far.
Researchers gain new insights on river dynamics
A river's only consistent attribute is change. As the Greek philosopher Heraclitus remarked, "No man ever steps in the same river twice." Although this dynamic nature is often out of sight and mind, forgetting about it has led to many a historical catastrophe.
'Street' ERTs are more useful in predicting companies' future tax outcomes, study finds
Before considering a company as a potential investment, smart investors will analyze a company's financial statements and look at its taxes and other expenses alongside net income.
Colloidal quantum dot light emitters go broadband in the infrared
Broadband light emission in the infrared has proven to be of paramount importance for a large range of applications that include food quality and product/process monitoring, recycling, environmental sensing and monitoring, multispectral imaging in automotive as well as safety and security. With the advent of IoT and the increasing demand in adding more functionalities to portable devices (such as...
Zebrafish embryos help prove what happens to nanoparticles in the blood
A variety of nanoparticles are designed for targeted drug delivery, but unfortunately only a very small proportion of the injected nanoparticles reach the target site such as solid tumors. The reason behind the low targeting efficiency is often considered a "black box" and had thus been little explored for many years.
Shedding light on how urban grime affects chemical reactions in cities
Many city surfaces are coated with a layer of soot, pollutants, metals, organic compounds and other molecules known as "urban grime." Chemical reactions that occur in this complex milieu can affect air and water quality. Now, researchers reporting in ACS Earth and Space Chemistry have taken a closer look at urban grime collected from two U.S. cities, revealing for the first time that the material...