Earth
- Plants
Ancient trees’ gnarled, twisted shapes provide irreplaceable habitats
Traits that help trees live for hundreds of years also foster forest life, one reason why old growth forest conservation is crucial.
- Agriculture
Mixing up root microbes can boost tea’s flavor
Inoculating tea plant roots with nitrogen-metabolizing bacteria enhances synthesis of theanine, an amino acid that gives tea its savoriness.
- Agriculture
Could a rice-meat hybrid be what’s for dinner?
A hybrid food that combines rice, animal cells and fish gelatin could one day be a more sustainable way to produce meat.
- Animals
Migratory fish species are in drastic decline, a new UN report details
The most comprehensive tally of how migrating animals are faring looks at more than 1,000 land and aquatic species and aims to find ways to protect them.
- Animals
Here’s how many shark bites there were in 2023
The chance of being bitten by a shark is still incredibly slim, according to a new report from the Florida Museum of Natural History.
- Earth
Where are U.S. earthquakes most likely? A new map shows the hazard risks
Updates to the National Seismic Hazard Model have elevated the average ground shaking hazard across the country.
- Climate
Cold, dry snaps accompanied three plagues that struck the Roman Empire
New climate data for ancient Italy point to temperature and rainfall influences on past infectious disease outbreaks.
- Earth
Many but not all of the world’s aquifers are losing water
Many aquifers are quickly disappearing due to climate change and overuse, but some are rising because of improved resource management.
- Climate
Numbats are built to hold heat, making climate change extra risky for the marsupials
New thermal imaging shows how fast numbats’ surface temperature rises even at relatively reasonable temperatures.
- Earth
STEVE and other aurora-like glows perplex scientists with their complex physics
New views of STEVE from citizen scientists keep raising questions about the atmospheric light show — but computer models may offer some answers.
- Earth
Speed bumps under Thwaites Glacier could help slow its flow to the sea
A seismic survey of Thwaites’ icy underbelly shows the Antarctica glacier may be snagging on tall rises in land. That could help slow global sea level rise.
- Physics
Invisible comet tails of mucus slow sinking flakes of ‘marine snow’
New measurements reveal the gunk that surrounds the particles, an important factor in understanding how the ocean sequesters carbon.
