ScienceDaily: Top Environment News

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• Some corals like it hot: Heat stress may help coral reefs survive climate change
• Comfy mice lead to better science: Are cold mice affecting drug testing?
• Organics probably formed easily in early solar system
• Bees 'self-medicate' when infected with some pathogens
• Electronic nose knows when your cantaloupe is ripe
• Volcanic 'plumbing systems' exposed: Step closer to predicting large eruptions with study of mid-ocean ridge magma chambers
• Extreme weather threatens rich ecosystems
• Crocodiles trump T. rex as heavyweight bite-force champions, new study shows
• Precipitation impacts glacial melt, Patagonian Glacier study suggests
• Good news for Norwegian polar bears: PCBs levels down
• Pattern of large earthquakes on San Jacinto fault identified

Some corals like it hot: Heat stress may help coral reefs survive climate change Posted: 30 Mar 2012 05:59 PM PDT Scientists working in the central Pacific have discovered that coral which has survived heat stress in the past is more likely to survive it in the future. The study paves the way towards an important road map on the impacts of ocean warming, and will help scientists identify the habitats and locations where coral reefs are more likely to adapt to climate change.

Comfy mice lead to better science: Are cold mice affecting drug testing? Posted: 30 Mar 2012 05:59 PM PDT Nine out of 10 drugs successfully tested in mice and other animal models ultimately fail to work in people, and one reason may be that laboratory mice are cold, according to an expert. Scientists report that given the proper materials, mice will build a cozy nest that allows them to naturally regulate their temperatures to a comfortable level.

Organics probably formed easily in early solar system Posted: 30 Mar 2012 05:58 PM PDT Complex organic compounds, including many important to life on Earth, were readily produced under conditions that likely prevailed in the primordial solar system. Scientists came to this conclusion after linking computer simulations to laboratory experiments.

Bees 'self-medicate' when infected with some pathogens Posted: 30 Mar 2012 08:10 AM PDT Honey bees "self-medicate" when their colony is infected with a harmful fungus, bringing in increased amounts of antifungal plant resins to ward off the pathogen.

Electronic nose knows when your cantaloupe is ripe Posted: 30 Mar 2012 08:10 AM PDT Have you ever been disappointed by a cantaloupe from the grocery store? Too ripe? Not ripe enough? Researchers might have found a way to make imperfectly ripe fruit a thing of the past.

Volcanic 'plumbing systems' exposed: Step closer to predicting large eruptions with study of mid-ocean ridge magma chambers Posted: 30 Mar 2012 08:10 AM PDT Two new studies into the "plumbing systems" that lie under volcanoes could bring scientists closer to predicting large eruptions. International teams of researchers studied the location and behavior of magma chambers on Earth's mid-ocean ridge system -- a vast chain of volcanoes along which Earth forms new crust.

Extreme weather threatens rich ecosystems Posted: 30 Mar 2012 08:05 AM PDT Extreme weather such as hurricanes, torrential downpours and droughts will become more frequent in pace with global warming. Consequently, this increases the risk for species extinction, especially in bio diverse ecosystems such as coral reefs and tropical rainforests.

Crocodiles trump T. rex as heavyweight bite-force champions, new study shows Posted: 30 Mar 2012 08:02 AM PDT Biologists have found in a study of all 23 living crocodilian species that crocodiles can kill with the strongest bite force measured for any living animal. The study also revealed that the bite forces of the largest extinct crocodilians exceeded 23,000 pounds, a force two-times greater than the mighty Tyrannosaurus rex.

Precipitation impacts glacial melt, Patagonian Glacier study suggests Posted: 30 Mar 2012 05:17 AM PDT Glaciers play a vital role in Earth's climate system, and it's critical to understand what contributes to their fluctuation. Increased global temperatures are frequently viewed as the cause of glacial melt, but a new study of Patagonia's Gualas Glacier highlights the role of precipitation in the glacier's fluctuation.

Good news for Norwegian polar bears: PCBs levels down Posted: 30 Mar 2012 05:13 AM PDT In a study of PCBs in polar bear cubs in Svalbard, researchers have found that blood levels of PCBs and related contaminants in polar bear cubs appear to have dropped by as much as 59 per cent between 1998 and 2008.

Pattern of large earthquakes on San Jacinto fault identified Posted: 29 Mar 2012 02:04 PM PDT The San Jacinto Fault Zone is a seismically active, major component of the overall southern San Andreas Fault system. Researchers have mapped evidence of past ruptures consistent with very large earthquakes along the Clark Fault, an individual strand associated with the SJF.

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