ScienceDaily: Top Environment News

---

• Indo-European languages originated in Anatolia, research suggests
• Rock sparrows react to infidelity by singing louder
• Archaeologists complete survey of Charleston Harbor Civil War Naval Battlefield
• For juvenile moose, Momma's boys and girls fare best
• New survey of ocean floor finds juvenile scallops are abundant in Mid-Atlantic
• Antarctic ice sheet quakes shed light on ice movement and earthquakes
• Collective motion in schools of fish can evolve as finely tuned defense against attack from predators: Virtual fish simulation
• Research on wood formation sheds light on plant biology
• Link found between cold European winters and solar activity
• Past tropical climate change linked to ocean circulation
• For mitochondria, bigger may not be better: Optimal length of mitochondria is essential to preventing Alzheimer's
• Histone-modifying proteins, not histones, remain associated with DNA through replication
• Human-chimp genetic differences: New insights into why humans are more susceptible to cancer and other diseases
• Underground solution to starving rice plants
• No-till could help maintain crop yields despite climate change
• Primate of the opera: What soprano singing apes on helium reveal about the human voice
• Cloud control could tame hurricanes, study shows
• Survival without water: A key trait of an aquatic invader to spread

Indo-European languages originated in Anatolia, research suggests Posted: 23 Aug 2012 02:54 PM PDT The Indo-European languages belong to one of the widest spread language families of the world. For the last two millenia, many of these languages have been written, and their history is relatively clear. But controversy remains about the time and place of the origins of the family. New research links the origins of Indo-European with the spread of farming from Anatolia 8,000 to 9,500 years ago.

Rock sparrows react to infidelity by singing louder Posted: 23 Aug 2012 02:54 PM PDT Rock sparrows indicate their age and their reproductive success with their songs and react to infidelity with a higher song volume.

Archaeologists complete survey of Charleston Harbor Civil War Naval Battlefield Posted: 23 Aug 2012 02:53 PM PDT Archaeologists have dived, mapped and completed the first survey of the prolonged Civil War naval battle that took place in Charleston Harbor in 1861 - 1865.

For juvenile moose, Momma's boys and girls fare best Posted: 23 Aug 2012 02:53 PM PDT A new study shows that if you're a juvenile moose trying to make it in the real world, you can't beat an overprotective mom.

New survey of ocean floor finds juvenile scallops are abundant in Mid-Atlantic Posted: 23 Aug 2012 01:19 PM PDT Researchers are getting a comprehensive view of the ocean floor using a new instrument, and have confirmed that there are high numbers of young sea scallops off of Delaware Bay.

Antarctic ice sheet quakes shed light on ice movement and earthquakes Posted: 23 Aug 2012 01:19 PM PDT Analysis of small, repeating earthquakes in an Antarctic ice sheet may not only lead to an understanding of glacial movement, but may also shed light on stick slip earthquakes like those on the San Andreas fault or in Haiti, according to geoscientists.

Collective motion in schools of fish can evolve as finely tuned defense against attack from predators: Virtual fish simulation Posted: 23 Aug 2012 12:24 PM PDT Researchers have designed a video game for predatory fish that has unraveled some lingering evolutionary questions about group formation and movement in animals.

Research on wood formation sheds light on plant biology Posted: 23 Aug 2012 12:24 PM PDT Scientists have discovered a phenomenon never seen before in plants while studying molecular changes inside tree cells as wood is formed.

Link found between cold European winters and solar activity Posted: 23 Aug 2012 11:38 AM PDT Scientists have long suspected that the Sun's 11-year cycle influences climate of certain regions on Earth. Yet records of average, seasonal temperatures do not date back far enough to confirm any patterns. Now, armed with a unique proxy, an international team of researchers show that unusually cold winters in Central Europe are related to low solar activity – when sunspot numbers are minimal.

Past tropical climate change linked to ocean circulation Posted: 23 Aug 2012 11:37 AM PDT A new record of past temperature change in the tropical Atlantic Ocean's subsurface provides clues as to why the Earth's climate is so sensitive to ocean circulation patterns.

For mitochondria, bigger may not be better: Optimal length of mitochondria is essential to preventing Alzheimer's Posted: 23 Aug 2012 11:37 AM PDT Abnormalities in mitochondrial length promote the development of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's.

Histone-modifying proteins, not histones, remain associated with DNA through replication Posted: 23 Aug 2012 11:30 AM PDT A study of Drosophila embryos found that parental methylated histones are not transferred to daughter DNA. Rather, after DNA replication, new nucleosomes are assembled from newly synthesized unmodified histones.

Human-chimp genetic differences: New insights into why humans are more susceptible to cancer and other diseases Posted: 23 Aug 2012 11:27 AM PDT Ninety-six percent of a chimpanzee's genome is the same as a human's. It's the other 4 percent, and the vast differences, that has intrigued researchers. For instance, why do humans have a high risk of cancer, even though chimps rarely develop the disease? In a new study, scientists have looked at brain samples of each species. They found that differences in certain DNA modifications, called methylation, may contribute to phenotypic changes. The results also hint that DNA methylation plays an important role for some disease-related phenotypes in humans, including cancer and autism.

Underground solution to starving rice plants Posted: 23 Aug 2012 08:31 AM PDT Scientists have pinpointed a gene that enables rice plants to produce around 20 percent more grain by increasing uptake of phosphorus, an important, but limited, plant nutrient.

No-till could help maintain crop yields despite climate change Posted: 23 Aug 2012 06:10 AM PDT Reducing tillage for some Central Great Plains crops could help conserve water and reduce losses caused by climate change, according to studies at the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Primate of the opera: What soprano singing apes on helium reveal about the human voice Posted: 23 Aug 2012 06:09 AM PDT Have you ever heard an opera singing ape? Researchers in Japan have discovered that singing gibbons use the same vocal techniques as professional soprano singers. The study explains how recording gibbons singing under the influence of helium gas reveals a physiological similarity to human voices.

Cloud control could tame hurricanes, study shows Posted: 23 Aug 2012 06:09 AM PDT They are one of the most destructive forces of nature on Earth, but now environmental scientists are working to tame the hurricane. Scientists now propose using cloud seeding to decrease sea surface temperatures where hurricanes form. Theoretically, the team claims the technique could reduce hurricane intensity by a category.

Survival without water: A key trait of an aquatic invader to spread Posted: 22 Aug 2012 08:22 AM PDT How can aquatic invertebrates spread among different catchments? Spanish researchers have found that an invasive snail from New Zealand (the mudsnail Potamopyrgus antipodarum) can survive up to two days out of water. This allows the species to use birds or fishing tools as vectors to invade new water bodies.

You are subscribed to email updates from ScienceDaily: Top Environment News To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610