ScienceDaily: Top Environment News

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• Natural climate swings contribute more to increased monsoon rainfall than global warming
• Brain mapping reveals neurological basis of decision-making in rats
• Sustainable Development Goals must sustain people and planet, experts say
• Can intraplate earthquakes produce stronger shaking than at plate boundaries?
• Bacteria with vuvuzelas: Microbes use a channel protein as a syringe for toxins
• Biodiversity does not reduce transmission of disease from animals to humans, researchers find
• Properly planned roads could help rather than harm the environment, say experts
• Scientists discover 'lubricant' for Earth's tectonic plates: Hidden magma layer could play role in earthquakes
• Sleep consolidation of interfering auditory memories in starlings
• Some Alaskan trout use flexible guts for the ultimate binge diet
• Why red algae never colonized dry land
• Enigmatic giant squid is same species in all oceans of the planet, dna studies show

Natural climate swings contribute more to increased monsoon rainfall than global warming Posted: 20 Mar 2013 12:52 PM PDT Natural swings in the climate have significantly intensified Northern Hemisphere monsoon rainfall, showing that these swings must be taken into account for climate predictions in the coming decades.

Brain mapping reveals neurological basis of decision-making in rats Posted: 20 Mar 2013 12:52 PM PDT Scientists have discovered how memory recall is linked to decision-making in rats, showing that measurable activity in one part of the brain occurs when rats in a maze are playing out memories that help them decide which way to turn. The more they play out these memories, the more likely they are to find their way correctly to the end of the maze.

Sustainable Development Goals must sustain people and planet, experts say Posted: 20 Mar 2013 12:52 PM PDT Scientists are arguing for a set of six Sustainable Development Goals that link poverty eradication to protection of Earth's life support. The researchers argue that in the face of increasing pressure on the planet's ability to support life, adherence to out-dated definitions of sustainable development threaten to reverse progress made in developing countries over past decades.

Can intraplate earthquakes produce stronger shaking than at plate boundaries? Posted: 20 Mar 2013 12:52 PM PDT New information about the extent of the 1872 Owens Valley earthquake rupture, which occurs in an area with many small and discontinuous faults, may support a hypothesis that these types of quakes could produce stronger ground shaking than plate boundary earthquakes underlain by oceanic crust, like many of those taking place along the San Andreas fault.

Bacteria with vuvuzelas: Microbes use a channel protein as a syringe for toxins Posted: 20 Mar 2013 12:51 PM PDT The bacterium Photorhabdus luminescens is a constant companion of some roundworms. These worms assault insect larvae, thereby infecting them with the bacteria; the pathogens then attack the cells of their victims with a deadly cocktail of various toxins. Scientists have now discovered that the bacteria use an important toxin complex like a syringe.

Biodiversity does not reduce transmission of disease from animals to humans, researchers find Posted: 20 Mar 2013 11:27 AM PDT A new analysis pokes holes in widely accepted theory that connects biodiversity abundance with a reduced disease risk for humans.

Properly planned roads could help rather than harm the environment, say experts Posted: 20 Mar 2013 11:27 AM PDT Two leading ecologists say a rapid proliferation of roads across the planet is causing irreparable damage to nature, but properly planned roads could actually help the environment.

Scientists discover 'lubricant' for Earth's tectonic plates: Hidden magma layer could play role in earthquakes Posted: 20 Mar 2013 11:27 AM PDT Scientists have found a layer of liquefied molten rock in Earth's mantle that may be acting as a lubricant for the sliding motions of the planet's massive tectonic plates. The discovery may carry far-reaching implications, from solving basic geological functions of the planet to a better understanding of volcanism and earthquakes.

Sleep consolidation of interfering auditory memories in starlings Posted: 20 Mar 2013 10:32 AM PDT Sleep plays an important role in the brain's ability to consolidate learning when two new potentially competing tasks are learned in the same day, according to a new study that measured starlings' ability to recognize new songs.

Some Alaskan trout use flexible guts for the ultimate binge diet Posted: 20 Mar 2013 10:32 AM PDT The stomach and intestines of certain trout double to quadruple in size during month-long eating binges in Alaska each August. The rest of the year, the fish live off their reserves and their digestive tracks shrink. It's the first time researchers have documented fish gut flexibility in the wild.

Why red algae never colonized dry land Posted: 20 Mar 2013 06:50 AM PDT The first red alga genome has just been sequenced. The genome of Chondrus crispus, also known by the Breton name 'pioka', turns out to be small and compact for a multicellular organism. It has fewer genes than several other species of unicellular algae, which raises a number of questions about the evolution of red algae. This low number of genes could explain why these organisms never colonized dry land, unlike their green counterparts-from which all terrestrial plants are descended.

Enigmatic giant squid is same species in all oceans of the planet, dna studies show Posted: 19 Mar 2013 07:27 AM PDT The giant squid is one of the most enigmatic animals on the planet. It is extremely rarely seen, except as the remains of animals that have been washed ashore, and placed in the formalin or ethanol collections of museums. But now, researchers have discovered that no matter where in the world they are found, the fabled animals are so closely related at the genetic level that they represent a single, global population, and thus despite previous statements to the contrary, a single species worldwide.

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