ScienceDaily: Top Environment News

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• Scientists achieve highest open-circuit voltage for quantum dot solar cells
• Unexpected interaction between ocean currents and bacteria may weaken ocean's ability to absorb carbon dioxide
• Tuna closely related to some of the strangest fish in the sea
• Dating of beads sets new timeline for early humans
• Pinpointing when the First Dynasty of Kings ruled Egypt
• Carbon farming schemes should consider multiple cobenefits
• Model organism gone wild
• Tiny plankton could have big impact on climate: CO2-hungry microbes might short-circuit the marine foodweb
• Electric transport with wind in its sails
• Algae and bacteria in sea ice are important for the carbon budgets of frozen oceans
• Toxic methylmercury-producing microbes more widespread than realized
• Twister history: Model to correct tornado records for better risk assessment
• A microbe's trick for staying young

Scientists achieve highest open-circuit voltage for quantum dot solar cells Posted: 13 Sep 2013 08:40 AM PDT Using colloidal lead sulfide nanocrystal quantum dot substances, researchers have achieved the highest recorded open-circuit voltages for quantum dot solar cells to date.

Unexpected interaction between ocean currents and bacteria may weaken ocean's ability to absorb carbon dioxide Posted: 13 Sep 2013 07:18 AM PDT For the first time, researchers have successfully demonstrated an interaction between ocean currents and bacteria: The unexpected interaction leads to the production of vast amounts of nitrogen gas in the Pacific Ocean. This takes place in one of the largest oxygen free water masses in the world -- and these zones are expanding. This can ultimately weaken the ocean's ability to absorb CO2.

Tuna closely related to some of the strangest fish in the sea Posted: 13 Sep 2013 06:39 AM PDT Some of the strangest fish in the sea are closely related to dinner table favorites the tunas and mackerels, an international team of scientists has found.

Dating of beads sets new timeline for early humans Posted: 13 Sep 2013 06:33 AM PDT Scientists have new dating evidence indicating when the earliest fully modern humans arrived in the Near East, the region known as the Middle East. They have obtained the radiocarbon dates of marine shell beads found at Ksar Akil, a key archaeological site in Lebanon, which allowed them to calculate that the oldest human fossil from the same sequence of archaeological layers is 42,400-41,700 years old. This is significant because the age of the earliest fossils, directly and indirectly dated, of modern humans found in Europe is roughly similar. This latest discovery throws up intriguing new possibilities about the routes taken by the earliest modern humans out of Africa.

Pinpointing when the First Dynasty of Kings ruled Egypt Posted: 13 Sep 2013 06:16 AM PDT For the first time, a team of scientists and archaeologists has been able to set a robust timeline for the first eight dynastic rulers of Egypt. Until now there have been no verifiable chronological records for this period or the process leading up to the formation of the Egyptian state. The chronology of Early Egypt between 4500 and 2800 BC has been reset by building mathematical models that combine new radiocarbon dates with established archaeological evidence.

Carbon farming schemes should consider multiple cobenefits Posted: 13 Sep 2013 05:58 AM PDT Carbon farming schemes will have harmful effects, such as impairing ecosystem services, reducing biodiversity, and reducing food supply, unless resulting revegetation decisions take into account the full range of cobenefits and disbenefits expected from various types of planting. In particular, the views of local inhabitants as well as landowners should be considered in order to maximize the probability of long-term success.

Model organism gone wild Posted: 13 Sep 2013 05:58 AM PDT Some wild clones of social amoebas farm the bacteria they eat, but this is a losing strategy if nonfarming amoebas can steal the farmers' crops. To make the strategy work, the farmers also carry bacteria that secrete chemicals that poison free riders. The work suggest farming is complex evolutionary adaptation that requires additional strategies, such as recruiting third parties, to effectively defend and privatize the crops.

Tiny plankton could have big impact on climate: CO2-hungry microbes might short-circuit the marine foodweb Posted: 13 Sep 2013 05:57 AM PDT As the climate changes and oceans' acidity increases, tiny plankton seem set to succeed. Marine scientists have found that the smallest plankton groups thrive under elevated carbon dioxide (CO2) levels. This could cause an imbalance in the food web as well as decrease ocean CO2 uptake, an important regulator of global climate.

Electric transport with wind in its sails Posted: 13 Sep 2013 05:57 AM PDT Researchers are aiming to remove the electric car market's biggest problem – the fear of not reaching the next charging station. Simpler charging is on its way, and the cost-effectiveness of electric goods vehicles and electric buses is being tested on Norwegian roads.

Algae and bacteria in sea ice are important for the carbon budgets of frozen oceans Posted: 13 Sep 2013 05:57 AM PDT Underneath the pristine snow cover of the Arctic and Antarctic pack ice, there is a community of microscopic algae and bacteria that thrive within the ice itself. These ice-organisms are adapted to growing on the ice surfaces and within a labyrinth of channels and pores that permeate the ice floes. Their presence may affect how carbon travels to the ocean floor and even the weather.

Toxic methylmercury-producing microbes more widespread than realized Posted: 12 Sep 2013 12:55 PM PDT Microbes that live in rice paddies, northern peat bogs and other previously unexpected environments are among the bacteria that can generate highly toxic methylmercury, researchers have learned.

Twister history: Model to correct tornado records for better risk assessment Posted: 12 Sep 2013 11:32 AM PDT In the wake of deadly tornadoes in Oklahoma, researchers have developed a new statistical model that will help determine whether the risk of tornadoes is increasing and whether they are getting stronger.

A microbe's trick for staying young Posted: 12 Sep 2013 10:20 AM PDT Researchers have discovered a microbe that stays forever young by rejuvenating every time it reproduces.

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