ScienceDaily: Top Environment News

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• Reducing salt is bad for glacial health, NASA finds
• History of American urban squirrel
• More logging, deforestation may better serve climate in some areas
• Preference for oranges protects fruit flies from parasites
• Emerging bird flu strain poorly adapted for infecting humans
• Protein that helps developing germ cells wipe genes clean of past imprints

Reducing salt is bad for glacial health, NASA finds Posted: 06 Dec 2013 11:36 AM PST A new NASA-led study has discovered an intriguing link between sea ice conditions and the melting rate of Totten Glacier, the glacier in East Antarctica that discharges the most ice into the ocean. The discovery, involving cold, extra salty water -- brine -- that forms within openings in sea ice, adds to our understanding of how ice sheets interact with the ocean, and may improve our ability to forecast and prepare for future sea level rise.

History of American urban squirrel Posted: 06 Dec 2013 10:24 AM PST A researcher has examined how squirrels found homes in American cities, and how the presence of the now-ubiquitous bushy-tailed critters altered people's conceptions of nature and community.

More logging, deforestation may better serve climate in some areas Posted: 05 Dec 2013 11:16 AM PST Replacing forests with snow-covered meadows may provide greater climatic and economic benefits than if trees are left standing in some regions, according to a study that for the first time puts a dollar value on snow's ability to reflect the sun's energy.

Preference for oranges protects fruit flies from parasites Posted: 05 Dec 2013 11:15 AM PST One single odorant receptor controls choice of citrus fruits as egg-laying substrate in Drosophila.

Emerging bird flu strain poorly adapted for infecting humans Posted: 05 Dec 2013 11:13 AM PST Avian influenza virus H7N9, which killed several dozen people in China earlier this year, has not yet acquired the changes needed to infect humans easily, according to a new study by scientists.

Protein that helps developing germ cells wipe genes clean of past imprints Posted: 04 Dec 2013 03:22 PM PST A protein called Tet1 is partly responsible for giving primordial germ cells a clean epigenetic slate before developing into sperm and egg cells, according to a new study. This discovery could help provide clues to the cause of some kinds of neonatal growth defects and may also help advance the development of stem cell models of disease.

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