GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida has the world’s worst invasive amphibian and reptile problem, and a new 20-year study led by a University of Florida researcher verifies the pet trade as the No. 1 cause of the species’ introductions.
From 1863 through 2010, 137 non-native amphibian and reptile species were introduced to Florida, with about 25 percent of those traced to one animal importer. The findings appear online today in Zootaxa. (more…)
Toxin proteins are genetically engineered into our food because they kill insects by perforating body cell walls, and Professor Rikard Blunck of the University of Montreal’s Group for the study of membrane proteins (GÉPROM) has detected the molecular mechanism involved. In recognition of his breakthrough, he received the Traditional Paul F. Cranefield Award of the Society of General Physiologists yesterday evening. (more…)
Geophysical Sciences Professor David Archer polled the 200 students in one of his Global Warming classes about whether they believed that humans have had an impact on climate. Approximately 90 percent of the students responded “yes,” reflecting the lessons of climate simulations that Archer had shared earlier with the students.
Those computer simulations are able to reproduce the trend toward rising temperatures, but only when they include data on rising carbon dioxide concentrations in the atmosphere. Simulations that omit the CO2 data do not accurately reproduce the changes. Archer says the link helps reveal carbon dioxide emissions as “the smoking gun” behind global warming and climate change. (more…)
*Bing introduced video to its home page today to celebrate the start of fall, bringing motion to the iconic visuals that have helped differentiate Microsoft’s search engine.*
REDMOND, Wash. – Sept. 23, 2011 – Bing is celebrating the first day of fall with a first for its users: an autumn-hued video on its home page.
Visitors to the U.S. Bing home page today will be greeted by a time lapse video of the sun slowly rising over fall foliage. The video – visible to people using an HTML5-enabled browser – is the first to appear on the Bing home page, where eye-grabbing images have become an iconic part of the search engine’s brand, said Stephanie Horstmanshof, managing editor of Bing. Friday’s video represents the next step in Bing’s efforts to bring people into an experience they can’t get anywhere else. (more…)
EAST LANSING, Mich. — Low-income youth are more apt to vote if they are engaged in political activism and influenced by friends and family, according to a study by Michigan State University education scholars that sheds new light on voting behavior.(more…)
“Less than we thought,” researchers say in a new study providing insights into the distribution of biodiversity across the globe
The temperate forests of Canada or Northern Europe may have much more in common with the tropical rainforests of Southeast Asia or South America than previously believed, according to a research group including a University of Arizona ecologist.(more…)
*Yahoo! puts friendly faces front and center on Yahoo! News and IntoNow from Yahoo!, for social content discovery and expression on Yahoo! and Facebook*
SAN FRANCISCO, f8 Developer Conference, September 22, 2011 – Yahoo! Inc., the premier digital media company, today announced a new way to discover and connect with the world’s most popular content on both Yahoo! and Facebook. Beginning with Yahoo! News in the U.S., the No. 1 online news destination with more than 80 million unique monthly visitors**, and IntoNow from Yahoo!, the mobile app to discover and discuss TV shows, Yahoo! is putting people’s friends front and center to usher in an innovative way of connecting around content socially. (more…)
*Computer simulations of global climate lead to new conclusions*
Earth’s deep oceans may absorb enough heat at times to flatten the rate of global warming for periods of as long as a decade–even in the midst of longer-term warming. This according to a new analysis led by scientists at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR).
The study, based on computer simulations of global climate, points to ocean layers deeper than 1,000 feet as the main location of the “missing heat” during periods such as the past decade when global air temperatures showed little trend. (more…)
