Tag Archives: climate change

The Bright Side of Death: Awareness of Mortality Can Result in Positive Behaviors, Say MU Researchers

By Guest PostApril 30, 2012Culture, Sciencealtruism, catastrophe, climate change, control topic, death, disaster, discrimination, divorce rate, global threat, jamie arndt, ken vail, monty python, morose despondency, mortality, muslim, negative behavior, negative effect, news media, oklahoma city bombing, peaceful, terrorism, terrorist attack, university of missouri

COLUMBIA, Mo. — Contemplating death doesn’t necessarily lead to morose despondency, fear, aggression or other negative behaviors, as previous research has suggested. Following a review of dozens of studies, University of Missouri researchers found that thoughts of mortality can lead to decreased militaristic attitudes, better health decisions, increased altruism and helpfulness, and reduced divorce rates.

“According to terror management theory, people deal with their awareness of mortality by upholding cultural beliefs and seeking to become part of something larger and more enduring than themselves, such as nations or religions,” said Jamie Arndt, study co-author and professor of psychological sciences. “Depending on how that manifests itself, positive outcomes can be the result.” (more…)

Global Warming Refuge Discovered Near At-Risk Pacific Island Nation of Kiribati

By Guest PostApril 29, 2012Environmentanne cohen, chlorophyll level, climate change, climate model, climate scientist, coral, coral reef, david garrison, eastern pacific, ecosystem, equatorial pacific, equatorial undercurrent, euc, fish, galapagos islands, gilbert islands, global ocean, global warming, islands, kiribati, kristopher karnauskas, nutrient, ocean temperature, pacific islands, pacific reefs, regional model, satellite map, scylla, sea-level rise, tropical pacific, whoi

Ocean currents may mitigate warming near handful of equatorial islands

Scientists predict ocean temperatures will rise in the equatorial Pacific by the end of the century, wreaking havoc on coral reef ecosystems.

But a new study shows that climate change could cause ocean currents to operate in a way that mitigates warming near a handful of islands right on the equator.

Those islands include some of the 33 coral atolls that form the nation of Kiribati. This low-lying country is at risk from sea-level rise caused by global warming. (more…)

Diesel Technologies Drastically Cut Emissions in Real-World Conditions

By Guest PostApril 23, 2012Environmentblack carbon, catalytic reduction, chris frey, climate change, diesel engine, emission, emissions, environmental consequence, environmental impact, fuel, gurdas sandhu, human health, low level ozone, measurement system, nitrogen oxides, nox, nox emission, particulate matter, per gallon, pm, pollutant, tractor trailer trucks

New research from North Carolina State University shows that federal requirements governing diesel engines of new tractor trailer trucks have resulted in major cuts in emissions of particulate matter (PM) and nitrogen oxides (NOx) – pollutants that have significant human health and environmental impacts.

“These requirements for new emission control technologies have increased costs for truck owners and operators, and we wanted to know whether there was any real benefit,” says Dr. Chris Frey, professor of civil, construction and environmental engineering at NC State and co-author of a paper describing the research. “We found that there is a huge reduction in both PM and NOx emissions.” (more…)

Climate Change Boosts Then Quickly Stunts Plants, Decade-long Study Shows

By Guest PostApril 12, 2012Environmentarizona, atmosphere, bruce hungate, climate change, ecologist, ecosystem feedback, elevation, george koch, global warming, grassland ecosystem, great basin desert, greenhouse, national science foundation, nau, nitrogen gas, northern arizona university, nsf, nutrient cycle, paul dijkstra, plant communities, san francisco peaks, saran twombly, warming environment, zhuoting wu

*Global warming may initially make the grass greener, but not for long*

Global warming may initially make the grass greener, but not for long, according to new research results.

The findings, published this week in the journal Nature Climate Change, show that plants may thrive in the early stages of a warming environment but then begin to deteriorate quickly.

“We were really surprised by the pattern, where the initial boost in growth just went away,” said scientist Zhuoting Wu of Northern Arizona University (NAU), a lead author of the study. “As ecosystems adjusted, the responses changed.” (more…)

Which Plants Will Survive Droughts, Climate Change?

By Guest PostApril 9, 2012Environmentagaves, alahee, cacti, california, carbon dioxide, cell level loss, chaparral shrubs, China, christine scoffoni, climate change, desert plants, drought tolerance, ecosystems, extinction, faith inman narahari, hawaiian drought, lawren sack, megan bartlett, photosynthesis, plant species, psydrax odorata, sandalwood, santalum paniculatum, stiff cell wall, stomata, sunflower, tropical botanical gardens, turgor loss point, turgor pressure, xishuangbanna, yuccas, yunnan

New research by UCLA life scientists could lead to predictions of which plant species will escape extinction from climate change.

Droughts are worsening around the world, posing a great challenge to plants in all ecosystems, said Lawren Sack, a UCLA professor of ecology and evolutionary biology and senior author of the research. Scientists have debated for more than a century how to predict which species are most vulnerable.

Sack and two members of his laboratory have made a fundamental discovery that resolves this debate and allows for the prediction of how diverse plant species and vegetation types worldwide will tolerate drought, which is critical given the threats posed by climate change, he said. (more…)

Geologists Correct a Rift in Africa

By Guest PostMarch 26, 2012Scienceafrica today, australia, climate change, earth crust, east africa, east african rift, eric roberts, ethiopia, geological sciences, giant arc, great rift valley, human evolution, human species, james cook university, Kenya, malawi, michael gottfried, michigan state university, model, nancy stevens, nature geoscience, ohio university, plate boundary, rukwa rift, system, tectonic forces, uganda, vertebrate fossils, volcanic ash

EAST LANSING, Mich. — The huge changes in the Earth’s crust that influenced human evolution are being redefined, according to research published today in Nature Geoscience.

The Great Rift Valley of East Africa – the birthplace of the human species – may have taken much longer to develop than previously believed.

“We now believe that the western portion of the rift formed about 25 million years ago, and is approximately as old as the eastern part, instead of much younger as other studies have maintained,” said Michael Gottfried, Michigan State University associate professor of geological sciences. “The significance is that the Rift Valley is the setting for the most crucial steps in primate and ultimately human evolution, and our study has major implications for the environmental and landscape changes that form the backdrop for that evolutionary story.” (more…)

Study of Patagonian Glacier’s Rise and Fall Adds to Understanding of Global Climate Change

By Guest PostMarch 24, 2012Environment17th century, andes, antonio de vea, chilean glacier, climate, climate change, climate system, earth, fernando torrejon, fluctuation, glacial environment, glacial melt, glacier, glacier fluctuation, glaciomarine sediment, global temperature, golfo elefantes, gualas glacier, holocene glacier, icebreaker, marine environment, nathaniel b palmer, neoglacial fluctuation, northern patagonian icefield, past temperature, patagonia, patagonias fjords, rainfall data, san rafael, sebastien bertrand, sediment record, spanish explorers, university of ghent, voyages, whoi

Glaciers play a vital role in Earth’s climate system, and it’s critical to understand what contributes to their fluctuation.

Increased global temperatures are frequently viewed as the cause of glacial melt, but a new study of Patagonia’s Gualas Glacier highlights the role of precipitation in the glacier’s fluctuation. The study, conducted by Sébastien Bertrand of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) and his colleagues, reconstructs a 5,400 year-record of the region’s glacial environment and climate, comparing past temperature and rainfall data with sediment records of glacier fluctuations and the historical observations of early Spanish explorers. (more…)

Early Spring Drives Butterfly Population Declines

By Guest PostMarch 18, 2012Environment, Naturebutterfly population, carol boggs, caterpillars, climate change, colorado rocky mountains, david inouye, flower, life cycle, mormon fritillary butterfly, national science foundation, nectar, population, saran twombly, snowmelt, species, speyeria mormonia, university of maryland

“Ahead-of-time” snowmelt triggers chains of events in the Mormon Fritillary butterfly

Early snowmelt caused by climate change in the Colorado Rocky Mountains snowballs into two chains of events: a decrease in the number of flowers, which, in turn, decreases available nectar. The result is decline in a population of the Mormon Fritillary butterfly, Speyeria mormonia.

Using long-term data on date of snowmelt, butterfly population sizes and flower numbers at the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory, Carol Boggs, a biologist at Stanford University, and colleagues uncovered multiple effects of early snowmelt on the growth rate of an insect population. (more…)