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The Failing Freezer: How Soil Microbes Affect Global Climate

By Guest PostOctober 10, 2013Environmentabisko national park, arctic circle, big biology problem, carbon dioxide, changsheng li, climate change, climate driven changes, ecologist, Environment, failing freezer, gene tyson, global climate, global scale, jeffrey chanton, matthew sullivan, metagenome, methane, microbial feast, microbial process, organic material, patrick crill, permafrost soil, plexiglas chamber, scott saleska, sentinel ecosystem, soil chemistry, soil microbes, steven frolking, Sweden, types of carbon, university of arizona, virginia, virginia rich

With a $3.9 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy, a UA-led international collaboration studies how microbes release greenhouse gases as they gain access to nutrients in the soil thawing under the influence of warmer global temperatures.

The U.S. Department of Energy has awarded $3.9 million to an international collaboration led by University of Arizona ecologists Scott Saleska and Virginia Rich to study how microbes release greenhouse gases as they access nutrients in thawing permafrost soils under the influence of a warmer climate. (more…)

Water Geysers on Saturn’s Moon

By Guest PostAugust 1, 2013Sciencecassini spacecraft, christophe sotin, cornell university, data, enceladus, enceladus plume, galileo, gravity, hydrocarbon composition, icy surface, instrument, ithaca, jet propulsion laboratory, linda spilker, matt hedman, moon, moon of saturn, NASA, organic material, robert brown, saturn, saturn gravity, saturnian moon, seismological signs, tiger stripes, titan, university of arizona, vims, water geysers

A new study published in Nature this week describes the forces that control the jets of water and organic material that erupt from the icy surface of Enceladus, a moon of Saturn. UA scientists contributed data to the study.

The intensity of the jets of water ice and organic molecules that shoot out from Saturn’s moon Enceladus depends on the moon’s proximity to the planet, according to data obtained by NASA’s Cassini spacecraft. The finding, detailed in the journal Nature this week, is the first clear observation that shows the Enceladus plume varies in a predictable manner. (more…)

Making Do with More: Joint BioEnergy Institute Researchers Engineer Plant Cell Walls to Boost Sugar Yields for Biofuels

By Guest PostApril 29, 2013Environmentabove ground organs, apfl, arabidopsis, artificial, berkeley lab, dominique loque, earth, Economy, fan yang, fuel sugars, good idea, henrik scheller, hydrolytic enzymes, jbei, joint bioenergy institute, key tissue, lignocellulosic biomass, ling zhang, model plant, organic material, polysaccharides, positive feedback loop, prajakta mitra, production of lignin, resource, sugars for biofuels, yves verhertbruggen

When blessed with a resource in overwhelming abundance it’s generally a good idea to make valuable use of that resource. Lignocellulosic biomass is the most abundant organic material on Earth. For thousands of years it has been used as animal feed, and for the past two centuries has been a staple of the paper industry. This abundant resource, however, could also supply the sugars needed to produce advanced biofuels that can supplement or replace fossil fuels, providing several key technical challenges are met. One of these challenges is finding ways to more cost-effectively extract those sugars. Major steps towards achieving this breakthrough are being taken by researchers at the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)’s Joint BioEnergy Institute (JBEI).

“Through the tools of synthetic biology, we have engineered healthy plants whose lignocellulosic biomass can more easily be broken down into simple sugars for biofuels,” says Dominique Loque, who directs the cell wall engineering program for JBEI’s Feedstocks Division. “Working with the model plant, Arabidopsis, as a demonstration tool, we have genetically manipulated secondary cell walls to reduce the production of lignin while increasing the yield of fuel sugars.” (more…)

Ralph Milliken: Curiosity’s Mission on Mars

By Guest PostAugust 2, 2012Sciencebrown geologist, chemcam, chemin, curiosity, dan, david orenstein, earth, earth time, gale crater, geology, guadalupe mountains, jpl, mars, mars time, msl, NASA, neutron detector, organic material, plasma, ralph milliken, red planet, rover, rover curiosity, sam, xray diffraction

As Curiosity, the Mars Science Laboratory rover, gets set to land in the wee hours of Monday morning, Brown geologist Ralph Milliken will be getting ready to get to work. He’s a member of the mission’s science team. His curiosity lies in finding out why Mars is a colder, drier place than it used to be.

PASADENA, Calif. [Brown University] — Ralph Milliken, assistant professor of geological sciences, is on the science team of the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL), which is set to land the rover Curiosity on the Red Planet in the early morning of Aug. 6 Eastern Daylight Time. The rover will allow the team to study the rocks and soils of Gale Crater, giving scientists years of data to help them learn the geological history of the planet. If there are signs of water or organic material, Curiosity can find those, too. (more…)

Touch of Gold Improves Nanoparticle Fuel-Cell Reactions

By Guest PostMarch 13, 2012Scienceadvanced electron microscopy, brown university, carbon monoxide, catalyst, co, crystal structure, crystallization, feptau, formic acid, fuel cell reaction, gold, gold atom, helmets, huiyuan zhu, japanese firefighters, mass activity, metallic nanoparticle, nanoparticle catalyst, np, organic material, oxidation, palladium, sen zhang, shaojun guo, shouheng sun, tetragonal, trimetallic nanoparticle

Chemists at Brown University have created a triple-headed metallic nanoparticle that reportedly performs better and lasts longer than any other nanoparticle catalyst studied in fuel-cell reactions. The key is the addition of gold: It yields a more uniform crystal structure while removing carbon monoxide from the reaction. Results published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — Advances in fuel-cell technology have been stymied by the inadequacy of metals studied as catalysts. The drawback to platinum, other than cost, is that it absorbs carbon monoxide in reactions involving fuel cells powered by organic materials like formic acid. A more recently tested metal, palladium, breaks down over time. (more…)

Scientists Unlock Record of Ecosystem Changes Frozen in World’s Glaciers

By Guest PostFebruary 22, 2012Environmentalaska, andrew vermilyea, aquatic food web, aron stubbins, atmosphere, biomass, black carbon, dissolved organic matter, dom, earth, eran hood, fossil fuel, glacial ice, glacier biogeochemistry, glacier environment, glacier ice, glaciers, global emission, greenland, gulf of alaska, ice of glaciers, industrial pollution, industrial revolution, juneau, marine system, matt kane, mendenhall glacier, microorganisms, organic material, patagonia, peatlands, peter raymond, remote ecosystem, robert spencer, skidaway institute of oceanography, soot

*History of influence of industrial revolution hidden in glacial ice*

New clues about how Earth’s remote ecosystems have been influenced by the industrial revolution have been uncovered. Until now they were locked away, frozen in the ice of glaciers.

So say scientist Aron Stubbins of the Skidaway Institute of Oceanography and colleagues. (more…)

Researcher Explains How Santa Delivers Presents in One Night

By Guest PostDecember 17, 2011Culture, Sciencebody parts, cell phones, delivery methods, DNA, ekgs, electromagnetic waves, emerging technologies, kris kringle, larry silverberg, magic, mary, miami, michael from minneapolis, nano toymaker, Nanotechnology, north carolina state university, north pole labs, npl, organic material, reindeer, relativity clouds, saint nicholas, santa, santa claus, science and technology, Space, time continuum, tissues, traditionalist, trumps

Don’t believe in Santa Claus? Magic, you say? In fact, science and technology explain how Santa is able to deliver toys to good girls and boys around the world in one night, according to a North Carolina State University researcher.

NC State’s Dr. Larry Silverberg, professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering, can explain the science and engineering principles that allow Santa, also known as Kris Kringle or Saint Nicholas, to pull off the magical feat year after year. (more…)

Ancient Forest Emerges Mummified From the Arctic

By Guest PostDecember 17, 2010Environment, Sciencealberta, Arctic, arctic biodiversity, arctic ice, atmosphere, birch, branches, canada, carbon dioxide, david elliot, ellesmere island, ellesmere island national park, global cooling, global warming, joel barker, landslide, melt, melting glacier, methane, mummified forest, North America, ohio state university, organic material, pollen, spruce, tree trunks

SAN FRANCISCO — The northernmost mummified forest ever found in Canada is revealing how plants struggled to endure a long-ago global cooling.

Researchers believe the trees — buried by a landslide and exquisitely preserved 2 to 8 million years ago — will help them predict how today’s Arctic will respond to global warming.

They also suspect that many more mummified forests could emerge across North America as Arctic ice continues to melt. As the wood is exposed and begins to rot, it could release significant amounts of methane and carbon dioxide into the atmosphere — and actually boost global warming. (more…)

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