Mice can smell oxygen
The genome of mice harbours more than 1000 odorant receptor genes, which enable them to smell myriad odours in their surroundings. Researchers at the Max Planck Research Unit for Neurogenetics in...
View ArticleFossil fuel formation: Key to atmosphere's oxygen?
For the development of animals, nothing—with the exception of DNA—may be more important than oxygen in the atmosphere.
View ArticleRock samples suggest oxygen levels during 'Lomagundi Event' were high enough...
(Phys.org)—A small team of researchers in the U.S. has found evidence in rock samples that suggests that oxygen levels during the Lomagundi Event were high enough to support the advancement of life on...
View ArticleLow level of oxygen in Earth's middle ages delayed evolution for two billion...
A low level of atmospheric oxygen in Earth's middle ages held back evolution for 2 billion years, raising fresh questions about the origins of life on this planet.
View ArticleDead zones may threaten coral reefs worldwide
Dead zones affect dozens of coral reefs around the world and threaten hundreds more according to a new study by Smithsonian scientists published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences....
View ArticleNaked mole-rats turn into plants when oxygen is low
Deprived of oxygen, naked mole-rats can survive by metabolizing fructose just as plants do, researchers report this week in the journal Science.
View ArticleDecades of data on world's oceans reveal a troubling oxygen decline
A new analysis of decades of data on oceans across the globe has revealed that the amount of dissolved oxygen contained in the water - an important measure of ocean health - has been declining for more...
View ArticleJurassic drop in ocean oxygen lasted a million years
Dramatic drops in oceanic oxygen, which cause mass extinctions of sea life, come to a natural end - but it takes about a million years.
View ArticleA genomic take on geobiology
Scientists know that atmospheric oxygen irreversibly accumulated on Earth around 2.3 billion years ago, at a time known as the Great Oxidation Event, or GOE. Prior to that time all life was microbial,...
View ArticleReductions in phosphorous in lakes in China due to government efforts
(Phys.org)—An international team of researchers has found that levels of phosphorous found in Chinese lakes have fallen on average over the past nine years. In their paper published in the journal...
View ArticleEarth's major 'mass extinction' events
Most scientists agree that a "mass extinction" event is underway with the Earth's wildlife disappearing at an alarming rate, mainly due to human activity.
View ArticleStudy predicts heart cells' response to dwindling oxygen
Time is of the essence when treating a patient undergoing a heart attack. Cardiac surgeons attempt to quickly stabilize the heart by applying reperfusion, a technique that restores oxygen to the heart...
View ArticleThis enzyme enabled life to conquer a hostile earth
Computers are simulating the ancestral versions of the most common protein on Earth, giving scientists an unparalleled look at early life's development of harnessing energy from the Sun and production...
View ArticleStudy estimates oxygen loss in ancient global ocean
A loss of oxygen in global ocean seawater 94 million years ago led to a mass extinction of marine life that lasted for roughly half a million years.
View ArticleGlobal oceanic dead zones persisted for 50,000 years after end-Triassic...
Extremely low oxygen levels in Earth's oceans could be responsible for extending the effects of a mass extinction that wiped out millions of species on Earth around 200 million years ago, according to...
View ArticleCarving diamonds for optical components
Thanks to a new technique developed at EPFL, optical diffraction gratings can now be made out of pure diamond, with their surfaces smoothed down to the very last atom. These new devices can be used to...
View ArticleHigh-flying ducks cross Himalayas
A high-flying duck species reaches altitudes of up to 6,800 metres (22,000 feet) to cross the Himalayas, new research shows.
View ArticleOxygen-deficient dwarf galaxy hints at makings of early universe
A recently discovered dwarf galaxy in the constellation Lynx may serve well as a proxy for better understanding the developing chemistry of the early universe, according to a research team that...
View ArticleTelemedicine via satellite improves care at astronaut landings
Tempus Pro, a portable vital-signs monitor offering telemedicine via satellite, is helping medics at ESA astronaut landings. Thomas Pesquet was the first to benefit at the end of his mission in May.
View ArticleHacking evolution, screening technique may improve most widespread enzyme
Plants evolved over millions of years into an environment that has dramatically changed in the last 150 years since the Industrial Revolution began: carbon dioxide levels have increased 50 percent, and...
View ArticleResearchers develop flexible, stretchable photonic devices
Researchers at MIT and several other institutions have developed a method for making photonic devices—similar to electronic devices but based on light rather than electricity—that can bend and stretch...
View ArticleCan a common ingredient in laundry detergent help advance diabetes research?
Two oxygen-producing compounds - including one that boosts performance in some laundry detergents - might one day play a key role in helping scientists successfully build a bioartificial pancreas in...
View ArticleA popular tool to trace Earth's oxygen history can give false positives
For researchers pursuing the primordial history of oxygen in Earth's atmosphere, a new study might sour some "Eureka!" moments. A contemporary tool used to trace oxygen by examining ancient rock strata...
View ArticleRise in oxygen levels links to ancient explosion of life, researchers find
Oxygen has provided a breath of fresh air to the study of the Earth's evolution some 400-plus million years ago.
View ArticleAre our lakes on the brink of suffocation?
In order to gain insight into how lakes breathe, EPFL scientists have studied oxygen depletion in the depths of Lake Geneva – the first time such research has been carried out. By collecting key data,...
View ArticleWhich came first: Complex life or high atmospheric oxygen?
We and all other animals wouldn't be here today if our planet didn't have a lot of oxygen in its atmosphere and oceans. But how crucial were high oxygen levels to the transition from simple,...
View ArticleAlpine air at work? Delhi eyes novel ways to battle smog
Political apathy over the poisonous smog choking India's capital has led many like businessman Kamal Meattle to take matters into their own hands, with an office building he says pumps air as fresh as...
View ArticleCancer tumours could help unravel the mystery of the Cambrian explosion
Could tumours help us explain the explosion of life of Earth? Scientists have typically explained the period of history when large animal species became much more diverse very quickly as the result of...
View ArticlePrimordial oceans had oxygen 250 million years before the atmosphere
Research by a University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD) graduate student Mojtaba Fakhraee and Associate Professor Sergei Katsev has pushed a major milestone in the evolution of the Earth's environment back...
View ArticleWhat your face says about your heartbeat
Researchers at Utah State University don't need an Apple Watch or stethoscope to measure your heartbeat. They only need a video camera.
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