What if the secret to eating less wasn’t portion control or calorie counting, but chili peppers? For centuries, spice has added excitement to meals. Now, it may also offer a simple way to manage how much you eat. 



New research from <a href="https://www.psu.edu" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Penn State</a> shows that a small boost in spiciness can lead to reduced calorie intake without affecting how much you enjoy your food.



Eating behaviors are influenced by many things - taste, texture, aroma, and even how fast you chew. Most strategies aimed at reducing food intake focus on controlling portions or changing food composition. But this study highlights a different path: tweaking oral burn. 



That warm, tingly sensation from capsaicin - the compound in chili peppers - might be doing more than just making your tongue tingle.



Researchers conducted three controlled experiments to understand if chili heat could reduce energy intake. Their findings were clear: a little heat slows you down and helps you <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/common-plastic-food-packaging-contains-9936-harmful-chemicals/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">eat</a> less.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-spicy-food-slows-eating">Spicy food slows eating</h2>



Paige Cunningham, a postdoctoral researcher at Penn State who led the study, said that her team suspected that making a meal spicier might slow people down.



"We thought, let's test, under controlled experimental conditions in the lab, if adding a small amount of spice, but not so much that the meal is inedible, will make people eat slower and therefore eat less,” explained Cunningham.



The research team designed three experiments using two familiar meals: beef chili and chicken tikka masala. Each participant consumed both a mild and a spicy version of the meal across different visits. 



The key manipulation involved adjusting the ratio of hot to sweet paprika while keeping everything else - flavor, texture, macronutrients - constant. Every session was recorded to track bite size, eating rate, meal duration, and more.



They found that adding spice didn’t make the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/world-food-day-fighting-global-hunger/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">meal</a> unpleasant. Instead, it changed how people ate. The spicy meals were consumed more slowly. Eating rate dropped, and participants took fewer bites per minute. Interestingly, participants still liked the spicy meals just as much.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-spicy-beef-and-tikka-led-to-eating-less-food">Spicy beef and tikka led to eating less food</h2>



In Experiment 1, participants consumed about 46 grams less of the spicy beef chili compared to the mild version. That’s a 13% reduction in intake, which also meant 53 fewer kilocalories. 



The eating rate was 11% slower during the spicy <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/vaccinating-plants-could-boost-global-food-security/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">meal</a>, and the bite rate dropped as well. However, total meal duration and bite size didn’t change significantly. Participants simply took more time between bites, eating more thoughtfully.



“This points to added chilies as a potential strategy for reducing the risk of energy overconsumption,” said John Hayes, professor of food science and co-author on the study. “Next time you're looking to eat a little less, try adding a blast of chilies, as it may slow you down and help you eat less.”



Experiment 2a used chicken tikka masala instead of chili. Here, the manipulation failed - the spicy version was not perceived as much spicier than the mild one. As a result, there was no significant difference in intake or eating behavior. 



This outcome stressed an important point: the effect depends on the perceptible level of heat. Mild differences won’t move the needle.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-stronger-spice-yields-stronger-results">A stronger spice yields stronger results</h2>



To address the failed manipulation in Experiment 2a, the researchers revised their approach in Experiment 2b. They increased the paprika content in the chicken tikka and ensured the spicy version delivered a noticeable burn. 



This time, the result mirrored the chili experiment. Participants ate 64 grams less spicy tikka, a reduction of 18%. Eating rate dropped by 17%, and bite frequency also decreased.



The spice didn’t make the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/fungi-fusion-turning-food-waste-into-culinary-delights/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">food</a> less enjoyable. In both chili and tikka trials, liking scores remained stable. Appetite ratings before and after meals also stayed roughly the same. What changed was how people interacted with the food. The spicy versions encouraged slower, more mindful eating.



Notably, water consumption didn’t vary between mild and spicy versions. This ruled out a common assumption: that drinking more water fills people up. “This is why we need to do empirical studies of behavior, because what you might intuitively expect is often not the case,” Hayes remarked.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-mechanisms-and-possible-thresholds">Mechanisms and possible thresholds</h2>



So, what’s actually happening here? The likely mechanism is increased oro-sensory exposure. Spicy foods stay in the mouth longer, allowing time for fullness signals to reach the brain. This has been linked with reduced energy intake in earlier studies involving texture changes. 



But here, the change was chemical, not physical. That makes it a novel method for influencing eating behavior.



Interestingly, the data suggests a potential threshold effect. The spicy version in Experiment 2a didn’t yield any change because it wasn’t spicy enough. In contrast, Experiment 2b used a 4% hot paprika blend, producing a spiciness rating around 68 out of 101. 



That version led to real behavior changes. The spicy beef chili in Experiment 1, rated at 54, also caused a measurable reduction. Meals that reached a certain burn intensity consistently led to slower eating and lower intake.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-individual-differences-and-tolerance">Individual differences and tolerance</h2>



The study also explored how personal traits affect response to spice. Participants with higher levels of neuroticism and openness were less responsive to spice changes. 



However, traits like age, BMI, and frequency of eating spicy food didn’t seem to affect outcomes. That said, the researchers did recruit only moderate spice consumers. This reduced variability and helped maintain experimental control.



No participants reported discomfort, and the spice levels used fell well below extreme intensity. 



This suggests there’s a “sweet spot” for oral burn - strong enough to affect eating, but not so strong that it reduces meal enjoyment or causes distress. <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/global-drought-has-caused-crisis-levels-of-food-and-water-scarcity/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Meals</a> rated around 50–70 on the spice scale seem to hit that balance.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-adding-spice-can-change-eating-habits">Adding spice can change eating habits</h2>



The broader implications of this research are promising. Spicy food is widely used around the world, and the ingredients - like chili pepper and paprika - are affordable and accessible. 



As capsaicin gains attention for its potential health benefits, including improved metabolism and satiety, these findings add another layer: it can reshape how we eat.



In daily life, eating occurs in varied environments. While this study happened in a lab, it still shows a robust effect across different dishes. The results also challenge the idea that we must alter what we eat to eat less. Instead, we may just need to adjust how we experience it.



“This reduction in intake occurred without negatively impacting how much participants liked the food,” said Hayes. That’s a significant point. No one wants to sacrifice enjoyment for control. Here, you don’t have to.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-adding-chili-to-your-plate">Adding chili to your plate</h2>



From chili con carne to tikka masala, a little extra heat might be a gentle nudge toward eating less. The key lies in slowing down the eating process. That pause between bites, triggered by oral burn, gives your body time to say, “I’m full.”



These findings invite more exploration. Can this strategy help long-term? Will it work in more diverse populations or in social eating situations? And what is the best spice level to use at home? 



While those questions remain, one thing is clear - adding a little chili might do more than wake up your taste buds. It might just help you regain control over your plate.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0950329325001417?via%3Dihub" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Food Quality and Preference</a>.



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Spicy foods can slow down eating and cut calorie intake

What if the secret to eating less wasn’t portion control or calorie counting, but chili peppers? For centuries, spice has added excitement to meals. Now, it may also offer a simple way to manage how much you eat. New research from Penn State shows that a small boost in spiciness can lead to reduced calorie intake without affecting how much you enjoy your food. Eating behaviors are influenced by many things - taste, texture, aroma, and even how fast you chew. Most strategies aimed at reducing food...

Sometimes we can make certain numbers appear either more or less significant than they actually are — often in an effort to make ourselves feel better or impress the outside world (40 is the new 30!). A good example of this is the fact that 160 companies around the world have committed to using “100 percent renewable energy.” The key disclaimer here is that 100 percent <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/renewable-energy-carbon-capture/">renewable energy</a> does not mean 100 percent carbon-free energy — not to mention the fact that 160 companies worldwide is a drop in the bucket.

A new study from <a href="https://www.stanford.edu/">Stanford University</a> has found that the difference between renewable energy and carbon-free energy will only grow as power grids become less reliant on fossil power. Published in <a href="https://www.cell.com/joule/home">Joule</a>, the paper details how current methods of estimating greenhouse gas emissions use yearly averages, even though the carbon content of electricity on the grid can vary drastically over the course of a day in numerous locations.

“To guarantee 100 percent emissions reductions from renewable energy, power consumption needs to be matched with renewable generation on an hourly basis,” explains Sally Benson, co-director of the Precourt Institute for Energy and a co-author on the paper. “Just purchasing more solar energy in a grid that already has lots of solar generation will not result in zero emissions.”

Many companies that claim to be 100 percent renewable actually do not use only renewable power. Instead, corporations often purchase or generate enough renewable energy to match 100 percent or more of their electricity use over the year. For solar power, an entity may generate more electricity than it uses during an afternoon and sell the excess. But at night, it purchases power from the grid, which is certainly not carbon-free if it is generated through the burning of fossil fuels.

The study finds that using annual averages of the carbon content of grid power is only valid when the fluctuations in renewable generation are small, or when all excess renewable energy can be stored. Places like California have large fluctuations in carbon content due to existing renewables, and do not have the storage capacity to capture all excess electricity. The researchers found that by 2025, using yearly averages in California could overstate carbon reductions associated with solar power by over 50 percent when compared to hourly averages.

“Both the carbon footprint of a large consumer and the environmental value of renewable energy assets depend on the grid they interact with,” says <a href="https://profiles.stanford.edu/jacques-de-chalendar">Jacques de Chalendar</a>, an energy resources engineering PhD student and lead author of the study. “Using hourly data is the best way to measure the environmental benefit of renewables, and this will become increasingly true wherever renewable generation is growing.”

Using hourly carbon accounting methods may convince large consumers to increase their use of low-carbon power from the grid. Additionally, by having more accurate information, consumers could move flexible consumption to times of the day when grid power is cleanest. Energy storage allows for electricity to be drawn from the grid during low-carbon periods and then stored for later use.

“Transparent, precise and meaningful carbon accounting is necessary,” says Benson. “And if it’s done properly, we can make the right investments in renewable power and create a more sustainable grid.”

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

‘Renewable’ does not mean ‘carbon-free’ despite what companies may imply

Sometimes we can make certain numbers appear either more or...

According to researchers at the <a href="https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/">University of Nottingham</a>, drinking a cup of <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/good-news-for-coffee-lovers-drink-doesnt-stiffen-arteries/">coffee</a> can trigger the body’s fat-fighting defense called brown adipose tissue (BAT), or “brown fat,” which therefore lowers one’s risk for obesity and diabetes. 

This study, published in <a href="https://www.nature.com/srep/">Scientific Reports</a>, is one of the first to look into the direct effects of BAT functions in humans — functions that dictate how quickly we can burn calories as energy.

Adults were just recently discovered to have BAT, which was thought to only be found in babies and hibernating mammals. BAT generates body heat by burning calories whereas white fat simply stores away excess calories. Therefore, people with more brown fat have lower body mass indexes (BMI).

"Brown fat works in a different way to other fat in your body and produces heat by burning sugar and fat, often in response to cold. Increasing its activity improves blood sugar control as well as improving blood lipid levels and the extra calories burnt help with weight loss,” said study co-director Professor Michael Symonds, from the <a href="https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/medicine/">School of Medicine at the University of Nottingham</a>. “However, until now, no one has found an acceptable way to stimulate its activity in humans.

"This is the first study in humans to show that something like a cup of coffee can have a direct effect on our brown fat functions,” he continued. “The potential implications of our results are pretty big, as obesity is a major health concern for society and we also have a growing diabetes epidemic and brown fat could potentially be part of the solution in tackling them."

After using stem cells to calculate the dosage of caffeine needed to stimulate brown fat, the team used a thermal imaging technique to track the body’s brown fat reserves and assess its ability to produce heat. 

"From our previous work, we knew that brown fat is mainly located in the neck region, so we were able to image someone straight after they had a drink to see if the brown fat got hotter," Professor Symonds said. "The results were positive and we now need to ascertain that caffeine as one of the ingredients in the coffee is acting as the stimulus or if there's another component helping with the activation of brown fat. We are currently looking at caffeine supplements to test whether the effect is similar.”

“Once we have confirmed which component is responsible for this, it could potentially be used as part of a weight management regime or as part of glucose regulation programme to help prevent diabetes,” he concluded.

--

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: Shutterstock/Nobuhiro Asada

Coffee may help lower the risk of obesity

According to researchers at the University of Nottingham, drinking a...

Your efforts to keep your home clean and put a meal on the table is adding to indoor pollution, according to a new study.

Researchers from the <a href="https://www.colorado.edu/">University of Colorado, Boulder</a> discovered that daily chores can leave indoor pollution levels on par with a major city – and not a nice, clean one. One a large collection of <a href="https://www.earth.com/gallery/10-best-plants-for-indoor-air-quality/">clean-air houseplants</a> can’t put much of a dent in.

"We wanted to know: How do basic activities like cooking and cleaning change the chemistry of a house?" Dr. Marina Vance said in a press release. 

Even more disturbing, that pollution doesn’t stay indoors. Chemicals known as volatile organic compounds, found in products like shampoo, perfume and cleaning chemicals, escape into the outdoors where they contribute more to atmospheric air pollution than cars and trucks, the researchers said.

"Homes have never been considered an important source of outdoor air pollution and the moment is right to start exploring that," Vance said.

Vance and her colleagues used sensors and monitors to track the amounts of indoor pollution in a home on the <a href="https://www.utexas.edu/">University of Texas, Austin</a> campus. There, the team spent a month participating in basic household chores such as cooking and cleaning – including cooking a full <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/thanksgiving-dinners-carbon-footprint/">Thanksgiving dinner</a>. 

"Even the simple act of making toast raised particle levels far higher than expected," Vance said. "We had to go adjust many of the instruments."

The study shows that homes need to be well-ventilated when cooking and cleaning to prevent harmful levels of indoor pollution, she said. 

The study shows that experts have been operating with an incomplete picture of the causes of air pollution. 

"Many traditional sources like fossil fuel-burning vehicles have become much cleaner than they used to be," said Dr. Joost de Gouw, who has previously studied indoor pollution caused by household activities. "Ozone and fine particulates are monitored by the <a href="https://www.epa.gov/">EPA</a>, but data for airborne toxins like formaldehyde and benzene and compounds like alcohols and ketones that originate from the home are very sparse."

The research was presented during a panel discussion at the <a href="https://meetings.aaas.org/">2019 American Association for the Advancement of Science Annual Meeting</a> in Washington, D.C. Funding was provided by the <a href="https://sloan.org/">Alfred P. Sloan Foundation</a>.

—

By Kyla Cathey, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> staff writer

Cooking, cleaning are sources of indoor pollution

Your efforts to keep your home clean and put a...

How to keep stink bugs out of your home during winter. Researchers from <a href="https://vt.edu/">Virginia Tech</a> and the <a href="https://www.usda.gov/">United States Department of Agriculture</a> have found that brown marmorated stink bugs (Halyomorpha halys) cannot enter into slits less than 3 millimeters wide and holes less than 7 millimeters wide. This evidence can help homeowners safeguard their houses against stink bugs during the <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/warmer-winter/">winter</a>, when the critters are seeking shelter from the cold.

"The way people talk about H. halys, you'd think they could get into just about anything," said study leader Benjamin Chambers, Ph.D., a graduate of <a href="https://biobuild.mlsoc.vt.edu/">Virginia Tech's BioBuild program</a>. "As it turns out, the slits they can get through are pretty small, but not so small as I thought."

To come to this conclusion, published February 13th in the <a href="https://academic.oup.com/jee">Journal of Economic Entomology</a>, Chambers conducted a series of tests where he put 30 brown marmorated stink bugs in a sealed box. The box had several slashes or holes on the top of varying widths. When a heat source was placed below the box, the stink bugs would attempt to exit via the varying slits and holes.

Most stink bugs were able to successfully exit through 8 millimeter holes and 4 millimeter slits. However, only one male stink bug was able to crawl through the 7 millimeter hole. None were able to pass through the 3 millimeter-wide slit. This was mostly because the width of the stink bugs made it impossible for them to enter these small crevices and holes.

"We now know how small of an opening is not a concern for H. halys," Chambers said. "Once you're below a rigid 3-by-7 millimeter opening, you won't see many getting through."

However, homeowners must take structural needs into account when safeguarding against stink bugs. “Opening size is also relevant in selecting screen or mesh being placed over vents,” Chambers continued. “If ventilation is already near the design minimum, selecting too fine a mesh could interfere with the proper function of those vents.”

Chambers also found that stink bugs aggregate around other long-dead, dried-out stink bugs. Therefore, cleaning out areas that contain stink bug corpses may prevent stink bugs from settling into crevices. Chambers also suggested that seeding stink bug traps with corpses may prove to be effective, however, more testing is needed.

--

By <a href="mailto:oliviagharvey24@gmail.com">Olivia Harvey</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: Mohammed El Damir, Bugwood.org, CC BY 3.0 US

How to keep stink bugs out of your home during winter

How to keep stink bugs out of your home during...

A desire for sweet foods is hard-wired into each and every human. Sugar is the simplest form of energy for our bodies, and our brains. As a result, we are programmed to seek out sweet foods and even gorge on them when they are abundant. This may have made sense when humans spent days searching for their next meal, but in our modern society sugar is always available. 

Sugar is now the ingredient that <a href="https://www.foodnavigator-usa.com/Article/2013/03/04/Mintel-Shoppers-more-concerned-about-total-sugar-than-HFCS">consumers are most worried about avoiding</a>. This concern is well founded. The prevalence of sugar has led to a huge array of health problems, from obesity, to type 2 diabetes and <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2769828/">has even been implicated as a cause of alzheimer’s disease</a>. 

In light of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/that-sugar-film-sugar-consumption/">concerns surrounding high-sugar foods</a>, many people choose artificial sweeteners. Products such as Diet Coke and Splenda offer a calorie-free alternative to sugar. However, there are growing concerns about the safety and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/non-sugar-sweeteners/">effectiveness of these products</a>. 

As a result, many consumers are looking for a healthier and more natural way to reach the sweetness we’ve grown accustomed to. There are a few big contenders in the race for the best natural sweetener.
<h2>Stevia - <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthpedia/plant/en/stevia-rebaudiana/">Stevia rebaudiana</a></h2>
Stevia has dominated the world of natural sugar alternatives in the last few decades. This small shrub from the daisy family (Asteraceae) is native to Paraguay where it has been used for centuries as a sweetener. The leaves of this plant contain compounds called steviol glycosides that are <a href="https://www.purecirclesteviainstitute.com/healthy-lifestyle/great-taste/how-sweet-is-stevia">up to 300X sweeter than sugar by weight</a>. 

The artificial sweetener industry sees Stevia as the most hopeful natural sweetener. There are already multiple stevia based sweeteners on the market including Cargill’s Truvia, as well as some mid-calorie sodas. Current products are made from the natural rebaudioside-A. However to get close to the flavor of sugar, it needs to be mixed with other sweeteners. <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2014/01/05/magazine/the-quest-for-a-natural-sugar-substitute.html">Research is under way into how the sweeteners in stevia can be improved.</a>
<h2>Monk Fruit (Lou han guo) - <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthpedia/plant/en/siraitia-grosvenorii/">Siraitia grosvenorii</a></h2>
Monk fruit is the second most popular natural sugar alternative. It has garnered some commercial attention and is used in Cumberland Packaging’s Monk Fruit in the Raw sweetener. 

However, monk fruit is far more expensive to produce than stevia, and therefore has lagged behind its more popular competitor. In addition, the active chemicals (mogrosides) work far better in a neutral pH, making them less versatile for sodas and coffee. Some mixtures combine monk fruit and stevia <a href="https://www.foodbusinessnews.net/articles/9592-be-wary-of-new-natural-sweeteners">to take advantage of the best parts of each</a>.
<h2>Chinese Blackberry (Chinese Sweet Tea) - <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthpedia/plant/en/rubus-chingii-suavissimus/">Rubus suavissimus</a></h2>
The Chinese Blackberry is a close relative of the blackberries that grow in North America. However, the Chinese Blackberry has more sweetness to offer than just its berries. The leaves of this plant are brewed into a tea that is sweet, despite having no sugar at all. This plant is less well-researched than some other natural sweeteners. It is believed that it owes its sweetness to compounds <a href="https://examine.com/supplements/rubus-suavissimus/">similar to the steviol glycosides found in stevia</a>. There may be a lot of potential in this sweet leaf, but it still needs to be studied more extensively.
<h2>Miracle Berries - <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthpedia/plant/en/synsepalum-dulcificum/">Synsepalum dulcificum</a></h2>
A different type of sweetener exists in the boldly named miracle berry. This fruit contains a protein called miraculin, which causes sour foods to taste sweet. After eating miracle berries, lemons and vinegar will taste excessively sweet. 

This fruit may seem like a great way to add sweetness to a sour meal, but as a food additive it isn’t practical. For it to work, you must coat your mouth before consuming the sour food. In addition, it cancels out the sour flavors that are essential in many delicious meals.

Miracle berries make a much better party trick than a natural sweetener, but their unique properties make them worth mentioning.
<h2>Conclusion</h2>
The amazing diversity of the plant world offers up quite a few different natural sweeteners, though they each have their unique shortcomings. In addition, there is no guarantee that a chemical produced by a plant is any safer than one created in a lab. These plant sweeteners still need to undergo extensive testing before they are considered safe as a food additive.

To make matters worse, it has not been proven that artificial sweeteners actually improve health. Although they don’t have the fattening calories of sugar, as we have reported, <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/artificial-sweeteners-obesity-diabetes/">they may still contribute to obesity and diabetes</a>. The only proven solution to the dangers of sweetness is eating food that isn’t quite so sweet.

--

By <a href="mailto:casey.hofford@gmail.com">Casey Hofford</a>, <a href="http://earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Contributing Writer

Which plant-based natural sweetener is the best pick?

A desire for sweet foods is hard-wired into each and...

A new study published by <a href="https://www.cell.com/">Cell Press</a> has revealed that excessive athletic training can cause mental fatigue that is associated with impulsive behavior and poor decision making. The effects of physical overexertion appear to be the same as those which have been tied to overworking the brain. 

Taken together, the studies suggest that both mental and physical efforts require cognitive control. The research also indicates that this control is required during <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/hungry-intense-workout/">intense training</a> to maintain physical effort and stamina. 

"You need to control the automatic process that makes you stop when muscles or joints hurt," said study co-author Mathias Pessiglione of Hôpital de la Pitié-Salpêtrière in Paris. 

The mental fatigue observed in athletes after excessive training included reduced activity in a portion of the brain that is critical for decision-making. The athletes also acted more impulsively, choosing smaller rewards they could receive right away over larger rewards that would be delayed. 

"The lateral prefrontal region that was affected by sport-training overload was exactly the same that had been shown vulnerable to excessive cognitive work in our previous studies," said Pessiglione."This brain region therefore appeared as the weak spot of the brain network responsible for cognitive control."

The idea for this study was conceived by the National Institute of Sport, Expertise, and Performance (INSEP) in France, which trains athletes for the Olympic games. Some athletes had experienced "overtraining syndrome," which was characterized by an overwhelming sense of exhaustion that sabotaged their performance. 

The researchers set out to understand if this fatigue may be related to the mental impacts of excessive intellectual work. They recruited 37 competitive male endurance athletes with an average age of 35, instructing them to either proceed with their normal amount of training or to increase their training by 40 percent over three weeks.

The experts conducted behavioral testing and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scanning experiments. The team also monitored the physical performance of the athletes, and evaluated self-reported levels of fatigue.

The study revealed that physical training overload led the athletes to feel more fatigued. They also acted more impulsively in standard tests used to evaluate how they would make economic choices. As they made these decisions, the brains of athletes who were physically exhausted showed diminished activation of a key region of the executive control system called the lateral prefrontal cortex.

The researchers concluded that while endurance training is generally good for your health, overdoing it can have adverse effects on the brain. "Our findings draw attention to the fact that neural states matter: you don't make the same decisions when your brain is in a fatigued state," said Pessiglione.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.cell.com/current-biology/home">Current Biology</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: Shutterstock/RomarioIen

Physical overexertion causes mental fatigue and impulsive behavior

A new study published by Cell Press has revealed that...

Air pollution can increase the risk of early death due to cardiovascular and respiratory disease, according to one of the largest international studies on air pollution and mortality to date. 

The study, led by Dr. Haidong Kan from <a href="http://www.fudan.edu.cn/en/">Fudan University</a> in China, is not the first to link air pollution to early death, but this research focused on short-term health impacts. 

According to the <a href="https://www.who.int/airpollution/ambient/health-impacts/en/">World Health Organization</a>, around 4.2 million premature deaths worldwide are due to air pollution. Children are especially vulnerable, and 93 percent of the world’s children are <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/children-breathe-toxic-air/">breathing in toxic air</a>. 

Air pollution is a wide-reaching problem with devastating health impacts, and researchers are finding links between air pollution and a range of health problems beyond respiratory and cardiovascular disease. 

For this research, Dr. Kan, along with an international team, analyzed air pollution and mortality data from 652 cities across 24 countries and regions over a 30-year period. 

In all areas studied, the researchers were able to link exposure to particulate matter, both PM10, and PM2.5, to increases in premature deaths. 

Even low levels of exposure were found to increase the risk of death. 

“The adverse health effects of short-term exposure to air pollution have been well documented, and known to raise public health concerns of its toxicity and widespread exposure,” said Yuming Guo, an Associate Professor at <a href="https://www.monash.edu.my/">Monash University</a> who was part of the research team. “The smaller the airborne particles, the more easily they can penetrate deep into the lungs and absorb more toxic components causing death.”

The study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, suggests that there may be no such thing as a safe level of air pollution and that even air quality that meets the recommended standards could pose a threat to public health. 

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette,</a> <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 

Image Credit: Shutterstock/Blackday

Even low levels of air pollution can increase the risk of early death

Air pollution can increase the risk of early death due...

Next time you hop into the back of a cab, Lyft, or <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/yellow-taxis-safer-uber/">Uber</a>, you may want to consider using the front seat if possible.

A new study has found that backseat passengers face a higher risk of injury and death because backseat safety measures have not advanced as much as front-seat safety measures. 

The <a href="https://m.iihs.org/mobile">Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS)</a> recently published a report assessing backseat safety. 

Safety standards for front-seat passengers have greatly improved over the years, and cars are now equipped with airbags on the front and sometimes side, as well as seat belt mechanisms that lock in place before a crash but still allow for some movement. 

These special seat belt tension mechanisms are not present in the backseat and no vehicle on the market today has backseat airbags. 

“Automakers have done a great job at improving restraint systems for drivers and front seat passengers," David Harkey, IIHS President, told <a href="https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/cars/2019/04/25/car-crashes-iihs-study-rear-seat-less-safe/3552964002/">USA Today</a>. “Less attention has been paid to the back seat and the safety of those passengers. “It’s not that the rear seat has become less safe, it’s that the front seat has become more safe over time," Harkey said.

For the study, the researchers reviewed 117 crashes involving older children and adult backseat passengers that were injured or killed. 

Not wearing a seatbelt was the biggest factor in an injury or fatality caused by a crash. However, in crashes that were deemed survivable, 37 of the accidents studied involved injuries and deaths. 

In some of the crashes, backseat passengers suffered greater injuries than front seat passengers, a reliable indicator that backseat safety measures are not up to the same standards.

Harkey told USA Today that the study points to a major gap in vehicle safety measures and standards. As rideshare apps like Lyft and Uber are growing in popularity, these safety standards should be a priority. 

“There’s the potential that we’re going to have a lot more people riding in rear seats as we move forward and therefore greater risk of injury to rear seat passengers,” Harkey said.

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By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette,</a><a href="https://www.earth.com/"> Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Backseat passengers face higher risks of injury

Next time you hop into the back of a cab,...

By avoiding the topic of death, we remain unprepared for end of life care. Death is still a touchy subject that many are uncomfortable discussing, and our tendency to avoid the topic leaves people uninformed and unwilling to seek out answers about death and dying. 

A new report by the <a href="https://acmedsci.ac.uk/">Academy of Medical Sciences</a> highlights just how unwilling we are to breach the topic of death and how uninformed the general public is about the final hours of a person’s life. 

The report is part of a national UK campaign that hopes to raise awareness around death and ensure that health professionals understand the priorities and concerns of the public when it comes to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/people-prefer-alone-die/">end of life care</a>. 

The Academy of Medical Sciences partnered with <a href="https://www.ipsos.com/ipsos-mori/en-uk">Ipsos MORI</a>, a UK market research company, to survey 966 adults aged 18 and older. 

Surprisingly only 612 of the participants opted to answer the survey which was conducted through face to face interviews. 

Six out of ten of the participants admitted to knowing very little about the final hours of life, even though one out of every two people reported being present during the death of someone else. 

 “Not knowing what may happen to a loved one as they die can exacerbate fears at the hardest times of our life,” said Sir Robert Lechler, the President of the Academy of Medical Sciences. “It may also mean that people struggle to think clearly about how best to fulfil the wishes of a dying family member or friend, let alone know what to ask doctors and nurses.”

The survey also asked participants about how they learned about death and where they got their information.   

The majority of people reported getting information from family and friends or observing someone’s last moments. 

20 percent of the participants said there were just as likely to get information from a documentary as they were a medical professional, and movies and TV were ranked among the top five sources of information. 

“TV and films rarely ever depict ‘normal’ deaths,” said Dame Lesley Fallowfield, a Professor of Psycho-Oncology at the <a href="https://www.sussex.ac.uk/">University of Sussex</a>. “For many individuals, death is a gentle, peaceful and pain-free event. Although grieving the loss of loved ones can be a difficult process, some people do speak about their loved one’s death as having been a positive experience. We need to demystify death and talk about it more.”

Some of the biggest concerns people have about death are that their loved ones might be in pain or frightened when they die. 

Not only can talking about death help alleviate some of these concerns, but by being informed about the death process and end of life care, you can also empower yourself and your loved ones.

“Many people don’t know much about what palliative or hospice care involves, and some people worry that starting conversations about end of life care might hasten death,” said Dr. Katherine Sleeman, an <a href="https://www.nihr.ac.uk/">NIHR</a> Clinician Scientist. “In fact, the opposite may be true - research shows the earlier people access specialist palliative care the better their quality of life, and some studies have shown that people who receive early specialist palliative care actually live longer.”

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By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>,<a href="https://www.earth.com/"> Earth.com </a>Staff Writer

By avoiding the topic of death, we remain unprepared for end of life care

By avoiding the topic of death, we remain unprepared for...

New research from <a href="https://www.ucl.ac.uk/">University College London</a> (UCL) has revealed that abrupt <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/rainfall-climate-change-road-outages/">climate change</a> drastically reduced early South American populations. The study is the first to demonstrate the magnitude of these population declines, which took place between 6,000 and 8,000 years ago. 

“Archaeologists working in South America have broadly known that some 8,200 years ago, inhabited sites in various places across the continent were suddenly abandoned. In our study we wanted to connect the dots between disparate records that span the Northern Andes, through the Amazon, to the southern tip of Patagonia and all areas in between,” said study lead author Dr. Philip Riris of the UCL Institute of Archaeology.

“Unpredictable levels of rainfall, particularly in the tropics, appear to have had a negative impact on pre-Columbian populations until 6,000 years ago, after which recovery is evident. This recovery appears to correlate with cultural practices surrounding tropical plant management and early crop cultivation, possibly acting as buffers when wild resources were less predictable.”

The researchers focused on the climate during the transition to the Middle Holocene, which began 8,200 ago. The Middle Holocene was characterized by major cultural changes. For example, hunter-gatherers started experimenting with different domestic plants at this time.

Despite the widespread population declines that were identified in the study, the researchers found that indigenous people of South America were thriving before and after the middle Holocene.

“In the years leading up to population decline, we can see that population sizes were unharmed. This would suggest that early Holocene populations, probably with a social memory of abrupt climate change during the Pleistocene-Holocene transition, developed successful strategies to deal with climate change,” said study co-author Dr. Manuel Arroyo-Kalin.

“Abandonment of certain regions and the need to adapt quickly to new circumstances may have promoted the exploration of alternative strategies and new forms of subsistence, including the early adoption of low scale cultivation of domestic plants. Viewed in the context of at least 14,000 years of human presence in South America, the events of the Middle Holocene are a key part of indigenous South Americans' cultural resilience to abrupt and unexpected change.”

The team compared thousands of radiocarbon dates from 1,400 sites to investigate how the populations changed over time, and then compared this information with climate data.

“We studied ancient records of rainfall such as marine sediments for evidence of exceptional climate events,” said Dr. Riris. “Within windows of 100 years, we compared the Middle Holocene to the prevalent patterns before and after 8,200 years ago. Normal patterns of rainfall suggest on average an unusually dry or wet year every 16-20 years, while under highly variable conditions this increases to every 5 years or so. This puts in perspective the challenge that indigenous communities would have faced.”

The researchers believe that the findings provide an important historical context for understanding how ancient indigenous South American populations handled climate change.

“Our study brings a demographic dimension to bear on understandings of the effects of past climate change, and the challenges that were faced by indigenous South Americans in different places,” said Dr. Arroyo-Kalin. “This understanding gauges the resilience of past small-scale productive systems and can potentially help shape future strategies for communities in the present.”

The study is published in the journal <a href="http://www.nature.com/scientificreports">Scientific Reports</a>.

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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Paid for by <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a>

Climate change caused major declines in early South American populations

New research from University College London (UCL) has revealed that...

Climate change will affect fertility differently in wealthy and poor countries. An international team of researchers has determined that the economic effects of <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/arctic-warming-cost-trillions/">climate change</a> will have a substantial impact on fertility. The experts predict that many people will re-evaluate how much time and money they should dedicate to raising children as resources become more limited. 

The study examined the economic channels through which climate change could affect fertility, including the gender wage gap, longevity, and mortality. 

The team used a quantitative model that combined standard economic-demographic theory with projections of how climate change will impact the economy. The model, which focused on Colombia and Switzerland, was designed to analyze how these impacts may vary between wealthy and poor countries.

In the model, parents must decide how to divide limited resources between supporting current family needs, having children, and paying for each child's education. 

“Increases in global temperature affect agricultural and non-agricultural sectors differently. Near the equator, where many poorer countries are, climate change has a larger negative effect on agriculture,” said study lead author Dr. Gregory Casey of <a href="https://www.williams.edu/">Williams College</a>.

“This leads to scarcity of agricultural goods, higher agricultural prices and wages and ultimately, a labour reallocation. Because agriculture makes less use of skilled labor, our model showed that climate change decreases the return on acquiring skills, leading parents to invest fewer resources in the education of each child, and to increase fertility.”

On the other hand, these patterns were found to be reversed at higher latitudes.

“Our model suggests climate change may worsen inequalities by reducing fertility and increasing education in richer northern countries, while increasing fertility and reducing education in tropical countries,” said study co-author Dr. Soheil Shayegh. “This is particularly poignant, because those richer countries have disproportionately benefited from the natural resource use that has driven climate change.”

“Our model only deals with a single economic channel, so it is not intended to give a complete quantitative account of the impact of climate change on demographic outcomes,” concluded Dr. Casey. “Further work is needed on other economic channels, especially those related to health.”

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://iopscience.iop.org/erl">Environmental Research Letters</a>.

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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Paid for by <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a>

Climate change will affect fertility differently in wealthy and poor countries

Climate change will affect fertility differently in wealthy and poor...

An international team of researchers has found that online behavior mimics the natural rhythms of the real world. In particular, the experts discovered that online interest in plants and animals often changes with the <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/infectious-diseases-seasonal/">seasons</a>. 

The study was focused on a massive dataset of 2.33 billion views on Wikipedia, which involved 31,715 species over the course of three years. The team identified seasonal trends in the page views of more than 25 percent of the plant and animal species. The timing and extent of this internet activity was found to be an accurate representation of when and where the species were present in the world.

The seasonal interest in Wikipedia pages was found to reflect seasonal patterns in the species themselves. For example, page views of flowering plants had stronger seasonal patterns than those for coniferous trees, which do not have an obvious flowering season. Insects and birds trended more by the season compared to most mammals.

The researchers also identified instances where seasonal patterns responded to cultural events. Wikipedia’s page for the wild turkey showed repeated annual spikes around Thanksgiving and during the dates of the spring hunting season.

“People are becoming increasingly detached from nature and as a result we didn't really expect their activity online to respond to patterns in the natural world,” said study lead author John Mittermeier, who is a PhD student at the <a href="http://www.ox.ac.uk/">University of Oxford</a>. “To see that online activity often correlates strongly with natural phenomena suggests that people are paying attention to the world around them, and from a conservation perspective that is really exciting.”

Professor Richard Grenyer added, “Really widespread, accurate monitoring of all the world's species is still science fiction, unfortunately. But by using these big data approaches we can begin to shortcut some of the more difficult problems, and cut to the core questions in modern conservation: how is the world changing, for which species is it changing the most, and where are the people who care the most and can do the most to help.”

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/">PLOS Biology</a>.

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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: Uri Roll

Public interest in plants and animals changes with the seasons

An international team of researchers has found that online behavior...

Scientists are transforming chocolate into a functional food by infusing it with probiotics and prebiotics, aiming to create a treat that satisfies cravings while supporting gut health. 



The challenge lies in maintaining chocolate's beloved texture and flavor while adding health benefits.



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Probiotics - beneficial microbes that balance gut bacteria and aid digestion - are typically fragile and can be destroyed by stomach acid or processing. 



Prebiotics act as food for these microbes, helping them thrive. Together, they form "synbiotics," a powerful health combination.



Researchers Smriti Gaur and Shubhi Singh from India's Jaypee Institute of Information Technology took an innovative approach, using natural prebiotics like corn and honey instead of complex processing methods. 



They created five chocolate varieties: a control and four synbiotic versions containing different combinations of prebiotics, probiotics (Lactobacillus strains), and flavor enhancers (cinnamon or orange).



Laboratory simulations of human digestion showed the probiotics remained viable for over five hours, suggesting they could survive long enough to benefit gut health.



Taste tests were positive, with researchers particularly enjoying the orange-flavored variety, describing it as having "vibrant citrus notes" complementing the "rich cocoa" with a "luxurious" texture.



This research represents just the beginning. With further refinement of strains, textures, and flavors, chocolate could evolve beyond mere indulgence to become a functional food that nourishes while it delights.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acsfoodscitech.4c00741" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ACS Food Science &amp; Technology</a>.

Is chocolate the next nutritional powerhouse?

Scientists are transforming chocolate into a functional food by infusing...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Nushagak Bay, a large estuary in southwest Alaska. Nushagak runs mainly north to south and exits in Bristol Bay, a large body of water in the Bering Sea.



"The bay is primarily fed by the Nushagak River, which begins in the Alaska Range and flows southwest approximately 450 km. The bay is also fed by several additional rivers including the Wood, Igushik, Snake and Weary rivers," says ESA.



"The dark colors of the Nushagak River are most likely due to tannins or lignins (chemical substances found in plants). Tannins and lignins from roots, leaves, seeds, bark and soil can leach into the water and give it a brown or even black colour. The sediments then flow southwards where it is mixed with the bluer waters of the bay."



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Nushagak Bay in southwest Alaska

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> (ACS) reveals that proteins on flu viruses are actually flexible, tilting and waving in a “breath-like” motion. According to the experts, these proteins could be used to better defend against the flu.



"The main antigenic targets of influenza virus are two surface glycoproteins, hemagglutinin (HA) and neuraminidase (NA). Whereas the structural and dynamical properties of both glycoproteins have been studied previously, the understanding of their plasticity in the whole-virion context is fragmented," wrote the researchers.



To investigate, the team conducted detailed simulations of the influenza A H1N1 virion, or the swine flu. The experts concluded that the visualizations show many new vulnerable states of flu viruses, which could improve future vaccines and antiviral drugs.



Video/ Image Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Flu viruses are more flexible than expected

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Lake Trasimeno, which is located west of Perugia in central Italy. It is the fourth largest lake in the country. While Trasimeno’s water level varies, it has a maximum depth of approximately six meters.&nbsp;



"In this Copernicus Sentinel-2 image, captured on 6 August 2022, the lake’s emerald green colour is likely due to the presence of phytoplankton. Streaks in the water, particularly visible in the west, indicate the presence of soil and sediments which have been stirred up by winds. Dark colored waters in the southern part of the lake indicate a presence of submerged and floating macrophytes (aquatic plants) as well as algae," says ESA.



"Surrounded by hills on three sides, Trasimeno is subject to heavy storms created by winds, especially from the north and west. There are three islets in the lake: Maggiore, Minore and Polvese (the largest). The lake’s shores are sparsely inhabited with only two popular villages: Castiglione del Lago and Passignano sul Trasimeno."



"Italy is experiencing its worst drought in 70 years which has affected drinking water supplies, hydroelectric power and agricultural production. High temperatures, hot winds and lack of rainfall are the main causes of drought in the Umbrian region which saw Lake Trasimeno’s drop 1.3 m, reaching the limit of the hydrometric zero in July 2022."



Video/Image Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Lake Trasimeno in Central Italy

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> describes a new self-powered nanosensor that can instantly detect mercury contamination with the tap of a finger.&nbsp;



The oxidized form of mercury can be harmful when it is ingested through contaminated water or food. This makes it necessary for experts to develop sensors that can quickly and accurately detect the presence of mercury.&nbsp;



Zong-Hong Lin and colleagues have now created a triboelectric nanosensor (TENS) that can detect mercury by simply by touching a sample. According to the researchers, their TENS could serve as the basis for similar devices to safely and remotely monitor other pollutants.



Video Credit: American Chemical Society&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Detecting mercury contamination with the tap of a finger

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.acs.org/">American Chemical Society</a> explores the ability of salt to transform the way that foods and beverages taste. Salt is known to cover up undesirable flavors, such as bitterness in coffee or beer, but how exactly does sodium chloride change the taste of other compounds?



One previous study showed that, not only does salt suppress bitterness, but also enhances sweetness and sourness. Another study revealed that bitterness reduction by salt seems to be happening at the tongue receptor level as well as in the brain.&nbsp;



While it is known that salt taste is mediated by the presence of sodium channels in the form of taste buds, experts believe that there is also an unknown receptor responsible for how we taste salt that has not yet been identified.&nbsp;



Video Credit: ACS Reactions



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

How does salt makes things taste better?

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Santiago, the capital city of Chile. The city is located in the center of the Santiago Metropolitan Region, which has a population of about eight million people.&nbsp;



'The weather of Santiago resembles the Mediterranean climate with dry and warm summers with temperatures reaching up to 35°C (from October to March) and cool and humid winters that can drop to 0°C (from April to September)."



"The city lies in the centre of the country’s central valley around 80 km from the Pacific Ocean to the west and borders Argentina to the east. A tiny part of Argentina is visible in the top-right corner of the image where the mountain crest of the Andes Mountains acts as a divider between the two countries," says ESA.



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Santiago, Chile in South America

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Spiral,Galaxy,,Illustration,Of,Milky,Way

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Astronomers at <a href="https://www.jhu.edu/">Johns Hopkins University</a> have created an interactive map of the universe, including the actual position and real colors of 200,000 galaxies. The map allows the public to access data that was previously only available to scientists.



The map was developed using data collected by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. For over two decades, a telescope in New Mexico was aimed at slightly different locations to capture the night sky.&nbsp;



"Growing up I was very inspired by astronomy pictures, stars, nebulae and galaxies, and now it's our time to create a new type of picture to inspire people," said map creator Brice Ménard, a professor at Johns Hopkins. "Astrophysicists around the world have been analyzing this data for years, leading to thousands of scientific papers and discoveries. But nobody took the time to create a map that is beautiful, scientifically accurate, and accessible to people who are not scientists. Our goal here is to show everybody what the universe really looks like."



"In this map, we are just a speck at the very bottom, just one pixel. And when I say we, I mean our galaxy, the Milky Way which has billions of stars and planets. We are used to seeing astronomical pictures showing one galaxy here, one galaxy there or perhaps a group of galaxies. But what this map shows is a very, very different scale."



"From this speck at the bottom, we are able to map out galaxies across the entire universe, and that says something about the power of science."



The <a href="https://mapoftheuniverse.net/">interactive map</a> is available online, where it can be downloaded for free.



Video Credit: Johns Hopkins&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Interactive map of the universe includes 200,000 galaxies

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Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky" Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features northwest Lesotho in South Africa.



According to ESA, Lesotho is the only nation in the world that lies completely above 1,000 m in elevation. The country is famous for its tall mountains and narrow valleys, and is known as Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky."



Out of a population of around two million people, about 80 percent live in rural areas. More than 75 percent of these people are engaged in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-will-have-a-global-impact-on-agriculture/">agriculture</a>, including rainfed cereal production and animal grazing.&nbsp;



ESA reports that the country’s agricultural system faces a growing number of issues, with climate-related vulnerabilities such as drought, floods and extreme temperatures occurring more frequently. 



Diamonds are amongst the minerals found in the mountains. Indeed, Lesotho can truly be called the Kingdom in the Sky. Beautiful, culturally rich, safe, affordable, and easily accessible from Durban and Johannesburg, mountainous Lesotho is a vastly underrated travel destination. the Kingdom of Lesotho (Sotho: 'Muso oa Lesotho) is an enclaved country in southern Africa. It is just over 30,000 km2 (11,583 sq mi) in size and has a population of around 2 million.



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky"

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features Dublin, the capital and largest city of Ireland. Beyond its pub culture, Dublin is known as a modern culinary destination and a UNESCO City of Literature.



"Dublin is located near the midpoint of Ireland’s east coast in the province of Leinster. The city, which covers an area of around 115 square kilometers, is bordered by the Dublin Mountains, a low mountain range to the south, and is surrounded by flat farmland to the north and west," says ESA.



"The city straddles the River Liffey, which rises in the Wicklow Mountains and flows around 80 kilometers eastwards through the city of Dublin, in which it is canalised and bordered with quays. It then empties into Dublin Bay, an arm of the Irish Sea."



Dublin has an abundance of green spaces, including one of the largest enclosed public parks in any European capital city. Phoenix Park, which was originally formed as a royal hunting park in the 1660s, includes 707 hectares of green space.



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The city of Dublin on Ireland's east coast

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features the province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain. The image was captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission.



"Together with the provinces of Huesca and Teruel, Zaragoza formed the old kingdom of Aragon. Its capital, also called Zaragoza (not visible in this image) is home to around half of Aragon’s population," says ESA.



"The Ebro River can be seen winding its way through the province from west to east in this image. Between its source in the Cantabrian Mountains in the northwest and its delta on the Mediterranean coast, the Ebro River is fed by more than 200 tributaries as it flows 910 km across much of northern Spain."



Since rainfall is very scarce in this region, irrigation in the Ebro basin is critically important. In the valleys surrounding the Ebro River, many fields are used for growing crops such as corn, wheat, and barley.



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/">NASA Earth Observatory</a> reveals the evolution of the Columbia Glacier in southeastern Alaska. Columbia is among the fastest shrinking glaciers in the world, and the video documents its rapid retreat over the years.&nbsp;



Columbia Glacier is a large, multi-branched calving glacier that flows out of the Chugach Mountains to the Prince William Sound.&nbsp;



According to USGS, Columbia had a long history of stability prior to 1980, with a length 41 miles, and small, short-lived advances or retreats.



In the years since 1980, however, satellite images have captured Columbia’s alarming retreat. By using false-color images, scientists can distinguish between snow and ice, open water, vegetation, and rocky debris on the glacier’s surface.



The series of false-color images featured in today's video were acquired over the span of 35 years. You can see that by 2021, the glacier’s main branch had retreated about 15 miles from its initial position.



The Columbia Glacier has also lost more than 50 percent of its volume, mostly due to calving. <a href="https://www.earth.com/video/nasa-reveals-3d-visual-of-an-atmospheric-river/">NASA</a> reports that while climate change likely started the retreat, mechanical processes kept the disintegration going.



The NASA images are provided by Jesse Allen, Robert Simmon, Joshua Stevens, and Lauren Dauphin using data from Landsat satellites, from the U.S. Geological Survey, and data from MODIS on NASA’s Terra satellite. The structure of Columbia’s moraine played a large role in the stability of the glacier before 1980. 



Like other tidewater glaciers, the Columbia built up a moraine over time, and the mixture of ice and rock functioned like a dam keeping out the sea. It was supported on one end by the shoreline and by the underwater terminal moraine at the other.



Video Credit: NASA Earth Observatory/&nbsp; NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> features the Pyrenees Mountains, which form a natural boundary between France and Spain in southwest Europe.



The mountain range is 430 kilometers in length. It stretches from the Mediterranean Sea on the east to the Atlantic Ocean on the west.



At an elevation of 3404 meters, Pico de Aneto is the highest mountain peak in the Pyrenees, and the third-highest peak in Spain. Pico de Aneto is located in the Posets-Maladeta Natural Park, which spans more than 82,000 acres.&nbsp;



"Geological studies have revealed that the Pyrenees Mountains have been around for longer than the Alps, with their sediments first deposited in coastal basins during the Paleozoic and Mesozoic eras," reports ESA.



"The entire mountain range formed due to the upwelling of large sedimentary rocks by the collision of the Iberian and the Eurasian plate around 100 to 150 million years ago, followed by intense erosion from ice and water."



The western Pyrenees receive more precipitation due to moisture blowing in from the Atlantic Ocean. The mountain range contains many lakes, several small glaciers, and some of the highest waterfalls in Europe.



Video &amp; Image Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The Pyrenees Mountains in southwest Europe

[sendtonews key="6HyfrAJTBI-1831843-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

Earth,Like,Exoplanet,3d,Render

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Today's Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes two exoplanets that are orbiting a star 218 light-years away. A team of researchers led by the University of Montreal has found evidence that these planets are "water worlds."



The experts used data from NASA’s Hubble and Spitzer Space Telescopes. They discovered that exoplanets Kepler-138 c and Kepler-138 could be composed largely of water.



"We previously thought that planets that were a bit larger than Earth were big balls of metal and rock, like scaled-up versions of Earth, and that's why we called them super-Earths," explained study co-author Björn Benneke.&nbsp;



"However, we have now shown that these two planets, Kepler-138 c and d, are quite different in nature and that a big fraction of their entire volume is likely composed of water. It is the best evidence yet for water worlds, a type of planet that was theorized by astronomers to exist for a long time."



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



Image Credit: NASA, ESA, and Leah Hustak (STScI)



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Two distant planets may be "water worlds"

[sendtonews key="QIoVYJqRBi-2434608-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from NASA...

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Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://www.nasa.gov/goddard">NASA Goddard</a> describes Earth’s interconnected systems, and how this network is affected by rising temperatures.&nbsp;



During 2020, average global temperatures matched the hottest year on record. The hurricane season was also record-breaking, with many of the storms intensifying at extraordinary speeds. Hot water in the ocean is fuel for hurricanes. The satellite data shows that it's all one interconnected system showing how Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected.



According to NASA, dust swept up from Northern Africa plays a major role in the formation of hurricanes, and is also a key source of fertilization in the Amazon rainforest. As a result of<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/seagrass-wasting-disease-is-fueled-by-climate-change/"> climate</a> change, dust plumes are expected to decline, which will have an effect on vegetation far away.&nbsp;



Images from Earth-observing satellites show how the world’s plant life is affected by natural disasters, fires, and deforestation. Satellites also reveal how widespread changes in vegetation impact waterways,&nbsp; the climate, air quality. Satellites communicate by using radio waves to send signals to the antennas on the Earth. "Earth From Space" is a groundbreaking two-hour special that reveals a spectacular new space-based vision of our planet. 



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://welcome.miami.edu/">University of Miami</a> Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science explores how changes in water temperatures have affected tiger shark habitats and movements in the North Atlantic Ocean. The study reveals that rising temperatures have caused the sharks to shift toward the poles over the past 40 years.



“Tiger shark annual migrations have expanded poleward, paralleling rising water temperatures,” explained study lead author Neil Hammerschlag. “These results have consequences for tiger shark conservation, since shifts in their movements outside of marine protected areas may leave them more vulnerable to commercial fishing.”



The researchers analyzed nine years of tracking data from satellite-tagged tiger sharks, combined with four decades of conventional tag and recapture data provided by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Cooperative Shark Tagging Program.



The experts found that during the last decade of record heat, for every one-degree Celsius increase in water temperatures, tiger sharks migrated further poleward by over 400 kilometers. They also migrated two weeks earlier than usual to waters off the northeastern coast of the United States.



“Given their role as apex predators, these changes to tiger shark movements may alter predator-prey interactions, leading to ecological imbalances, and more frequent encounters with humans,” concluded Professor Hammerschlag.



Video Credit: University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Tiger sharks are shifting poleward as temperatures rise

Today’s Video of the Day from the University of Miami...

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> is focused on the melt ponds that emerge during the spring and summer on the Greenland Ice Sheet, which is the largest ice mass in the northern hemisphere.



"Melt ponds are vast pools of open water that form on both sea ice and ice sheets and are visible as turquoise-blue pools of water in this Copernicus Sentinel-2 image," says ESA.



"When snow and ice melts atop glaciers, water flows in channels and streams and collects in depressions on the surface. These melt ponds can speed up the melting of the surrounding ice since they greatly reduce the ice’s ability to reflect sunlight."



"This can create a positive feedback where an increasing number of melt ponds absorb more heat which causes ice cover to melt even faster."



According to ESA, Greenland has been hit with a late-season heatwave that began in early September. This caused the type of melt event that usually occurs in the middle of summer.



"In a recent paper published in Nature Climate Change, scientists found that major sea-level rise from the melting of the Greenland ice cap is now ‘inevitable’ even if the burning of fossil fuels were to halt overnight," says ESA. "Using satellite observations of Greenland ice loss and ice cap from 2000 to 2019, the team found the losses will lead to a minimum rise of 27 cm regardless of climate change."



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Melt ponds on the Greenland Ice Sheet

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Today’s Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> describes a new map of Mars that is providing insight into the planet’s watery past. The map also reveals where future missions could safely land on Mars.&nbsp;



The map has been created over the last decade using observations of water-rich rocks and mineral deposits. The images were captured by ESA’s Mars Express and NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.



"A big surprise is the prevalence of these minerals, with the map revealing hundreds of thousands of water-affected locations in the oldest parts of the planet," says ESA. "The new data will help answer exciting questions about Mars’ climate history, whether water was globally persistent or confined to short, intense episodes, and whether the conditions were ever suitable for life."



"Specifically, the map shows the locations and abundances of aqueous minerals. These are from rocks that have been chemically altered by the action of water in the past, and have typically been transformed into clays and salts."



According to John Carter of the Institut d’Astrophysique Spatiale (IAS), our collective understanding of Mars has been oversimplified. He explained that planetary scientists have tended to think that only a few types of clay minerals on Mars were created during its wet period, then as the water gradually dried up, salts were produced across the planet.



The new map shows that the composition of Mars is much more complicated than what we thought. For example, while many salts formed after Martian clays, there are some salts that are presumed to be older than some of the clays.&nbsp;



“The evolution from lots of water to no water is not as clear cut as we thought, the water didn’t just stop overnight. We see a huge diversity of geological contexts, so that no one process or simple timeline can explain the evolution of the mineralogy of Mars. That’s the first result of our study. The second is that if you exclude life processes on Earth, Mars exhibits a diversity of mineralogy in geological settings just as Earth does,” said Carter.



Video Credit: ESA



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

The history of Mars is much more complex than we thought

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Today's Video of the Day from the <a href="https://www.stowers.org/">Stowers Institute for Medical Research</a> describes how cavefish adapted to a sedentary lifestyle over tens of thousands of years. 



The experts found that the muscle metabolism of cavefish has been genetically reprogrammed over time. As a result, the animals have experienced major changes in their morphology and behavior. Despite these changes, however, the cavefish remain healthy and fit.



The research may provide new clues about the evolutionary consequences of prolonged physical inactivity in humans.&nbsp;



“It’s no surprise that people are moving less and less as technology has advanced,” said Rohner. “With cavefish, we have a unique system where we can study what might happen if people remained couch potatoes over very, very long periods of time.”



Video Credit: Stowers Institute for Medical Research



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Cavefish are healthy despite their sedentary lifestyle

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Today’s Video of the Day from <a href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/">NASA Earth Observatory</a> some of the most incredible waves in the world, as seen by Landsat satellites.



"With more than 370,000 miles of coastline on Earth, there are plenty of places where epic waves build up, curl over, and hurtle toward the shore.- much to the thrill of surfers," says NASA. "There are some places where these waves are so magnificent that they can be seen from space."



"With the broad perspective of satellites, we can see how these iconic waves develop into the world’s tallest, longest, fastest, and heaviest."



Video Credit: NASA Earth Observatory&nbsp;



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By <a href="mailto:csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Editor



Check us out on <a href="https://www.earth.com/earthsnap/">EarthSnap</a>, a free app brought to you by Eric Ralls and Earth.com.

Satellites capture the world's biggest and fastest waves

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