Falling asleep and waking up refreshed is something most of us crave. Yet some people appear to thrive on fewer hours, leaving everyone else wondering how they manage it. A new study involving a healthy older adult suggests that a rare gene mutation might be a key to needing fewer hours of sleep.



The research was led by Dr. Hao Chen from the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), whose team investigated a "natural short sleeper" <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/one-night-of-lost-sleep-can-trigger-hidden-health-issues/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">trait</a> linked to a genetic variant in the SIK3 gene.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-genetics-influence-sleep-duration">How genetics influence sleep duration</h2>



Scientists who explore patterns of rest have long recognized that people’s genetic makeup can influence how much <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/sleep-prepares-the-brain-for-the-future-while-protecting-memories-of-the-past/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">sleep</a> they need. This latest finding highlights how even a slight genetic tweak might reduce the time required for the brain and body to recover.



Those who qualify as short sleepers function at a normal or high level despite clocking fewer hours in bed. Researchers classify them separately from individuals suffering from insomnia, because these short sleepers typically wake up rested and show no health problems tied to exhaustion.



One older participant reported sleeping around 6.3 hours per night yet displayed sharp cognition and good health. Her genetic profile pointed to a single mutation as the possible reason for her efficient slumber.



These individuals, referred to as natural short sleepers, seem wired to operate on less rest. Specialists are intrigued by how they sail through daily life with no visible drawbacks.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-gene-mutation-and-sleep-patterns">Gene mutation and sleep patterns</h2>



The <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/neuroscience/protein-kinases" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">kinase protein</a> produced by the SIK3 gene relays signals that influence various cellular processes. Scientists suspect that changes in kinase function might play a role in controlling how much time the body devotes to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/sleep-can-boost-memory-in-a-surprising-way/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">sleep</a>.



When Dr. Chen’s team transferred this mutation to lab mice, the animals spent slightly less time resting each day. This observation hinted at a biological mechanism that could be significant across different species.



“Studying human sleep genes not only expands our knowledge regarding the sleep regulatory network, but also may bring the basic research from mouse models to clinical relevance,” noted the researchers.



Brain scans in the test mice revealed that their <a href="https://www.thermofisher.com/us/en/home/life-science/protein-biology/protein-biology-learning-center/protein-biology-resource-library/pierce-protein-methods/phosphorylation.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">phosphorylation</a> patterns changed, especially around the areas that oversee rest and wake cycles. This shift aligns with the idea that sleep is coordinated by a web of signals in the brain that might be influenced by tiny chemical tweaks.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-genetic-mutations-in-short-sleepers">Genetic mutations in short sleepers</h2>



Scientists have now identified at least five distinct genetic mutations linked to the natural short sleep trait. Each one affects different proteins involved in the brain’s signaling and <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/sleep-quality-could-be-the-key-to-better-metabolic-health/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">sleep</a>-wake rhythms, hinting at multiple pathways that might influence rest duration.



The SIK3 variant joins others such as <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1073/pnas.1801693115" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">DEC2</a>, <a href="https://www.ajmc.com/view/a-rare-gene-mutation-is-associated-with-requiring-less-sleep-researchers-say" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">ADRB1</a>, <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/gene/387129" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">NPSR1</a>, and <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/gene/14816" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">GRM1</a>, each contributing a piece to the sleep efficiency puzzle. Researchers believe that mapping these variants could eventually lead to a full blueprint of how the body regulates its need for sleep.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-treatments-for-sleep-disorders">Treatments for sleep disorders</h2>



Researchers think there could be important applications for people who struggle with sleep disorders. Adjusting the pathways linked to this genetic variant might shorten the time needed to feel rested, although practical therapies will likely take time to refine.



Still, scientists caution that these insights do not give an excuse to slash nightly rest. They emphasize that ordinary individuals without the mutation may not reap any benefits from copying a short sleeper’s schedule.



Experts see promise in pursuing treatments that enhance the body’s own efficiency. They hope new knowledge of genetic influences will guide strategies to help those who find it difficult to get restorative rest.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-future-research-on-short-sleep-genes">Future research on short-sleep genes </h2>



Short-sleep genes have captured the imagination of specialists for years. There is strong interest in mapping out exactly how the human brain resets itself, and why some people get the same benefits in a compressed timeframe.



“These [NSS] people, all these functions our bodies are doing while we are sleeping, they can just perform at a higher level than we can,” said neuroscientist and geneticist Ying-Hui Fu, from the University of California, San Francisco (<a href="https://www.ucsf.edu" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">UCSF</a>). 



Scientists aim to <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37398097/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">uncover</a> the precise factors that grant this group their resilience. Many research teams intend to investigate how broader networks of genes might interact to influence rest. 



The SIK3 discovery raises big questions about what else might affect daily energy levels and long-term health.



Fascination with short sleepers is unlikely to fade soon. Unlocking the secrets of their genetics could reshape how we view rest, opening a path to solutions for chronic sleep troubles.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2500356122" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">PNAS</a>.



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Rare gene explains why some people can thrive on less sleep

Falling asleep and waking up refreshed is something most of us crave. Yet some people appear to thrive on fewer hours, leaving everyone else wondering how they manage it. A new study involving a healthy older adult suggests that a rare gene mutation might be a key to needing fewer hours of sleep. The research was led by Dr. Hao Chen from the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), whose team investigated a "natural short sleeper" trait linked to a genetic variant in the SIK3 gene. How genetics...

Experts are speaking out against the sale of caffeinated energy drinks to children. Professor Russell Viner, president of the <a href="https://www.rcpch.ac.uk/">Royal College of Pediatrics and Child Health</a>, argues that these drinks contribute to the twin epidemics of <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/societal-changes-obesity-epidemic/">obesity</a> and mental health problems among young people.

Across high income countries, children and young adults consume more sugar and calories than necessary, which means that they usually do not need additional energy. Professor Viner explained that this trend is especially cause for concern when combined with regular caffeine consumption, because there is little evidence of the effect that caffeine may have on the body as it develops. 

A 2014 survey of over 5,000 children in England revealed that 14 percent of 11- to 15-year-olds consume energy drinks at least two to four times a week. The study also found that 5 percent of all young people consume energy drinks daily. 

Professor Viner said that the high sugar content in many of these drinks, which is up to 27 grams of sugar per 250 milliliter serving, “undoubtedly contributes to the overall calorie excess and resultant obesity epidemic among our children.”

While recent studies show that caffeine may have detrimental effects on the developing brain, surprisingly little is actually known about its safety. 

A growing collection of research suggests that the consumption of energy drinks among children and young people is associated with anxiety, depression, sensation seeking, and increased hyperactivity and inattention.

Professor Viner said that this is alarming because psychological distress can lead to risky behaviors such as poor academic performance and drug use. He also pointed out that caffeinated drinks can have a negative impact on sleep. 

According to Professor Viner, humans get energy naturally from a “good diet, refreshing sleep, exercise and, most importantly, interaction with other people.”


The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.bmj.com/">The BMJ</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Energy drinks are especially harmful to young people, doctors warn

Experts are speaking out against the sale of caffeinated energy...

A new study has demonstrated that generosity and cooperation are contagious. The research was focused on hunter-gatherers in Tanzania - individuals who are far removed from the modern world - over the course of six years. 

The research team found that the Hadza are generally willing to share, but this does not mean that they always do so. The willingness to share depended less on an individual and more on the group that they happened to live with at the time.

“We found that year after year, willingness to share with others clustered within residence groups or what we call 'camps,’” said study lead author Coren Apicella of the <a href="https://www.upenn.edu/">University of Pennsylvania</a>. “People were living with other people who were similar to them in levels of generosity.”


Study first author Kristopher Smith added, “We also found individual willingness to share changed from year to year to match their current campmates and found no evidence that people preferred living with more cooperative people.”

Significantly, the researchers observed that these trends persisted even as the Hadza people changed campmates every couple of months.

The study demonstrated that it is not simply that people who like to share choose to live with others who also like to share. Instead, people adjust their behavior to match that of their cohabitants. 


The researchers were interested in investigating cooperation among the Hadza, particularly due to their <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/hunter-gatherers-superior-smell/">hunter-gatherer</a> lifestyles. 

“The Hadza are one of the last populations left on the planet who live a similar lifestyle to how our ancestors lived for millions of years,” said study co-author Ibrahim Mabulla. “They offer insight into how cooperation evolved.”

“Food is unreliable and people often worry about there being enough food to feed themselves and their families,” said Apicella. “To counteract this, the Hadza share their food with their campmates. High levels of cooperation help to ensure survival in this unpredictable setting.”

To investigate what drives cooperative behavior among the Hadza, the researchers visited 56 camps in Tanzania over six years. Nearly 400 Hadza adults of all ages were asked to play an economic game in which participants were asked to consider sharing their favorite food, straws of honey.

The individuals started the game with four honey straws, which could be contributed to the group depending on each player's decision. When the participants chose to share their honey straws with the group, the number of straws was tripled.

The experiment revealed that Hadza individuals living in certain camps were consistently more generous than others. The individuals were also found to modify their behavior over time to match the norms of the camp they were currently living in.

“You have some camps in which everyone is contributing and some where people are contributing very little,” said Smith. “In a random population, you'd expect all the camps to contribute similar amounts.”

“We were surprised to find that people do not have a stable tendency to cooperate and are instead influenced by those around them,” said Apicella. “Our results show that there is no such thing as good guys and bad guys.”

The researchers explained that the study findings highlight the flexible nature of human cooperation. Overall, the research also shows that generosity can be contagious.

“If you find yourself surrounded by selfish people, you don't necessarily have to find a new crowd, but by being generous yourself, you can get others to be generous as well,” said Smith.

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

Generosity and cooperation found to be contagious

A new study has demonstrated that generosity and cooperation are...

Death rates from <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/life-expectancy-overdose-us/">drug overdoses</a> have been on the rise in the US for the past 15 years, even before the more recent opioid crisis caused these numbers to skyrocket.

According to the <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/drugoverdose/data/statedeaths.html">Centers for Disease Control and Prevention</a>, in 2016, 63,632 deaths in the United States were the result of a drug overdose, and the number of overdose deaths has increased by 21.5 percent from 2015 to 2016. And the trend doesn’t appear to be slowing down. 

Researchers from the <a href="https://www.publichealth.pitt.edu/">University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health</a> took an in-depth look at overdose drug rates in the US and found that the solution is not targeting one specific drug, but discovering what factors are driving the drug epidemic overall. 

The findings of the study were published in the journal Science. 

“The current epidemic of overdose deaths due to prescription opioids, heroin and fentanyl appears to be the most recent manifestation of a more fundamental, longer-term process,” said Donald S. Burke, the senior author of the study. “Understanding the forces holding these multiple individual drug epidemics together in a tight upward exponential trajectory will be important in revealing the root causes of the epidemic, and this understanding could be crucial to prevention and intervention strategies."

For the study, the researchers collected data on all accidental drug poisoning or overdose deaths in the United States since 1979 from the <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss/index.htm">U.S. National Vital Statistics System</a>. 

Over the last four decades, the researchers were able to plot an almost perfect upward exponential curve illustrating the rise in drug overdose deaths over the years. 

“This remarkably smooth, long-term epidemic growth pattern really caught our attention,” said Burke. “If we can figure it out, we should be able to bend that curve downward.”

When the researchers looked at the specific drugs involved in overdose death rates in the United States, there arose no one specific region that suffered more overdose deaths than others, and the patterns for different opioids, stimulants, and hallucinogens varied widely through the years. 

“There is no regular or predictable pattern to the overdose rates for any of these drugs,” said Hawre Jalal, a lead author of the study. “Nonetheless, when we plot the annual sum of all drug overdoses, we get a remarkably smooth, inexorable exponential curve.”

Almost every region in the country was found to be a hotspot for drug overdose, as the researchers, found even when accounting for different demographic and geographic factors as well as the type of drug involved.

There are several explanations as to why drug overdoses have increased, and the researchers point to improvements in drug manufacturing, lower drug prices, expanding drug markets, and wider supply chains that are making illicit drugs readily available. 

The researchers say that finding out what exactly is driving drug overdose death rates is crucial for combating the increase in mortalities due to drugs in the US. 

“This is a paradox - inexorable growth in the aggregate, composed of variable sub-epidemics,” said Burke. “But it should be solvable. Evidence-based public health responses have contained past epidemics. If we understand and address these root causes at the same time that we take on the opioid crisis, we should be able to curb the epidemic for good.”

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

The growing drug overdose epidemic has been brewing for decades

Death rates from drug overdoses have been on the rise...

A new study examining what neural mechanisms influence <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/rock-climbers-high-risk-climbs/">risk-taking behavior</a> in monkeys has led to new insights about how risks and rewards are evaluated in the brain. 

Researchers from <a href="https://www.jhu.edu/">John Hopkins University</a> conducted the study which was published in the journal Current Biology. 

The results point to a specific area in the brain that drives risk-taking, and could one day help with treatments for risky behavior and addiction in humans. 

“People think risk attitude is always the same for individuals, but behavior researchers have found this isn't true - a person can be risk-averse for some things but inclined to risk in others, like someone who saves a lot of money but also skydives,” said Veit Stuphorn, a co-author of the study. 

Two rhesus monkeys were trained to gamble by taking bets against a computer for rewards of drinks of water. There were big bets that had higher payoffs, and smaller bets with more of a chance to win. 

The researchers found that the monkeys were big risk takers and preferred taking the bets with the biggest payoff. 

When the monkeys had a choice between a 20 percent chance to win 10 milliliters of water and an 80 percent chance to win three milliliters, the monkeys almost always took the bigger bet. 

The researchers found that the monkeys seemed to simply enjoy the excitement of the win and so the higher reward was more appealing, even if the monkeys weren’t thirsty. 

“The monkeys should rationally choose the 3 milliliters, but they always went with the riskier option,” said Xiamomo Chen, the lead author of the study. “They're like people who like to go to Las Vegas to play the slots, where there's a very high reward but a very low chance of winning it.”

An area of the prefrontal cortex of the brain called the supplementary eye field was identified as the main region that influences risk-taking behavior, and the researchers suppressed this area in the monkeys. 

When this region of the brain was temporarily inactivated in the monkeys, it drastically reduced the high-risk gambling preferences and the monkeys were 30 to 40 percent less likely to take risky bets. 

“This was truly unexpected, to find a brain section so specifically tied to risk attitude,” said Stuphorn. “The monkey's preference markedly changed from really liking risk to liking it much, much less.”

What was interesting was that suppressing this part of the brain didn't affect the monkeys’ ability to gamble or their memory of previous wins and losses. The monkeys were simply less likely to choose the risky bets with higher rewards. 

The researchers say that future studies could help improve our understanding of the neural mechanisms that drive risk-taking behavior in humans and create new treatments for addiction and risky behaviors. 

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Gambling monkeys shed light on what drives risk-taking

A new study examining what neural mechanisms influence risk-taking behavior...

Girls and boys have their differences – spanning everything from the obvious physical differences to the more subtle emotional and social disparities between the two genders. While these differences may be apparent, whether or not they provide any advantage to a certain <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/sleep-gender-equal-countries/">gender</a> can be a messy and controversial discussion. 

However, new research from the <a href="http://www.apa.org/">American Psychological Association</a> suggests that, by as early as fourth grade, girls perform better than boys on standardized reading and writing tests, and this achievement gap only grows wider as children age.

“The common thinking is that boys and girls in grade school start with the same cognitive ability, but this research suggests otherwise,” says David Reilly, a doctoral student at <a href="https://www.griffith.edu.au/">Griffith University</a> and lead author of the study published in <a href="http://www.apa.org/pubs/journals/amp/">American Psychologist</a>. “Our research found that girls generally exhibit better reading and writing ability than boys as early as the fourth grade.”

Reilly and his colleagues assessed data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress, which contains a nationally representative data sample of standardized test scores in the U.S. from over 3.4 million students in fourth, eighth, and 12th grades, spanning almost three decades. These scores showed that, on average, girls scored significantly higher than boys in both reading and writing in fourth grade, and this disparity only increased in eight and 12th grades – with the differences being much larger for writing than for reading in each case. 

“It appears that the gender gap for writing tasks has been greatly underestimated, and that despite our best efforts with changes in teaching methods does not appear to be reducing over time,” says Reilly.

What could be the underlying reasons for this difference in ability? The authors suggest that gender differences in behavioral problems, such as physical aggression and disobeying rules – along with attention disorders – may be to blame for boys’ being at a disadvantage. Boys are also statistically more likely to have a learning disability, and may face peer pressure to conform to masculine norms that push reading to the side. Furthermore, other research has found that girls tend to use both brain hemispheres when given reading and writing tasks, while boys are more likely to use a single hemisphere of the brain. 

“Bilateral language function presumably affords some benefits, which could explain the female advantage observed on such tasks,” explains Reilly. “Boys may also struggle to write as well as girls because it is an ability that requires solid reading skills, as well as competency in verbal fluency, spelling and grammar,” adds co-author David Neumann, PhD, also of Griffith University.

The study’s findings are necessarily suggesting that boys and girls have significantly different learning styles, nor does it point to single-sex education being a solution. “All the evidence suggests that gender segregation of education reinforces negative gender stereotypes, and makes gender more salient, which could be harmful for boys with reading and writing, and for girls with math and science,” says Reilly. “Rather, it suggests that we need to better tailor our education to meet the needs of boys and really encourage in them early a love not just of reading but also writing.”

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Girls perform better at reading and writing tests, study reveals

Girls and boys have their differences – spanning everything from...

Cruise ships have revolutionized the way people travel since they first rose in popularity in the 1990s. Travelers can eat, drink, shop, swim and enjoy entertainment while voyaging the seas, free from the stress of planning out every step of a vacation. But with the convenience of cruise ships comes a steep environmental cost.

Cruise ships are a popular vacation attraction for the laid-back traveler. According to the<a href="https://www.f-cca.com/downloads/2017-Cruise-Industry-Overview-Cruise-Line-Statistics.pdf"> Florida-Caribbean Cruise Association</a>, 24.2 million travelers went on a cruise in 2016 alone.

Along with carrying passengers, cruise ships carry waste and pollution as well. The<a href="https://www.epa.gov/vessels-marinas-and-ports/cruise-ship-discharges-and-studies"> U.S. Environmental Protection Agency</a> even describes cruise ships as “floating cities” because the ships transport people, resources, entertainment and services. All this baggage can cause a huge impact.

A 3,000 passenger cruise ship is<a href="http://www.cep.unep.org/publications-and-resources/databases/document-database/other/cruise-ship-pollution-background-laws-and-regulations-and-key-issues.pdf/view"> estimated</a> to generate 210,000 gallons of sewage, one million gallons of graywater (water from laundry, sinks and showers), 130 gallons of hazardous wastes, 8 tons of solid waste and 25,000 gallons of oily bilge water every week.

These pollutants cause high levels of pesticides, chemicals and nutrients to enter the air and waterways. Untreated graywater, for example, contains excessive levels of <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/climate-change-increase-nitrogen-runoff/">nitrogen</a> and phosphorus. The artificial influx of nutrients into fragile ocean ecosystems results in the diebacks of corals and other sea vegetation.

As nature serves as a popular backdrop for travelers, pristine habitats may be exploited and commercialized to accommodate the new visitors. Construction can occur on previously undisturbed areas to make tourist excursions which can cause increased pollution and disrupt local wildlife.

Cruise ships can also damage pristine beach habitats that tourists shell out thousands of dollars to visit. Cruise ship anchors sometimes destroy coral reefs when the ship is landing. In March 2017, a cruise ship rammed into one of Indonesia’s most preserved coral reefs destroying<a href="https://www.cnn.com/2017/03/15/asia/raja-ampat-ship-coral-reef/index.html"> nearly 140,000 square feet</a> of reef total.

Marine animals who come into contact with the massive structures may suffer as well. A 2004<a href="https://www.greateratlantic.fisheries.noaa.gov/shipstrike/news/shipstrike03.pdf"> report</a> on large whale ship strikes found that 12.7% of incidents of large whale ship strikes from 1975 to 2002 were from cruise ships.

The cruise ship industry is estimated to be the fastest growing segment in the travel industry. A simple search on a travel website can present you with options to cruise all over the world. The international, multi-jurisdictional nature of cruise ship has resulted in international laws to address cruise ship pollution. One of the major international agreements governing cruise ships is the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL), established in 1973.

Although MARPOL sets guidelines for member nations to follow, enforcement can be difficult as cruise ships sail through different jurisdictions. As a<a href="http://www.cep.unep.org/publications-and-resources/databases/document-database/other/cruise-ship-pollution-background-laws-and-regulations-and-key-issues.pdf/view"> 2008 Congressional report</a> states about incidents outside of the U.S., “these procedures require substantial coordination between the Coast Guard, the State Department, and other flag states and that, even when referrals have been made, the response rate from flag states has been poor.”

The tides are slowly changing for the cruising industry. Ships are now being held to higher environmental standards and are investing in technology such as solar panels and advanced wastewater treatment systems to lessen their ecological footprint. Cruise ships should also embrace the new wave of ecotourism in the travel sector by adjusting their excursions to focus on appreciating and preserving nature instead of exploiting it.

For the traveler who still wants to sip their Bahama Mama while sailing on a Caribbean cruise, Friends of the Earth has made a<a href="https://foe.org/cruise-report-card/"> cruise ship report card</a> which grades environmental standards cruise lines have put in place. Measures such as this both hold the cruising industry accountable and allow travelers to stay informed. Afterall, vacations should allow travelers to kick back and relax without worrying about the damage they are causing to the beautiful sites they visit.

--

By <a href="mailto:brianna.grant134@gmail.com">Brianna Lynne</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Cruise ships can be wildly harmful to the surrounding environment

Cruise ships have revolutionized the way people travel since they...

Researchers at <a href="https://www.czu.cz/en/">Czech University</a> have found that dog-assisted therapy may be more effective than standard speech therapy for children. The study revealed that patients with developmental dysphasia were more successful in mimicking vocal signals in a therapy session where a dog was present.

The experts discovered that the <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/green-spaces-childrens-respiratory/">children</a> were more motivated and open to communicating in the company of a therapy dog. The researchers also noted that the kids displayed more authentic and natural expressions during their interactions with the animals.

“The presence of the dog improves the relationship with the therapist, as it distracts from the fear of therapy in children and provides them with a form of support during the practice,” said study lead author Kristýna Machová.

The study, which is the first long-term randomized study of its kind, was focused on 69 nursery-school children who were diagnosed with developmental dysphasia. This is a common language disorder that makes it difficult for individuals to formulate words and to understand spoken words.

The goal of the research was to investigate whether speech therapy results may be improved in the presence of a dog. In both a control and an experimental group, the children were evaluated for a baseline measurement of speech and language skills prior to receiving speech therapy months later.

Traditional speech therapy was conducted among participants in the control group, while the experimental group received animal-assisted therapy sessions with a middle-aged Peruvian hairless dog named Agáta.

Improvements were observed in both groups, and the study authors explained that further research would be needed to consolidate the findings. However, the researchers still agree that there is great potential in a canine-assisted approach to therapy.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rfan20">Anthrozoos</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: Credit: Josef Ruzicka

Dog-assisted speech therapy found to be effective with children

Researchers at Czech University have found that dog-assisted therapy may...

A new study from the <a href="http://www.europeanlung.org/">European Lung Foundation</a> has revealed that children who live close to green spaces have fewer respiratory problems such as asthma in adulthood. On the other hand, <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/chinese-children-obesity-risk-air-pollution/">children</a> exposed to air pollution are more prone to respiratory issues later in life. 
A large international study known as <a href="https://helse-bergen.no/fag-og-forsking/forsking/rhinessa/rhinessa-english">RHINESSA</a> has been investigating lung health in children and adults in seven European countries, focusing on exposure to residential green spaces and air pollution from the time of birth into adulthood. 

Dr. Ingrid Nordeide Kuiper of <a href="https://helse-bergen.no/en">Haukeland University Hospital</a> and colleagues analyzed RHINESSA greenness data that involved 5,415 participants between the ages of 18 and 52 and air pollution data that involved 4,414 participants in the same age group. 

The team looked at how many individuals suffered from more than three respiratory symptoms, such as chest wheezing or whistling, breathlessness when wheezing, wheezing or whistling without a cold, a tight chest when waking, or an asthma attack. 


The researchers calculated the average annual exposure to fine particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10), and nitrogen dioxide (NO2), which was estimated from birth until age 18. The experts also calculated annual average exposure to “greenness” in a 100-meter zone around the home address during the same time frame. 

“These are preliminary results, but we found that exposure to greenness during childhood was associated with fewer respiratory symptoms in adulthood, while exposure to air pollutants in childhood was associated with more respiratory symptoms in adulthood and with late onset asthma,” said Dr. Kuiper.


The results varied across the different countries examined in the RHINESSA study. In Bergen, for example, exposure to PM2.5 and NO2 increased the likelihood of late onset asthma by up to 22 percent, while exposure to PM10 increased the likelihood of respiratory symptoms by 21 percent in Uppsala and by 23 percent in Bergen.

In Tartu, living close to a green space before the age of ten was associated with a 71-percent lower probability of wheeze. Living close to a green space between the ages of 11 and 18 was associated with a 29-percent lower probability of respiratory symptoms and a 39-percent lower probability of wheeze.


“We need to analyze these findings further before drawing any definite conclusions. However, it is likely that our findings will substantially expand our knowledge on the long-term effects of air pollution and greenness, enabling physicians, scientists and policy-makers to see the importance of exposure to pollution and access to green spaces, and helping to improve public health,” said Dr. Kuiper. 

“We will be conducting further analyses that include more centers that are taking part in the RHINESSA study, and we also want to expand analyses to look at the effects of exposure to air pollution and greenness across generations.”

“We believe that our results, seen together with previous results, will be of particular value for city planners and policy-makers; with increasing population density in the years to come it will be vital to include a decrease in air pollution exposures and an increase in access to green spaces in future city plans and societal regulations.”

The research was presented at the <a href="https://erscongress.org/">European Respiratory Society International Congress 2018</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Nearby green spaces improve children’s respiratory health

A new study from the European Lung Foundation has revealed...

Scientists at <a href="https://www.nyu.edu/">New York University</a> (NYU) have found that using verbs to encourage certain actions in <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/cleaning-products-gain-weight/">children</a> leads to more follow-through compared to the use of nouns. For example, asking a child to “help" or to “read" results in more persistence than assigning them names such as “helper" or “reader.”

The results of the study contradict those of research conducted in 2014 which demonstrated that asking children to “be helpers” instead of “to help” subsequently led them to help more.

The difference between the two studies is that the more recent analysis investigated the outcome when children experienced setbacks while assisting with tasks. The study findings highlight the link between language and perseverance among children.

Marjorie Rhodes is an associate professor in NYU's Department of Psychology and the study's senior author.

“The new research shows how subtle features of language can shape child behavior in ways not previously understood,” explained Professor Rhodes.

“In particular, using verbs to talk to children about behavior - such as ‘you can help’ - can lead to more determination following setbacks than using nouns to talk about identities - for instance, ‘you can be a helper.’”

The research team found that asking children between the ages of four and five to “be helpers” rather than “to help” led them to assist with more tasks, such as picking up crayons that had fallen on the floor or helping to open a box. This effect, however, backfired after children experienced difficulty while trying to be helpful.

In a series of experiments, the children were given the opportunity to help the experimenter clean up some toys after being asked either to “be helpers” or “to help.” 

The conditions were designed so that the children would experience difficulties, which represented those that young children deal with in everyday life, as they were trying to help. For example, when children picked up a box to move it to a shelf, the contents spilled all over the floor because the box fell apart.

The study revealed that children who had originally been asked “to help” were more persistent after any setbacks compared to those who were asked to “be helpers.”

After the setbacks, children asked “to help” were just as likely to assist with challenging situations that benefited only the experimenter as they were to participate in easy situations that also benefited themselves. Children asked “to be helpers,” however, rarely ever helped in the challenging situations that benefited only the experimenter after dealing with difficulties.

“This research shows how talking to children about actions they can take - in this case, that they can do helpful things -can encourage more persistence following setbacks than talking to children about identities that they can take on,” said lead author Emily Foster-Hanson.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/14678624">Child Development</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

Action verbs encourage children to be more persistent

Scientists at New York University (NYU) have found that using...

Yogurt has long been branded as a healthy food option that can help maintain weight and proper digestion. Eaten for everything from breakfast to dessert, yogurt contains healthy bacteria and is a good source of nutrition. 

However, a number of yogurt products, especially those marketed to children, often contain high sugar and fat contents despite the national dietary guidelines that recommend low-fat and low-sugar dairy products.

The average consumer shopping at the local supermarket isn’t always aware of the fat and sugar contents of their food and simply buy what the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/supermarkets-eat-fewer-calories/">grocery store keeps in stock</a>. 

Researchers from the <a href="https://physicalsciences.leeds.ac.uk/info/5/school_of_food_science_and_nutrition">School of Food Science and Nutrition at the University of Leeds</a> in the UK conducted a study that compared yogurt products with the national dietary guidelines to see how much more sugar and fat was included.

The study was published in the journal BMJ Open. 

900 yogurts and yogurt products were analyzed for the study, all of which were available from five major UK online supermarket chains. 

The researchers divided the products into eight categories: children's, dairy alternatives, desserts, drinks, flavored, fruit, natural/Greek, and organic.

A product’s sugar and fat content were classified depending on European Union regulations. If a yogurt product had a fat content of 3 grams/100 grams or less and five or fewer grams of total sugar/100 grams, it was considered low fat and sugar. 

Besides the greek yogurts, most of the other yogurts were above the low sugar threshold. 

The products meant for children had the least amount of low sugar items which is a cause for concern because obesity rates among children are climbing both in the US and UK. 

Sugar levels in the yogurt products ranged from 16.4g/100 g to 10.8 g/100 g. Fat content varied and was either above or below the recommended threshold. 

The study confirms that supermarkets carry foods that contain much higher levels of sugar and fat than is recommended, and not just in yogurts.

“While yogurt may be less of a concern than soft drinks and fruit juices, the chief sources of free sugars in both children and adults' diets, what is worrisome is that yogurt, as a perceived 'healthy food,' may be an unrecognized source of free/added sugars in the diet,” the researchers wrote of their study. “Not all yogurts are as healthy as perhaps consumers perceive them, and reformulation for the reduction of free sugars is warranted.”

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By <a href="mailto:kayvandettte@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Most yogurt products contain more sugar than is recommended

Yogurt has long been branded as a healthy food option...

Lately, drug overdoses have been in the frequently, as the opioid crisis continues to wreak havoc on many communities, and <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/rivers-polluted-cocaine-eels/">cocaine</a> use seems to once again be back in vogue. At this point, any sort of treatment for drug abuse or accidental overdoses would be welcome. Luckily, a new gene therapy for drug addiction from the <a href="https://www.uchicago.edu/">University of Chicago</a> – reported in <a href="https://www.nature.com/">Nature</a> – has shown promise at reducing cravings for cocaine and protecting against overdoses in mice.

The enzyme butyrylcholinesterase, or BChE, has been known for decades to destroy cocaine in the bloodstream by breaking it down into its harmless byproducts. However, this enzyme does not act fast enough or stay in the bloodstream long enough to help individuals addicted to the drug. But in making this new treatment, the researchers rewrote DNA in mouse skin stem cells to make them produce a modified form of BChE that is over 4,000 times more potent than the natural enzyme.

Laboratory tests showed that mice fitted with implants containing clumps of these engineered cells lost their appetite for cocaine and were able to survive massive overdoses of the drug, which killed 100% of mice without implants. 

“Compared to other gene therapies, our approach is minimally invasive, long term, low maintenance and affordable. It’s very promising,” says lead researcher Ming Xu, a professor of anesthesia and critical care at the University of Chicago.

Xu believes that this new therapy has the potential to become the first intervention approved for treating cocaine addiction. Further studies suggest that human-size implants would be able to release BChE for 20 to 30 years, protecting addicts for decades. Xu also reports that there have been no obvious side effects observed thus far.

&nbsp;

While more research needs to be done before this therapy can be tested in human trials, the results so far are promising. Xu’s research team is also working on similarly engineered cells to treat alcohol and nicotine addiction, and are expected to begin research on therapy for opioid addiction as well. 

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

New breakthrough may lead to cure for cocaine addiction

Lately, drug overdoses have been in the frequently, as the...

A new study from the <a href="https://www.weforum.org/">World Economic Forum</a> (WEF) has revealed that robots will take over 52 percent of the current workforce by 2025. This means that <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/robots-respect-personal-space/">machines</a> will be performing in almost twice as many positions over the next eight years. 

According to the WEF’s research, accelerated changes in computers and their processes “could create 133 million new roles in place of 75 million that will be displaced between now and 2022.”

“As technological breakthroughs rapidly shift the frontier between the work tasks performed by humans and those performed by machines and algorithms, global labor markets are undergoing major transformations,” the WEF report states. 

“These transformations, if managed wisely, could lead to a new age of good work, good jobs and improved quality of life for all, but if managed poorly, pose the risk of widening skills gaps, greater inequality and broader polarization.”

While the increasing number of machines in the labor force is expected to create new roles for humans, existing and potential workers will need to upgrade various skills to keep up with the pace of the technological shift.

The researchers explain, “By 2022, no less than 54% of all employees will require significant re- and upskilling. Of these, about 35% are expected to require additional training of up to six months, 9% will require reskilling lasting six to 12 months, while 10% will require additional skills training of more than a year.”

“Skills continuing to grow in prominence by 2022 include analytical thinking and innovation, as well as active learning and learning strategies.”

The experts predict that robots will rapidly replace humans across some fields including client management, accounting, industrial, postal, and secretarial positions. On the other hand,  jobs that require human skills will show an increased demand, such as social media, marketing, and customer service.

“As the Fourth Industrial Revolution unfolds, companies are seeking to harness new and emerging technologies to reach higher levels of efficiency of production and consumption, expand into new markets, and compete on new products for a global consumer base composed increasingly of digital natives,” write the researchers.

“Yet in order to harness the transformative potential of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, business leaders across all industries and regions will 
increasingly be called upon to formulate a comprehensive workforce strategy ready to meet the challenges of this new era of accelerating change and innovation.”

The report by the WEF, <a href="http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_Future_of_Jobs_2018.pdf">The Future of Jobs 2018</a>, details the anticipated technological shift and its impact on the workforce across specific industries and individual countries.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Robots will replace half the current workforce by 2025, WEF says

A new study from the World Economic Forum (WEF) has...

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

[sendtonews key="JbW4VsY53O-1632195-12187" type="single"] Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected...

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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