Being cool can feel elusive and almost mythic - something we “know when we see it,” yet struggle to define.



A sweeping new investigation led by marketing scholars Todd Pezzuti of <a href="https://www.uai.cl/">Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez</a> and Caleb Warren of the <a href="https://www.arizona.edu/">University of Arizona</a> argues that the concept is far less mysterious than it seems.



Across twelve nations, nearly 6,000 participants independently picked out the same constellation of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/personality-type-can-accurately-predict-your-relationship-status/">personality</a> traits when describing a cool person. 



The findings reveal not only what separates “cool” from “good” but also why cool people tend to become catalysts of social change.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-mapping-cool-across-12-nations">Mapping cool across 12 nations</h2>



Between 2018 and 2022, the research team collected online responses from adults in the United States, Australia, Chile, mainland China, Hong Kong, Germany, India, Mexico, Nigeria, Spain, South Africa, South Korea, and Turkey.



Participants first confirmed that they understood the slang meaning of the word “cool,” then spent a few minutes imagining someone who embodied one of four labels: cool, uncool, good, or not good.



Afterward, volunteers evaluated that imagined person on a battery of personality dimensions drawn from psychology’s “Big Five” model and Schwartz’s theory of universal values.



Because all responses came from internet users in relatively urban settings, the sample leans toward technologically connected citizens. 



Still, it is one of the most culturally diverse datasets ever assembled to study reputational judgments. The result is a uniquely global snapshot of how people assign social prestige.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-where-cool-and-good-part-ways"><a></a>Where cool and good part ways</h2>



When the investigators compared ratings, they found considerable overlap: both cool and good people scored high on <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/people-with-many-facial-expressions-seem-more-social-and-likeable/">likability</a>. Yet important divergences emerged.



In all the places they studied, people consistently perceived cool individuals as more extraverted, hedonistic, powerful, adventurous, open, and autonomous. 



Good people, by contrast, ranked as conforming, traditional, secure, warm, agreeable, universalistic, conscientious, and calm.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-cool-people-aren-t-always-good">Cool people aren't always "good"</h2>



In Pezzuti’s view, the cool profile evokes a kind of charismatic boundary-pusher: energetic, novelty seeking, and unapologetically self-directed.



That explains why cool individuals can inspire fashion trends or launch creative movements - roles that sometimes require bending social rules rather than following them.



“To be seen as cool, someone usually needs to be somewhat likable or admirable, which makes them similar to good people," said Warren. "However, cool people often have other traits that aren’t necessarily considered ‘good’ in a moral sense, like being hedonistic and powerful.”



The cool persona therefore straddles acceptance and transgression: admired enough to influence peers, rebellious enough to feel fresh.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-cool-traits-go-global">Cool traits go global</h2>



In the mid-20th century, “cool” circulated in small countercultures - from Black jazz clubs to Beatnik cafés. Over the decades, fashion labels, record companies and Hollywood studios harnessed the aura of cool, broadcasting certain looks and attitudes to a worldwide audience.



The new study suggests that process may have standardized the meaning of the term. Even participants who live 10,000 miles apart now recognize the same signature <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/personality-traits-linked-to-willingness-to-volunteer-or-donate/">traits</a>. As the authors note, the meaning of cool has crystallized on a similar set of traits and values around the world.



Pezzuti does not see commercialization as a death knell. “Coolness has definitely evolved over time, but I don’t think it has lost its edge. It’s just become more functional,” he said.



“The concept of coolness started in small, rebellious sub-cultures, including Black jazz musicians in the 1940s and the beatniks in the 1950s. As society moves faster and puts more value on creativity and change, cool people are more essential than ever.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-coolness-matters">Why coolness matters</h2>



Because cool people display power and autonomy while earning admiration, the researchers argue that coolness helps establish informal hierarchies. Instead of relying solely on wealth or institutional authority, communities also elevate figures who embody daring and originality.



These individuals, in turn, shape cultural norms by modeling alternative ways to dress, speak, or live. As Pezzuti puts it, “everyone wants to be cool, or at least avoid the stigma of being uncool, and society needs cool people because they challenge norms, inspire change, and advance culture.”



That dual role - both aspirational and disruptive - makes the cool persona uniquely influential. Marketers know this instinctively when they cast charismatic musicians in sneaker ads. Activists harness it when they infuse protest art with edgy style.



The study provides empirical backing for those intuitions: people from Lagos to Los Angeles consistently associate coolness with adventurous independence.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-coolness-in-the-digital-age">Coolness in the digital age</h2>



The team notes their study excludes rural and offline groups, whose ideas of cool may differ significantly. They also restricted the study to cultures already familiar with the English slang term, potentially narrowing linguistic nuance.



Future projects could test whether the six-trait profile - extraverted, hedonistic, powerful, adventurous, open, and autonomous - holds in additional societies or emerges in other languages.



Researchers are likewise curious about how <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/social-media-pressure-is-straining-teen-friendships/">social media</a> platforms, which accelerate the spread of trends, might further synchronize or fragment global standards of cool. Does TikTok broaden identity through niche subcultures or reinforce the six-trait mold by favoring charismatic risk-takers?



For now, the evidence is striking: when people across five continents imagine someone undeniably cool, they picture remarkably similar qualities. 



Coolness, it turns out, may be one of the few cross-cultural constants - an unwritten code that transcends borders even as it keeps pushing boundaries.



The study is published in the <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/doiLanding?doi=10.1037%2Fxge0001799">Journal of Experimental Psychology: General</a>.



-----



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What makes people cool? Scientists tracked down the traits

Being cool can feel elusive and almost mythic - something we “know when we see it,” yet struggle to define. A sweeping new investigation led by marketing scholars Todd Pezzuti of Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez and Caleb Warren of the University of Arizona argues that the concept is far less mysterious than it seems. Across twelve nations, nearly 6,000 participants independently picked out the same constellation of personality traits when describing a cool person. The findings reveal not only what separates “cool” from “good” but also why cool...

While nail polish manufacturers have started removing potentially toxic ingredients, these labels are not always accurate. Furthermore, a new study suggests that the reformulated products are not necessarily safer.

Many <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/green-beauty-brands/">new polishes</a> are labeled as being “3-Free,” which means the products lack the so-called toxic trio of di-n-butyl phthalate (DnBP), toluene, and formaldehyde. Other labels even claim to be free of as many as 13 different chemicals, but recent evidence shows that some substitute ingredients, such as the plasticizer triphenyl phosphate (TPHP), may be just as harmful. 

This suggests that one toxic chemical is being replaced by another in a practice known as “regrettable substitution.” A research team led by Anna Young has studied DnBP substitutes in nail polish and has evaluated the accuracy of plasticizer labeling. The goal is to provide guidance for producers, consumers, and nail salons in designing and selecting safer nail polish.

The study was focused on 40 different nail polishes. Overall, the experts found that manufacturers have generally removed DnBP and are reducing the amount of TPHP they use. However, some producers are using similar toxic substitutes, such as bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate, and are often not disclosing the use of these compounds.

The investigation also revealed that nail polishes with labels promoting fewer ingredients do not necessarily have reduced toxicity. 

“With little standardization or validation of the claims, it's challenging for consumers and nail salon workers to know what these labels really mean for health,” said Young. “It's not as simple as what substances aren't in nail polish; we have to address harmful chemicals still present or added as substitutes.”

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://pubs.acs.org/journal/esthag">Environmental Science &amp; Technology</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Misleading nail polish labels replace one toxic chemical with another

While nail polish manufacturers have started removing potentially toxic ingredients,...

Pompeii usually steals the spotlight when historians discuss the devastating volcanic eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD. 

However, preserved skeletons from Herculaneum, a town closer to Vesuvius than Pompeii, show that the steam and ash from the eruption were so hot when it reached the settlement that it vaporized blood and soft tissue, instantly burning the flesh right off the body. 

In <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/volcanoes-erupt-next/">Pompeii</a>, the ash and steam had had some time to cool and so the soft tissues decayed naturally overtime inside layers of volcanic ash. 

Researchers from the <a href="http://www.unina.it/unina-international/about-us/federico-ll-today">Federico II University Hospital</a> made the remarkable find by closely examining skeletons uncovered from waterfront chambers in the ancient city of Herculaneum. 

The researchers published their findings in the journal PLOS One. 

Vesuvius is still considered one of the <a href="http://time.com/5300683/volcanoes-most-dangerous-active/">world’s most dangerous volcanoes</a>, and when it erupted in 79 AD, it spewed ash and gas as high as 21 miles into the air and created huge waves of lava, ash, and steam that overtook the surrounding settlements like Herculaneum and Pompeii. 

In the town of Herculaneum, excavations have revealed that hundreds of people took shelter in 12 waterfront chambers along the beach and were killed instantly when the ash and steam filled the town.

The researchers examined these preserved skeletons, making note of how the ash had filled the skulls and analyzed the red and black mineral residue that covered the skeletons. 

Upon further inspection, the researchers discovered that the unusual mineral residue likely came from the vaporized soft tissue and bodily fluids of the Herculaneum residents. 

According to the researchers, the temperatures would have been so high in the waterfront chambers that it boiled the blood, caused skulls to explode, and vaporized flesh. 

“An extraordinary find concerns skulls filled with ash, which indicates that after evaporation of the organic liquids the brain was replaced by ash,” the team wrote. “The presence of such an ash cast in all victims, even those showing minor heat effects, provides evidence that the S1 surge was sufficiently hot and fluid to penetrate the intracranial cavity soon after soft tissues and organic fluids disappeared.” 

According to <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/pompeii-herculaneum-vesuvius-eruption-blood-boil-skulls-explode-1159510?spJobID=1130613041">Newsweek</a>, the study is the first of its kind to find experimental evidence of rapid vaporization of body fluids and soft tissues. 

The research has important implications for the six million people that live in close proximity to Vesuvius, a volcano still closely watched and which could erupt again. 

“This kind of field and laboratory studies are of great importance not only from the point of view of a historical and biological reconstruction of the Roman age populations, but also because [they] provide fundamental information useful for the assessment of volcanic risk in densely populated areas,” Pierpaolo Petrone, the leader of the research, told Newsweek. 

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Vesuvius eruption was so hot it caused people’s skulls to explode

Pompeii usually steals the spotlight when historians discuss the devastating...

Catch-and-release fishing might seem much more humane than traditional fishing, but a new study has found that the hole left by a fishhook damages a fish’s feeding ability. 

Researchers from the <a href="https://www.ucr.edu/">University of California-Riverside</a> conducted a study to examine catch-and-release fishing, which although touted as a conservational fishing practice, could be doing unnecessary damage to at-risk species of fish. 

The study was published in The Journal of Experimental Biology. 

<a href="http://www.earth.com/news/salmon-landlocked-navigational-skills/">Salmon</a>, bass, and trout, all sought after species in sport fishing, use a method called suction feeding where a fish will rapidly expand its mouth and suck in prey. The sucking generates pressure in the fish's mouth which is how the prey is drawn in.  

The researchers wanted to examine how a hole left by a fish hook would impact this suction feeding process. 

“The suction feeding system is somewhat similar to how we drink liquid through a straw,” said Tim Higham, a member of the research team. “If you poke a hole in the side of your straw it's not going to work properly.”

20 shiner perch caught near the <a href="http://www.bamfieldmsc.com/">Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre</a> in Canada, ten caught with a net and ten with a hook, were brought to a marine station where the researchers set up high-speed cameras to record the fish feeding. 

The fish were split into two groups depending on how they were caught and the researchers compared the feeding performance between the two groups. 

Even though all the fish wanted to feed, the ones that had been caught with a hook were not able to feed as efficiently as the fish caught with a net. 

“As we predicted, the fish with the mouth injuries exhibited a reduction in the speed at which they were able to draw prey into their mouths,” said Higham.“This was the case even though we used barbless hooks, which are less damaging than barbed hooks.”

After modeling the fluid dynamics in the suction feeding system, the researchers were able to show how the hole injury left by a hook disrupts suction feeding, but there are still unaccounted factors that need to be understood.

“Although we don't yet know how/if this reduction in feeding performance would affect fitness and survivability in nature, we can say that fishing-induced injuries impact the fish's ability to feed while the mouth is healing,” said Higham. “This study emphasizes that catch-and-release is not as simple as removing the hook and all being well, but rather is a complex process that should be studied in more detail.”

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette,</a> <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Catch-and-release fishing damages the fish’s feeding ability

Catch-and-release fishing might seem much more humane than traditional fishing,...

Researchers have found that high levels of air pollutants such as fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and ozone are linked to a higher risk of developing mouth cancer. In many parts of the world, the number of new cases and deaths from mouth cancer are increasing.

Some of the known risk factors for mouth cancer are smoking, drinking, and human papilloma virus. It is also believed that the disease may be caused by exposure to heavy metals and emissions from petrochemical plants. 

<a href="http://www.earth.com/news/air-pollution-intelligence/">Air pollution</a> has been found to negatively affect respiratory and cardiovascular health. To investigate whether air pollutants may also play a role in the development of mouth cancer, the researchers analyzed information in national health, insurance, cancer, and air quality databases.

The study was focused on the health records of 482,659 men in Taiwan aged 40 and older who had provided information on smoking or chewing tobacco. 

The experts also examined the average levels of air pollutants measured at 66 air quality monitoring stations in 2009. Incidence of mouth cancer was then linked to local area readings for air pollutants. 

In 2012 to 2013, 1,617 cases of mouth cancer were diagnosed among the men. As expected, smoking and frequent chewing were significantly associated with heightened risk. High levels of PM2.5 were also found to increase the chances of a mouth cancer diagnosis. 

After accounting for any factors that could have influenced the outcome, the researchers determined that rising levels of PM2.5 are associated with an increasing risk of mouth cancer.

It is not yet clear how air pollutants might contribute to mouth cancer, and further research will be needed to investigate. The study authors pointed out that some of the components of PM2.5 include heavy metals, as well as other known cancer-causing compounds.


The researchers concluded: “This study, with a large sample size, is the first to associate oral cancer with PM2.5. These findings add to the growing evidence on the adverse effects of PM2.5 on human health.”

The study is published in the <a href="https://jim.bmj.com/">Journal of Investigative Medicine</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Exposure to air pollution can increase the risk of mouth cancer

Researchers have found that high levels of air pollutants such...

For climate change deniers, it seems like all the facts and studies in the world aren’t enough to change their mind. Scientific consensus has been on the side of human-influenced global warming for decades, and still many pundits and members of the public remain staunch in their refusal to accept the facts. Could there be a better way to convince these deniers of the real threats of <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/humans-driving-climate-change/">climate change</a>?

A collection titled “Confronting Climate Change in the Age of Denial” was recently published in the journal <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/">PLOS Biology</a>, and explores the idea of using stories to communicate scientific evidence regarding climate change. The authors offer both caveats and possible solutions for telling evidence-based climate change stories that may be able to change some minds.

This publication features two articles by social scientists, offering different perspectives on enlisting narratives to convey climate change science. An additional article is by marine mammal experts who depict the looming impacts of climate change on wildlife in the Arctic. 

“Marine mammals are ecosystem sentinels, capable of reflecting ocean variability through changes in their ecology and body condition,” says Sue Moore, a biological oceanographer, and Randall Reeves, a marine mammal biologist, in “Tracking Arctic Marine Mammal Resilience in an Era of Rapid Ecosystem Alteration.”

The scientists present a framework that combines ecological and physiological indicators to traditional demographics in an effort to propose a more comprehensive view of population health of certain species. Their hope is that, through this framework, they can create “a path toward sustainability through improved prediction, more precaution, and wiser policy in this era of global environmental change.”

The first article by social scientists, “Climate Communication for Biologists: When a Picture Can Tell a Thousand Words,” was written by psychologists Stephan Lewandowsky and Lorraine Whitmarsh. The authors assess strategies for the implementation of anecdotes and images to create a narrative that captures the public’s attention without losing any scientific accuracy.

A second article titled "(Escaping) the Paradox of Scientific Storytelling,” by science communication experts Michael Dahlstrom and Dietram Scheufele, examines the peril and promise of using stories to communicate science. The authors argue that using stories to try to convey knowledge may ultimately be unsuccessful, as they state that increased scientific literacy does not lead to a greater acceptance of science. They believe that it may make more sense to tell stories about how scientific knowledge is produced instead.

“In the end, using storytelling to primarily build scientific support through knowledge, attitude, or behavior goals without also engaging scientific reasoning might not help science in the long run,” the authors say. 

This collection is an effort to expand our strategies for conveying the effects of climate change to an unforgiving audience. In the end, it may take more than numbers and facts.

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Image Credit: Mike Lewelling, National Park Service

Paid for by Earth.com

Breaking down the science helps chip away at climate change denial

For climate change deniers, it seems like all the facts...

A team of researchers has demonstrated that regular use of the party drug GHB, or gamma-hydroxybutyrate, is associated with brain changes including higher levels of stress and anxiety and negative effects on long-term memory, working memory, and IQ.

Also known as “G” or “liquid ecstasy,” GHB is a central nervous system depressant that is often used in clubs and in private house parties. The initial feeling of euphoria produced by GHB can soon lead to sleepiness, unconsciousness, and can even put users in a coma. 

According to the researchers, it is not unusual for regular, recreational users to experience more than 50 GHB-induced comas. 

To investigate the effects of GHB on the brain, a team of scientists from the Amsterdam UMC recruited 27 GHB users who had experienced multiple GHB-induced comas, 27 GHB users who had never had a coma, and 27 volunteers who had never used GHB. Each participant was tested for IQ, <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/depression-anxiety-heart-attack/">anxiety</a>, depression, and stress. 

The researchers found that any extent of GHB use was associated with alterations in the identification of negative emotions. In addition, the presence of GHB-induced comas was associated with lower IQ and altered brain processes during verbal long-term memory and working memory. 


“Surprisingly little is known about the effects of GHB in humans, and as far as we know, these are the first functional MRI scans to gauge the effect of the regular GHB use and multiple GHB-induced comas,” explained lead researcher Filipa Raposo Pereira.

“Our results indicate that there may be risks involved in regular GHB use. This is particularly relevant to regular users with multiple GHB-induced comas; we found that these users show differences in cognition to either those who don't fall into a coma, or drug users who have never used GHB.”

“In an as yet unpublished study, we show that those with multiple GHB-induced comas also have 63% more stress and 23% more anxiety, and alterations in long-term memory. MRI scans also show that there are changes to the brain, with some areas showing altered brain activity and connectivity between memory-related cerebral pathways.” 

“These results show that there are brain and cognitive changes associated with multiple GHB-induced comas. Most users experience only the feeling of elation followed by drowsiness or sleep, so they don't see that there might be any negative effects. This work indicates that might not be the case.”

Professor David Nutt of the Imperial College London added: “This research is interesting and recreational users should be made aware of these findings. They probably reflect periods of hypoxia due to excessive GHB concentrations in brain. When GHB is used in a regulated fashion as a medicine - for example, for narcolepsy - there doesn't appear to be a similar risk, so patients on this medicine should not worry.”

The study will be presented at the 31st <a href="https://www.ecnp.eu/">Congress of the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Use of club drug GHB linked to increased anxiety, impaired memory

A team of researchers has demonstrated that regular use of...

Researchers at the <a href="https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/">University of Birmingham</a> have demonstrated that identical brain mechanisms are responsible for triggering memory while we are asleep or awake. The study sheds new light on the processes used by the <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/brain-damage-reversed-hormone/">brain</a> to consolidate and store memories during sleep.


While the role that sleep plays in organizing memory has been well-established, the mechanisms which underlie the process are still not clearly understood.

Scientists have now been able to show, for the first time, that neural patterns which are triggered in the brain when remembering specific memories while we are awake resurface during subsequent sleep.

The study findings provide further evidence of the beneficial effects of sleep on memory formation. While learning and memorizing a foreign language before sleep, the brain signals of the study participants were recorded using electroencephalography.

Our understanding of how memories are formed could be further enhanced by understanding these memories, and could ultimately help to unravel the foundations of memory disorders such as Alzheimer's disease.

The team recorded the distinct neural pathways that were activated while the participants mentally responded to hearing words they had learned while they were asleep. The researchers were able to show clear similarities in brain activity during sleep and wakefulness.

“Although sleep and wakefulness might seem to have little in common, this study shows that brain activity in each of these states might be more similar than we previously thought,” said Dr. Thomas Schreiner of the University of Birmingham's School of Psychology.


“If we can better understand how memory really works, this could lead to new approaches for the treatment of memory disorders, such as Alzheimer's disease.”

Study co-lead author Dr. Tobias Staudigl of the <a href="https://www.ru.nl/donders/">Donders Institute</a> added: “Understanding how memories are reactivated in different states also provides insight into how these memories could be altered - which might for example be interesting in therapeutic settings.”

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.cell.com/cell-reports/home">Cell Reports</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Memories create the same brain patterns while we’re asleep or awake

Researchers at the University of Birmingham have demonstrated that identical...

Researchers led by the <a href="https://www.arizona.edu/">University of Arizona</a> have found that the transition from hominins to modern humans may have been instigated by an unpredictable environment. According to the study, an increasingly dry climate with sporadic wet spells may have driven the origins of modern <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/diverse-climates-homo-sapiens-thrive/">Homo sapiens</a> and the Middle Stone Age.

Based on lake sediment cores, the investigation provides the first continuous environmental record to compare with a large amount of archeological evidence recovered from the rift valley basins of southern Kenya. The cores were collected from Lake Magadi as part of the Hominin Sites and Paleolakes Drilling Project (HSPDP), which is directed by study co-author Professor Andrew Cohen.

The researchers explained that while previous theories have related hominin evolution to climate change, most prior studies lack regional-scale evidence for a link between environment and hominin evolution.

The current study revealed that the region experienced a trend toward intense aridification beginning 575,000 years ago. The climate change, which was not previously documented in continuous continental cores from East Africa, coincides with faunal extinctions and a major transition in stone tool technology.

“Much evidence for human evolution has been gathered from the area, but linking those records to detailed environmental records was missing until now,” said study lead author Richard Owen of <a href="https://www.hkbu.edu.hk/">Hong Kong Baptist University</a>. “There is a big gap in the records between the last Early Stone Age tools 500,000 years ago and the appearance of Middle Stone Age tools about 320,000 years ago. Our results plugged that gap with a continuous environmental record.”

The cores from Lake Magadi have demonstrated the first detailed link between climate change and events that have been identified in the region's archeological record.

“We have known for a while that the climate at the time was very varied, but the key here is that the records are in proximity to the archeological evidence for this transition,” said Professor Cohen. “The older stone tools found at Olorgesailie did not change much between 1.2 million and a half-million years ago. And suddenly, after 500,000 and before 320,000 years ago - we don't know exactly when, but in that timespan - there was a critical transition in archeology when tools became more sophisticated and were transported over longer distances.”

Evidence has been found that modern Homo sapiens appeared elsewhere in Africa at the same time that lake core records indicate a drier, more variable climate. This timing has prompted much speculation that the two events are connected.

“Whether the evolution of bigger brains goes hand in hand with new toolkits is not entirely clear,” said Professor Cohen. “But the earliest modern Homo sapiens fossils from Morocco date back 325,000 years, the same time we see this transition of tools. And both happened around the same time that our core record indicates severe drying very close to the archeological sites.”

Owen pointed out that, according to the hypothesis of variability selection, a rapidly changing environment creates selective pressure that forces species to adapt to rapid change. The larger brains of anatomically modern humans would have empowered early Homo sapiens to quickly adapt to a less predictable world.

The study is published in the <a href="http://www.pnas.org/">Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</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: Richard Owen

A changing climate may have led to anatomically modern humans

Researchers led by the University of Arizona have found that...

You may not be able to learn new <a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/how-sound-and-smell-cues-can-enhance-learning-while-you-sleep-180968180/">information while sleeping</a>, but a new study suggests that added sleep can help improve problem-solving and memory.

The concept of “sleeping on it” has long been offered as good advice to help people tasked with making tough decisions. 

Studies have already shown that naps can help with <a href="https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/adult-health/in-depth/napping/art-20048319">alertness</a> and improve reaction time and performance. 

Now, researchers from <a href="http://www.bristol.ac.uk/">Bristol University</a> have conducted a study that adds weight to the theory that “sleeping on it” can provide crucial insight for problem-solving and balancing pros and cons. 

The study was published in the journal Sleep Research and 16 participants were involved in the research. 

The participants, aged between 20 and 91, were asked to complete two tasks while the researchers measured brain activity with an electroencephalogram.

For the first task, the researchers asked the participants to rate a string of words as good or bad. 

The second task involved identifying the color of dozens of squares that popped up on a screen and the participants had to say whether they saw blue or red squares.

After completing one round of the tasks, the participants were split into two groups and one group took a 90-minute nap while the other stayed awake. 

After the 90 minutes were up, the participants were asked to tackle the challenges again.

Those who had been able to take a nap had quicker reaction times on the first task by around 50 milliseconds, and the other group that stayed awake showed no difference in how well they completed the challenges. 

The research proves how <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/sleep-increases-car-crash-risk/">sleep</a> can impact memory, problem-solving, and our ability to make decisions. 

-- 

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Sleeping on it does help you make better decisions, study shows

You may not be able to learn new information while...

It’s no surprise that a diet high in fat can cause a number of health issues, both short- and long-term. For years, scientists have stressed the importance of supplementing your diet with plenty of fruits and vegetables. Now, a new study has found that a hormone in plants may reverse the brain damage caused by a high-fat diet.

Researchers from <a href="https://www.uji.es/">Jaume I University</a> in Castelló de la Plana, Spain, fed mice a fatty diet, causing them to develop inflammation of the nervous system – similar to what happens in Alzheimer’s patients. However, after the mice had their diets supplemented with abscisic acid – a plant hormone – the damage was reversed. It is believed that abscisic acid reduces inflammation in the region of the <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/brain-scans-skill-level/">brain</a> that is responsible for storing memories.

The study – published in the journal <a href="https://link.springer.com/journal/12035">Molecular Neurobiology</a> – assessed how insulin levels and expression of genes associated with inflammation in the nervous system were affected in mice. They found that the rodents who consumed a fatty diet had reduced expression of an insulin receptor in the hippocampus. The hippocampus is a region of the brain associated with emotions and memory – in particular, long-term memories.

“We have been able to prove that the expression of proteins required for the proper functioning of insulin decreases in neuro-inflammatory situations induced by a high-fat diet,” says study author Alberto Ribes Navarro. But when the researchers supplemented the rodents’ diets with abscisic acid, the inflammation was reversed. “With the addition of abscisic acid to the high-fat diet it is possible to recover the expression of these genes, even reaching normal levels,” adds Ribes Navarro.

In plants, abscisic acid plays a role in seed development, flower growth, and improving plant tolerance to harsh conditions – such as drought and cold. 

Moving forward, the researchers plan to investigate the common causes of diseases like dementia and insulin resistance (type 2 diabetes), as inflammation of the nervous system is linked to both insulin resistance and dementia. 

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By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Brain damage from a fatty diet reversed using hormone from plants

It’s no surprise that a diet high in fat can...

A new study has found that male fertility is declining in the United States and Europe, and the results point to the endangerment of the human race if <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/nuts-improve-male-fertility/">fertility rates</a> continue to drop. 

The findings come after it was discovered last year that sperm counts in men from western countries have dropped by over <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2017/jul/25/sperm-counts-among-western-men-have-halved-in-last-40-years-study">50 percent</a> since 1973. 

Researchers from <a href="https://www.jefferson.edu/university/skmc.html">Sidney Kimmel Medical College</a> in Philadelphia in collaboration with the fertility clinic <a href="https://www.rmanj.com/about-us/ivi-rma-global/">IVIRMA</a> conducted the study. 

Sperm count data on 124,000 men who sought treatments for fertility problems in Spain and the United States between 2002 and 2017 were analyzed by the researchers. 

The men included in the study were split into three groups based on the number of “swimming sperm” or total mobile sperm count (TMSC) in their semen. 

According to the <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-6250225/Fresh-fears-survival-humans-major-study-finds-quality-mens-sperm-plunging.html">Daily Mail</a>, which reported on the study, TMSC is a more accurate way to measure fertility rather than just total sperm count. 

The researchers found that sperm quality in men in the US and Europe has declined by around 2 percent every year since 2002. 

Men who were categorized as the “least fertile” also rose from nine percent to 11.6 percent by 2017. 

A second recent study examined male fertility in the United States and the results show similar declines in sperm quality over the years. 

Researchers from the <a href="https://icahn.mssm.edu/">Icahn School of Medicine</a> in New York reviewed sperm data from over 2,500 sperm donors from all over the country. The researchers found that in 11 years, fertility has declined in five out of six cities included in the study. 

What’s causing these downward trends in sperm counts is not well understood, but according to <a href="https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/human-race-faces-extinction-male-13380219">the Mirror</a>, experts point to chemicals used in plastics and furniture coatings as well as sedentary lifestyles, alcohol consumption, smoking, and too much caffeine as all potential culprits. 

“We did not expect to see the same fall in sperm quality in Spain and the US. If this trend continues, there is potential for more men to become infertile,” James Hotaling, a co-author of the study told the Daily Mail. 

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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

Male fertility declines stir fears for the future of the human race

A new study has found that male fertility is declining...

One hundred years have now passed since the worst flu outbreak in recorded history, the 1918 influenza pandemic. If a similar outbreak occurred today, scientists estimate that the death toll could reach as high as 147 million. 

A new investigation into the factors that drove the severity of the 1918 pandemic may help to save lives in the event of future outbreaks. 

While the world is better prepared for a flu pandemic today, the researchers have identified new challenges that will affect the impact of the next influenza <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/city-density-climate-flu-outbreaks/">virus</a> outbreak such as antibiotic resistance, climate change, and shifting population demographics.

“We've seen three additional influenza pandemics since 1918: the 1957 'Asian' flu, the 1968 'Hong Kong' flu and the 2009 'swine' flu. Although milder than the 1918 pandemic, these highlight the constant threat that influenza virus poses to human health,” explained Professor Katherine Kedzierska of the <a href="https://www.doherty.edu.au/">Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity</a>.


Dr. Carolien van de Sandt added: “Like the 1918 pandemic, the severity of any future outbreak will result from a complex interplay between viral, host, and societal factors. Understanding these factors is vital for influenza pandemic preparedness.”

During the 1918 influenza pandemic, one-third of the global population was infected and 50 million people were killed. There were many people who managed to overcome a severe infection while others experienced only mild symptoms.

“We always wondered why some people can effectively control viral infections while others succumb to the disease,” said Professor Kedzierska. To investigate this as well as why the event was so intense, the research team reviewed a large number of influenza studies. 

The experts found that one explanation for the severity of the outbreak was the viral strain itself. Studies showed that the 1918 virus could spread to other tissues beyond the respiratory tract, causing more widespread damage. The virus also had mutations that enabled it to spread more easily between humans.


Today, scientists have the resources to measure the pandemic potential of new viruses, both in animals and in humans. However, the study authors pointed out that these surveillance efforts are required across the world, and climate change will make the need for global inspection even more urgent.


Dr. van de Sandt explained: “Climate changes affect animal reservoirs of influenza viruses and bird migration patterns. This could spread viruses to new locations and across a wider range of bird species.”

According to the study, public health is another important factor that will influence the intensity of future pandemics. In 1918, people suffering from malnutrition and underlying diseases were more likely to die from the infection, and this is still relevant today. 

Climate change is threatening to cause crop losses and malnutrition, while increasing antibiotic resistance is threatening a higher occurrence of bacterial infections. Obesity also poses another challenge, because this condition increases the risk of dying from influenza.


“Until a broadly-protective vaccine is available, governments must inform the public on what to expect and how to act during a pandemic,” said Dr. van de Sandt. “An important lesson from the 1918 influenza pandemic is that a well-prepared public response can save many lives.”

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/cellular-and-infection-microbiology">Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

An outbreak like the 1918 flu pandemic could kill 147 million today

One hundred years have now passed since the worst flu...

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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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

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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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