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...

An investigation into mortality rates across 42 years in Shanghai, China, has revealed that socio-economic development contributed to lower death rates for most diseases. For cancer and diabetes, however, death rates were found to be higher.

The research was focused on fatalities among residents of Yangpu, an area of <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/shanghai-plans-limit-population/">Shanghai</a> with a relatively stable population. The study period included several key events in recent Chinese history, including the rise of polluting industries from 1949 to the 1980s, the Great Chinese Famine from 1959 to 1961, the Cultural Revolution from 1966 to 1976, and economic reforms from 1979 to present day. 

Out of nearly 42 million person-years, there were over 290,000 deaths categorized into groups based on their specific causes. Group 1 includes deaths from infectious diseases or maternal, perinatal, and nutritional issues. Group 2 includes fatalities from chronic disease, and group 3 includes deaths from injuries.

The researchers found that deaths from causes in groups 1 and 3 have significantly dropped over the last four decades. After 1988, age-standardized deaths in group 1 decreased due to major improvements in public health and health care, and also due to the removal of polluting industries. 

Prior to 1994, Shanghai was classified as a low-income region according to World Bank figures, but the region became an upper-middle income area by 2006.

“Socio-economic development has contributed to a decrease in deaths from most diseases in China,” said Dr. Guangwen Cao. “However, for cancer and diabetes, the benefits from socioeconomic development appear to be overridden by new risk factors, such as changing diets and alcohol consumption, smoking, lack of physical activity, overweight and obesity.”

This is one of only a few studies to examine the effect of socioeconomic events on deaths from specific causes. The researchers hope the study will help with health-system planning and disease-control strategies.

The research is published in the journal <a href="http://www.cmaj.ca/">Canadian Medical Association Journal</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Shanghai economic improvement linked to fewer deaths from disease

An investigation into mortality rates across 42 years in Shanghai,...

Cyberbullying epidemic: 59 percent of teens have been targets. Nearly 60 percent of teenagers in the U.S. have been harassed online in what is becoming a cyberbullying epidemic, a new survey reports.

A vast majority of teens – 90 percent – say that online bullying is an issue most teens face, and almost two-thirds called it a major problem, the <a href="http://www.pewinternet.org/2018/09/27/a-majority-of-teens-have-experienced-some-form-of-cyberbullying/">Pew Research Center</a> found. And while the teens think parents are addressing the cyberbullying epidemic, they feel let down by teachers, politicians and social media companies.

“The most common type of harassment youth encounter online is name-calling. Some 42 percent of teens say they have been called offensive names online or via their cellphone,” the report said.Cyberbullying epidemic: 59 percent of teens have been targets

Other teens reported seeing false rumors spread about them, someone besides their parents constantly demanding their attention or to know where they are, and bullies making physical threats, Pew said. And 7 percent said they’d been sent sexually explicit messages without their consent.

A separate survey of parents found that 57 percent worried about their teens becoming victims of the cyberbullying epidemic.

Pew sent surveys to 743 teens ages 13 to 17, and 1,058 parents in the United States between March 7 and April 10, 2018. The surveys showed that teens of both genders are targeted by online bullying in fairly equal numbers – but girls are more likely to be the victims of false rumors or sexually explicit harassment.

“Name-calling and rumor-spreading have long been an unpleasant and challenging aspect of adolescent life, but the proliferation of smartphones and the rise of social media has transformed where, when and how bullying takes place,” study lead researcher Monica Anderson told the <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/">Daily Mail</a>.

Teens who are more connected become victims of the cyberbullying epidemic more frequently, the survey found. The 52 percent of teens who only checked their accounts a couple of times a day or less were less likely to be targeted.

Cyberbullying epidemic: 59 percent of teens have been targets

Cyberbullying epidemic: 59 percent of teens have been targets. Nearly...

A survey of over 3,000 high school students has revealed that most 10th-graders who have tried <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/medical-marijuana-chronic-nerve-pain/">cannabis</a> have used the drug in more than one form, including products that were combustible, edible, or vaporized.

Many people associate marijuana with smoking a joint or smoking out of a pipe, which are forms of combustible marijuana use. There are also noncombustible types of marijuana use, such as eating an edible or inhaling vapor.

Research has shown that cannabis use in adolescents is associated with an increased risk of impaired cognitive development, lower educational attainment, and chronic use throughout adulthood. 

As more states are legalizing both medical and recreational cannabis, there is an increasing normalization of cannabis use in society. The abundance of new cannabis products is raising concerns about pediatric health.

The research team, which was led by Dr. Adam M. Leventhal of the University of Southern California <a href="https://keck.usc.edu/">Keck School of Medicine</a>, surveyed 3,177 10th-graders at ten Los Angeles area high schools from January to October 2015. 

The participants self-reported on their sex, race, and socioeconomic status; if they had ever used marijuana; past 30-day use of cannabis; and the frequency of use in past 30 days of combustible, edible, and vaporized cannabis.

Out of the 33.9 percent of 10th-graders who reported using cannabis, combustible products were used the most, followed by cannabis products that were edible or vaporized. The study also revealed that 61.7 percent of 10th-graders who had ever used marijuana had tried more than one cannabis product.

It is not clear whether the 10th-graders who used two or more different cannabis products first used noncombustible products and then transitioned to combustible cannabis or vice versa. The survey also did not distinguish between the potency, strain, or types of cannabis products.

The study is published in the journal <a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen">JAMA Network Open</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Most teens who use cannabis have tried different types

A survey of over 3,000 high school students has revealed...

Children who grow up in <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/renewing-ocean-end-poverty-hunger/">poverty</a> are at a disadvantage in life compared to those who don’t – that much is obvious. But what are the specific hardships they may face later in life due to their socioeconomic status growing up? A recent study published in <a href="http://www.neurology.org/">Neurology</a> has found that children who are raised in poverty, or are otherwise socially and economically disadvantaged, may be more likely in old age to score lower than others on tests of cognitive skills.

“Just like the body, the brain ages, but for some it may age faster than others,” says study author Pavla Cermáková, MD, PhD, of the <a href="http://www.nudz.cz/en/">Czech National Institute of Mental Health</a> in the Czech Republic. “A growing body of evidence suggests aging of the brain may occur over a lifetime with its roots in childhood. Our study looked at a very large number of people from different backgrounds and geographic locations and found that social and economic disadvantages in childhood may indeed have a negative impact on cognitive skills.”

In their study, the researchers analyzed data on over 20,000 people from 16 European countries, a dataset that was part of a larger study called the Survey on Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe. The average age of participants chosen for this study was 71 when the study began. These same participants were interviewed and tested a second time roughly five years later.

Study subjects were given tests that assessed their verbal and memory skills, such as being able to name animals, and learning new words then recalling them after a delay. In order to determine the socioeconomic status of individuals in the study, they were asked questions about their households at age 10. This was done using a technique known as a “life history calendar,” which is a method used to improve the accuracy of recalled information. Questions asked included the number of rooms, the number of people living in the home, and the number of books in the home.

The researchers calculated the ratios for the number of people in the home to the number of rooms, and considered individuals with the highest ratio and the lowest number of books to be those who experience socioeconomic hardship. Through this assessment, they determined that 4 percent of the 844 participants experienced socioeconomic hardship in childhood. They then found that those who were socioeconomically disadvantaged tended to score lower in the cognitive tests.

The results of this study also showed that those who were disadvantaged as children were also less educated, were employed to a lower extent, and were less likely to have had a partner at home. This group also scored higher in symptoms of depression, were less likely to be physically active, and were less healthy overall.

Although there was a significant difference between the two groups in cognitive skills, there was no link found between hardship in childhood and a decline in these skills over time. 

“While our research is observational, and cause and effect cannot be determined, it is by far the largest group of people ever studied on this topic. Our study shows that the environment where we grew up is mirrored in the level of our cognitive skills when we are old; and this is only partly explained by education, depression or different life style factors.” explains Cermáková. “However, the childhood socioeconomic environment no longer affects how we fight against the declining skills while we age. We believe that the focus of strategies aiming to protect cognitive health should be shifted into childhood, taking into account that children facing social and economic challenges should be provided with more resources to counter the disadvantages they face.”

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Childhood poverty has negative effects on old age cognitive skills

Children who grow up in poverty are at a disadvantage...

Scientists are developing new technology to help individuals with paralyzed muscles communicate intuitively. A study from <a href="https://www.northwestern.edu/">Northwestern University</a> has uncovered new details about how the <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/brain-sleep-experiences-genetics/">brain</a> encodes speech, which will bring the speech technology one step closer to becoming a reality. 

A brain machine interface (BMI) is a device that decodes neural information that the brain is sending to the tongue, lips, and larynx. The BMI will ultimately be used to translate an individual's words as they attempt to speak.

The scientists discovered that the brain controls speech production in a similar manner to how it controls the production of arm and hand movements. 

The researchers recorded signals from two parts of the brain and decoded what these signals represented. They found that the brain represents what we are trying to say as well as the individual movements that we use to talk, such as lip and tongue movements. These aspects of speech are represented in two different parts of the brain.

Study lead author Dr. Marc Slutzky is an associate professor of Neurology and of Physiology at Northwestern University <a href="https://www.feinberg.northwestern.edu/">Feinberg School of Medicine</a>.

“This can help us build better speech decoders for BMIs, which will move us closer to our goal of helping people that are locked-in speak again,” said Dr. Slutzky.

The discovery could also potentially help people with other speech disorders, such as apraxia of speech, which is often seen in children and stroke patients. When suffering from this condition, individuals have difficulty translating messages from the brain into spoken language.

“We studied two parts of the brain that help to produce speech,” said Dr. Slutzky. “The precentral cortex represented gestures to a greater extent than phonemes. The inferior frontal cortex, which is a higher level speech area, represented both phonemes and gestures.”
The next step for the researchers is to develop an algorithm for brain machine interfaces that not only translates gestures, but also combines them to form words.

The study is published in the <a href="http://www.jneurosci.org/">Journal of Neuroscience</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

New technology could help decode what paralyzed people want to say

Scientists are developing new technology to help individuals with paralyzed...

Researchers have found that limiting children's recreational screen time to less than two hours a day can lead to improved brain cognition when combined with sufficient sleep and physical activity.

The study, which was focused on over 4,500 children in the United States between the ages of 8 and 11, revealed that only one out of every 20 <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/cleaning-products-gain-weight/">children</a> meet the <a href="http://www.csep.ca/">Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology</a> (CSEP) guidelines. 

In addition to limiting recreational screen time to less than two hours, CSEP recommends 9-11 hours of sleep and at least one hour of physical activity every day. The study found that children in the U.S. spend an average of 3.6 hours a day engaged in recreational screen time.

According to the researchers, the findings indicate that adhering to the CSEP guidelines during childhood and adolescence is important for cognitive development.

“Behaviors and day-to-day activities contribute to brain and cognitive development in children, and physical activity, sedentary behavior, and sleep might independently and collectively affect cognition," said study co-author Dr Jeremy Walsh. 

“Evidence suggests that good sleep and physical activity are associated with improved academic performance, while physical activity is also linked to better reaction time, attention, memory, and inhibition. The link between sedentary behaviours, like recreational screen time, is unclear as this research is in the early stages and it appears to vary depending on the types of screen-based activity.”

The team analyzed data for 4,520 children from 20 sites across the USA. Children and parents completed questionnaires to estimate the child's physical activity, sleep, and screen time. Children also completed a cognition test to measure language abilities, episodic memory, executive function, attention, working memory, and processing speed.

Overall, almost 29 percent of the children met none of the CSEP guidelines, 41 percent met only one, 25 percent met two, and only five percent met all three recommendations.


“We found that more than two hours of recreational screen time in children was associated with poorer cognitive development,” said Dr Walsh. “More research into the links between screen time and cognition is now needed, including studying the effect of different types of screen time, whether content is educational or entertainment, and whether it requires focus or involves multitasking.” 

“Based on our findings, paediatricians, parents, educators, and policymakers should promote limiting recreational screen time and prioritising healthy sleep routines throughout childhood and adolescence.”

The study is published in <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanchi/issue/current">The Lancet Child &amp; Adolescent Health</a>.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Limited screen time linked to improved cognitive ability in kids

Researchers have found that limiting children's recreational screen time to...

Because of the epidemic of childhood obesity in the United States, many fast-food restaurants have committed to offering healthier options for kids’ meals. But despite this commitment, a new study of parents’ fast food restaurant purchases has found that 74 percent of kids still get unhealthy drinks and/or side items with their kids’ meals at the four largest restaurant chains: McDonald’s, Burger King, Wendy’s, and Subway.

This new report from the <a href="http://www.uconnruddcenter.org/">Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity</a> at the University of Connecticut has found that parents continue to give their <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/kids-moms-marijuana/">kids</a> unhealthy options, as many restaurants still provide sugary sodas and French fries with their kids’ meals. Researchers also found that these places widely promote unhealthy options inside the restaurants on menu boards and sides, while heathier sides and drinks are barely promoted. 

“While most fast-food restaurants do have healthier kids’ meal drinks and sides available, many do little to make parents aware of the healthier options or to encourage parents to choose the healthier options instead of unhealthy ones,” says Jennifer Harris, Director of Marketing Initiatives for the UConn Rudd Center, and lead author of the report. “If restaurants are serious about children’s health, they will make the healthiest choice the easiest choice for parents and the most appealing choice for children.”

The comprehensive study surveyed roughly 800 parents in 2010, 2013, and 2016 – asking what they ordered for their 2- to 11-year-old children in the past week from one of the top four fast food restaurants. Since 2010, these chains have pledged to offer healthier drinks and side options for kids’ meals, and not list sugary soda as a kids’ meal option on menu boards. A prior study from the same institution done in 2016 found a significant variation in how well some restaurant locations implemented these changes. 

Equally concerning, the study also reports that children are eating fast food more often. In 2016, over 90 percent of parents reported purchasing lunch or dinner for their child in the past week at one of the four largest chains – an increase of almost 80 percent since 2010. 

“We know that fast food offers parents a convenient, affordable option for feeding their families. But restaurants have a responsibility to make these affordable, convenient foods healthier,” suggests Harris. “Most fast-food meals – even kids’ meals – have more fat, sugar, and sodium than children need, and eating this kind of unhealthy food can have negative health consequences over time, such as obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and other health issues.”

The authors suggest that restaurants should automatically provide healthy drinks and sides as default choices with kids’ meals, and indicate that there is a need for regulations that would mandate these policies. 

“Fast-food restaurants have said they want to be part of the solution to childhood obesity,” Harris says. “They can start by making the healthier drinks and sides the default options in kids’ meals and introducing healthier kids’ meal main dishes, which remain high in fat, sodium, and calories.”

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Fast-food restaurants serve unhealthy options despite promises

Because of the epidemic of childhood obesity in the United...

One of the biggest hassles for drivers is the headache-inducing traffic jams that clog up commute times on the road, bringing cars to a slow crawl down freeways and backing up major intersections. 

Many studies have examined ways to reduce traffic jams and make commutes more efficient, as there are many benefits beyond just helping drivers get where they need to go quicker. <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/autonomous-vehicles-reduce-traffic/">Improving traffic flow</a> could reduce emissions and make the roads safer for all drivers. 

Researchers from <a href="https://www.cmu.edu/">Carnegie Mellon University</a> (CMU) are working on a solution that could potentially do away with traditional stop lights and reduce commute times by 40 percent. 

By replacing traffic light with virtual ones, the researchers say that it could help make driving much more efficient and drivers would have personalized traffic lights on their dashboard which would reduce wait times at lights. 

“With this technology, traffic lights will be created on demand when [two cars] are trying to cross this intersection, and they will be turned down as soon as we don't need it,” Ozan Tonguz, a professor at Carnegie Mellon University, who helped develop the technology, <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2015/01/14/tech/virtual-traffic-lights-windshield/index.html">told CNN</a>. 

The virtual traffic lights (VTL) would appear when needed on the driver's windshield or dashboard as a green or red signal. 

The driver would be prompted to stop or go based on who else is driving on the road, and it would essentially be the cars that would manage major intersections by talking to each other and sharing GPS, map, and speed data. 

“When the driver is looking through the windshield, they'll see that going straight is a green light, and turning right is a red light,” Virtual Traffic Lights (VTL), a firm created by the Carnegie Mellon researchers, told the <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-6207203/First-tests-dashboard-virtual-traffic-light-lets-cars-talk-slashes-commute.html">Daily Mail</a>. “It's a seamless process, the driver does not get involved in this decision making. The virtual traffic light will turn off once the driver proceeds through the intersection.”

The virtual traffic light system was tested near the CMU campus with positive results. There were two vehicles that were approaching an intersection and one was “lead car”. The lead car had a red virtual light which gave the other car the go ahead. 

The researchers tested the virtual traffic light system at over 20 junctions. 

“Preliminary results of the field tests conducted in Pittsburgh with vehicles using VTL equipment indicate that VTL is capable of coordinating traffic at intersections and reducing the commute time of people,” the researchers wrote in the study which was published in the Journal Arxiv. 

The virtual traffic lights reduced commutes, helped ease congestion and the researchers say that it could also help reduce carbon emissions and traffic accidents. 

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Cars equipped with virtual stop lights could slash commute times

One of the biggest hassles for drivers is the headache-inducing...

According to the <a href="https://www.esa.int/">European Space Agency</a> (ESA), the intense drought that persisted across some regions of Europe this year had a major impact on <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/europe-unsustainable-future-agriculture/">agriculture</a>. The combination of high temperatures and low rainfall greatly affected the agrofood industry, including the production of potatoes.


More potatoes are consumed in Europe than anywhere else in the world, and this is largely due to the fact that the continent is the second largest potato producer in the world. While the price of potatoes fluctuates, the crop has currently hit its highest value in years.


But now, ESA’s new EOPLUG-IN service will allow high resolution data from the Copernicus Sentinel-1 and Sentinel-2 satellites, as well as from other missions, to be sent directly to farmers and industry leaders. This novel approach will empower the members of the agrofood industry to protect potatoes and other crops from disease, save money, and maintain better prices.

The EOPLUG-IN, which was recently launched through ESA’s new Earth observation innovation hub, will provide fast and simple access to continuous business intelligence data streams. The ESA pointed out that the system could eventually be expanded to different industry sectors. 


[caption id="attachment_1801782" align="aligncenter" width="496"]<a href="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/europe-potatoes.jpg"><img class="wp-image-1801782 size-full" src="https://www.earth.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/europe-potatoes.jpg" alt="" width="496" height="530" /></a> Image Credit: Copernicus Sentinel data (2018), processed by ESA/GeoVille[/caption]

Janny Peltjes, the managing director of <a href="https://laboratorium.nl/bedrijven/hlb-b-v/">HLB BV</a>, said that “the novel satellite-based system will be able to spatially detect crop diseases, thereby providing means to efficiently target affected areas, saving pesticide application and safeguarding production.”


“This system will provide the means to integrate Earth observation data and other information streams directly within existing industry workflows in a business-friendly format,” the ESA stated. “This will inform the agrofood industry, for example, about the impact of ongoing droughts, crop failures and diseases, helping users to save money, get better prices, and as a result, also support European consumers.”
--
By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Satellites can help stabilize the European potato industry

According to the European Space Agency (ESA), the intense drought...

Asbestos, the leading cause of occupational cancer in the world that is banned in over 60 countries, may begin to be used more widely in the United States again due to a recent change in EPA rules. 

The <a href="https://www.epa.gov/">Environmental Protection Agency</a> (EPA) made this change through a Significant New Use Rule which allows manufacturers to make new products that contain <a href="http://www.earth.com/news/asbestos-exposure-serious-threat/">asbestos</a> and then petition the federal government for approval. The EPA under the Trump administration has simultaneously narrowed the way it evaluates potentially dangerous chemicals, opening the door for more and more asbestos containing products to enter the market and consequently be used in the businesses and homes of Americans. 

“The Trump administration rewrote the rules to be dramatically less protective of human health … experts who have looked at [the new rule] have said that in the end, it pretty much gives EPA discretion to do whatever it wants,” Bill Walsh told <a href="https://www.fastcompany.com/">Fast Company</a>. Walsh is the board president of the <a href="https://healthybuilding.net/">Healthy Building Network</a>, which he founded 18 years ago to bring increased transparency to the building products industry. 

Asbestos is responsible for a slew of diseases from more benign diseases like asbestosis, pleuritis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which inhibit patients ability to breathe to terminal illnesses such as lung cancer, pleural mesothelioma and peritoneal mesothelioma. The disease most often diagnosed is mesothelioma which sadly also has some of the shortest prognoses for patients - life span averaging one year after diagnosis. Roughly 3,000 people in the U.S. are diagnosed each year and on average, about 2,500 mesothelioma-related deaths occur, according to <a href="https://www.mesothelioma.com/">Mesothelioma.com</a>. 

However, the disease disproportionately affects men in their 60s or older and mortality is 2-4 times higher in port cities and parts of “Rust Belt” states. The concentration of mesothelioma in this demographic is due to occupational exposure - men in these areas historically staffed more jobs in mining, manufacturing, construction, firefighting, shipbuilding, and heavy industry which are very likely to include asbestos exposure over decades. Secondhand exposure also put families of these workers at risk when they brought clothing and tools home covered in asbestos contaminated dust. Today, those with the highest risk of exposure are workers tasked with replacing asbestos-filled materials in old buildings. 

With federal regulators turning a blind eye to the risks of asbestos, the responsibility will fall into the hands of local and state governments who can also enact stricter regulations. Companies and informed consumers also need to make educated and informed decisions when choosing materials to build with. 

“Architects really sets the pace of design, in terms of aesthetics and materials that we like,” Walsh told Fast Company. “If they start to incorporate health-based criteria into their palette, it could really have an influence on what the manufacturers produce.” Consumer awareness around asbestos related risks could help push change up the supply chain and hopefully regulatory agencies. 

Take today, Mesothelioma Awareness Day, as an opportunity to help spread the word on the hazards of asbestos exposure. Visit the <a href="https://www.mesothelioma.com/">Mesothelioma Cancer Alliance</a> website for more information. 

--

By <a href="mailto:bianca@earth.com">Bianca Vierra</a>, <a href="http://earth.com">Earth.com</a> Contributing Writer

Asbestos is trying to make a comeback due to loosened EPA rules

Asbestos, the leading cause of occupational cancer in the world...

Altruism, or the selfless concern for others, is an important part of the human experience. From a young age, we’re taught to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/people-heartbeat-generous/">share and help others in need</a>, and these philanthropic and altruistic characteristics are often considered some of the best traits for a person to possess. 

However, altruistic tendencies vary widely from person to person, ranging from completely selfless with no thought to personal gain to those who are selfishly motivated or antisocial. 

What drives the development of altruism and what makes someone more or less prosocial than another? 

Researchers from the <a href="http://www.virginia.edu/">University of Virginia</a> tackled these questions in a new study published in the journal <a href="http://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/article?id=10.1371/journal.pbio.2005281">PLOS Biology</a>.

The research expands on the theory that being more sensitive to a fearful expression correlates with having higher prosocial tendencies. 

For the study, the researchers wondered if altruism could be predicted based on how an infant or toddler responds to someone in distress. 

The researchers tracked eye movements and measured brain activity of infants at 7 months of age as they responded to different emotional facial expressions like happy, fearful, and angry. 

Seven months later, when the infants had reached toddler age, the researchers compared altruistic behavior to the earlier responses to facial expressions and discovered that focusing on fearful faces predicted altruistic behavior later on. 

The results show that altruism is linked to our response to seeing someone in distress or fear and how we focus on those emotions in others, particularly at a young age. 

“Our results are in line with the notion that a caring continuum exists, along which individuals differ in their tendency to display sensitive responses to others' distress that motivate prosocial action,” said Tobias Grossmann, the leader of the research. “This study provides new insights into the nature of human altruism by uncovering its developmental and brain origins.”

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

What makes a person altruistic and selfless?

Altruism, or the selfless concern for others, is an important...

Monitoring your exposure to UV radiation is important for a number of reasons beyond just <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/sunscreen-protectio/">avoiding getting sunburned. </a>

For some people, Vitamin D deficiency can weaken the immune system and cause depression, so monitoring sun exposure can help balance Vitamin D levels.

For other people, just limiting sun exposure isn’t enough to combat harmful UV radiation, because not all UV wavelengths impact the skin equally, and current sensors don’t differentiate between the three types of UV radiation, UVA, UVB, and UVC. 

Excessive UV radiation/sun exposure can also lead to skin cancer, blindness, sunburn and causes the skin to age prematurely. 

This is what inspired Vipul Bansal, a professor at <a href="https://www.rmit.edu.au/">RMIT University </a>in Melbourne, Australia to develop a wearable, color changing sensor that tracks vitamin absorption and UV radiation exposure to the skin.  

What’s more, the sensors come in six variations to meet the needs of different skin types from fair to dark. 

The sensors can provide people with an accurate measure of how much UV their skin has been exposed to throughout the day. 

Monitoring UV exposure is no small feat because everyone’s personal needs are so different and what’s healthy for one skin type may not be enough for another. 

Bansal's sensor measures UV exposure for the six skin types from Type 1 (fair skin) to Type VI (dark skin).

This aspect is crucial because Type 1 can only tolerate one-fifth of the UV exposure that Type VI can before incurring skin damage.  The sensors will be able to tell an individual when they’ve had too much UV exposure or if they need more sun to help with Vitamin D levels. 

“We are excited that our UV sensor technology allows the production of personalized sensors that can be matched to the specific needs of a particular individual,” said Bansal. “The low cost and child-friendly design of these UV sensors will facilitate their use as educational materials to increase awareness around sun safety. We can print our ink on any paper-like surface to produce cheap wearable sensors in the form of wristbands, headbands or stickers for example.” 

Bansal and his research team also note that the sensors can be used for other purposes besides monitoring skin exposure such as helping improve the lifetime of industrial and consumer products that wear down in the sun. 

--

By <a href="mailto:kayvandette@gmail.com">Kay Vandette</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 

Image Credit: RMIT University

Wearable UV sensors could help reduce sun damage to the skin

Monitoring your exposure to UV radiation is important for a...

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

[sendtonews key="JRaP49ISmm-2357509-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

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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

[sendtonews key="e4ZG0Jawp3-2374785-12187" type="single"] Astronomers at Johns Hopkins University have created...

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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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