In 2018, a silent threat we encounter daily - plastic chemicals - may have played a role in over 356,000 deaths from heart disease. Unlike dramatic outbreaks or high-profile toxins, this danger came from everyday plastic use.



More specifically, from the chemical di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP), used in everything from food containers and IV bags to flooring and plastic wraps. While most people remain unaware of these risks, the scientific community is sounding a loud and urgent alarm.



Recent research led by scientists at <a href="https://nyulangone.org" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">NYU Langone Health</a> brings global clarity to an issue long debated in toxicology circles. Their analysis, grounded in population-level health data and environmental exposure surveys, shows just how far-reaching the consequences of DEHP exposure really are. 



And in doing so, it transforms an abstract <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/how-normal-plastic-turns-into-dangerous-micro-and-nanoplastics/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">environmental worry</a> into a concrete human cost.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-plastic-chemicals-quietly-harming-the-heart-nbsp">Plastic chemicals quietly harming the heart&nbsp;</h2>



Phthalates like DEHP are used to make plastic flexible and durable. Over time, these chemicals leak from products and enter our bodies through food, water, and even the air. 



Once inside, they break down into several harmful metabolites: MEHP, MEHHP, MEOHP, and MECPP. These compounds affect hormonal systems, metabolism, and cardiovascular health.



The NYU study found that DEHP exposure was responsible for 13.497% of all cardiovascular deaths among adults aged 55–64 in 2018. This figure represents not just numbers but millions of years of life lost. 



The researchers estimated that globally, DEHP caused over 10.4 million years of life lost that year alone. These numbers offer a new lens through which to view our relationship with <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/your-chewing-gum-may-be-full-of-microplastics/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">plastic</a> - not just as a pollution problem, but as a driver of premature death.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-plastic-linked-heart-deaths-in-asia">Plastic-linked heart deaths in Asia</h2>



One of the study’s most revealing findings is the stark global inequality in exposure. DEHP-related heart disease deaths were not evenly distributed. Nearly three-fourths of all such deaths occurred in Asia. 



India alone accounted for more than 103,000. China followed with over 60,000, and Indonesia ranked third. The researchers linked this concentration to rapid industrial expansion in these regions, combined with weaker environmental protections.



The Middle East and South Asia showed the highest DEHP exposure <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/plastic-treaty-is-a-historic-opportunity-to-stop-a-human-health-crisis/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">levels</a>, with some areas having six times the exposure seen in European countries. These areas also saw the highest percentage of cardiovascular deaths attributable to DEHP.



“There is a clear disparity in which parts of the world bear the brunt of heightened heart risks from phthalates,” said study senior author Leonardo Trasande.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-plastic-chemical-triggers-inflammation">Plastic chemical triggers inflammation</h2>



DEHP doesn’t act alone. It breaks down into metabolites that accumulate in the body and influence cardiovascular processes in several ways. 



They act as anti-androgens, interfere with lipid and glucose metabolism, and trigger inflammation in artery walls. These conditions are well-known drivers of heart attacks, strokes, and atherosclerosis.



Studies on human tissues have found microplastics lodged in blood vessels, sometimes near damaged or inflamed areas. This raises concerns that <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/microplastics-linked-to-health-issues-including-cancer-and-infertility/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">plastics</a> not only release harmful chemicals but may also act as physical irritants in the cardiovascular system.



To estimate risk, the NYU team analyzed data on DEHP exposure from urine samples collected globally in 2008. They then matched these exposure levels to mortality data from 2018, using established risk models. The result was a detailed map showing how different levels of DEHP exposure correlated with increased cardiovascular deaths.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-plastic-damages-health-with-trillions-lost">Plastic damages health, with trillions lost</h2>



The toll of DEHP exposure doesn’t stop at lost lives. The study estimates the economic burden to range from $10.2 billion to as high as $3.74 trillion. These numbers include lost productivity, healthcare costs, and the societal value of years of life lost.



Different countries might calculate these costs in various ways. Some use a standard value per lost year of life; others calculate based on income levels. But whichever method is used, the conclusion is the same: phthalate exposure is costing humanity dearly.



“By highlighting the connection between phthalates and a leading cause of death across the world, our findings add to the vast body of evidence that these chemicals present a tremendous <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/drinking-from-plastic-bottles-linked-to-high-blood-pressure-and-heart-problems/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">danger</a> to human health,” said lead author Sara Hyman.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-exposure-levels-and-death-risks">Exposure levels and death risks</h2>



Even within a single country, some people face much higher risks from plastic chemicals. The study found wide gaps between those with the lowest and highest levels of DEHP exposure.



In the United States and Africa, individuals in the top 5% exposure group had up to 30% higher DEHP-related cardiovascular mortality than those with lower exposure.



In contrast, countries in South Asia and East Asia saw elevated risks across the board. That means even people with “average” exposure in these regions faced high mortality risks. This suggests that in such areas, phthalates are deeply embedded in everyday life - from packaging to air to water.



The inequality is not just geographic. It’s also environmental, economic, and systemic. Countries with poor waste management, lax regulation, and high plastic consumption suffer more, especially when older adults are more vulnerable to heart disease.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-regulatory-gaps-and-delays">Regulatory gaps and delays</h2>



The timeline used in the study - 2008 exposure data and 2018 health outcomes - highlights another issue. Many countries implemented DEHP regulations only after 2018.



The European Union, Canada, Australia, and Japan had early restrictions in food packaging and childcare products. However, many countries had no such rules during the study period.



In recent years, some nations, including China and India, have started tightening controls. Yet even now, global regulation remains inconsistent. Many high-income countries continue to export plastic waste to lower-income nations, increasing exposure risks in already vulnerable regions.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-protecting-lives-from-plastic-chemicals">Protecting lives from plastic chemicals</h2>



The global community has taken some initial steps. In 2022, the UN began negotiations for a legally binding treaty to address plastic pollution. But efforts to limit production face strong resistance from petrochemical-producing countries.



This research provides key evidence to support stronger international policies. Reducing DEHP exposure will require more than bans on specific products. It will need coordinated action across supply chains, consumer behavior, waste management, and environmental justice.



Limiting exposure at the highest percentiles - those most affected - could yield the greatest health benefits. And extending bio-monitoring programs to regions without current data could help tailor interventions.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-true-cost-of-plastic-comfort">The true cost of plastic comfort</h2>



Plastics have made life easier in many ways. But their hidden costs are now surfacing. This study, the first of its kind to model global plastic chemical DEHP-related heart disease mortality, shows the damage extends beyond pollution and into our arteries.



By exposing this connection, researchers have given the world a chance to act. Whether governments respond with decisive regulation or continue business as usual remains to be seen. But one thing is clear: the cost of ignoring plastic's effects on health is far too high.



Trasande and his team plan to investigate how reducing DEHP exposure might change mortality outcomes in the future. Their work lays the groundwork for safer, healthier policies around plastics. 



It is now up to global leaders to decide whether they will listen to the science - or continue to pay the price in lives lost.



The study is published in the journal <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/ebiom/article/PIIS2352-3964(25)00174-4/fulltext" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">EBioMedicine</a>.



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Hidden chemical in plastic may be taking years off your life

In 2018, a silent threat we encounter daily - plastic chemicals - may have played a role in over 356,000 deaths from heart disease. Unlike dramatic outbreaks or high-profile toxins, this danger came from everyday plastic use. More specifically, from the chemical di-2-ethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP), used in everything from food containers and IV bags to flooring and plastic wraps. While most people remain unaware of these risks, the scientific community is sounding a loud and urgent alarm. Recent research led by scientists at NYU Langone Health brings...

The roots of dentistry run deep, as far back as 130,000 years ago, according to a new study.

Multiple toothpick grooves on teeth and signs of other manipulations by a Neanderthal are evidence of a kind of prehistoric dentistry, the <a href="https://www.ku.edu/">University of Kansas</a> study said.

"As a package, this fits together as a dental problem that the Neanderthal was having and was trying to presumably treat itself, with the toothpick grooves, the breaks and also with the scratches on the premolar," said David Frayer, Professor emeritus of Anthropology. "It was an interesting connection or collection of phenomena that fit together in a way that we would expect a modern human to do. Everybody has had dental pain, and they know what it's like to have a problem with an impacted tooth."

The researchers analyzed four isolated but associated mandibular teeth on the left side of the Neanderthal's mouth. 

The teeth were found at Krapina site in Croatia more than 100 years ago.

Frayer and Davorka Radovčić, curator at the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Croatian_Natural_History_Museum">Croatian Natural History Museum</a>, have in recent years reexamined many items collected from the site, including teeth with a light microscope to document occlusal wear, toothpick groove formation, dentin scratches, and enamel fractures.

Even though the teeth were isolated, previous researchers were able to reconstruct their order and location in the male or female Neanderthal's mouth. 

Researchers have not recovered the mandible to look for evidence of periodontal disease, but the scratches and grooves on the teeth indicate they were likely causing irritation and discomfort for some time for this individual, Frayer said.

The features of the premolar and third molar are associated with several kinds of dental manipulations, he said. Mostly because the chips of the teeth were on the tongue side of the teeth and at different angles, the researchers ruled out that something happened to the teeth after the <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/raven-bone-neanderthals-cognitive/">Neanderthal</a> died.

Past research in the fossil record has identified toothpick grooves going back almost 2 million years, Frayer said. They did not identify what the Neanderthal would have used to produce the toothpick grooves, but it possibly could have been a bone or stem of grass.

"It's maybe not surprising that a Neanderthal did this, but as far as I know, there's no specimen that combines all of this together into a pattern that would indicate he or she was trying to presumably self-treat this eruption problem," he said.

The study is published in the journal <a href="http://hrcak.srce.hr/paleodontology?lang=en">Bulletin of the International Association for Paleodontology</a>.

--

By: <a href="mailto:dbeasley@earth.com">David Beasley, </a><a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Source: <a href="https://www.ku.edu/">University of Kansas</a>

Image Credit: David Frayer, University of Kansas

Neanderthal teeth fossils shed light on prehistoric dentistry

The roots of dentistry run deep, as far back as...

Despite their use in hundreds of products for decades, PCBs were banned by the U.S. Congress in 1979 after being deemed a persistent organic pollutant that is extremely toxic to the environment. Researchers have determined that many children are exposed to these harmful chemicals inside schools.

Commercial production of polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs, started in 1929 and continued for around 50 years. The man-made chemicals were resistant to acids, bases, and heat, and were ideal for use in plant and building materials. 

PCBs made their way into rivers and streams in the form of industrial waste during the time they were widely used. This led to one of the most expensive environmental clean-ups in U.S. history. Even though PCBs are no longer produced in the United States, they continue to appear in new <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/solar-paint-hydrogen-water-vapor/">paint</a> and other materials as a byproduct, or in old buildings that contain materials made with the compounds. 

PCBs also remain in soil and water and are consumed by animals. This means that humans consume PCBs in certain foods. Exposure to PCBs can also occur through inhalation and skin contact. Regardless of the method of exposure, PCBs can lead to developmental issues and serious health problems such as cancer. 

The greatest risk is for children who are still in physical and mental stages of development. Because of this, researchers from the <a href="https://uiowa.edu/">University of Iowa</a> set out to determine the amount of PCBs children are exposed to in schools. 

The team tested the air inside and outside of six schools. Four of these schools had outdoor air quality influenced by a waterway that is a known source of airborne PCBs. Despite that fact, the analysis found the PCB levels were significantly higher inside the schools than outside. The findings of the study also indicated that both old and new sources of PCBs were present in the schools. 

The amount of PCBs found inside the schools were up to 194 nanograms per cubic meter, which is below the amount considered to be an action level by the Environmental Protection Agency. Nonetheless, the researchers say the potential for cumulative damage is still alarming, particularly for children who are also exposed to PCBs in their diets.

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 

Source: <a href="https://uiowa.edu/">University of Iowa</a>

Children may be exposed to these harmful chemicals in schools

Despite their use in hundreds of products for decades, PCBs...

This may come as no surprise, but people who make careers of designing or interpreting the world we live in actually have different thinking patterns than the rest of us. A new study published in <a href="http://www.cognitivesciencesociety.org/">Cognitive Science</a> reveals that architects, painters, and sculptors see spaces in different ways – not only compared to other people, but compared to each other as well.

The study, done by senior author Hugo Spiers of the <a href="https://www.ucl.ac.uk/">University College of London</a>, incorporated 16 people from each of the three professions. All participants had at least eight years of experience. They were compared against a control group of 16 individuals with no relevant background.

The subjects were asked to observe a Google Street View image, a painting of St. Peter’s Basilica, and a compute-generated surreal scene. They gave their descriptions of each environment, and explained how they would explore the space or change parts of the image. 

When presented with images of places, architects were more likely to focus on paths and the boundaries of the space, while painters were more likely to describe the space as a two-dimensional <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/cold-imagery-control-mind/">image</a>.

“We found that painters, sculptors and architects consistently showed signs of their profession when talking about the spaces we showed them, and all three groups had more elaborate, detailed descriptions than people in unrelated professions,” says Spiers.

The painters also sometimes shifted between describing the scene as a 2D image or a 3D space. Architects tended to describe the barriers and boundaries of the space, while using more dynamic terms. The sculptors’ descriptions generally fell between the two.

Not surprisingly, the control group gave less detailed responses, which the authors say was not simply due to their lack of applicable expert terminology. 

“Our study has provided evidence that your career may well change the way you think,” says Spiers. “There’s already extensive research into how culture changes cognition, but here we’ve found that even within the same culture, people of different professions differ in how they appreciate the world.”

The researchers believe that people who are inherently set to see the world as a 2D image, or focus on the borders of a space, might be more likely to become painters or architects. They hope their research will result in future studies observing the spatial cognition of other professionals. Such knowledge of how we are programmed to see our world may be able to help us improve our communication and understanding of each other.

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Source: <a href="https://www.ucl.ac.uk/">University College London</a>

How artists and architects see things differently than others

This may come as no surprise, but people who make...

People who suffer from insomnia – a common sleep disorder that one-third of adults in the UK experience – have likely been told for years that their problem is mostly psychological. However, new research has found that the main factors behind sleep problems are biological. A Dutch study found seven genes that were frequently in people who had an increased tendency of developing sleeplessness.

The research was performed at <a href="https://www.vu.nl/en/">Vrije University</a> in Amsterdam, where scientists carefully mapped the DNA of more than 113,000 people from Britain and the Netherlands.

The team also found that there are different genetic mutations linked to <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/sleep-patterns-vary-widely/">sleep</a> for men and women, as females are more likely to encounter sleep problems. Furthermore, they found a strong correlation between insomnia and other issues such as anxiety disorders, depression, neuroticism, and low well-being.

“We now know this is partly due to the shared genetic basis,” says Danielle Posthuma, a professor at <a href="https://www.vu.nl/en/">Vrije University</a>. “Part of the genetic variants turned out to be different. This suggests that, for some part, different biological mechanisms may lead to insomnia in men and women.”

The switch in our understanding of insomnia as more heavily biological could help pave the way for targeted treatments that scientists may developed in the future. “Insomnia is all too often dismissed as being ‘all in your head,’” says sleep specialist Professor Eus Van Someren.

Currently, ten million prescriptions for sleeping tablets are issued each year. Searching for a better remedy to sleep problems and erasing the stigma of psychological issues may be the key to getting insomniacs the help and treatment they need.

--

By <a href="mailto:certz@earth.com">Connor Ertz</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Source: <a href="https://www.vu.nl/en/">Vrije University</a>, <a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-4638036/Insomnia-genes-not-head.html">The Daily Mail</a>

Insomnia may be more biological than psychological

People who suffer from insomnia – a common sleep disorder...

Federal wildlife officials Monday approved California governor Jerry Brown’s $16 billion proposal to re-engineer California's north-south water system.

The plan calls for construction of two giant tunnels to carry <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/norcal-nevada-persistent-drought/">Northern California</a> water to the south, even though much about the project remains undetermined.

The <a href="http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/">National Marine Fisheries Service</a> and <a href="https://www.fws.gov/">U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service</a> Monday found that the project would not mean extinction for endangered and threatened native species of salmon and other fish.

The project would tap part of the flow of California's largest river, the Sacramento, and change the way the San Francisco Bay Area, Central Valley, and Southern California get their water from the West Coast's largest estuary.

The tunnels would both be four stories high and 35 miles long, marking California's most ambitious water project since the 1950s and 1960s. It was then that Brown's father, the late Gov. Pat Brown, helped oversee building of the pumps, dams, and aqueducts that move water from the green north to the more arid south.

Tunnell supporters say they are needed to modernize and secure water deliveries from the delta of the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers, now done by aging pumps that pull the rivers and the fish in them off-course.

Brown did not comment Monday, though his resources secretary cheered the ruling.

Jeffrey Kightlinger, general manager of Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, the massive Los Angeles-area water agency that is one of the project's biggest proponents, called Monday's decision a milestone.

"For too long California's water supplies have been at risk and subject to cutbacks," Kightlinger said.

Project opponents say they fear water extractions through the tunnels could doom towns and farms in California's historic Delta and more than a dozen dwindling native species that depend on the waterway.

They accused federal wildlife and fisheries agencies of clearing the project while key details of how it would operate aren't yet determined, including how much water the tunnels could take from the Sacramento.

"They're asking people to commit to pay for a project that they won't know for years in the future how it will be operated and how much water can go through it," said Bill Jennings of the California Sportsfishing Protection Alliance. "It was breathtaking in its audacity."

Monday's decision moves Brown's project ahead to a decision by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, which oversees many of the country's big water projects. David Murillo, the bureau's regional director, indicated to reporters Monday that decision was months or more away.

Among the issues Murillo said had yet to be resolved: concerns voiced earlier this month from a large group of Northern and Central California water agencies that wouldn't get water from the tunnels and don't want any part of the project.

--

By: <a href="mailto:dbeasley@earth.com">David Beasley, </a><a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Source: <a href="http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_GIANT_CALIFORNIA_TUNNELS_CAOL-?SITE=AP&amp;SECTION=HOME&amp;TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&amp;CTIME=2017-06-26-15-56-57">AP</a>

Huge California water project approved by fed wildlife officials

Federal wildlife officials Monday approved California governor Jerry Brown’s $16...

A recent study finds that chemical compounds in cannabis are useful for treating migraine headaches. In fact, these cannabinoids may be a more effective remedy for migraines than commonly prescribed medication. 

With hundreds of medicinal uses for marijuana, there is more and more compelling evidence to suggest cannabis has significant therapeutic value. There are two active chemicals in cannabis which are believed to have medicinal applications. 

<a href="https://www.earth.com/news/pet-owners-medical-marijuana/">THC</a>, or tetrahydrocannabinol, has pain-relieving properties. THC is also the source of most of the psychological effects people experience from marijuana, such as a euphoric high. CBD, or cannabidiol, is believed to produce anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and other beneficial effects in the body.

Researchers developed a pill that combined THC and CBD. Over the course of three months, the drug was used to treat individuals who suffered from cluster headaches and migraines. Some of the participants who experienced cluster headaches were given the alternative drug amitriptyline, an antidepressant commonly prescribed to treat migraines.

The study revealed that the cannabinoid treatment was more effective in reducing the severity and frequency of cluster headaches than the common prescription medication. The THC-CBD drug diminished cluster headaches by 40.4 percent. The amitriptyline reduced the headaches by 40.1 percent.

The drug developed from THC and CBD  lowered the acute pain of migraine headaches by 43.5 percent. The study also revealed that the drug was only successful in helping participants suffering from cluster headaches if they had previously experienced migraines in their childhood. 

Dr Maria Nicolodi from the <a href="http://www.economiasperimentale.it/en_index.asp">Interuniversity Center in Florence</a> led the study. 

“We were able to demonstrate that cannabinoids are an alternative to established treatments in migraine prevention,” said Dr. Nicolodi.

“That said, they are only suited for use in the acute treatment of cluster headaches in patients with a history of migraine from childhood on,” she explained. 

Dr. Nicolodi said the cannabinoid treatment had both positive and negative side effects. Some of the individuals experienced drowsiness and difficulty concentrating. Participants in the study also reported less stomach and muscle aches, and painful inflammation of the colon was eased in some cases. 

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 

Source: <a href="http://www.economiasperimentale.it/en_index.asp">Interuniversity Center in Florence</a>

Cannabis treats migraines better than prescription medicine

A recent study finds that chemical compounds in cannabis are...

Behavioral training changes the way the human brain processes information and pays attention, according to a new study.

<a href="https://ucsd.edu/">University of California San Diego</a> researchers monitored behavioral performance and brain activity using electroencephalography for over a month in human participants performing a computer task that required them to direct their attention to a visual stimulus.

They discovered that early in the task, attention enhanced the magnitude of sensory-evoked responses in the brain’s visual cortex.

Using computational modeling, the researchers found the attentional gain predicted the benefit of behavioral training.

After extended training, this attentional gain disappeared, even though behavioral performance was still improved compared to before training.

The authors compare it to the experience of a person who has moved to a new city. On the second or third day, driving to work may feel very different than it felt on the first day. Over time, drivers will feel more at ease on the road, not only because they can better remember which road signs to attend to or where to turn, but also because they will have an actual experience of doing so.

The same type of cognitive phenomenon applies not only for everyday-life activities like driving, but also for career-related skills that require training and expertise such as reading x-rays and excelling in sporting activities, the study said.

The findings help reconcile contradictory results observed across studies conducted in different species. Specifically, in <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/facial-recognition-technology/">monkeys</a>, previous research has demonstrated that changes in neural noise play a more dominant role than attentional gain in supporting attention-related benefits in behavioral performance. The current findings in humans suggest that this particular result from monkey studies could be due to non-human primates being highly-trained.

“Our research, which demonstrates that attentional mechanisms could change with training, teaches us that we can't fully understand how attention operates at the neural level without understanding how attentional mechanisms may change through a course of training,” said the study’s leader, Sirawaj Itthipuripat. “Thus, our research has important implications for understanding attentional mechanisms, as well as for generalizing results from studies using different species that often require substantially different amounts of training."

The study is published in the journal <a href="http://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/">PLOS Biology</a>. 

--

By: <a href="mailto:dbeasley@earth.com">David Beasley, </a><a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Source: <a href="http://journals.plos.org/plosbiology/">PLOS Biology</a>

How training can change the way the brain pays attention

Behavioral training changes the way the human brain processes information...

Scientists in China have developed an engineering tool capable of transforming rice into a powerful source of antioxidants. The rice has a deep purple color which is produced by compounds known as anthocyanins. These flavonoids act as antioxidants in the body that can inhibit or reduce the risk of chronic illnesses such as diabetes, cancer, and cardiovascular disease.

Some varieties of black and red rice are naturally enhanced with anthocyanins. However, polished rice grains have been stripped of the husk, bran, and germ, and are left only with a tissue produced inside of the seed known as endosperm. 

While rice has been successfully modified to contain beta-carotene and folate, efforts to develop anthocyanin production in rice have failed. Scientists were unsuccessful because the underlying biosynthesis pathway is highly complex, making it difficult to effectively transfer many genes into plants.

Researchers in China teamed up to find a new approach to anthocyanin production in rice. They analyzed sequences of anthocyanin pathway genes in different rice varieties. The team was able to identify the defective genes in Japonica rice and Indica rice that do not produce anthocyanins.

Next, the team developed a transgene stacking strategy capable of expressing eight anthocyanin pathway genes in the endosperm of Japonica and Indica rice. This produced purple rice that contained high anthocyanin levels in the endosperm. 

"We have developed a highly efficient, easy-to-use transgene stacking system called TransGene Stacking II that enables the assembly of a large number of genes in single vectors for plant transformation," said Yao-Guang Liu, senior author of the study.

The engineering tool created by the team may lead to rapid progress in the production of healthy nutrients in other <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/corn-valuable-food-fuel/">foods</a>. 

"This is the first demonstration of engineering such a complex metabolic pathway in plants," said Liu.

The team will now assess the safety of purple endosperm rice as a biofortified food and explore ways to produce purple endosperm cereal. The study is published today in the journal <a href="http://www.cell.com/molecular-plant/home">Molecular Plant</a>. 

--

By <a href="http://csexton@earth.com">Chrissy Sexton</a>, <a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer 

Source: <a href="http://www.cell.com/molecular-plant/home">Molecular Plant</a>

Image Credit: Qinlong Zhu of the South China Agricultural University

New tool transforms rice into superfood full of antioxidants

Scientists in China have developed an engineering tool capable of...

A smartphone can lower cognitive capacity significantly even when you are not using it, according to new study by <a href="https://www.utexas.edu/">The University of Texas at Austin</a>.

Researchers tested nearly 800 smartphone users in an attempt to measure, for the first time, how well people can complete tasks when they have their smartphones nearby even when they’re not using them.

In one experiment, the researchers asked study participants to sit at a computer and take a series of tests that required full concentration in order to score well. The tests were geared to measure participants’ available cognitive capacity — the brain’s ability to hold and process data at any given time. Before beginning, participants were randomly instructed to place their smartphones either on the desk face down, in their pocket or personal bag, or in another room. All participants were instructed to turn their phones to silent.

The researchers found that participants with their phones in another room significantly outperformed those with their phones on the desk, and they also slightly outperformed those participants who had kept their phones in a pocket or bag.

“We see a linear trend that suggests that as the smartphone becomes more noticeable, participants’ available cognitive capacity decreases,” said coauthor Adrian Ward. “Your conscious mind isn’t thinking about your smartphone, but that process — the process of requiring yourself to not think about something — uses up some of your limited cognitive resources. It’s a brain drain.”

It didn’t matter whether a person’s smartphone was turned on or off, or whether it was lying face up or face down on a desk, the study said. Having a smartphone within sight or within easy reach reduces a person’s ability to focus and perform tasks because part of their <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/brain-forgets-clean-mind-clutter/">brain</a> is actively working to not pick up or use the phone.

“It’s not that participants were distracted because they were getting notifications on their phones,” said Ward. “The mere presence of their smartphone was enough to reduce their cognitive capacity.”

--

By: <a href="mailto:dbeasley@earth.com">David Beasley, </a><a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Source: <a href="https://www.utexas.edu/">The University of Texas at Austin</a>

The mere presence of your smartphone causes brain drain

A smartphone can lower cognitive capacity significantly even when you...

Humans could eventually be able to regenerate the heart, according to a new study.

A <a href="http://www.ufl.edu/">University of Florida</a> scientist and colleagues discovered genes known to form hearts cells in humans and other animals in the gut of a muscle-less and heartless sea anemone. The team reported their findings in a study published in the journal <a href="http://www.pnas.org/">Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</a>.

The findings point to potential for tweaking communication between human genes and advancing the ability to treat heart conditions and stimulate regenerative healing, said University of Florida professor Mark Martindale, who led the study.

“Our study shows that if we learn more about the logic of how genes that give rise to heart cells talk to each other, muscle regeneration in humans might be possible," Martindale said.

In vertebrates and flies, heart genes generate what engineers calls lockdown loops, which means that once the genes are turned on, they tell each other to stay on in an animal's cells for its entire lifetime. Animals with a lockdown on their genes cannot grow new heart parts or use those cells for other functions.

"This ensures that heart cells always stay heart cells and cannot become any other type of cell," Martindale said.

But the lockdown loops don’t exist in in sea anemone embryos. This finding suggests a mechanism for why the gut cells expressing heart genes in sea anemones can turn into other kinds of cells, such as those needed to regenerate damaged body parts.

The study supports the idea that definitive muscle cells found in the majority of <a href="https://www.earth.com/news/pet-owners-medical-marijuana/">animals</a> arose from a bifunctional gut tissue that had both absorptive and contractile properties. And while the gut tissue of a sea anemone might not look like a beating heart, it does undergo slow, rhythmic peristaltic waves of contraction, much like the human digestive system.

The first animal muscle cells might have been very heart-like, Martindale said. "The idea is these genes have been around a long time and preceded the twitchy muscles that cover our skeleton.”

Continued research could one day allow scientists to coax muscles cells into regenerating different kinds of new cells, including more heart cells, Martindale added.

--

By: <a href="mailto:dbeasley@earth.com">David Beasley, </a><a href="https://www.earth.com/staff/">Earth.com</a> Staff Writer

Source: <a href="http://www.ufl.edu/">University of Florida</a>

How regeneration of a human heart could be possible

Humans could eventually be able to regenerate the heart, according...

You already know vegetables are good for you. Now, there’s another reason to eat them: vegetable protein can help to protect against early menopause, according to a new study.

Epidemiologists from the <a href="http://www.umass.edu/">University of Massachusetts, Amherst</a> and the <a href="https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/">T.H. Chan School of Public Health</a> at Harvard University found that a high uptake of vegetable protein from foods such as enriched pasta, whole grain bread, soy and tofu over a long period of time can boost the function of the female reproductive system. Eating plenty of veggies can also help prevent early menopause, the scientists said.

"A better understanding of how dietary vegetable protein intake is associated with ovarian aging may identify ways for women to modify their risk of early onset menopause and associated health conditions," wrote Maegan Boutot, the study’s lead author and a graduate student at UMass Amherst at the time of the study.

The researchers used data collected by the <a href="http://www.nurseshealthstudy.org/">Nurses’ Health Study II</a> to see if there was a link between dietary intake of vegetable protein and reproductive health among women.

They found that between 5 and 10 percent of women in the western world begin menopause before the age of 45. While women who undergo early menopause are at lower risk for breast and ovarian cancer, according to previous studies, they’re also at a higher risk for other types of cancer, diabetes, heart disease, Alzheimer’s disease and lower bone density.

Earlier research had pointed to a possible correlation between diet and early menopause, the researchers said. They were curious to find out if there was evidence for a link.

“We evaluated the relation of long-term intake of vegetable protein, animal protein, and specific protein-rich foods with incidence of early natural menopause in the Nurses’ Health Study II cohort,” they wrote in the study.

After correcting for other factors like medical history, weight and smoking, they found that women who consumed less vegetable protein tended to start menopause earlier. On the other hand, women who ate plenty of veggies had a much lower risk of early menopause.

“Intakes of specific foods including pasta, dark bread and cold cereal were also associated with lower risk,” they wrote.

Animal protein consumption didn’t seem to affect the age of onset for menopause.

The study has been published in the <a href="https://academic.oup.com/aje/article-abstract/doi/10.1093/aje/kwx256/3886033/Dietary-Protein-Intake-and-Early-Menopause-in-the?redirectedFrom=fulltext">American Journal of Epidemiology</a>.

—

By <a href="mailto:kcathey@earth.com">Kyla Cathey</a>, <a href="http://www.earth.com">Earth.com</a> staff writer

Want to avoid early menopause? Eat more vegetable protein

You already know vegetables are good for you. Now, there’s...

Ask any city dweller what noise shatters the calm most often, and after the obvious choice – sirens – many will point to the car horn. 

A team of researchers led by Dr. Myungjin Bae of <a href="http://www.ssu.ac.kr/web/eng/home">Soongsil University</a> doesn’t think it has to be that way. They set out to build a better car horn, convinced they could develop an attention-grabbing sound that isn’t so stress-inducing – and doesn’t create as much noise pollution in cities.

"The sound of [a car horn] heard outside the car of the driver is uncomfortable because it is too loud to the people around him," Bae said in a press release. "In our study we used the existing historic Klaxon sound source, but made some modification concerning its volume and rhythm with duration time by adding a power controller. Our new Klaxon sound can immediately alert the pedestrians of the danger while also reducing the unpleasantness and stress of the sound.”

The researchers struck on the friendly honking sound for their car horn by using the Mean Option Score, the same measure of voice and call quality used by telephone services.

The team created a study where subjects listened to several horn sounds, then ranked them based on qualities like loudness and the amount of stress they caused. They used a five-point scoring scale that ranged from bad to excellent.

The horns were based off of the historic Klaxon sound, the “aa-oo-gah” noise popular in older cars. The new horn, as chosen by the test listeners, uses the same sound, but it has been modified so it’s less stress-inducing without removing its attention-grabbing properties.

"Everyone can live more comfortably without hearing any annoying noise from the streets," Bae said.

The new car horn sound will be presented today at <a href="http://acousticalsociety.org/content/acoustics-17-boston">Acoustics ‘17 Boston</a>, the 173rd meeting of the Acoustical Society of America.

—

By <a href="mailto:kcathey@earth.com">Kyla Cathey</a>, <a href="http://www.earth.com">Earth.com</a> staff writer

Team takes a shot at building a better car horn

Ask any city dweller what noise shatters the calm most...

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;



---



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

[sendtonews key="G9bUoxcjr4-2511624-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from the...

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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;



---



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

[sendtonews key="LvS8v8bp9z-2564889-12187" type="single"] Today's Video of the Day from the...

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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?

[sendtonews key="X0f6OHYoI4-2310561-12187" type="single"] Today’s Video of the Day from the...

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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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



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

Santiago, Chile in South America

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: Johns Hopkins&nbsp;



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



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

Interactive map of the universe includes 200,000 galaxies

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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;&nbsp;



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



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

Lesotho: Africa's "Kingdom in the Sky"

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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



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

The city of Dublin on Ireland's east coast

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



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



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



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



Video/ Image Credit: ESA



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



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

The province of Zaragoza in northeast Spain

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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

The rapid retreat of the Columbia Glacier

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video &amp; Image Credit: ESA



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



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

The Pyrenees Mountains in southwest Europe

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

Earth,Like,Exoplanet,3d,Render

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard



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



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



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

Two distant planets may be "water worlds"

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

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Goddard&nbsp;



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



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

Satellites reveal how Earth's systems are interconnected

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



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

Tiger sharks are shifting poleward as temperatures rise

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

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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA&nbsp;



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



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

Melt ponds on the Greenland Ice Sheet

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



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



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



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



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



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



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



Video Credit: ESA



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



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

The history of Mars is much more complex than we thought

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



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



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



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



Video Credit: Stowers Institute for Medical Research



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



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

Cavefish are healthy despite their sedentary lifestyle

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



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



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



Video Credit: NASA Earth Observatory&nbsp;



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



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

Satellites capture the world's biggest and fastest waves

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