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The 10 biggest science stories of 2022 – chosen by scientists

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Sunday, December 18, 2022

From moon missions to fast-charging batteries and AI-sourced antibiotics, in no particular order, the year’s significant scientific developmentsThe year opened with a bang. Or rather, it didn’t. The successful film Don’t Look Up, in which a comet is found to be on a collision course with Earth, had been released just before Christmas 2021. In the bleak days of post-festive gloom, the news media were on an adrenaline high, chasing any and every story about potential asteroid collisions to cheer us all up. Five asteroids were to pass close to the Earth in January alone! Happily for the health and wellbeing of humanity, none was predicted to come within a whisker of hitting the planet. Nonetheless, the possibility of an asteroid colliding with Earth is a reality – the globe is covered in craters from previous impacts, and it is well known that 65m years ago, dinosaurs became extinct following the impact of an asteroid about 10km across. Can anything be done about saving us from this existential extraterrestrial threat? Fortunately, the international space community has taken the first steps towards reducing the risk of an asteroid catching us unawares. The joint Nasa- Esa mission Dart (Double Asteroid Re-Direction Test) was an ambitious attempt to alter the trajectory of a small asteroid (Dimorphos) as it orbited a slightly larger asteroid (Didymos), by sending a spacecraft to crash into it. In October, we learned that the mission had been even more successful than anticipated, and that the orbit of Dimorphos had changed – showing that we could, if given sufficient time, alter the path of an asteroid if it were on a collision course with Earth. Continue reading...

From moon missions to fast-charging batteries and AI-sourced antibiotics, in no particular order, the year’s significant scientific developmentsThe year opened with a bang. Or rather, it didn’t. The successful film Don’t Look Up, in which a comet is found to be on a collision course with Earth, had been released just before Christmas 2021. In the bleak days of post-festive gloom, the news media were on an adrenaline high, chasing any and every story about potential asteroid collisions to cheer us all up. Five asteroids were to pass close to the Earth in January alone! Happily for the health and wellbeing of humanity, none was predicted to come within a whisker of hitting the planet. Nonetheless, the possibility of an asteroid colliding with Earth is a reality – the globe is covered in craters from previous impacts, and it is well known that 65m years ago, dinosaurs became extinct following the impact of an asteroid about 10km across. Can anything be done about saving us from this existential extraterrestrial threat? Fortunately, the international space community has taken the first steps towards reducing the risk of an asteroid catching us unawares. The joint Nasa- Esa mission Dart (Double Asteroid Re-Direction Test) was an ambitious attempt to alter the trajectory of a small asteroid (Dimorphos) as it orbited a slightly larger asteroid (Didymos), by sending a spacecraft to crash into it. In October, we learned that the mission had been even more successful than anticipated, and that the orbit of Dimorphos had changed – showing that we could, if given sufficient time, alter the path of an asteroid if it were on a collision course with Earth. Continue reading...

From moon missions to fast-charging batteries and AI-sourced antibiotics, in no particular order, the year’s significant scientific developments

The year opened with a bang. Or rather, it didn’t. The successful film Don’t Look Up, in which a comet is found to be on a collision course with Earth, had been released just before Christmas 2021. In the bleak days of post-festive gloom, the news media were on an adrenaline high, chasing any and every story about potential asteroid collisions to cheer us all up. Five asteroids were to pass close to the Earth in January alone! Happily for the health and wellbeing of humanity, none was predicted to come within a whisker of hitting the planet. Nonetheless, the possibility of an asteroid colliding with Earth is a reality – the globe is covered in craters from previous impacts, and it is well known that 65m years ago, dinosaurs became extinct following the impact of an asteroid about 10km across. Can anything be done about saving us from this existential extraterrestrial threat? Fortunately, the international space community has taken the first steps towards reducing the risk of an asteroid catching us unawares. The joint Nasa- Esa mission Dart (Double Asteroid Re-Direction Test) was an ambitious attempt to alter the trajectory of a small asteroid (Dimorphos) as it orbited a slightly larger asteroid (Didymos), by sending a spacecraft to crash into it. In October, we learned that the mission had been even more successful than anticipated, and that the orbit of Dimorphos had changed – showing that we could, if given sufficient time, alter the path of an asteroid if it were on a collision course with Earth.

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Costa Ricans Overwhelmingly Reject Shrimp Trawling, Survey Reveals

A vast majority of Costa Ricans have voiced their rejection of shrimp trawling. According to the National University (UNA), 91.3% of the population is against this practice. The study, published on Wednesday morning, indicated that a mere 8.7% of respondents were in favor of shrimp trawling. The “Perception of Islands and Living Conditions of Their […] The post Costa Ricans Overwhelmingly Reject Shrimp Trawling, Survey Reveals appeared first on The Tico Times | Costa Rica News | Travel | Real Estate.

A vast majority of Costa Ricans have voiced their rejection of shrimp trawling. According to the National University (UNA), 91.3% of the population is against this practice. The study, published on Wednesday morning, indicated that a mere 8.7% of respondents were in favor of shrimp trawling. The “Perception of Islands and Living Conditions of Their Populations” survey interviewed 1,448 individuals over 18 via telephone in early September. The results have a margin of error of 2.6% and a confidence level of 95%. The main reasons for opposing shrimp trawling include an adverse impact on diversity due to the trawling technique, destruction of the ecosystem and species, extinction of several species, and poor fishing techniques combined with a lack of regulations. In contrast, those in favor of shrimp trawling are motivated by job creation and economic benefits for fishermen (34.5% of supporters), the belief that fishermen need to make a living somehow (18.0%), responsible fishing with permits (17.3%), among other reasons. According to Mario Hernández, a researcher at the Institute of Population Studies (Idespo-UNA), 69.4% claimed to understand what trawl fishing entails, while 29.0% admitted they did not. Additionally, 42.3% believed that this technique allows the capture of fish, and only 39.1% correctly identified shrimp as the target catch. Hernández noted, “Studies from 2010 and 2022 had indicated complexities due to the high environmental and ecological impact from capture techniques, leading to the incidental catch of non-commercial but ecologically valuable species such as turtles, crabs, and mantas.” Other important findings Additional results emerging from the UNA study relate to the fact that 67.9% of respondents believe that the State does not adequately manage the seas and coasts, compared to 23.3% who believe it does, and 8.7% who either don’t know or did not respond. The researcher emphasized that Costa Rica has a national marine policy in place; however, the actions taken in this regard during the current administration are unknown. “During this administration, there has been no appointment of a deputy ministry for water and seas, as previous administrations have done, and there has been no determination of any sector,” stated Hernandez. The post Costa Ricans Overwhelmingly Reject Shrimp Trawling, Survey Reveals appeared first on The Tico Times | Costa Rica News | Travel | Real Estate.

Still Alive! Golden Mole Not Seen for 80 Years and Presumed Extinct Is Found Again in South Africa

Researchers in South Africa say they have rediscovered a mole species that has an iridescent golden coat and the ability to “swim” through sand dunes after it hadn't been seen for more than 80 years and was thought to be extinct

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — Researchers in South Africa say they have rediscovered a species of mole with an iridescent golden coat and the ability to almost “swim” through sand dunes after it hadn't been seen for more than 80 years and was thought to be extinct.The De Winton's golden mole -- a small, blind burrower with “super-hearing powers” that eats insects -- was found to be still alive on a beach in Port Nolloth on the west coast of South Africa by a team of researchers from the Endangered Wildlife Trust and the University of Pretoria.It had been lost to science since 1936, the researchers said.With the help of a sniffer dog, the team found traces of tunnels and discovered a golden mole in 2021. But because there are 21 species of golden moles and some look very similar, the team needed more to be certain that it was a De Winton's.They took environmental DNA samples -- the DNA animals leave behind in skin cells, hair and bodily excretions -- but had to wait until 2022 before a De Winton's DNA sample from decades ago was made available by a South African museum to compare. The DNA sequences were a match.The team's research and findings were peer reviewed and published last week.“We had high hopes, but we also had our hopes crushed by a few people,” one of the researchers, Samantha Mynhardt, told The Associated Press. “One De Winton’s expert told us, ‘you’re not going to find that mole. It’s extinct.’”The process took three years from the researchers' first trip to the west coast of South Africa to start searching for the mole, which was known to rarely leave signs of its tunnels and almost “swim” under the sand dunes, the researchers said. Golden moles are native to sub-Saharan Africa and the De Winton's had only ever been found in the Port Nolloth area.Two De Winton's golden moles have now been confirmed and photographed in Port Nolloth, Mynhardt said, while the research team has found signs of other populations in the area since 2021.“It was a very exciting project with many challenges,” said Esther Matthew, senior field officer with the Endangered Wildlife Trust. “Luckily we had a fantastic team full of enthusiasm and innovative ideas, which is exactly what you need when you have to survey up to 18 kilometers (11 miles) of dune habitat in a day.”The De Winton's golden mole was on a “most wanted lost species" list compiled by the Re:wild conservation group. Others on the list that have been rediscovered include a salamander that was found in Guatemala in 2017, 42 years after its last sighting, and an elephant shrew called the Somali sengi seen in Djibouti in 2019, its first recorded sighting since 1968.Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Back from the brink: sand-swimming golden mole, feared extinct, rediscovered after 86 years

Border collie Jessie sniffs out elusive species last seen in 1937 among dunes of South AfricaAn elusive, iridescent golden mole not recorded since before the second world war has been rediscovered “swimming” in the sand near the coastal town of Port Nolloth in north-west South Africa.The De Winton’s golden mole (Cryptochloris wintoni), previously feared extinct, lives in underground burrows and had not been seen since 1937. It gets its “golden” name from oily secretions that lubricate its fur so it can “swim” through sand dunes. This means it does not create conventional tunnels, making it all the harder to detect. Continue reading...

An elusive, iridescent golden mole not recorded since before the second world war has been rediscovered “swimming” in the sand near the coastal town of Port Nolloth in north-west South Africa.The De Winton’s golden mole (Cryptochloris wintoni), previously feared extinct, lives in underground burrows and had not been seen since 1937. It gets its “golden” name from oily secretions that lubricate its fur so it can “swim” through sand dunes. This means it does not create conventional tunnels, making it all the harder to detect.Sand-swimming golden mole burying into sand after rediscovery – videoIt is also blind, relying on its highly sensitive hearing, and bolting if it senses vibrations caused by movement above ground. It has been featured among the “most wanted” on a list of lost species compiled by the global conservation group Re:wild.The mole has now been rediscovered 86 years after its last sighting, thanks to a two-year search by conservationists and a border collie dog called Jessie, who was trained to sniff out golden moles. Their findings have been published in the journal Biodiversity and Conservation.“It was very exciting to be part of a team looking for lost species. The cherry on the cake is finding one,” said Esther Matthew, senior field officer at the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT).A De Winton’s golden mole on the dunes in South Africa. Photograph: JP Le Roux/re:wildResearchers from EWT and the University of Pretoria worked with Jessie the dog, who alerted them by lying down on the spot when she found the scent. Jessie was rewarded for her efforts by being allowed to play with her tennis ball.Each time she stopped, they collected a soil sample, which was later tested for environmental DNA (eDNA). This detects DNA from skin cells, urine, faeces and mucous, which the moles release as they move through the dunes. Using this technique, the team searched up to 18km (11.2 miles) of dunes in a day. They collected 100 samples of sand in total, and eventually encountered two De Winton golden moles.Tracks left by the mole, which can ‘swim’ through the sand. Photograph: JP Le Roux/re:wildField research was done in 2021, and the team thought they might have found the mole, but De Winton’s looks very similar to other golden moles, so the finding was not confirmed until samples were genetically sequenced.“Though many people doubted that De Winton’s golden mole was still out there, I had good faith that the species had not yet gone extinct,” said Cobus Theron, senior conservation manager at EWT and a member of the search team. “Now, not only have we solved the riddle, but we have tapped into this eDNA frontier where there is a huge amount of opportunity – not only for moles but for other lost or imperilled species.”There are 21 known species of golden moles, most living only in South Africa. The team found evidence of three other moles, including the Van Zyl’s golden mole, which is also endangered.Since the research was carried out in 2021, EWT has found four more populations of De Winton’s golden moles, and researchers believe Port Nolloth is home to a healthy population of them. However, the area is not protected and is threatened by diamond-mining.“​​We need to identify areas to focus our conservation [efforts] on … and secure protected areas to make sure there are still strongholds for these species,” said JP Le Roux, a former EWT field officer.Find more age of extinction coverage here, and follow biodiversity reporters Phoebe Weston and Patrick Greenfield on X (formerly known as Twitter) for all the latest news and features

Sea urchin in Sicily at risk of extinction due to popularity as culinary delicacy

Three-year pause in fishing is the only way to prevent disappearance, researchers sayIt is one of Sicily’s most popular dishes: spaghetti ai ricci di mare, or sea urchin spaghetti. Prepared with a simple base of oil and garlic, plates of the stuff are demolished every summer, particularly by the hundreds of thousands of tourists who descend on the island every year.But sea urchins’ status as a culinary delicacy is leading to their gradual disappearance from local waters, and last week researchers said the Sicilian sea urchin, which resides on the sea floor and primarily feeds on algae, could soon become extinct if urgent conservation policies were not implemented. Continue reading...

It is one of Sicily’s most popular dishes: spaghetti ai ricci di mare, or sea urchin spaghetti. Prepared with a simple base of oil and garlic, plates of the stuff are demolished every summer, particularly by the hundreds of thousands of tourists who descend on the island every year.But sea urchins’ status as a culinary delicacy is leading to their gradual disappearance from local waters, and last week researchers said the Sicilian sea urchin, which resides on the sea floor and primarily feeds on algae, could soon become extinct if urgent conservation policies were not implemented.Since that stark warning, a local politician has proposed a three-year ban on all sea urchin fishing in Sicily – but the idea is likely to face stiff opposition from both fishers and restaurateurs.“On the one hand, I understand the need to preserve the sea urchin species,” said Gaetano Serio, a chef at Osteria Lo Bianco in Palermo. “But on the other hand, blocking sea urchin fishing in Sicily for three years would be a tough blow for those of us who work in the restaurant industry. When sea urchin spaghetti is on my menu, we serve up to 40 dishes a day.”The fishing of sea urchins is already restricted in Sicily. According to researchers from the University of Palermo, only 12 fishers hold regular fishing licenses for sea urchins, while hundreds continue to fish them illegally.Their methods are relatively simple, as the urchins can be found at shallow depths. They are also potentially devastating.Presented to the Sicilian government last week, the researchers’ study said a total pause in fishing for at least three years was the only way of staving off extinction.“Unfortunately, the conclusions of this study are disheartening,” said Paola Gianguzza, scientific coordinator of the study. “In the marine-protected areas of Sicily, we have not found any sea urchins nor signs of a healthy population. We would need to halt fishing for at least three years if we wanted to preserve this species.”The stony, purple sea urchins, Paracentrotus lividus, are sensitive to environmental conditions and have also been affected by the climate crisis and pollution, according to the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation.But in Sicily it is their status as a delicacy that is driving their decimation. “In Sicily, sea urchins are subject to intense illegal fishing due to their nutritional and economic value,” said Marco Toccaceli from the Council for Agricultural Research and Economics (Crea), a leading Italian research organisation dedicated to the agri-food supply chains. “For this reason, we must intensify enforcement.”Since the publication of the study, Nello Dipasquale, a member of the centre-left Democratic party, has been working on a legislative proposal to ban sea urchin fishing in the island’s waters.“I am, like many others, a lover of sea urchin fishing,” he told the Giornale di Sicilia. “But I believe that we can all give up fishing and enjoying them for three years in order to save a species seriously at risk of extinction. Losing them would be serious damage to the ecosystem. We must intervene as soon as possible.”Angelo Pumilia, chef at the Foresteria Planeta wine resort in Menfi on the south-west coast of Sicily, called for more awareness of the risks of illegal fishing.“It is a serious problem,” he said, claiming that many of his fellow chefs bought urchins from illegal fishers “who sell them at significantly lower prices”.Pumilia, one of Italy’s most celebrated chefs, said: “Just think that 100g of fresh sea urchins from Norway or Japan can cost up to €250 [£217] per gram. A Sicilian illegal fisherman sells them to the restaurant owner for as low as €7 or €10 per 100g. There are channels to legally acquire sea urchins, but they are too expensive for many restaurants.“We, who make quality cuisine and trace every ingredient, buy sea urchins from abroad because here in Sicily, the regulation of this species is too shady and incomplete. There is a need for a general awareness – otherwise we truly risk having to do without one of the main culinary delicacies of our region.”In California, meanwhile, scientists are struggling with the opposite problem: there, the sea urchin population has exploded by 10,000% since 2014 due to the decline in sea otter and starfish populations – two natural predators of sea urchins.Hundreds of millions of purple sea urchins have covered the coast from Baja to Alaska, where they have been devouring the region’s vital kelp forests, causing untold damage to the marine ecosystem. It is estimated that in California, 95% of the kelp forests, which provide shelter and food to a wide range of marine life, have been destroyed and replaced by “urchin barrens” – vast carpets of spiked purple orbs along the ocean floor.

Volcanoes or Asteroid? AI Ends Debate Over Dinosaur Extinction Event

Free-thinking computers reverse-engineered the fossil record to identify the causes of a cataclysm. To address the long-standing debate about whether a massive asteroid impact or...

Dartmouth scientists used an innovative computer model to suggest that volcanic activity, rather than an asteroid impact, was the primary cause of the mass extinction that ended the age of the dinosaurs. This groundbreaking approach opens new avenues for investigating other geological events.Free-thinking computers reverse-engineered the fossil record to identify the causes of a cataclysm.To address the long-standing debate about whether a massive asteroid impact or volcanic activity caused the extinction of dinosaurs and numerous other species 66 million years ago, a team at Dartmouth College took an innovative approach — they removed scientists from the debate and let the computers decide.The researchers report in the journal Science a new modeling method powered by interconnected processors that can work through reams of geological and climate data without human input. They tasked nearly 130 processors with analyzing the fossil record in reverse to pinpoint the events and conditions that led to the Cretaceous–Paleogene (K–Pg) extinction event that cleared the way for the ascendance of mammals, including the primates that would lead to early humans.A New Perspective on Historical Events“Part of our motivation was to evaluate this question without a predetermined hypothesis or bias,” said Alex Cox, first author of the study and a graduate student in Dartmouth’s Department of Earth Sciences. “Most models move in a forward direction. We adapted a carbon-cycle model to run the other way, using the effect to find the cause through statistics, giving it only the bare minimum of prior information as it worked toward a particular outcome.“In the end, it doesn’t matter what we think or what we previously thought — the model shows us how we got to what we see in the geological record,” he said.The model crunched more than 300,000 possible scenarios of carbon dioxide emissions, sulfur dioxide output, and biological productivity in the 1 million years before and after the K–Pg extinction. Through a type of machine learning known as Markov Chain Monte Carlo — which is not unlike how a smartphone predicts what you’ll type next — the processors worked together independently to compare, revise, and recalculate their conclusions until they reached a scenario that matches the outcome preserved in the fossil record.Uncovering the Extinction’s CausesGeochemical and organic remnants in the fossil record capture clearly the catastrophic conditions during the K–Pg extinction, so named for the geological periods on either side of the millennia-long cataclysm. Animals and plants worldwide suffered massive die-offs as food webs collapsed under an unstable atmosphere that — laden with sun-blotting sulfur, airborne minerals, and heat-trapping carbon dioxide — swung wildly from frigid to scorching conditions.While the effect is clear, the cause of the extinction is unresolved. Early theories attributing the event to volcanic eruptions have been eclipsed by the discovery of an impact crater in Mexico known as Chicxulub that was caused by a miles-wide asteroid now thought to be primarily responsible for the extinction event. The theories have begun to converge, however, as fossil evidence suggests a one-two punch unlike anything in Earth’s history: The asteroid may have slammed into a planet already reeling from the massive, extremely violent eruptions of volcanoes in western India’s Deccan Traps.But scientists still do not know — nor agree on — the extent to which each event contributed to the mass extinction. So, Cox and his adviser Brenhin Keller, a Dartmouth assistant professor of earth sciences and study co-author, decided to “see what you would get if you let the code decide.”Modeling Results and Volcanic ImpactTheir model suggested that the outpouring of climate-altering gases from the Deccan Traps alone could have been sufficient to trigger the global extinction. The Traps had been erupting for roughly 300,000 years before the Chicxulub asteroid. During their nearly 1 million years of eruptions, the Deccan Traps are estimated to have pumped up to 10.4 trillion tons of carbon dioxide and 9.3 trillion tons of sulfur into the atmosphere.“We’ve known historically that volcanoes can cause massive extinctions, but this is the first independent estimation of volatile emissions taken from the evidence of their environmental effects,” said Keller, who published a paper last year linking four of Earth’s five mass extinctions to volcanism.“Our model worked through the data independently and without human bias to determine the amount of carbon dioxide and sulfur dioxide required to produce the climate and carbon cycle disruptions we see in the geologic record. These amounts turned out to be consistent with what we expect to see in emissions from the Deccan Traps,” said Keller, who has worked extensively to examine the link between Deccan volcanism and the K–Pg extinction.Asteroid Impact and Modern ContextThe model did reveal a steep drop in the accumulation of organic carbon in the deep ocean around the time of the Chicxulub impact, which likely resulted from the asteroid causing the demise of numerous animal and plant species. The record contains traces of a decrease in temperature around the same time that would have been caused by the large amount of sulfur — a short-term cooling agent — the mammoth meteorite would have ejected into the air when it collided with the sulfur-rich surface on that area of the planet.The asteroid impact also would have likely emitted both carbon and sulfur dioxide. However, the model found that there was no spike in the emissions of either gas at that time, suggesting that the asteroid’s contribution to the extinction did not hinge on gas emissions.Conclusion: Methodological Innovation and Future ApplicationsIn modern context, Cox said, the burning of fossil fuels from 2000 to 2023 has pumped about 16 billion tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere per year. This is 100 times greater than the highest annual emission rate scientists project from the Deccan Traps. While alarming on its own, it would still take a few thousand years for current carbon dioxide emissions to match the total amount that spewed forth from the ancient volcanoes, Cox said.“Most heartening is that the results we achieved are broadly physically plausible, which is impressive given that the model could have technically run completely wild without stronger prior constraints,” he said.Interconnecting the processors shortened the time it took the model to analyze such a massive data set from months or years to hours, Cox said. His and Keller’s method can be used to invert other earth systems models — such as those for the climate or carbon cycle — to evaluate geological events for which the outcomes are well known but not the factors that led there. “This type of parallel inversion hasn’t been done in earth sciences models before. Our method can be scaled up to include thousands of processors, which gives us a much broader solution space to explore, and it’s quite resistant to human bias,” Cox said.“So far, people in our field have been more fascinated by the novelty of the method than the conclusion we reached,” he laughed. “Any earth system for which we know the effect but not the cause is ripe for inversion. The better we know the output, the better we’re able to characterize the input that caused it.”Reference: “A Bayesian inversion for emissions and export productivity across the end-Cretaceous boundary” by Alexander A. Cox and C. Brenhin Keller, 28 September 2023, Science.DOI: 10.1126/science.adh3875

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