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Dramatic shift from simple to complex marine ecosystems occurred 250M years ago at mass extinction
The earth experienced its biggest mass extinction about 250 million years ago, an event that wiped out an estimated 95% of marine species and 70% of land species. New research shows that this mass extinction did more than eliminate species: it fundamentally changed the basic ecology of the world's oceans.   view more (2006-11-27)

The origin of human bipedalism
While no one has an authoritative answer, anthropologists have long theorized that early humans began walking on two legs as a way to reduce locomotor energy costs.   view more (2007-07-17)

Getting a leg up on whale and dolphin evolution
When the ancestors of living cetaceans-whales, dolphins and porpoises-first dipped their toes into water, a series of evolutionary changes were sparked that ultimately nestled these swimming mammals into the larger hoofed animal group.   view more (2009-09-25)

Microfossils challenge prevailing views of the effects of 'Snowball Earth' glaciations on life
New fossil findings discovered by scientists at UC Santa Barbara challenge prevailing views about the effects of "Snowball Earth" glaciations on life, according to an article in the June issue of the journal Nature Geoscience.   view more (2009-05-27)

A WAKE-UP CALL FOR ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH (p 587)
Issue 23 August 2003 Embargoed 0001 h (London time) 22 August 2003. This week's editorial comments on the new energy bill that will increase US domestic energy supply, concluding that the bill's implications for increased energy consumption rather than conservation is 'a step backwards for health'. The US is responsible for 23% of all... view more... (2003-08-20)

Prehistoric fossil snake is largest on record
Scientists have recovered fossils from a 60-million-year-old South American snake whose length and weight might make today's anacondas seem like garter snakes.   view more (2009-02-05)

The humble beginnings of a king
Tyrannosaurus rex and related large carnivorous dinosaurs together form the family Tyrannosauridae. A long forgotten fossil skull in the collections of the Natural History Museum in London has now provided crucial clues to the early stages of the lengthy evolutionary history of these fearsome predators.   view more (2009-11-05)

Ancient Turtle Migrated from Asia to America Over a Tropical Arctic
In Arctic Canada, a team of geologists from the University of Rochester has discovered a surprise fossil: a tropical, freshwater, Asian turtle.   view more (2009-02-02)

Man may have caused pre-historic extinctions
New research shows that pre-historic horses in Alaska may have been hunted into extinction by man, rather than by climate change as previously thought.   view more (2006-05-05)

Future for clean energy lies in 'big bang' of evolution
Amid mounting agreement that future clean, "carbon-neutral", energy will rely on efficient conversion of the sun's light energy into fuels and electric power, attention is focusing on one of the most ancient groups of organism, the cyanobacteria.   view more (2008-08-25)

Scientists Uncover a Dramatic Rise in Sea Level and Its Broad Ramifications
Scientists have found proof in Bermuda that the planet's sea level was once more than 21 meters (70 feet) higher about 400,000 years ago than it is now. Their findings were published in the journal Quaternary Science Reviews Wednesday, Feb. 4.   view more (2009-02-10)

Ancient geologic escape hatches mistaken for tube worms
Tubeworms have been around for millions of years and the fossil record is rich with their distinctive imprints. But a discovery made by U of C scientists found that what previous researchers had labeled as tubeworms in a formation near Denver, Colorado, are actually 70 million-year-old escape hatches for methane.   view more (2009-02-05)

A Genome May Reduce Your Carbon Footprint
With the costs of genome sequencing rapidly decreasing, and with the infrastructure now developed for almost anyone with access to a computer to cheaply store, access, and analyze sequence information, emphasis is increasingly being placed on ways to apply genome data to real world problems, including reducing dependency on fossil fuel.   view more (2009-05-13)

Some biofuels might do more harm than good to the environment, study finds
Biofuels based on ethanol, vegetable oil and other renewable sources are increasingly popular with government and environmentalists as a way to reduce fossil fuel dependence and limit greenhouse gas emissions.   view more (2008-05-28)

NASA study illustrates how global peak oil could impact climate
The burning of fossil fuels -- notably coal, oil and gas -- has accounted for about 80 percent of the rise of atmospheric carbon dioxide since the pre-industrial era. Now, NASA researchers have identified feasible emission scenarios that could keep carbon dioxide below levels that some scientists have called dangerous for climate.   view more (2008-09-11)

No need to thank dinosaur-killing asteroid for mammalian success
It is a natural history tale that every third grader knows: The dinosaurs ruled the Earth for hundreds of millions of years, until an asteroid struck the Yucatan Peninsula and triggered a mass extinction that allowed the ancestors of today's mammals to thrive.   view more (2007-03-29)

Confirmed - deforestation plays critical climate change role
Dr Pep Canadell, from the Global Carbon Project and CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research, says today in the journal Science that tropical deforestation releases 1.5 billion tonnes of carbon each year into the atmosphere.   view more (2007-05-14)

Grilling with charcoal less climate-friendly than grilling with propane
Do biofuels always create smaller carbon footprints than their fossil-fuel competitors? Not necessarily.   view more (2009-05-12)

Better measurements reveal seasonal changes in sulfur
Researchers from the University of Maryland (UMD) and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have developed a new and improved technique for the simultaneous measurement of sulfur isotopic ratios and concentrations of atmospheric sulfate using snow samples from Greenland and Kyrgyzstan.   view more (2005-10-10)

Kyoto climate commitments - a challenge for UK energy policy, say Academies
The report examines options for generating electricity without emission of CO2. These include using renewable sources (such as wind and solar) and negating CO2 emissions by use of 'carbon sequestration', as well as maintaining a nuclear energy capability.   view more (1999-06-14)
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