З ГЕОІНФОРМАТИКИ ТА СТАЛОГО РОЗВИТКУ
The copepod species Calanus finmarchicus schedules its day using a genetic clock that works independently of external stimuli. The clock shapes the copepod's metabolic rhythms and daily vertical migration. This in turn have an enormous influence on the entire food web in the North Atlantic, where Calanus finmarchicus is a central plankton species. Wherever the high-calorie copepod is, determines where its predator species are.
A molecular mechanism has been discovered that enables neuronal connections to change through experience, thus fueling learning and memory formation. The findings have the potential to reveal new therapeutic strategies for neurological and psychiatric disorders.
The malaria parasite's success is owed to stripping down its genome to the bare essential genes, scientists have found. In the first ever large-scale study of malaria gene function, scientists analyzed more than half of the genes in the parasite's genome and found that two thirds of these genes were essential for survival -- the largest proportion of essential genes found in any organism studied to date.
Delaying access for the tech-savvy can stifle spread of new products, experiment with students shows.
Researchers in Australia say they now know exactly what makes horny cane toads boogie. And the toad tune could help sound the death knell for the pests.
Earth's hot core, consisting mainly of iron, is responsible for the 'dynamo effect,' which creates a magnetic field. But with iron alone, this effect cannot be explained. A team of researchers has shown that the theory of the geodynamo has to be revised. It is crucial for the dynamo effect that the earth's core contains up to 20 percent nickel -- a metal, which under extreme conditions behaves quite differently from iron.
A model system has been presented by researchers that allows the investigation of atomic-scale friction effects and friction dynamics that are similar to those taking place, for instance, in proteins, DNA strands and other deformable nanocontacts. This model system consists of laser-cooled ions, which arrange themselves in so-called Coulomb crystals.
Spiral galaxies are found to be strongly rotating, with an angular momentum higher by a factor of about 5 than ellipticals. In a new study, the researchers have traced back the dichotomy in the angular momentum of spiral and elliptical galaxies to their different formation history. In particular, the low angular momentum of ellipticals is mainly originated by nature in the central regions during the early galaxy formation process.
A silicone heart has been developed that beats almost like a human heart. Researchers have now tested how well it works.
The scientific textbook depiction of the flu virus is about to get a facelift, due to a new discovery that a model of the influenza genome architecture untouched since the 1970s isn't so perfect after all. The finding could give scientists the opportunity to better predict pandemics and find new ways to disrupt the flu virus.