The Wordsmith's Forge

Insects are disappearing due to agriculture -- and many other drivers, new research reveals

New paper highlights 500+ interconnected drivers behind global insect decline.
Insects are disappearing at an alarming rate worldwide, but why? Agricultural intensification tops the list of proposed reasons, but there are many other, interconnected drivers that have an impact, according to new research.

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First live video!  :D 

Hundred-year storm tides will occur every few decades in Bangladesh, scientists report

With projected global warming, the frequency of extreme storms will ramp up by the end of the century, according to a new study.
For the highly populated coastal country of Bangladesh, once-in-a-century storm tides could strike every 10 years -- or more often -- by the end of the century, scientists report.


Oh, it's worse than that. Sunny-day floods will wipe out coastal settlements long before the dramatic storms do.

Sea sponges often thrive during and after a mass extinction, as they are more resilient to some stressors and they are filter feeders that subsist on organic particles. 

Aaaaand here we go again.

Ancient tools from a South African cave reveal connections between prehistoric people

In a cave overlooking the ocean on the southern coast of South Africa, archaeologists discovered thousands of stone tools, created by ancient humans roughly 20,000 years ago. By examining tiny details in the chipped edges of the blades and stones, archaeologists are able to tell how the tools were made -- which revealed that people were sharing crafting techniques over wide distances.

Sound frequencies of stars sing of our galaxy's past and future

Researchers interrogated the 'sounds' of a cluster of stars within the Milky Way, uncovering a new technique for astrophysicists to probe the universe and learn more about its evolution.

Folks have mentioned an interest in questions and conversations that make them think. So I've decided to offer more of those. This batch features hobbies.

Stargazing is a hobby of watching the sky at night. This must be among the oldest of hobbies, as humans have been fascinated by the stars for many thousands of years at least. It is easier with modern telescopes though.

On Dreamwidth, see common_nature for inspiration. astronomy and science are dormant, but posting is open to all members so these should be revivable.

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Researchers' breakthrough method reveals clouds amplify global warming far more than previously understood

Better technology to prepare for climate change.
Tropical marine low clouds play a crucial role in regulating Earth's climate. However, whether they mitigate or exacerbate global warming has long remained a mystery. Now, researchers have developed a groundbreaking method that significantly improves accuracy in climate predictions. This led to a major discovery -- that tropical cloud feedback may have amplified the greenhouse effect by a staggering 71% more than previously known to scientists.


This is another example of the common pattern where scientists drastically underestimate how screwed we are.

My partner Doug tipped me to these articles:


Surprisingly big organic molecules on Mars: A hint of life?

NASA’s Curiosity rover has now discovered the largest known organic molecules to date. They are three kinds of long-chained carbon molecules that scientists say are the remains of fatty acids. Fatty acids are common in life on Earth, but can also form without life.
The complex carbon molecules are in mudstone rocks that used to be at the bottom of an ancient lake. Scientists don’t yet know how they formed, but they are certainly tantalizing.


See auroras on Neptune for the first time!

The Webb space telescope has finally caught auroras on Neptune. Neptune lies in the frigid, dark, vast frontier of the outer edges of our solar system about 3 billion miles away from the sun.

Chimpanzees act as 'engineers', choosing materials to make tools based on structural and mechanical properties

Researchers have discovered that chimpanzees living in Gombe Stream National Park in Tanzania employ a degree of engineering when making their tools, deliberately choosing plants that provide materials that produce more flexible tools for termite fishing.


It's amazing what scientists can notice when they park their prejudices and actually pay attention.