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New feathered dinosaur was one of the last surviving raptors
Dineobellator notohesperus lived 67 million years ago. Dineobellator notohesperus adds to scientists’ understanding of the paleo-biodiversity of the American Southwest, offering a clearer picture of what life was like in this region near the end of the reign of the dinosaurs. Steven Jasinski, who recently completed his Ph.D. in Penn’s Department of Earth and Environmental…
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New model accurately predicts how coasts will be impacted by storms and sea-level rise
Scientists have developed a simple algorithm-based model which predicts how coastlines could be affected by extreme storms and predicted rises in sea levels and — as a result — enables communities to identify the actions they might need to take in order to adapt. However, scientists at the University of Plymouth have developed a simple…
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Machine learning model generates realistic seismic waveforms
A new machine-learning model that generates realistic seismic waveforms will reduce manual labor and improve earthquake detection, according to a new study. «To verify the e?cacy of our generative model, we applied it to seismic ?eld data collected in Oklahoma,» said Youzuo Lin, a computational scientist in Los Alamos National Laboratory’s Geophysics group and principal…
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Friends fur life help build skills for life
A new study finds children not only reap the benefits of working with therapy dogs — they enjoy it too. «Dog lovers often have an assumption that canine-assisted interventions are going to be effective because other people are going to love dogs,» says Nicole Harris, who conducted this research while a master’s student in the…
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Antibiotic resistance surveillance tools in Puerto Rican watersheds after Hurricane Maria
Researchers have further developed an innovative antibiotic resistance surveillance approach by applying DNA sequencing techniques to detect the spread of disease in watersheds impacted by large-scale storms. Six months after the deadly Category 5 hurricane, Virginia Tech civil and environmental engineering Professor Amy Pruden led a team of Virginia Tech researchers, including Maria Virginia Riquelme…
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Gabon provides blueprint for protecting oceans
Gabon’s network of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) provides a blueprint that could be used in many other countries, experts say. Since announcing a new MPA network in 2014, Gabon has created 20 protected areas — increasing protection of Gabonese waters from less than 1% to 26%. Since announcing a new MPA network in 2014, Gabon…
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Brainy birds may fare better under climate change
Many North American migratory birds are shrinking in size as temperatures have warmed over the past 40 years. But those with very big brains, relative to their body size, did not shrink as much as smaller-brained birds, according to new research. The study is the first to identify a direct link between cognition and animal…
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Weddell sea: Whale song reveals behavioral patterns
Scientists have now used permanently installed underwater microphones, which have been recording for the past nine years, to successfully gather and analyze whale observation data from the Weddell Sea. The AWI’s underwater recordings confirm: Minke whales prefer the shelter of sea ice, while humpback whales avoid it. Antarctic minke whales (Balaenoptera bonaerensis) are still a…