EurekAlert

(University of Victoria) New study shows that 2008 volcano in North Pacific fueled largest phytoplankton bloom in the region since satellite measurements began in 1997. This study has important implications for proposals to seed the oceans with iron to reduce atmospheric carbon dioxide.

(University of Chicago Press Journals) New research suggests that climate change following massive volcanic eruptions drove Neanderthals to extinction and cleared the way for modern humans to thrive in Europe and Asia.

(University of Washington) It just got easier to pinpoint biological hot spots in the world's oceans where some inhabitants are smaller than, well, a pinpoint. Tiny as they may be, communities of the phytoplankton south of Vancouver Island are big players when it comes to carbon: They take up 50 percent of the carbon dioxide going from the atmosphere into the oceans there.

(University of Gothenburg) Having survived for more than 400 million years, the horseshoe crab is now under threat -- primarily due to overharvest and habitat destruction. However, climatic changes mayalso play a role.

(Ruhr-University Bochum) Starting in October 2010, Dr. Jennifer Strunk will lead a new junior research group in the Laboratory of Industrial Chemistry lead by Prof. Dr. MartinMuhler with a 5-year, 1.18 million Euro ($1.62 million) research grant from the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research.

(DOE/Oak Ridge National Laboratory) Supercomputer simulations at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory are helping scientists unravel how nucleic acids could have contributed to the origins of life.

(University of California -- Irvine) Freshwater is flowing into Earth's oceans in greater amounts every year, a team of researchers has found, thanks to more frequent and extreme storms linked to global warming. All told, 18 percent more water fed into the world's oceans from rivers and melting polar ice sheets in 2006 than in 1994, with an average annual rise of 1.5 percent.

(DOE/Pacific Northwest National Laboratory) In a warming 21st century, tropical forests will be at risk from a variety of threats, especially the conversion to cropland to sustain a growing population.

(University of Edinburgh) Vulnerable communities in the developing world will be better placed to cope with the effects of climate change thanks to an initiative coordinated by the University of Edinburgh.

(DOE/Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory) Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory's expertise in integrated multiphysics modeling will be an integral part of a new national effort in energy efficient building research.