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Hot Topic
Solar System
Earth
Biosphere
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| Life's Ancient Island in the Ice |
| Topic: Biosphere |
10/29/09 |
| During the last ice age, massive glaciers covered much of our planet. However, a region of Alaska, Siberia and the Canadian Yukon remained ice-free. This region, known as Beringia, supported unique organisms and was an important haven for evolution. Now, scientists may have uncovered how Beringia supported such diversity at a time when conditions for life were harsh. |
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| Life Out of the Tropics |
| Topic: Biosphere |
04/02/09 |
| The diversity of life on Earth is concentrated near the equator, with a steep falloff towards the poles. A recent study finds this is because new species tend to form in the tropics and then migrate out. This historical pattern might point to a fundamental property of life. |
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| Our Earliest Animal Ancestors |
| Topic: Biosphere |
08/06/07 |
| How has life changed Earth? How has Earth changed life? And why did animal life appear on Earth some time around 600 million years ago – and not at another time? A new NASA Astrobiology Institute group will tackle big questions about the origin of advanced life. |
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| A Volcanic Dinosaur Debate |
| Topic: Biosphere |
05/09/05 |
| Scientists can recite a long list of the devastating environmental consequences of a large meteorite impact, but they cannot prove these effects have led to the simultaneous loss of life around the globe. |
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| SkyNet Autonomy |
| Topic: Biosphere |
06/24/04 |
| Detecting changes in the biosphere from orbiting satellites can involve tedious sifting through stacks of digital images. Letting a satellite screen the incoming pictures may hold promise for detecting autonomously how the Earth is changing. |
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| Biosphere Under the Glass |
| Topic: Biosphere |
02/28/04 |
| In Oracle, Arizona, the Biosphere 2 project became the world's largest closed ecosystem. Project managers have now opened its interior to visitors. Among the diverse land, water and air environments enclosed under glass, most of the planet's major biomes are represented to view. |
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| Evolution's Slow Recovery |
| Topic: Biosphere |
06/02/02 |
| The biosphere bounces back from mass extinctions with the origin of new species. |
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| Digital Zookeepers Take a Census |
| Topic: Biosphere |
06/02/02 |
| Cataloguing the taxonomy of an entire planet's history, a 'digital zoo' holds great promise for resolving century-old debates about how the Earth got to be such a rich spawning ground for life's diversity. |
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| Digital Zookeepers Take a Census |
| Topic: Biosphere |
02/01/02 |
| Cataloguing the taxonomy of an entire planet's history, a 'digital zoo' holds great promise for resolving century-old debates about how the Earth got to be such a rich spawning ground for life's diversity. |
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