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Hot Topic
Origins
Origin & Evolution of Life
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Skeletons in the Pre-Cambrian Closet
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| Topic: Origin & Evolution of Life |
01/06/11 |
| Researchers are studying some of the earliest skeletons in order to better understand the ancient advancement of animal life. |
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Keeping Your Enemies Closer
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| Topic: Origin & Evolution of Life |
01/04/11 |
| Studying the way in which bacteria incorporate foreign DNA from invading viruses into their own regulatory processes is revealing secrets of one of nature's most primitive immune systems. The research provides new insight into the evolution of life on our planet. |
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Invasive Species Linked to Mass Extinction
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| Topic: Origin & Evolution of Life |
01/03/11 |
| Researchers studying an ancient collapse of Earth's marine life have shown that invasive species can disturb the natural process of new species formation and trigger mass extinctions. The study provides information about the processes that affect the evolution of Earth's biosphere. |
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The Great Oxidation Event Seen in Genomic Fossils
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| Topic: Origin & Evolution of Life |
12/21/10 |
| Computational biologists have used modern-day genomes to reconstruct the evolution of ancient microbes. The study provides new insight into the evolution of ancient life on Earth. |
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The Day the Algae Died
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| Topic: Origin & Evolution of Life |
12/13/10 |
| The P-T mass extinction may have been instigated by populations of algae dying. According to one group of scientists, this die-off of large numbers of relatively simple life forms caused a crash in the ocean's entire food web. |
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Warm Start for Life?
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| Topic: Origin & Evolution of Life |
12/04/10 |
| New research shows that temperature has a greater effect on the rate of some chemical reactions than previously thought. The study indicates that certain reactions necessary for life could have happened faster on a warm Earth, reducing the time necessary for evolution to occur. |
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How Cacti Escape the Heat
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| Topic: Origin & Evolution of Life |
11/30/10 |
| A small cactus is teaching scientists about a unique evolutionary mechanisms that plants can use to thrive in harsh environments. The study provides insight into the adaptability of life, and could help astrobiologists understand how some ecosystems might react to global warming. |
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When Mammals Became Mammoth
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| Topic: Origin & Evolution of Life |
11/28/10 |
| A new study demonstrates that the extinction of the dinosaurs paved the way for a dramatic increase in the size of mammals. The work provides new information about how ecosystems 'reset' after mass extinctions. |
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Cambrian Explosion Lasted 20 Million Years
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| Topic: Origin & Evolution of Life |
11/13/10 |
| New research is causing geologists to rethink the timeline of when animals appeared on the Earth. The fossil record indicates that a large number of animal species appeared during the 'Cambrian Explosion' some 542 million years ago. Now it seems that their appearance may not have been so sudden. |
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Poking an Alien Pod
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| Topic: Origin & Evolution of Life |
11/09/10 |
| In October, a UFO (unidentified 'floating' object) was spotted in Newport News, Virginia. The bizarre blob was not a Halloween prank, and has been identified as a 'magnificient bryozoan.' This species' fossil record spans some 500 million years - but the Newport News specimen is larger than most reports of the organism. |
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