Prehistoric "Jaws"

The mouth of Dunkleosteus terrelli. The fish is believed to have grown up to 30 feet in length.
Image: BBC

The Royal Society's journal, Biology Letters, reports that the extinct fish Dunkleosteus terrelli had a bite strength of 1,100 pounds. This power surpasses any other known species of fish, including the great white shark. By comparison, T. rex measured some 3,000 pounds of bite strength. Researchers constructed a model of Dunkleosteus terrelli from fossil remains. Because of the structure of the jaw, pressure could be focused onto the fang tip with an impressive intensity of 22,000 pounds per square inch. This fish lived during the Devonian Period, some 415 to 360 million years ago.

--BBC has more information

Climate Change through Inuit Eyes

Snow-covered mountains in upper Canada.
Image: NOAA

"In the old days, we used to have 10 months of winter; now it's six. Every year we're getting winter later and later." These are the words of Simon Awa, an Inuit leader from Nunavut in Canada. There are some 155,000 people in Canada, Greenland, Russian and Alaska who struggle to maintain their ancient way of life in wake of the changing polar climate. The native people have noticed there is less time to hunt caribou, walrus, and polar bear, all now in danger from a thawing climate. These animals must migrate further north to colder climates in order to survive. Scientists fear the change felt in these arctic regions is a forecast of what the rest of the planet may face in the future.

--The USA Today has more information

Carbon Emissions Rising

Global carbon emissions are currently rising by 2.5% annually.
Image: NASA

Anthropogenic emissions of carbon dioxide have increased by two and a half times over the last half-decade. According to the Global Carbon Project, emissions had been rising by 1 percent before the year 2000, but since 2000 they have accelerated to 2.5 percent. Some researchers believe that the cause rests with the high cost of oil; this has precipitated an increase in the use of charcoal, and charcoal contributes more carbon pollution than oil. Carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas, a pollutant directly linked to global warming.

--BBC has more information

Mapping Neanderthal Genetic Code

Skull of a Neanderthal man.
Image: Nature Publishing

99.5 percent of the Neanderthal genome is identical to modern humans, according to researchers studying the genetic code of a 38,000 year old bone speciman. It is understood that modern humans and Neanderthals are descended from a common ancestor and seperated some 450,000 years ago. Scientists hope to have a map of the Neanderthal genome within two years. It is believed that such research will provide evidence as to why the Neanderthals went extinct.

--"99.5 Percent Like a Neanderthal," The New York Times, 18 Nov. 2006, sec. A26.

Extraterrestrial Rain?

Bacteria may be "born space travellers."
Image: BBC

Dr. Godfrey Louis' investigation of a strange red rain that fell in India in 2001 has raised eyebrows in the scientific community. He found tiny cells present in the rain, but the cells did not hold DNA, a necessary component for life on Earth. The conclusion he came to was that they must be alien in origin. This claim has added fuel to the "Panspermia" theory, the theory that life on Earth was originally brought from a different planet, and Dr. Wickramasinghe says that "bacteria seem to me to be born space travellers." The quest to find life in our solar system has intensified; Nasa is currently working on a submarine to explore the oceans on Jupiter's moon Europa.

--BBC has more information

The Family That Walks on All Fours

PBS will air the program on Tuesday, November 14th at 8pm.

Image: PBS.org

A family living in rural Turkey possesses a unique trait--they walk on all fours. Scientists are intrigued by these people, and researcher Uner Tan created a controversy in 2005 by claiming they were "genetic throwbacks." But other scientists reject that notion as insulting and instead search for a different cause. The program will air on PBS this Tuesday at 8pm. PBS has a program description and preview.

--Found out more at PBS

"Spectacular" Dinosaur Skull Returns to Origins

The Styracosaurus skull.
Image: www.eurekalert.org

A "spectacular", one-of-a-kind dinosaur skull is being moved back to where it was found in Alberta, Canada, and will be studied at the University of Alberta. The fossil once belonged to a Styracosaurus, a large herbivorous dinosaur that could reach lengths of five meters and weigh as much as three tons. The skull itself is two meters long. Paleontologists will be able to verify and compare other dinosaur specimens, such as Centrosaurus and Pachyrhinosaurus, to the Styracosaurus skull.

—Read more at Eurekalert.org

European Scientists: Frozen Sea Below Martian Surface

Geographic features on the Martian surface imply a frozen sea just below the surface.
Image: European Space Agency

The Mars Express spacecraft has taken photographs of Mars' equatorial region Elysium that suggest a frozen sea lies below the surface. It is believed that a cataclysmic flood event engulfed the area millions of years ago, and ice later froze the sea. Since then, dust coated the surface, hiding the sea beneath a thin layer. The water is thought to have originated from subterranean eruptions at the fractures of Cerberus Fossae. Many hope the European Space Agency will send its next lander there. Some see this as evidence that life not only thrived previously on Mars, but that some microorganisms may still exist there.

--BBC has more information

Collapse of all fish, seafood species within 50 years

A school of fish in Tobago.
Image: www.geodyssey.co.uk

According to a report in the Nov. 3 Science, a current trend points to a 90% decline in the catch of all fish and seafood species by 2048. Currently, 29% of all fish and seafood species have collapsed. This not only impacts a key source of food for human beings, but puts the ocean ecosystem's overall productivity and stability at risk at well. However, this trend is reversible — the researchers found that in 48 areas worldwide protected to improve marine biodiversity, species diversity improved dramatically.

—Read more at Eurekalert.org