Marine Ecologist Malin Pinsky Selected as one of Science News’ Top Scientists to Watch in 2019

For the fifth year in a row, the award-winning magazine, Science News, is recognizing young stars—all under the age of 40—across scientific disciplines, from genetics to astrochemistry, from quantum mechanics to climate change. By recognizing their work now in a feature highlighting 10 early- and mid-career scientists, the magazine hopes to shine a light on the next generation of great scientists—future leaders …

Robert Chant awarded CERF’s 2019 Pritchard Award

Bob Chant

Congratulations to Dr. Bob Chant on winning the Coastal & Estuarine Research Federation’s 2019 Pitchard Award. This award was established to honor Dr. Donald W. Pritchard, whose insightful research on the physical dynamics of coastal systems set the stage for much of the research in physical oceanography that is being conducted today. The Pritchard Award recognizes the author(s) of the …

Samantha Bova wins L’Oréal USA For Women in Science Fellowship

Samantha Bova leading the field team carrying a sediment core at sea.

The L’Oréal USA For Women in Science fellowship program awards five women postdoctoral scientists annually with grants of $60,000 each for their contributions in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) fields and commitment to serving as role models for younger generations. The program is the U.S. component of the L’Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science International Fellowships program. Celebrating its sixteenth year …

Red Algae Thrive Despite Ancestor’s Massive Loss of Genes

Study may spawn ways to genetically alter and control red seaweeds You’d think that losing 25 percent of your genes would be a big problem for survival. But not for red algae, including the seaweed used to wrap sushi. An ancestor of red algae lost about a quarter of its genes roughly one billion years ago, but the algae still …

Is Theory on Earth’s Climate in the Last 15 Million Years Wrong?

Left: Large coccoliths – disks made of calcium carbonate that armor single-celled algae called coccolithophores – from the Middle Miocene about 16 million to 11.6 million years ago. Right: Small coccoliths from the Pleistocene about 2.6 million to 11,700 years ago. Photo: Weimin Si

Rutgers-led study casts doubt on Himalayan rock weathering hypothesis A key theory that attributes the climate evolution of the Earth to the breakdown of Himalayan rocks may not explain the cooling over the past 15 million years, according to a Rutgers-led study. The study in the journal Nature Geoscience could shed more light on the causes of long-term climate change. It centers on …

Soils Could Be Affected by Climate Change, Impacting Water and Food

Increased irrigation by sprinklers at the Konza Prairie Biological Station in the Flint Hills of northeastern Kansas altered the soil pore system of a prairie soil. Photo: Edouard Sagues

Rutgers-led study shows how increased rainfall can reduce water infiltration in soils Coasts, oceans, ecosystems, weather and human health all face impacts from climate change, and now valuable soils may also be affected. Climate change may reduce the ability of soils to absorb water in many parts of the world, according to a Rutgers-led study. And that could have serious …

Seeking the Origins of Life in Antarctica

Mansha Seth-Pasricha in Antarctica.

DEENR Post Doc Mansha Seth-Pasricha seeks clues to the origins of life in Antarctica, where the environment is similar to that of Earth millions of years ago.  By Lessley Delcid and Walker Perry In 2015, Mansha Seth-Pasricha, a postdoctoral associate in the Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Natural Resources (DEENR) at Rutgers University-New Brunswick, traveled to Antarctica. “The water was unlike anything …

Nuclear Winter Would Threaten Nearly Everyone on Earth

A nuclear blast. Image: Ready.gov

Second study of its kind confirms extreme impacts from U.S. vs. Russia nuclear war  If the United States and Russia waged an all-out nuclear war, much of the land in the Northern Hemisphere would be below freezing in the summertime, with the growing season slashed by nearly 90 percent in some areas, according to a Rutgers-led study. Indeed, death by …

Study Finds Big Increase in Ocean Carbon Dioxide Absorption Along West Antarctic Peninsula

Morning sunlight reflects off sea ice along the West Antarctic Peninsula. Photo: Drew Spacht/The Ohio State University

Long-term measurements reveal links between climate change and ocean carbon dynamics Climate change is altering the ability of the Southern Ocean off the West Antarctic Peninsula to absorb carbon dioxide, according to a Rutgers-led study, and that could magnify climate change in the long run. The study, led by scientists at Rutgers University–New Brunswick, is published in the journal Nature Climate Change. The …

Could Duckweed Feed the World?

A smoothie with duckweed. Photo: Morgan Mark/Rutgers University-New Brunswick

Rutgers professor is at the forefront of duckweed farming research Climate change is threatening the world’s food supply and the risk of supply disruptions is expected to grow as temperatures rise, according to a new United Nations report co-authored by Rutgers human ecology professor Pamela McElwee. So, how would we feed everyone if the Earth’s population hits 9.7 billion in 2050 as projected? Duckweed, the …