In the urgent and multifaceted battle against climate change, understanding the psychological pathways that drive individual and collective action is crucial. Recent research underscores governmental efficacy—not merely as a political concept but as a psychological catalyst—as a pivotal determinant in galvanizing public engagement with climate initiatives. This insight shifts the paradigm from traditional economic or policy-driven explanations to a deeper recognition of how people’s belief in government competence fundamentally shapes climate-related behaviors and attitudes.

Climate change, as a global crisis, demands robust cooperation between citizens, governments, and institutions. Governments worldwide often attempt to implement policies and programs aimed at reducing carbon emissions, promoting renewable energy, and enhancing sustainability. However, such measures frequently encounter public skepticism or apathy. The research conducted by Goldwert, Sabherwal, and Vlasceanu highlights that the perception of government efficacy—that is, the public’s confidence in the government’s ability to enact meaningful change—acts as a critical psychological mechanism enabling or hindering climate action.

At its core, governmental efficacy is a psychological construct reflecting the belief that governmental bodies possess the competence, resources, and willpower to address climate crises effectively. This belief influences individuals’ propensity to participate in climate activism, adopt environmentally friendly behaviors, and support pro-environmental policies. The study reveals that when people trust that their government can and will perform decisively and competently on environmental issues, they feel empowered and are more motivated to contribute to the collective effort.

Moreover, the research draws on extensive psychological theory and behavioral science frameworks to explain how perceptions of governmental efficacy impact motivation. Notably, the role of self-efficacy—the belief in one’s own ability to effect change—is intertwined with collective efficacy regarding governments. When governments demonstrate efficacy, they enhance citizens’ sense of personal and collective agency, creating a feedback loop that fosters more dynamic participation in climate solutions.

The authors intricately explore how different dimensions of governmental efficacy influence climate engagement. These include the perceived transparency of government actions, accountability mechanisms, the clarity of communication regarding climate policies, and the tangible outcomes of implemented measures. Each of these dimensions works collectively to nurture a sense of trust and effectiveness, which is indispensable for sustaining long-term climate action.

Additionally, the research proffers that diminished confidence in government efficacy can have a demobilizing effect, breeding cynicism and disengagement. This dynamic is particularly salient in regions or countries where political instability, corruption, or historical failures undermine trust in public institutions. In such contexts, grassroots movements and non-governmental organizations often struggle to compensate for the psychological vacuum left by ineffective governance structures.

In transcending the usual discourses surrounding climate action, this research brings psychological determinants to the forefront. It suggests that increasing governmental efficacy perception is not solely a task for policymakers but also for communicators, educators, and community leaders. Strategic public engagement that transparently showcases government capabilities and ethical commitments can foster this efficacy perception, transforming passive observers into active participants.

The implications of this study extend to international climate policy frameworks, where nations’ commitments and track records are scrutinized by citizens and global observers alike. High-profile failures to meet targets or opaque governance breeds disillusionment. Conversely, governments that effectively communicate both their successes and challenges—and engage citizens in problem-solving—can inspire broader public confidence and support.

Furthermore, this psychological perspective has ripple effects on innovation and technology acceptance in climate mitigation. When citizens trust their governments’ ability to manage the complexities of new technologies—such as carbon capture, geoengineering, or renewable infrastructure—they are more likely to endorse and adopt these innovations. This psychological endorsement is crucial for scaling emerging climate solutions from experimental phases to widespread societal integration.

The authors also delve into the nuanced relationship between governmental efficacy and media narratives. Media representations not only shape public perception but also reflect and influence political accountability. Transparent and factual media coverage that highlights government efficacy in climate matters can amplify motivation for individual and collective action, while sensationalism or misinformation can erode these perceptions.

From a policy standpoint, the research advocates for governance models that prioritize transparency, inclusivity, and responsiveness. Collaborative governance, which involves stakeholders across sectors and levels, tends to enhance perceptions of efficacy by distributing responsibility and fostering shared ownership of climate goals. Such models not only bolster democratic legitimacy but also improve policy resilience through diversified input and adaptive capacities.

This study also explores the temporal dynamics of governmental efficacy. Short-term successes in climate policy can provide critical psychological boosts, fostering sustained engagement. Yet, it is the consistency of governmental performance and communication over time that cements long-range trust and motivation. This insight supports sustained investment not only in technical capacity but also in institutional stability and ethical governance.

Given the rising tide of climate anxiety and eco-paralysis among populations worldwide, the authors emphasize the transformative power of reinforcing governmental efficacy. In psychological terms, this approach combats helplessness and despair by cultivating hope and agency, critical emotions necessary for lasting behavioral change.

As climate change continues to present complex and evolving challenges, the integration of psychological perspectives like governmental efficacy into environmental strategies can significantly amplify their effectiveness. By recognizing and nurturing this vital pathway, societies can unlock new levels of climate engagement, ensuring that policies and initiatives do not languish in public disinterest but instead become powerful catalysts for collective transformation.

Ultimately, the research by Goldwert, Sabherwal, and Vlasceanu offers a compelling, empirically grounded narrative that elevates the psychological mechanisms underpinning climate action. It opens fresh avenues for research and practice, suggesting that tackling climate change is as much about fostering belief in collective competence as it is about technical innovation or legislative frameworks. This paradigm encourages a holistic understanding that intertwines governance, psychology, and social dynamics in the deeply interconnected quest for a sustainable future.

Subject of Research: Psychological pathways linking governmental efficacy to climate action

Article Title: Governmental efficacy is a key psychological pathway to climate action

Article References:
Goldwert, D., Sabherwal, A.C., & Vlasceanu, M. Governmental efficacy is a key psychological pathway to climate action. Commun Earth Environ (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-026-03743-1

Image Credits: AI Generated

In a groundbreaking advancement in the battle against oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC), researchers have identified novel molecular drivers that sculpt the invasive margins of these aggressive tumors. This insight, published recently in Cell Death Discovery, has the potential to radically redefine our understanding of tumor invasion dynamics and ultimately reshape therapeutic strategies aimed at curbing cancer spread.

Oral squamous cell carcinoma remains one of the most formidable malignancies affecting the head and neck region, notorious for its high rates of local invasion and eventual metastasis, which severely limit patient survival. The study, led by Flores, G., Uaroon, S., Garay, J.A.R., and colleagues, meticulously charts the cellular and molecular landscape at the leading edge of OSCC tumors—the so-called “tumor front”—where cancer cells adopt aggressive phenotypes to infiltrate neighboring tissues.

Prior research has predominantly focused on the bulk tumor mass, leaving the critical tumor front underexplored. By deploying cutting-edge techniques, including spatial transcriptomics and single-cell RNA sequencing, the team successfully delineated distinct subpopulations of tumor cells specialized in invasion. These cells exhibit unique gene expression profiles that confer enhanced motility, extracellular matrix remodeling abilities, and survival under hypoxic conditions, which are instrumental in their invasive behavior.

One of the study’s striking revelations is the identification of hitherto unrecognized molecular “invasion drivers”—key proteins and signaling pathways that orchestrate the repositioning of cancer cells at the tumor edge. Unlike traditional oncogenes that fuel uncontrolled proliferation, these invasion drivers specifically empower cancer cells to degrade surrounding tissue barriers and navigate through the extracellular matrix, effectively paving the way for tumor expansion.

The researchers highlight a set of transcription factors and matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) that are upregulated exclusively at the tumor front. These molecules cooperate in a sophisticated manner to dismantle the structural integrity of the adjacent stroma, facilitating tumor cell dissemination. Intriguingly, the expression patterns of these invasion drivers appear to be tightly regulated by microenvironmental cues, such as gradients of oxygen and nutrient availability, underscoring the complex interplay between tumor cells and their immediate surroundings.

Moreover, this study challenges existing paradigms by demonstrating that the invasive phenotype is not merely a consequence of genetic mutations but involves dynamic phenotypic plasticity. Tumor cells can reversibly toggle between proliferative and invasive states depending on microenvironmental signals. Understanding these switches opens new avenues for therapeutic intervention aimed at trapping cells in a less aggressive state.

Therapeutically, this discovery offers a tantalizing prospect: by targeting the newly identified invasion drivers, future treatments could precisely inhibit the tumor front’s ability to invade without necessarily impeding the entire tumor mass’s growth. Such specificity could minimize collateral damage to healthy tissues and reduce systemic toxicity, a perpetual challenge in current cancer therapeutics.

From a diagnostic angle, the invasion drivers at the tumor front may serve as biomarkers for early detection of aggressive OSCC phenotypes. Their presence could inform clinicians about the tumor’s invasive potential, guiding personalized treatment plans that preemptively address metastatic risk.

The study also underscores the importance of the tumor microenvironment in modulating cancer progression. Fibroblasts, immune cells, and extracellular matrix components construct a niche that either restrains or facilitates invasion. By mapping these interactions, the researchers shed light on multifaceted host-tumor dialogues that dictate disease trajectory.

In addition to molecular profiling, advanced imaging modalities employed in the study revealed spatial organization patterns of invasive cells, showcasing intricate cellular neighborhoods at the tumor front. This spatial heterogeneity is a critical factor that must be considered when designing targeted therapies, as homogeneous treatment approaches may fail to fully neutralize invasive subsets.

The findings resonate beyond oral cancer, hinting that similar invasion mechanisms might be operative in other solid tumors, including breast, pancreatic, and colorectal cancers. Consequently, this research may spark a broader reconsideration of how tumors orchestrate local invasion across cancer types.

Despite the promise, translational hurdles remain. The identified invasion drivers require validation in clinical cohorts, and their druggability must be thoroughly assessed. Nevertheless, the study lays a rigorous foundational framework that accelerates the trajectory from bench to bedside.

Interdisciplinary collaboration was pivotal for this success, blending molecular biology, computational genomics, and clinical oncology. The study exemplifies how convergent technological advances empower researchers to decode tumor complexity with unprecedented resolution.

In conclusion, by unveiling the molecular architects of tumor invasion, this research marks a vital milestone in cancer biology. It paves the path toward innovative therapeutic strategies that precisely disrupt cancer cell migration at its inception, potentially transforming outcomes for patients afflicted with oral squamous cell carcinoma and beyond.

—

Subject of Research: Molecular drivers of tumor invasion in oral squamous cell carcinoma

Article Title: Newly identified invasion drivers define the tumor front in oral squamous cell carcinoma

Article References:
Flores, G., Uaroon, S., Garay, J.A.R. et al. Newly identified invasion drivers define the tumor front in oral squamous cell carcinoma. Cell Death Discov. (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41420-026-03202-y

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41420-026-03202-y

In recent years, the pressing issue of environmental sustainability has taken center stage across the globe, with particular emphasis on regions facing acute developmental and ecological challenges. Somalia, a nation historically beset by conflict and economic hardship, emerges as a potent case study in understanding how innovative approaches in energy use and financial inflows can synergistically influence ecological outcomes. New research by Hussein and Warsame, published in Scientific Reports in 2026, offers an illuminating analysis of how the adoption of clean cooking energy technologies, paired with the critical economic role of remittances, impacts Somalia’s ecological footprint in measurable ways.

Somalia’s environmental landscape is complex, marked by drought-prone land, limited infrastructure, and a reliance on biomass fuels such as charcoal and firewood for cooking and heating. These traditional practices have created intensive pressure on the country’s already fragile ecosystems, leading to increased deforestation, land degradation, and carbon emissions. The transition to clean cooking energy sources is thus not merely a technological upgrade; it represents a potential paradigm shift towards substantially reducing environmental harm. Hussein and Warsame’s study provides a detailed evaluation of how this transition, supported by economic inflows from abroad in the form of remittances, influences Somalia’s environmental sustainability trajectory.

Clean cooking energy technology largely encompasses alternatives such as liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), solar cookers, improved biomass stoves, and biogas systems. These technologies are designed to burn fuel more efficiently or switch to renewable energy sources, thereby reducing particulate matter emissions and carbon footprints. According to the research, the adoption of these technologies in Somali households correlates with a marked decrease in health hazards associated with indoor air pollution as well as a diminution in the rate of deforestation. The shift alleviates the ecological strain imposed by traditional fuel use, contributing significantly to sustainability goals.

Remittances, financial resources sent from the Somali diaspora to families in the home country, play a critical role in enabling the adoption of clean cooking technologies. Hussein and Warsame emphasize the economic empowerment remittances provide, facilitating investments in household technology that may otherwise be unattainable due to poverty. This link between remittance flows and environmental improvement is a novel concept, highlighting a socio-economic mechanism that can drive sustainable development in fragile states. The paper’s data-driven insights suggest that remittance-receiving households are substantially more likely to invest in clean energy solutions, thus mitigating their ecological footprint.

From a technical standpoint, understanding the ecological footprint encompasses measuring the aggregate environmental impacts of resource consumption and waste generation. Hussein and Warsame utilize a rigorous methodology incorporating both satellite data on environmental degradation and household-level survey data. This mixed-method approach enables a nuanced understanding of how macroeconomic factors, like remittances, intersect with micro-level behavioral changes relating to energy use. Their results demonstrate a statistically significant reduction in per capita ecological footprints within communities with higher access to clean cooking energy, amplified by remittance income.

One of the pivotal challenges outlined in the study is the availability and affordability of clean cooking technologies in Somalia. Market constraints, supply chain issues, and political instability present formidable barriers. Yet, the data reveal a growing acceptance and preference for cleaner energy amid urban and semi-urban populations. The research advocates for policy frameworks that bolster supply networks, subsidize initial costs, and encourage innovations tailored to local contexts. These technical and economic interventions could serve as blueprints for other nations grappling with similar environmental and social dynamics.

The implications of this research extend beyond Somalia’s borders, illuminating a model where socio-economic and technological factors combine to create pathways toward sustainability in developing regions. Hussein and Warsame argue for an integrated approach that treats environmental issues not in isolation but as interconnected with economic livelihoods and social structures. The nexus of remittances and clean energy adoption is a critical finding, emphasizing how diaspora networks act as agents of sustainable change, channeling not only money but also knowledge and technology.

Importantly, the study also engages with the gender dimension of clean cooking energy adoption. Women, who traditionally bear the brunt of household cooking duties, stand to benefit significantly from cleaner cooking options through reduced exposure to hazardous smoke and the alleviation of labor associated with fuel collection. Remittances contribute here as well by enabling women’s access to these technologies, thus improving health outcomes and catalyzing broader social empowerment. This multifaceted impact underscores the intersectionality of environmental and social sustainability.

In terms of ecological metrics, Hussein and Warsame’s quantitative assessment captures reductions across several dimensions—carbon emissions, land use change, and biodiversity loss. Cleaner cooking energy reduces carbon monoxide, methane, and particulate emissions, all major contributors to climate change and respiratory illnesses. Reduced reliance on charcoal extraction leads to forest conservation, mitigating soil erosion and preserving biodiversity hotspots. This suite of environmental benefits is critical in a region frequently vulnerable to climate-induced shocks.

The technical backbone of this research includes the use of geospatial analysis to monitor environmental degradation patterns over time, coupled with econometric modeling to parse out the specific impacts of remittances and energy adoption on ecological footprints. This fusion of environmental science and economic analysis is innovative and critical for policy makers to design targeted interventions. The data sets employed are unique, combining remote sensing with social surveys to provide a holistic picture rarely captured in similar studies.

The ripple effects of these findings also touch on Somalia’s energy policy landscape. The government, alongside international donors and NGOs, is increasingly oriented towards promoting renewable energy uptake and sustainable development under the country’s national strategy frameworks. Hussein and Warsame’s research offers empirical backing to these initiatives by quantifying the environmental returns on investment in clean cooking infrastructure and diaspora engagement. Their work strengthens the case for scaling such interventions in fragile socio-political environments.

Furthermore, the research addresses challenges in ensuring long-term sustainability and scalability of clean cooking energy interventions. While initial uptake driven by remittance income is promising, the study highlights potential risks including reliance on imported fuels like LPG and fluctuations in remittance flows due to global economic shifts. The authors suggest that a diversified energy strategy encompassing solar, biogas, and locally sourced renewable fuels could foster resilience and greater ecological benefits in the long run.

This study also contributes to the ongoing discourse on global climate justice by contextualizing Somalia’s environmental challenges within historical inequalities and economic constraints. The authors argue that international cooperation and climate financing mechanisms should recognize the role of diaspora remittances as an informal yet powerful climate action enabler. Harnessing this dynamic could complement formal climate aid and investment, thereby enabling countries like Somalia to leapfrog to cleaner energy futures.

Critically, this pioneering research underscores the necessity for interdisciplinary approaches to tackle environmental sustainability. Combining technological innovation, economic flows, social behavior, and environmental assessment produces a robust analytical framework. This holistic perspective is essential to unravel the complexities faced by developing nations, where environmental degradation is often intertwined with economic vulnerability and political instability.

In conclusion, Hussein and Warsame’s 2026 publication in Scientific Reports offers a compelling narrative on how clean cooking energy and remittances jointly influence Somalia’s ecological footprint, presenting a replicable model for sustainability in resource-constrained settings. Their work pushes forward the agenda on integrating socio-economic factors with environmental technology adoption, providing a roadmap for future research, policy development, and international cooperation. As nations worldwide strive toward the Sustainable Development Goals, insights from Somalia remind us that innovative pathways can emerge even in the most challenging contexts, driven by the interplay of technology, finance, and social capital.

Subject of Research: Environmental sustainability in Somalia, focusing on the impact of clean cooking energy adoption and remittance flows on ecological footprints.

Article Title: Environmental sustainability in Somalia: the role of clean cooking energy and remittances on ecological footprints.

Article References: Hussein, H.A., Warsame, A.A. Environmental sustainability in Somalia: the role of clean cooking energy and remittances on ecological footprints. Sci Rep (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-57469-3

Image Credits: AI Generated

Microplastics are everywhere. They are tiny pieces of plastic that form when larger plastic items, such as bottles, food containers, plastic bags, and packaging materials, slowly break down over time. These particles are so small that people often cannot see them with the naked eye. Scientists have found microplastics in rivers, oceans, soil, drinking water, […]

The post Tiny Plastic Particles Could Strongly Harm Liver Health appeared first on Knowridge Science Report.

Lanchester Wines in north-east England uses heat from a disused coalmine to maintain wine temperatures and with 23,000 flooded mines in the UK, there’s huge potential for more businesses and homes to follow its lead

Shove them in a fridge, stash them in a cellar – this is how most people store their favourite bottles of wine. But if you have warehouses full of thousands of vintages, you have to think a little differently.

For the last eight winters, Lanchester Wines has used heat from a disused coalmine to maintain ideal storage temperatures at its facilities in the north-east of England, helping to prevent freezing or spoilage.

Apart from effort to electrify, there were geopolitical tensions around climate science and the 1.5C goal at pre-Cop31 climate talks

Electrifying the world – with electric vehicles, electric heating and cooling, and modernised heavy industry – could be the next biggest step towards phasing out fossil fuels, replacing the 80% of global energy that still comes from hydrocarbons. As using electrical energy is much more efficient than combustion, the move would save billions of dollars for consumers and businesses – global energy demand could be halved, according to one estimate.

For decades, electrification has been a nerdish backwater of global climate action. But in the last two weeks, at preparatory talks in Bonn before the forthcoming UN Cop31 climate summit, the subject finally took centre stage.

A seismic shockwave traveling within the Earth moved the entire Japanese archipelago by 5 to 6 millimeters, posing a previously unknown Earthquake danger, according to a University of Chicago researcher.

Revealed in a recent paper published in the journal Science, Sunyoung Park and colleagues identified a shear wave bouncing off the Earth’s core after the Tohoku-Oki earthquake in 2011. According to the researchers, this specific type of rebound effect in the mainshock area after an earthquake has never been recognized before, offering new insights into the residual dangers of seismic events and how the layers of our planet interact.

Japan Shifts

As the best-recorded megathrust event in history, the 2011 Tohoku-Oki earthquake has already been well characterized in past studies. However, the team decided to take another look at the event, as monitoring stations throughout Japan detected the ScS shear wave’s return after hitting the core, as well as the archipelago’s eastward movement.

“When we examined the GPS time series in detail, we noticed a small, coherent eastward motion across much of Japan that followed seismic waves reflected from the core (the ScS phase) return to Japan,” Park told The Debrief. “This motion was puzzling because there was no known earthquake (aftershocks) associated with it at that timing, and so we wanted to understand what was really happening.”

According to the team, a previously unknown phenomenon produced the notable ground shift. In just those 13 minutes, a shear wave from the Tohoku-Oki earthquake raced through the planet, bounced off the core, and reactivated the tectonic plate beneath Japan. 

Analyzing the Earthquake Data

In their analysis, they found the rebound shear wave aligned with the tectonic plate boundaries, which, combined with weakened frictional forces after the mainshock, produced the shear wave reflection.

“We only gradually became convinced that this returning wave could actually trigger slip on multiple plate boundaries,” Park said. “It was particularly surprising that such a long-traveling wave (traveling ~5800 km, comparable to the radius of the Earth) could both trigger an event and do so over such a broad region, comparable to the length of Japan, involving several different plate interfaces.”

The movement is described as “steplike,” due to the small but sudden nature of the shift. In the data, the movement resembles a staircase: a flat position, followed by a sudden shift, then another flattening at a different level. Resolving that tiny step proved a challenge.

“In this case, the steplike motion is only a few to several millimeters, so it is relatively small compared to the noise and various processing artifacts that can appear in GPS records,” Park explained. “We did not process the GPS data ourselves; instead, we relied on a carefully processed data product. Even so, we had to be very cautious, because subtle signals can sometimes be introduced by the way the data are processed.”

The research reexamined the main shock source for any evidence of large underwater landslides to rule out other potential causes and found no other correlations.

A New Type of Earthquake Events

According to the team, it is no surprise that such events have previously gone unrecognized. For this rebound effect to occur, an extremely powerful earthquake is required to produce a noticeable effect, and dense, high-precision monitoring networks are needed to detect tiny motions over a large area. Additionally, most seismic studies focus on localized effects rather than viewing the aftermath on such a broad scale.

The slip is six to seven times that of the main shock rupture, making it the broadest single event rupture area ever recorded, doubling that of the great Sumatra Earthquake in 2004. According to the researchers, the Sumatra earthquake may be another example of this behavior, although no work has yet been done to investigate this.

From their work, the team says they cannot predict the exact amount of slip from such an event in the future, similar to the inability to predict normal earthquakes; yet, they can predict when the rebound effect will occur after the main thrust.

“I want to understand more generally how processes deep inside the Earth interact with shallow parts of the Earth,” Park concluded. “I am interested in why deep earthquakes happen and how they may be linked to the whole subduction system and the dynamics, from shallow to deep depth ranges.”

Park added that he is also finding “that these deep events can produce measurable deformation at the Earth’s surface, just like the step-like motions we see in this study,” all of which is helping researchers like him “better understand both these earthquakes and the structure of the Earth.”

The paper, “ScS-Triggered Slip on Megathrust Interfaces after the 2011 Mw 9.0 Tohoku-Oki Earthquake,” appeared in Science on June 18, 2026.

Ryan Whalen covers science and technology for The Debrief. He holds an MA in History and a Master of Library and Information Science with a certificate in Data Science. He can be contacted at ryan@thedebrief.org, and follow him on Twitter @mdntwvlf.

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Top 10% generate climate and biodiversity damage bill that exceeds economies of most countries, say researchers

The environmental damage bill racked up by the highest-consuming 10% of the world’s population has reached up to $5.7tn a year – larger than the economy of every country except the US and China, a study has found.

Mega-consumers in this group are concentrated in the global north, accounting for more than half the population of the US and 40-45% of people in the EU.

In January 2026 alone, the Federal Communications Commission authorized 15,000 Starlink Gen2 satellites. Starcloud has filed for 88,000 orbital data center satellites. SpaceX has filed for 1 million. There is […]

The post What the satellite servicing economy can borrow from carbon credits appeared first on SpaceNews.

Around 66 million years ago, an asteroid wiped out 75% of the species on Earth. This event caused the extinction of all dinosaurs except birds, referred to as non-avian dinosaurs. However, an open question in paleontology is whether the dinosaurs were already declining before the asteroid hit. Many scientists think that around 5 to 10 million years before the extinction event, dinosaurs became less biologically diverse across America, making them more prone to extinction. 

To investigate this hypothesis, scientists recently revisited fossils in a rock layer from the end of the dinosaur era that previous researchers had incorrectly dated. The bulk of the fossils from this period had previously been collected from a different section of rocks called the Hell Creek Formation in Montana. These researchers studied a rock layer in New Mexico that is exposed to the surface, known as the Naashoibito Member. It’s approximately 30 meters (about 100 feet) thick and formed from ancient river sediments. 

To determine when the Naashoibito Member formed, the scientists measured the decay of radioactive elements within its mineral grains over time, a technique called radiometric dating. The scientist reasoned that these mineral grains must have crystallized before being transported and incorporated into the Naashoibito Member, so their youngest ages should provide a maximum depositional age. 

They determined the ages of 1,046 crystals of the mineral feldspar from 2 dinosaur-bearing rock layers in the Naashoibito Member. Based on these ages, the researchers found that a sandstone within 5 meters (about 16 feet) of the lowest boundary of the Naashoibito Member must be younger than 66.9 million years old. They found that the other layer, which is around 3.5 meters (11 feet) from the base of the lowest boundary, must be younger than 66.4 million years old. These age ranges indicated that the sandstone contains dinosaur fossils formed 400,000 years before their extinction.

Next, the researchers measured the direction of magnetic minerals inside the rocks, using a practice called magnetostratigraphy. The direction of these minerals indicates where Earth’s magnetic field was pointing at that time. Scientists have shown that the Earth’s magnetic field has flipped multiple times over Earth’s history, so they can use these magnetic signals to create a timescale for when the sediments formed. 

The researchers wanted to determine whether the magnetic minerals were lined up in a direction like today, called normal polarity, or the opposite, called reverse polarity. The researchers found one rock layer with normal polarity at the base of the Naashoibito Member, and one with reverse polarity in the upper part of the Naashoibito Member. These magnetic field directions lined up with 2 known polarity intervals over a timeline that matched the feldspar dates. Together, these data demonstrated that the Naashoibito Member formed at the end of the dinosaur era, around the same time as the Hell Creek Formation.

Next, the researchers wanted to test whether non-avian dinosaurs maintained their diversity across different regions of Western North America during this time period. They compared fossil patterns from locations across North America using statistical grouping methods that determine how similar or different their environments were. They found that temperature, rather than geographical location alone, was the best predictor of diversity at the extinction event. 

The team concluded that a diverse population of Naashoibito dinosaurs lived at around the same time as the Hell Creek dinosaurs. Earlier scientists surmised that dinosaurs were already on the decline because they studied the colder northern regions, where diversity was lower. However, these results suggest that warmer conditions in the south still supported diverse dinosaur populations. Together, this evidence suggests that dinosaurs were still diverse and thriving 66 million years ago, and that their extinction was indeed a result of the asteroid impact.

The post Were dinosaurs doomed before the asteroid hit? appeared first on Sciworthy.

Generator’s shares rise as regulator finds no evidence of misleading statements about fuel’s sustainability

The City watchdog has closed an investigation into the owner of the Drax power plant after an almost 10-month review into whether the company’s sustainability claims mislead shareholders.

The Financial Conduct Authority said it had “reviewed thousands of pages” of “complex material” relating to the company’s sourcing of wood pellets for the Drax power plant in Selby, North Yorkshire, but “did not find evidence that justified any further action”.