New research suggests that low oxygen levels may help alleviate disease caused by defects in mitochondrial quality control. Oxygen is essential for peopleβand most other organismsβbut more is not always better. When oxygen accumulates beyond what cells can safely use, it can become toxic and contribute to serious health problems. In the brain, excess oxygen [...]
Ancient Australian fossils indicate that the earliest eukaryotes depended on oxygen, providing new evidence that oxygen helped enable the evolution of complex life. Stored in an open-air warehouse in tropical Darwin, Australia, are dozens of trays containing cylindrical cores of rock. They are from drill holes bored hundreds of meters below the surface by mineral [...]
Chemical traces preserved in ancient rocks indicate that marine environments were deteriorating long before the catastrophe that wiped out vast numbers of species at the end of the Triassic period, around 201 million years ago.
The recent claim that polymetallic deep-ocean floor nodules produce oxygen challenges traditional views on oxygen production and the origin of life. New evidence suggests oxygen is produced in darkness via electrolysis in these nodules, sparking controversy and skepticism in the scientific community regarding its implications for evolution of life.
The fundamental differences between Carbon and Silicon as bases for life are presented. All known life relies on Carbon for energy through processes like photosynthesis, whereas Silicon-based life is impossible. The belief in creating sustainable fuels while eliminating Carbon is contrary to all logic. No Carbon means no life!
Water vapour and clouds are very important in regulating Earthβs temperature and supporting life. I question why the Climate Cult's focus is primarily on carbon dioxide. I emphasize the role of the essential molecules in the planetβs design and climate regulation.
Analyzing 1.75-billion-year-old microfossils from ancient Australian seabeds, paleontologists say ancient eukaryotes -- the ancestors of every plant, animal and fungus -- huddled in oxygenated seafloor patches for over a billion years before breaking free into open water.
Planet Earth has some pretty great qualities going for it. (Negative reviews mostly revolve around the staff and clientele.) Pretty high on the list of positives is a richly oxygenated atmosphere. But thatβs something that evolved and built up over a couple billion years, only eventually resulting in a world conducive to animal life like us.
Scientists have many ideas about what could have caused oxygen to increase, and it seems that a number of them are probably correct. No one thing in isolation seems to explain it. Life is part of the story, with photosynthetic life pumping out oxygen. The chemistry of the solid Earth also had a role to play, both through supporting photosynthetic life and through reactions that can shuttle oxygen between the atmosphere and rocks deep inside the Earth.
A new study led by Wei Shi of the Chengdu University of Technology suggests that evidence of changes in the subduction of tectonic platesβthe process by which they disappear down into Earthβs interiorβlines up with the timing of jumps in oxygen levels.