Earth

SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH -- In the global aftershock zone that followed the major April 2012 Indian Ocean earthquake, seismologists noticed an unusual pattern. The magnitude (M) 8.6 earthquake, a strike-slip event at intraoceanic tectonic plates, caused global seismic rates of M≥4.5 to rise for several days, even at distances thousands of kilometers from the mainshock site. However, the rate of M≥6.5 seismic activity subsequently dropped to zero for the next 95 days.

Salt Lake City, Utah -- The entire world becomes an aftershock zone after a massive magnitude (M) 7 or larger earthquake—but what hazard does this pose around the planet? Researchers are working to extend their earthquake risk estimates over a global scale, as they become better at forecasting the impact of aftershocks at a local and regional level.

Smart electronics are taking the world by storm. From techno-textiles to transparent electronic displays, the world of intelligent technology is growing fast and a revolutionary new device has just been added to its ranks. Researchers at the University of Exeter have developed a new photoelectric device that is both flexible and transparent. The device, described in a paper in the journal ACS Nano, converts light into electrical signals by exploiting the unique properties of the recently discovered materials graphene and graphExeter.

University of Melbourne researcher and practising GP, Associate Professor Kelsey Hegarty from the Department of General Practice is leading research into domestic violence and primary care.

The study "Effect of screening and brief counseling for abused women on quality of life, safety planning and mental health : A primary care cluster randomized controlled trial Associate Professor Hegarty and her collaborators wanted to test if support and counselling from the GP could lead to positive changes in women leading to safety planning and improved mental health and quality of life.

"Increased hearing sensitivity could improve a fish's ability to use sound for navigation, predator avoidance, and communication. However, it could also increase their sensitivity to common background noises, which may disrupt the detection of more useful auditory information," said Bignami, who recently completed his PhD in Marine Biology and Fisheries at UM.

When Sandy turned and took aim at New York City and Long Island last October, it wasn't a hurricane, but it had too much media attention to be ignored, and so a "super storm" was born.

But it wasn't just midtown media company vanity. The waves actually rattled the seafloor and much of the United States. We couldn't feel any of that but the shaking was detected by seismometers across the country, University of Utah researchers found.

José M. González-Jiménez et al., ARC Centre of Excellence for Core to Crust Fluid Systems (CCFS), and GEMOC, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW 2109, Australia. Published online ahead of print on 4 April; DOI:10.1130/G34003.1.

A new report on the potential effects of climate change on NOAA's Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary uses existing observations and science-based expectations to identify how climate change could affect habitats, plants and animals within the sanctuary and adjacent coastal areas.

It also outlines new management recommendations for the sanctuary, and sanctuary officials called it the first step toward addressing them.

A study just published in the Journal of Marine Biology sheds new light on the relatively rare but occasionally recorded presence of white sharks in waters surrounding the Hawaiian Islands, and suggests a new method to help distinguish between white sharks and close relatives, such as mako sharks. The paper, titled "Occurrence of White Sharks in Hawaiian Waters", was written by Kevin Weng of the University of Hawai'i – Manoa's School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology (SOEST) and Randy Honebrink of the Hawai'i DLNR Division of Aquatic Resources (DAR).

A team of geoscientists from Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) using newly available remote-sensing technology has achieved unprecedented detail in quantifying subtle, long-period changes in the water levels of shallow lakes and ponds in hard-to-reach Arctic wetlands.

A new study of Antarctic clams reveals that age matters when it comes to adapting to the effects of climate change. The research provides new insight and understanding of the likely impact of predicted environmental change on future ocean biodiversity.

Hydrogen sulfide, the pungent stuff often referred to as sewer gas, is a deadly substance implicated in several mass extinctions, including one at the end of the Permian period 251 million years ago that wiped out more than three-quarters of all species on Earth.

But in low doses, hydrogen sulfide could greatly enhance plant growth, leading to a sharp increase in global food supplies and plentiful stock for biofuel production, new University of Washington research shows.

SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - A team of Australian engineers at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) has demonstrated a quantum bit based on the nucleus of a single atom in silicon, promising dramatic improvements for data processing in ultra-powerful quantum computers of the future.

Quantum bits, or qubits, are the building blocks of quantum computers, which will offer enormous advantages for searching expansive databases, cracking modern encryption, and modelling atomic-scale systems such as biological molecules and drugs.

To maneuver a car into a parking spot parallel to the road can be quite a challenge. It would be an easy task, of course, if only the vehicle could move sideways. As this is not possible, the sideways motion must be pieced together – sometimes elegantly, sometimes less so – in a series of forward and backward movements and turns on the steering wheel. Such a finely tuned sequence of movements also enables cats to almost always land on their feet after a free fall. Researchers at ETH Zurich have now used a similar principle for steering a quantum system into a desired state.

TORONTO, ON – Call it the ultimate nature documentary. Scientists at the University of Toronto have recorded atomic motions in real time, offering a glimpse into the very essence of chemistry and biology at the atomic level.

Their recording is a direct observation of a transition state in which atoms undergo chemical transformation into new structures with new properties – in this case the transfer of charge leading to metallic behaviour in organic molecules. It is described in a study reported in the April 18 issue of Nature.