livescience--2020-11-03--Mantis shrimp punch down, pick on smaller rivals to steal their homes

A perfect home is hard to find , and some called `` smashers '' for their clublike arm work hard to locate one that 's just right .
If the home already has an owner , the invader will fight fiercely to evict it .
To find out how aggressively this tiny crustacean will fight to throw out a previous owner of a coral burrow , researchers created `` arenas '' in laboratory aquariums and staged battles between mantis shrimp , over ownership of a desirable mock burrow .
Though mantis shrimp typically prefer burrows that are bigger than their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , that was n't always the case in the experiments .
In the staged battles , the combatants fought hardest to win homes that were slightly smaller than ideal , perhaps because the invaders recognized that smaller burrows contained punier rivals that would be easier to defeat , the scientists wrote in a new study .
Despite their common name , mantis shrimp are n't shrimp ; rather , they are stomatopods , a related crustacean order .
For the study , the scientists collected the mantis shrimp Neogonodactylus bredini , which live @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Sea and measure up to 2.4 inches ( 60 millimeters ) in length , according to the .
are known for their speed , accelerating at 50 mph ( 80 km/h ) to deliver blows that can smash snail shells and crack aquarium glass .
N. bredini males and females both compete for ownership of reef-rubble burrows in seagrass beds , and they deliver `` potentially damaging , high-force strikes during these contests , '' the researchers reported .
The scientists randomly paired up male and female mantis shrimp , acclimating them separately @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Then , one shrimp was presented with a plastic burrow with a single opening , where it could make itself at home .
Next , the scientists introduced a second shrimp to the tank , observing the interloper to see if it would attack the burrow 's occupant ( competitions were stopped if either of the mantis shrimp were in danger of suffering serious injury or death , according to the study ) .
When mantis shrimp had their choice of unoccupied burrows , they typically picked options that included some growing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to fight for an already-occupied burrow , they fought harder and were more successful if the burrows were smaller than the ideal size , the researchers found .
Burrow residents definitely had a home-turf advantage — the invaders won just 31 % of their fights .
If the burrows were much too big or much too small for the invaders , they fared even worse , winning only 13 % of the battles .
But when a burrow was only slightly smaller than was ideal for the invader 's body size , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the time .
It 's possible that the interlopers assessed the size of the smaller burrows and recognized that the shrimp inside would also be smaller — and easier to beat in a fight .
`` We know that animals can assess a variety of factors , including the size of the opponent and the value of the prize , when deciding whether to fight and how hard to fight , '' said lead study author Patrick Green , a postdoctoral fellow with the Human Frontier Science Program at the Centre for Ecology @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in Cornwall , England .
`` In this case , as a smaller burrow is probably occupied by a smaller opponent , it seems mantis shrimps will compromise on the size of the home if it means an easier fight , '' Green .
`` It might be assumed that animals fight hardest for the biggest assets , but this study is an example of maximum effort being reserved for something that 's 'just right , ' '' Green said .
They published their findings online Oct. 28 in the journal .

A perfect home is hard to find, and some mantis shrimp called "smashers" for their clublike arm work hard to locate one that's just right. If the home already has an owner, the invader will fight fiercely to evict it.
To find out how aggressively this tiny crustacean will fight to throw out a previous owner of a coral burrow, researchers created "arenas" in laboratory aquariums and staged battles between mantis shrimp, over ownership of a desirable mock burrow.
Though mantis shrimp typically prefer burrows that are bigger than their bodies, leaving them room to grow, that wasn't always the case in the experiments. In the staged battles, the combatants fought hardest to win homes that were slightly smaller than ideal, perhaps because the invaders recognized that smaller burrows contained punier rivals that would be easier to defeat, the scientists wrote in a new study.
Related: Smash! Super-stabby mantis shrimp shows off in video
Despite their common name, mantis shrimp aren't shrimp; rather, they are stomatopods, a related crustacean order. For the study, the scientists collected the mantis shrimp Neogonodactylus bredini, which live in coral reefs in the southern Caribbean Sea and measure up to 2.4 inches (60 millimeters) in length, according to the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute .
Mantis shrimp "punches" are known for their speed, accelerating at 50 mph (80 km/h) to deliver blows that can smash snail shells and crack aquarium glass. N. bredini males and females both compete for ownership of reef-rubble burrows in seagrass beds, and they deliver "potentially damaging, high-force strikes during these contests," the researchers reported.
The scientists randomly paired up male and female mantis shrimp, acclimating them separately to burrows in a range of sizes. Then, one shrimp was presented with a plastic burrow with a single opening, where it could make itself at home. Next, the scientists introduced a second shrimp to the tank, observing the interloper to see if it would attack the burrow's occupant (competitions were stopped if either of the mantis shrimp were in danger of suffering serious injury or death, according to the study).
An intruder potentially assessing an occupied burrow. (Image credit: Roy Caldwell)
When mantis shrimp had their choice of unoccupied burrows, they typically picked options that included some growing room. But when the crustaceans had to fight for an already-occupied burrow, they fought harder and were more successful if the burrows were smaller than the ideal size, the researchers found.
Burrow residents definitely had a home-turf advantage — the invaders won just 31% of their fights. If the burrows were much too big or much too small for the invaders, they fared even worse, winning only 13% of the battles.
But when a burrow was only slightly smaller than was ideal for the invader's body size, the intruder mantis shrimp won 67% of the time. It's possible that the interlopers assessed the size of the smaller burrows and recognized that the shrimp inside would also be smaller — and easier to beat in a fight.
"We know that animals can assess a variety of factors, including the size of the opponent and the value of the prize, when deciding whether to fight and how hard to fight," said lead study author Patrick Green, a postdoctoral fellow with the Human Frontier Science Program at the Centre for Ecology and Conservation at the University of Exeter in Cornwall, England.
"In this case, as a smaller burrow is probably occupied by a smaller opponent, it seems mantis shrimps will compromise on the size of the home if it means an easier fight," Green said in a statement . "It might be assumed that animals fight hardest for the biggest assets, but this study is an example of maximum effort being reserved for something that's 'just right,'" Green said.
They published their findings online Oct. 28 in the journal Animal Behavior .
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-11-03--What happens if a president loses an election but won't leave the White House?

President Donald Trump has suggested he would not accept the results of the 2020 presidential election if he were to lose .
Let 's say he does lose and he refuses to leave the White House .
What then ?
Nothing like this has ever happened in American history , so it 's difficult to know for certain .
However , political scientists and historians told Live Science they 're reasonably confident it would n't work .
In one scenario , assume that challenger Joe Biden wins by a wide enough margin in enough swing states to put the actual @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reasonable to wonder whether Trump , who has said that he could only lose if the election were `` rigged '' against him , would ever accept the results of an election he lost .
According to the 20th Amendment , if Trump loses the election , his term would end at noon on Jan. 20 , 2021 , at which time he would officially pass his commander-in-chief authority to Biden .
Related : We Fact-Checked the Science Behind the Republican Party 2016 Platform Even if he disagrees with the results , if @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be removed from the White House , according to Robert Shapiro , a professor and the former acting director of Columbia University 's Institute for Social and Economic Research and Policy .
There 's no reason today to assume things will ever get to that point .
Trump might simply win the election , confounding polls for a second time after 2016 .
He might lose the election , then agree to leave office .
And he might be able to hang on to his office by putting his thumb on the scales @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said .
Trump has repeatedly said in public that he expects to win the election ( as opposed to victory at the polls ) .
This , on its own , would n't be entirely new .
In the 2000 presidential election , Texas Gov .
George W. Bush defeated Vice President Al Gore , not by clearly having the most votes cast in his favor , but by more effectively fighting court battles following a Florida result so hazy that — as Leon Nayfakh — the true winner may have been unknowable @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fight for the presidency is the new normal .
Bush v. Gore , the 5-4 Supreme Court decision that ended the 2000 election , was supposed to be an aberration .
The conservative majority that handed the election to Bush wrote that the doctrine they used should never be used as precedent .
One of them , former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor , later wondered publicly whether it was a mistake .
And there are important differences between 2000 and 2020 .
First , Trump has undertaken a tremendous ( though @ @ @ @ @ @ @ day to prevent people from voting in key swing states , according to and the former Republican speaker of the Texas House .
GOP lawyers have fanned out across the country to and tried ( ) to .
Second , though Gore was vice president to President Bill Clinton , who supported him , and Bush was brother to Florida Gov .
Jeb Bush , neither man was president at the time they were fighting to overturn election results .
If Trump uses a Supreme Court challenge to win the election as he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it as the sitting president .
And he will have personally installed three of the nine justices who could decide the case .
And of course , neither Bush nor Gore threatened legal challenges before the election had actually happened .
Only when a huge , decisive swing state came down to a few hundred uncertain votes did Gore fight for recounts and Bush fight to stop recounts .
Trump has struck out into uncharted territory with his threats of a legal battle for the presidency , Shapiro said .
But despite all @ @ @ @ @ @ @ actual winner of the election will become president .
`` In the 2000 election , Florida was caught off-guard .
Nobody knew that was coming , '' he said .
`` Everything that 's going on right now , everyone knows is coming . ''
Ultimately , the bureaucracy of elections is beyond Trump 's reach .
`` Each of the state election bureaucracies are feverishly trying to complete the running of their elections and the counting of the votes .
They know what 's coming and they know what they have to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ These are election professionals who do vary in quality across states .
… They take pride in making elections work .
There 's no shenanigans among the actual civil service vote counters . ''
And whatever shenanigans are attempted , at some point they have to end .
Federal law says that the states have to finalize their choices of electors on Dec. 8 of the year of elections .
And on Dec. 14 , the electoral college casts their votes — typically with each group of electors meeting separately in their own @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said , the matter is settled .
If more electors vote for Trump , he will get a second inauguration .
If more vote for Biden , he will be the legal president-elect , beyond the reach of a court challenge .
Still , what if Trump still refuses to leave ?
It 's worth saying again that while Trump has refused to commit to a peaceful transfer of power , he has n't explicitly said he would reject results even at this point .
And it would be a true first in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had ever hinted at refusing to accept election results , Bruce Schulman , a historian at Boston University , said no .
`` There is no such precedent or anything really like it , '' Schulman told Live Science .
Twice , in 1824 and 1876 , presidential elections have ended in the House of Representatives after no candidate managed to secure a majority of the electoral college , he pointed out .
In 1824 , Andrew Jackson , John Quincy Adams , Henry Clay and William Crawford all ran for the presidency @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and the House selected Adams as as president .
The 1876 congressional contest ended when Republican Rutherford B. Hayes promised congressional Democrats that he would end Reconstruction in return for their votes .
That remains one of the most significant events in American history , as .
But in each case , the loser accepted the final result .
Related : Why did the Democratic and Republican parties switch platforms ?
A more relevant precedent , said Noah Rosenblum , a legal historian at Columbia University in New York City , may @ @ @ @ @ @ @ President John Adams ( a Federalist ) and Vice President Thomas Jefferson ( a Democratic-Republican ) .
`` That election , as you may know , pitted the Federalists against the Democratic-Republicans , and the contest was fierce , '' Rosenblum said .
`` Each side expressed its sense that , if the other won , it would mean the end of the Republic .
And the Federalists , who were in power , took action explicitly designed to weaken their Democratic-Republican opponents , including passing the notorious Alien and Sedition Acts under @ @ @ @ @ @ @ '' In other words , democracy was on the ballot .
`` Nevertheless , after the Federalists lost the ( very close ) election , John Adams peacefully stepped down in favor of Thomas Jefferson , '' Rosenblum said .
So a scenario where Trump refuses to accept a decided election result would be outlandish , even by the rough and tumble standards of the 19th century .
But still , what if ?
`` You 're talking about the situation where the vote has been counted , all legal challenges to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the electors meet on the 14th and cast their votes , '' Shapiro said .
The procedure then is clear .
`` At that point it gets passed on to Congress [ usually by Dec. 23 ] and certified in Congress on Jan. 6 by the [ outgoing ] vice president , '' Shapiro said .
`` Now , on the 6th , let 's say that the House and the Senate accept that the new president of the United States is Joe Biden .
At that juncture , if Trump does n't @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this is very easy . ''
In legal terms , there 's little Trump could do to hold on to power .
`` Somebody swears [ Biden ] in as president .
It could be the chief justice of the Supreme Court .
It could be his grandmother .
As of Noon on the 20th [ of January ] , he 's the president of the United States .
The entire Secret Service reports to him , '' Shapiro said .
`` Donald Trump as the outgoing president has a contingent of Secret @ @ @ @ @ @ @ House and the Secret Service escorts Trump out .
That 's what happens .
All the civil service of the government , every employee of the United States reports to Joe Biden at that juncture . ''
This story of a straightforward resolution comes with its own assumptions : That the electors are able to vote and have their votes certified ; that institutions of the federal government — including Congress , with its roll in certifying results — function as expected ; and that the Secret Service ( as well as other @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
There are places in the world and moments in history where transfers of power have broken down along similar lines .
But never before in the United States .
As Jonathan Gienapp , a Stanford University historian , noted in October , Trump 's refusal to commit to a peaceful transfer of power calls the strength of American institutions into question .
The constitution itself has no direct safeguards to ensure peace , and instead assumes that everyone involved in an election shares a commitment to abiding by the outcome .
`` @ @ @ @ @ @ @ upon to arbitrate disputes or deny unlawful usurpations of power , but the safeguards that will decide matters are more political than constitutional , '' he wrote .
`` It may fall to elected political leaders , as it did in 1876-77 , to work out some sort of compromise .
Or , if necessary , the people will need to exercise their fundamental right to assemble and protest in an attempt to bring about resolution . ''
Still , Shapiro said he expects America 's multi-century streak of turning over the presidency @ @ @ @ @ @ @ if everything goes right up until that point .
`` That 's the easiest scenario , '' he said .
`` I think the Secret Service is going to report to the new president of the United States .
The harder scenario is getting the agreed-upon vote count and the agreed-upon electors . ''
All that said , a recalcitrant Trump could do plenty in the months between today and inauguration to make trouble for Biden , if Biden wins .
Presidential transitions are tricky processes , Shapiro said .
Thousands of political @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the NASA administrator to middle managers at important federal agencies to cabinet officials , would have to be replaced as the Trump administration turned over to a Biden administration .
Typically , outgoing and incoming teams work closely on this .
But Trump could simply refuse to let Biden staff through the doors before inauguration , making the handover unusually difficult .
In the end though , Shapiro said , it would happen — an entire transition conducted from a distance , unfinished until after inauguration would still be a transition .
There @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the old administration would have to go away .
That is , assuming the institutions hold together .

President Donald Trump has suggested he would not accept the results of the 2020 presidential election if he were to lose. Let's say he does lose and he refuses to leave the White House. What then? Nothing like this has ever happened in American history, so it's difficult to know for certain. However, political scientists and historians told Live Science they're reasonably confident it wouldn't work.
In one scenario, assume that challenger Joe Biden wins by a wide enough margin in enough swing states to put the actual election results beyond doubt. It's reasonable to wonder whether Trump, who has said that he could only lose if the election were "rigged" against him , would ever accept the results of an election he lost.
According to the 20th Amendment, if Trump loses the election, his term would end at noon on Jan. 20, 2021, at which time he would officially pass his commander-in-chief authority to Biden.
Related: We Fact-Checked the Science Behind the Republican Party 2016 Platform
Even if he disagrees with the results, if Trump loses, he'd almost certainly be removed from the White House, according to Robert Shapiro, a professor and the former acting director of Columbia University's Institute for Social and Economic Research and Policy.
There's no reason today to assume things will ever get to that point. Trump might simply win the election, confounding polls for a second time after 2016. He might lose the election, then agree to leave office. And he might be able to hang on to his office by putting his thumb on the scales in the courts, as he has said.
Trump's stated strategy is already unprecedented
Trump has repeatedly said in public that he expects to win the election through court battles (as opposed to victory at the polls).
This, on its own, wouldn't be entirely new. In the 2000 presidential election, Texas Gov. George W. Bush defeated Vice President Al Gore, not by clearly having the most votes cast in his favor , but by more effectively fighting court battles following a Florida result so hazy that — as Leon Nayfakh reported in the podcast series Fiasco — the true winner may have been unknowable.
That doesn't mean a court fight for the presidency is the new normal. Bush v. Gore, the 5-4 Supreme Court decision that ended the 2000 election, was supposed to be an aberration. The conservative majority that handed the election to Bush wrote that the doctrine they used should never be used as precedent. One of them, former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, later wondered publicly whether it was a mistake .
And there are important differences between 2000 and 2020.
Related: 6 Civil War myths busted
First, Trump has undertaken a tremendous (though not entirely successful) effort before election day to prevent people from voting in key swing states, according to The Center for Public Integrity and the former Republican speaker of the Texas House . GOP lawyers have fanned out across the country to make absentee voting more difficult and tried ( thus far unsuccessfully ) to toss out votes already cast .
Second, though Gore was vice president to President Bill Clinton, who supported him, and Bush was brother to Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, neither man was president at the time they were fighting to overturn election results. If Trump uses a Supreme Court challenge to win the election as he has suggested, he'll be doing it as the sitting president. And he will have personally installed three of the nine justices who could decide the case.
And of course, neither Bush nor Gore threatened legal challenges before the election had actually happened. Only when a huge, decisive swing state came down to a few hundred uncertain votes did Gore fight for recounts and Bush fight to stop recounts.
Stealing an election is hard
Trump has struck out into uncharted territory with his threats of a legal battle for the presidency, Shapiro said. But despite all the noise, Shapiro expects that the actual winner of the election will become president.
"In the 2000 election, Florida was caught off-guard. Nobody knew that was coming," he said. "Everything that's going on right now, everyone knows is coming."
Ultimately, the bureaucracy of elections is beyond Trump's reach.
"Each of the state election bureaucracies are feverishly trying to complete the running of their elections and the counting of the votes. They know what's coming and they know what they have to do," he said. "These are election professionals who do vary in quality across states. … They take pride in making elections work. There's no shenanigans among the actual civil service vote counters."
And whatever shenanigans are attempted, at some point they have to end.
Federal law says that the states have to finalize their choices of electors on Dec. 8 of the year of elections. And on Dec. 14, the electoral college casts their votes — typically with each group of electors meeting separately in their own state. At that point, Shapiro said, the matter is settled. If more electors vote for Trump, he will get a second inauguration. If more vote for Biden, he will be the legal president-elect, beyond the reach of a court challenge.
Still, what if Trump still refuses to leave?
It's worth saying again that while Trump has refused to commit to a peaceful transfer of power, he hasn't explicitly said he would reject results even at this point. And it would be a true first in American history.
Asked if any president had ever hinted at refusing to accept election results, Bruce Schulman, a historian at Boston University, said no.
"There is no such precedent or anything really like it," Schulman told Live Science.
Twice, in 1824 and 1876, presidential elections have ended in the House of Representatives after no candidate managed to secure a majority of the electoral college, he pointed out.
In 1824, Andrew Jackson, John Quincy Adams, Henry Clay and William Crawford all ran for the presidency, none won an electoral college majority, and the House selected Adams as as president.
The 1876 congressional contest ended when Republican Rutherford B. Hayes promised congressional Democrats that he would end Reconstruction in return for their votes. That remains one of the most significant events in American history, as The Atlantic reported . But in each case, the loser accepted the final result.
(The 1860 election, though it led to a civil war, did not spark any disputes about who had been legitimately elected President, Schulman noted.)
Related: Why did the Democratic and Republican parties switch platforms?
A more relevant precedent, said Noah Rosenblum, a legal historian at Columbia University in New York City, may be the election of 1800, between President John Adams (a Federalist) and Vice President Thomas Jefferson (a Democratic-Republican).
"That election, as you may know, pitted the Federalists against the Democratic-Republicans, and the contest was fierce," Rosenblum said. "Each side expressed its sense that, if the other won, it would mean the end of the Republic. And the Federalists, who were in power, took action explicitly designed to weaken their Democratic-Republican opponents, including passing the notorious Alien and Sedition Acts under which they imprisoned Democratic-Republican newspaper editors."
In other words, democracy was on the ballot.
"Nevertheless, after the Federalists lost the (very close) election, John Adams peacefully stepped down in favor of Thomas Jefferson," Rosenblum said.
So a scenario where Trump refuses to accept a decided election result would be outlandish, even by the rough and tumble standards of the 19th century.
But still, what if?
"You're talking about the situation where the vote has been counted, all legal challenges to the vote have been taken care of, the electors meet on the 14th and cast their votes," Shapiro said.
The procedure then is clear.
"At that point it gets passed on to Congress [usually by Dec. 23] and certified in Congress on Jan. 6 by the [outgoing] vice president," Shapiro said. "Now, on the 6th, let's say that the House and the Senate accept that the new president of the United States is Joe Biden. At that juncture, if Trump doesn't want to vacate the White House, this is very easy."
In legal terms, there's little Trump could do to hold on to power.
"Somebody swears [Biden] in as president. It could be the chief justice of the Supreme Court. It could be his grandmother. As of Noon on the 20th [of January], he's the president of the United States. The entire Secret Service reports to him," Shapiro said. "Donald Trump as the outgoing president has a contingent of Secret Service. Biden goes to the White House and the Secret Service escorts Trump out. That's what happens. All the civil service of the government, every employee of the United States reports to Joe Biden at that juncture."
This story of a straightforward resolution comes with its own assumptions: That the electors are able to vote and have their votes certified; that institutions of the federal government — including Congress, with its roll in certifying results — function as expected; and that the Secret Service (as well as other armed federal agents) follow the law. There are places in the world and moments in history where transfers of power have broken down along similar lines. But never before in the United States.
As Jonathan Gienapp, a Stanford University historian, noted in October, Trump's refusal to commit to a peaceful transfer of power calls the strength of American institutions into question. The constitution itself has no direct safeguards to ensure peace, and instead assumes that everyone involved in an election shares a commitment to abiding by the outcome.
"We have institutions that can be called upon to arbitrate disputes or deny unlawful usurpations of power, but the safeguards that will decide matters are more political than constitutional," he wrote. "It may fall to elected political leaders, as it did in 1876-77, to work out some sort of compromise. Or, if necessary, the people will need to exercise their fundamental right to assemble and protest in an attempt to bring about resolution."
Still, Shapiro said he expects America's multi-century streak of turning over the presidency according to the rules to continue, if everything goes right up until that point.
"That's the easiest scenario," he said. "I think the Secret Service is going to report to the new president of the United States. The harder scenario is getting the agreed-upon vote count and the agreed-upon electors."
All that said, a recalcitrant Trump could do plenty in the months between today and inauguration to make trouble for Biden, if Biden wins. Presidential transitions are tricky processes, Shapiro said. Thousands of political appointees across the federal government, from the NASA administrator to middle managers at important federal agencies to cabinet officials, would have to be replaced as the Trump administration turned over to a Biden administration. Typically, outgoing and incoming teams work closely on this. But Trump could simply refuse to let Biden staff through the doors before inauguration, making the handover unusually difficult.
In the end though, Shapiro said, it would happen — an entire transition conducted from a distance, unfinished until after inauguration would still be a transition. There would be a new administration, and the old administration would have to go away.
That is, assuming the institutions hold together.
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-11-03--'Lost' chameleon rediscovered after a century in hiding. And it's spectacular.

More than a century after it was last seen , a spectacularly colorful is back .
Conservationists announced the rediscovery of the Voeltzkow 's chameleon ( Furcifer voeltzkowi ) on Oct. 30 in the journal .
The animal , endemic to Madagascar , was last seen in 1913 — and until now , no one had ever seen a female Voeltzkow 's chameleon .
The females turn out to be a striking sight .
They can change colors , and at their most brilliant display a pattern of red dots and a streak of purple against a background of black @ @ @ @ @ @ @ chameleon adds color and beauty to the planet , and reminds us that even when all seems lost , a great adventure can rekindle hope even for species we have n't seen since Woodrow Wilson was president , '' Don Church , the president of Global Wildlife Conservation , said in a statement .
`` Now we have so much to learn about this extraordinary reptile , including how we can best save it from extinction . ''
Related : Photos of the amazing animals that call Madagascar home Global Wildlife Conservation spearheaded @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , an attempt to rediscover species that have not been observed by scientists for at least a decade .
The goal is to use the discoveries to promote conservation of not only those elusive species , but of their broader habitats and ecosystems .
The Voeltzkow 's chameleon was a particularly obscure quarry .
Little is known about the chameleon 's lifestyle , but its close relatives live fast and die young .
For instance , the Labord 's chameleon ( Furcifer labordi ) , another Madagascar native , hatches in November , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by March .
Researchers knew that Voelzkow 's chameleons would not only be small , they 'd be present for only about half the year if they were like the Labord 's chameleon .
The expedition team headed into the forests of northwestern Madagascar in April 2018 .
At first , they did n't have much luck .
`` I thought we might have a good chance of rediscovering Voeltzkow 's chameleon , but I was surprised that it took so long and that it was so difficult , '' Frank Glaw , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Bavarian State Collection of Zoology , who led the expedition , said in a statement .
`` Our efforts were entirely unsuccessful during most of the trip to find it where we thought it would most likely be . ''
Finally , days before the trip was to end , Angeluc Razafimanantsoa , a professional guide from Montagne d'Ambre in northern Madagascar , spotted one of the chameleons .
Ultimately , the team discovered three males and 15 females .
Female Voeltzkow 's chameleons are smaller than males , the researchers discovered @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 150 millimeters ) tip-to-tail .
Males can be up to 6.5 inches ( 164 mm ) long .
Males are light green , but flash darker green stripes when angry or stressed .
When relaxed , females are green with darker green stripes and red dots along their sides .
When they get stressed , those dark green stripes turn black and a purplish streak appears along the chameleon 's sides .
Between the black stripes , the female chameleon 's ' skin goes white , except for their throats , which can @ @ @ @ @ @ @ were found climbing trees on the grounds of a bungalow-style hotel called Madame Chabaud in the town of Katsepy .
The owner there told the researchers that the distinctive chameleons are abundant around the hotel at the peak of the wet season in January through March .
Nevertheless , the researchers wrote in Salamandra , the chameleons might qualify as endangered because they live in such a small geographical region , and because their habitat has become fragmented .
Though the researchers were elated to find the Voeltzkow 's chameleons , they could @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they had hoped to see on the expedition .
This species is known from only one specimen , collected in 1905 , and has not been recorded since .

When the female Voeltzkow's chameleon gets stressed, she displays a pattern of red dots and a streak of purple against a background of black and white.
More than a century after it was last seen, a spectacularly colorful chameleon is back.
Conservationists announced the rediscovery of the Voeltzkow's chameleon (Furcifer voeltzkowi) on Oct. 30 in the journal Salamandra . The animal, endemic to Madagascar, was last seen in 1913 — and until now, no one had ever seen a female Voeltzkow's chameleon. The females turn out to be a striking sight. They can change colors, and at their most brilliant display a pattern of red dots and a streak of purple against a background of black and white.
"The Voeltzkow's chameleon adds color and beauty to the planet, and reminds us that even when all seems lost, a great adventure can rekindle hope even for species we haven't seen since Woodrow Wilson was president," Don Church, the president of Global Wildlife Conservation, said in a statement. "Now we have so much to learn about this extraordinary reptile, including how we can best save it from extinction."
Related: Photos of the amazing animals that call Madagascar home
Lost species
Global Wildlife Conservation spearheaded the expedition as part of its Search for Lost Species program, an attempt to rediscover species that have not been observed by scientists for at least a decade. The goal is to use the discoveries to promote conservation of not only those elusive species, but of their broader habitats and ecosystems.
The Voeltzkow's chameleon was a particularly obscure quarry. Little is known about the chameleon's lifestyle, but its close relatives live fast and die young. For instance, the Labord's chameleon (Furcifer labordi), another Madagascar native, hatches in November, matures, lays eggs and is dead by March. Researchers knew that Voelzkow's chameleons would not only be small, they'd be present for only about half the year if they were like the Labord's chameleon.
The expedition team headed into the forests of northwestern Madagascar in April 2018. At first, they didn't have much luck.
"I thought we might have a good chance of rediscovering Voeltzkow's chameleon, but I was surprised that it took so long and that it was so difficult," Frank Glaw, head of the Department of Vertebrates at the Bavarian State Collection of Zoology, who led the expedition, said in a statement. "Our efforts were entirely unsuccessful during most of the trip to find it where we thought it would most likely be."
Finally, days before the trip was to end, Angeluc Razafimanantsoa, a professional guide from Montagne d'Ambre in northern Madagascar, spotted one of the chameleons. Ultimately, the team discovered three males and 15 females.
Here, a male Voeltzkow's chameleon, the less flashy of the sexes for this species. (Image credit: Frank Glaw)
Flashy colors
Female Voeltzkow's chameleons are smaller than males, the researchers discovered, growing to about 5.9 inches (150 millimeters) tip-to-tail. Males can be up to 6.5 inches (164 mm) long. Males are light green, but flash darker green stripes when angry or stressed.
Related: Photos: How chameleons change color
When relaxed, females are green with darker green stripes and red dots along their sides. When they get stressed, those dark green stripes turn black and a purplish streak appears along the chameleon's sides. Between the black stripes, the female chameleon's' skin goes white, except for their throats, which can flash a bright orange.
The chameleons were found climbing trees on the grounds of a bungalow-style hotel called Madame Chabaud in the town of Katsepy. The owner there told the researchers that the distinctive chameleons are abundant around the hotel at the peak of the wet season in January through March. Nevertheless, the researchers wrote in Salamandra, the chameleons might qualify as endangered because they live in such a small geographical region, and because their habitat has become fragmented.
Though the researchers were elated to find the Voeltzkow's chameleons, they could not find Furcifer monoceras, another chameleon they had hoped to see on the expedition. This species is known from only one specimen, collected in 1905, and has not been recorded since.
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-11-05--Earwax may reveal how stressed you are

Earwax may reveal how stressed you are

How stressed are you ?
Your earwax could hold the answer .
A new method of collecting and analyzing earwax for levels of the stress hormone may be a simple and cheap way to track the mental health of people with depression and anxiety .
Cortisol is a crucial hormone that spikes when a person is stressed and declines when they 're relaxed .
In the short-term , the hormone is responsible for the `` fight or flight '' response , so it 's important for survival .
But cortisol is often consistently elevated in people with and anxiety , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have negative effects on the , blood pressure and other bodily functions .
There are other disorders which involve abnormal cortisol , including Cushing 's disease ( caused by the overproduction of cortisol ) and Addison 's disease ( caused by the underproduction of cortisol ) .
People with Cushing 's disease have abnormal fat deposits , weakened immune systems and brittle bones .
People with Addison 's disease have dangerously low blood pressure .
Related : The 7 biggest mysteries of the human body There are a lot of ways to measure @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , even in hair .
But saliva and blood samples capture only a moment in time , and cortisol fluctuates significantly throughout the day .
Even the experience of getting a needle stick to draw blood can increase stress , and thus cortisol levels .
Hair samples can provide a snapshot of cortisol over several months instead of several minutes , but hair can be expensive to analyze — and some people do n't have much of it .
Andrés Herane-Vives , a lecturer at University College London 's Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience @ @ @ @ @ @ @ colleagues instead turned to the ear .
Earwax is stable and resistant to bacterial contamination , so it can be shipped to a laboratory easily for analysis .
It also can hold a record of cortisol levels stretching over weeks .
But previous methods of harvesting earwax involved sticking a syringe into and flushing it out with water , which can be slightly painful and stressful .
So Herane-Vives and his colleagues developed a swab that , when used , would be no more stressful than a Q-tip .
The swab has a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people ca n't stick it too far into their ear and damage their eardrum , and a sponge at the end to collect the wax .
In a small pilot study , researchers collected blood , hair and earwax from 37 participants at two different time points .
At each collection point , they sampled earwax using a syringe from one ear , and using the new self-swab method from the other .
The researchers then compared the reliability of the cortisol measurements from the self-swab earwax with that of the other methods @ @ @ @ @ @ @ concentrated in earwax than in hair , making for easier analysis .
Analyzing the self-swabbed earwax was also faster and more efficient than analyzing the earwax from the syringe , which had to be dried out before using .
Finally , the earwax showed more consistency in cortisol levels compared with the other methods , which were more sensitive to fluctuations caused by things like recent alcohol consumption .
Participants also said that self-swabbing was more comfortable than the syringe method .
The researchers reported their findings Nov. 2 in the journal .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Trears to market the new method .
In the future , he hopes that earwax could also be used to monitor other hormones .
The researchers also need to follow up with studies of Asian individuals , who were left out of this pilot study because a significant number only produce dry , flaky earwax as opposed to wet , waxy earwax .
`` After this successful pilot study , if our device holds up to further scrutiny in larger trials , we hope to transform diagnostics and care for millions of people @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Addison 's disease and Cushing syndrome , and potentially numerous other conditions , '' he .

How stressed are you? Your earwax could hold the answer.
A new method of collecting and analyzing earwax for levels of the stress hormone cortisol may be a simple and cheap way to track the mental health of people with depression and anxiety.
Cortisol is a crucial hormone that spikes when a person is stressed and declines when they're relaxed. In the short-term, the hormone is responsible for the "fight or flight" response, so it's important for survival. But cortisol is often consistently elevated in people with depression and anxiety, and persistent high levels of cortisol can have negative effects on the immune system , blood pressure and other bodily functions.
There are other disorders which involve abnormal cortisol, including Cushing's disease (caused by the overproduction of cortisol) and Addison's disease (caused by the underproduction of cortisol). People with Cushing's disease have abnormal fat deposits, weakened immune systems and brittle bones. People with Addison's disease have dangerously low blood pressure.
Related: The 7 biggest mysteries of the human body
Tracking cortisol levels
There are a lot of ways to measure cortisol: in saliva, in blood, even in hair. But saliva and blood samples capture only a moment in time, and cortisol fluctuates significantly throughout the day. Even the experience of getting a needle stick to draw blood can increase stress, and thus cortisol levels. Hair samples can provide a snapshot of cortisol over several months instead of several minutes, but hair can be expensive to analyze — and some people don't have much of it.
Andrés Herane-Vives, a lecturer at University College London's Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience and Institute of Psychiatry, and his colleagues instead turned to the ear. Earwax is stable and resistant to bacterial contamination, so it can be shipped to a laboratory easily for analysis. It also can hold a record of cortisol levels stretching over weeks.
But previous methods of harvesting earwax involved sticking a syringe into the ear and flushing it out with water, which can be slightly painful and stressful. So Herane-Vives and his colleagues developed a swab that, when used, would be no more stressful than a Q-tip. The swab has a shield around the handle, so that people can't stick it too far into their ear and damage their eardrum, and a sponge at the end to collect the wax.
Collecting earwax
In a small pilot study, researchers collected blood, hair and earwax from 37 participants at two different time points. At each collection point, they sampled earwax using a syringe from one ear, and using the new self-swab method from the other. The researchers then compared the reliability of the cortisol measurements from the self-swab earwax with that of the other methods.
They found that cortisol was more concentrated in earwax than in hair, making for easier analysis. Analyzing the self-swabbed earwax was also faster and more efficient than analyzing the earwax from the syringe, which had to be dried out before using. Finally, the earwax showed more consistency in cortisol levels compared with the other methods, which were more sensitive to fluctuations caused by things like recent alcohol consumption. Participants also said that self-swabbing was more comfortable than the syringe method.
The researchers reported their findings Nov. 2 in the journal Heliyon . Herane-Vives is also starting a company called Trears to market the new method. In the future, he hopes that earwax could also be used to monitor other hormones. The researchers also need to follow up with studies of Asian individuals, who were left out of this pilot study because a significant number only produce dry, flaky earwax as opposed to wet, waxy earwax.
"After this successful pilot study, if our device holds up to further scrutiny in larger trials, we hope to transform diagnostics and care for millions of people with depression or cortisol-related conditions such as Addison's disease and Cushing syndrome, and potentially numerous other conditions," he said in a statement .
Originally published in Live Science.


livescience--2020-11-05--Woman sheds coronavirus for 70 days without symptoms

A woman with COVID-19 in Washington state shed infectious virus particles for 70 days , meaning she was contagious during that entire time , despite never showing symptoms of the disease , according to a new report .
The 71-year-old woman had a type of , or cancer of the white blood cells , and so her was weakened and less able to clear her body of the new coronavirus , known as SARS-CoV-2 .
Although researchers have suspected that people with weakened immune systems may shed the virus for longer than typical , there was little evidence of this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ contradict guidelines from the ( CDC ) , which say that immunocompromised people with COVID-19 are likely not infectious after 20 days .
The new findings suggest `` long-term shedding of infectious virus may be a concern in certain immunocompromised patients , '' the authors wrote in their paper , published Wednesday ( Nov. 4 ) in the journal .
`` As this virus continues to spread , more people with a range of immunosuppressing disorders will become infected , and it 's important to understand how SARS-CoV-2 behaves in these populations , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a virologist at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases , .
The woman was infected in late February during the country 's first reported COVID-19 outbreak , which occurred at the Life Care Center rehabilitation facility in Kirkland , Washington , where she was a patient .
She was hospitalized for anemia related to her cancer on Feb. 25 , and doctors screened her for COVID-19 because she came from the center with the outbreak .
She tested positive on March 2 .
Over the next 15 weeks , the woman @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a dozen times .
The virus was detected in her upper respiratory tract for 105 days ; and infectious virus particles — meaning they were capable of spreading the disease — were detected for at least 70 days .
Specifically , the researchers were able to isolate the virus from the patient 's samples , and grow it in a lab .
They were even able to capture images of the virus using scanning and transmission electron microscopy .
Typically , people with COVID-19 are contagious for about eight days after infection , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the longest duration of infectious virus shedding in a COVID-19 patient was reported to be 20 days .
The woman was likely contagious for so long because her body did n't mount a proper immune response .
Indeed , the woman 's blood samples did not appear to contain against the virus .
The woman was treated with two rounds of , or blood from recovered COVID-19 patients that contains antibodies against the disease .
She cleared the infection after her second treatment , though there 's no way to know if the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ still had low concentrations of antibodies after the transfusion .
The authors also performed genetic sequencing of SARS-CoV-2 over the course of the woman 's infection , and saw that the virus developed several mutations over time .
However , the mutations did not affect how fast the virus replicated .
In addition , the authors did not see evidence that any of these mutations gave the virus a survival advantage , because none of the mutated variants became dominant over the course of the infection .
Exactly how the woman cleared the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ should be examined in future research involving patients with weakened immune systems , the authors said .
In addition , the researchers do n't know why the woman never experienced despite being immunocompromised , which puts her at higher risk of severe disease , according to the CDC .
`` You would indeed think that the immunocompromised status would allow the virus to spread from the upper ( more common cold scenario ) to the lower respiratory tract ( pneumonia ) , '' Munster told Live Science in an email .
`` Even @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for 105 days , this clearly didn ’ t happen , and this remains a mystery to us . ''
The authors note that their study involved only a single case , and so the findings may not necessarily apply to all patients with conditions that suppress the immune system .
An estimated 3 million people in the U.S. have an immunocompromising condition , including people with , as well as those who have received stem-cell transplants , organ transplants and chemotherapy , the authors said .
`` Understanding the mechanism of virus @ @ @ @ @ @ @ patients ] will be essential to providing appropriate treatment and preventing transmission of SARS-CoV-2 , '' the authors concluded .

A woman with COVID-19 in Washington state shed infectious virus particles for 70 days, meaning she was contagious during that entire time, despite never showing symptoms of the disease, according to a new report.
The 71-year-old woman had a type of leukemia , or cancer of the white blood cells, and so her immune system was weakened and less able to clear her body of the new coronavirus, known as SARS-CoV-2. Although researchers have suspected that people with weakened immune systems may shed the virus for longer than typical, there was little evidence of this happening, until now.
The findings contradict guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which say that immunocompromised people with COVID-19 are likely not infectious after 20 days.
The new findings suggest "long-term shedding of infectious virus may be a concern in certain immunocompromised patients," the authors wrote in their paper, published Wednesday (Nov. 4) in the journal Cell .
"As this virus continues to spread, more people with a range of immunosuppressing disorders will become infected, and it's important to understand how SARS-CoV-2 behaves in these populations," study senior author Vincent Munster, a virologist at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, said in a statement .
Related: 14 coronavirus myths busted by science
Unusual case
The woman was infected in late February during the country's first reported COVID-19 outbreak, which occurred at the Life Care Center rehabilitation facility in Kirkland, Washington, where she was a patient.
She was hospitalized for anemia related to her cancer on Feb. 25, and doctors screened her for COVID-19 because she came from the center with the outbreak. She tested positive on March 2.
Over the next 15 weeks, the woman would be tested for COVID-19 more than a dozen times. The virus was detected in her upper respiratory tract for 105 days; and infectious virus particles — meaning they were capable of spreading the disease — were detected for at least 70 days. Specifically, the researchers were able to isolate the virus from the patient's samples, and grow it in a lab. They were even able to capture images of the virus using scanning and transmission electron microscopy.
Typically, people with COVID-19 are contagious for about eight days after infection, according to the report. Previously, the longest duration of infectious virus shedding in a COVID-19 patient was reported to be 20 days.
The woman was likely contagious for so long because her body didn't mount a proper immune response. Indeed, the woman's blood samples did not appear to contain antibodies against the virus.
The woman was treated with two rounds of convalescent plasma , or blood from recovered COVID-19 patients that contains antibodies against the disease. She cleared the infection after her second treatment, though there's no way to know if the convalescent plasma helped, as the woman still had low concentrations of antibodies after the transfusion.
The authors also performed genetic sequencing of SARS-CoV-2 over the course of the woman's infection, and saw that the virus developed several mutations over time. However, the mutations did not affect how fast the virus replicated. In addition, the authors did not see evidence that any of these mutations gave the virus a survival advantage, because none of the mutated variants became dominant over the course of the infection.
Unsolved mysteries
Exactly how the woman cleared the virus is unknown and is something that should be examined in future research involving patients with weakened immune systems, the authors said.
In addition, the researchers don't know why the woman never experienced symptoms of COVID-19 despite being immunocompromised, which puts her at higher risk of severe disease, according to the CDC .
"You would indeed think that the immunocompromised status would allow the virus to spread from the upper (more common cold scenario) to the lower respiratory tract (pneumonia)," Munster told Live Science in an email. "Even though the patient was at least infected for 105 days, this clearly didn’t happen, and this remains a mystery to us."
The authors note that their study involved only a single case, and so the findings may not necessarily apply to all patients with conditions that suppress the immune system.
An estimated 3 million people in the U.S. have an immunocompromising condition, including people with HIV , as well as those who have received stem-cell transplants, organ transplants and chemotherapy, the authors said.
"Understanding the mechanism of virus persistence and eventual clearance [in immunocompromised patients] will be essential to providing appropriate treatment and preventing transmission of SARS-CoV-2," the authors concluded.
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-11-05--Denmark to cull all farmed mink to stop coronavirus outbreaks

Denmark , the world 's largest producer of mink , will cull all farmed mink in the country to prevent the spread of coronavirus infection , both between the animals and to their human handlers , Danish authorities announced Wednesday ( Nov. 4 ) .
There are currently more than 15 million being raised at more than 1,000 farms in Denmark , ; so far , several hundred farms have reported SARS-CoV-2 infections among their mink , including more than 200 farms in Jutland , the mainland part of Denmark , according to the Danish Broadcasting Corporation .
While the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ picked up new .
That 's not unexpected as viruses mutate continually , and new variants often emerge over time , especially when that pathogen hops between different species .
New variants of the may or may not change how it infects cells or how easily it spreads .
However , Danish authorities expressed concern that , should the mutated virus spread among humans , the COVID-19 vaccines currently in development may not work as well against the new variant .
The first cases of minks transmitting the coronavirus to humans emerged from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to The Washington Post , and already , 12 people in the Jutland region have caught the newfound variant from mink , Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said at a press conference , according to the Times .
Warnings about the mutated virus came from the State Serum Institute , the Danish government 's public health and infectious disease arm .
Related : 20 of the worst epidemics and pandemics in history '' We have a great responsibility towards our own population , but with the that has now been found , we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rest of the world as well , '' Frederiksen said at the press conference , .
Research by the State Serum Institute suggests that , in infected people , the mutated virus shows `` reduced susceptibility to antibodies , '' , but no details have been shared about how that conclusion was reached .
Until those details are published , statements about how the mutated virus interacts with the human immune system can not be properly evaluated , Stanley Perlman , a microbiologist at the University of Iowa , told the Times .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the mutation and infections .
`` We are in touch with them to find more about this event , '' the WHO told the Times in an email .
Again , until scientists study the mutations more closely , they wo n't know whether the new variant could interfere with the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines .
Right now , there is n't enough information to determine whether or not the variant presents a significant problem .
`` Someone would have to release the [ genetic ] sequences soon , and the evolutionary @ @ @ @ @ @ @ '' Dr. Jonathan Epstein , vice president for science and outreach at the EcoHealth Alliance , a conservation organization , told the Times .
Farmed minks began contracting the novel coronavirus in the Netherlands as early as April , and in June several farm workers reportedly caught the virus from the sick animals , The Washington Post reported .
Some infected minks show no overt symptoms , while others can develop nasal discharge , difficulty breathing and even pneumonia , .
By mid-June , 12 of about 130 Dutch mink farms had cited @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had not yet reported any outbreaks .
At this point , mink SARS-CoV-2 infections have been reported in several additional countries , including Spain , Sweden and the United States , where thousands of mink were recently culled in Utah .
Worldwide , millions of farmed mink have already been culled due to these outbreaks , BBC News reported .

Denmark, the world's largest producer of mink, will cull all farmed mink in the country to prevent the spread of coronavirus infection, both between the animals and to their human handlers, Danish authorities announced Wednesday (Nov. 4).
There are currently more than 15 million mink being raised at more than 1,000 farms in Denmark, The New York Times reported ; so far, several hundred farms have reported SARS-CoV-2 infections among their mink, including more than 200 farms in Jutland, the mainland part of Denmark, according to the Danish Broadcasting Corporation .
While the virus spread among these mink, it picked up new genetic mutations . That's not unexpected as viruses mutate continually, and new variants often emerge over time, especially when that pathogen hops between different species. New variants of the coronavirus may or may not change how it infects cells or how easily it spreads.
However, Danish authorities expressed concern that, should the mutated virus spread among humans, the COVID-19 vaccines currently in development may not work as well against the new variant. The first cases of minks transmitting the coronavirus to humans emerged from the Netherlands over the summer, according to The Washington Post , and already, 12 people in the Jutland region have caught the newfound virus variant from mink, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said at a press conference, according to the Times.
Warnings about the mutated virus came from the State Serum Institute, the Danish government's public health and infectious disease arm.
Related: 20 of the worst epidemics and pandemics in history
"We have a great responsibility towards our own population, but with the mutation that has now been found, we have an even greater responsibility for the rest of the world as well," Frederiksen said at the press conference, according to BBC News .
Research by the State Serum Institute suggests that, in infected people, the mutated virus shows "reduced susceptibility to antibodies," she said , but no details have been shared about how that conclusion was reached. Until those details are published, statements about how the mutated virus interacts with the human immune system cannot be properly evaluated, Stanley Perlman, a microbiologist at the University of Iowa, told the Times.
Denmark has informed the World Health Organization of the mutation and infections.
"We are in touch with them to find more about this event," the WHO told the Times in an email. Again, until scientists study the mutations more closely, they won't know whether the new variant could interfere with the effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccines. Right now, there isn't enough information to determine whether or not the variant presents a significant problem.
"Someone would have to release the [genetic] sequences soon, and the evolutionary biologists will be all over it," Dr. Jonathan Epstein, vice president for science and outreach at the EcoHealth Alliance, a conservation organization, told the Times.
Farmed minks began contracting the novel coronavirus in the Netherlands as early as April, and in June several farm workers reportedly caught the virus from the sick animals, The Washington Post reported. Some infected minks show no overt symptoms, while others can develop nasal discharge, difficulty breathing and even pneumonia, Science Magazine reported . By mid-June, 12 of about 130 Dutch mink farms had cited cases of the virus, but Denmark had not yet reported any outbreaks.
At this point, mink SARS-CoV-2 infections have been reported in several additional countries, including Spain, Sweden and the United States, where thousands of mink were recently culled in Utah. Worldwide, millions of farmed mink have already been culled due to these outbreaks, BBC News reported.
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-11-05--Rare ancient burial contains child whose arms and legs were removed

Archaeologists have discovered the rare burial of a young child who was laid to rest 8,000 years ago without arm and leg bones , a new study finds .
The child , who was no older than 8 , was buried on what is now Alor Island , Indonesia .
During the burial ceremony , the long bones in the child 's arms and legs were removed and disposed elsewhere , and part of the child 's face was painted with , a pigment often used in burials across the ancient world .
`` Ochre pigment was applied to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was placed under the child 's head when they were buried , '' study lead researcher Sofia Samper Carro , a lecturer of archaeology at Australian National University in Canberra , .
This is n't the only burial from this region with missing arm and leg bones .
`` The lack of long bones is a practice that has been documented in several other burials from a similar time period in Java , Borneo and Flores , but this is the first time we have seen it in a child 's burial , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ do n't know why long bone removal was practiced , but it 's likely some aspect of the belief system of the people who lived at this time . ''
Archaeologists do n't know whether the child was male or female , but an analysis of their teeth and suggests the youngster likely died between the ages of 4 and 8 .
However , the dental analysis suggests that the child was slightly older ( 6 to 8 years old ) , while the skeleton was so small , it looked like it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ old , indicating that the child 's growth may have been stunted by genetic or environmental factors .
`` We want to do some further paleo-health research to find out if this smaller skeleton is related to diet or the environment or possibly to being genetically isolated on an island , '' Samper Carro said , referring to the idea that some species shrink when they live on an isolated island , such as the that used to live in Flores .
Granted , ancient adult skulls found on Alor are also small @ @ @ @ @ @ @ their short stature , it 's possible nutrition played some role , Samper Carro said .
`` These hunter-gatherers had a mainly marine diet and there is evidence to suggest protein saturation from a single food source can cause symptoms of malnourishment , which affects growth , '' she said .
`` However , they could have been eating other terrestrial resources , such as tubers . ''
Whatever the researchers learn will shed light on this region 's cultural practices during the , which began at the end of the last ice @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Child burials are very rare , and this complete burial is the only one from this time period , '' Carro said .
Child burials become more common in the archaeological record starting about 3,000 years ago , she said .
`` But , with nothing from the early Holocene period , we just do n't know how people of this era treated their dead children .
This find will change that . ''
The study was published online Oct. 28 in the journal .

Archaeologists have discovered the rare burial of a young child who was laid to rest 8,000 years ago without arm and leg bones, a new study finds.
The child, who was no older than 8, was buried on what is now Alor Island, Indonesia. During the burial ceremony, the long bones in the child's arms and legs were removed and disposed elsewhere, and part of the child's face was painted with red ochre , a pigment often used in burials across the ancient world.
"Ochre pigment was applied to the cheeks and forehead and an ochre-colored cobblestone was placed under the child's head when they were buried," study lead researcher Sofia Samper Carro, a lecturer of archaeology at Australian National University in Canberra, said in a statement .
Related: 8,000-year-old heads on stakes found in mysterious underwater grave
This isn't the only burial from this region with missing arm and leg bones. "The lack of long bones is a practice that has been documented in several other burials from a similar time period in Java, Borneo and Flores, but this is the first time we have seen it in a child's burial," Samper Carro said. "We don't know why long bone removal was practiced, but it's likely some aspect of the belief system of the people who lived at this time."
Image 1 of 5 The entrance to Makpan cave on Alor Island, Indonesia, where the child was buried about 8,000 years ago. (Image credit: Shimona Kealy/ANU) This diagram shows the discovered bones in gray. Notice how the long leg and arm bones are missing. (Image credit: Sofia Samper Carro/ANU) The child's fragmented jaw and skull (Image credit: Tahlia Stewart/ANU) The child's left foot (bottom left) and right foot (center), which were fully excavated in a laboratory at Australian National University in Canberra. (Image credit: Tahlia Stewart/ANU) A close-up of the cobble located beneath the child's fragmented skull. This image also shows three fragmented ribs and the right clavicle (collarbone). (Image credit: Tahlia Stewart/ANU)
Archaeologists don't know whether the child was male or female, but an analysis of their teeth and skeleton suggests the youngster likely died between the ages of 4 and 8. However, the dental analysis suggests that the child was slightly older (6 to 8 years old), while the skeleton was so small, it looked like it belonged to a 4 to 5 year old, indicating that the child's growth may have been stunted by genetic or environmental factors.
"We want to do some further paleo-health research to find out if this smaller skeleton is related to diet or the environment or possibly to being genetically isolated on an island," Samper Carro said, referring to the idea that some species shrink when they live on an isolated island, such as the extinct dwarf elephants that used to live in Flores.
Granted, ancient adult skulls found on Alor are also small. And if genetics don't explain their short stature, it's possible nutrition played some role, Samper Carro said. "These hunter-gatherers had a mainly marine diet and there is evidence to suggest protein saturation from a single food source can cause symptoms of malnourishment, which affects growth," she said. "However, they could have been eating other terrestrial resources, such as tubers."
Whatever the researchers learn will shed light on this region's cultural practices during the early mid-Holocene epoch , which began at the end of the last ice age about 11,500 years ago. "Child burials are very rare, and this complete burial is the only one from this time period," Carro said.
Child burials become more common in the archaeological record starting about 3,000 years ago, she said. "But, with nothing from the early Holocene period, we just don't know how people of this era treated their dead children. This find will change that."
The study was published online Oct. 28 in the journal Quaternary International .
Originally published on Live Science.


livescience--2020-11-06--Death rates have fallen by 18% for hospitalized COVID-19 patients as treatments improve

Two large recent studies show that people hospitalized for COVID-19 in March were more than three times as likely to die as people hospitalized for COVID–19 in August .
The first study used data from three hospitals in New York City .
The chance of death for someone hospitalized for the coronavirus in those hospitals dropped from an adjusted 25.6 % in March to 7.6 % in August .
The second study , which looked at survival rates in England , found a similar improvement .
In March , out of 1,724 people hospitalized for COVID-19 in the three New @ @ @ @ @ @ @ August , 134 were hospitalized and five died .
This change in the raw numbers could be driven by who was arriving at the hospital – if only older people were getting sick , the death rate would be higher , for example – but the researchers controlled for this in their calculations .
To better understand what was causing this decrease in hospitalization death rate , the researchers accounted for a number of possible confounding factors , including the age of patients at hospitalization , race and ethnicity , the amount of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to the hospital and such risk factors as being overweight , smoking , high blood pressure , diabetes , lung disease and so on .
No matter what their specific situation , a person hospitalized in March for COVID-19 was more than three times as likely to die as one hospitalized in August .
The study in England looked at hospitalized coronavirus patients who were sick enough to go to a high-dependency unit ( HDU ) – one where they were monitored closely for oxygen needs – or the intensive care unit ( @ @ @ @ @ @ @ York study , the researchers also accounted for confounding factors , but they calculated survival rates instead of mortality rates .
Looking at 21,082 hospitalizations in England from March 29 to June 21 , 2020 , the authors found a continuous improvement in survival rates of 12.7 % per week in the HDU and 8.9 % per week in the ICU .
Overall , between March and June the survival rate improved from 71.6 % to 92.7 % in the HDU and from 58 % to 80.4 % in the ICU .
These @ @ @ @ @ @ @ coronavirus in England mirrored the changes in New York City .
Better treatments and better care are responsible The main reason researchers think coronavirus patients are doing better is simply that there are now effective treatments for the virus that didn ’ t exist in March .
I am a practicing infectious disease doctor at the University of California , San Francisco , and I have witnessed these improvements firsthand .
Early on , my colleagues and I had no idea how to treat this brand-new virus that burst onto the scene in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , large studies tested different treatments for COVID-19 and we now use an antiviral called remdesivir and a steroid called dexamethasone to treat our hospitalized coronavirus patients .
[ Deep knowledge , daily .
Sign up for The Conversation ’ s newsletter . ]
Along with these new treatments , physicians gained experience and learned simple techniques that improved outcomes over time , such as positioning a patient with low oxygen in a prone position to help distribute oxygen more evenly throughout the lungs .
And as time has gone on , hospitals @ @ @ @ @ @ @ increased need for oxygen and other specialized care for patients with the coronavirus .
Though improvements in care and effective drugs like remdesivir and dexamethasone have helped greatly , the virus is still very dangerous .
People with severe cases can suffer prolonged symptoms of fatigue and other debilitating effects .
Therefore , other treatments should be and are still explored .
Treatments have undoubtedly gotten better .
But the authors of the New York City study specifically mention that public health measures not only led to the plummeting hospitalization rates – 1,724 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ but might have helped lower death rates too .
My own research proposes that social distancing and face coverings may reduce how much virus people are exposed to , overall leading to less severe cases of COVID–19 .
It is important to continue to follow public health measures to help us get through the pandemic .
This will slow the spread of the virus and help keep people healthier until a safe and effective vaccine is widely available .
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license .
Read @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Expert Voices issues and debates — and become part of the discussion — on Facebook and Twitter .
The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher .

Two large recent studies show that people hospitalized for COVID-19 in March were more than three times as likely to die as people hospitalized for COVID–19 in August.
The first study used data from three hospitals in New York City. The chance of death for someone hospitalized for the coronavirus in those hospitals dropped from an adjusted 25.6% in March to 7.6% in August. The second study, which looked at survival rates in England, found a similar improvement.
Continuous, significant improvement
In March, out of 1,724 people hospitalized for COVID-19 in the three New York hospitals, 430 died. In August, 134 were hospitalized and five died. This change in the raw numbers could be driven by who was arriving at the hospital – if only older people were getting sick, the death rate would be higher, for example – but the researchers controlled for this in their calculations.
To better understand what was causing this decrease in hospitalization death rate, the researchers accounted for a number of possible confounding factors, including the age of patients at hospitalization, race and ethnicity, the amount of oxygen support individuals needed when they got to the hospital and such risk factors as being overweight, smoking, high blood pressure, diabetes, lung disease and so on.
No matter what their specific situation, a person hospitalized in March for COVID-19 was more than three times as likely to die as one hospitalized in August.
The study in England looked at hospitalized coronavirus patients who were sick enough to go to a high-dependency unit (HDU) – one where they were monitored closely for oxygen needs – or the intensive care unit (ICU). As in the New York study, the researchers also accounted for confounding factors, but they calculated survival rates instead of mortality rates.
Looking at 21,082 hospitalizations in England from March 29 to June 21, 2020, the authors found a continuous improvement in survival rates of 12.7% per week in the HDU and 8.9% per week in the ICU. Overall, between March and June the survival rate improved from 71.6% to 92.7% in the HDU and from 58% to 80.4% in the ICU. These increases in survival after hospitalization for the coronavirus in England mirrored the changes in New York City.
Better treatments and better care are responsible
The main reason researchers think coronavirus patients are doing better is simply that there are now effective treatments for the virus that didn’t exist in March.
I am a practicing infectious disease doctor at the University of California, San Francisco, and I have witnessed these improvements firsthand. Early on, my colleagues and I had no idea how to treat this brand-new virus that burst onto the scene in late 2019. But over the spring, large studies tested different treatments for COVID-19 and we now use an antiviral called remdesivir and a steroid called dexamethasone to treat our hospitalized coronavirus patients.
[Deep knowledge, daily. Sign up for The Conversation’s newsletter.]
Along with these new treatments, physicians gained experience and learned simple techniques that improved outcomes over time, such as positioning a patient with low oxygen in a prone position to help distribute oxygen more evenly throughout the lungs. And as time has gone on, hospitals have become better prepared to handle the increased need for oxygen and other specialized care for patients with the coronavirus.
Though improvements in care and effective drugs like remdesivir and dexamethasone have helped greatly, the virus is still very dangerous. People with severe cases can suffer prolonged symptoms of fatigue and other debilitating effects. Therefore, other treatments should be and are still explored.
Public health measures help too
Treatments have undoubtedly gotten better. But the authors of the New York City study specifically mention that public health measures not only led to the plummeting hospitalization rates – 1,724 in March vs. 134 in August – but might have helped lower death rates too.
My own research proposes that social distancing and face coverings may reduce how much virus people are exposed to, overall leading to less severe cases of COVID–19. It is important to continue to follow public health measures to help us get through the pandemic. This will slow the spread of the virus and help keep people healthier until a safe and effective vaccine is widely available.
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
Follow all of the Expert Voices issues and debates — and become part of the discussion — on Facebook and Twitter. The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher.


livescience--2020-11-06--This bizarre planet could have supersonic winds in an atmosphere of vaporized rock

Scientists think they have identified a lava world so dramatic that it might boast a thin regional atmosphere of vaporized rock where it is closest to its star .
That is called K2-141b and was originally discovered in 2017 .
The world is about half again as big as Earth but orbits so close to its star , which is one class smaller than our own , that it completes several loops each Earth-day with the same surface permanently facing the star .
Now , scientists predict those factors mean that two-thirds of the surface of K2-141b is permanently sunlit @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is part of the world covered in a , but some of that rock may even evaporate away into the atmosphere .
`` All rocky planets , including Earth , started off as molten worlds but then rapidly cooled and solidified , '' Nicolas Cowan , a planetary scientist at McGill University in Canada and a coauthor on the new paper , .
`` Lava planets give us a rare glimpse at this stage of planetary evolution . ''
The scientists behind the new researchers wanted to understand what sort of atmosphere such @ @ @ @ @ @ @ terrestrial tools would see it .
K2-141b was a tempting target because it 's been studied by both the K2 mission of NASA 's and by the agency 's .
And the atmosphere is particularly intriguing because scientists believe that NASA 's upcoming , due to launch late next year , will be able to analyze the components of distant planetary atmospheres .
The researchers started with what previous studies have determined about K2-141b so far — for example , that the planet 's density is about that of Earth 's , so @ @ @ @ @ @ @ silica as a reasonably simplified representation .
Then , the scientists figured out what the surface might look like .
That work took into account complications like the fact that the planet is so close to its star that more than half the world 's surface might be sunlit , perhaps as much as two-thirds , the researchers calculated .
Such constant light and heat mean that the world likely sports a magma ocean tens of miles or kilometers deep , according to the team 's calculations .
Then , the researchers modeled @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on three potential main ingredients , all of which are common in the crusts of rocky planets .
All three cases can support an atmosphere , the scientists calculated , with wind speeds above 1.1 miles ( 1.75 kilometers ) per second , far faster than the speed of sound here on Earth .
At the edges of the atmosphere , where temperatures drop , the gaseous rock would cool enough to fall back to the surface as precipitation , the researchers calculated .
If the atmosphere is dominated by silica or silicon @ @ @ @ @ @ @ into the magma ocean , but if the atmosphere is predominantly sodium , the planet would look even weirder , with solid sodium oozing back toward the oceans like , the researchers wrote .
But all this modeling was n't just to envision what a truly bizarre world might look like ; this is science , after all .
The researchers wanted to compare their models with the current and predicted observing capacities of massive space telescopes .
Here , the scientists are upbeat : they call K2-141b `` an especially good target @ @ @ @ @ @ @ researchers even have a way to pass their time before the James Webb Space Telescope launches , the scientists said in the statement : they have acquired Spitzer Space Telescope observations that should help pin down the temperatures of the planet 's day and night sides , clarifying how the models may match reality .
The research is described in published Nov. 3 in the journal the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society .
Email Meghan Bartels at mbartels @ space.com or follow her on Twitter @ meghanbartels .
Follow us on @ @ @ @ @ @ @

Scientists think they have identified a lava world so dramatic that it might boast a thin regional atmosphere of vaporized rock where it is closest to its star.
That exoplanet is called K2-141b and was originally discovered in 2017. The world is about half again as big as Earth but orbits so close to its star, which is one class smaller than our own, that it completes several loops each Earth-day with the same surface permanently facing the star. Now, scientists predict those factors mean that two-thirds of the surface of K2-141b is permanently sunlit — so much so that not only is part of the world covered in a lava ocean , but some of that rock may even evaporate away into the atmosphere.
"All rocky planets, including Earth, started off as molten worlds but then rapidly cooled and solidified," Nicolas Cowan, a planetary scientist at McGill University in Canada and a coauthor on the new paper, said in a statement . "Lava planets give us a rare glimpse at this stage of planetary evolution."
Related: 7 ways to discover alien planets
The scientists behind the new researchers wanted to understand what sort of atmosphere such a hot world might have and how terrestrial tools would see it. K2-141b was a tempting target because it's been studied by both the K2 mission of NASA's Kepler Space Telescope and by the agency's Spitzer Space Telescope . And the atmosphere is particularly intriguing because scientists believe that NASA's upcoming James Webb Space Telescope , due to launch late next year, will be able to analyze the components of distant planetary atmospheres.
The researchers started with what previous studies have determined about K2-141b so far — for example, that the planet's density is about that of Earth's, so the crust can be modeled as pure silica as a reasonably simplified representation. Then, the scientists figured out what the surface might look like. That work took into account complications like the fact that the planet is so close to its star that more than half the world's surface might be sunlit, perhaps as much as two-thirds, the researchers calculated.
Such constant light and heat mean that the world likely sports a magma ocean tens of miles or kilometers deep, according to the team's calculations. Then, the researchers modeled what an atmosphere here would look like based on three potential main ingredients, all of which are common in the crusts of rocky planets.
All three cases can support an atmosphere, the scientists calculated, with wind speeds above 1.1 miles (1.75 kilometers) per second, far faster than the speed of sound here on Earth.
At the edges of the atmosphere, where temperatures drop, the gaseous rock would cool enough to fall back to the surface as precipitation, the researchers calculated. If the atmosphere is dominated by silica or silicon monoxide, that precipitation would mostly fall into the magma ocean, but if the atmosphere is predominantly sodium, the planet would look even weirder, with solid sodium oozing back toward the oceans like glaciers here on Earth , the researchers wrote.
But all this modeling wasn't just to envision what a truly bizarre world might look like; this is science, after all. The researchers wanted to compare their models with the current and predicted observing capacities of massive space telescopes. Here, the scientists are upbeat: they call K2-141b "an especially good target for atmospheric observations."
And the researchers even have a way to pass their time before the James Webb Space Telescope launches, the scientists said in the statement: they have acquired Spitzer Space Telescope observations that should help pin down the temperatures of the planet's day and night sides, clarifying how the models may match reality.
The research is described in a paper published Nov. 3 in the journal the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.
Email Meghan Bartels at mbartels@space.com or follow her on Twitter @meghanbartels. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook.


livescience--2020-11-06--An asteroid trailing after Mars could actually be the stolen twin of our moon

The asteroid in question , called ( 101429 ) 1998 VF31 , is part of a group of trojan asteroids sharing the orbit of Mars .
Trojans are celestial bodies that fall into gravitationally balanced regions of space in the vicinity of other planets , located 60 degrees in front of and behind the planet .
Most of the trojan asteroids we know about share Jupiter 's orbit , but other planets have them too , including Mars and Earth too .
What makes ( 101429 ) 1998 VF31 ( hereafter '101429 ' ) interesting is that among the Red @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that follow behind Mars as it orbits the Sun ) , 101429 appears to be unique .
The rest of the group , called the L5 Martian Trojans , all belong to what 's known as the Eureka family , consisting of 5261 Eureka – the first Mars trojan discovered – and a bunch of small fragments believed to have come loose from their parent space rock .
101429 is different , though , and in a new study led by astronomers from the Armagh Observatory and Planetarium ( AOP ) in Northern @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Using a spectrograph called X-SHOOTER on the European Southern Observatory 's 8-m Very Large Telescope ( VLT ) in Chile , the team examined how sunlight reflects off 101429 and its L5 kin in the Eureka family .
Only , it looks like 101429 and the Eureka clan are n't kin after all , with the analysis revealing 101429 shows a spectral match for a satellite much closer to home .
`` The spectrum of this particular asteroid seems to be almost a dead-ringer for parts of the Moon where there is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mountains , '' explains AOP astrochemist Galin Borisov .
While we ca n't be sure yet why that is , the researchers say it 's plausible that this Martian trojan 's origins began somewhere far removed from the Red Planet , with 101429 representing a `` relic fragment of the Moon 's original solid crust '' .
If that 's true , how did the Moon 's long-lost twin end up as a trojan bound together with Mars ?
`` The early Solar System was very different from the place we see today @ @ @ @ @ @ @ study , AOP astronomer Apostolos Christou .
`` The space between the newly-formed planets was full of debris and collisions were commonplace .
Large asteroids [ planetesimals ] were constantly hitting the Moon and the other planets .
A shard from such a collision could have reached the orbit of Mars when the planet was still forming and was trapped in its Trojan clouds . ''
It 's a captivating idea , but the researchers say it 's not the only explanation for 101429 's past .
It 's also possible , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ instead represents a fragment of Mars chipped off by a similar kind of incident impacting the Red Planet ; or it might just be a commonplace asteroid that , through the weathering processes of solar radiation , ended up looking just like the Moon .
Further observations with even more powerful spectrographs might be able to shed more light on this question of space parentage , as could a future spacecraft visit , the team says , `` which could , en route to the Trojans , obtain spectra at Mars or the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ data '' .
The findings are reported in Icarus .
This article was originally published by ScienceAlert .
Read the original article here .

The asteroid in question, called (101429) 1998 VF31, is part of a group of trojan asteroids sharing the orbit of Mars.
Trojans are celestial bodies that fall into gravitationally balanced regions of space in the vicinity of other planets, located 60 degrees in front of and behind the planet.
Most of the trojan asteroids we know about share Jupiter's orbit, but other planets have them too, including Mars and Earth too.
What makes (101429) 1998 VF31 (hereafter '101429') interesting is that among the Red Planet's trailing trojans (the ones that follow behind Mars as it orbits the Sun), 101429 appears to be unique.
Depiction of Mars and trojans; 101429 is the blue point circling L5. (Image credit: AOP)
The rest of the group, called the L5 Martian Trojans, all belong to what's known as the Eureka family, consisting of 5261 Eureka – the first Mars trojan discovered – and a bunch of small fragments believed to have come loose from their parent space rock.
101429 is different, though, and in a new study led by astronomers from the Armagh Observatory and Planetarium (AOP) in Northern Ireland, researchers wanted to examine why.
Using a spectrograph called X-SHOOTER on the European Southern Observatory's 8-m Very Large Telescope (VLT) in Chile, the team examined how sunlight reflects off 101429 and its L5 kin in the Eureka family. Only, it looks like 101429 and the Eureka clan aren't kin after all, with the analysis revealing 101429 shows a spectral match for a satellite much closer to home.
"The spectrum of this particular asteroid seems to be almost a dead-ringer for parts of the Moon where there is exposed bedrock such as crater interiors and mountains," explains AOP astrochemist Galin Borisov.
While we can't be sure yet why that is, the researchers say it's plausible that this Martian trojan's origins began somewhere far removed from the Red Planet, with 101429 representing a "relic fragment of the Moon's original solid crust".
If that's true, how did the Moon's long-lost twin end up as a trojan bound together with Mars?
"The early Solar System was very different from the place we see today," explains lead author of the study, AOP astronomer Apostolos Christou.
"The space between the newly-formed planets was full of debris and collisions were commonplace. Large asteroids [planetesimals] were constantly hitting the Moon and the other planets. A shard from such a collision could have reached the orbit of Mars when the planet was still forming and was trapped in its Trojan clouds."
It's a captivating idea, but the researchers say it's not the only explanation for 101429's past. It's also possible, and perhaps more likely, that the trojan instead represents a fragment of Mars chipped off by a similar kind of incident impacting the Red Planet; or it might just be a commonplace asteroid that, through the weathering processes of solar radiation, ended up looking just like the Moon.
Further observations with even more powerful spectrographs might be able to shed more light on this question of space parentage, as could a future spacecraft visit, the team says, "which could, en route to the Trojans, obtain spectra at Mars or the Moon for direct comparison with the asteroid data".
The findings are reported in Icarus.
This article was originally published by ScienceAlert. Read the original article here.