science news 26.2.2020

Today's selection of science news. Links are normally to press releases on EurekAlert (at the bottom end I may also add a couple of newspaper stories). I include quotes from the summary in italics in cases where the title alone doesn't reveal what the story is about. My own thoughts appear without italics if I have any.


evolution

By gum! Scientists find new 110-million-year-old treasure
A remarkable new treasure has been found by scientists from the University of Portsmouth -- the first fossil plant gum on record. The beautiful, amber-like material has been discovered in 110-million-year-old fossilized leaves. University of Portsmouth Ph.D. student Emily Roberts, made the discovery while examining fossilized leaves of the Welwitschiophyllum plant, found in the Crato Formation, Brazil. Emily noticed thin amber-colored bands locked inside some of the fossilized leaves she was studying.



Gum within the fossil leaves.
Credit: University of Portsmouth


ecology

Otago researchers shed light on 'arms race' between bacteria and viruses


conservation

NUS-led study suggests mangrove forests provide cause for conservation optimism, for now

Shrinking sea ice is creating an ecological trap for polar bears


nanoworld

Synthesizing a superatom: Opening doors to their use as substitutes for elemental atoms
Scientists at Tokyo Institute of Technology (Tokyo Tech) and ERATO Japan Science and Technology have demonstrated how superatoms of a desired valency, stability, and volume can be synthesized in a solution medium by altering the number of atoms in a cluster structure. This is an important step in realizing the practical application of superatom clusters as substitutes for elements in chemical reactions.



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From the news media:

The weird and wonderful deep sea species at risk from sea floor mining feature in a report in The Guardian.