Tag

Geobiology

All articles tagged with #geobiology

science2 years ago•5 min saved

Exploring Yucatán's Hidden Microbial World in Underwater Caves

Researchers from Northwestern University have conducted an extensive survey of the microbial communities living in the underwater caves beneath Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula. By collecting water samples from various sites within the cave system, the researchers discovered a rich and diverse ecosystem, with microbial communities organized into distinct patterns. One family of bacteria, Comamonadaceae, was found to be particularly prevalent and may play a crucial role in the broader community. The study provides valuable insights into the unique underground realm and its potential impact on drinking water sources for millions of people.

via Phys.org|

#biodiversity #geobiology #microbial-communities

science2 years ago•3 min saved

Life Finds a Way on Snowball Earth: New Study Reveals Surprising Findings.

Fossils of seaweed found in black shale in China's Hubei Province indicate that habitable marine environments were more widespread during the Cryogenian Period than previously known, offering a deeper understanding of how life survived on "Snowball Earth." The findings suggest that it was more of a "Slushball Earth" where the earliest forms of complex life endured even at mid-latitudes previously thought to have been frozen solid. The world's oceans were not completely frozen, and habitable refuges existed where multicellular eukaryotic organisms could survive.

via Fox News|

#fossils #geobiology #marine-life

science2 years ago•3 min saved

"MIT researchers explore ecogenesis through deep time analysis."

Greg Fournier, an associate professor of geobiology at MIT, studies living systems that developed billions of years ago. His research team developed a new technique to analyze genes, tracing living species of cyanobacteria back to a common ancestor that evolved about 2.9 billion years ago, and demonstrating that the ancestors of cyanobacteria branched off from other bacteria around 3.4 billion years ago. By understanding Earth’s processes at the time when life first appeared, Fournier says we can better understand how life could begin on other planets.

via MIT News|

#earth-system #evolution #genomics

science2 years ago•3 min saved

Surviving on 'Snowball Earth': Life Finds a Way.

Fossils of seaweed found in black shale in China's Hubei Province indicate that habitable marine environments were more widespread during the Cryogenian Period than previously known, when Earth twice froze over with runaway glaciation. The findings support the idea that it was more of a "Slushball Earth" where the earliest forms of complex life - basic multicellular organisms - endured even at mid-latitudes previously thought to have been frozen solid. The Cryogenian freeze was much worse than the most recent Ice Age that humans survived, ending roughly 10,000 years ago.

via Reuters|

#fossils #geobiology #marinelife