＜Nature＞
1. Minoans came from Europe
Nature 497,412–413(23 May
2013)doi:10.1038/497412d
Ancient DNA from
remains found in caves on the Greek island of Crete suggests that the Minoan
civilization emerged from farmers who settled on Crete thousands of years
beforehand. The authors found 6 mtDNA haplotypes unique to Minoans and 15 that
are common in modern and ancient European populations, but none characteristic
of present-day African populations. The North African influence on Minoans
probably occurred through cultural exchange.
＜Science＞
2.
Culture, Genes, and the Human Revolution
Simon
E. Fisher, Matt
Ridley
Science 24 May 2013: Vol.
340
no. 6135 pp.929-930 DOI: 10.1126/science.1236171
State-of-the-art
DNA sequencing is providing ever more detailed insights into the genomes of
humans, extant apes, and even extinct hominins. The discovery of any genetic
mutation that coincided with the “human revolution” must take care to
distinguish cause from effect. Supposedly momentous changes in our genome may
sometimes be a consequence of cultural innovation.
3.
More Power from Below
Joseph
N. Moore, Stuart
F. Simmons
Science 24 May 2013: Vol.
340
no. 6135 pp.
933-934 DOI: 10.1126/science.1235640
Geothermal heat
provides sustainable energy for electricity generation and heating
applications. Worldwide use of geothermal energy has increased steadily over
the past few decades. They explain about the limitations of geothermal energy
extraction, and the use of this resource be increased.
4.
Zircon U-Pb Geochronology Links the End-Triassic Extinction with the Central
Atlantic Magmatic Province
Terrence
J. Blackburn, Paul
E. Olsen, Samuel
A. Bowring, Noah
M. McLean, Dennis
V. Kent, John
Puffer, Greg
McHone, E. Troy Rasbury, Mohammed
Et-Touhami
Science 24 May 2013: Vol.
340
no. 6135 pp.
941-945 DOI: 10.1126/science.1234204
The end-Triassic
extinction is characterized by major losses in both terrestrial and marine
diversity, setting the stage for dinosaurs to dominate Earth for the next 136
million years. Here, we present new zircon uranium-lead (U-Pb) geochronologic
constraints on the age and duration of flood basalt volcanism within the
Central Atlantic Magmatic Province.
5. Annually
Resolved Ice Core Records of Tropical Climate Variability over the Past ~1800
Years
L.
G. Thompson, E.
Mosley-Thompson, M.
E. Davis, V.
S. Zagorodnov, I.
M. Howat, V.
N. Mikhalenko,P.-N.
Lin
Science 24 May 2013: Vol. 340
no. 6135 pp. 945-950 DOI: 10.1126/science.1234210
no. 6135 pp. 945-950 DOI: 10.1126/science.1234210
Ice cores from low
latitudes can provide a wealth of unique information about past climate in the
tropics, but they are difficult to recover and few exist. Here, we report
annually resolved ice core records from the Quelccaya ice cap (5670 meters
above sea level) in Peru that extend back ~1800 years and provide a
high-resolution record of climate variability there.
＜PNAS＞
6. Sulfur
isotopes in coal constrain the evolution of the Phanerozoic sulfur cycle
Donald
E. Canfield
PNAS 2013 110 (21) 8443-8446; published
ahead of print May 6, 2013,doi:10.1073/pnas.1306450110
Sulfate is the
second most abundant anion (behind chloride) in modern seawater, and its
cycling is intimately coupled to the cycling of organic matter and oxygen at
the Earth’s surface. The results support previous interpretations of sulfur
cycle operation and counter recent suggestions that sulfate has been a minor
player in sulfur cycling through the Phanerozoic Eon.
7. Consumers
mediate the effects of experimental ocean acidification and warming on primary
producers
Christian Alsterberg, Johan S.
Eklöf, Lars Gamfeldt, Jonathan N. Havenhand, and Kristina Sundbäck
PNAS 2013 110 (21) 8603-8608; published
ahead of print April 29,
2013,doi:10.1073/pnas.1303797110
The importance of
experimental designs and statistical analyses allow us to separate and quantify
the direct and indirect effects of multiple climate variables on natural
communities.
8.
Evolution of the plankton paleome in the Black Sea from the Deglacial to
Anthropocene
Marco J. L. Coolen, William D.
Orsi, Cherel Balkema, Christopher Quince, Keith Harris,Sean P.
Sylva, Mariana Filipova-Marinova, and Liviu Giosan
PNAS 2013 110 (21) 8609-8614; published
ahead of print May 6,
2013,doi:10.1073/pnas.1219283110
According to
paired analysis of deuterium/hydrogen (D/H) isotope ratios in fossil alkenones,
salinity increased rapidly with the onset of the dry Subboreal after ∼5.2 ka B.P., leading to an increase in
marine fungi and the first occurrence of marine copepods. A gradual succession
of dinoflagellates, diatoms, and chrysophytes occurred during the refreshening
after ∼2.5 ka cal B.P. with the onset of the cool and wet Subatlantic climate
and recent anthropogenic perturbations.
＜Nature Communications＞
9. Crocodylian
diversity peak and extinction in the late Cenozoic of the northern Neotropics
T. M. Scheyer, O. A. Aguilera, M. Delfino,
D. C. Fortier, A. A. Carlini, R. Sánchez, J. D. Carrillo-Briceño, L. Quiroz, M.
R. Sánchez-Villagra
Nature Communications 4, Article
number:1907 doi:10.1038/ncomms2940
They show a
diversity peak in sympatric occurrence of at least seven species, based on
detailed stratigraphic sequence sampling and correlation, involving four
geological formations from the middle Miocene to the Pliocene, and on the
discovery of two new species and a new occurrence.
10.
A new Late Triasssic phytogeographical scenario in westernmost Gondwana
Silvia N Césari, Carina E Colombi
Nature Communications 4, Article number 1889
doi:10.1038/ncomms2917
In the Late
Triassic, southern Gondwanan flora is thought to have been dominated by endemic
species mainly restricted to eastern areas with some mixing with northern
species. In this study, pollen and spore assemblages from Argentina reveal the
presence of these mixed flora in the westernmost Gondwana as well.
11.
Development of Middle Stone Age innovation linked to rapid climate change
Martin Ziegler, Margit H. Simon, Ian R.
Hall, Stephen Barker, Chris Stringer, Rainer Zahn
Nature Communications 4,Article number:1905
doi:10.1038/ncomms2897
The South African
archaeological record contains evidence of the early flourishing of the human
mind. Ziegler et al. provide new paleoclimate reconstructions, which
suggest that rapid fluctuations in global climate have played a key role in the
evolution of these early human cultures.
＜Geology ＞
12.
The progressive evolution of a continental climate in southeast-central
European lowlands during the Middle Pleistocene recorded in loess paleosol
sequences
Björn Buggle, Ulrich
Hambach, Martin Kehl, Slobodan B. Marković, Ludwig
Zöller, and Bruno Glaser
Geology, first published on May
24, 2013, doi:10.1130/G34198.1
We conclude that a
small-scale increase in paleoelevation of central European mountain ranges (the
Alps, Carpathians, and Dinarides) during the Middle Pleistocene might be the
cause of the progressive increase in climate continentality of southeast
European lowlands.
13.
The Miocene elevation of Mount Everest
Aude Gébelin, Andreas
Mulch, Christian Teyssier, Micah J. Jessup, Richard D.
Law, and Maurice Brunel
Geology, first published on May
24, 2013, doi:10.1130/G34331.1
Mean elevations
similar to modern suggest that an early Himalayan rain shadow may have
influenced the late Early Miocene climatic and rainfall history to the north of
the Himalayan chain.
14.
Sulfate availability and the geological record of cold-seep deposits
Thomas F. Bristow and John P.
Grotzinger
Geology, first published on May
24, 2013, doi:10.1130/G34265.1
The low
[SO42−]SW has been linked to widespread ocean anoxia in the early
Paleozoic, an environmental condition thought to have influenced the evolution,
extinction, and recovery of early animals.
15.
Rock magnetic record of the Triassic-Jurassic transition in pelagic bedded
chert of the Inuyama section, Japan
Alexandra Abrajevitch, Rie S.
Hori, and Kazuto Kodama
Geology, first published on May
24, 2013, doi:10.1130/G34343.1
The stepwise
change in magnetic properties is suggestive of the protracted environmental
deterioration, likely prompted by the early episodes of the CAMP volcanism, which
was followed by a sudden ocean acidification event, perhaps triggered by a
catastrophic release of gas hydrates.
