Latest News

Underwater Gliders help improve weather forecasts

New measurements of how waters mix just below the surface of the Atlantic Ocean are to be used to improve weather forecasts. 

The water turbulence was measured by an underwater ‘glider’ and the results of the research, led by Bangor University researcher Natasha Lucas, are published in a new Journal paper.

Publication date: 18 November 2019

Packaging our foods without plastic

People worldwide are increasingly concerned by the amount of single use plastic which surrounds our purchases, and in particular our food shopping.

While such wrappings appear unnecessary, many fruit and vegetable producers would argue that packaging perishables ensures that consumers can easily carry away their food. Further, more food reaches the market place undamaged, increasing the food supply and reducing food waste.

The solution lies in developing sustainable food packaging alternatives.

Publication date: 13 November 2019

Prey-size Plastics are Invading Larval Fish Nurseries

New research has shown for the first time, that larval fish across a range of fish species from different ocean habitats are surrounded by and ingesting plastics in their preferred nursery habitat.

Many of the world’s marine fish spend their first days or weeks feeding and developing at the ocean surface, but little is known about the ocean processes that affect the survival of larval fish. Larval fish are the next generation of adult fish that will supply protein and essential nutrients to people across the world. NOAA’s Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center and an international team of scientists, including Bangor University in the UK, conducted one of the most ambitious studies to date, to shed light on this critically important knowledge gap.

Publication date: 12 November 2019

Botswana is humanity's ancestral home, claims major study – well, actually …

A study claims the first humans lived in a wetland around what is now northern Botswana. 

A recent paper in the prestigious journal Nature claims to show that modern humans originated about 200,000 years ago in the region around northern Botswana. For a scientist like myself who studies human origins, this is exciting news. If correct, this paper would suggest that we finally know where our species comes from.

But there are actually several reasons why I and some of my colleagues are not entirely convinced. In fact, there’s good reason to believe that our species doesn’t even have a single origin.

This article by Isabelle Catherine Winder, Lecturer in Zoology, is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Publication date: 31 October 2019

Lab-grown mini brains: we can't dismiss the possibility that they could one day outsmart us

The cutting-edge method of growing clusters of cells that organise themselves into mini versions of human brains in the lab is gathering more and more attention. These “brain organoids”, made from stem cells, offer unparalleled insights into the human brain, which is notoriously difficult to study.

This article by Guillaume Thierry, Professor of Cognitive Neuroscience at the School of Psychology is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

Publication date: 25 October 2019