The right amount of oxygen being present when the Earth’s core was formed meant that there were sufficient phosphorus and nitrogen available in the mantle and crust. This means the Earth was the beneficiary of a stroke of chemical good fortune in the universe. It is located in a zone with optimal chemical conditions for the development of life. When searching for life elsewhere in the universe, scientists should therefore look for solar systems that resemble our own. Focusing on water is not sufficient. 

New research from the University of East Anglia (UEA) finds that 'energy efficiency' appears to influence how mountain birds adapt to changes in climate. Researchers looked at seasonal changes in the elevational distributions of birds - how high in the mountain birds go at different times of year - for nearly 11,000 avian populations across 34 mountain regions worldwide, including in Asia, Europe and the Americas, as well as Southern African and Australia.

When and how quickly can ecosystems ‘tip’ and how will they develop in the future? Researchers from the University of Potsdam, the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, and the Technical University of Munich have developed a new method for measuring how close an ecosystem is to a catastrophic tipping point. They are applying their findings to predict glacier surges, as well as rapid changes in other ecosystems. They have now published their study in "Nature Communications".

A UT San Antonio-led international research team has identified chitin, the primary organic component of modern crab shells and insect exoskeletons, in trilobite fossils more than 500 million years old, marking the first confirmed detection of the molecule in this extinct group. The findings, led by Elizabeth Bailey, assistant professor of earth and planetary sciences at UT San Antonio, offer new insight into fossil preservation and Earth’s long-term carbon cycle.