Mastodawn

Before the 'Oxygen Apocalypse', Earth was purple, the oceans green, and H₂O's oxygen safely locked away 🟣

Then, bacteria developed a quantum lockpick 🗝️⚡

The seas rusted and the ancients died out. Complex organisms burn the fuel of this cataclysm still, but pay the price by ageing 🦠

This is the story of how symmetry saves us from the flames ⚛️

Full post: https://keiran-rowell.github.io/oxygen/2026-04-02-the-oxygen-apocalypse/

#oxygen #science #scicomm #GreatOxidationEvent #photosynthesis #eukaryogenesis #quantumbiology #geology

The Oxygen Apocalypse: how symmetry saves us from the flames

📖 20 min read • Cyanobacteria captured light to break a quantum law, unpicking the electron pair, and extinguished ancient life in the process

Keiran Rowell

Scientific Frontline Mar 25

Rapaza viridis, a single-celled predator, performs #photosynthesis by stealing and temporarily retaining chloroplasts from its algal prey, a process known as kleptoplasty. It actively maintains these stolen organelles by transporting its own host-encoded proteins into them.
#EvolutionaryBiology #CellBiology #MolecularBiology #AgriculturalScience #sflorg
https://www.sflorg.com/2026/03/ebio03252601.html

Stolen chloroplasts maintained by host-made proteins offer clues to plant cell origins

The single-celled predator Rapaza viridis temporarily retains chloroplasts from prey algae and imports its own proteins into them

Norbert_R 🦣 🐋🐘Mar 14

#SGU #TheSkepticsGuideToTheUniverse
The Skeptics Guide #1079 - Mar 14 2026

Back to #Basics: Fundamental #Attribution Error; News Items: Improved #Photosynthesis, Birth of a #Magnetar, US #Bioweapons Research, False #Health Information from #Chatbots; Your Questions and E-mails: #Consistency; Name That Logical #Fallacy; #Science or Fiction

Webseite der Episode: https://www.theskepticsguide.org/podcast/sgu

Mediendatei: https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/skepticsguide/skepticast2026-03-14.mp3

The Skeptics Guide to the Universe

The Skeptics Guide to the Universe | Weekly science podcast produced by the SGU Productions llc. Also provides blogs, forums, videos and resources.

michael Mar 13

13-Mar-2026
How an #alga makes the most of dim light
A freshwater alga captures far-red light for #photosynthesis by rearranging ordinary #chlorophyll

https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1119709 #science #ecology

How an alga makes the most of dim light

Researchers discovered that a freshwater alga captures low-energy far-red light by precisely arranging ordinary chlorophyll molecules, rather than inventing new pigments. The finding reveals a new structural strategy for photosynthesis in low-light environments and could inform future bioenergy and protein design.

EurekAlert!

VegPlotter: Online Vegetable Garden and Allotment Planner Mar 13

Sunlight is crucial for vegetable growth! 🌞 Through photosynthesis, plants convert sunlight into energy, turning carbon dioxide and water into glucose and oxygen. This process fuels their development, leading to the nutritious veggies we harvest and enjoy. 🌱🥕 #Sunlight #Photosynthesis #Vegetables

VegPlotter Mar 13

KillBait Mar 12

Hornwort Protein Could Improve Photosynthesis Efficiency in Crops

📰 Original title: Scientists discover tiny plant trick that could supercharge crop yields

🤖 IA: It's clickbait ⚠️
👥 Usuarios: It's clickbait ⚠️

View full AI summary: https://killbait.com/en/hornwort-protein-could-improve-photosynthesis-efficiency-in-crops/?redirpost=d11d817d-ce2b-4830-a759-9ab40662cd7b

#science #rubisco #photosynthesis #cropyields

Hornwort Protein Could Improve Photosynthesis Efficiency in Crops

Researchers have discovered a unique molecular feature in hornwort plants that could help increase crop efficiency. The small protein component, named RbcS-STAR, modifies the key photosynthesis enzyme…

KillBait Archive

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Annals of Botany Mar 10

🌱 Take-home message: Far-red light, particularly during early growth stages, can promote lettuce biomass by improving canopy expansion and photosynthesis, without compromising nutritional quality. (10/10)

👉 https://doi.org/qt8r

#AoBpapers #PlantFactory #LEDLighting #FarRed #LettuceResearch #Photosynthesis #Anthocyanins

Annals of Botany Mar 10

🌿Just published in @AnnBot : “Far-red light in early growth stages boosts lettuce biomass and preserves anthocyanins” by Christopher Levine and co-authors. 🧵(1/10)

👉 https://doi.org/qt8r

#AoBpapers #PlantFactory #LEDLighting #FarRed #LettuceResearch #Photosynthesis #Anthocyanins

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Solar🌄Garden Mar 6

"a fundamental problem in #agriculture: the enzyme responsible for capturing carbon dioxide from the air during #photosynthesis—called Rubisco—is slow and inefficient.

"Rubisco is arguably the most important enzyme on the planet because it's the entry point for nearly all carbon in the food we eat..."

With articles of this quality to read, I'm not going to get any work done today.

As usually the case with eurekalert, accessible to non-specialists but not "talky downy" like so many links from here lately.

@proseandpassion