Today in Science: Sharks are amassing off Massachusetts

Daily science inspo July 7, 2023: Why we lose muscles as we age, sharks are converging off Massachusetts and damaging solar flares on the way. Read it all below! —Andrea Gawrylewski, Chief Newsletter Editor TOP STORIES Use It or Lose It As we age, the overall number of muscle cells declines: Studies suggest that muscle mass decreases by about 3 to 8 percent per decade after age 30 and at higher rates after age 60. Loss of muscular function and other factors also degrade the connection between motor nerves in the brain and muscle tissue. Issues in communication between nerves and muscles can create weakness and a decline in muscle mass. Experts recommend so-called high-velocity resistance training to keep the muscles ready to respond and the brain-muscle connection sharp. Why this matters: Muscle loss is a common contributor to severe falls and accidents that lead to injury or physical disability in older adults. Low muscle mass from aging can impact how well individuals cope with cancer treatment, surgeries and heart and lung problems. It can impact individual lifespan and how quickly one recovers from illness and hospital stays. What the experts say: Even if people don't notice muscle mass gains through resistance training at first, "you actually get stronger long before your muscles get bigger," says Stephanie Studenski, a geriatrician and professor emeritus at the University of Pittsburgh. "That exercise is doing something to the wiring to the nervous system connection to the muscle." Gonna Need a Bigger Boat Great white sharks—hundreds of them—are hunting in the shallow waters along the beaches of Cape Cod in Massachusetts. A new study shows that the peninsula's eastern shoreline now hosts one of the largest seasonal white shark gatherings in the world and is the first such hotspot documented in the North Atlantic. The sharks are most concentrated near Massachusetts during June through October—the same time of year when more than three million vacationers regularly flock to the cape. Why this is happening: Sharks numbers are growing on the cape because the gray seal population there is rebounding, experts say. The seals had been extirpated from New England by the early 1960s, largely because of commercial fishing. The Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972 made it safe for the seals to return from Canadian waters, and they re-established pupping colonies in the early 1990s. With no natural predators and plenty of fish to eat, the seals thrived. What the experts say: "What we're seeing at Cape Cod is a reestablishment of the trophic (food) web and what it may have been like before overfishing and the slaughter of many of the animals at the top of the food chain," says Chris Lowe, director of the Shark Lab at California State University, Long Beach. IMAGE OF THE DAY Credit: Schmidt Ocean Institute (CC BY-NC-SA) Baby octopuses were born in a deep-sea area near hydrothermal vents off the coast of Costa Rica. A team of researchers studying the area thought it was too hot near the vents to yield viable young, and indeed, they saw no embryos within the eggs. But as they watched the cephalopods emerge and float away from their nursery, "the mission control room erupted in squeals of amazement––people pointing their fingers at the screens excitedly, clapping, hugging––when we witnessed live baby octopuses on the seafloor," says expedition co-leader Beth Orcutt, vice president for research at the Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences, a nonprofit research institute. TODAY'S NEWS • The sun is quickly approaching a peak in solar activity. Experts warn it could potentially begin by the end of 2023, increasing risks for damage to communications systems on Earth or satellites in orbit. | 11 min read • El Niño is back, and our sustainability editor Andrea Thompson discusses what this means for us in today's episode of Science, Quickly. | 6 min listen • A particular kind of storm produces megaflashes of lighting--that is, lightning that can stretch up to 60 miles. | 3 min read More News EXPERT PERSPECTIVES • A major earthquake is due in Kashmir, and millions of people are at risk because they live or work in collapse-prone buildings, writes Afroz Ahmed Shah, an assistant professor of structural geology at the Department of Geosciences, Universiti of Brunei Darussalam. "In the beginning of the 20th century modernization overwhelmed Kashmir's traditional wood and brick architecture with constructs of poorly fabricated Indigenous concrete," degrading the structural integrity of many buildings, he writes. | 5 min read More Opinion WHAT WE'RE READING • Major election campaigns have started using A.I. to slam their opponents. Regulations have done little to slow down the spread of disinformation and deepfakes. | The New York Times • For an autistic mother and her autistic son, their way of communicating doesn't include words. | Romper • Mandated return-to-office policies are having a drastic effect on attrition and recruiting, according to a series of new reports. | Entrepreneur We're back after a restful, long weekend! The small beach town where I spent the holiday went wild last night with fireworks, which is a feast for the eyes, though I can't help but wonder what the local wildlife (and our pets!) must think. Check out this fun video explaining what makes a firework go boom.  Summer is marching along, and I'm looking forward to sharing the best of scientific discovery with you! Reach out anytime and let me know what you think of our coverage: newsletters@sciam.com. Until tomorrow! —Andrea Gawrylewski, Chief Newsletter Editor Subscribe to this and all of our newsletters here. Scientific American One New York Plaza, New York, NY, 10004   Support our mission, subscribe to Scientific American here   Unsubscribe Email Preferences