Earth & Environment
Earth & Environment - Jan 31, 2013 12:12 - 2 Comments
In Alaska, magnets detect permafrost melt
STANFORD (US) — Researchers are using Earth’s magnetic field to determine if the permafrost beneath lakes is thawing as a result of climate change. (more…)
Earth & Environment - Jan 30, 2013 11:06 - 0 Comments
Reef was crawling with crabs when it died
U. FLORIDA (US) — Researchers have found an amazingly diverse record of 100-million-year-old crustaceans on a fossil reef in northern Spain. (more…)
Earth & Environment - Jan 29, 2013 13:40 - 3 Comments
Could high-flying bacteria affect the weather?
GEORGIA TECH (US) — Bacteria living four to six miles above the surface of the Earth could be playing a role in the formation of ice that affects weather and climate. (more…)
Earth & Environment - Jan 25, 2013 16:21 - 0 Comments
Nanotubes can harm beneficial soil microbes
PURDUE (US) — Some carbon nanotubes used for strengthening plastics may have an adverse effect on soil microbiology. (more…)
Earth & Environment - Jan 25, 2013 11:23 - 1 Comment
Policy debate hypes wasteful side of hybrid cars
UC DAVIS (US) — The argument that people who have fuel-efficient cars drive them more—and therefore use more energy—is overplayed and inaccurate, economists say. (more…)
Earth & Environment - Jan 24, 2013 13:29 - 0 Comments
Scientists ask: Put a price tag on nature?
U. NOTTINGHAM (UK) — Attaching a monetary value to the environment could have significant social implications, researchers argue in a new study. (more…)
Earth & Environment - Jan 23, 2013 11:08 - 3 Comments
Plants can go thirsty but only for so long
U. ARIZONA (US) — Many plants’ demand for water is flexible, but prolonged drought conditions have put their resilience to the test. (more…)
Earth & Environment - Jan 23, 2013 9:28 - 2 Comments
Vast amounts of wastewater as fracking expands
DUKE (US) — The amount of wastewater from natural gas production in the Marcellus shale region has increased by about 570 percent since 2004 as a result of increased shale gas production there. (more…)
Earth & Environment - Jan 22, 2013 12:52 - 0 Comments
Salmon boom and bust in extra-long cycles
U. WASHINGTON (US) — Scientists have known that salmon runs vary by year and by decade, but new research reveals huge cycles in stocks that last up to 200 years. (more…)
Earth & Environment - Jan 22, 2013 11:41 - 0 Comments
Big climate picture from tiny marine fossils
CARDIFF U. (UK) — Researchers are studying a unique 12,000-year fossil record of marine algae to learn more about past climate change in the western Antarctic Peninsula, one of the fastest warming regions on the planet today. (more…)
Earth & Environment - Jan 22, 2013 11:40 - 1 Comment
Hot days threaten corn crop yields
U. LEEDS (UK) — Fertilizers and improved irrigation have increased corn production, but soaring temperatures could soon offset those recent gains. (more…)
Earth & Environment - Jan 17, 2013 12:59 - 5 Comments
Reject fields could produce lots of biofuel
MICHIGAN STATE (US) — Land unfit for food crops can be prime real estate for biofuel plants—and could produce an estimated 5.5 billion gallons of ethanol in the Midwest alone. (more…)
Earth & Environment - Jan 16, 2013 12:59 - 3 Comments
To lower emissions, give US coal to China?
STANFORD (US) — Exporting coal from the western US to China could actually lower overall greenhouse gas emissions, an energy economist argues. (more…)
Earth & Environment - Jan 16, 2013 11:32 - 15 Comments
Soot is heating up the planet, experts warn
U. LEEDS (UK) — Soot’s role in global warming may be underestimated, but a major effort in reduction could potentially gain us a few decades of relief. (more…)
Earth & Environment - Jan 16, 2013 10:50 - 0 Comments
For ocean critters, plastic packs double whammy
UC DAVIS (US) — Eating plastic is a threat to marine creatures, but so are the pollutants those plastics have absorbed while floating in the ocean, say researchers. (more…)
Earth & Environment - Jan 14, 2013 11:42 - 1 Comment
‘Sea of exotics’ isolates native plants
U. TORONTO (CAN) — Given time, invading plants will most likely eliminate native species growing in the wild, new research shows. (more…)
Earth & Environment - Jan 11, 2013 10:25 - 1 Comment
To find where rock melts, go deeper
RICE (US) — Magma melts hotter and deeper in the Earth than previously thought, a finding that scientists say explains several long-standing puzzles. (more…)
Earth & Environment - Jan 11, 2013 9:57 - 0 Comments
Flushing ‘Nemo’ risks lionfish invasion
UC DAVIS (US) — People who get rid of pet fish via the toilet bowl or a local waterway could contribute to the threat of invasive species downstream, according to a new report. (more…)
