How your phone could help scientists detect and measure an earthquake
Developers are creating apps that can tap into the sensors in your smart device to measure different aspects of your environment, such as your number of footsteps or your heartbeat. And now there’s an...
View ArticleCould brain infection set the stage for Alzheimer’s?
One of the hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease is the buildup of the protein amyloid-beta in the brain. Several years ago neurobiologist Rob Moir began wondering about the function of amyloid-beta. Surely...
View ArticleAnti-Muslim web searches spiked after Orlando shooting
Searches for anti-Muslim phrases on Google have spiked significantly after the Orlando mass shooting, the first such time since the Brussels terrorist attacks in March.A check on Google Trends, a tool...
View ArticleWhat can we do to protect against another Fort McMurray-like super fire?
The wildfires that swept the Canadian city of Fort McMurry earlier this year are now classified as the biggest natural disaster to ever hit Canada in terms of dollars. Some $6 billion worth of property...
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An Australian rodent is the first mammal wiped out by climate change,...
Climate change appears to have driven to extinction an Australian Great Barrier Reef rodent, according to a new study, which suggests the species may be the first mammal lost to the global...
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Paying more attention to the weather could help stretch our existing water...
Last year, New York City faced an unusual situation. An epic winter in the city’s Delaware River watershed brought heavy snow and very little rain. Stubborn cold meant there was no snowmelt to refill...
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Why you should worry about where your oil (and gas) comes from
Next time you fill up your gas tank, consider the argument that the gas you’re putting in your car, might have been stolen.“It’s the same as back in the days of the slave trade,” says professor Leif...
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An Indian court will decide whether a palm is, in fact, a tree
Here's a question that sounds a lot more theoretical than it really is: When is a tree not a tree? The short answer: When it's a coconut palm in the Indian state of Goa.In December 2015, the state...
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The case for a UN ban on 'killer robots'
New technology could lead humans to relinquish control over decisions to use lethal force. As artificial intelligence advances, the possibility that machines could independently select and fire on...
View ArticleThe incredible journey of one 3-year-old mountain lion
Mountain Lions have been considered extinct in the Eastern United States for decades, but there is one lion who trekked from his home in the Dakotas to just a few miles outside of New York City.The...
View ArticleA new way to clean the environment?
In the quest to mend the ecological damage and imbalances humans are causing, many enterprising scientists are turning to the endlessly inventive natural world — for example bacteria that can...
View ArticleClimate change is a huge threat to our national parks
Climate change is not just incinerating boreal forests — it’s also presenting new challenges for one of America’s most beloved icons — its national parks. The director of the National Park Service,...
View ArticleInside the minds of zoo animals
Among the many reactions to this month's killing of Harambe, the gorilla at the Cincinnati Zoo, is a question: Can animals, especially smart ones like gorillas, ever be truly happy in zoos?Terry Maple,...
View ArticleTry these backyard science projects with your kids this summer
School might be out for the summer, but that doesn’t mean the science fun needs to stop. There are experiments that kids can try in the backyard all summer long.Liz Heinecke, aka The Kitchen Pantry...
View ArticleUS city learning from Dutch 'living with water' approach
Cheryll Sumner grew up along the water in Norfolk, Virginia. About 15 years ago she moved back to her childhood home to raise her kids.“It was wonderful that my kids were able to have the same...
View ArticleHow will rising seas affect your city?
Seas are rising, and cities throughout the world are responding to it differently. Series: Living with Rising Seas The oceans are rising. Untold millions in coastal cities around the world are...
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As sea levels rise, Rotterdam floats to the top as an example of how to live...
When a big storm hits a coastal city like New York or New Orleans, it's often the storm surge that does the most damage — the rising water that comes with low atmospheric pressure. But when the next...
View ArticleAt least 185 environmentalists were killed last year — the highest toll recorded
At least 185 activists and indigenous people fighting environmental pillaging were murdered in 2015, the watchdog group Global Witness said on Monday.The grisly toll is the largest recorded — nearly 60...
View ArticleGreat Barrier Reef bleaching could cost Australia a million tourists
Severe coral bleaching on Australia's Great Barrier Reef could cost it more than a million visitors a year and huge sums in lost tourism revenue, a survey said Tuesday.The World Heritage-listed reef...
View ArticleDid you catch that bee’s license number? Unusual research project begins in...
If you were in east London this morning, you might have seen something pretty weird.Five hundred bumblebees — each with a unique numbered "license plate" glued to its back — were released from a...
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