Anti-environmentalism is gaining ground. Attacks on the net zero goal and hostility to conservation measures and anti-pollution targets are becoming more common. And, as recent election results have shown, these tactics are reshaping politics in Britain and across the West.
Australia needs to urgently prioritize state and national conservation policies, according to a new study, with the findings warning that more than 220 critically endangered species are at risk of being lost due to their small distributions coupled with uneven protections.
A new study led by San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance researchers sheds light on the social dynamics that drive the continued consumption of bear bile in Việt Nam, revealing that gift-giving among close social networks plays a crucial role in sustaining demand. The findings
Heat waves destroy crops, drive wildfires, and kill humans and wildlife, but these extreme weather events aren't just limited to land. Large bodies of water can also be hit by heat waves that linger for weeks, months and sometimes years—much like "The Blob," a sprawling hot
Self-driving cars which eliminate traffic jams, getting a healthcare diagnosis instantly without leaving your home, or feeling the touch of loved ones based across the continent may sound like the stuff of science fiction. But new research could make all this and more a step
For the nearly 30 percent of major depressive disorder patients who are resistant to treatment, ketamine provides some amount of normalcy, but it requires frequent treatment and can have side effects. Researchers now show in proof-of-concept experiments that it may be possible
As the US national debate intensifies around immigration, a new study is challenging conventional wisdom about 'brain drain'--the idea that when skilled workers emigrate from developing countries, their home economies suffer.
Manuel Endres, professor of physics at Caltech, specializes in finely controlling single atoms using devices known as optical tweezers. He and his colleagues use the tweezers, made of laser light, to manipulate individual atoms within an array of atoms to study fundamental
University of Illinois Physics Professor Paul Kwiat and members of his research group have developed a new tool for precision measurement at the nanometer scale in scenarios where background noise and optical loss from the sample are present.
A newly discovered silicone variant is a semiconductor, University of Michigan researchers have discovered—upending assumptions that the material class is exclusively insulating.
Most of us are familiar with sloths, the bear-like animals that hang from trees, live life in the slow lane, take a month to digest a meal and poop just once a week. Their closest living relatives are anteaters and armadillos, and if that seems like an odd pairing, there's a
Co-paired stars, or stars that travel together, can provide insights into processes that other stars can't. Differences in their brightness, orbits, and chemical composition can hint at different features, and scientists are beginning to exploit them.
Some 13,000 years ago, the sun emitted a huge belch of radiation that bombarded Earth and left its imprint in ancient tree rings. That solar storm was the most powerful one ever recorded. The next strongest was the 1839 Carrington Event. It was spurred by a huge solar flare
Scientists from the Institute of Applied Ecology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have developed an automated monitoring system to continuously track methane absorption by forest soils. A four-year study at a temperate forest site revealed a strong correlation between soil
Despite being considered sanctuaries for biodiversity, Brazil's marine protected areas (MPAs) are not immune to microplastic contamination.
A research group has discovered that certain naturally occurring peptides in the body can trigger contractions in the vas deferens—a muscular tube that carries sperm in the male reproductive system.
Researchers from Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M) and Universidad de Cádiz (UCA) have carried out a study aimed at understanding and addressing the problem of rural depopulation. To tackle this issue, the researchers propose an approach in which the set of policies,
The White House’s $175-billion plan to protect the U.S. from nuclear annihilation will probably cost much more—and deliver far less—than has been claimed, says nuclear arms expert Jeffrey Lewis
A recent study led by Prof. Chen Yaning from the Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography of the Chinese Academy of Sciences has revealed how decades of land-use change have significantly shaped ecological conditions in the Tarim River Basin—China's largest inland river
Research reveals that for C. elegans worms, the presence of dead members of their species has profound behavioral and physiological effects, leading them to more quickly reproduce and shortening their lifespans.
New research shows how rapidly proliferating turf algae are waging 'chemical warfare' to inhibit the recovery of kelp forests along Maine's warming coast.
Researchers have analyzed ancient DNA from Borrelia recurrentis, a type of bacteria that causes relapsing fever, pinpointing when it evolved to spread through lice rather than ticks, and how it gained and lost genes in the process.
Engineers developed a membrane that filters the components of crude oil by their molecular size, an advance that could dramatically reduce the amount of energy needed for crude oil fractionation.
Practicing reciprocity between humans and nature—namely caring relationships between people and nature when they perceive benefits from nature—can contribute positively to both the planet and societies. This is the main conclusion of a comprehensive international study that
Planting flower strips in a field with at least two species can increase the number of natural enemies of pests by 70%. The more flower species, the better the effect, according to a new meta-analysis from the University of Copenhagen.
Flowers grow stems, leaves and petals in a perfect pattern again and again. A new Cornell study shows that even in this precise, patterned formation in plants, gene activity inside individual cells is far more chaotic than it appears from the outside.
Alongside climate change, biodiversity loss caused by human activity is one of the greatest environmental challenges of our time. A study conducted at the Research Center for Ecological Change, University of Helsinki investigated how the diversity of natural communities affects
Understanding how Earth's climate has naturally fluctuated during the Holocene—the current geological epoch spanning the last 11,700 years—is crucial for contextualizing modern human-driven warming and improving future climate projections. However, the climate history of
In a new study published in the journal Ecosystem Services, researchers from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Cornell University, and the Wildlife Conservation Society examined how protecting areas valuable for human needs—like clean water, flood control, and carbon
A team of international astronomers led by Richard Teague, the Kerr-McGee Career Development Professor in the Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences (EAPS), has gathered the most sensitive and detailed observations of 15 protoplanetary disks to date, giving the
A new NASA study reveals a surprising way planetary cores may have formed—one that could reshape how scientists understand the early evolution of rocky planets like Mars.
The unusual orbit of a possible dwarf planet, known as 2017 OF201, makes it less likely that our solar system contains a hidden ninth “Planet X”
As legally required by the European Union, sustainable fisheries may not extract more fish than can regrow each year. Yet about 70% of commercially targeted fish stocks in northern EU waters are either overfished, have shrunken population sizes or have collapsed entirely.
Magnets and superconductors go together like oil and water—or so scientists have thought. But a new finding by MIT physicists is challenging this century-old assumption.
Imagine looking at thousands of scattered puzzle pieces and trying to guess what picture they create. Without any reference point, it's nearly impossible.
Andy Weir's bestselling story "The Martian" predicts that by 2035 NASA will have landed humans on Mars three times, perfected return-to-Earth flight systems and collaborated with the China National Space Administration. We are now 10 years past the Hollywood adaptation's 2015
Most people have encountered the black, gray, or pink stains of bacterial biofilms built up on the bathroom tiles or kitchen sink. Even with vigorous scrubbing and strong cleaning chemicals, this grime can be difficult to remove and often returns with vengeance. A new study,
Skeletal editing is a modern approach to chemical synthesis. By making precise alterations at the atomic level, researchers are able to directly convert existing drug scaffolds into new, biologically relevant compounds.
DNA is the genetic code that provides the biological instructions for every living species, but not every bit of DNA helps the species survive. Some pieces of DNA are more like parasites, along for the ride and their own survival.
By exerting unprecedented control over extremely cold atoms, researchers have put them in a state with several simultaneously quantum-entangled properties
An analysis of the sloth family tree suggests three different groups of the animals evolved to gigantic sizes in response to cold and dry conditions
Fluorescent molecules that absorb and emit light in the near-infrared (NIR) and short-wave infrared (SWIR) regions have significant potential for various applications. These molecules can serve as markers for imaging biological tissues deep within the body, enhance solar cell
With warmer than normal ocean waters, forecasters are expecting yet another unusually busy hurricane season for the Atlantic. But they don't think it will be as chaotic as 2024, the third-costliest season on record as it spawned killer storms Beryl, Helene and Milton.
An unusual May nor'easter soaked New England on Thursday and threatened to bring snow to higher elevations as the states prepared for the Memorial Day holiday weekend.
The world can mine copper to fuel the green energy transition, or it can mine copper to build the infrastructure of developing countries—but it will be extraordinarily difficult to do both, according to a University of Michigan study.
A new study from UBC Okanagan says students appear to be using generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) responsibly, and as a way to speed up tasks, not just boost their grades.
Travelers visiting Antarctica have helped scientists at UC San Diego's Scripps Institution of Oceanography learn more about the polar ecosystem through a citizen science program called FjordPhyto. This NASA-funded program engages citizen scientists to investigate how warming
