In The News

The Guardian: Earth's Sixth Mass Extinction Event Underway, Scientists Warn

Damian Carrington July 13, 2017
The world’s loss of biodiversity is not proceeding at a gradual pace. Instead, a “biological annihilation” of wildlife signals that a sixth mass extinction is more severe than previously assumed, explains Damian Carrington for the Guardian. The study led by Gerardo Ceballos of the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México and published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences,...

Wired: To Save Florida’s Oranges, Scientists Race to Weaponize a Virus

Megan Molteni April 19, 2017
A disease known as citrus greening, spread by the bacteria Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus and the psyllid as insect vector, has infected about 90 percent of Florida’s orange groves. Scientists try traditional breeding and genetic engineering methods as well as chemical and heat treatments to slow the disease's spread without luck. One citrus company “is developing something more like an...

BBC: Graphene-Based Sieve Turns Seawater Into Drinking Water

Paul Rincon April 4, 2017
More than 95 percent of earth’s water is saltwater in the oceans. A research team with the University of Manchester has created a sieve that may remove salt from seawater. Testing is underway and “The sought-after development could aid the millions of people without ready access to clean drinking water,” reports Paul Rincon for BBC News. Graphene, a single layer of carbon atoms arranged in a...

MIT Technology Review: Hotter Days Will Drive Global Inequality

David Rotman February 6, 2017
Extreme heat reduces labor productivity and will drive inequality among nations and regions. “The average global income is predicted to be 23 percent less by the end of the century than it would be without climate change,” reports MIT Technology Review on work by researchers from Stanford and University of California at Berkeley. “But the effects of a hotter world will be shared very unevenly,...

China Opens Unique Free Electron Laser Facility

Dennis Normile January 16, 2017
Physics research contributes to economic growth in many industries including manufacturing, aerospace, medical applications, information technology and more. “China is joining the elite club of countries that have equipped researchers with the potent sources of high-energy photons called free electron lasers,” reports Dennis Normile for Science Magazine. China reviewed options at other facilities...

Caesarean Births “Affecting Human Evolution”

Helen Briggs December 7, 2016
Recent studies have suggested that rapid changes in the environment can speed evolutionary responses. Increasing reliance on Caesarean sections contributed to more mothers requiring surgery to deliver infants, suggests theoretical biologist Philipp Mitteröcker at the University of Vienna. Helen Briggs wrote about the study for BBC News: “The researchers devised a mathematical model using data...

Korea Unveils Road Map to Curb Carbon Emissions

Shin Hyon-hee December 6, 2016
South Korea has released a detailed action plan to reduce carbon emissions and “boost incentives for renewable energy and cleaner power plant projects,” reports Shin Hyon-hee for the Investor. “It intends to raise the share of renewable sources in its portfolio to 7 percent from the existing 6 percent by 2020.” The country anticipates global discussions on international mechanisms including...