The earth’s oceans are much more complex than most people realize. And, new research shows that even under the sea floor, things are more interesting than you would think! The deep biosphere—a realm of sediments buried far below the seafloor—harbors diverse, thriving communities of life, according a new study by scientists at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) and the University of Delaware (UD). The researchers analyzed messenger RNA (mRNA) from 16 to 522 feet deep below the seafloor off the coast of Peru in 2002. They found evidence of bacteria, archaea, and fungi actively metabolizing, proliferating, and moving. Their work was published June 12, 2013, in Nature.

The Moluccan Woodcock, also known as Obi Woodcock, is a medium-sized forest wader. With it’s long dark bill and orange buff, this elusive, rare bird is evaluated as Endangered and has been on the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species. But according to new research conducted by Oxford University and Louisiana State University, the Moluccan Woodcock is ‘not so endangered’ after all.

In Greenland where three quarters of the land mass is covered by the earth’s only inhabited ice sheet, water is not so easy to obtain. University of Utah researchers however, have discovered a new reservoir/aquifer in Greenland’s ice sheet. The reservoir is known as a “perennial firn aquifer” and covers 27,000 square miles an area larger than the state of West Virginia. Called a firn because water persists within layers of snow and ice that doesn’t melt for at least one season, researchers believe the discovery will aid in the understanding of snowmelt and ice melt as it relates to rising sea levels.

Persistent Energy Ghana (PEG) is leading the movement to bring green energy, installing solar-powered micro-grids for the one million Ghanaian households that earn between $1 and $6 a day. PEG, a Ghanaian energy services company that launched last year, hopes to help under-electrified regions leap-frog directly from kerosene to solar in the same way that Ghana skipped over the installation of telephone lines thanks to the adoption of cell phones.

Water, food supplies and energy production are all in jeopardy as the Amazon forest is felled for profit. And as Paul Brown writes, the damage is spreading well beyond Amazonia itself. The combination of industrial and agricultural pollution and droughts is creating a once unthinkable vulnerability for the five countries of Amazonia. The continued destruction of the Amazon to exploit its resources for mining, agriculture and hydro-power is threatening the future of the South American continent, according to a report by campaigning groups using the latest scientific data. Five countries – Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru – share the Amazon, and for all of them the forest area occupies more than 40% of their territory. All face threats to their water supply, energy production, food and health.

For nearly a month (maybe longer if you’re one of those day-after-Thanksgiving types), your Christmas tree has formed the centerpiece of holiday celebrations. But now, as the New Year draws near, it’s time to think about what to do with it. If, like millions of people, you chose a fresh cut tree, it’s important to think long and hard about recycling. After all, a carbon-sucking plant gave its life so that you could honor the pagan tradition of decorating a tree. Just tossing it in the garbage is a depressing waste, especially when there are so many other creative options. Below is a list of the most creative ideas we’ve ever seen for repurposing Christmas trees. Although most of us will undoubtedly choose number one (the easiest option), the others will warm your heart as well.

It’s not been a good year for Florida’s citrus industry. The U.S. Department of Agriculture reports that, for the second year running, the orange crop is expected to be almost 10 percent lower than the previous year. The culprit is citrus greening, a disease that has devastated Florida’s oranges and grapefruits, and has now begun to spread in Texas and California. Back in the 1950s and ’60s, the Florida Citrus Tower was one of the Orlando area’s most important tourist attractions. “You could go up and see thousands and thousands acres of trees,” says citrus grower Benny McLean. “And you could buy fresh-squeezed orange juice, or you could buy a bag of navels. So it was a big deal back then.”

Smart homes have gone to a whole new level with Panasonic’s showcase center in Tokyo, Japan. Panasonic’s new technologies feature hydroponics, air ventilation, color customization, and energy consumption. The energy consumption specifically is integrated into a grid of other smart homes that share excess energy; respond to energy needs, and track community usage trends. The resultant home is a zero-emission smart house combining with nature’s elements.

New York City will reduce the amount of food waste sent to landfills by converting it into energy. Last week, Deputy Mayor Cas Calloway announced that the city will partner with Waste Management to deliver pre-processed organic waste food to Newtown Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant where it will be added to wastewater sludge to increase biogas production. The biogas by-product will be converted into renewable natural gas for both residential and commercial use through a partnership with National Grid, an international electricity and energy company. Through this project, enough energy could be produced to heat almost 5,200 New York city homes and reduce annual greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by over 90,000 metric tons, equivalent to removing almost 19,000 cars from the road.

Approximately 30% of household water use is for outdoor use in the form of garden irrigation. Outdoor water usage is very seasonal, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and outdoor water usage is highest when water availability is the lowest due to drought conditions and heat. The top three uses of water in the household are for landscaping, sewage, and laundry. Yet a simple laundry-to-landscape system could reduce one of these high water wasters. A laundry-to-landscape system might not be the only step to make the garden water neutral; approximately 15% of household water use is for laundry, which could at least reduce outdoor water usage by 50% if a laundry-to-landscape system were installed.