Month: April 2015

  • Side effects of Statin drugs may be underestimated in elderly patients

    A new study by UC San Francisco has found that statins can help prevent disease in older adults but must be weighed against potentially serious side effects.Amid a projected cost of almost $900 billion for cardiovascular disease over the next decade in the U.S., statins are used by nearly half the elderly population in the…

  • Decreasing biodiversity affects productivity of remaining plants

    When plant biodiversity declines, the remaining plants face diminishing productivity, say scientists in study published April 20 in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. "The loss of biodiversity is threatening ecosystem productivity and services worldwide, spurring efforts to quantify its effects on the functioning of natural ecosystems," said lead author Jingjing Liang, a…

  • US energy-related CO2 emissions increase for second year in a row

    For the second year in a row, energy-related carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in the United States have increased, according to the latest official figures. However, unlike 2013, when emissions and gross domestic product (GDP) grew at similar rates (2.5% and 2.2%, respectively), 2014's CO2 emissions growth rate of 0.7% was much smaller than the 2014 GDP…

  • Electric vehicle sales booming in France, Germany, UK

    France is leading Europe’s electric vehicle revolution with the nation now accounting for more than a quarter of EV sales across the EU, new figures reveal.Data released by the European Environment Agency shows around 38 000 electric vehicles were registered in 2014, up by 57 % compared to 2013. 

  • Lake Mead water levels continuing to drop

    The historic four-year drought in California has been grabbing the headlines lately, but there's a much bigger problem facing the West: the now 14-year drought gripping the Colorado River basin.One of the most stunning places to see its impact is at the nation's largest reservoir, Lake Mead, near Las Vegas. At about 40 percent of…

  • Solar power and Native American rights clash in the Mojave Desert

    In a remote corner of the Mojave Desert, 15 miles from Las Vegas, stands the expansive Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System. Occupying 5 square miles, the facility seems to swallow up a stunning expanse of desert including animals, plants and now, spiritual and cultural resources.Native elders filed a suit against the Department of the Interior,…

  • The color of light and our daily rhythms

    Research by scientists at The University of Manchester has revealed that the colour of light has a major impact on how the brain clock measures time of day and on how the animals' physiology and behavior adjust accordingly. The study, for the first time, provides a neuronal mechanism for how our internal clock can measure…

  • Species loss linked to unstable production of grassland ecosystem

    Losing plant species is directly linked to long-term declines in the stable productivity of grasslands, a new study has shown. The study demonstrates for the first time that for every decrease in plant biodiversity there is a proportional decrease in the stable production of plant biomass through time of grassland ecosystems. Over the long-term, factors such…

  • Think Different: Apple and conservation

    Marking a precedent-setting conservation partnership, Apple and the Conservation Fund will purchase two large areas of working forest, the organizations announced on Thursday. The move is expected to conserve “more than 36,000 acres of working forestland in Maine and North Carolina, ensuring these forests stay forests and any timber on the land is harvested sustainably,” the partners said in…

  • Study shows how climate affects biodiversity

    A key question in the climate debate is how the occurrence and distribution of species is affected by climate change. But without information about natural variation in species abundance it is hard to answer. In a major study, published today in the leading scientific journal Current Biology, researchers can now for the first time give…