Category: News

  • Fruit Flies Likely to Fall Victim to Climate Change

    Many species are being forced to adapt to slowly rising temperatures around the world. However, some simply do not have the ability to change. They are stuck in a sort of “evolutionary straitjacket.” This includes many species of fruit fly, a common bug found in many houses circling overripe or rotting fruit. According to new…

  • Iran Blows Past Sanctions with Wind Energy

    Determined to stay its unpopular nuclear course, Iran is now turning to wind power and other renewable energy sources to blow past sanctions. Last year Karin reported that the current regime plans to produce 5,000 MW of solar energy by 2015, and in May this year, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad put aside an additional $620 million…

  • Are EV’s really better for climate-changing emissions?

    Electric cars are an axiom of clean transport planning – they produce no tailpipe emissions, little localised air pollution and, potentially, no greenhouse gas output. But as their critics point out, they are only as green as the electricity that they use. A power supply dependent on fossil fuels will produce greenhouse gas emissions from…

  • Creating catchy names for vegetables leads to increased consumption in schools

    With names like “Golden Corn Nuggets” or “Creamy Sweet Corn” do you think you would be more inclined to choose corn as your side dish when going through the cafeteria buffet? What about “Powerful Peas” or “Rainforest Smoothie?” Do they sound more tempting than a bowl full of peas and a glass of vegetable juice?…

  • NCDC: August 2012 Was a Warm One

    The latest update from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association’s National Climatic Data Center states that August 2012 was one of the warmest months on record.

  • Sorghum’s Potential as a Bioenergy Crop

    Biofuels are mostly produced from grains such as corn. In recent years, various types of wild grasses and other crops have been looked at to produce biofuels, but have yet to break through in a big way. A new study by the United States Department of Agriculture has uncovered a potential breakthrough candidate for biofuel…

  • What might Red Sea mining bring to Saudi Arabia and Sudan?

    A Canadian company expects to complete a study, within a year, to gauge the feasibility of extracting metals from hydro-thermal basins some 2,000 metres deep in the Red Sea, which could boost Saudi Arabia and Sudan’s access to metals, and create high-paying jobs.

  • Magnets can help clean up oil spills

    Oil spills can have catastrophic impacts on marine ecosystems so it is important for responsible parties to make every effort to help mitigate these damages when they occur. Cleanup efforts have ranged from bioremediation, to controlled burning, to using chemical dispersants, and skimming. However, these clean up methods can take weeks to complete and are…

  • Death Valley Wins!

    How hot can it get on Earth? It is a sort of dubious honor to be the hottest place, but some place has to be the record holder. A World Meteorological Organization panel has concluded that the all-time heat record held for exactly 90 years by El Azizia in Libya is invalid because of an…

  • UPS Earns Top Score Among U.S. Firms On Carbon Disclosure

    For the second consecutive year, UPS (NYSE: UPS) has received the highest score in the 2012 Carbon Disclosure Project’s “Carbon Disclosure Leadership Index” of S&P companies, receiving a 99 out of 100. UPS is one of only two U.S. companies to achieve the high score, reflecting the company’s commitment to transparency and leadership with regards…