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The long dry: why the world's water supply is shrinking![]() Sydney, Australia (SPX) Dec 14, 2018 A global study has found a paradox: our water supplies are shrinking at the same time as climate change is generating more intense rain. And the culprit is the drying of soils, say researchers, pointing to a world where drought-like conditions will become the new normal, especially in regions that are already dry. The study - the most exhaustive global analysis of rainfall and rivers - was conducted by a team led by Professor Ashish Sharma at Australia's University of New South Wales (UNSW) in Syd ... read more |
IS 'annihilation' of Iraqi farms leaves haunting legacyBaghdad (AFP) Dec 13, 2018 The Islamic State group's "deliberate, wanton annihilation" of agricultural lands in Iraq's northern Sinjar amounts to war crimes, haunting farmers a year after the jihadists' defeat, Amnesty International said Thursday. ... more
Floods kill 13 in central VietnamHanoi (AFP) Dec 13, 2018 Floods caused by heavy downpours have killed 13 people in central Vietnam, officials said Thursday, as farmers scrambled to save crops and livestock ahead of more bad weather forecast for this week. ... more
Red gold: Afghanistan saffron production growsHerat, Afghanistan (AFP) Dec 12, 2018 Starting before dawn has even broken, Afghanistan's army of saffron pickers shift their way across sun-baked fields to pluck brightly the coloured crocuses that are providing the country's farmers with a new means of income. ... more
Global economy in 2019: Growth beginning to frayWashington (AFP) Dec 12, 2018 American farmers have been forced to warehouse a bumper crop of soybeans, or sell at a loss, while a Midwest medical supply company is considering shipping production overseas amid growing uncertainty. ... more |
Three Vietnam men survive 40 hours at sea after typhoon
Typhoon Fung-wong floods Philippine towns, leaves 5 dead in its wake Typhoon Fung-wong leaves flooded Philippine towns in its wake Typhoon exposes centuries-old shipwreck off Vietnam port Weakening Typhoon Fung-wong exits Philippines after displacing 1.4 million Super Typhoon Fung-wong makes landfall in Philippines Over 1 million evacuate as deadly Super Typhoon Fung-wong nears Philippines Dam reservoir levels drop below 3% in Iran's second city: media Philippines evacuates one million, woman dead as super typhoon nears Japan observes tiny tsunami following 6.7 magnitude quake |
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Egypt's fertile Nile Delta threatened by climate changeKafr Al-Dawar, Egypt (AFP) Dec 7, 2018 Lush green fields blanket northern Egypt's Nile Delta, but the country's agricultural heartland and its vital freshwater resources are under threat from a warming climate. ... more
Increasing crop insurances adoption in developing countriesZurich, Switzerland (SPX) Dec 06, 2018 Farmers in developing countries often rely heavily on their yearly harvest to feed their families. A bad crop can have severe consequences for their livelihood. Despite the significant advantages cr ... more
'Worst drought I have seen': Afghan farmers forced to fleeHerat, Afghanistan (AFP) Dec 7, 2018 Wheat and opium farmer Murad Khan Ishaqzai, 80, has never seen a drought as bad as the one ravaging western Afghanistan where more than 250,000 people have been forced to abandon their homes. ... more
Flint, Michigan lead crisis should have buried the city in water bottles. So, why didn't it?West Lafayette IN (SPX) Dec 06, 2018 One hundred thousand residents of Flint, Michigan could only use water from bottles or filters during a years-long lead contamination crisis, which started when the city switched to a new drinking w ... more
US farmers more cautious than hopeful after China trade dealNew York (AFP) Dec 4, 2018 President Donald Trump says American farmers will see immediate benefits from the trade detente with Beijing, but farm belt representatives are still cautious about declaring victory. ... more |
![]() US groundwater in peril: Potable supply less than thought
Soil tilling, mulching key to China's potato cropBoston MA (SPX) Dec 04, 2018 When you think of China, do you think of potatoes? Maybe not, but in the Loess Plateau region of northwestern China, potato is the main food crop. Even though it is such an important crop ther ... more |
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Study shows regions increasingly suffer hot, dry conditions at the same timeStanford CA (SPX) Dec 03, 2018 A new study from Stanford University suggests that the kind of hot, dry conditions that can shrink crop yields, destabilize food prices and lay the groundwork for devastating wildfires are increasin ... more
Scientists reveal substantial water loss in global landlocked regionsManhattan KS (SPX) Dec 03, 2018 Along with a warming climate and intensified human activities, recent water storage in global landlocked basins has undergone a widespread decline. A new study reveals this decline has aggravated lo ... more
UK will have 'completely safe' water after BrexitLondon (AFP) Nov 28, 2018 Britain's environment minister reassured the country on Wednesday that it would have plenty of safe drinking water should it crash out of the European Union without a deal. ... more
Drinking water sucked from the dusty desert airThuwal, Saudi Arabia (SPX) Nov 27, 2018 A simple device that can capture its own weight in water from fresh air and then release that water when warmed by sunlight could provide a secure new source of drinking water in remote arid regions ... more
The tragedy of the commons - minus the tragedyColumbus OH (SPX) Nov 27, 2018 Sometimes, there is no "tragedy" in the tragedy of the commons, according to a new analysis that challenges a widely accepted theory. Scientists have long believed that when there is open acce ... more |
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Brazil keeps eye on Amazon deforestation with satellites Sao Jose Dos Campos, Brazil (AFP) Dec 13, 2018
The vast Amazon forest may be hard to penetrate, posing a problem for authorities trying to stop illegal logging - but there are still eyes in the sky keeping track of the destruction.
For three decades, a group of researchers have been monitoring forest clearing, agriculture and land use thanks to satellites orbiting the Earth and beaming images to Brazil's National Institute for Space Res ... more |
Lockheed Martin prepares GPS III satellite for SpaceX launch Washington (UPI) Dec 12, 2018
The U.S. Air Force's first GPS III satellite has been encapsulated for its planned Dec. 18 launch from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla., on a SpaceX Falcon 9 satellite-delivery vehicle.
The GPS III Space Vehicle 01 has undergone pre-launch processing, fueling and other services in Titusville, Fla. The GPS III SV01 was loaded in its launch cartridge in anticipation of its coming la ... more |
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Green thumb spruces up Bangladesh one tree at a time Jessore, Bangladesh (AFP) Dec 13, 2018
Ohid Sarder prises a rusted nail from a tree and drops it into his bucket, another eyesore scrubbed from the countryside as he embarks on a one-man mission to clean up Bangladesh.
The 53-year-old self-professed tree hugger has been riding his bicycle across the country, in a grassroots effort to free trees of the billboards and clutter nailed to their trunks.
Trees in Bangladesh are ofte ... more |
Obtaining polyester from plant oil Konstanz, Germany (SPX) Dec 17, 2018
The development of future technologies that are not based on mineral oil and can be used for producing chemicals and plastics is one of the major tasks in modern materials science and a key challenge that needs to be addressed if sustainable industrial production is to have a future.
A range of theoretical concepts and laboratory processes must be devised and tested to resolve challenges a ... more |
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Sun-soaking device turns water into superheated steam Boston MA (SPX) Dec 13, 2018
MIT engineers have built a device that soaks up enough heat from the sun to boil water and produce "superheated" steam hotter than 100 degrees Celsius, without any expensive optics.
On a sunny day, the structure can passively pump out steam hot enough to sterilize medical equipment, as well as to use in cooking and cleaning. The steam may also supply heat to industrial processes, or it cou ... more |
More than air: Researchers fine-tune wind farm simulation Beijing, China (SPX) Dec 17, 2018
Wind power is on track to supply almost a fifth of the world's demand for electricity by 2050, according to the Global Wind Energy Council. While wind turbines are generally thought of as a sustainable alternative to traditional energy sources, relatively little is known about the impact they have on their immediate surroundings.
A collaborative research team based in Beijing, China, is wo ... more |
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7 dead in southwest China mining accident Beijing (AFP) Dec 16, 2018
Seven miners were killed and three others injured in an accident at a coal mine in southwestern China, state media reported.
The accident occurred around 6.00pm (1000 GMT) Saturday after the connecting segment of a mining skip broke, causing it to plummet down the mine shaft, the official Xinhua news agency said.
The three injured miners were rushed to hospital following the accident, wh ... more |
US Tibet bill 'grossly interferes' in China affairs: Beijing Beijing (AFP) Dec 14, 2018
China on Friday rebuked the US Congress over legislation seeking greater access to Tibet, saying American lawmakers "grossly interfered" in Beijing's domestic affairs.
The bill, which passed this week with bipartisan support, demands access to the region for US diplomats, journalists and tourists, threatening to bar Chinese officials responsible for the policy from the US if barriers remain ... more |
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New models sense human trust in smart machines West Lafayette IN (SPX) Dec 17, 2018
New "classification models" sense how well humans trust intelligent machines they collaborate with, a step toward improving the quality of interactions and teamwork.
The long-term goal of the overall field of research is to design intelligent machines capable of changing their behavior to enhance human trust in them. The new models were developed in research led by assistant professor Neer ... more |
Oceans of garbage prompt war on plastics Paris (AFP) Dec 15, 2018
Faced with images of turtles smothered by plastic bags, beaches carpeted with garbage and islands of trash floating in the oceans, environmentalists say the world is waking up to the need to tackle plastic pollution at the source.
Stories on social media of giant seas of floating waste or a beached whale found in Indonesia with six kilos (13 pounds) of plastic in its stomach are bringing pla ... more |
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Atmospheric scientists find causes of firenado in deadly Carr Fire Reno NV (SPX) Dec 07, 2018
A destructive fire-generated vortex - a massive stream of rising, spinning, smoke, ash and fire - that topped out at 17,000 feet above the earth, accelerated the Carr fire that killed eight people and devastated a widespread area in the Redding, California region in July 2018. The vortex, a little-observed atmospheric phenomena, was spinning with the power of a class three tornado, which earned ... more |
Research unlocks secrets of iron storage in algae East Boothbay ME (SPX) Dec 14, 2018
New research shows that phytoplankton iron storage strategies may determine which species thrive in changing oceans and impact marine food webs, according to a recent paper in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The research examined two primary methods of iron storage and found that one makes species more resilient against shortages of the rare and essential element.
"The ... more |
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Heatwave death threat soars for elderly, city dwellers Paris (AFP) Nov 29, 2018 More than 150 million vulnerable people worldwide were exposed to potentially life-threatening heatwaves last year, scientists said Thursday, warning that climate change posed an unprecedented global health risk.
In a worldwide stocktake of public health trends, dozens of international agencies said people over 65, those living in large cities, and sufferers of heart and lung disease were al ... more |
Report aims at untapped workforce for Israel's growing high-tech sector Tel Aviv (AFP) Dec 16, 2018
The growth of Israel's powerful high-tech sector is not being matched by adequate increases in employee numbers, a report said Sunday, with recruitment of more women, and Arabs and ultra-Orthodox Jewish men needed.
Israel's high-tech sector - an industry that has earned it the nickname "start-up nation" - is seen as a global leader.
Its 7,000 local high-tech firms and dozens of resear ... more |
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Research provides insights into Sun's past, future San Antonio TX (SPX) Dec 13, 2018
Andres Munoz-Jaramillo and Jose Manuel Vaquero, from Southwest Research Institute and University of Extremadura, respectively, have developed a new technique for looking at historic solar data to distinguish trustworthy observations from those that should be used with care. This work is critical to understanding the Sun's past and future as well as whether solar activity plays a role in climate ... more |
Dutch build artificial islands to bring wildlife back Lelystad, Netherlands (AFP) Dec 16, 2018
Dutch ranger Andre Donker sighs as he looks out at the rippling grey waters of the Markermeer, one of Europe's largest freshwater lakes. "Once upon a time it was teeming with fish here," he says.
But this vast 700-square-kilometre (270-square-mile) expanse of water, which regulates the level of water in the rest of the Netherlands, had become until recently nothing more than a cloudy mass de ... more |
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