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Climate change takes toll on French oyster farmers![]() Cancale, France (AFP) Jan 01, 2019 Gulping down oysters has long been a favourite New Year's Eve ritual for the French, but as winters get warmer and summers get drier many growers worry there will soon be fewer of the prized mollusks to go around. "Twenty years ago, we'd be shivering in the warehouse while preparing the holiday orders. Today it's 15 degrees (60 Fahrenheit)," says Brittany oysterman Mathieu Le Moal, his sleeves rolled up in front of a tractor carrying dozens of bulging oyster sacks. "We don't have seasons anymore ... read more |
Bricked in by poverty, Cambodia's farmers fight debt bondagePhnom Penh (AFP) Jan 2, 2019 Bopha should be in school but instead toils seven days a week in a searing brick kiln on the outskirts of Phnom Penh - a 14-year-old trapped in debt bondage in a boom industry preying on the poverty of Cambodia's farmers. ... more
Scientists: 'Time is ripe' to use big data for planet-sized plant questionsGainesville FL (SPX) Jan 01, 2019 A group of Florida Museum of Natural History scientists has issued a "call to action" to use big data to tackle longstanding questions about plant diversity and evolution and forecast how plant life ... more
Iran sees 'revival' of imperilled Lake UrmiaMiandoab, Iran (AFP) Dec 30, 2018 It is one of the worst ecological disasters of recent decades, but the shrinking of Iran's great Lake Urmia finally appears to be stabilising and officials see the start of a revival. ... more
China customs gives green light for US rice importsBeijing (AFP) Dec 28, 2018 China's customs administration announced Friday it had approved US rice imports, a move that comes during a 90-day tariff truce between the two countries which are engaged in a bruising trade war. ... 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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| Previous Issues | Jan 01 | Dec 31 | Dec 30 | Dec 29 | Dec 28 |
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NGOs launch legal action against France over climateParis (AFP) Dec 18, 2018 A group of NGOs including Greenpeace and Oxfam have launched a lawsuit against the French state accusing it of taking insufficient action to tackle climate change. ... more
Sphinx molecule to rescue African farmers from witchweedNagoya, Australia (SPX) Dec 19, 2018 An interdisciplinary team led by researchers at Nagoya University has discovered a highly potent and selective molecule, SPL7, that can lead seeds of the noxious parasitic weed Striga to suicide ger ... more
Understanding food's carbon footprintDurham NC (SPX) Dec 19, 2018 Most people don't realize how much food production contributes to climate change - especially meat. "Beef is the SUV of food," said Rick Larrick, a professor of management and organizations at Duke' ... more
Changes in agriculture could cut sector non-CO2 greenhouse gas emissions by up to 50 percentVienna, Austria (SPX) Dec 19, 2018 The agricultural sector is the world's largest source of non-CO2 greenhouse gas emissions, and IIASA-led research has found that changing agricultural practices and a shift in diet away from meat an ... more
Climate change leading to water shortage in Andes, HimalayasColumbus OH (SPX) Dec 19, 2018 Climate change could have devastating effects on vulnerable residents in the Andes mountains and the Tibetan plateau, according to researchers at The Ohio State University who have been studying gla ... more |
![]() Recruiting ants to fight weeds on the farm
China's state grain buyer resumes US soybean purchasesBeijing (AFP) Dec 20, 2018 China's major state-owned grain stockpiler said it has resumed buying US soybeans, as Beijing upholds a trade war truce with Washington reached earlier this month. ... more |
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A method to monitor indoor crop health no matter what planet you're onWashington DC (SPX) Dec 18, 2018 As the world urbanizes and technologies such as LED grow lights bring down costs, indoor farming is becoming an increasingly important part of the food supply. Eventually, indoor farming techniques ... more
The long dry: why the world's water supply is shrinkingSydney, 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, poin ... 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 |
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China launches six Yunhai-2 satellites for atmospheric environment research Jiuquan (XNA) Jan 01, 2019
China successfully sent six atmospheric environment research satellites and a test communication satellite into orbit Saturday.
They were launched by a Long March-2D rocket from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China at 4:00 p.m.
The six Yunhai-2 satellites will be used to study atmospheric environment, monitor space environment, prevent and reduce disasters, and cond ... more |
China's BeiDou officially goes global Beijing (XNA) Dec 31, 2018
China on Thursday announced that the primary system of BeiDou-3 has been established and started to provide global services, meaning its home-grown BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS) officially went global.
The BDS has been performing well in the Asia-Pacific region and it goes global with cutting-edge technology and high-quality service.
"The BDS is very popular in Indonesia," ... more |
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Trees' enemies help tropical forests maintain their biodiversity Corvallis OR (SPX) Dec 28, 2018
Scientists have long struggled to explain how tropical forests can maintain their staggering diversity of trees without having a handful of species take over - or having many other species die out.
The answer, researchers say, lies in the soil found near individual trees, where natural "enemies" of tree species reside. These enemies, including fungi and arthropods, attack and kill many of ... more |
Tel Aviv researchers develop biodegradable plastic from seawater algae Washington (UPI) Jan 01, 2019
Researchers at the Tel Aviv University are working on a new biodegradable plastic made from microorganisms that feed on seawater algae.
"Our new process produces 'plastic' from marine microorganisms that completely recycle into organic waste," said Alexander Golberg, of Tel Aviv University's Porter School of Environmental and Earth Sciences.
Factories already "produce this type o ... more |
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How to spot every solar panel in the United States Washington DC (SPX) Jan 02, 2019
Solar panels now account for over 10% of total electricity generation in some U.S. states, such as California. But policy-makers, utility companies, and engineers still find it difficult to put an accurate number on the country's total solar power installation, let alone to describe what factors make solar power thrive in certain areas and not others.
Now, researchers at Stanford Universit ... more |
Upwind wind plants can reduce flow to downwind neighbors Golden CO (SPX) Dec 19, 2018
New National Science Foundation and Department of Energy-funded research highlights a previously unexplored consequence of the global proliferation of wind energy facilities: a wake effect from upwind facilities that can reduce the energy production of their downwind neighbors.
In collaboration with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), faculty at the University of Colorado Boul ... more |
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Spain to see exploitation end in all coal mines Washington (UPI) Jan 01, 2019
Coal exploitations is set to end in Spain on Monday, trailing the closure of Germany's last black coal mine a week earlier, as part of a European Union plan aimed at improving the environment.
As many as 26 coal operations, of which 12 were still active, will have to end all exploitation activities by Monday or else will have to return some $572 million in public funds, as per a Europea ... more |
Hong Kong democracy camp kicks off 2019 with protests Hong Kong (AFP) Jan 1, 2019
Hong Kong's embattled democracy advocates kicked off 2019 with a large street rally on Tuesday, lamenting what they said had been a grim year for freedoms and steeling themselves for fresh battles with Beijing.
A thousands-strong crowd - including a small retinue of independence activists - protested over disappearing political freedoms, rising inequality and the local government's perceiv ... more |
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Growing bio-inspired shapes with hundreds of tiny robots Heidelberg, Germany (SPX) Jan 02, 2019
Hundreds of small robots can work in a team to create biology-inspired shapes - without an underlying master plan, purely based on local communication and movement. To achieve this, researchers from EMBL, CRG and Bristol Robotics Laboratory introduced the biological principles of self-organisation to swarm robotics. Science Robotics publishes the results on 19 December.
"We show that it is ... more |
Survey finds Texas' Gulf of Mexico shoreline has most trash Washington (UPI) Jan 01, 2019
A new survey shows 10 times more trash ends up on the shores of Texas than any other state along the Gulf of Mexico.
Over the last two years, scientists at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab and the Mission-Aransas National Estuarine Research Reserve have been documenting debris along the Gulf of Mexico coastline.
The research, published in the journal Marine Pollution Bulletin, revealed ... 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 |
Iran sees 'revival' of imperilled Lake Urmia Miandoab, Iran (AFP) Dec 30, 2018
It is one of the worst ecological disasters of recent decades, but the shrinking of Iran's great Lake Urmia finally appears to be stabilising and officials see the start of a revival.
A rusty cargo ship and a row of colourful pedal boats lying untouched on the bone-dry basin are a sign of the devastating loss of water in what was once the largest lake in the Middle East.
Situated in the ... more |
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Koala drinks from water bottle in Australia heatwave Sydney (AFP) Jan 1, 2019
As Australia swelters in an extreme heatwave, a video of a woman in the state of Victoria pouring water into the mouth of a thirsty koala has melted hearts online.
The vast continent has experienced intense heat over the past week, with the mercury up 16 degrees Celsius (60 degrees Fahrenheit) higher than usual for this time of year in southern Australia.
Numerous towns set new December ... more |
Siemens boss takes aim at Chinese buyouts Frankfurt Am Main (AFP) Dec 21, 2018 Siemens boss Joe Kaeser on Friday lashed out at the practices used by Chinese investors to exercise total control over foreign firms, as disquiet grows about China's appetite for German technology and know-how.
The recent ousting of robotics maker Kuka's chief executive Till Reuter two years after the prestigious German firm was taken over by Chinese group Midea, was just the latest example, ... more |
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New findings reveal the behavior of turbulence in the exceptionally hot solar corona Plainsboro NJ (SPX) Jan 02, 2019
The sun defies conventional scientific understanding. Its upper atmosphere, known as the corona, is many millions of degrees hotter than its surface. Astrophysicists are keen to learn why the corona is so hot, and scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) have completed research that may advance the search.
The scientists found that form ... more |
Historical genomes reveal recent changes in genetic health of eastern gorillas Uppsala, Sweden (SPX) Jan 01, 2019
The critically endangered Grauer's gorilla has recently lost genetic diversity and has experienced an increase in harmful mutations. These conclusions were reached by an international team of researchers who sequenced eleven genomes from eastern gorilla specimens collected up to 100 years ago, and compared these with genomes from present-day individuals. The results are now published in Current ... more |
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