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On Lake Victoria, a green stain spreads across Africa's blue heart![]() Kisumu, Kenya (AFP) Feb 8, 2019 With nets piled onto wooden boats, a group of fishermen joke while gazing out across Lake Victoria and the vast green weed clogging up the waterway. But their laughter has a worried edge as the sun sets. The thick green carpet of water hyacinth is again choking Kisumu bay, floating on the surface and blocking Kenya's main entry to the largest body of water in Africa. Leggy egrets are delighted, high-stepping through the invasive vegetation in search of food - but the fishermen are downcast as i ... read more |
Researchers provide new definition for major Indian monsoon seasonTallahassee FL (SPX) Feb 11, 2019 Toward the end of every year, the Northeast Indian Monsoon (NEM) batters southern India with torrents of driving rain, but climatologists have never precisely defined when the monsoon begins and end ... more
Four crops alone comprise close to 50 per cent of all crops grown globallyToronto, Canada (SPX) Feb 07, 2019 A new U of T study suggests that globally we're growing more of the same kinds of crops, and this presents major challenges for agricultural sustainability on a global scale. The study, done b ... more
Campaigners to Pope: $1m to charity if you go vegan for LentParis (AFP) Feb 6, 2019 A 12-year-old animal rights and climate campaigner made an offer Wednesday Pope Francis may find hard to refuse: eat vegan during Lent and a million dollars will go to a charity of the Pontiff's choice. ... more
Prehistoric food globalization spanned three millenniaSt Louis MO (SPX) Feb 07, 2019 Since the beginning of archaeology, researchers have combed the globe searching for evidence of the first domesticated crops. Painstakingly extracting charred bits of barley, wheat, millet and rice ... more |
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 Philippines evacuates hundreds of thousands as super typhoon nears Tornado kills six, injures 750 as it wrecks southern Brazil town Winds, rain lash Philippines as super typhoon nears Tornado kills six, wrecks town in Brazil |
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| Previous Issues | Feb 08 | Feb 07 | Feb 06 | Feb 05 | Feb 04 |
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Interdisciplinary approach only way to address soil erosionPlymouth UK (SPX) Feb 08, 2019 Soil erosion can have a devastating impact on traditional farming landscapes in developing countries. But its effects can only be fully addressed through significant advances in interdisciplinary sc ... more
Sharp bends make rivers wanderAustin TX (SPX) Feb 07, 2019 Left to their own devices and given enough time, rivers wander, eroding their banks and leaving their old channels behind. It's a behavior that engineers have to keep in mind when managing rivers or ... more
Chinese hunger for 'world's smelliest fruit' threatens Malaysian forestsRaub, Malaysia (AFP) Feb 6, 2019 Soaring demand for durians in China is being blamed for a new wave of deforestation in Malaysia with environmentalists warning vast amounts of jungle is being cleared to make way for massive plantations of the spiky, pungent fruit. ... more
Ramped up efforts needed to protect the world's inland watersMunich, Germany (SPX) Feb 06, 2019 At least 15% of the world's inland surface water areas are covered by protected areas, according to a new study from the JRC. This is close to the global target of 17% set out in Aichi Target ... more
Insecticides blamed for honeybee deaths in California almond grovesWashington (UPI) Feb 5, 2019 Researchers have identified a culprit for the dramatic honey bee die offs among the almond groves of California's Central Valley. ... more |
![]() European colonisation of the Americas killed 10 percent of world population and caused global cooling
Passing aircraft wring extra snow and rain out of cloudsWashington DC (SPX) Feb 01, 2019 Planes flying over rain or snow can intensify the precipitation by as much as 10-fold, according to a new study. The rain- and snow-bursts are not caused by emissions from the aircraft but are ... more |
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Brazilian indigenous community threatened in aftermath of dam burstSao Joaquim De Bicas, Brazil (AFP) Feb 1, 2019 In her 88 years, Antonia Alves has seen much hardship as a member of Brazil's indigenous community, whose people have often been driven from their ancestral lands over conflicts with farmers and loggers. ... more
Australia river agency pilloried amid mass fish deathsSydney (AFP) Jan 31, 2019 The authority that oversees Australia's largest river system was accused of "maladministration", "gross negligence" and ignoring climate science Thursday, as its waterways were carpeted with hundreds of thousands of dead fish. ... more
Space technology predicts droughts several months in advanceCanberra, Australia (SPX) Jan 29, 2019 Scientists from The Australian National University (ANU) have used new space technology to predict droughts and increased bushfire risk up to five months in advance. ANU researcher Siyuan Tian ... more
Mites, not a virus, are the main threat to bees, study findsWashington (UPI) Jan 30, 2019 Several studies have suggested parasitic mites both spread and worsen the effects of Deformed Wing Virus among honey bees. But new research shows the link between the two threats is tenuous. ... more
Sea of white: 'Hundreds of thousands' of fish dead in AustraliaSydney (AFP) Jan 29, 2019 "Hundreds of thousands" of fish have died in drought-stricken Australia in the last few days and more mass deaths are likely to occur, the authorities warned Tuesday. ... more |
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Swarm helps pinpoint new magnetic north for smartphones Paris (ESA) Feb 11, 2019
Since it was first measured in 1831, we have known that the magnetic north is constantly on the move. However, its tendency to slowly roam has stepped up a pace recently - so much so that the World Magnetic Model has had to be updated urgently with the pole's new location, vital for navigation on smartphones, for example. ESA's magnetic field Swarm mission has been key for this update.
The ... more |
Magnetic north pole leaves Canada, on fast new path Washington (AFP) Feb 5, 2019
The position of the Earth's magnetic North Pole - used in navigation systems such as smartphones - is moving far faster than it has, sending scientists scrambling to put out a new model this week.
The magnetic North is the point at which the planet's magnetic field points vertically down.
The World Magnetic Model is critical to sea and military navigation - as well as our ubiquitous s ... more |
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How does the Amazon rain forest cope with drought? East Lansing MI (SPX) Feb 07, 2019
The Amazon rain forest isn't necessarily a place that many would associate with a drought, yet prolonged dry spells are projected to become more prevalent and severe because of climate change. The question at hand is how these droughts are going to affect the rain forest, as it has a large influence on global climate and future warming.
A study led by Marielle Smith, a research associate i ... more |
Millions of tons of plastic waste could be turned into clean fuels, other products West Lafayette IN (SPX) Feb 07, 2019
The United Nations estimates that more than 8 million tons of plastics flow into the oceans each year. A new chemical conversion process could transform the world's polyolefin waste, a form of plastic, into useful products, such as clean fuels and other items.
"Our strategy is to create a driving force for recycling by converting polyolefin waste into a wide range of valuable products, inc ... more |
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Unleashing perovskites' potential for solar cells Boston MA (SPX) Feb 08, 2019
Perovskites - a broad category of compounds that share a certain crystal structure - have attracted a great deal of attention as potential new solar-cell materials because of their low cost, flexibility, and relatively easy manufacturing process. But much remains unknown about the details of their structure and the effects of substituting different metals or other elements within the material. ... more |
Sulzer Schmid's new technology platform slashes cost of drone-based rotor blade inspections Zurich, Switzerland (SPX) Feb 07, 2019
Sulzer and Schmid Laboratories AG reports it has launched a new highly competitive inspection platform. The company's new 3DX HD product has been developed as a cost-effective solution to cope with large volumes of high definition blade inspections.
Based on the compact and flexible DJI M-210 drone, Sulzer Schmid's latest innovation delivers high performance and fully autonomous drone insp ... more |
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Australian court rejects coal mine on climate grounds Sydney (AFP) Feb 8, 2019
An Australian court on Friday delivered a landmark ruling by rejecting plans to build a coal mine on the grounds it would worsen climate change.
Chief Justice Brian Preston said a planned open cut coal mine in a scenic part of New South Wales state would be in "the wrong place at the wrong time".
The ruling by the New South Wales Land and Environment Court was notable for citing not only ... more |
China entertainment endures 'bitter winter' after crackdowns Dongyang, China (AFP) Feb 10, 2019 Chinese film and television are reeling from what industry insiders call a "bitterly cold winter" of sharper government scrutiny that is expected to lead to more Communist Party-friendly content.
The entertainment sector had blossomed in recent years, with official encouragement by a government keen to replace foreign content with homegrown fare and develop the industry as a global "soft pow ... more |
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Psychology: Robot saved, people take the hit Munich, Germany (SPX) Feb 11, 2019
Robots are now being employed not just for hazardous tasks, such as detecting and disarming mines. They are also finding application as household helps and as nursing assistants. As increasing numbers of machines, equipped with the latest in artificial intelligence, take on a growing diversity of specialized and everyday tasks, the question of how people perceive them and behave towards them bec ... more |
Holloman Air Force Base receives notice for groundwater contamination (UPI) Feb 8, 2019
New Mexico's Environment Department served Holloman Air Force Base with a notice of violation after monitoring wells tested at twice the acceptable levels for suspected carcinogenic contaminants.
Violations of the discharge permit trigger corrective action requirements for the Air Force, according to a state environment agency news release this week.
Per- and polyfluoroalkyl subs ... more |
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Greece too reliant on fire planes: experts Athens (AFP) Feb 7, 2019
Greece is "excessively" dependent on aerial fire-fighting and suffers from poor coordination, experts said on Thursday in a study of the country's worst fire tragedy that claimed 100 lives in July.
The committee of forestry and safety engineering experts from some of Greece's leading universities was ordered formed by Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras after the July 23 wildfire in the coastal re ... more |
Researchers provide new definition for major Indian monsoon season Tallahassee FL (SPX) Feb 11, 2019
Toward the end of every year, the Northeast Indian Monsoon (NEM) batters southern India with torrents of driving rain, but climatologists have never precisely defined when the monsoon begins and ends.
Now, FSU Professor of Meteorology Vasu Misra has used detailed surface temperature analyses to identify the start and end dates of the NEM season. His work provides an objective and reliable ... more |
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Death toll in Cuba tornado rises to six Havana (AFP) Feb 4, 2019
The number of people killed in the powerful tornado that ripped through part of Havana last week has risen to six, authorities said Sunday.
Public Health Minister Jose Angel Portal Miranda said in state media that "sadly, two people have died among the 13 who were in critical condition." The earlier death toll was four.
The storm which hit Havana area towns including Regla, Guanabacoa, ... more |
US Democrats unveil carbon-neutral 'Green New Deal' Washington (AFP) Feb 7, 2019
Congressional Democrats on Thursday unveiled an unprecedented plan to reverse climate change and eliminate all US carbon emissions within 10 years, by taking drastic steps that would require transformational action across the economy.
The "Green New Deal" introduced by liberal congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a rising Democratic star in the House, and Senator Ed Markey is a dramatic, ... more |
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Evidence for a new fundamental constant of the sun Newcastle UK (SPX) Feb 08, 2019
New research undertaken at Northumbria University, Newcastle shows that the Sun's magnetic waves behave differently than currently believed.
Their findings have been reported in the latest edition of the prominent journal, Nature Astronomy.
After examining data gathered over a 10-year period, the team from Northumbria's Department of Mathematics, Physics and Electrical Engineering fo ... more |
Insects leave tiny traces of DNA on the flowers they visit (UPI) Feb 8, 2019
Scientists have developed new tools for identifying the tiny traces of DNA on flower petals left behind by insect visitors.
By analyzing DNA signatures on flower petals, scientists can more easily track the movement and feeding patterns of vulnerable pollinators like bees and butterflies, as well as identify novel plant-insect relationships.
Environmental DNA, or eDNA, is the mix ... more |
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