news 2011

Environmental Sciences - Life Sciences - 21.05
More Plant Species Responding to Global Warming Than Previously Thought
Far more wild plant species may be responding to global warming than previous large-scale estimates have suggested. That's the conclusion of a team of scientists, which included a UC San Diego biologist, that found that many plant species, which appear to not be affected by warmer spring temperatures, are in fact responding as much to warmer winters.

Medicine/Pharmacology - Environmental Sciences - 16.05
New advice on medication disposal: Trash beats take-back, new study suggests
ANN ARBOR, Mich. - Returning extra medicine to the pharmacy for disposal might not be worth the extra time, money or greenhouse gas emissions, according to a University of Michigan study that is the first to look at the net effects of so-called take-back programs.

Environmental Sciences - Earth Sciences - 10.05
Mississippi Kept Deepwater Horizon Oil Slick Off Shore
When the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig exploded April 20, 2010, residents feared that their Gulf of Mexico shores would be inundated with oil. And while many wetland habitats and wildlife were oiled during the three-month leak, the environmental damage to coastal Louisiana was less than many expected, in part because much of the crude never made it to the coast.

Environmental Sciences - Life Sciences - 2.05
Ecosystem effects of biodiversity loss could rival impacts of climate change and pollution
Loss of biodiversity appears to impact ecosystems as much as climate change, pollution and other major forms of environmental stress, according to a recent study by a team of researchers based at nine institutions in Canada, the United States and Sweden.

Life Sciences - Environmental Sciences - 30.04
24 new species discovered on Caribbean islands are close to extinction
In a single new scientific publication, 24 new species of lizards known as skinks, all from islands in the Caribbean, have been discovered and scientifically named. According to Blair Hedges, professor of biology at Penn State University and the leader of the research team, half of the newly added skink species already may be extinct or close to extinction, and all of the others on the Caribbean islands are threatened with extinction.

Chemistry - Environmental Sciences - 25.04
New study sheds light on debate over organic vs. conventional agriculture
Researchers at McGill, Univ. of Minnesota call for combining best of both approaches Can organic agriculture feed the world? Although organic techniques may not be able to do the job alone, they do have an important role to play in feeding a growing global population while minimizing environmental damage, according to researchers at McGill University and the University of Minnesota.

Environmental Sciences - 17.04
Live fast, die young
New study shows urban plant communities have traits that make it harder for them to adapt to change than their countryside counterparts. MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL (04/17/2012) —Cities harbor more plant species than rural areas.

Physics/Astronomy - Environmental Sciences - 26.03
A new dimension for solar energy
Innovative 3-D designs from an MIT team can more than double the solar power generated from a given area. Intensive research around the world has focused on improving the performance of solar photovoltaic cells and bringing down their cost.

Life Sciences - Environmental Sciences - 14.03
Hiding in plain sight, a new frog species with a ’weird’ croak is identified in New York City
In the wilds of New York City — or as wild as you can get so close to skyscrapers — scientists have found a new leopard frog species that for years biologists mistook for a more widespread variety of leopard frog.

Medicine/Pharmacology - Environmental Sciences - 5.03
In sub-Saharan Africa, a shorter walk to water saves lives, Stanford study finds
More than eight of every ten homes in sub-Saharan Africa lack running water. A new study by researchers at Stanford University shows that reducing the amount of time spent fetching water can improve the health of young children in this region.

Environmental Sciences - 5.03
Berkeley Lab Quantifies Effect of Soot on Snow and Ice, Supporting Previous Climate Findings
A new study from scientists at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) has quantitatively demonstrated that black carbon - also known as soot, a pollutant emitted from power plants, diesel engines and residential cooking and heating, as well as forest fires - reduces the reflectance of snow and ice, an effect that increases the rate of global climate change.

Earth Sciences - Environmental Sciences - 2.03
Oceans May Be Growing More Acidic at Unprecedented Rate
James Zachos, a paleoceanographer at University of California, Santa Cruz, with a core of sediment from some 56 million years ago, when the oceans underwent acidification that could be an analog to ocean changes today.

Environmental Sciences - Psychology - 28.02
Preschools Significantly Reduce Achievement Gap Between Rich and Poor, New Twin Study Shows
AUSTIN, Texas — Parents always want the best education possible for their child, and new research from The University of Texas at Austin shows preschool enrollment is one of the best ways to ensure that disadvantaged kids start down the right academic path early on.

Life Sciences - Environmental Sciences - 20.02
Wildlife and cows can be partners, not enemies, in search for food
  Princeton University researchers conducted two large-scale experiments in Kenya that offer the first experimental evidence that allowing cattle to graze on the same land as wild animals can result in healthier, meatier bovines by enhancing the cows' diet.

Environmental Sciences - Life Sciences - 13.02
Fish of Antarctica threatened by climate change
A Yale-led study of the evolutionary history of Antarctic fish and their "anti-freeze" proteins illustrates how tens of millions of years ago a lineage of fish adapted to newly formed polar conditions - and how today they are endangered by a rapid rise in ocean temperatures.