Showing 20 articles starting at article 201
< Previous 20 articles Next 20 articles >
Categories: Environmental: Water, Geoscience: Geography
Published Advanced artificial intelligence: A revolution for sustainable agriculture



The rise of advanced artificial intelligence (edge AI) could well mark the beginning of a new era for sustainable agriculture. A recent study proposes a roadmap for integrating this technology into farming practices. The aim? To improve the efficiency, quality and safety of agricultural production, while addressing a range of environmental, social and economic challenges.
Published Climate change: rising temperatures may impact groundwater quality



As the world's largest unfrozen freshwater resource, groundwater is crucial for life on Earth. Researchers have investigated how global warming is affecting groundwater temperatures and what that means for humanity and the environment. Their study indicates that by 2100, more than 75 million people are likely to be living in regions where the groundwater temperature exceeds the highest threshold set for drinking water by any country.
Published An earthquake changed the course of the Ganges: Could it happen again?



A major earthquake 2,500 years ago caused one of the largest rivers on Earth to abruptly change course, according to a new study. The previously undocumented quake rerouted the main channel of the Ganges River in what is now densely populated Bangladesh, which remains vulnerable to big quakes.
Published Satellites to monitor marine debris from space



Detecting marine debris from space is now a reality, according to a new study. Until now, the amount of litter -- mostly plastic -- on the sea surface was rarely high enough to generate a detectable signal from space. However, using supercomputers and advanced search algorithms, the research team has demonstrated that satellites are an effective tool for estimating the amount of litter in the sea.
Published Wear it, then recycle: Designers make dissolvable textiles from gelatin



Researchers hope their DIY machine will help designers around the world experiment with making their own, sustainable fashion and other textiles from a range of natural ingredients -- maybe even the chitin in crab shells or agar-agar from algae.
Published Improving soil health yields unexpected benefits for farmers



While farmer surveys suggest that carbon prices are still too low relative to the paperwork these programs demand, a new study finds that money alone does not explain either farmers' doubts about carbon markets or their interest in regenerative agriculture. Instead, many farmers view improving soil health as a way to improve their quality of life by reducing their dependence on agrochemical companies' products and advice.
Published A conservation market could incentivize global ocean protection



Thirty-by-thirty: protect 30% of the planet by 2030. While conservation is popular in principle, the costs of actually enacting it often stall even the most earnest efforts. Researchers have now proposed a market-based approach to achieving the 30x30 targets in the ocean.
Published The yuck factor counteracts sustainable laundry habits



Most people today would lean towards environmentally friendly life choices, but not at the expense of being clean. When it comes to our washing habits, the fear of being perceived as dirty often wins out over the desire to act in an environmentally friendly way. And the more inclined we are to feel disgusted, the more we wash our clothes. This is shown by a unique study that examines the driving forces behind our laundering behaviours and provides new tools for how people's environmental impact can be reduced.
Published Scientists unravel drivers of the global zinc cycle in our oceans, with implications for a changing climate



The understanding of the global zinc cycle in our oceans has important implications in the context of warming oceans. A warmer climate increases erosion, leading to more dust in the atmosphere and consequently more dust being deposited into the oceans. More dust means more scavenging of zinc particles, leading to less zinc being available to sustain phytoplankton and other marine life, thereby diminishing the oceans' ability to absorb carbon.
Published Ancient ocean slowdown warns of future climate chaos



When it comes to the ocean's response to global warming, we're not in entirely uncharted waters. A new study shows that episodes of extreme heat in Earth's past caused the exchange of waters from the surface to the deep ocean to decline.
Published Dolphins with elevated mercury levels in Florida and Georgia



Scientists found elevated mercury levels in dolphins in the U.S. Southeast. The highest levels were found in dolphins in Florida's St. Joseph and Choctawhatchee Bays. Researchers study dolphins because they are considered a sentinel species for oceans and human health. Like us, they are high up in the food chain, live long lives, and share certain physiological traits. Some of their diet is most vulnerable to mercury pollution and is also eaten by people.
Published New way to spot beetle-killed spruce can help forest, wildfire managers



A new machine-learning system can automatically produce detailed maps from satellite data to show locations of likely beetle-killed spruce trees in Alaska, even in forests of low and moderate infestation where identification is otherwise difficult. The automated process can help forestry and wildfire managers in their decisions. That's critical as the beetle infestation spreads.
Published Pacific coast gray whales have gotten 13% shorter in the past 20-30 years, Oregon State study finds



Gray whales that spend their summers feeding in the shallow waters off the Pacific Northwest coast have undergone a significant decline in body length since around the year 2000, a new study found.
Published Western agricultural communities need water conservation strategies to adapt to future shortages



The Western U.S. is heavily reliant on mountain snowpacks and their gradual melt for water storage and supply, and climate change is expected to upend the reliability of this natural process. Many agricultural communities in this part of the country are examining ways to adapt to a future with less water, and new research shows that a focus on supplementing water supply by expanding reservoir capacity won't be enough to avert future water crises.
Published A mountainous mystery uncovered in Australia's pink sands



Deposits of deep-pink sand washing up on South Australian shores shed new light on when the Australian tectonic plate began to subduct beneath the Pacific plate, as well as the presence of previously unknown ancient Antarctic mountains.
Published Cocaine trafficking threatens critical bird habitats



In addition to its human consequences, cocaine trafficking harms the environment and threatens habitats important to dozens of species of migratory birds, according to a new study.
Published Humans are the elephant in the room where conservation is debated



Studies working to map conservation historically have left humans out of the equation. This study proposes ways to build in the outsized footprint created by people in wild places.
Published Just thinking about a location activates mental maps in the brain



Researchers found that mental representations known as cognitive maps, located in the hippocampus and entorhinal cortex, are activated when the brain performs mental simulations of a navigational route.
Published Significant increase in nitrous-oxide emissions from human activities, jeopardizing climate goals



Emissions of nitrous-oxide (N2O) -- a potent greenhouse gas -- have continued to rise unabated over the past four decades, according to an international team of scientists.
Published Researchers use 3D visualization to predict, prevent hurricane damage



The researchers say 3D visualization of hurricanes and storm surges allows them to understand how flooding will impact coastal communities by allowing them to vividly see how each building and road might be impacted by a given flood.