Pollution
- Earth
Decades of dumping acid suggest acid rain may make trees thirstier
Acidified soil loses calcium, which can affect trees’ ability to hang on to water.
- Tech
Tiny magnetic coils could help break down microplastic pollution
Carbon nanotubes designed to release plastic-eroding chemicals could clear the long-lasting trash from waterways.
- Particle Physics
How a 2017 radioactive plume may be tied to Russia and nixed neutrino research
A botched attempt at producing radioactive material needed for a neutrino experiment may have released ruthenium-106 to the atmosphere in 2017.
- Ecosystems
Many of the world’s rivers are flush with dangerous levels of antibiotics
Antibiotic pollution can fuel drug resistance in microbes. A global survey of rivers finds unsafe levels of antibiotics in 16 percent of sites.
- Environment
Some Canadian lakes still store DDT in their mud
Yesterday’s DDT pollution crisis is still today’s problem in some of Canada’s lakes.
- Oceans
Tiny plastic debris is accumulating far beneath the ocean surface
Floating trash patches scratch only the surface of the ocean microplastic pollution problem.
- Environment
How one fern hoards toxic arsenic in its fronds and doesn’t die
To survive high levels of arsenic, a fern sequesters the heavy metal in its shoots with the help of three proteins.
- Environment
Emissions of a banned ozone-destroying chemical have been traced to China
Since 2013, eastern China has increased its annual emissions of a banned chlorofluorocarbon by about 7,000 metric tons, a study finds.
- Life
1 million species are under threat. Here are 5 ways we speed up extinctions
One million of the world’s plant and animal species are now under threat of extinction, a new report finds.
- Climate
Tiny microplastics travel far on the wind
Airborne bits of plastic that originated in cities ended up in pristine mountains at least 95 kilometers away, a study finds.
- Chemistry
Why kids may be at risk from vinyl floors and fire-resistant couches
Children from homes with all vinyl floors and flame-retardant sofas show higher levels of some synthetic chemicals in their bodies than other kids.
- Health & Medicine
Chinese ‘tweets’ hint that happiness drops as air pollution rises
A study of more than 210 million social media posts reveals a link between people’s sense of well-being and pollution.
