Earth
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Humans
Young minds at risk from secondhand smoke
Children exposed to secondhand smoke at home are at least twice as likely to develop a neurobehavioral disorder as are kids in smokefree homes, a new study finds. And roughly 6 percent of U.S. children — some 4.8 million — encounter smoke at home.
- Earth
Simulation tracks ocean’s missing heat
Climate scientists suggest energy is buried deep undersea or released to space.
- Humans
Metal water bottles may leach BPA
Consumers who switched from polycarbonate-plastic water bottles to metal ones in hopes of avoiding the risk that bisphenol A will leach into their beverages aren’t necessarily any better off, a new study finds. Some metal water bottles leach even more BPA — an estrogen-mimicking pollutant — than do ones made from the now-pariah plastic.
- Earth
Earth & Environment
Mountaintop mining, plastic fish and the return of the right whale in this week's news
- Tech
Some comfort about broken CFLs
My night-owl daughter woke me in a panic at around 2 a.m., a couple of weeks back. While swatting at a fly, she’d just broken the compact fluorescent light illuminating her closet. Having heard me warn endlessly of how we should be careful in handling these bulbs — since they contain mercury — she wanted to know what kind of damage control was called for. I only wish I knew then what I do now.
- Earth
Greenland’s ice sheets face new threat
Subsurface ocean warming is likely to be dramatic in that region, a new study finds.
- Earth
Sulfur stalls surface temperature rise
A new study shows how pollutants helped balance out the effects of greenhouse gases from 1998 to 2008.
- Physics
Rare earth elements plentiful in ocean sediments
The economically vital metals could be mined from the deep sea, Japanese geologists propose.
- Earth
Earth/Environment
Airplanes knock rain from the sky, plus a quick-melting glacier and BPA's diabetes link in this week's news.
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- Humans
AAAS board defends climate scientists
“AAAS vigorously opposes attacks on researchers that question their personal and professional integrity or threaten their safety based on displeasure with their scientific conclusions.” This declaration was contained in a 400-word denunciation of attacks on climate scientists and the politicization of climate science that was issued June 29 by the organization's board of directors.
