All Stories by Carolyn Gramling
- Oceans
Explainer: Why are so many hurricanes strengthening really fast?
This dangerous trend appears relatively new — and growing. Studies also have begun linking it to our warming world.
- Chemistry
Creation of quantum dots wins 2023 chemistry Nobel
The award honors three scientists who discovered and built quantum dots, which are now used in everything from TVs to medical tools.
- Agriculture
Cow dung spews a climate-warming gas. Adding algae could limit that
But how useful this is depends on whether cows eat the red algae, a type of seaweed — or it gets added to their wastes after they’re pooped out.
- Oceans
Summer 2023 is when the ocean first turned ‘hot tub’ hot
Unfortunately, scientists worry that this atypical sea warming may actually be the beginning of an unwelcome new ‘normal.’
- Animals
Megalodons may have become megahunters by running hot
O. megalodon sharks were warm-blooded mega-predators. But when food sources dwindled, colder-blooded sharks may have had an evolutionary edge.
- Materials Science
This house is partly made of recycled diapers
After being washed, dried, sanitized and shredded, used diapers were mixed with other materials to make a strong concrete.
- Climate
Explainer: What is an atmospheric river?
These long-traveling storm systems bring moisture to many parts of the world. Here’s what scientists are learning about them.
- Environment
Rare-earth mining is dirty but key to a climate-friendlier future
That’s spurring new research to find a steady but safer supply of these precious metals, including in the United States.
- Chemistry
Chemists have unlocked the secrets of long-lasting Roman concrete
By searching ancient texts and ruins, scientists found a concrete recipe that could make buildings stronger — and help address climate change.
- Fossils
An ancient ichthyosaur graveyard may have been a breeding ground
Some 230 million years ago, huge dolphin-like reptiles appear to have gathered to breed in safe waters, just as many whales do today.
- Fossils
Sprinting reptiles may have been forerunners of soaring pterosaurs
A new analysis of an old fossil supports the idea that winged pterosaurs evolved from swift and tiny two-legged ancestors.
- Climate
Heat waves appear more life-threatening than scientists once thought
This is bad news as a warming planet leads to growing numbers of excessive heat waves — and millions more people facing potentially deadly temperatures.
