Environment
- Chemistry
Scientists Say: Methane
Used to cook food and heat homes, this potent greenhouse gas accounts for 30 percent of the warming of our climate.
- Environment
To limit pollution, new recipe makes plastic a treat for microbes
Microplastics made from fossil fuels take centuries to disappear. But the plant- and algae-based plastic can break down in weeks to months.
By Skyler Ware - Chemistry
Air pollution can make it harder for pollinators to find flowers
Pollutants that build up in night air can break down the scents that attract pollinating hawkmoths to primrose blooms, disrupting their pollination.
- Chemistry
Turning jeans blue with sunlight might help the environment
When dipped in indican and exposed to sunlight, yarn turns a deep blue. This process is more eco-friendly than the current denim dyeing method.
- Earth
Experiment: Can plants stop soil erosion?
Soil erosion washes pollutants into streams and rivers — but plants may help limit that.
- Environment
Scientists Say: Carbon capture
Carbon capture technology tackles climate change by stomping out carbon dioxide at the source.
- Health & Medicine
Health problems persist in Flint 10 years after water poisoning
Flint, Mich., residents still show health impacts long after a switch in their drinking-water source exposed them to toxic lead and other pollutants.
- Health & Medicine
9 things to know about lead’s health risks — and how to curb them
Lead has been linked to lower IQ, behavior problems, mental-health disorders, strokes and more health impacts. There are ways to reduce your exposure.
- Microbes
Let’s learn about useful bacteria
Bacteria do many useful jobs almost everywhere on Earth, from the soil to the seafloor to our stomachs.
- Environment
Bottled water hosts many thousands of nano-sized plastic bits
The finding emerges from tests of a new tool that identified smaller-than-ever tiny plastic bits in three brands of bottled water.
By Laura Allen - Oceans
Analyze This: Climate change may worsen the spread of ocean noise
Some parts of the ocean may become five times as loud in the future.
- Animals
Which way is up? Insects may lose track near artificial lights
Flying insects may use light to figure out where the sky is. But artificial lights can send them veering off course, high-speed video suggests.