Home/Posts Tagged ‘study’
Posts Tagged ‘study’
Climate Change, Science & Technology, Jul 31st, 2012,
A new study by scientists at the National Centre for Atmospheric Science at the University of Reading attributes the dramatic reduction in Arctic summer sea ice since the 1970s to human activity. The study found that the 40% loss since the 70s is at least 70% man made, with the rest down to natural variability in the Atlantic. And that is only a conservative estimate, with as much as 95% of ice loss estimated to be caused by humans. The study’s leader, Jonny Day, is quoted in the Guardian on one of the accelerating causes of Arctic ice melt, which…
Tags: arctic, greenland, ice melt, oil, Shell, study
Health, Politics, Feb 28th, 2012,
Rich people are more likely to steal, cheat, lie and cut you off in traffic, according to research conducted at the University of California Berkeley. Where to file this: in the ‘so obvious we didn’t need a study to confirm it’ category, or in the ‘wait a second, rich people don’t need to steal and cheat, it’s poor people who are pushed into this kind of behavior’ section? Bit of both, maybe? The study suggests that the rich don’t feel that they need to depend on others, so they have no problem burning them. If you think you’ll never need…
Tags: Berkeley, poor, research, rich, study, unethical
Climate Change, Health, Pollution, Jul 29th, 2011,
What you eat can affect the environment in greatly varying degrees. Different foods have different ecological footprints in terms of greenhouse gases, land use, water, pesticides, fuel consumption, etc. A recent US study estimated the environmental footprints of various types of food – with some interesting results. Lamb and beef were found to have by far the largest eco-footprints per kilo, followed by cheese, pork, farmed salmon and turkey; continuing in a more-or-less gradual slope towards tomatoes and lentils, which rounded out the bottom of the list. The study does not give very extensive information on the different ecological footprints…
Tags: dairy, ecological footprint, environmental footprint, farms, food, meat, study
Climate Change, Pollution, Wildlife & Flora, Jun 21st, 2011,
“Shocking”, “unprecedented”, “catastrophic” – some of the words being used to describe the state of the Earth’s oceans and where things are headed, in light of a new study by Ipso, the International Programme on the State of the Ocean. Factors such as overfishing, massive agricultural and chemical pollution, warming temperatures and acidification due climate change are combining to cause mass extinction in the Earth’s oceans. Marine scientists believe these factors are working in tandem to create conditions seen in previous mass extinctions. From the Guardian: In recent years, human effects on the oceans have increased significantly. Overfishing has cut…
Tags: agricultural pollution, emissions, extinction, ipso, ocean acidification, oceans, overfishing, plastic, report, study
Health, Pollution, Mar 9th, 2011,
Diesel engines and heating systems produce fine particle pollution, which shortens life expectancy in European cities, according to a study by the Aphekom project. The study measured air pollution and human health in 25 cities in Europe, with Bucharest, Romania scoring worst and Stockholm Sweden as cleanest, the latter’s pollution measuring just below targets set by the World Health Organization. The air in Bucharest, on the other hand, is so bad that it is estimated to reduce life expectancy by two years. The study then focused on 10 cities including Barcelona, Brussels and Rome, and, for the first time, took…
Tags: Bucharest, Europe, european cities, Pollution, Romania, Stockholm, study, Sweden
Pollution, Wildlife & Flora, Aug 24th, 2010,
A recent study attempting to measure the amount of plastic debris in the Atlantic has shed more light on the scale of this type marine pollution and its effects on ocean ecosystems. The findings, which analyze data collected from 22 years of oceanic surveys, list several impacts of plastic on marine life, including animals becoming entangled in plastic debris, animals eating plastic and debris facilitating the redistribution of certain species outside their normal habitat. From an article in Wired: The data were gathered by thousands of undergraduates aboard the Sea Education Association (SEA) sailing semester, who hand-picked, counted and measured…
Tags: Atlantic, debris, garbage, marine, ocean, Patch, plastic, sea, study
Climate Change, Nature, Aug 21st, 2010,
The headline in The Ecologist, ‘Human response to climate change is making matters worse’, is a bit of a f*&#(^@ downer. Upon reading the actual article, it doesn’t get that much better. A recent study has researched the impacts of human response to climate change on biodiversity. The study, recently published in the journal Conservation Letters, attempts to assess the impact of responses such as the biofuel industry, which has contributed to the destruction of rainforests and peat bogs in South East Asia. Hydropower projects like China’s massive Three Gorges Dam have also left their marks on biological habitats. From the…
Tags: action, biodiversity, biofuel, China, Climate change, ecologist, ecosystem, human, humanity, impact, Indonesia, react, resource, response, study, Three Gorges Dam
Health, Aug 17th, 2010,
The diet of the West, high in animal products, fat, salt and sugar, is increasingly associated with wealth and development. The growing middle and upper classes in China are causing meat consumption to skyrocket in that country. Those with more disposable income in characteristically poor places buy more imported, packaged and processed foods, which all tend to be higher in salt, sugar and fat. Meat becomes more of a staple than a luxury. In contrast, the poor of the developing world generally eat traditional diets that are high in fruit and vegetables. In the West it’s the opposite. The cheapest…
Tags: Africa, allergies, bacteria, children, developing, diet, disease, European, fat, food, guy, heath, meat, microbial, poor, rich, salt, study, sugar, vegetables, Western
Pollution, Videos & Documentaries, Wildlife & Flora, Aug 8th, 2010,
Poor bees. We steal their honey, enslave them in order to pollinate apple orchards and then have the audacity to go berserk if one of them lands in our Frappuccino. Oh yeah, it also turns out we’re probably poisoning them with pesticides, causing their numbers to drop dramatically. The decline of the European honeybee – known as Colony Collapse Disorder, or CCD – could in turn spell disaster for the future of monoculture crops, such as fruits, nuts, vegetables, flowers, seeds, beans and spices. A new study has linked common pesticides with CCD, spurring environmental groups into a new effort…
Tags: air, bees, CCD, control, European, Germany, honey, honeybees, monoculture, neonicotinoids, pesticides, quality, study
Climate Change, Science & Technology, Jul 29th, 2010,
Last night, I was watching the Weather Channel and something rather interesting was brought to my attention. A new report on Global Warming was published recently. The report was written by more than 300 scientists from 48 countries and confirms what we’ve known all along: Global Warming is here and it’s not going anywhere, any time soon. Although the report (which is the 20th in a series) is mainly about Global Warming, it doesn’t cite any particular causes of it. However, it does make one thing perfectly clear: “Global warming is undeniable.” One thing that was pointed out in the…
Tags: 10 indicators of a warming world, Annual State of the Climate Report, BAMS, Climate change, global warming, NOAA, report, study
Nature, Weird Stuff, Wildlife & Flora, Jul 13th, 2010,
86 Cabbage Butterflies, 5 Spring Azures, 4 Eastern Tiger Swallowtails, 1 Monarch, and at least 8 other unidentifiable species. Those are our totals for our part in the annual North American Butterfly Association Butterfly Counts program (thus far). Every year, butterfly counts are taken throughout Canada, the US, and Mexico (and most likely other countries around the world—but this isn’t about them). These counts allow regular people to get involved with the scientific process and learn more about the environment around them. To take part in the butterfly count, all you really need is a pair of binoculars and a…
Tags: butterflies, butterflies and moths, Butterfly Count, census, count, field guide, insects, North American Butterfly Association, population, program, study
Climate Change, Politics, Science & Technology, Jul 7th, 2010,
An analysis based on national emissions targets suggests that global temperatures will rise by 4C (7.2F) by 2100. Six months after over 100 governments pledged to limit their countries’ emissions in order to keep temperatures from rising more than 1.5-2C (2.7-3.6F) above pre-industrial levels a major international study of over 60 nations, called the Climate Scoreboard, has calculated that temperatures are set to double if current targets are held to. Another study by Climate Analytics, at the Potsdam Institute in Germany, suggests there is “virtually no chance” world governments will keep the temperature rise to below 2C, and the rise…
Tags: albedo, climate, Climate change, global, ice, melt, melting, NASA, polar, rise, satellite, sheet, snow, study, targets, temperatures
Health, Pollution, Science & Technology, Jun 26th, 2010,
Do you or someone you know have breathing problems while sleeping? If so, you may be surprised to learn that a recent study shows a link between air pollution exposure and breathing troubles during sleep. Air pollution is already known to irritate the respiratory system, so, researchers tried to figure out if this irritation has anything to do with sleeping trouble, too. First, they studied data from the Sleep Heart Health Study, which examined links between heart health and sleeping patterns of more than 6,000 people between 1995 and 1998. Then, they compared that data to EPA air pollution data…
Tags: Air Pollution, airways, breathing, disorders, link, problems, respiratory, sleep, sleep apnea, study, temperature increase, trouble
Health, Recycling, Science & Technology, ,
We’ve all heard that BPA is bad for us, that we shouldn’t use any product—especially plastic bottles—that may contain BPA, and that we definitely shouldn’t expose infants or toddlers to BPA products, either. BPA, or Bisphenol A, has been linked to cancer, thyroid issues, obesity, neurological issues, and can even affect the growth, development and reproduction cycles of marine species. Given this knowledge, many people probably figure that all you have to do is avoid the plastic products that contain BPA and they’ll be safe, right? Wrong. Yes, BPA can be found in plastic bottles, but it can also be…
Tags: alternatives, Bisphenol A, BPA, drink cans, epoxy resin, food cans, fruits, harmful, Health, plastics, research, side effects, soda, soup, study, unsafe, vegetables
Conservation, Nature, Pollution, Science & Technology, Wildlife & Flora, Jun 25th, 2010,
A shocking report on a Sperm Whale study released today may turn a lot of heads—both pro-whaling and anti-whaling activists alike. The report, issued by conservation and research group Ocean Alliance, shows that high levels of aluminum, cadmium, chromium, lead, mercury, silver and titanium are found in tissue samples taken by dart gun from 955 whales, over a period of more than 5 years (starting in 2000). The whales ranged across 87,000 miles, from polar regions to the equator and it’s believed the ingested toxic and heavy metals may have come from humans thousands of miles away. Oh, and don’t…
Tags: aluminum, cadmium, chromium, contaminants, discovery, health hazard, IWC, lead, mercury, Ocean Alliance, pollutants, report, research, shocking, silver, Sperm Whale, study, toxic metals, whaling
Climate Change, Nature, Science & Technology, Wildlife & Flora, Jun 22nd, 2010,
A few years ago, the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change warned that melting glaciers would put hundreds of millions of people at risk. However, a recent study published in the journal Science suggests the risk factor is considerably less than previously anticipated. The main area of focus in the study is the Himalayas and according to the study, about 60 million people in that area will suffer food shortages in future decades. While the glaciers are, indeed, shrinking and water sources will be depleted, the difference between this study and the UN warning has more to do with surrounding…
Tags: Climate change, food shortage, global warming, Himalayas, melting glaciers, research, risk, river basins, study, threat, water sources
Science & Technology, Weird Stuff, Jun 21st, 2010,
Chickens are used for many things around the globe, but their main purpose has always been as a food source. Whether it’s for their meat, their eggs, or their strange helpfulness in the garden, these farmyard birds have been depended on for a long time. However, when it comes to the poultry industry, there is one oversight people probably make: the feathers. Did you know that nearly 6 billion pounds of chicken feathers are generated in the US per year? Yeah, that’s a crazy amount of feathers and they don’t really have much use once they’ve been removed from the…
Tags: biodiesel, biofuel, chicken feather meal, chicken feathers, chickens, circuit boards, poultry industry, research, scientists, study
Nature, Science & Technology, Weird Stuff, Wildlife & Flora, Jun 16th, 2010,
We’ve all seen them: The television commercials that try to convince us that a certain cologne or perfume will drive the opposite gender absolutely wild, as if the headache-creating aroma will unleash a person’s feral side. While that may not always (or ever) be the case for people, one scent in particular has played a rather interesting role in the tracking of Jaguars: Calvin Klein’s Obsession for Men cologne. It was discovered after an experiment conducted by the WCS (Wildlife Conservation Society) Bronx Zoo in New York. All they were trying to do is figure out a way to get…
Tags: Bronx Zoo, Calvin Klein, camera traps, cologne, Guatemala, jaguars, Obsession for Men, study, WCS, Wildlife Conservation Society
Climate Change, Nature, Science & Technology, Wildlife & Flora, Jun 12th, 2010,
Snakes can be found all over the world. You might spot one while on a hike or see one lying across a road. They might sneak into your campground or slither through your own backyard. Some people love these creatures and others are absolutely terrified of them. I’ve come across a fair share of them in my life, both venomous and not, and while some sightings seem to happen more often around here it’s an entirely different story for the rest of the world. A recent study shows that in the past decade, there has been a severe decline in…
Tags: Biology Letters, Climate change, disease, habitat loss, Pollution, population decline. global, predators, reptiles, research, snakes, study
Green living, Health, Science & Technology, May 31st, 2010,
You’ve probably heard all the reports about how Climate Change will damage our crops and livelihoods via drought, flooding (from rising sea levels), and so forth. However, I’ll bet you haven’t heard about the latest threat climate change poses to crops: decreased nutritional value. A study, published in Science magazine, shows that increased levels of CO2 in the atmosphere could reduce crop protein by 20%. Scientists tested the 2 main types of soil nitrogen available to plants (nitrate and ammonium) and the affect they had on 2 major types of plants (monocotyledons and dicotyledons) that were exposed to an atmosphere…
Tags: ammonium, carbon dioxide, Climate change, co2, crops, global warming, nitrate, nutritional value, protein, science, soil nitrogen, study
