MS-ESS3-3

Apply scientific principles to design a method for monitoring and minimizing a human impact on the environment.

  1. Ecosystems

    Can people protect as much space as nature needs?

    To save biodiversity, nations are drafting a plan to protect 30 percent of Earth by 2030. Up for debate is how best to do that.

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  2. Environment

    Camels have been dying after mistaking plastic for food

    Plastic waste has been building up in the guts of some camels. It may now be killing off one percent of them in the United Arab Emirates each year.

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  3. Environment

    Analyze this: Microplastics are showing up in Mount Everest’s snow

    Microplastics have made their way to the snow on Earth’s tallest peak. Most of the plastic likely comes from climbers’ equipment and clothes.

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  4. Chemistry

    A soil-based ‘concrete’ could make buildings green, even on Mars

    A new soil-based material offers an alternative to concrete for 3-D printing environmentally friendly buildings.

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  5. Environment

    Why today’s ‘fast fashions’ can be bad for the planet

    The constant buy-wear-toss cycle of fast fashion isn’t sustainable. It hurts the environment and takes a toll on our wallets, too.

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  6. Environment

    Old clothes soon may be recycled, not trashed

    One day, clothes may be recycled almost as much as plastics and glass are now. See how chemists are moving us in that direction.

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  7. Chemistry

    Here’s how to make flip-flops biodegradable

    Innovative flip-flops made from an algae-based plastic decompose in soil or compost. The comfy shoes also avoid use of fossil fuels.

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  8. Animals

    Around the world, birds are in crisis

    Human activities around the world are threatening bird species. Numbers of even some of the most common species are starting to fall.

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  9. Environment

    Surprising long-haul dust and tar are melting high glaciers

    Dust and tar blown onto high mountains, like the Himalayas, boost the melting of snow and ice far more than scientists had realized. Here’s why.

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  10. Computing

    Explainer: What is an algorithm?

    These step-by-step instructions underlie social media, internet searches and other computer-based activities. But what are they exactly? We explain.

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  11. Environment

    Polluting microplastics harm both animals and ecosystems

    Researchers are beginning to uncover the real-world impacts of polluting microplastic bits on animals and the ecosystems they inhabit.

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  12. Animals

    Learning what stresses queen bees could save their hives

    Beehives often die off after the queen gets too stressed to make enough babies. New tests could identify what stressed her — and point to solutions.

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