Environment
- Brain
To protect kids, get the lead out!
Lead poisons hundreds of thousands of children. In Chicago, experts show how the toxic metal hurts test performance in school.
- Environment
The heat that keeps on giving
Burning fossil fuels generates heat and carbon dioxide. That pulse of heat is quickly exceeded by the warmth that carbon dioxide traps in Earth’s atmosphere.
- Earth
Too hot? Some peaks offer climate migrants lots of land
As mountain climates warm, species may actually gain ground as they migrate up to cooler sites, a new study finds.
- Environment
Scientists Say: Fracking
Liquid fuel sources such as natural gas and petroleum form deep underground between layers of rock. To retrieve them, engineers often use a technique called hydraulic fracturing, or fracking.
- Animals
Cats and foxes are eating up Australia’s mammals
Since the arrival of Europeans in Australia, a startling number of mammal species have disappeared. A new study puts much of the blame on cats and foxes introduced by the early settlers.
- Animals
Orangutans take the low road
Cameras spotted orangutans walking down logging roads to get around. That may be a good sign that they can adapt to changes in their woodsy environment.
- Animals
Hellbenders need help!
Hellbenders already face threats such as habitat loss, pollution and disease. But climate change could make matters worse. And the problems facing hellbenders could spell trouble for more than just these giant amphibians.
- Environment
Air pollution can mess with our DNA
New research suggests a type of air pollution — diesel fumes — can affect your health. It inappropriately switches some genes on, while turning off others.
- Environment
Nature documentary puts people in the picture
Many nature documentaries cut people out of the frame. A new series aims to show how we are entwined with our environments.
- Environment
Plastics at sea create raft of problems
About 5.25 trillion pieces of plastic float in the world's oceans, a new study finds. That's a problem. This 269,000 tons of plastic can choke, entangle and poison a wide variety of sea creatures.
- Environment
Spidey sense: Eight-legged pollution monitors
Spiders that prey on aquatic insects can serve as sentinels that naturally monitor banned chemicals that still pollute many rivers across the United States.
- Environment
Soot fouls subway stations — and maybe lungs
Soot levels in stations for New York City’s electric subway trains exceed the levels outdoors, a new study finds. The underground source of this black carbon: maintenance trains that share the tracks with subway trains. Breathing soot can aggravate asthma and other lung disease.
