The warming that humans cause today may have ripple effects far into the future, scientists warned in a study yesterday that finds the vast Greenland ice sheet could continue melting for centuries after greenhouse gases are stabilized. Greenland has a delayed response to changes in the Earth’s climate, and even if the planet stopped warming […]
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In a First, an ‘Atomic Fountain’ Has Measured the Curvature of Spacetime
In 1797, English scientist Henry Cavendish measured the strength of gravity with a contraption made of lead spheres, wooden rods and wire. In the 21st century, scientists are doing something very similar with rather more sophisticated tools: atoms. Gravity might be an early subject in introductory physics classes, but that doesn’t mean scientists aren’t still trying to […]
Solar Power Could Boom in 2022, Depending on Supply Chains
2022 is shaping up to be a solar boom. That is, if supply chain constraints don’t undercut the industry. The U.S. Energy Information Administration projects U.S. solar companies will install 21.5 gigawatts of utility-scale capacity this year, shattering the annual record of 15.5 GW set last year. But EIA’s projection comes amid a period of considerable uncertainty […]
NASA’s Perseverance Rover Chokes on Mars Pebbles While Collecting a Rock Sample
NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover has some rocks stuck in its throat. Perseverance drilled and collected its sixth Red Planet rock sample late last month, but the car-sized rover hasn’t been able to seal up the titanium tube containing the material yet. “I recently captured my sixth rock core and have encountered a new challenge. Seems some […]
Rebuilt New Orleans Levees Saved Lives and Property
Hurricane Ida, which cut a path of destruction from Louisiana to New York last year, is being recognized as one of the most destructive storms in U.S. history and the world’s costliest natural disaster in 2021. But the Category 4 hurricane also is becoming a poster child for government spending on flood protection. Analysts say […]
As Biden Sets Ambitious Climate Agenda, U.S. Emissions Rise
America went backward on climate in 2021. U.S. emissions rose 7 percent through the end of October, according to Carbon Monitor, an academic group that tracks emissions. The finding was echoed by the U.S. Energy Information Administration, which is also projecting a 7 percent increase in energy-related emissions. The increase puts the United States on a steep […]
Deforestation Strengthens Storms in West Africa
A devastating mudslide ripped through Sierra Leone’s capital of Freetown in August 2017, burying homes and killing at least 1,100 people. Triggered by weeks of unusually heavy rain, it was one of the worst environmental disasters the region had experienced in years. More than four years later, scientists are concerned that it could happen again. […]
Revolutions in Science – Scientific American
Introduction Science, Upendedby Andrea Gawrylewski Section 1: Biology & Evolution 1.1 Life Springs by Martin J. Van Kranendonk, David W. Deamer and Tara Djokic 1.2 The True Colors of Dinosaurs by Jakob Vinther 1.3 The New Origins of Technology by Kate Wong 1.4 The Meaning of Lichen by Erica Gies 1.5 […]
Sometimes Science Is Wrong – Scientific American
In 1996 scientists announced the astonishing news that they’d discovered what they believed might be signs of ancient life inside a meteorite from Mars. In 2014 astrophysicists declared that they’d found direct evidence at last for the “inflationary universe” theory, first proposed in the 1980s. What these assertions had in common was that they were based on research by […]
We Learned the Wrong Lessons from the Tuskegee ‘Experiment’
Editor’s Note (12/21/21): This article is being showcased in a special collection about equity in health care that was made possible by the support of Takeda Pharmaceuticals. The article was published independently and without sponsorship. Rarely a day goes by without national news stories about vaccine hesitancy: how many people say they definitely will or […]