environmental science research for everyone
Just as the spread of disease can be hard to control, pollutants can transfer between ecosystems, exposing new populations to environmental risks. A collaborative team of environmental scientists are seeking to understand the nature and consequences of the spread of mining pollutants between water- and land-based ecosystems.
Read moreSome “food” doesn’t have much nutritional value… and this is certainly true of plastic! Some bug larvae seem to be eating plastic, but they don’t live very long as a result. In a recent study, researchers experimented with different diet supplements to improve larvae’s ability to live off of plastic.
Read moreAntarctica has been a depository for pollutants for decades. The brutal cold has kept them dormant and unable to inflict harmful effects on nature. As temperatures rise and ice melts, what is the fate of these pollutants in this unique landscape?
Read moreMercury is a troublesome pollutant in the environment and while we know a lot more about where sources are today, we don’t know as much about where sources were in the past and how high pollution levels were. Luckily, trees can help us to figure that out! Using traces of mercury pollution stored in tree rings, scientists try to see how mercury pollution levels have changed as we’ve become more industrialized.
Read moreWant to fly without the carbon guilt? Offsetting programs let you pay to plant trees to take that carbon from the air, and researchers are studying how social factors and global policies might influence these environmentally-minded behaviors.
Read morePollution is dangerous, both to humans and the ecosystems we care about. But researchers in Poland have studied the sources and dynamic movement of pollutants in rivers, and may have found potential in cucumbers to help improve the system.
Read moreSilver carp are a notorious invasive fish that are spreading throughout the Mississippi River Basin. Despite their rapid-fire range expansion, silver carp have yet to make it to the Great Lakes. A recent study explores the possibility that polluted Chicago-area waters may be preventing the spread of silver carp into Lake Michigan and beyond.
Read moreEach year, a tremendous amount of plastic waste enters the marine environment. As plastic ages, it breaks down in to smaller and smaller pieces, called microplastics, but never degrades. These tiny plastic fibers are eaten by numerous organisms and can cause organ damage or even death. But one species is able to rid its stomach of accidentally ingested microplastics. This is the tale of the Atlantic ditch shrimp and how it will survive in the age of microplastics.
Read moreThe technology to produce electricity from renewable resources like sunlight and wind has been around for many years. However, the vast majority of electricity in the world is generated from fossil fuels, which is a major contributor to pollution and climate change. Recent research shows that sustained, incremental changes can lead to sustainable, renewable electricity around the globe by 2050 – mitigating environmental damage from current practices.
Read moreDiscarded plastics aren’t only disrupting the ocean, they accumulate in freshwaters too. And the impacts may not end there. Aquatic insects eat microplastics and, when they become adults, carry the polluting particles from water onto land and potentially into the stomachs of their predators.
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