Earth
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Agriculture
Ethanol Fallout: Health Risks for Livestock
With Uncle Sam pushing the production of ethanol for fuel, U.S. farmers are planting more corn than at any time since World War II, and garnering premium prices for each harvested bushel. But many livestock operations are getting hit with a double whammy: higher feeds costs and corn-derived feed that’s carrying triple the normal load of fungal poisons.
- Earth
Babbitt to Southern Louisiana: Look into Gondolas
“New Orleans, at the end of the century, will be an island” — literally, predicts Bruce Babbitt. Whether or not you believe his assessment, he makes a good case for considering the implications of climate change when planning federal projects.
- Climate
Air Pollution Can Be So Cool — ing
Fossil-fuel pollution has been offsetting global warming to the tune of about 30 percent per year. Cleaning up that pollution, a must, threatens to accelerate warming unless humanity changes its fuel-use strategy.
- Life
The Arctic isn’t alone
Insects and other animals that regulate their body temperature externally may be especially vulnerable as the world warms.
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- Health & Medicine
Rice Woes, Pt. 1
A shortfall in rice production has been developing well under the radar screen of agricultural economists and growers. The bad news: It promises to get much worse, and fairly soon.
- Earth
Challenging ethanol’s dirty reputation
An inexpensive way to make ethanol from wood chips reduces net greenhouse gas emissions as much as more costly methods.
- Climate
Olympic Clean Up
Rather than wowing its visitors this summer with world-class air pollution, China wants to impress them with its clean, green Olympics.
- Earth
In the aftermath
The charcoal left after a forest fire stimulates microbial activity that boosts carbon loss from organic material covering the ground.
- Earth
It’s the meat not the miles
Eating less red meat and dairy may do more to reduce food-associated greenhouse gas emissions than shopping locally.
- Earth
Heat relief
A new data-rich climate model foresees a short-term reprieve from warming for parts of western Europe and North America.
- Humans
Bear deadline
Court calls for the already overdue decision on listing polar bears as a threatened species.
