Earth
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Earth
Killer Cocktails: Drug mixes threaten aquatic ecosystems
Trace amounts of pharmaceutical drugs in waterways may work together to deform and kill native microscopic organisms.
- Earth
El Niño: It’s back!
An increase in ocean temperatures in the central Pacific heralds the onset of El Niño, whose effects should show up in the United States this fall.
- Earth
Long, Dry Spells: Lengthy droughts tied to long-lived La Niñas
A new study of persistent droughts that occurred in the United States during the past 3 centuries suggests that those dry spells may be associated with prolonged periods when sea-surface temperatures in the central Pacific were cooler than average.
- Earth
West Coast Shimmy: Smack from space triggered landslides along Pacific Coast
Scientists say they've found the first evidence along the Pacific Coast of massive landslides triggered by the impact from space 65 million years ago that's suspected to have wiped out the dinosaurs.
- Earth
Study links dioxin to breast cancer
A new study finds support for the long-proposed hypothesis that dioxin, a hormonelike pollutant, can trigger breast cancer in heavily exposed women.
- Earth
Monsoon Warning: Data hint at wet and blustery future
Asian monsoons have been intensifying over the last 400 years, and they're slated to get worse.
- Earth
A Stinging Forecast: Model predicts chance of encountering jellyfish
Weather forecasters usually prognosticate precipitation, pollen, and poor air quality, but in some areas, they could soon provide beachgoers with the probability of confronting a jellyfish.
- Earth
Study links cancer to Vatican Radio
Broadcast transmissions from a forest of antennas owned by Vatican Radio, outside Rome, appear to have boosted leukemia incidence in neighboring communities.
- Earth
Crisis on Tap?
Because people are becoming ever more dependent on underground aquifers as sources of water, scientists are striving to understand better how groundwater systems interact with the water that flows across Earth's surface.
- Earth
Tomato compound repels mosquitos
New insect repellents based on a compound that contributes to the smell of crushed tomato leaves are under development.
- Earth
Teenage Holdup: Pollution may delay puberty
A new study of adolescents suggests that widespread environmental pollutants such as PCBs and dioxins may delay sexual development.
- Agriculture
Killer bees boost coffee yields
Even self-pollinating coffee plants benefit substantially from visits by insect pollinators.
