High rates of landscape degradation not product of landscape fires
Once humans discovered how to tame fire, they began using it for heat, cooking, to scare away animals and to…
Climate & Environment
Agriculture and the environment share an intricate relationship. Farming depends on natural resources like soil, water, and climate, while agricultural practices significantly influence ecosystems and the planet’s health. However, the growing threat of global warming and environmental degradation poses unprecedented challenges to agriculture.
Global analysis identifies at-risk forests
Forests are engaged in a delicate, deadly dance with climate change, sucking carbon dioxide out of the air with billions…
RNA breakthrough creates crops that can grow 50 percent more potatoes, rice
Manipulating RNA can allow plants to yield dramatically more crops, as well as increasing drought tolerance, announced a group of…
Forests benefit from tree species variety and genetic diversity
Reforestation projects should include a variety of tree species and ensure genetic diversity within each species to maximise new forests’…
Turning over a new leaf: Local mountain climate is affected by leaf area ratio
The changing seasons tell us much about the workings of nature. Now, a research group from Japan has discovered that…
Algae-powered computing: Scientists create renewable biological photovoltaic cell
Researchers have used a widespread species of blue-green algae to power a microprocessor continuously for a year — and…
Diverse plant water-use strategies make forests more resilient to extreme drought
To paint a clearer picture of how global climate change will affect Earth’s ecosystems, a team of 80 international research…
Researchers complete first comprehensive threat assessment of all U.S. trees
For the first time, researchers have completed threat assessments for all 881 native tree species in the contiguous United States,…
Life in Earth’s interior as productive as in some ocean waters
Terrestrial and marine habitats have been considered the ecosystems with the highest primary production on earth by far, i.e., the…
Climate change and civil unrest among the ancient Maya
An extended period of turmoil in the prehistoric Maya city of Mayapan, in the Yucatan region of Mexico, was marked…