Tourism threat to cradle of evolution
The pressures on one of the world’s most famous centres of biodiversity, the Galapagos Islands where Darwin studied his famous finches which contributed to the theory of evolution, have been highlighted by Ecuador’s President and Unesco, the UN’s scientific and cultural body. The president of Ecuador, Rafael Correa, has warned that he is considering a…
Orangutan Diary
Last night saw the beginning of the BBC’s Orangutan Diary, a week in the life of orangutans at the Nyaru Menteng Orangutan Project in Borneo. The programme highlighted the enormous problems being faced by orangutans – from being kept as pets through to devastating habitat loss. During the capture of an adult orangutan from a…
Funky and unusual, it brings you lots of luck!
But less luck for the toad… Cane toads have been in the news again lately. Huge specimens have been found and last week one individual, dubbed ‘Toadzilla’, was picked up weighing in at just under two pounds. The toxic toads have become a pest since their introduction in 1935 and, in desperation, Australians are spending…
World Water Day
March 22nd is World Water Day, which this year is themed: ‘Coping with Water Scarcity’. This year’s theme highlights the increased significance of water scarcity across the globe – From Africa and increased desertification, Australia and the increase in the number of droughts in past years to the UK and the water shortage that hits…
Cow + Grass = House
Cows plus grass equals dung; 7-9 million tonnes of it each year in the USA alone! What if cows plus grass made flooring?, or shelving? or a table? Michigan State University researchers, working with the US Department of Agriculture, reckon that the "digester solids" leftovers from anaerobic digestion of cattle manure can be processed into…
The Great Global Warming Swindle – don’t forget the science
If you saw this programme on Channel 4 last Thursday (8 March) you will probably either be shocked and appalled that Channel 4 could possibly dare to air such a programme, or you will be relieved that somebody finally took a look at the science behind the theory and presented an alternative view. The programme…
Polarized thought
After spotting a Grist Magazine article about a climate change-induced human rights claim, and then a story last week from Scientific American about International Polar Year, I thought it was time to mention the effect of global warming on humans. The human climate change link is not often considered, but Inuit people launched a human…
A Role for Rice in Causing and Tackling Climate Change?
Rice provides the staple food for around 2 billion people, and demand is forecast to grow at 1% a year, with no increase in land available. Some recent studies have indicated that rice production is contributing to climate change through emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG). An analysis by Reiner Wassmann, Klaus Butterbach-Bahl and Achim Dobermann…
Grassland invaders had inside help
One of the key factors in an alien species becoming invasive in an area is that it survives better in the new habitat than the native species, right? Well it’s not always quite that simple. Researchers from Oregon State University have documented a case where stronger native grasses were out-competed and replaced by inferior challengers.…
Fancy a bottle of Swedish white?
At the moment, the idea of wines from Scandinavia, or other northern climes, may seem fanciful. But by the end of this century, climatologists suggest that Sweden could be producing Riesling or Chianti, Germany will be better known for luscious red wines than the current whites, and California’s famous Napa Valley could be as hot…