Nature & Environment : Science World Report

Feb 16, 2012 11:02 AM EST

Europe Needs a 'RESCUE' Revolution

Resolving the world's major challenges whether climate change, environmental pollution, urbanisation, our ageing population or resource scarcity requires a sweeping shift in our approach to sustainability research and education, a group of leading scientists told European policy makers today during ...

Feb 16, 2012 10:51 AM EST

Conference to Develop Ecologically-Based Conservation Strategies For a Future of Global Change

Ecosystems are shifting under pressure from human activities, invasive species, and a changing climate, presenting us with hard philosophical and practical choices on conservation strategy. Should we preserve parkland as time capsules of past and current wilderness, or embrace changing species range...

Feb 16, 2012 10:43 AM EST

Time of Year Important in Projections of Climate Change Effects On Ecosystems

Does it matter whether long periods of hot weather, such as last year's heat wave that gripped the U.S. Midwest, happen in June or July, August or September?

Feb 16, 2012 09:18 AM EST

Climate Change Threatens Tropical Birds

Climate change spells trouble for many tropical birds â€“ especially those living in mountains, coastal forests and relatively small areas â€“ and the damage will be compounded by other threats like habitat loss, disease and competition among species.

Feb 15, 2012 04:29 PM EST

NASA Sees Cyclone Giovanna Enter the Mozambique Channel

Cyclone Giovanna crossed over the island of Madagascar leaving flooding and damages in its wake and has now entered the Mozambique Channel. NASA's Aqua satellite captured an image that showed a ragged eye still exists, and the storm is regaining strength in the warm Channel waters.

Feb 15, 2012 02:19 PM EST

Identifying Poverty Levels Requires Accurate Measurements

When food prices spiked in 2008, the number of households that moved into poverty was overestimated by about 60 percent, according to a recent University of Illinois study. In middle-income countries such as Mexico that have more diversity in their diets, households are able to substitute other food...

Feb 15, 2012 01:55 PM EST

Climate Change May Increase Risk of Water Shortages in Hundreds of US Counties by 2050

More than 1 in 3 counties in the United States could face a "high" or "extreme" risk of water shortages due to climate change by the middle of the 21st century, according to a new study in ACS's Journal of Environmental Science & Technology. The new report concluded that 7 in 10 of the more than 3,1...

Feb 15, 2012 01:27 PM EST

Extreme Summer Temperatures Occur More Frequently

Extreme summer temperatures are already occurring more frequently in the United States, and will become normal by mid-century if the world continues on a business as usual schedule of emitting greenhouse gases.

Feb 15, 2012 01:18 PM EST

Nationwide Radium Testing of Groundwater Shows Most Susceptible Regions: Central US and East Coast

Groundwater in aquifers on the East Coast and in the Central U.S. has the highest risk of contamination from radium, a naturally occurring radioactive element and known carcinogen.

Feb 15, 2012 12:16 PM EST

Green Spaces Reduce Stress Levels of Jobless, Study Shows

Stress levels of unemployed people are linked more to their surroundings than their age, gender, disposable income, and degree of deprivation, a study shows.

Feb 14, 2012 04:13 PM EST

Super High- Resolution Carbon Estimates For Endangered Madagascar

By combining airborne laser technology, satellite mapping, and ground-based plot surveys, a team of researchers has produced the first large-scale, high-resolution estimates of carbon stocks in remote and fragile Madagascar.

Feb 14, 2012 02:56 PM EST

A Look Back Suggests a Sobering Future of Wildfire Dangers In US West

The American West has seen a recent increase in large wildfires due to droughts, the build-up of combustible fuel, or biomass, in forests, a spread of fire-prone species and increased tree mortality from insects and heat.