Latest Articles
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Watch President Obama shoot a marshmallow cannon
Sometimes, even when there’s a Democratic president, I worry about science policy — whether there will be sufficient funding for research and education, whether the administration is soliciting and heeding feedback from scientists on subjects like climate, that sort of thing. And then I see the genuine delight on President Obama’s face as he helps […]
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World’s most environmentally outspoken president forced to resign at gunpoint
Mohamed Nasheed, president of the climate change-threatened Maldives, was forced to step down from office -- at gunpoint.
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Help name this baby polar bear
The Toronto Zoo is having a contest to name its new baby polar bear. Here are my entries, based on my initial responses to seeing the above photo (from the zoo’s Facebook page):
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The oldest living thing on Earth is 6,000 tons of grass
Meet Posidonia oceanic, a type of Mediterranean seagrass that is also the longest-lived thing on Earth. What’s its secret? The usual — clean living, plenty of exercise, asexual reproduction, being 6,000 tons of grass, and not getting flattened by climate change … YET.
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Critical List: GM seed plantings expand; restaurants for vultures
Last night’s caucus put GOP presidential candidate Rick Santorum back in the game, so we could be hearing a lot more about how global warming is a “hoax.” The total area planted with GM seed around the world rose 8 percent last year, according to the biotech industry; a food and water NGO is disputing […]
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Useful insights, faulty analysis in new book on rising energy use
David Owen's new book The Conundrum tries to make the case that increased energy efficiency only leads to increased consumption -- but is he cherry-picking his supporting data?
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Big Oil’s banner year: Higher prices, record profits, less oil
BP, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, ExxonMobil, and Royal Dutch Shell made a record-high $137 billion in profits in 2011 -- yet yielded lower oil production than in 2010.
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Why buildings haven’t gotten more efficient in 20 years
Everything single part of a building has become significantly more energy efficient over the past 20 years, yet buildings are using the same amount of energy they always have. Why?
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Australia contemplates rewilding with elephants, rhinos
Good luck containing these giant herbivores with an "elephant-proof fence."
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Animated guide to building a Keystone XL
Turns out it's just a long concrete tube buried three to four feet under ground, rambling on for mile after mile, narrated by a guy with an adenoid problem.
