Latest Articles
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Happy birthday, Darwin! Have a giant recycled squid
Sometimes, despite your best intentions, you end up with plastic bags. This is why nature invented the giant squid, humans invented knitting needles, and Deadly Knitshade invented Plarchie. He’s knitted out of 162 plastic bags, and is shown here cuddling with Charles Darwin, who celebrated his 202nd birthday on Saturday. If you want to celebrate […]
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Republican budget proposal guts international climate funding
The House Republican budget proposal would gut key programs to help the US tap into the growing global demand for clean energy technologies, reduce the carbon pollution from the loss of tropical forests, and help developing countries adapt to the impacts of global warming. Cutting these programs is bad for American competitiveness and for the […]
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Who’s got the greenest house on the planet?
It’s pretty easy to determine the biggest pie, or longest fingernails, or fattest twins. But what about the greenest house? AOL’s consumer finance site, of all places (they’re into journalism now!) has a nice roundup of what, exactly, it means to have a green home. There are a number of buildings that have claimed or […]
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Ask Umbra: Is there such a thing as an environmentally friendly cigarette?
Send your question to Umbra! Q. Dear Umbra, I’m a smoker. So, is it better to smoke organic tobacco? Will I put less of a strain on the planet by smoking e-cigarettes? Or can you make a case from a sustainability standpoint for why I should quit? Thanks,GregPotomac, MD Where there’s smoke, there’s fire.Photo: SuperFantasticA. […]
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Why you don’t want gas to get cheaper
Image: Grist Americans would like to pay less at the pump. But what would that take? How about another economic crash — or perhaps you’d prefer an ecological one. However the next century shakes out, one thing’s for sure: the ever-growing gap between world oil supplies and demand is making itself felt, and the longer […]
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Beware, moms-to-be: Insecticides could make your kids dumber
No raid for you.Photo: Dhini van HeerenStop huffing the Raid, moms: In other “sh*t that makes kids dumber” news, toddlers’ brains developed more slowly if their mothers inhaled a lot of a common insecticide ingredient while pregnant, according to a new study published in the journal Pediatrics. Reuters explains: On average, women breathing the highest […]
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Friday music blogging: Band of Horses on Yo Gabba Gabba
What the what? Band of Horses doing a song called “Out In Nature” on the show Yo Gabba Gabba? Are you reading my mind, Universe?! This can only mean a good weekend.
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Saudi Arabian reserves overstated by 40 percent, global production plateau imminent
That we are close to a peak in global oil production should not be a surprise to anyone, but some leaked documents have made the situation even clearer, as the Guardian reports: The U.S. fears that Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest crude oil exporter, may not have enough reserves to prevent oil prices escalating, confidential […]
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New Contest for Exposing Polluter Lobbyists’ Influence
Are you a lobbyist for the coal industry, looking for the best way to meet members of Congress who will put your dirty energy money ahead of modern environmental standards and their constituents’ health? Maybe the chairman of a powerful congressional committee, seeking yet another industry lobbyist to join your staff and help roll back the […]
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What ‘The Simpsons’ could teach us about global warming
Are climate scientists the Milhouses of America?Cross-posted from Sightline’s Daily Score blog. I encourage you to check out a downright awesome analysis of the treatment of global warming on The Simpsons, over at The Yale Forum on Climate Change & The Media.* Meanwhile, here’s my take. The Simpsons phenomenon is a reminder of the power […]
