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  • Climate change could give you brain fungus [VIDEO]

    When Trudy Rosler first got sick after a visit to Vancouver Island in British Columbia, doctors were stumped. Eventually, they discovered that she had a fungus growing in her brain stem — one that was previously only known to exist in the tropics. Researchers say that subtle changes in climate over the last 40 years […]

    PBS: Need to Know Science

  • GOP congressman: Stop climate change by destroying the rainforest

    Republican representative Dana Rohrabacher has a novel solution for reducing greenhouse gases: Destroy the rainforest! While we’re at it, we should probably get rid of the ozone layer and those pesky whales, as well. Rohrabacher argues that since 80 percent of carbon emissions come from decaying plant matter, we should clear-cut rainforests in order to […]

    Jess Zimmerman Science

  • NOAA’s terrifying tornado time-lapse [VIDEO]

    By now, most of us know last month was the busiest April ever for tornadic activity; with May hosting the deadliest single tornado on record, the whole country’s talking about the Fujita Scale, core bursting, and Helen Hunt like it’s 1996. For those who refuse to even talk about the links between twisters and climate […]

    Ted Alvarez Science

  • Et tu, pistachios? How climate change will mess with trail mix

    Pistachios: What shell remain? Photo: PatternedCross-posted from Cool Green Science. What won’t climate change affect? Well, cross trail mix and cherry pie off that ever-shrinking list. It turns out that crisp apples, chewy almonds, ripe plums, and a host of other nuts and stone fruits might become much more costly to grow — or not […]

    Robert Lalasz Science

  • House GOP pays for climate disaster relief by increasing climate pollution

    Eric Cantor.Photo: Talk Radio News ServiceCross-posted from the Wonk Room. In a stunningly heartless move, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) put strings on emergency relief for the victims of the killer Joplin tornado, saying that other government services would have to be cut to offset aid spending. Yesterday afternoon, the House Appropriations Committee passed […]

    Brad Johnson Science

  • Missouri tornado whips up media discussion of climate change and extreme weather

    Devastation in Joplin, Mo.Photo: KOMUnewsThe devastation of Joplin, Mo., has led to a super-storm of media stories on the link between climate change and extreme weather, including tornadoes. After April saw records set for most tornadoes in a month and in 24 hours, I examined the link in great detail here, looking at the data, […]

    Joseph Romm Science

  • Chicago’s government prepares for climate change to turn the city into Baton Rouge

    While other cities ignore climate change, Chicago is doing the obvious: planning its infrastructure as if the next 50 years, and the next generation of Chicagoans, actually matter. Its efforts, started under one of the mayors Richard Daley (we can’t keep track), are now bearing fruit, leading to everything from flood-proof streets to heat-tolerant trees. […]

    Christopher Mims Science

  • Hasta la vista, Arnie: Can the climate movement afford to lose Arnold Schwarzenegger?

    He’s a colossal jerk, but do we still need him?Photo: Steve JurvetsonThe most prominent Republican voice for climate action is now in the (hound)doghouse. Turns out the Sperminator has been pumping more than iron. If you’re as revolted as I am, you might be tempted to toss the bum permanently overboard — but can we […]

    Lisa Hymas Science

  • The coming decline of accurate hurricane forecasts

    NOAA put out this summer's hurricane forecast late last week, and it looks like it's going to be another doozy of a storm season. And that’s probably all we’re going to get in terms of forecasting. NOAA administrator Jane Lubchenco took the opportunity to point out that, in the last round of budget cuts, Congress […]

    Sarah Laskow Science

  • Feral camels are coming to eat your air conditioner

    … if you live in Australia, that is. Perhaps as a punishment for making me think about giant snakes, Australia is suffering yet another attempted takeover by non-native species, which periodically come in and disrupt the continent's carefully balanced ecosystem of massively deadly freaks of nature. This time, it’s feral camels. And they eat air […]

    Jess Zimmerman Science