Climate Change
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Visualizing a Year of Extreme Weather
The United States has seen thousands of weather records broken this year
December 09, 2011 |
By Sarah Zielinski
Building a Better World With Green Cement
With an eye on climate change, a British startup creates a new form of the ancient building material
December 2011 |
By Michael Rosenwald
Ocean Creatures In A Warmer World
A new study finds that some marine organisms may have to move fast if they want to survive climate change
November 18, 2011 |
By Sarah Zielinski
Scene From A Drought
A trip to Texas shows the unexpected consequences of a severe drought
November 15, 2011 |
By Sarah Zielinski
Thailand’s Flooding, As Seen From Space
Bangkok residents have to avoid the crocodiles let loose by the flood
November 04, 2011 |
By Sarah Zielinski
The Overwhelming Data We Refuse To Believe
Another study finds the planet has warmed, but that won't convince the skeptics
October 24, 2011 |
By Sarah Zielinski
Does Climate Change Cause War?
The issue is more complex than recent headlines have indicated
September 01, 2011 |
By Sarah Zielinski
America’s First Great Global Warming Debate
Thomas Jefferson and Noah Webster argue over conventional wisdom that lasted thousands of years
July 15, 2011 |
By Joshua Kendall
There’s a Drought—Is It Climate Change?
Despite the heat waves across the country, no one is screaming "climate change is real" because of them. Why?
July 14, 2011 |
By Sarah Zielinski
Top Ten Kids’ Movies With a Green Theme
Loggers, hunters, developers, fishers, polluters and whalers are the evil villains in this movie genre
June 24, 2011 |
By Julie Mianecki
Rocky Mountains Losing Their Snow
A new study finds an unprecedented decline in snowpack in the West
June 10, 2011 |
By Sarah Zielinski
Ocean Acidification and the Battle Between Coral and Seaweed
Ocean acidification creates plenty of potential problems for life in the oceans, but corals might have it the worst
May 17, 2011 |
By Sarah Zielinski
An Arctic Ozone Hole?
When you hear the term "ozone hole" you think about the ozone depletion over Antarctica, and how people in the far south of the Southern Hemisphere have to protect themselves from the Sun. It's why my friends have to buy hats for their little girl and slather her with sunblock every time she goes o...
April 06, 2011 |
By Sarah Zielinski
Five Reasons Anti-Evolution Measures are a Bad Idea
In 1925, John Scopes, a high school biology teacher, was put on trial in Tennessee for having the audacity to teach evolution to his students. In the 21st century, teachers don't have to worry about being arrested for teaching this fundamental topic in science, and the Supreme Court declared teachi...
April 04, 2011 |
By Sarah Zielinski
It's Getting Hot in Here
The year 2010 may have had a La Niña and little solar activity—two factors that help to cool the planet—but it was record breaker for heat, tying 2005 as the hottest year on record. Record-setting or near-record-setting years are now common; after 2010 and 2005 comes 2009, virtually tied with 1998,...
February 18, 2011 |
By Sarah Zielinski
Climate Change and Winter Storms
If only global warming were as simple as that term implies. Temperatures would increase at a steady rate around the globe, winters would become milder, snow less common. The only victims would be ski slopes and polar bears.But climate change—the preferred term for our global phenomenon—is messier. ...
February 03, 2011 |
By Sarah Zielinski
Climate and the Fall of the Roman Empire
Even in our modern age, humans are incredibly vulnerable to changes in weather and climate. And earlier in human history, we were even more so. Even the Romans, who managed to build monuments, roads and aqueducts that still stand today, weren't immune, according to a new study published last week b...
January 18, 2011 |
By Sarah Zielinski
Ten Science Stories You Should Have Read
Is your office rather empty this week? Looking for something to read to fill the time? How about some great science and nature stories from Smithsonian? Here are my ten favorites from the past year:The Truth About Lions (January): Staff writer Abigail Tucker visits Craig Packer, who has been runnin...
December 28, 2010 |
By Sarah Zielinski
It's Not Too Late to Save the Polar Bear
In 2007, scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey said that if humans didn't do anything to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, two-thirds of the world's polar bears could be gone by the middle of this century. Now a new study has addressed the next question: Is there still time to help the bears? T...
December 17, 2010 |
By Sarah Zielinski
Biodiversity Losses Could Be Bad for Your Health
We're losing species at an alarming pace. The current rate of loss has been estimated to be 100 to 1,000 times the background extinction rate, and that's expected to rise by a factor of 10 to 100 over the next 50 years. But if simple disappearance isn't enough to get you worried, a new study in Nat...
December 06, 2010 |
By Sarah Zielinski
