Anthropocene

The Hidden Dangers of Road Salt

It clears our roads, but also spells danger for fish, moose—and sometimes humans

From the Batpod to the Batcomputer, the Caped Crusader's gadgets use up a whole lot of energy and spew a whole lot of carbon. But when it comes to carbon footprints, Gotham's techiest hero has nothing on some of pop culture's other saviors.

Which of Your Favorite Superheroes Is Destroying the Earth?

Measuring the carbon footprints of your favorite comic book heroes, from Batman to Jessica Jones

The VLF bubble around Earth

A Human-Made "Bubble" of Radio Waves Could Be Shielding Earth From Radiation

Very Low Frequency radio waves have created a protective bubble around the planet

The ginkgo biloba or Maidenhair tree has been around for at least 270 million years, making it the botanical equivalent of the shark.

The World Told Through the Eyes of the Ginkgo Tree

By deciding this ancient plant was worthy of their attention, humans ended up dramatically shaping its evolution

In a post-9/11 world, border walls between countries have become more common. But the science is severely lacking in our understanding of how they impact species and fragment ecosystems. Here, a continuous wire fence marks the border between the U.S. and Mexico near Tijuana.

How a Border Wall Could Wreak Ecological Havoc

Also in this episode of <i>Generation Anthropocene</i>: The case of U.S. Navy ships, beached whales and deadly sonar pings

This Asiatic cheetah, caught on camera in the Naybandan Wildlife Refuge in Iran, is likely one of just dozens in the region.

Poaching Isn't the Cheetah's Only Problem

Humans isolate the rare cats with roads and fences—which can be as devastating as hunting them outright

The notorious RPB: the rusty patched bumble bee.

The Bee That Breaks Your Heart

Insects are hard-pressed to get protection as endangered species. Can one fuzzy anomaly beat the odds?

Wilson works to band waterfowl in the summer to help track the birds. Hunters that harvest banded birds will report their harvest to state wildlife officials.

This Biologist Defies Gravity (and Glass Ceilings) to Document the Effects of Climate Change

As one of five American women in this role, Heather Wilson blends aviation and birds to bolster climate change records

Deciding when to get divorced is a difficult calculation—even for birds.

Birds Struggle to Keep Their Marriages in Rapidly Changing Urban Environments

Deciding whether to get divorced is a complex calculation, even for birds

In 300 years of fundamentally altering the Earth and its climate, what have we learned?

Your Guide to All Things Anthropocene

Documenting an era of manmade change

Video: Why Should Humans Care About Preserving the Diversity of Life on Earth?

This animation explains that humans don't just impact the interconnected web of life—we depend on it

Electronic waste, shown here, is just part of the "technosphere," which comprises the totality of the stuff humans produce.

Humans Have Bogged Down the Earth with 30 Trillion Metric Tons of Stuff, Study Finds

The authors say this is more proof that we are living in an Age of Humans—but not all scientists agree

Radiocarbon dating has been used to determine of the ages of ancient mummies, in some cases going back more than 9000 years.

Thanks to Fossil Fuels, Carbon Dating Is in Jeopardy. One Scientist May Have an Easy Fix

If only there were such an easy fix for climate change

Surface water seasonality between October 2014 and October 2015 in the Sundarbans in Bangladesh. Dark blue indicates permanent surface water; light blue indicates seasonal surface water.

High-Resolution Satellite Images Capture Stunning View of Earth's Changing Waters

An unprecedented mapping project shows the elusive patterns of Earth's surface water over 30 years

Ahead of her time: Foote first identified the greenhouse effect, now a seminal concept in climate science.

This Suffrage-Supporting Scientist Defined the Greenhouse Effect But Didn’t Get the Credit, Because Sexism

Eunice Foote’s career highlights the subtle forms of discrimination that have kept women on the sidelines of science

How does a bear catch a break around here?

Decades-Old Chemicals May Be Threatening Polar Bear Fertility, As If They Didn’t Have Enough to Worry About

A new study sheds light on how today's pollutants could become tomorrow's threats to wildlife and humans

Many scientists believe we are standing on the edge of an unprecedented era of extinction.

Why Should Humans Care if We're Entering the Sixth Mass Extinction?

In this episode of Generation Anthropocene, learn what a new era of extinction means for diverse species—including our own

Blue petrel, one of the seabird species that mistakes the smell of algae on plastic as food

Why Seabirds Eat So Much Plastic

A new study suggests that algae growing on plastic in the oceans makes it smell like dinner

The three-spine stickleback usually forages and builds its nest near the lake bottom. But in Enos Lake, it appears to have merged with a related species that spends its time near the surface.

Extinction or Evolution? The Answer Isn't Always Clear

The same factors that kill off some species cause others to evolve at lightning speed

Simple, yet effective.

Why Public Health Researchers Are Looking to Urban Trees

A global study finds they can help cool cities and reduce air pollution—for less money than high-tech answers

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