Atmospheric rivers, while vital for replenishing water on the U.S. West Coast, are also the leading cause of floods though storm size alone doesn t dictate their danger. A groundbreaking study analyzing over 43,000 storms across four decades found that pre-existing soil moisture is a critical factor, with flood peaks...
Fruit-eating mastodons? Ancient fossils confirm a long-lost ecological alliance
Ten thousand years after mastodons disappeared, scientists have unearthed powerful fossil evidence proving these elephant cousins were vital seed spreaders for large-fruited trees in South America. Using dental wear, isotope analysis, and fossilized plant residue, researchers confirmed that mastodons regularly consumed fruit supporting a decades-old theory that many tropical plants...
Passive cooling breakthrough could slash data center energy use
UC San Diego engineers have created a passive evaporative cooling membrane that could dramatically slash energy use in data centers. As demand for AI and cloud computing soars, traditional cooling systems struggle to keep up efficiently. This innovative fiber membrane uses capillary action to evaporate liquid and draw heat away...
Space-laser AI maps forest carbon in minutes—a game-changer for climate science
A pioneering study reveals how archaeologists' satellite tools can be repurposed to tackle climate change. By using AI and satellite LiDAR imagery from NASA and ESA, researchers have found a faster, more accurate way to map forest biomass critical for tracking carbon. This innovative fusion of space tech and machine...
Toxic tides: Centuries-old mercury is flooding the arctic food chain
Despite falling global mercury emissions, mercury levels in Arctic wildlife continue to rise. A new study reveals that ocean currents are delivering legacy mercury pollution from distant regions like China to the Arctic, where it accumulates in animals and ecosystems.
Africa’s pangolin crisis: The delicacy that’s driving a species to the brink
Study suggests that appetite for bushmeat -- rather than black market for scales to use in traditional Chinese medicine -- is driving West Africa's illegal hunting of one of the world's most threatened mammals. Interviews with hundreds of hunters show pangolins overwhelmingly caught for food, with majority of scales thrown...
Invisible ID: How a single breath could reveal your health—and your identity
Scientists have discovered that your breathing pattern is as unique as a fingerprint and it may reveal more than just your identity. Using a 24-hour wearable device, researchers achieved nearly 97% accuracy in identifying people based solely on how they breathe through their nose. Even more intriguingly, these respiratory signatures...
Amazon Trees Under Pressure: New Study Reveals How Forest Giants Handle Light and Heat
In a recent study published in New Phytologist, researchers at Michigan State University have uncovered how Amazon rainforest canopy trees manage the intense sunlight they absorb — revealing resilience to hot and dry conditions in the forest canopy while also offering a way to greatly improve the monitoring of canopy...
Some Plants Make Their Own Pesticide — But at What Cost to the Atmosphere?
A natural alternative to pesticides may be hiding in a misunderstood plant compound — but it could come at an environmental cost.
What’s Really in our Food? A Global Look at Food Composition Databases—and the Gaps We Need to Fix
To build healthier food systems, we need better food data. A new research shows where the gaps are—and how innovations like PTFI are helping to close them.