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Environment
Results 21 - 40 of 165.
Environment - Agronomy / Food Science - 06.11.2020
Climate change and food demand could shrink species’ habitats by almost a quarter by 2100
Mammals, birds and amphibians worldwide have lost on average 18% of their natural habitat range as a result of changes in land use and climate change, a new study has found. In a worst-case scenario this loss could increase to 23% over the next 80 years. We found that the higher the carbon emissions, the worse it gets for most species in terms of habitat loss.
Earth Sciences - Environment - 30.10.2020
New drone technology advances volcanic monitoring
Specially-adapted drones, developed by an international team involving scientists from the University of Cambridge, are transforming how we forecast eruptions by allowing close-range measurements of previously inaccessible and hazardous volcanoes These aerial measurements are pushing the frontiers of the current state-of-the-art in volcano monitoring Emma Liu The team, involving 20 researchers from seven countries, used long-range drones kitted out with a range of lightweight sensors to study the Manam volcano - one of the most active volcanoes in Papua New Guinea.
Earth Sciences - Environment - 30.10.2020
New drone technology improves ability to forecast volcanic eruptions
Specially-adapted drones developed by a UCL-led international team have been gathering data from never-before-explored volcanoes that will enable local communities to better forecast future eruptions. The cutting-edge research at Manam volcano in Papua New Guinea is improving scientists' understanding of how volcanoes contribute to the global carbon cycle, key to sustaining life on Earth.
Environment - Economics - 26.10.2020
Globalised economy making water, energy and land insecurity worse: study
The first large-scale study of the risks that countries face from dependence on water, energy and land resources has found that globalisation may be decreasing, rather than increasing, the security of global supply chains. By quantifying the pressures that our consumption places on water, energy and land resources in far-off corners of the world, we can also determine how much risk is built into our interconnected world Oliver Taherzadeh Countries meet their needs for goods and services through domestic production and international trade.
Life Sciences - Environment - 23.10.2020
Large tides may have been a key factor in the evolution of bony fish and tetrapods
Pioneering research, published in Proceedings of the Royal Society A , into ancient tides during the Late Silurian - Devonian periods (420 million years ago - 380 million years ago), suggests that large tides may have been a key environmental factor in the evolution of bony fish and early tetrapods, the first vertebrate land-dwellers.
Environment - 19.10.2020
Paper recycling must be powered by renewables to save climate
The study as current methods rely on fossil fuels and electricity from the grid. The researchers modelled various scenarios for increasing recycling of wastepaper by 2050 and the impact this would have on greenhouse gas emissions. They found that if all wastepaper was recycled, emissions could increase by 10%, as recycling paper tends to rely more on fossil fuels than making new paper.
Environment - Career - 19.10.2020
Climate scientists fly more than other researchers, first global study suggests
Climate change researchers, especially professors, fly more than other researchers - but are also more likely to have taken steps to reduce or offset their flying, a new study has found. The large, international survey of more than 1,400 university researchers was carried out by the UK Centre for Climate and Social Transformation (CAST), which is coordinated by Cardiff University.
Environment - Earth Sciences - 17.10.2020
Deep sea coral time machines reveal ancient CO2 burps
Analysis of the fossil remains of deep-sea corals (pictured here) were used to examine the history of the oceans and connections to global climate. Dann Blackwood, USGS Deep-sea corals Dann Blackwood, USGS Deep-sea corals Dann Blackwood, USGS 17 October 2020 The fossilised remains of ancient deep-sea corals may act as time machines providing new insights into the effect the ocean has on rising CO2 levels, according to new research carried out by the Universities of Bristol, St Andrews and Nanjing and published in Science Advances.
Earth Sciences - Environment - 16.10.2020
Ground-breaking discovery finally proves rain really can move mountains
First and corresponding author Dr Byron Adams in the steep terrain of the Greater Himalaya, central Bhutan. Second author Professor Kelin Whipple Looking upstream within a tributary of the Wang Chu, southwestern Bhutan. Dr Byron Adams The Ta Dzong overlooking the Paro Valley, western Bhutan. Dr Byron Adams 16 October 2020 A pioneering technique which captures precisely how mountains bend to the will of raindrops has helped to solve a long-standing scientific enigma.
Environment - Economics - 16.10.2020
Cooling: hidden threat for climate change and sustainable goals
Past research suggests growing international demand for cooling has the potential to drive one of the most substantial increases in greenhouse gas emissions in recent history. A new study sets out a framework for delivering sustainable cooling. It also examines cooling needs in the context of sustainable development, and finds that this is a global blind spot.
Environment - 15.10.2020
Laser technology measures biomass in world’s largest trees
Laser technology has been used to measure the volume and biomass of giant Californian redwood trees for the first time, records a new study by UCL researchers. The technique, published in Nature Scientific Reports journal, offers unprecedented insights into the 3D structure of trees, helping scientists to estimate how much carbon they absorb and how they might respond to climate change.
Environment - Health - 13.10.2020
Soluble iron in skies over China’s cities could create health risk - study
Industrial and vehicle pollution in the skies above East China's major cities is boosting the amount of atmospheric soluble iron particles - creating health risks for citizens, a new study reveals. Research indicates that acidic gases emitted from power generation, industry and vehicle exhausts are helping to dissolve insoluble iron particles in Beijing, Handan, Zhengzhou and Hangzhou.
Environment - Life Sciences - 13.10.2020
Crayfish ’trapping’ fails to control invasive species
Despite being championed by a host of celebrity chefs, crayfish 'trapping' is not helping to control invasive American signal crayfish, according to new research by UCL and King's College London. There have been grave concerns within the science community and amongst conservationists that American signal crayfish are wiping out other species of crayfish across Europe - including Britain's only native crayfish, the endangered white-clawed crayfish.
Environment - Social Sciences - 07.10.2020
City dwellers just as willing to help a stranger
People in cities are just as likely to help a stranger on the street as those in towns and villages, finds a study by UCL researchers. Helping behaviour was higher in more affluent areas, as social deprivation predicted lower levels of helping, according to the results of the UK-based study published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B .
Environment - 06.10.2020
Groundwater depletion in US High Plains leads to bleak outlook for grain production
The depletion of groundwater sources in parts of the United States High Plains is so severe that peak grain production in some states has already been passed, according to new research. An international team of scientists, including experts from the University of Birmingham, has extended and improved methods used to calculate peak oil production to assess grain production in three US states, Nebraska, Texas and Kansas.
Environment - Life Sciences - 01.10.2020
Mud-slurping chinless ancestors had all the moves
Life restoration of Cephalaspis, a typical osteostracan, swimming over the substrate. Hugo Salais (Metazoa Studio) A team of researchers, led by the University of Bristol, has revealed our most ancient ancestors were ecologically diverse, despite lacking jaws and paired fins. Long before they evolved out of the water, our ancient ancestors were simple fish-like creatures, but without fins or chins, who survived by filtering nutrients from the sediment.
Environment - Social Sciences - 01.10.2020
Analysis: Rising sea levels could leave millions at risk by 2100
Ilan Kelman (UCL Institute for Risk & Disaster Reduction) joins experts in examining 33 studies of how rising sea levels will affect migration patterns, 'trapped populations' and call for policymakers to institute measures to protect residents living in high-risk areas. An article in 2011 shocked many by suggesting that up to 187 million people could be forced to leave their homes as a result of two metres of sea level rise by 2100.
Life Sciences - Environment - 01.10.2020
Alien species to increase by 36% worldwide by 2050
The number of alien (non-native) species, particularly insects, arthropods and birds, is expected to increase globally by 36% by the middle of this century, compared to 2005, finds new research by an international team involving UCL. Published in Global Change Biology, the study also predicts the arrival of around 2,500 new alien species in Europe, which translates to an increase of 64% for the continent over the 45-year period.
Environment - 01.10.2020
Two’s a crowd: Nuclear and renewables don’t mix. Only the latter can deliver truly low carbon energy says new study
Onshore wind farm image courtesy of Envision Energy. If countries want to lower emissions as substantially, rapidly and cost-effectively as possible, they should prioritize support for renewables, rather than nuclear power. That's the finding of new analysis of 123 countries over 25 years by the University of Sussex Business School and the ISM International School of Management which reveals that nuclear energy programmes around the world tend not to deliver sufficient carbon emission reductions and so should not be considered an effective low carbon energy source.
Environment - 30.09.2020
Impact of large-scale tree death on carbon storage
Largescale 'disturbances', including fires, harvesting, windstorms and insect outbreaks, which kill large patches of forest, are responsible for more than a tenth of tree death worldwide, according to new research at the University of Birmingham. The research also showed wide regional variation, with parts of Scandinavia, the USA, Canada and Russia having a particularly high frequency of these disturbances.
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