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Earth Sciences - Environment - 10.02.2023

Earth’s atmosphere adds a quick pinch of salt to meteorites, scientists find
New analysis of the Winchcombe meteorite has revealed just how quickly space rocks which fall to Earth can be contaminated by our atmosphere. The meteorite, which landed in Gloucestershire in February last year, was the first to be recovered on UK soil in nearly 30 years. Fragments were recovered from a domestic driveway hours after it entered the Earth's atmosphere.

Health - Environment - 08.02.2023

Sustainable computer memory, AI for autophagy and more: News from the College
Here's a batch of fresh news and announcements from across Imperial. From AI being used to identify key proteins in cell degradation, to a shellfish component being used in sustainable computer memory devices, here is some quick-read news from across the College. AI for autophagy A team led by Dr Tolga Bozkurt , Dr Doryen Bubeck and colleagues in the Department of Life Sciences at Imperial have used artificial intelligence (AI) to discover key regulators of autophagy - a form of cell degradation that is important in biological development, aging and numerous diseases.

Environment - 06.02.2023

Pesticide use is linked to garden bird decline
Sussex researchers find pesticide use is linked to garden bird decline Pesticide use by British gardeners is playing a significant role in the declining populations of our songbirds, as shown by the first study of its kind, published in -Science Of The Total Environment. The study, conducted by researchers at the University of Sussex , shows that gardeners who use pesticides can expect to see fewer birds.

Environment - 06.02.2023

How much microfibre do we emit with our washing?
The UK-s laundry releases microfibres weighing the equivalent of up to 1,500 double-decker buses every year, according to new research. The discovery was made by academics in Leeds' School of Design , who co-created a test to measure how different materials and washing conditions affect the amount of microfibres released into water.

Environment - Life Sciences - 03.02.2023

Rates of hatching failure in birds almost twice as high as previously estimated
New study from the University of Sheffield, IoZ, and UCL found more than one in six bird eggs fail to hatch Hatching failure increases as species decline, so the new research could be used to predict what species are most at risk of extinction Findings reveal that hatching failure is a much bigger problem for captive threatened species, with almost half (43 per cent) of their eggs failing to hatch The work provides evidence that conservation man

Environment - 30.01.2023

Sewage overspills result from lack of infrastructure investment
The recent uptick in sewage overspill events is due to infrastructure not keeping up with demand, according to Imperial College London research. The conclusion suggests other proposals for dealing with the problem - such as preventing blockages and separating rain and foul water - will not be enough to solve the issue of polluting sewage overspills.

Environment - 26.01.2023

Low emission energy systems can create water conflict without smart design
A new study published today in Nature Sustainability has found that using hydropower dams to generate low emission energy can cause problems for other economic sectors such as food production unless smart designs are employed. Access to sustainable electricity is required to deliver the UN's Sustainable Development Goals, but over 700 million people around the world still lack reliable electricity access.

Environment - Social Sciences - 26.01.2023

Small-scale octopus fisheries can provide sustainable source of vital nutrients for tropical coastal communities
Undernourished coastal communities in the tropics - where children's growth can be stunted by a lack of micronutrients - can get the vitamins and minerals they need from sustainable small-scale octopus fisheries, say researchers. Just a small serving of something very, very micronutrient rich, like octopus, can fill critical nutritional gaps.

Environment - Economics - 25.01.2023

Sustainable development key to stop extinction of carnivores
The best way to prevent the extinction of carnivores, such as lynx, bears and lions, is by encouraging a sustainable model of social and economic development, rather than focusing only on issues such as climate change, researchers say After studying 50 species of large carnivores over 50 years, it was discovered that social and economic factors, such as people's quality of life, were more closely associated with declines of these species, than p

Environment - 16.01.2023

Genetically modified rice could be key to tackling food shortages caused by climate change
Reducing the number of stomata that rice have makes them more tolerant to salt water, according to researchers at the University of Sheffield As sea levels rise, seawater is reaching places it previously wouldn-t, causing increasing damage to crops Sheffield scientists had already discovered that rice with fewer stomata are more drought resistant, needing up to 60 per cent less water - now, they have shown that the same plants are also able to g

Environment - 16.01.2023

Hydropower without the environmental impact
Scientists have analysed data from nearly three million rivers across the globe to identify where hydropower stations could be sited with limited environmental impacts. The analysis identified 124,761 potential locations that met the strict environmental criteria. Of those, 4,644 of the schemes could be run profitably and would be capable of generating an additional 5.

Environment - 10.01.2023

Hundreds of mammal species are being pushed toward extinction
A new study led by The University of Manchester has identified that mammal species are being pushed to their ecological limits in areas where they are unlikely to thrive. The researchers examined whether habitat loss caused by human activity leads to species being pushed into poor-quality environments.

Environment - 09.01.2023

Forests recovering from logging act as a source of carbon
Tropical forests recovering from logging are sources of carbon for years afterwards, contrary to previous assumptions, finds a new study. Tropical forests that are recovering from having trees removed were thought to be carbon absorbers, as the new trees grow quickly. A new study, led by Imperial College London researchers, turns this on its head, showing that the carbon released by soil and rotting wood outpaces the carbon absorbed by new growth.

Environment - 09.01.2023

Groundbreaking new analytical framework can provide economic benefits for Nile countries
New research led by The University of Manchester has developed unique river basin modelling software which, for the first time, combines reservoir management, economy-wide performance, and artificial intelligence techniques to design adaptive plans for various climate change situations. Published in Nature Climate Change , it reveals solutions that can provide greater economic benefits for the nations affected by the construction of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) - Ethiopia, Sudan and Egypt - when compared with a negotiated proposal.

Environment - 09.01.2023

Solar-powered system converts plastic and greenhouse gases into sustainable fuels
Researchers have developed a system that can transform plastic waste and greenhouse gases into sustainable fuels and other valuable products - using just the energy from the Sun. A solar-driven technology that could help to address plastic pollution and greenhouse gases at the same time could be a game-changer in the development of a circular economy Subhajit Bhattacharjee The researchers, from the University of Cambridge, developed the system, which can convert two waste streams into two chemical products at the same time - the first time this has been achieved in a solar-powered reactor.

Environment - Computer Science - 09.01.2023

AI to monitor changes to globally important glacier
Scientists have developed AI to track the development of crevasses - or fractures - on the Thwaites Glacier ice tongue in west Antarctica. Crevasses are indicators of stress building-up in the glacier. A team of researchers from the University of Leeds and University of Bristol have adapted an AI algorithm originally developed to identify cells in microscope images to spot crevasses forming in the ice from satellite images.

Earth Sciences - Environment - 05.01.2023

Antarctic glaciers formed 30 million years earlier than previously thought
A new study has revealed that glaciers formed in the highest mountains of Antarctica at least 60 million years ago, which is 30 million years earlier than previously thought, and almost as long ago as the geological era of the dinosaurs. The continent of Antarctica is the coldest on Earth. Its extensive ice sheets, which today occupy approximately 98% of the land surface, have shrouded the continent for the last 34 million years, when they expanded as global climate cooled dramatically at the Eocene-Oligocene boundary.

Environment - 01.01.2023

Insulation only provides short-term reduction in household gas consumption, study of UK housing suggests
First study to look at long-term effect of insulation finds fall in gas consumption per household was small, with all energy savings disappearing by the fourth year after a retrofit.

Environment - Chemistry - 29.12.2022

Old Christmas trees could be saved from landfill to make renewable fuels
Seven million Christmas trees end up in landfill in the UK each year, releasing an estimated 100,000 tonnes of harmful greenhouse gases into the atmosphere New research has found a more efficient, simplified process for using pine needles to produce formic acid, for use in hydrogen fuel cells, as a food preservative and in agricultural and industrial manufacturing Pine needles collected after Christmas and processed in this way could be used to

Environment - 22.12.2022

Heat pumps could reduce biogas carbon footprint by 36%
Heat pumps could reduce biogas carbon footprint by 36%, research suggests An alternative source of heat could significantly reduce the carbon footprint of a process which turns food waste into power, new research suggests. A University of Glasgow-led team of scientists have demonstrated that using air-source heat pumps to support anaerobic digestion could cut the carbon emitted during the production of biogas by more than a third.