Thwaites Glacier: Biggest ever Antarctic field campaign

Thwaites

The Thwaites Glacier in Antarctica is not simply some far away place of scientific interest, but instead has become the focus of the biggest ever Antarctic field campaign. It has become apparent that what is happening there right now has the potential to greatly impact us … soon. Because of the risk, the biggest ever joint UK-US … Read more

Analysis of 2.7 billion tweets confirms Echo Chambers on Twitter

echo chamber

First, just for completeness, here is a quick definition. The term “Echo Chamber” is a reference to the idea that people are increasingly being only exposed to the ideas that they agree with, and don’t hear the arguments of those with whom they do not agree. The net effect is that we become more polarised. … Read more

New Study Reveals Ancient Humans Hunted Big Mammals To Extinction

Extinction

Mammal extinction is not simply something from the dim and distant past. In 1680 Sir Ewen Cameron killed the last Scottish Wolf in Killiecrankie (Perthshire). In 1786, the last wolf was killed in Ireland. So what other mammals once existed in the British Isles and when did they go extinct? Here is a brief list (culled from here) … Read more

Scott Pruitt: EPA to value profits over lives

scott Pruitt

If you have ever wondered what the mission of the Environmental Protection Agency actually is, then perhaps I should point out that the name is an ever so subtle hint. Permit me to decrypt it for you. The first word clearly points to it being something to do with to the environment and then the … Read more

Study: #GreatBarrierReef at ‘unprecedented’ risk of collapse after major bleaching event

great barrier reef bleaching

I’ve previously written about the 2016 bleaching event at the great barrier reef back in 2016. The update is that a new paper has just been published in Nature that contains a scientific analysis of what happened. Entitled “Global warming transforms coral reef assemblages“, it explains … Our study bridges the gap between the theory … Read more

Seas are rising too fast to save much of the Mississippi River Delta

Mississippi

In addition to the news about the slowing down of the Ocean Circulation system we also have news that rising seas are causing problems in the Mississippi River Delta. There is a new study that reveals the scope of the problem. Entitled “Anatomy of Mississippi Delta growth and its implications for coastal restoration” and published within … Read more