insert_link Environment Hopes fade for more survivors in Indian landslide rescue Indian rescue crews scoured mud-caked tea plantations and villages Thursday with little hope of finding more survivors from successive landslides that killed around 200 people. Days of torrential monsoon rains have battered the southern coastal state of Kerala, with blocked roads into the Wayanad district disaster area complicating relief efforts since Tuesday. The number of fatal floods and landslides in India has increased in recent years and […] today1 August, 2024
insert_link Health / Medical Ticks in South Africa are becoming resistant to pesticides – and may become uncontrollable By Luther van der Mescht, University of the Free State Ticks that suck the blood of South Africa’s cattle are developing resistance to the only pesticides that kill them and have become increasingly difficult to control. If not contained, the spread and resistance to pesticides of these small parasites will affect farmers’ incomes and could reduce the country’s meat and milk production. South Africa […] today31 July, 2024
insert_link Environment World records hottest day amid global heatwave While Namibians endure winter, the world experienced its hottest day, with parts of the Mediterranean facing extreme wildfire risks. Data from the EU's Copernicus Climate Change Service shows that Sunday saw the highest average temperature on Earth, exceeding last year's record. Global temperatures have hit or gone beyond a critical climate threshold for 12 months, highlighting the challenge of limiting global warming to below 1.5C above pre-industrial levels. Meanwhile, the […] today24 July, 2024
insert_link Business / Economics Global e-commerce skyrockets to $27 trillion Did you know that the energy required for Bitcoin data mining reached 121 terra watts last year? That’s more than the amount consumed by most small countries. Daniel Johnson from UN news has more. Meanwhile, new data from 43 countries, representing about three-quarters of global GDP, show business e-commerce sales grew nearly 60% from 2016 to 2022, to reach $27 trillion. today11 July, 2024
insert_link Environment We used 1,000 historical photos to reconstruct Antarctic glaciers before a dramatic collapse Looking up Crane Glacier, December 21 1968. PGC, UMN, CC BY By Ryan North, University of Wollongong and Tim Barrows, UNSW Sydney In March 2002, the Larsen B Ice Shelf collapsed catastrophically, breaking up an area about one-sixth the size of Tasmania. In a paper published today in Scientific Reports, we used nearly 1,000 film photographs of Antarctica from the 1960s to reconstruct exactly […] today9 July, 2024
insert_link Africa Study: A third of Africa’s great apes at risk from mining of transition metals Rising demand for the metals needed to power the global renewable energy transition potentially threatens more than a third of Africa’s great apes. Nearly 180,000 gorillas, chimpanzees and bonobos face potential fallout from current and future mining projects for these transition metals, particularly in West Africa. Direct and indirect potential impacts from mining on apes include habitat destruction, health threats from light pollution and disease transmission, […] today1 July, 2024
insert_link Sport Formula One is moving towards hybrid engines and renewable fuel. Major environmental progress or just ‘greenwashing’? By Yasir Arafat, Edith Cowan University; Muhammad Rizwan Azhar, Edith Cowan University, and Waqas Uzair, Edith Cowan University For the millions of fans who tune into every race, Formula One (F1) is more than just a sport – it’s the apex of aerodynamics, skill and strategy. Behind the scenes, a quieter but more crucial race against carbon emissions is unfolding. Given the sport’s […] today26 June, 2024
insert_link Environment Floating solar panels could provide much of Africa’s energy – new research By Iestyn Woolway, Bangor University and Alona Armstrong, Lancaster University New research has found that several countries could meet all their energy needs from solar panel systems floating on lakes. Climate, water and energy environmental scientists R. Iestyn Woolway and Alona Armstrong analysed how much energy could be produced by floating solar panels on just 10% of the water surface of one million bodies of […] today19 June, 2024
insert_link Environment Indian cities have become heat traps A senior government official says Indian cities have become "heat traps" because of their rapid growth, which is leading to increased carbon emissions and destroying water bodies. This comes as heatwaves in India have killed dozens of people this summer. Rebecca Bundhun reports. today18 June, 2024