CORVALLIS, Oregon, April 19, 2010 (ENS) - A tiny Asian fly that is new to North America is threatening much of the West Coast fruit industry and has been detected in Florida too, warn state and federal agricultural experts.
The spotted wing drosophila, Drosophila suzukii, an invasive vinegar fly native to southeast Asia, first appeared on fruit crops from California to British Columbia last fall.
JOHANNESBURG, South Africa, April 8, 2010 (ENS) - A new species of early man that dates back almost two million years has been discovered in the Cradle of Humankind World Heritage Site, about 170 miles northeast of Johannesburg.
A team led by Professor Lee Berger, a palaeoanthropologist from the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg found two well-preserved skeletons of a human ancestor species that has never before been seen. Berger and his team described the new hominid and named it Australopithecus sediba.
Nina Fedoroff, the chief scientist of Secretary of State Clinton, has come forward with new research advocating the expansion of genetically modified organisms in farming.
In recent years, ocean acidification has become a talking point for climate scientists as an additional symptom of increased atmospheric CO2. It was believed that carbon dioxide diffused in ocean water would slightly acidify it, wreaking havoc on coral, crustaceans, and mollusks that require a specific chemistry to grow their shells and skeletons. Scientists believed that these populations and habitats would be devastated, and turn the ocean food chain upside-down.
Research suggests global warming will trigger instant ice age
Climate scientists recently released a new report which claims that global warming could trigger an ice age that would grip the planet in a matter of months, not years. According to the biogeochemists and climate scientists involved, melting ice from a previous warming period slowed or stifled ocean currents. Geological evidence that points to a deluge of cool freshwater suggests that a melting ice sheet in North America effectively shut down ocean convection and insulated the polar ice caps from the equator's warm waters.
WASHINGTON, DC, November 23, 2009 (ENS) - Concerns about toxics discharged from an unlined coal ash waste dump in suburban Washington, DC have prompted four environmental groups to give formal notice that they intend to sue Mirant MD Ash Management, LLC and Mirant Mid-Atlantic, LLC Corporation of Atlanta, Georgia for Clean Water Act violations in Maryland.
David McConville on perspective, ecosystems, and climate change as a symptom
David McConville of Elumenati shared insights with us at West Coast Green, 2009 about addressing human problems from a different level. David's work, which largely revolves around using immersive displays to explain complex concepts from molecular biology to galactic ecosystems, has given him insight into how perspective plays into the decisions we make as a species.
UN Finishes New Climate Study, Finds Severe Global Warming Inevitable
UN scientists released their latest findings on climate change in an update to the 2007 research that established human-caused climate change as the scientific consensus. The new information suggests that severe climate change will still occur even if developed nations adopt aggressive carbon emission cuts.
The European Union failed to pass a ban on the commercial fishing of Bluefin Tuna, a critically endangered species that is commercially relevant to sushi. Although Japan has created a stock of these fish in the Pacific Ocean for their own commercial use, European fishermen have depleted the natural populations in the Mediterranean Sea, Black Sea, and Atlantic Ocean to Endangered or Critically Endangered levels. The EU sought to ban the commercial fishing of Bluefin Tuna, but was blocked by Cyprus, France, Italy, Malta, Portugal, and Spain.
EPA Proposal to Rexamine Smog and Air Quality Standards
The EPA announced it would reexamine the 2008 smog standards to determine whether it there was data suggesting current smog standards were sufficient to meet human health standards. According to the release, smog is a contributor to asthma and other respiratory conditions. Lisa P. Jackson, the EPA Administrator said regarding the potential new regs, "Smog in the air we breathe can cause difficulty breathing and aggravate asthma, especially in children...
