Huge 7.4 Magnitude Quake Just Hit Near Fukushima Days After Disaster Anniversary

Authorities lifted a tsunami advisory and electricity was restored after a powerful 7.4-magnitude quake jolted northeastern Japan on Wednesday night in waters near the site of the Fukushima nuclear disaster.   At least one person died in the coastal city of Soma and dozens more were injured in the quake, local news agency Kyodo reported, … Read more

In The Year 2080, Your City Will Feel Like It’s 500 Miles Away

When you’re older, your home town will feel different. That’s true for everybody. But for people living today, the changes will be impossible to ignore. We usually measure climate change in terms of rising temperatures. But scientists say there’s another way of thinking about it: spatial displacement.   In a study from 2019, researchers found … Read more

AI Helps Small City Pull Toxic Lead Water Service Lines from the Ground Faster

Benton Harbor, Mich.—This is a city in crisis. “You can’t drink the water. You can’t brush your teeth with the water. You can’t cook with the water…. You can’t make baby formula with the water,” says Reverend Edward Pinkney, president of the Benton Harbor Community Water Council. The community’s water is not safe to drink … Read more

British rocket startup’s staff helping defend Dnipro, Ukraine’s space city

Ukrainian employees of the U.K.-headquartered rocket company Skyrora are helping to defend the space city of Dnipro as it braces for air strikes, while the company’s Ukraine-born CEO admits that “there is nothing we can realistically do for them right now.” Volodymyr Levykyn, a Ukraine-born tech entrepreneur, spoke to Space.com on Wednesday (March 2), the … Read more

Mopping can create air pollution that rivals city streets | Science

Cleanliness may be next to godliness, but a new study suggests it could have an unexpected downside: A few minutes of mopping indoors with a fresh-scented cleaning product can generate as many airborne particles as vehicles on a busy city street. The finding suggests custodians and professional cleaners may be at risk of health effects … Read more

Diabetes and obesity: Pedestrian-friendly cities have lower rates

A review of 170 studies finds consistent evidence that people are less likely to be obese or have diabetes if they live in cities where walking and cycling is safe and convenient Health 24 February 2022 By Matthew Sparkes Pedestrians in Montpellier, France Manfred Gottschalk/Getty Images Diabetes and obesity rates can be reduced by transforming … Read more

Ancient Buddhist Temple Unearthed in Pakistan Is One of The Oldest Ever Discovered

An ancient temple dating from the early centuries of Buddhism has been unearthed in the Swat Valley in northern Pakistan – part of the ancient Gandhara region that was conquered by Alexander the Great and gave rise to a mixing of Buddhist belief and Greek art.   Archaeologists think that the temple dates from about the middle … Read more

Invisible Air Pollution in The Country May Be Just as Toxic as The Smog of The City

It’s easy to see air pollution when it settles as smog over a city. Yet even in rural areas, where the air looks clearer, researchers have found unhealthy particles floating in the atmosphere.   That sweet country air may not be as invigorating as we once thought. Fine particulate matter less than 2.5 micrometers in … Read more

Game theory: Model shows how people crowd on trains at rush hour

Using a combination of game theory and the physics of complex systems, it’s possible to model the behaviour of a rush hour commuter crowd Physics 31 January 2022 By Alex Wilkins Commuters on a platform in Madrid Europa Press via Getty Images A game theory-inspired model shows how the areas around train doors become crowded … Read more

The Lost City of Cahokia Was Mysteriously Abandoned, And We Still Don’t Know Why

For a couple of hundred years, Cahokia was the place to be in what is now the US state of Illinois. The bustling, vibrant city was at one time home to some 15,000 people, but by the end of the 14th century it was deserted – and researchers still aren’t sure why.   A study … Read more