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An analysis of plants at 68 sites around the world finds evidence that rates of photosynthesis have risen since the year 2000 Environment 28 February 2022 By Chen Ly Photosynthetic rates have risen in recent years Ryhor Bruyeu/Alamy Stock Photo Since the early 2000s, the growing level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere has led … Read more
Rising global temperatures bring dire threats, such as floods, heat-related injuries, water scarcity, and hunger, making up to 3.6 billion people – nearly half of the world’s population – highly vulnerable to climate change. That’s according to a major report, released Monday, from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change – a UN body that … Read more
Over the past 70 years, humanity has made great strides on a number of metrics: increasing life expectancy, cutting hunger and disease, boosting education levels. But a prime engine of these gains—the burning of fossil fuels—now threatens to slow down global development, according to a new report today from the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate … Read more
Nearly 200 nations approved a major UN climate change report detailing the accelerating impacts of global warming on Sunday, at the end of a sometimes fraught two-week meeting overshadowed by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) confirmed that debates had concluded over the report’s crucial “Summary for Policymakers”, a … Read more
A global summit on clearing up the oceans has produced big promises – is it just blah, blah, blah, or can we make the future of plastic fantastic, asks Graham Lawton Environment | Columnist 23 February 2022 By Graham Lawton Elena Valeeva/Shutterstock IN JUNE 2021, the government of the Seychelles decided it was time to … Read more
Each year, an estimated 11 million tons of plastic waste enter the ocean, equivalent to a cargo ship’s worth every day. The rising tide—in the oceans and beyond—is just a symptom of much wider problems: unsustainable product design, short-sighted consumption, and insufficient waste management, scientists say. To curb the flood, says Jenna Jambeck, an environmental … Read more
A dump truck’s worth of plastic enters our oceans every minute. Tiny bits of plastic are in many of the foods we eat, to the point we may be ingesting about a credit card’s weight of the material every week. As with climate change, we’re running out of time to solve the plastics problem. According … Read more
A global analysis of sea levels over the past 2,000 years has found a rapid rate of increase in line with the Industrial Revolution. By 1863, researchers found the rate of sea level rise had clearly surpassed background variability. Unsurprisingly, it’s around this time that the first hints of ocean warming and glacier melt from … Read more
Most of us have at least one moment in our lives when we wish we’d made a different choice. It’s easy to recognize what went wrong in hindsight, but key factors that could have made all the difference at the time are often easily missed as we experience them. Understanding those pivot points becomes … Read more
Depression has become a leading cause of disability worldwide with no signs of slowing down. By 2030, the World Health Organization predicts the disorder could be the main contributor to the global burden of disease. Even though we now have some effective treatments for depression, including medications and psychological interventions, medical care remains woeful … Read more