Deepfakes: can the AI be harnessed for something good?
While audiences and users need to be educated on the negative implications of deepfakes, the technology can also have positive impacts
Vampireweed threatens rice production in Africa. What do we know about it?
Associated annual economic losses amount to $82 million, affecting more than 140,000 rural households
The Anthropocene is dead. Long live the Anthropocene!
As poor countries to face disproportionately high impacts of climate change, it would be grossly unfair to blame all of humanity for the Anthropocene
South Africa’s crucial water supplies from Lesotho: What the six-month shutdown means for industry, farming, residents
If people start extracting groundwater, this could put additional strain on already stressed ecosystems
Nearly 180,000 of Africa’s great apes face threats due to mining: Study
About 20% of mining areas intersect with critical habitats
Carbon dioxide in 2023 comparable to 4.3 billion years ago as global greenhouse gas levels hit all-time high: NOAA
This was the twelfth consecutive year that carbon dioxide levels rose by more than 2 parts per million
What causes earthquakes in Northeast US, like the magnitude 4.8 that shook New Jersey? A geoscientist explains
April 5, 2024 saw one of the strongest earthquakes on record in New Jersey
The last over 4-minute-long ‘total solar eclipse’ in the US was used by Tecumseh to unite indigenous Americans
Tecumseh’s brother, Tenskwatawa, an influential shaman, predicted an eclipse on June 16, 1806; it happened, and indigenous people united …
Doomsday urgent
Everyone should be terrified of global warming, Jeff Goodell writes in his book, The Heat Will Kill You First
Controversial deep sea mining negotiations showed progress, but many disagreements among member states remain
States’ proposals not included in consolidated text, while mining contractors’ proposals accepted; covered items not cleared
Euthanasia for mental disorders: In a warming world, will eco-anxiety lead to more such appeals?
In most assisted dying appeals, people say it is the psychological suffering, rather than physical pain, that motivated them
Dallaire & Rusesabagina: 2 men who witnessed the Rwandan Genocide first-hand, reflect on incidents 3 decades ago
Paul Rusesabagina, who inspired ‘Hotel Rwanda’, is today a critic of Paul Kagame; Romeo Dallaire is now a global activist, speaker, …
Starvation as geopolitical tool has travelled through time. Literature shows oppressors knew what they were doing
Early modern English literature is replete with tales of famine distress & even solutions, but doesn’t reflect on the British stance on …
Lonely brains reach for comfort food: Study links loneliness and cravings in women
Paper finds social bonds key to eating unhealthy foods and impact cravings, mental wellbeing and overall quality of life
The Industrial Revolution began in Stuart Britain in the 1600s, a century before the traditional date: University of Cambridge
Britain’s service sector has been growing almost continuously for three hundred years, according to research
During the 2024 eclipse, biologists like us want to find out how birds will respond to darkness in the middle of the day
The total solar eclipse on April 8, 2024 is a natural experiment that can help understand how animals respond to an unusual sudden change in …
Global life expectancy increased by 6.2 years in the past three decades: Lancet study
COVID-19, however, was a dampener in many countries
Bird flu’s growing threat? After human case from infected cow in Texas, over 500 penguins found dead in Antarctica
The human patient had a mutation, PB2 E627K, which is linked to the virus adapting to mammalian hosts
Climate engineering carries serious national security risks — countries facing extreme heat may try it anyway, and the world needs to be prepared
International decisions on climate engineering are likely coming soon
‘Blood Lions’ no more as South Africa to stop captive breeding of big cats for trophy hunting, traditional medicine
South African Environment Minister Barbara Creecy announces decision; owners of captive farms will have two years to close before ban comes into …
Criollo: This breed of cattle developed in the New World can withstand climate change, say Irish scientists
Descended from Iberian cattle brought by Spanish colonists to the Americas, the Criollo has a myriad of climate-adaptive traits
Microplastics in Nigeria’s Osun River: New study flags alarmingly high levels
A recent study found as many as 22,079 pieces of microplastic in just a litre of water
Study highlights need for tourism industry to curb emissions: Yellowstone case shows travel’s big footprint
The park generates over 1.03 megatonnes of CO2 annually, travel to and from the park contributes to 90% of it
Africa now emits as much carbon as it stores: Landmark study
Anthropogenic sources increased to neutralise sequestration gains; here's what can be done to reverse the trend
Taiwan earthquake: An earthquake scientist on what we know so far and what may happen next
Landslides also occurred along the mountainous central east coast