COVID may have pushed a leading seasonal flu strain to extinction
No one has confirmed a case of influenza B/Yamagata since April 2020. Enlarge / A bottle of influenza vaccine at a CVS pharmacy and MinuteClinic on September 10, 2021, in Miami. (credit: Getty | Joe Raedle) The pandemic coron.....»»
A Bird Flu Vaccine Might Come Too Late to Save Us from H5N1
If the influenza virus infecting cattle workers starts a pandemic, help in the form of a vaccine is months away.....»»
Fastest Known Planetary System May Have Been Pushed by Our Galaxy’s Supermassive Black Hole
This blazingly-fast star is shooting through the Milky Way with a planet in tow.....»»
Where has all the rain gone? Bone-dry October strikes much of US
A bone-dry October is pushing nearly half of the United States into a flash drought, leading to fires in the Midwest and hindering shipping on the Mississippi River......»»
Newly discovered cyanobacteria could help sequester carbon from oceans and factories
An international coalition of researchers from the United States and Italy has discovered a novel strain of cyanobacteria, or algae, isolated from volcanic ocean vents that is especially adept at growing rapidly in the presence of CO2 and readily si.....»»
Pirelli’s new ‘Cyber Tyre’ could be the next traction control
Italian tire manufacturer Pirelli is leading the charge toward smart tires with its new Cyber Tyre. What makes this piece of rubber so special? We'll tell you......»»
Long COVID Is Harming Too Many Kids
Pediatric long COVID is more common than many thought, and we keep letting kids be reinfected with new variants.....»»
An Enormous Meteorite, Bird Flu in Washington State and a Troubling Scurvy Case Study
We cover a 3.26-billion-year-old meteorite impact, the spread of bird flu and a scurvy case study that serves as a cautionary tale in this week’s news roundup......»»
COVID lessons learned? UN summit mulls plan for healthy planet, and humans
The COVID-19 and Ebola outbreaks brought into stark relief the harms that can come to humans if we interfere too much with nature, placing ourselves in contact with animals carrying unknown pathogens......»»
AI model predicts diarrheal disease outbreaks related to climate change
Climate change-related extreme weather, such as massive flooding and prolonged drought, often results in dangerous outbreaks of diarrheal diseases particularly in less developed countries, where diarrheal disease is the third leading cause of death a.....»»
An analysis of Storm Boris and European flooding during September 2024
Between Friday, 13 and Monday, 16 September 2024, a low-pressure system named Boris brought record-breaking rainfall to central Europe, leading to severe flooding in parts of Austria, Czechia, Slovakia, Poland, Romania and Hungary. The flooding cause.....»»
Bird flu hit a dead end in Missouri, but it’s running rampant in California
No new cases in Missouri, but plenty in California and Washington. As H5N1 bird flu continues to spread wildly among California dairy herds and farmworkers, federal health officia.....»»
Microbes feed on iron: New study reveals how they do it
Pipelines, sprinklers, and other infrastructure in oxygen-free environments are vulnerable to microbially induced corrosion (MIC)—a process where microorganisms degrade iron-based structures, potentially leading to costly damages or even collapses......»»
Picky protection rules hamper Swiss mushrooming craze
After suffocating COVID-19 restrictions, many embraced the call of the wild and the joys of foraging, but tightening Swiss biodiversity protection measures are infuriating growing hordes of mushroom-picking enthusiasts......»»
Reducing moose numbers could help protect Canadian caribou populations from wolf predation
Woodland caribou populations in Canada are declining because of habitat changes that benefit common prey species of wolves (such as moose and deer), leading to increasing numbers of wolves that kill caribou. To protect caribou, wildlife managers have.....»»
Radiohead’s Thom Yorke among thousands of artists who issue AI protest
Leading artists have put their name to a statement calling for a halt to the unlicensed use of creative works to train generative-AI tools......»»
Radiohead’s Thom Yorke among thousands of artists to issue AI protest
Leading artists have put their name to a statement calling for a halt to the unlicensed use of creative works to train generative-AI tools......»»
De-extinction company provides a progress report on thylacine efforts
Stem cell editing, complete genome, and cane toad resistance mark necessary steps. Colossal, the company founded to try to restore the mammoth to the Arctic tundra, has also deci.....»»
Climate change to alter seasonal outdoor activity patterns in US
It can be hard to connect a certain amount of average global warming with one's everyday experience, so researchers at MIT have devised a different approach to quantifying the direct impact of climate change......»»
Right whale population grows 4% but extinction remains a threat
One of the rarest species of whale in the world has increased slightly in population, encouraging conservationists to call on the federal government and the shipping and fishing industries to do more to bring the giant animals back from the brink of.....»»
Nitrogen-fixing plant diversity declines with over-fertilization, study finds
Anthropogenic nitrogen deposition and climate change can reduce the competitive advantage of nitrogen-fixing plants, leading to reduced diversity of these plants in a community. Surprisingly, changes in temperature and aridity do not contribute to th.....»»