Droughts in the sixth century paved the way for Islam
Extreme dry conditions contributed to the decline of the ancient South Arabian kingdom of Himyar. Researchers from the University of Basel have reported these findings in the journal Science. Combined with political unrest and war, the droughts left.....»»
Detecting climate change using aerosols
Climate change is one of the most significant environmental challenges of present times, leading to extreme weather events, including droughts, forest fires, and floods. The primary driver of climate change is the release of greenhouse gases into the.....»»
Beach Sand Replenishment Projects Are Expensive, Ineffective and Never-Ending
The U.S. has been pumping sand onto eroding beaches for nearly a century. As climate change worsens, there’s no end in sight.....»»
Pixels to pasture: How AI can help farmers predict their pasture
Researchers from the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT have paved the way for farmers (from small-holders to big ranchers) information about the quantity and quality of their grazing pastures, right there on their smartphone......»»
Tundra vegetation to grow taller, greener through 2100, study finds
Warming global climate is changing the vegetation structure of forests in the far north. It's a trend that will continue at least through the end of this century, according to NASA researchers. The change in forest structure could absorb more of the.....»»
Engineers develop general, high-speed technology to model, understand catalytic reactions
Researchers have been studying the industrial production of ammonia for a century. But they've struggled to find ways to improve the low-yield, low-efficiency process......»»
How solar panels went from ’50s satellites to your backyard
From Einstein's theories of light to Bell Lab's revelations about doping silicon, solar power has been inching toward its current craze for more than a century. Here's how we got here......»»
New study reviews progress in ternary hydrogen-rich superconductors
Room-temperature superconductivity has been a century-long-held dream of scientists. Hydrogen-rich compounds at high pressures are predicted to be potential high-temperature and even room-temperature superconductors and have become one of the superco.....»»
How Kepler’s 400-year-old sunspot sketches helped solve a modern mystery
A sharp decline in sunspot activity in the 17th century has long puzzled astronomers. Enlarge / A naked-eye sunspot group on May 11, 2024. There are typically 40,000 to 50,000 sunspots observed in ~11-year solar cycles. (credit:.....»»
Quantum information theorists shed light on entanglement, one of the spooky mysteries of quantum mechanics
The year 2025 marks the 100th anniversary of the birth of quantum mechanics. In the century since the field's inception, scientists and engineers have used quantum mechanics to create technologies such as lasers, MRI scanners and computer chips......»»
New reconstruction shows low Artic sea ice cover in mid-20th century
An international research team presented a new reconstruction of past Arctic sea ice that revealed low levels of sea ice coverage in the 1940s......»»
New research shows how global warming is messing with our rainfall
The past century of human-induced warming has increased rainfall variability over 75% of the Earth's land area—particularly over Australia, Europe and eastern North America, new research shows......»»
Ghosts of species past: Shedding new light on the demise of NZ"s moa can help other flightless birds
New Zealand was once home to giant flightless birds called moa. They had grown accustomed to life without predators. So the arrival of humans in the mid-13th century presented a massive—and ultimately insurmountable—challenge to their existence......»»
An engineer has built a classic Mac Plus from modern parts
Apple sold the Mac Plus from 1986 to 1990 — but now this early classic Mac is back with most of the parts made this century, thanks to a very dedicated fan.That's actually a Mac Classic but the screen is showing the output from the clone Mac PlusUs.....»»
Increasingly erratic rainfall patterns over the past century are likely due to human-induced climate change, study shows
Rainfall fluctuates more vigorously. Why? Scientists say it's because of us. Many people around the world have noticed that rainfall is becoming increasingly erratic. Intense downpours are occurring more frequently, while dry periods seem to last lon.....»»
Lethal bird flu could decimate Oceania"s birds—from vigilance to vaccines, here"s what Australia is doing to prepare
Avian influenza viruses have infected the world's birds for millennia. We first became aware of them in the 19th century, when mass deaths of poultry triggered interest in what was then called "fowl plague.".....»»
Tijuana River sewage flows last year broke all records since 2000: It"s on track to do it again
The amount of contaminated water laced with raw sewage that is flowing across the U.S.-Mexico border into San Diego County exceeded 44 billion gallons in 2023, the most on record in the last quarter-century......»»
Researchers zero in on the underlying mechanism that causes alloys to crack when exposed to hydrogen-rich environments
When deciding what material to use for infrastructure projects, metals are often selected for their durability. However, if placed in a hydrogen-rich environment, like water, metals can become brittle and fail. Since the mid-19th century, this phenom.....»»
Sustainable irrigation critical to recovery of Ukrainian farms, a major global exporter of grain and oilseeds
By the middle of the century, three-quarters of Ukrainian croplands—a critical source of the world's grain and oilseeds—will experience water shortages due to the combination of climate change and infrastructural damage caused by the Russian inva.....»»
Archivist explores Troy"s invisible workers
While poring over nearly century-old photos documenting the University of Cincinnati's historic excavation at Troy, archivist Jeff Kramer was struck by just how many people worked behind the scenes for years to contribute to its success......»»
New hope for critically endangered Siamese crocodile
Sixty Siamese crocodiles, from five separate nests, have successfully hatched in Cambodia's Cardamom National Park—the largest record of this species breeding in the wild this century and a massive boost for the survival prospects of this criticall.....»»