Category: Sustainability

What is direct heating and how does it impact our future? With some simple calculations, two scientists estimate that Earth will be unlivable by 2370 due to direct heating, which, despite how it sounds, is not related to climate change.

Ryn Orr

You hear people panicking about climate change. But what about direct heating? Even if there was no climate change, our energy use still matters depending on how many people live on the planet.

Is humanity ready to live in space? To live in space, we will need inter-generational cooperation to pull it off, and perhaps a sense of altruism for the future. We may be up to the technical challenge, but what about the sociopolitical challenges?

Andrew Bieler

This article explores incentives for projects spanning millennia, and determines which of those incentives would provide the most successful approach.

Fungi may be able to help clean up polluted water A few species of fungi were tested for their ability to clean up wastewaters contaminated with selenium. With additional nutrients added, it mostly worked. The fungi Alternaria showed great potential for cleaning up water polluted with selenite.

Mary Sabuda

Human activities such as coal mining and processing can cause high levels of selenium contamination, which can be harmful to human health. Could common soil fungi be the answer to this problem? #fungi #selenium #wastewater #contamination Study by: @mary_sabuda @biominerals @crsoil

A new kind of battery that removes carbon dioxide from the air Engineers at MIT invented a device that uses something called "electro-swing absorption" to take carbon dioxide from the air and allow it to be stored or used for other industries.

Adam Suttle

Nature has been able to filter out CO2 from our air for millions of years. So how might a battery prove to be our own artificial tree? #sustainability #environment #carbonemissions

Growing plants on the surface of the Moon and Mars Researchers tested the growth of 10 different common food crops in simulated regolith, a rocky substance lacking organic material found on the surface of Mars and the Moon.

Jéssica Carneiro Oliveira

The reality of being able to live and settle on Martian or lunar bases can seem like it is getting close. To do this, we need to be able to grow our own food there. This is a category of READ MORE

Deep-sea mining impacts on diverse ocean ecosystems Microorganisms in the dark depths of the ocean turn minerals into food that supports unique ecosystems. When we mine those minerals, the microorganisms suffer, and we could lose valuable resources.

Andrea Corpolongo

Sunlight does not reach the deepest parts of the ocean, but life still thrives in the darkness. Below depths of 200 meters, where sunlight cannot reach, some organisms eat organic material that falls from the sunlit zone. For these organisms, READ MORE

How would we establish a society on Mars? Humans are not built for Mars. Or rather, Mars isn't built for us. Understanding the sacrifices such a massive undertaking needs is important to its success.

Tammy Witzens

We aren’t that far off from Mars colonies. But humans are not built for Mars. Or rather, Mars isn’t built for us, yet. Understanding the sacrifices such a massive undertaking needs is important to its success.

A new model for predicting human population growth Scientists at University of Washington have attempted to improve upon previous population models developed by the United Nations and the Austrian Wittgenstein Centre by using different calculation techniques for two key factors - fertility and migration.

Gina Misra

Scientists at University of Washington have attempted to improve upon previous population models developed by the United Nations and the Austrian Wittgenstein Centre by using different calculation techniques for two key factors – fertility and migration.

Contaminants in groundwater can take over 20 years to break down But scientists have a method for removing the contaminants more quickly, using a underground barrier.

Kristen Amodeo

Have you ever driven past an old factory building and wondered what ever happened to the harsh chemicals that were used there? If you guessed that a lot of the chemicals ended up in the environment, you would be right. READ MORE

Bacteria with nanowires can electrocute metals instead of breathe Recycling Expensive and Toxic Metals with Bacteria

Hunter Dulay

All life on Earth has to respire. For us this means inhaling oxygen to fuel our metabolism and exhaling waste gases like carbon dioxide. When we do this, we move the energy  from the food we eat to the oxygen READ MORE