Hacker News with Generative AI: Environmental Science

Where does air pollution come from? (ourworldindata.org)
Millions of people die prematurely from air pollution every year. This problem has existed since humans started burning materials for fuel — first wood and biomass, then fossil fuels.

Air Pollution, Environmental Science, Public Health

227 points by kamaraju 21 hours ago | 135 comments

Plastic-like materials that dissolve in the sea (riken.jp)
Microplastics—small fragments of plastics less than 5mm across—now infiltrate every corner of our planet, from remote regions of the deep ocean and the Arctic, to the very air we breathe.

Environmental Science, Microplastics, Pollution, Materials Science

5 points by geox 5 days ago | 0 comments

Microbes can capture carbon and degrade plastic – why aren't we using them more? (nature.com)
Microorganisms have shaped Earth for almost four billion years.

Microbiology, Environmental Science, Sustainability, Bioremediation, Pollution

8 points by GavCo 9 days ago | 2 comments

Carbon Dioxide Levels Highest in 800,000 Years (e360.yale.edu)
Temperatures and carbon dioxide levels hit new highs last year, according to a U.N. report detailing the dire state of the global climate.

Climate Change, Environmental Science, Global Warming

14 points by belter 10 days ago | 1 comments

Scientists break down plastic using a simple, inexpensive catalyst and air (phys.org)
Harnessing moisture from air, Northwestern University chemists have developed a simple new method for breaking down plastic waste.

Chemistry, Sustainability, Environmental Science, Plastic Waste

186 points by PaulHoule 12 days ago | 109 comments

Microplastics boost antibiotic resistance in E. coli, lab study suggests (thenewlede.org)
Co-mingling of tiny pieces of plastic with certain harmful bacteria can make the bacteria harder to fight with several common antibiotics, according to a new study that adds to global concerns about antibiotic resistance.

Science, Antibiotic Resistance, Environmental Science, Microbiology

7 points by PaulHoule 14 days ago | 0 comments

Methane Abatement Costs in the Oil and Gas Industry: Survey and Synthesis (ssrn.com)
There is growing recognition of the relative importance of anthropogenic emissions of methane as a contributor to global climate change.

Methane, Climate Change, Environmental Science, Economics

4 points by jonwachob91 16 days ago | 0 comments

Extracting DNA from the air – DNA evidence of human occupancy in indoor premises (nature.com)
Humans constantly shed deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) into the surrounding environment. This DNA may either remain suspended in the air or it settles onto surfaces as indoor dust. In this study, we explored the potential use of human DNA recovered from air and dust to investigate crimes where there are no visible traces available—for example, from a recently vacated drugs factory where multiple workers had been present.

Forensic Science, DNA, Environmental Science

248 points by punnerud 18 days ago | 93 comments

Butterfly population in US shrinking by 22% over last 20 years, study shows (theguardian.com)
Butterflies may be among the most beloved of all creatures, routinely deified in art and verse, but they are in alarming decline in the United States with populations plummeting by a fifth in just the past two decades, according to the most comprehensive study yet of their fortunes.

Environmental Science, Wildlife, Entomology, Climate Change, Conservation

6 points by PaulHoule 20 days ago | 0 comments

Hyperion (Tree) (wikipedia.org)
Hyperion is a coast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) in California that is the world's tallest known living tree, measured at 116.07 metres (380.8 ft) tall in 2019.[1][3]

Trees, Nature, California, Environmental Science, World Records

28 points by carabiner 20 days ago | 17 comments

Czech scientists study trees' ability to absorb traffic noise (radio.cz)
Trees do not only improve air quality by removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. They can also significantly reduce noise levels by absorbing and refracting sound waves. Scientists from Brno are currently investigating how trees could be used as sound barriers against traffic noise.

Environmental Science, Noise Pollution, Urban Planning, Acoustics

27 points by mooreds 20 days ago | 1 comments

Microplastics Are Messing with Photosynthesis in Plants (scientificamerican.com)
Microplastics are now a ubiquitous part of our daily physical reality.

Environmental Science, Pollution, Plants, Microplastics

5 points by Brajeshwar 22 days ago | 0 comments

Greenhouse gases reduce the satellite carrying capacity of low Earth orbit (nature.com)
Anthropogenic contributions of greenhouse gases in Earth’s atmosphere have been observed to cause cooling and contraction in the thermosphere, which is projected to continue for many decades.

Climate Change, Space Exploration, Science, Environmental Science

22 points by croes 23 days ago | 0 comments

Microplastics Are Messing with Photosynthesis in Plants (scientificamerican.com)
Microplastics are now a ubiquitous part of our daily physical reality.

Science, Environmental Science, Pollution, Biology, Plants

17 points by twiddling 23 days ago | 3 comments

300 years of sclerosponge thermometry shows global warming has exceeded 1.5 °C (nature.com)
Anthropogenic emissions drive global-scale warming yet the temperature increase relative to pre-industrial levels is uncertain.

Climate Change, Science, Global Warming, Research, Environmental Science

8 points by CharlesW 24 days ago | 0 comments

Bird study finds larger volumes of toxic PFAS chemicals than previously reported (phys.org)
Researchers studying birds and the food they eat are now finding much larger volumes of the toxic PFAS chemicals than before.

Environmental Science, Chemistry, Wildlife, Pollution, PFAS

6 points by PaulHoule 28 days ago | 0 comments

Study: The ozone hole is healing, thanks to global reduction of CFCs (news.mit.edu)
A new MIT-led study confirms that the Antarctic ozone layer is healing, as a direct result of global efforts to reduce ozone-depleting substances.

Environmental Science, Climate Change, Ozone Layer, Global Policy

136 points by gnabgib 28 days ago | 52 comments

Departing Words from a Terminated US Federal Worker (atmos.earth)
Five months ago, I packed my bags, loaded my truck, and trekked nearly 4,000 miles across the country from North Carolina to Juneau, Alaska. The move cost me thousands of dollars and meant leaving behind the life I had built on the East Coast—but I knew it would be worth it. After 18 years in wildlife biology, I finally landed my dream job as a biologist with the National Park Service.

Federal Government, Career Change, Relocation, Environmental Science

12 points by senortumnus 35 days ago | 1 comments

A Black Fungus Might Be Healing Chernobyl by Drinking Radiation (makerfairerome.eu)
In the ruins of Chernobyl, scientists have discovered a black fungus feeding on deadly gamma radiation, slowly growing toward the reactor core

Chernobyl, Nuclear Energy, Biology, Science, Environmental Science

14 points by thunderbong 39 days ago | 10 comments

Fish-delousing underwater laser (2018) [video] (youtube.com)

Robotics, Aquaculture, Technology, Environmental Science

43 points by walterbell 39 days ago | 33 comments

Scented products cause indoor air pollution on par with car exhaust (newatlas.com)
Using scented products indoors changes the chemistry of the air, producing as much air pollution as car exhaust does outside, according to a new study.

Environmental Science, Health, Pollution, Chemistry

383 points by clumsysmurf 42 days ago | 197 comments

Penguins Help to Map Antarctica's Growing Mercury Threat (scientificamerican.com)
When Philip Sontag first visited Antarctica as a Ph.D. student, he brought back an unusual souvenir: a huge bag of penguin feathers.

Antarctica, Environmental Science, Mercury Pollution, Wildlife

10 points by Brajeshwar 42 days ago | 1 comments

Water chlorination levels in US and EU likely increase cancer risk (theguardian.com)
Chlorinating drinking water at levels common in the United States and European Union probably increases the risk of several cancers, a new analysis of recent research from across the globe finds.

Health, Cancer, Water Treatment, Public Health, Environmental Science

3 points by kawera 44 days ago | 1 comments

Dust from car brakes more harmful than exhaust, study finds (e360.yale.edu)
In cars, pollution doesn’t come from exhaust alone. It also comes from wear and tear on roads, tires, and brakes. According to new research, tiny bits of dust cast off by brake pads may inflict more harm than car exhaust.

Environmental Science, Transportation, Health, Pollution

456 points by Brajeshwar 46 days ago | 455 comments

Ocean temperatures are rising much faster than scientists expected (popularmechanics.com)
Another scientific study is raising alarms about the rate at which the world’s oceans are warming.

Climate Change, Ocean Warming, Science, Environmental Science

50 points by GeoAtreides 52 days ago | 1 comments

Melamine sponges shed microplastics when scrubbed (acs.org)
Melamine cleaning sponges might easily erase stains and scuffs, but they also release microplastics into the environment as they wear away.

Microplastics, Environmental Science, Cleaning Products

9 points by buccal 53 days ago | 1 comments

Accumulation of Microplastics in Human Brain Tissue Rising Rapidly: Study (ecowatch.com)
In a new study, health sciences researchers at the University of New Mexico (UNM) have found microplastics in human brain tissue in concentrations much higher than in other organs.

Environmental Science, Human Health, Pollution, Microplastics, Research

8 points by mikhael 55 days ago | 0 comments

Accumulation of Microplastics in Human Brain Tissue Rising Rapidly (ecowatch.com)
In a new study, health sciences researchers at the University of New Mexico (UNM) have found microplastics in human brain tissue in concentrations much higher than in other organs.

Environmental Science, Health, Microplastics, Brain Health

8 points by hochmartinez 56 days ago | 2 comments

Polish city is using mussels to monitor water quality (2020) (awa.asn.au)
While all water professionals are aware of the delicate balance between human systems and biological indicators, the thought of relying on the mechanisms of mussels to safeguard a city’s population from polluted drinking water takes trust in nature to new heights.

Environmental Science, Water Quality, Biology, Sustainability

204 points by gscott 59 days ago | 62 comments

Microplastics found in the brains of mice within hours of consumption (phys.org)
A team of environmental biologists at the Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, working with one colleague from Duke University, and another from National University of Singapore, has found that it takes microplastics consumed by mice just a few hours to make their way to their brains.

Science, Environmental Science, Microplastics, Health

4 points by pseudolus 64 days ago | 0 comments