Lifeboat Foundation

“This research underscores that successful water investments hinge not just on addressing immediate water needs, but also on strengthening the governmental and societal frameworks that facilitate private sector engagement,” said Dr. Pamela Green.

What steps can be taken to address global water shortages and security? This is what a recent study published in Global Environmental Change hopes to address as an international team of researchers investigated the readiness levels of economies around the world and if private investments could help alleviate the concerns regarding water security and safety worldwide. This study holds the potential to help researchers, climate scientists, and the public understand the severity of global water security and what steps can be taken to mitigate those risks and concerns.

For the study, the researchers conducted a statistical analysis comparing at-risk regions across the globe to available fiscal resources that can be used to address and alleviate risks and concerns to water scarcity.

Continue reading “Addressing Water Insecurity: A Call for Innovative Economic Strategies” »

The Hunga Tonga underwater volcano was one of the largest volcanic eruptions in history, and now, two years later, new research from The Australian National University (ANU) has revealed its main trigger. The research is published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters.

New device boosts hydroponic farming for efficient, eco-friendly food production:

A new water purification device offers a cost-effective solution for hydroponic farming, supporting more sustainable food production.

Continue reading “New water purifier could drive sustainable farming in changing climate” »

Power outages continued for many in the Eastern U.S. early on Monday as Helene’s death toll passed 100.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?si\u003doKkiYzJ96H2hY9en\u0026v\u003d1_gJp2uAjO0\u0026feature\u003dyoutu.be

Quantum computers have the ability to harness the mysterious effects of quantum physics, making them a game changer for science. Professor Hannah Fry explains how they work on The Future with Hannah Fry.

With the promise of unimaginable computing power, a global race for quantum supremacy is raging. Who will be first to harness this new technological force, and what will they do with it?

Continue reading “The Race to Harness Quantum Computing’s Mind-Bending Power” »

How can electronic waste, also known as e-waste, be recycled without resulting in negative environmental impacts that are often produced with traditional e-waste recycling methods? This is what a recent study published in Nature Chemical Engineering hopes to address as a team of researchers from Rice University investigated a novel approach for improving e-waste recycling while mitigating the negative impacts on the environment. This study holds the potential to help researchers, climate conservationists, and the public better understand how they can contribute to a cleaner environment through recycling.

“Our process offers significant reductions in operational costs and greenhouse gas emissions, making it a pivotal advancement in sustainable recycling,” said Dr. James Tour, who is a T.T. and W.F. Chao Professor of Chemistry at Rice University and a co-author on the study.

For the study, the team built upon past research conducted by Dr. Toru involving flash joule heating (FJH), which uses electric currents to break down metals into other materials. Using FJH for e-waste, the researchers successfully removed precious metals, including tantalum, indium, and gallium, which have commercial uses in capacitors, LCD displays, and semiconductors, respectively. Additionally, this new method was found to provide increased efficiency for metal purity and number of metals, also called yield, at 95 percent and 85 percent, respectively, along with significantly reducing environmental harm since this method does not require acids or water for its reaction.

“Our study is a stark example of how air pollution can substantially alter atmospheric chemistry thousands of miles away,” said Jacob Chalif.

How do fossil fuels influence the atmospheric chemistry of the Arctic? This is what a recent study published in Nature Geoscience hopes to address as a team of scientists investigated how air pollution caused by fossil fuels influences levels of methanesulfonic acid (MSA), which is an airborne byproduct of marine phytoplankton. This study has the potential to help researchers, climate scientists, and the public better understand the long-term consequences of fossil fuels and the steps that can be taken to mitigate them.

This study builds on several past studies, specifically a 2013 ice core research study from Denali National Park, that hypothesized reduced MSA levels resulted from drastic reductions in phytoplankton during the same period. However, the researchers ruled out a connection between MSA and phytoplankton populations but were still puzzled about the drops in MSA levels in the Arctic.

Continue reading “Fossil Fuels and the Arctic: Uncovering the Impact of Air Pollution” »

How can artificial light influence the behavior of zebrafish? This is what a recent study published in Science of The Total Environment hopes to address as an international team of researchers investigated the effects of artificial light at night (ALAN) on female zebrafish. This study holds the potential to help researchers, climate conservationists, and the public better understand the effects of light pollution on nature and the steps that can be taken to mitigate them.

“Sleep is one of the main processes of animals that is disrupted by ALAN, so we were curious to know what that means for their ability to navigate their lives. In other words, what does it mean for their behavior?” said Weiwei Li, who is a PhD student at the Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior (MPI-AB) and lead author of the study. “The light levels that we used in our study matched what is already shining into the homes of animals at night through the many sources we place outdoors. And we found extremely strong and clear negative effects on the behavior of fish and their offspring after only a few bright nights.”

For the study, the researchers analyzed the effects of short and long wavelengths of ALAN on female zebrafish over a 10-day, 9-night period to ascertain their behavior patterns. These patterns included swimming patterns, group cohesiveness, and location within the aquarium where the study was being conducted. In the end, the researchers discovered the zebrafish exhibited anxiety-like behaviors while exposed to all wavelengths, but these worsened when exposed to shorter wavelengths, specifically within the blue spectrum.

Builders knew how to keep people cool in hot, dry climates thousands of years ago. It’s time to get that knowledge back.