An apparent contradiction has arisen in studies of plant phenological response to climatic warming: Field and satellite data at the community and biome levels indicate a lengthening of the growing season across much of the Northern Hemisphere and
Surface meltwater that reaches the base of an ice sheet creates a mechanism for the rapid response of ice flow to climate change. The process whereby such a pathway is created through thick, cold ice has not, however, been previously observed.
Human activities have increased the availability of nutrients in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. In grasslands, this eutrophication causes loss of plant species diversity, but the mechanism of this loss has been difficult to determine.
The magnitude of the international wildlife trade is immense, with estimates of billions of live animals and animal products traded globally each year. This trade has facilitated the introduction of species to new regions, where they compete with native species for resources, alter ecosystems, damage infrastructure, and destroy crops.
The California Air Resources Board (CARB) adopted a low-carbon fuel standard that requires greater use of fuels that cause lower greenhouse gas emissions, compared with gasoline. Corn-based ethanol doesn't meet that test and won't benefit from the new standard, CARB says, because diverting corn into ethanol production increases deforestation and the clearing of grasslands.
Alpine glaciers leave spectacular records of climate change. Lakes, moraines, and other landforms shaped by past glacier advances and retreats dominate the foreground of nearly all mountain landscapes. These glacial deposits are rich records of past climate that are widespread, obvious, and easily accessible.
Understanding the timings of interhemispheric climate changes during the Holocene, along with their causes, remains a major problem of climate science. Here, we present a high-resolution 10Be chronology of glacier fluctuations in New Zealand
Last week marked what some hope will be a turning point in the clash of wills between proponents of biomedical research and animal-rights extremists, who've ratcheted up their attacks on researchers in the United States in recent years. On 20 April, a Los Angeles County grand jury arraigned two animal-rights activists on 10 felony charges each.
On 27 April, 6 days after the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) first reported an unusual swine flu outbreak in humans, international agencies were still struggling to determine how serious a threat the virus posed.
