University of Guelph Develops Natural Formula to Prolong Shelf Life of Produce

University of Guelph scientists have piggybacked on nature’s way to delay fruit ripening by inventing a preservative that increases shelf life and reduces produce spoilage.

Their research, published recently in two academic journals, may hold out huge economic benefits, especially in developing countries that depend on fruit production, said Gopinadhan Paliyath, a professor in U of G’s Department of Plant Agriculture.

Record Jump in 2014-2016 Temps Largest Since 1900

Global surface temperatures surged by a record amount from 2014 to 2016, boosting the total amount of warming since the start of the last century by more than 25 percent in just three years, according to new University of Arizona-led research.

Rise in severity of hottest days outpaces global average temperature increase

UCI study also finds megacities affected most by uptick in extreme-heat events

York University research explains why global responses to pandemics are too slow

New research out of York University shows that political dilly-dallying delays global responses to emerging pandemics more than poor surveillance capacity.

Steven J. Hoffman, professor in the Dahdaleh Institute for Global Health Research, Faculty of Health and Osgoode Hall Law School and his colleague Sarah L. Silverberg, conducted an analysis of the three most recent pandemics – H1N1, Ebola and Zika. These were used as case studies to identify and compare sources of delays in responding to pandemics and examine what influences the length of delays.

Meat is not the "new tobacco," and shouldn't be taxed

The idea of having to pay a sin tax for environmentally detrimental foods is gaining more support. For some, eating meat is a sin, and therefore meat products should be taxed like alcohol and tobacco.

A new report published recently by a British group called Farm Animal Investment Risk and Return Initiative (FAIRR) argues that a tax on meat is inevitable.

Less predictable precipitation

Waning influence of once-telling weather patterns altered by global warming skews projections.

Rare Traces of a Volatile Gas

Nitrogen oxides — i.e. nitrogen compounds with varying amounts of oxygen — have a very bad reputation. They are produced among other things by burning fossil fuels. In regions with heavy traffic and a lot of industry, they occur in high concentrations and are made responsible for a large number of diseases of the respiratory system. However, nitrogen oxides also occur in nature. There they play an important role in the nitrogen cycle, which ensures that nitrogen, essential for life, is available in forms that the organisms can process.

The Big Picture of Great Lakes Mercury Pollution

Mercury is a widespread environmental toxicant and pollutant that travels up the food chain onto people's dinner plates. Although a global issue, mercury regulations vary worldwide. Depending on where one lives in relation to mercury emissions, regional remediation makes minimal impacts for local fish consumption advisories. This is particularly true in a sensitive landscape like Michigan's Upper Peninsula, where nearly 80 percent of inland lakes are impaired.

NREL Research Determines Integration of Plug-in Electric Vehicles Should Play a Big Role in Future Electric System Planning

An influx of plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) charging without coordination could prove challenging to the nation’s electric grid, according to research conducted by the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).

UW Researcher Leads Study of First Quantifiable Observation of Cloud Seeding

A University of Wyoming researcher contributed to a paper that demonstrated, for the first time, direct observation of cloud seeding -- from the growth of the ice crystals through the processes that occur in the clouds to the eventual fallout of the ice crystals that become snow -- and how the impacts could be quantified.