Ragweed Casts Shade on Soy Production

Ragweed, its pollen potent to allergy sufferers, might be more than a source of sneezes. In the Midwest, the plant may pose a threat to soybean production.

New National Academies' report lays out path forward for methane research

A new National Academies of Sciences' report calls on several federal agencies to work together to improve techniques for measuring one of the most important greenhouse gases produced by humans - methane.

Early Earthquake Warning! New Study Examines Safety Potentials and Limits

In a newly published study, U.S. Geological Survey scientists and their partners calculate possible alert times that earthquake early warning systems can provide people at different levels of ground motion from light to very strong shaking.

A Bill of Rights for Clean Water

The protection of our shared environment has long been among government’s most fundamental responsibilities. Ancient Rome’s Code of Justinian, one of the first efforts at constitutional governance, guaranteed to all citizens the use of the “public trust” or “commons” — those shared resources that cannot be reduced to private property, including the air, water, forests and fisheries. Throughout Western history, the first acts of tyrants have invariably included efforts to deliver public-trust assets into private hands. During the Dark Ages, when Roman law broke down in England, King John attempted to sell off the country’s fisheries, place navigational tolls on England’s rivers, and seize its woodlands and game animals. Enraged at that theft of public-trust assets, England’s people confronted John at Runnymede in 1215, forcing him to sign the Magna Carta. That seminal democratic document included a powerful articulation of the principle that the commons of water, fisheries and woodland were not commodities to be bartered away by a prince, but the rightful property of all citizens.

Repurposing Existing FDA-Approved Inhibitors May Provide New Treatment Approach for Ovarian Cancer

Wistar researchers have found rationale for repurposing a class of antitumor compounds called HDAC inhibitors, already approved by the FDA for the treatment of diseases such as leukemia, as a new therapeutic option for ovarian cancer with mutations in the ARID1A gene. Study results were published online in Cell Reports.

Newly-Discovered Planet is Hot, Metallic and Dense as Mercury

• Hot, metallic, Earth-sized planet with a density similar to Mercury detected 339 light years away and characterised by global team of astronomers, including the University of Warwick
  
  
• K2-229b is 20% larger than Earth but has a mass 2.6 times greater - and a dayside temperature of over 2000°C >> Read the Full Article

MSU Researchers Find That Beetle Odor Could Help Tackle Tamarisk

In the fight against an invasive plant colonizing portions of the state, a Montana State University doctoral student is luring shrub-munching beetles with an odor as tantalizing to them as the smell of bacon and pancakes, or perhaps a barbecue, is to humans.

From Feed to Fever: Kansas State University Researcher Studies Risk of African Swine Fever in Feed

If African swine fever virus reaches the U.S., it could cause more than $16.5 billion in economic losses to swine and other industries. It would devastate trade and international markets, researchers say.

Salvage Logging is Often a Pretext for Harvesting Wood

Białowieża Forest in Eastern Poland is one of the last remaining primeval forests in Europe. For the time being. In 2017, the Polish government had 100,000 more trees logged than previously, despite the fact that large areas of the Natural World Heritage site are under strict protection. They did this under the pretense of preventing the bark beetle from spreading further. The motor saws are quiet now after protests from environmental activists, Europe-wide criticism in the media and concerns by the European Commission. The case has been handed to the European Court and the minister of the environment was sacked.

Air Pollution Impact on Childhood Asthma

New research suggests that up to 38% of all annual childhood asthma cases in Bradford may be caused by air pollution.