EarthScape

Undoubtedly sobered by the plight of the Chevy Volt, which recently idled production for five weeks, furloughing 1300 workers in an effort to draw down excess inventory, the Ford Focus EV team has taken a number of innovative steps to avoid a similar plight.

In an stunning reversal, Senate Republicans have accepted President Obama’s call to end tax breaks for the oil and gas industry, reversing a procedural vote on Thursday that had killed the Mendendez Bill (S. 2204 – Repeal Subsidies and Tax Breaks for the Big 5 Oil Companies), introduced by Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ). On Thursday,…

Last night, as Earth Hour beganits monumental journey around the globe, hundreds of millions of people united to demonstrate that we urgently need to take action to protect our planet. The largest voluntary action for the environment is reaching further than ever before. Earth Hour was celebrated in a record 150 countries and territories and…

Depending on the mass of the star, this lifetime ranges from only a few million years for the most massive to trillions of years for the least massive, which is considerably longer than the age of the universe. How a star will vary. Some explode like a Supernova. Others collapse into white dwarf or a…

Certain workplaces can be very stressful for employees. There are deadlines to meet, rules to follow, and social minefields to get through. As an effective way to relieve stress, a new study has come out that says employees should bring their dogs to work. Not only will having man’s best friend around help you get…

Researchers in Madagascar have discovered the world’s smallest species of reptile, a tiny chameleon, Brookesia micra, that reaches just 29 millimetres in length. While people may be familiar with the appearance of a chameleon, with its slightly comical jerking gait and rotating eyes, to see these features in such miniature proportions is extraordinary.

Just one person in a room adds 37 million bacteria to the air every hour, according to a study published in the journal Indoor Air. Most of the bacteria are stirred up from the floor, where they were left behind by the room’s prior occupants. “We live in this microbial soup, and a big ingredient…

Nothing like a good barbecue! Less to clean up, easy to cook, and tasty. Rhode Island Hospital physicians have identified six cases of accidental ingestion of wire grill brush bristles that required endoscopic or surgical removal. The paper calls attention to the need for the public and physicians to be aware of this potential danger.…

Scotland is on course to smash its renewable energy targets after official figures revealed record-high levels of green power generation. The Scottish Government’s Energy Minister Fergus Ewing welcomed the publication of the statistics that confirms Scotland will beat the 2011 renewables target. Statistics published today show that the amount of renewable electricity generated in 2011…

Commonly used pesticides may be a primary driver of the collapsing bee populations, finds two new studies in Science. The studies, one focused on honeybees and the other on bumblebees, found that even small doses of these pesticides, which target insect’s central nervous system, impact bee behavior and, ultimately, their survival. The studies may have…