Tag: Environment

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The Winds of Change are Blowing: New Kite-Like Wind Turbine Promises to Revolutionize Wind Energy

by Erin Dahlstrom Almost two years after its May 2013 purchase of alternative wind energy company Makani, Google X, Google’s semi-secret “moonshots” lab announced at SXSW that they will be starting to test full-scale models of Makani’s kite-like wind turbines in April 2015 [1,2].  While wind turbines have generally been trending bigger and more expensive in order to increase energy output, Makani has taken the … Continue reading The Winds of Change are Blowing: New Kite-Like Wind Turbine Promises to Revolutionize Wind Energy

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Seminars

Understanding sea level change by diving into the past

Presented by Jacky Austermann Why does sea level change? Everyone knows that sea level rise is a threat to coastal cities, but the mechanisms of why the change happens are less often talked about. In my talk I will explain why sea level is changing, why it is changing at different rates around the globe, how we can use the measured sea level rise to … Continue reading Understanding sea level change by diving into the past

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A View inside the LHC
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Giant Particle Smasher Returns

Two weeks ago, the world’s largest particle accelerator, the Large Hadron Collider, returned after two years of extensive upgrades. The Large Hadron Collider (LHC) is part of particle physics, a branch that examines the tiny particles that constitute everything in the universe. Two years ago, the LHC provided evidence for the existence of the Higgs Boson. After such a monumental achievement, what do particle physicists hope to discover with the upgraded LHC? Continue reading Giant Particle Smasher Returns

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Seminars

Sailing the Seas of Alien Worlds: The fate of oceans on rocky planets

Presented by Laura Schaefer Searching for life in our galaxy means first finding liquid water. Water is found throughout our Solar System in many different forms, but the Earth, because of its balmy temperatures and unique geology, is the only known planet with sailable seas. Astronomers are searching far and wide for other planets that might host liquid water. In their search, they have found … Continue reading Sailing the Seas of Alien Worlds: The fate of oceans on rocky planets

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To bee or not to bee: social dynamics impact productivity and stress response in honey bees

Watch out, honey fans – populations of the honey bee, Apis mellifera, may be in decline, and we don’t really know why. Honey bees play a vital role in natural ecosystems as pollinators; it is estimated that a single bee can visit 2000 flowers in a day [1]. Agriculturally, bees are important for much more than honey, being required for the pollination of many other … Continue reading To bee or not to bee: social dynamics impact productivity and stress response in honey bees

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What large ants tell us about variation in complex human traits

Traits that exist along a continuum, such as height, size, and behavior, vary significantly from person to person. The genetic and environmental interactions that cause these characteristics have long stumped scientists. In a recent study by Alvarado et al., ant larvae were exposed to an environmental factor that regulated adult ant size. The scientists were able to generate large and small ants just by changing … Continue reading What large ants tell us about variation in complex human traits

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Thrills and Spills: The Keystone XL Pipeline

Turning on the tap for a clean glass of water is a luxury many Americans take for granted. Though TransCanada Corporation promises minimal spillage and environmental impact through improved safety features in its plans to install a 1169-mile-long, 36-inch-wide pipe through the grasslands of Canada and the United States, risking this natural resource is one of the many considerations President Obama examined before vetoing the … Continue reading Thrills and Spills: The Keystone XL Pipeline

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Seminars

The Air We Breathe: An assessment of urban air pollution

Presented by Jordan Wilkerson Whether we are in China or here in the United States, the air in major cities is infamous for its unpleasant haze and resulting health problems. There are many ways in which an unhealthy mixture of chemicals can make it into the atmosphere where humans live and breathe. This lecture will discuss some of the most famous of these pollutants, what … Continue reading The Air We Breathe: An assessment of urban air pollution

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Which rodent is to blame for Bubonic Plague outbreaks?

In many elementary schools, students are introduced to the idea that rats spread one of the deadliest diseases in human history – the Bubonic plague. It was told in history classes that rats carried fleas, which carried the bacteria responsible for the Bubonic plague. These rodents prospered in the poor sanitary conditions of European cities and went on to spread the disease to humans throughout … Continue reading Which rodent is to blame for Bubonic Plague outbreaks?

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Are genetically-modified organisms now safer?

Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) have amazing potential for improving lives, from providing nutrients to undernourished populations to cleaning up pollutants to synthesizing drugs on large scales. Yet escape of GMOs into the environment could upset nature’s balance, just as invasive species can cause extinctions of native species. Recently, researchers have effectively encoded safety locks into the genomes of these organisms to prevent their proliferation into … Continue reading Are genetically-modified organisms now safer?

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