Latest Environment Stories
MAHAFFEY, Pa., May 23, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Alternative Fuel Solutions of Pennsylvania is pleased to announce we have added the much anticipated 2013 F150 CNG Bi-Fuel truck to our available list of EPA certified conversions. The system is fully OBDII and EPA compliant. The F150 Bi-Fuel 5.0L truck conversion enables the vehicle to utilize clean burning Compressed Natural Gas (CNG). "We are very excited to offer the EPA certified Ford 5.0L platform to our clients. This system will help...
Michigan State University What people take from nature – water, food, timber, inspiration, relaxation – are so abundant, it seems self-evident. Until you try to quantitatively understand how and to what extent they contribute to humans. In today's world, where competition for and degradation of natural resources increases globally, it becomes ever more crucial to quantify the value of ecosystem services – the precise term that defines nature's benefits, and even more important to...
Peter Suciu for redOrbit.com – Your Universe Online Man’s best friend could be his immune system’s worst enemy, suggests a new report in the journal PLOS ONE. Or maybe not. According to a recently published study from researchers at North Carolina State University and the University of Colorado, Boulder, people who live with a pet dog harbor more types of bacteria in their homes than those who do not – and that includes species of bacteria that are rarely found in dog-free...
Public Library of Science Two new species of cave-dwelling short-tailed whipscorpions have been discovered in northeastern Brazil, and are described in research published May 22 in the open access journal PLOS ONE by Adalberto Santos, from the Federal University of Minas Gerais (Brazil) and colleagues. The reddish-brown short-tailed whipscorpions inhabit cool, humid limestone caves in an otherwise arid region. Both new species, Rowlandius ubajara and Rowlandius potiguara, were found...
Alaska’s melting glaciers remain one of the largest contributors to the world’s rising sea levels, say two University of Alaska Fairbanks geophysicists. UAF Geophysical Institute researchers Anthony Arendt and Regine Hock joined 14 scientists from 10 countries who combined data from field measurements and satellites to get the most complete global picture to date of glacier mass losses and their contribution to rising sea levels. “Sea level change is a pressing societal...
Public Library of Science Endangered brush-tail rock wallabies raised in captive breeding programs carry antibiotic resistance genes in their gut bacteria and may be able to transmit these genes into wild populations, according to research published May 22 in the open access journal PLOS ONE by Michelle Power and colleagues from Macquarie University in New South Wales, Australia. Brush-tail rock wallabies are currently being raised in species recovery programs and restored to the wild...
[ Watch The Video: Movie of Camponotus Schmitzi ] Public Library of Science An insect-eating pitcher plant teams up with ants to prevent mosquito larvae from stealing its nutrients, according to research published May 22 in the open access journal PLOS ONE by Mathias Scharmann and colleagues from the University of Cambridge and the University Brunei Darussalam. The unusual relationship between insect-eating pitcher plants and ants that live exclusively on them has long puzzled...
Brett Smith for redOrbit.com - Your Universe Online If you see a turtle crossing a busy road – pick it up and send it in the direction it was originally going on the other side of the road, advises the advocacy group American Tortoise Rescue (ATR), which is celebrating their 13th annual World Turtle Day 2013 today. Picking up the tortoise and turning it around will only cause the slow moving animal to try crossing the road again, according to a statement put out by the group....
NASA For decades, Landsat satellites have documented the desiccation of the Aral Sea in Central Asia. Once one of the largest seas in the world, it shrunk to a tenth of its original volume after Russia diverted its feeder rivers in the 1960s. Scientists studying the Aral Sea's changing ecology and retreating shoreline have looked to Landsat -- and a new feature of the Landsat Data Continuity Mission will help ensure they get a clear, cloud-free view. One of two new spectral bands...
Monkey Light Pro gives bike riders a novel way to express their unique individuality in a dazzling manner BERKELEY, Calif., May 23, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- MonkeyLectric announced today the launch of a Kickstarter campaign to fund manufacturing efforts of its new product, the Monkey Light Pro, a unique bicycle light that utilizes cutting edge technology to allow users to display images and animation on their spinning bicycle wheel. The Pro series is for people who want to get their...
Latest Environment Reference Libraries
Fodder is a term used in reference to the feed cut, sometimes prepared, and brought to domesticated farm animals such as cows, goats and pigs. Some fodder is prepared using oils and mixed rations that are mixed in with several different types of sprouted grain and legumes such as alfalfa, clover, corn, and several different types of grass. In the countries that allow it, fodder can also consist of animal origins such as ruminant meat and bone meal, typically found in cattle feed. The USDA,...
Seed drilling is a method used by farmers in order to have a more unified, crop-yielding season. The first known use of seed drilling was in 1500 BC by the Sumerian. At this time, they were using a single tube. Later, in the 2nd Century BC, the Chinese developed a multi-tube iron drill. This facilitated in a larger crop planting allowing them to feed their large population. The first recorded patent of a sowing machine was in 1566 by the Venetian Senate, attributing Camillo Torello. In the...
Three Sisters crop is a technique of gardening used primarily by Native Americans, but gardeners of any kind may also use this technique. These crops use three types of plants; in the Tewa tribe, they use four. The traditional seeds used are corn, beans, and squash. There are many benefits from this method, the first being the use of the corn stalks for the beans to grow on. The beans themselves then provide nitrogen for the corn and squash, while giving the corn amino acids, lysine, and...
Seed saving is the preserving of seeds from mature vegetables, herbs, and flowers used in subsequent years along with bulbs and tubers. Home gardeners have saved seeds for generations and the practice is now becoming common with organic farmers as well as permaculturists. Growers will clone plants so as not to produce seeds keeping the plant “true to type” to the parent plant. True to type refers to the characteristics of the parent plant such as large fruit/blooms. Plants...
This bird of prey is known more as a pigeon hawk. The Merlin is from the Northern Hemisphere with some migrating to subtropical and northern tropical areas during the winter. There has also been a discovery that there are two different, very distinct, species: the North American and the Eurasian. The North American Merlin was first described by a Swede taxonomist, Carl Linnaeus. The Merlin is between 9 and 13 inches long with a wingspan of 20-29 inches. The Merlin is an exceptionally...
