An assessment of chemical exposures among nail salon technicians in Canada found unexpectedly high exposures to several chemicals used as plasticizers and flame retardants. The study, to be published Feb. 14 in the journal Environmental Science and Technology, found that exposure to some hazardous chemicals was higher among nail technicians than among electronic waste workers.…

Next generation triple-pane windows provide builders with lower cost options and help homeowners conserve energy, reduce noise, and lower home energy bills. «Lower costs, greater availability, and the drive to reduce carbon emissions are pushing us toward a tipping point where triple-pane windows start making a lot of economic sense,» said Kate Cort, a research…

The findings of a recent analysis suggest that ecosystems suitable for harboring ticks that carry debilitating Lyme disease could be more widespread than previously thought in California, Oregon and Washington. Bolstering the research were the efforts of an army of «citizen scientists» who collected and submitted 18,881 ticks over nearly three years through the Free…

By 2050, faster adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) and faster generation of renewable energy will result in 99% less fossil fuel consumed and 93% less CO2 emissions from passenger and freight vehicles on Oahu. McKenzie, based at the Hawaii Natural Energy Institute in SOEST, created mathematical models of four scenarios based on projections for the…

Not a day goes by without news of microplastics in our oceans. There are not many efficient methods of recycling plastics without compromising quality. A beacon of hope was recently lit when researchers discovered acid hydrolysis of a vinyl polymer breaks down into salicylic acid and acetic acid, precursors to dehydroaspirin which in theory can…

New research is changing the way aircraft and wind turbine operators are addressing the risks related to ice build-up. A team has broadened the scope and functionality of their ice sensors. In a follow-up study from one released previously this year, Assistant Professor Mohammad Zarifi and his team at UBCO’s Okanagan MicroElectronics and Gigahertz Applications…

Days after the 4 August 2020 massive explosion at the port of Beirut in Lebanon, researchers were on the ground mapping the impacts of the explosion in the port and surrounding city. The goal was to document and preserve data on structural and facade damage before rebuilding. The goal was to document and preserve data…

Using meteorological sensors perched on towers above the forest canopy, researchers are able to track water flow to and from wetland forests on the North Carolina coast. They have gathered data on forest carbon and water cycling spanning 14 years. Their findings, published in Agricultural and Forest Meteorology, suggest managers should time timber harvests to…

A modeling study raises questions about how far droplets, like those that carry the virus that causes COVID-19, can travel before becoming harmless. Experiments dating to the 1930s proposed two paths for respiratory droplets like those from a sneeze or cough. Either they are big and heavy, plummeting to the ground without much chance of…

A biology student traveled 20,000 kilometers collecting milkweed, creating isotope analysis of monarch butterflies’ annual migration journey, hoping to identify factors behind this threatened insect’s decline. Milkweed is the host plant to the monarch butterfly and Megan wanted to compile a diverse sampling of it to run an isotope ratio analysis that would build a…