Some Alaskan soils harbor elevated concentrations of heavy metals that can harm human health, but critical data gaps impede understanding of exposure risks for Arctic communities. Many Arctic and sub-Arctic communities face heavy metal contamination of their food and water resulting from activities such as mining and drilling. As global temperatures rise, thawing of permafrost…

Researchers report that climate change is a chronic mental health stressor, and promotes a variety of mental health problems. The 2018 Camp Fire is a case study. Structures have been rebuilt, but some things are worse. In a paper published February 2, 2021 in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, scientists at…

Researchers recently examined how biological factors impact anxiety disorders. The team studied male and female rodent models to better understand sex differences in biological responses related to anxiety. Researchers from Indiana University School of Medicine recently studied the behaviors associated with anxiety — published in Psychopharmacology — examining how biological factors impact anxiety disorders, specifically…

A new analysis spanning 10,000 years of history and ten major world regions has identified world population size, major technological advances, and geographical connectivity as key drivers of the evolution of military technology prior to the Industrial Revolution. Despite extensive speculation, the mechanisms that drove innovation, spread, and adoption of new military technologies in pre-industrial…

Many countries have set carbon neutrality as a policy goal, but according to a new study, there are various risks associated with the reduction of greenhouse gases, especially in the agriculture, forestry, and land use sectors, that need to be considered when formulating mitigation strategies. While eliminating emissions from the energy sector is undoubtedly a…

Researchers have shown that over the past two thousand years, volcanoes have played a larger role in natural temperature variability than previously thought, and their climatic effects may have contributed to past societal and economic change. The researchers, led by the University of Cambridge, used samples from more than 9000 living and dead trees to…

While scientists are trying to find a vaccine for COVID-19, the rabies virus continues to kill 59,000 people every year. But unlike COVID, a vaccine has existed for more than a century. Vaccinating dogs can stop the spread to humans, but systemic challenges make that easier said that done. In a new study, scientists where…

Emerging use of Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) makes it possible to continuously measure shallow changes in elevation of Earth surface. A study now shows that the quality of these measurements may have improved significantly during the pandemic, at least at some stations. The results show which factors should be considered in the future when…

A new nationwide analysis of 122 plans from 20 US cities found that many plans fail to explicitly define green infrastructure. When they do, they tend to focus on stormwater management, favoring engineered facilities over parks and larger urban green spaces. The study is the first systematic review of the use and definition of the…

Eighteen months ago, stickers began to dot the floors of most shops, spaced about six feet apart, indicating the physical distance required to avoid the COVID-19 virus an infected person may shed when breathing or speaking. But is the distance enough to help avoid infectious aerosols? Not indoors, say researchers in the Penn State Department…