Sat.Nov 20, 2021 - Fri.Nov 26, 2021

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Why Putting Solar Canopies on Parking Lots Is a Smart Green Move

Yale E360

Solar farms are proliferating on undeveloped land, often harming ecosystems. But placing solar canopies on large parking lots offers a host of advantages — making use of land that is already cleared, producing electricity close to those who need it, and even shading cars. Read more on E360 ?.

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Net Zero/Not Zero

Real Climate

At the COP26 gathering last week much of the discussion related to “Net-Zero” goals. This concept derives from important physical science results highlighted in the Special Report on 1.5ºC and more thoroughly in the last IPCC report that future warming is tied to future emissions, and that warming will effectively cease only once anthropogenic CO2 emissions are balanced by anthropogenic CO2 removals.

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EPA Proposes to Use Science to Identify Waters of the United States. I’m Shocked, Shocked.

Law and Environment

Last week, EPA and the Army Corps proposed a new rule to define what constitutes “waters of the United States.” Déjà vu all over again. Under the proposal, the agencies: are exercising their discretionary authority to interpret “waters of the United States” to mean the waters defined by the longstanding 1986 regulations, with amendments to certain parts of those rules to reflect the agencies’ interpretation of the statutory limits on the scope of the “waters of the United States” and informed b

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The Need for Enhanced and Meaningful Confidentiality in Tribal Cultural Resource Protection

Legal Planet

For Indigenous Peoples, the forced removal from ancestral lands coupled with the Western commodification of human remains and ceremonial objects has resulted in a devastating and ongoing loss of cultural resources. This loss includes both tangible resources and landscapes as well as intangible traditional knowledge. During the pursuit of cultural resource protection, tribes are compelled to reveal an extraordinary amount of sensitive information.

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Implementing D.E.J.I. Strategies in Energy, Environment, and Transportation

Speaker: Antoine M. Thompson, Executive Director of the Greater Washington Region Clean Cities Coalition

Diversity, Equity, Justice, and Inclusion (DEJI) policies, programs, and initiatives are critically important as we move forward with public and private sector climate and sustainability goals and plans. Underserved and socially, economically, and racially disadvantaged communities bear the burden of pollution, higher energy costs, limited resources, and limited investments in the clean energy and transportation sectors.

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Democracy in Peril: Top Political Scientists Highlight What’s at Stake with Freedom to Vote Act

Union of Concerned Scientists

"To lose our democracy but preserve the filibuster in its current form.would be a short-sighted mistake of historic proportions.”.

Politics 244
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UK visa scheme for prize-winning scientists receives no applications

New Scientist

Exclusive: A fast-track visa route for Nobel prize laureates and other award-winners in science, engineering, the humanities and medicine has failed to attract any applicants

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Five Reasons Why Juliana Failed

Legal Planet

Juliana was a valiant effort by a group of young people to force the federal government to plan for stringent reductions in U.S. carbon emissions. As I wrote in a previous post, several well regarded foreign courts have upheld claims that are similar in concept to the Juliana case. Besides the conservative tilt of today’s Supreme Court, the plaintiffs faced serious legal hurdles.

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After COP26 – Wasted Time or Time Well-Spent?

Union of Concerned Scientists

People blocking progress need to get out of the way.

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Mysterious Fast Radio Bursts Are Finally Coming into Focus

Scientific American

Twenty years after their initial detection, enigmatic blasts from the sky are starting to deliver tentative answers, as well as plenty of science. -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com.

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Robotic exosuit uses ultrasound imaging to provide personalized walking assistance

Physics World

Wearable robotic systems have great potential for assisting locomotion during clinical rehabilitation, as well as use in recreation and to ease demanding occupational tasks. Walking patterns, however, vary according to a person’s age, height and physiology, may be affected by neural or muscular disorders, and change in different environments. As such, there’s a need for wearable robotics that can customize walking assistance to each user and task.

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Shaping a Resilient Future: Climate Impact on Vulnerable Populations

Speaker: Laurie Schoeman Director, Climate & Sustainability, Capital

As households and communities across the nation face challenges such as hurricanes, wildfires, drought, extreme heat and cold, and thawing permafrost and flooding, we are increasingly searching for ways to mitigate and prevent climate impacts. During this event, national climate and housing expert Laurie Schoeman will discuss topics including: The two paths for climate action: decarbonization and adaptation.

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Hamilton Saves its Farmland: Will Meet Housing Demand through Zoning Reform, Not Sprawl 

Enviromental Defense

ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENCE, ENVIRONMENT HAMILTON, STOP SPRAWL HAMONT. Decision will be a template for reconciling environmental protection with new “market based” planning rules . Hamilton, Ont. – Taking its cue from tens of thousands of residents, Hamilton’s City Council has committed to accommodate the next 30 years of urban growth through greyfield redevelopment, intensification along proposed mass transit lines, and zoning reform designed to add many thousands of new homes to existing low-rise re

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What Does Corporate Consolidation Mean for Your Thanksgiving Turkey?

Union of Concerned Scientists

Skyrocketing turkey prices are driven in part by consolidation in the industries that slaughter and process meat and poultry products.

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Marine Oxygen Levels are the Next Great Casualty of Climate Change

Scientific American

The increasing frequency of dead zones will affect billions of people who rely on the ocean for survival. -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com.

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Why weather apps disagree with each other, Einstein’s notes fetch millions, physicist and Subway founder dies age 90

Physics World

There are thousands of weather apps to choose from and perhaps surprisingly, they can sometimes give different forecasts. In this video from The Guardian , Josh Toussaint-Strauss explores why different apps can give different predictions for sunshine or rain. Apparently there are myriad reasons, including which algorithms and observations are used and whether there is any human input to the forecasts.

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Sustainability at Retail

Sustainability impacts every nation, company, and person around the world. So much so that, in 2015, the United Nations (UN) issued a call for action by all countries to work toward sustainable development. In response to this and as part of a global Sustainability at Retail initiative, Shop! worked collaboratively with its global affiliates to address these critical issues in this white paper.

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Visualizing Air Quality with BreezoMeter's Pollution Heatmaps

Breezometer

Our color-coded pollution heatmaps are one of BreezoMeter’s best-loved features and have always been a key part of what we do: Highly visual representations of air quality in a way that anyone can understand and act upon. The Air Quality Monitoring Technology Behind our Pollution Heatmaps: Models within Models. In order for our air pollution heatmap visualization to support queries at an unmatched resolution of 5 meters (16.5 feet), we pull information from numerous real-time data sources in add

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Red light therapy could improve eyesight that has declined due to age

New Scientist

Exposure to deep red or near-infrared light can improve the function of the eye’s mitochondria, the powerhouses in cells, resulting in slight but lasting improvement to declining eyesight

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Life Is Complicated--Literally, Astrobiologists Say

Scientific American

A new theory suggests that searches for molecular complexity could uncover convincing evidence of extraterrestrial life, and soon. -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com.

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Deep learning for disease diagnosis confounded by image labels

Physics World

Artificial intelligence (AI) has potential to play a pivotal role in many areas of medicine. In particular, the use of deep learning to analyse medical images and improve the accuracy of disease diagnosis is a rapidly growing area of interest. But AI is not perfect. A new study has revealed that radiograph labels can confuse AI networks and limit their clinical utility.

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Hamilton Votes to End Sprawl: Stop Sprawl Hamilton saves thousands of acres & sets a precedent for the GTHA

Enviromental Defense

In a game-changing victory for the people of Hamilton and the future of the region’s forests and farmland, Hamilton’s City Council has voted by a 13-3 margin to END URBAN SPRAWL. The city council, supported by an overwhelming 90 per cent of citizens , committed to stopping sprawl – not by stopping or resisting population growth – but by accommodating the next 30 years of new homes and workplaces within Hamilton’s existing boundaries.

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Ag and Food Law Daily Update: November 23, 2021

National Law Center

A comprehensive summary of today’s judicial, legislative, and regulatory developments in agriculture and food. Email important additions HERE. Judicial: Mootness, The post Ag and Food Law Daily Update: November 23, 2021 appeared first on National Agricultural Law Center.

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New COVID Antivirals Do Not Replace the Need to Vaccinate

Scientific American

With the advent of new COVID drugs comes the fear that people will opt out of vaccination altogether. -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com.

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Wearable sensors could detect respiratory infections before symptom onset

Physics World

In the not too distant future, wearable biometric sensors may be able to detect the early stages of acute viral respiratory infections in people before they develop any symptoms. Such non-invasive devices could be used for infection screening to help limit community spread of airborne viruses. If a biometric sensor could also predict the severity of infection, a person could also receive faster and potentially better medical treatment.

2020 128
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Frontiers wins coveted ‘Special Jury Prize’ at Vaud International Business Awards 

Frontiers

Frontiers is pleased to announce it has won the Special Jury Prize at the 2021 Vaud International Business Awards. Each year, the ‘Special Jury Prize’ is awarded to one organization in recognition of their role in boosting Canton Vaud’s image abroad, creating jobs at home, and successfully contributing to the reputation and prosperity of the area. The Awards are organized by the Vaud Department of Economy, Innovation and Sports (DEIS), the Vaud Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CVCI) and Innovau

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AI has learned to read the time on an analogue clock

New Scientist

Artificial intelligence trained on computer-generated images of clocks taken from different angles has succeeded in learning to read the time

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Redo of a Famous Experiment on the Origins of Life Reveals Critical Detail Missed for Decades

Scientific American

The Miller-Urey experiment showed that the conditions of early Earth could be simulated in a glass flask. New research finds the flask itself played an under appreciated, though outsized role. -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com.

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Exoplanet orbits tilted 90° by unseen object

Physics World

Exoplanets have been spotted orbiting at right angles to each other by an international team of astronomers led by Vincent Bourrier at the University of Geneva. The team believes that this unusual configuration is caused by the influence of a yet-to-be-discovered companion object orbiting the exoplanets’ star. A star and its planets are believed to form from the same rotating disc of gas and dust.

2019 127
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Frontiers announces its first partnership with a leading Chinese University

Frontiers

Zhejiang University Press (ZUP), one of the leading academic publishers in China, and the open science publisher Frontiers announce their official partnership. Established in 1984, Zhejiang University Press covers a diverse spectrum of subjects in natural sciences, engineering and technology, the humanities and social sciences, medicine and life sciences.

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New plastic made from DNA is biodegradable and easy to recycle

New Scientist

A plastic made from DNA and vegetable oil may be the most sustainable plastic developed yet and could be used in packaging and electronic devices

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Albatross 'Divorce' Rate Rises as the Ocean Warms

Scientific American

Monogamous black-browed albatross may split up from the stress of less food availability. -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com.

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Materials science conserves 500-year-old warship, new gravitational-wave discoveries by LIGO–Virgo

Physics World

In 1545 the English warship Mary Rose sank in a battle off the south coast of England and was raised more than 400 years later. The ship and some of its contents are now on display at the Mary Rose Museum in Portsmouth. In this episode of the Physics World Weekly podcast, the materials scientist and CEO of the Mary Rose Trust, Eleanor Schofield , explains the science behind conserving objects that have spent centuries underwater.

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2021 was a bad year for glaciers in western North America — and it’s about to get much worse

Environmental News Bits

by Brian Menounos, University of Northern British Columbia The year 2021 will likely be one of the worst for glaciers in southern British Columbia, Alberta, Washington and Montana. It started out OK. A weak La Niña arrived in the fall of 2020 and continued through the winter.

2021 105
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Feeding pet dogs just once a day might keep them healthier as they age

New Scientist

Survey responses from more than 24,000 dog owners in the US suggest that dogs fed once a day are less likely to get age-related diseases, but you shouldn't change how you feed your dog just yet

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When Did Life Start in the Universe?

Scientific American

Interstellar xenia, or the welcoming of cosmic strangers, could solve this mystery. -- Read more on ScientificAmerican.com.

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California fires killed nearly 20 percent of the world's Sequoias

Inhabitant

Wildfires in California over the past five years have claimed nearly 20% of the world's largest Sequoias. Frequent fires in the Sequoia National Park and the surrounding forests have claimed a third of groves in California.

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