Thuwal, Saudi Arabia (SPX) Jan 17, 2024 The ocean is the world’s largest habitat, yet much of its biodiversity is still unknown. A study published in Frontiers in Science marks a significant breakthrough, reporting the largest and most comprehensive database of marine microbes to date – matched with biological function, location, and habitat type. “The KMAP Global Ocean Gene Catalog 1.0 is a leap toward … Continue reading Largest-ever study of ocean DNA has created essential catalog of marine life

Houston TX (SPX) Jan 17, 2024 Houston’s water and wastewater system could be more resilient with the development of hybrid urban water supply systems that combine conventional, centralized water sources with reclaimed wastewater, according to a study by Rice University engineers published in Nature Water. “Such a system will save energy and help reduce the use of freshwater, a commodity that is becoming critically impohttp://dlvr.it/T1TzjF Continue reading Rice engineers propose hybrid urban water sourcing model

Boston MA (SPX) Jan 16, 2024 “Zwitterionic” might not be a word you come across every day, but for Professor Patrick Doyle of the MIT Department of Chemical Engineering, it’s a word that’s central to the technology his group is developing to remove micropollutants from water. Derived from the German word “zwitter,” meaning “hybrid,” “zwitterionic” molecules are those with an equal number of positive and … Continue reading A new way to swiftly eliminate micropollutants from water

Dakar (AFP) Jan 15, 2024 On Dakar’s long Hann Bay beach, a lone figure with a shovel and wheelbarrow tirelessly picks up mounds of rubbish in such quantities that the task takes on an almost mythological air. The smell is acrid. A few metres from the man, a pipe carries a black mixture of household and factory wastewater into the Atlantic. Once considered one of … Continue reading Senegal’s Hann Bay, a paradise turned sewer, awaits clean up

Atlanta GA (SPX) Jan 16, 2024 Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology have created the world’s first functional semiconductor made from graphene, a single sheet of carbon atoms held together by the strongest bonds known. Semiconductors, which are materials that conduct electricity under specific conditions, are foundational components of electronic devices. The team’s breakthrough throws open the door to a new wayhttp://dlvr.it/T1RTP6 Continue reading Researchers create first functional semiconductor made from graphene

Port Louis, Mauritius (AFP) Jan 16, 2024 Mauritius raised a cyclone warning alert to maximum on Tuesday as powerful winds and rains from tropical storm Belal caused havoc in the Indian Ocean island nation. The government has ordered all inhabitants to stay indoors, but the meteorological service said the storm was now moving eastwards away from the remote paradise island. Belal has left thousands of … Continue reading Mauritius on maximum cyclone alert as storm Belal wreaks havoc

Tokyo (AFP) Jan 16, 2024 Japan plans to double a fund used for disaster relief and other contingencies to $6.8 billion after a devastating New Year’s Day earthquake, the government said Tuesday, as snow worsened conditions for survivors. The 7.5-magnitude quake and powerful aftershocks killed at least 222 people in central Japan, laying waste to houses and infrastructure. In the Ishikawa region on the Sea … Continue reading Japan to double emergency funds after New Year’s Day quake

Jaabar Al-Saghir, Syria (AFP) Jan 14, 2024 After years of war, drought and economic crisis, Omar Abdel-Fattah was forced to rent out his farmland in northeast Syria, preferring a more stable job to provide for his family. “It breaks my heart to see someone else working my land,” said Abdel-Fattah, 50, who grew wheat, cotton and vegetables in Jaabar al-Saghir, in Syria’s Raqa province, for … Continue reading Syrian farmers abandon the land for steadier jobs

Saint-Denis De La Reunion (AFP) Jan 13, 2024 Authorities on France’s Reunion Island on Saturday urged residents to stock up on food and water ahead of a tropical storm that risks strengthening to a cyclone before it hits Sunday night. “What’s happening must be taken seriously, very seriously even,” the Indian Ocean department’s central government representative Jerome Filippini told a press conference. He said the … Continue reading Reunion Island braces for storm with ‘very dangerous’ potential

El Carmen De Atrato, Colombia (AFP) Jan 13, 2024 Rescuers were working against the clock Saturday to find survivors of landslides that claimed at least 33 lives, mostly children, in northwestern Colombia, the country’s vice president said Saturday. “I deeply regret the death of 33 people in this tragedy, mostly children, according to preliminary reports,” Vice President Francia Marquez wrote on social media site X. … Continue reading Colombia landslide toll at 33 as rescuers work against clock