Science

Kelp forests are among the most productive ecosystems in the ocean. They provide habitat for fish and invertebrates while supporting marine mammals and other wildlife. [Photo credit: Enric Sala, National Geographic] Beneath the waves off Southern California, a once-lush underwater forest had been reduced to something resembling a desert. Kelp that had provided shelter and…

Melinda French Gates is committing $1 billion through 2026 to advance women’s power and influence, while her investment platform is backing women-led funds working on climate solutions. Through Pivotal Ventures, Gates has invested in Planeteer Capital, a climate-tech fund led by Sophie Purdom that backs early-stage companies developing solutions to climate change. The investment comes…

Scientists have developed a floating farm that uses sunlight to turn seawater into fresh irrigation water, allowing vegetables to grow without relying on conventional freshwater supplies. The experimental system, known as a double-layered vertical solar sea farm, produced enough clean water to support broccoli, lettuce and Pak Choi in outdoor trials. All three crops recorded…

Solar panels are designed to capture sunlight above the water, but researchers have now shown that specially designed solar cells can also generate electricity underwater. The team developed wide-bandgap perovskite solar cells and tested them at a depth of 10 metres in the South China Sea. The cells produced electricity from the limited light available…

Woodland standing in Epping Forest, south of High Beach, England. Image Credit: Wikipedia Britain has been planting new woodland on former farmland, but a 25-year study found that these new woods can take much longer to develop like ancient woodland. Researchers studied an old farmland site and found that its soil and plants were still…

Discarded fruit peels could help recover valuable materials from used lithium-ion batteries at a pilot recycling plant in Singapore. Researchers from Nanyang Technological University (NTU) developed a process that uses waste from oranges, lemons and pineapples to dissolve battery material and extract metals needed for new batteries. The facility, operating near Pioneer since late 2022,…

Britain’s summer is missing one of its most familiar insects. Wasps that usually gather around outdoor food, patrol gardens and become increasingly noticeable in late summer appear unusually scarce in 2026. The shortage has become so pronounced that researchers are struggling to collect enough insects for laboratory experiments, while the few wasps being seen appear…

David DeMar Jr., a researcher with the University of Washington’s Burke Museum, discovered the unusual nodule while conducting fieldwork in northeastern Montana’s Hell Creek Formation. Sometimes, the most extraordinary discoveries are hiding in things that look utterly ordinary. In 2016, a researcher working in Montana spotted a small, reddish-brown rock while searching for fossils. It…

A mouse-sized bat that lives for decades appears to have evolved some of the same biological protections that help it resist cancer and viral disease. Researchers comparing eight closely related Myotis species found an extraordinary range of lifespans, from about seven years in some species to nearly 50 years in others. Their genome analysis revealed…

Train movement produces vibrations along railway tracks, much of which is normally lost to the surrounding environment. Researchers have developed a system that captures some of this wasted energy from heavy-duty freight railway tracks and converts it into electricity. The study, published in ‘Applied Energy‘, describes a vibration energy harvesting system that uses the irregular…