Science

Representative Image (AI-generated) A tiny concentration of a synthetic hormone was enough to trigger a dramatic ecological change in a remote Ontario lake. In 2001, scientists began adding the synthetic estrogen 17α-ethynylestradiol (EE2) to Lake 260 in northwestern Ontario, maintaining concentrations of about 5 to 6 nanograms per litre. The experiment continued for seven years,…

Deep in the Caxiuanã National Forest in northern Brazil, a patch of rainforest the size of a football pitch tells the story of what a drier Amazon might look like. Since 2002, scientists have suspended nearly 6,000 transparent plastic panels above one hectare of pristine forest, diverting roughly half the rainfall away from the soil…

Representative Image (AI-generated) A river can carry a contaminant far beyond the point where it enters the water, but predicting exactly how quickly that material will travel is not always straightforward. In 2010, scientists with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), working with the Montana Department of Environmental Quality, conducted a dye-tracing experiment on a 41.2-mile…

Since 2015, British Columbia has killed 200-300 wolves annually to help endangered caribou populations recover. Recently, the provincial government has proposed extending its decade-long wolf cull program by five more years in areas that are home to 15 declining woodland caribou herds. But according to scientists, the deforestation, not the wolves, is the main driver…

Quote of the Day by Marie Curie Marie Curie is remembered as one of the most important scientists in modern history, yet a single letter from 1895 offers a genuinely striking glimpse into her real priorities. Ahead of her marriage to Pierre Curie in July that year, someone had offered to give her a wedding…

Seven Indigenous Siekopai women in Ecuador’s Amazon are using ancestral knowledge, modern technology and community-led conservation to give vulnerable river turtles a better chance of survival. Known as the Tari Nomiowa’i, or “Turtle Women”, the group patrols the banks of the Aguarico River in search of charapa turtle nests, carefully collects eggs threatened by flooding,…

India’s digital payment journey has evolved from passwords, PINs and OTPs to fingerprints and facial authentication, making transactions faster and more seamless. Now, with AI, the next step could be completely hands-free payments, where systems recognise users, assess transactions and authenticate payments almost invisibly.The country may allow AI agents to make small UPI payments without…

A fungus infecting goldenrod soldier beetles can alter their behaviour before death and cause changes to their bodies afterwards. Researchers investigating Eryniopsis lampyridarum found infected Chauliognathus pensylvanicus beetles clamped their mandibles tightly onto flower heads shortly before dying. Between 15 and 22 hours after death, the fungus caused the beetles to raise their hardened forewings…

A crab shell left behind after a meal might seem destined for the bin, but scientists have found a very different use for it. Engineers at the University of Maryland have turned material derived from discarded crustacean shells into part of a zinc battery, using chitosan to make its electrolyte. The unusual ingredient is tied…

Both McDermott Lake and Sandy Beach Lake had previously supported natural walleye recruitment. Scientists removed about 285,000 warm-water fish from a Wisconsin lake over four years in an attempt to help its declining walleye population recover. The large-scale experiment reduced several fish species and was followed by a sharp rise in yellow perch. However, it…