When scientists discovered that increasing the ocean's natural alkalinity could enhance seawater's capacity to absorb and store carbon dioxide (CO₂), the idea quickly gained attention as a potential geoengineering solution to climate change. Early visions suggested it could remove gigatonnes of CO₂ from the atmosphere each year. But the reality is far more complex.
Research published today in Nature by University of Melbourne researchers, in collaboration with Gunaikurnai Land and Waters Corporation, reconstructed the past 1,000 years of vegetation, fire and erosion in Croajingolong National Park in East Gippsland, one of southeastern Australia's most fire-prone forests.
Most voters see Congress through floor debates, campaign promises and partisan conflict. Yet about half the work done by the average congressional office involves helping constituents, businesses, nonprofits, universities and local governments navigate federal agencies.
A new engineered gene-editing system, proven in bacteria and showing promise for use in plants, animals and humans, addresses some limitations of current gene-editing tools, with the goal of improving their use in research, crop development and disease treatment.
Our oceans are becoming more acidic, which could have major consequences for marine life. Of particular concern is what this could mean for phytoplankton, the microscopic photosynthetic organisms that form the basis of marine food webs and produce roughly half of the oxygen on Earth. Now, a study published in Nature Geoscience has found that the carbon dioxide we pump into the atmosphere is changing their internal chemistry.
Monitoring biological indicators plays a crucial role in forest management, which requires finding a delicate balance between timber use and biodiversity conservation. Across forests and species, responses to forestry operations that alter habitat conditions vary, so repeatable surveys of biological indicators like ground-dwelling beetles can capture spatial variation in forests and changes over time.
A new study has revealed how some plants pack the same structures as larger species into a tiny space, making them promising candidates for future crops.
Modern technological breakthroughs like lasers, MRI scanners, semiconductors and quantum computers rest on the study of quantum mechanics. However, the field has predominantly focused on (sub)atomic phenomena far removed from our human senses.
Researchers studying a giant tortoise named Jonathan say it's not just good genes but a lack of genetic wear and tear that has kept him going for nearly two centuries.
Understanding changes in North American bat populations is critical to measuring the risk of extinction from emerging threats such as habitat loss, climate change, white-nose syndrome and other disturbances. A study published Oct. 7, 2026, in the journal PLOS One by Faith M. Walker of Northern Arizona University in the U.S. and colleagues describes a research design involving the genetic analysis of ancient, modern and contemporary biological samples from North American spotted bats.
