Earth Wise

NASA data show that the Earth’s temperature in July was the highest recorded since record-keeping began 136 years ago.  It was also the 10th straight month of record-breaking temperatures and was .18 degrees Fahrenheit higher than the previous hottest July in 2011. July is usually the hottest month of year, since it corresponds with the peak […]

What do climate change and radioactive waste have in common?  It turns out a lot more than we’d like.  According to research, which was was led by York University in collaboration with the University of Zurich and recently published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters, rising global temperatures could lead to the release of – […]

Tiny ticks are a big problem. Anyone taking a walk in the woods is advised to do a tick check. Ticks infect more than 325,000 people with Lyme disease each year, and this number continues to rise. In the Northeast, the blacklegged ticks that infect us with Lyme disease can also transmit a tongue-tying list […]

Whale sharks are the largest fish in the sea.  They can grow more than 40 feet in length, weigh up to 47,000 lbs, and have a lifespan of about 70 years.  They can be found cruising in the open waters of tropical oceans.  But despite being enormous, whale sharks are no threat to humans.  The […]

This year, Americans will consume more bottled water than soda for the first time.  The average American will buy 27.4 gallons of bottled water, over a gallon more than soda drinks. This sounds like a good thing, given the negative aspects of soda drinking.  However, consumption of bottled water has increased far more than soda […]

Every stage of civilization is characterized by its use of energy.   From burning wood to steam engines to our electrified society, energy is behind everything we do.  Over time, human society has become increasingly energy intensive.  As our standards of living have improved and as we overcome the effects of weather – either cold or […]

Farming, forestry, mining and recreation are the primary vocations in rural America.  In coastal areas like Maine, fishing joins the list.  And for Maine, commercial fishing has long been a major engine for the economy. Historically, fisherman have fished a variety of species on a seasonal basis so that they were not dependent on just […]

The biggest challenge facing both solar and wind power sources is that they don’t produce power around the clock; they only work when the sun is shining or the wind is blowing.  As a result, they don’t quite measure up to the requirement for power on demand. A new concentrating solar power plant in the […]

The regal blue tang is one of the most common and most popular marine aquarium fish in the world.  In the U.S., they have been ranked as high as the 10th most imported fish species out of over 2,000 that enter the country.  Apart from aquarium hobbyists, millions of people now associate blue tangs with the […]

Cochin International Airport in southern India is the seventh busiest airport in the country.   Its managers were fed up with the facility’s large electric bills and decided to take matters in their own hands. Three years ago, they began to add solar panels to the place.  First they put them on the roof of the […]