How Does an iPod Affect a Polar Bear?

Photo courtesy of Amanda Graham (Yukon White Light) via Flickr.
When we talk about the problems of global climate change, we tend to focus on cars and coal-burning power plants as major contributors. Yet there are other significant players, including consumer electronics. The number of cell phones, MP3 players, […]

Thirty, twenty-nine, maybe thirty-two? How many days until we start our summer break? If you have a fabulous summer vacation planned, you are probably aware of the exact number! Maybe you plan on hiking one of the U.S. national parks or rafting a wild river. Or perhaps your plans take you to more exotic locales […]

In his book Hot, Flat, and Crowded, Thomas Friedman challenges policymakers to assume strong leadership and create policies that will change cultures from ones of excessive, thoughtless waste to ones of thoughtful, integrated efficiency with a long-term vision of a sustainable planet. He presents numerous scenarios in which the alternative approach is not only in […]

I recently read The Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan. One of the issues Pollan calls readers’ attention to is the meaning of “organic.” The U.S. Department of Agriculture appears to have a clear sense of what it means to be organic. See their web page on which 12 links to organic farming-related documents appear. Most […]

If you saw a newspaper or the news on TV at all last week, you must have heard about the catastrophic bushfires in southern Australia. Most were clustered 50 - 100 km northeast of Melbourne, capital city of the state of Victoria; yet there were other fires scattered across a wider area as well. The […]

Well, it’s almost that time again. You can almost see it, smell it, taste it—that perfectly cooked, magnificent bird! How on earth could it ever be a nuisance, and what do trees have to do with anything? After all, their time will come—next month.
Back up. Where did that bird come from? More than likely it […]

A third of reef-building corals around the world are threatened with extinction, according to the first-ever comprehensive global assessment to determine their conservation status. Corals produce reefs in shallow tropical and sub-tropical seas and have been shown to be highly sensitive to changes in their environment. The study findings were published July 11, 2008 by […]

This week’s blog focuses on Earth Day, April 22. There is no news article accompanying today’s blog. Instead, we provide you with an assortment of resources related to Earth Day. Do you know how Earth Day started? You can find the answer to that question and more in The History of Earth Day by Gaylord […]

Many middle school curricula include attention to ancient American people and their cultures. This blog entry may be helpful in making connections to the nature of science and scientific enterprises as part of an integrated approach in studying the Anasazi or ancient Peublos. The story titled “Vanished: A Pueblo Mystery,” published in the New York […]

Talk of a looming recession and sky-high oil prices don’t seem to worry many Texans. Instead, they’re cashing in on the benefits of an alternative energy source, wind, literally.
Many Texans are happily trading defunct oil rigs for wind turbine installations on their land. One Texan is being paid $500 a month for each turbine he […]