Is humanity ready to live in space?
This article explores incentives for projects spanning millennia, and determines which of those incentives would provide the most successful…
Category: Sustainability
Fungi may be able to help clean up polluted water
Human activities such as coal mining and processing can cause high levels of selenium contamination, which can be harmful to human health.…
A new kind of battery that removes carbon dioxide from the air
Nature has been able to filter out CO2 from our air for millions of years. So how might a battery prove to be our own artificial tree?…
Growing plants on the surface of the Moon and Mars
The reality of being able to live and settle on Martian or lunar bases can seem like it is getting close. To do this, we need to be able to…
Deep-sea mining impacts on diverse ocean ecosystems
Sunlight does not reach the deepest parts of the ocean, but life still thrives in the darkness. Below depths of 200 meters, where sunlight…
How would we establish a society on Mars?
Humans are not built for Mars. Or rather, Mars isn't built for us, yet. Understanding the sacrifices such a massive undertaking needs is…
A new model for predicting human population growth
Scientists at University of Washington have attempted to improve upon previous population models developed by the United Nations and the…
Contaminants in groundwater can take over 20 years to break down
Have you ever driven past an old factory building and wondered what ever happened to the harsh chemicals that were used there? If you…
Bacteria with nanowires can electrocute metals instead of breathe
All life on Earth has to respire. For us this means inhaling oxygen to fuel our metabolism and exhaling waste gases like carbon dioxide.…
Did humans really kill most of the plants and animals?
We may be the most successful land mammal, but pound for pound, plants and bacteria still have us beat.