Jul 16 Why 96 million plastic 'shade balls' dumped into the LA Reservoir may not save water By Amanda Grennell In 2015, officials poured 96 million "shade balls" into the Los Angeles Reservoir to improve water quality and save water. The video went viral, but those shade balls may have used more water than they saved, MIT scientists reported Monday. Continue reading
Jul 15 Disability rights groups voice issues with Starbucks' plastic straw ban as company responds By Molly Enking After Starbucks announced on July 9 it would phase out plastic straws from its stores by 2020, disability rights activists were concerned the policy would exclude some people with disabilities. Continue reading
Jul 15 California cap-and-trade is working — for other states By Amel Ahmed, KQED A new report indicates California's much-heralded carbon trading program may actually be harming the neighborhoods it was designed to protect. Continue reading
Jul 14 Watch 10:03 'Living shorelines' use oyster shells and marsh grass to reverse coastal erosion By Sam Weber, Connie Kargbo and John Upton, Climate Central Americans who live along coastlines are watching their land disappear and property threatened as climate change causes sea levels to rise. While homeowners often rely on expensive seawalls and bulkheads to slow the erosion, a growing number are building “living… Continue watching
Jul 14 As seas rise, Americans use nature to fight worsening erosion By John Upton, Climate Central Homeowners are using marsh seedlings and bags of oyster shells to create "living shorelines," a natural alternative to seawalls--and one that reduces coastal erosion as climate change causes sea levels to rise. Continue reading
Jul 12 Watch 4:24 Why Alan Alda pays close attention to people's faces Alan Alda had an unusual childhood, but it helped him hone his identity as a communicator. As his mother suffered from mental illness, he became a close observer of people, their faces and body language, which led him toward becoming… Continue watching
Jul 12 What is a blazar? Its high-energy flares could unlock the foundations of the universe By Amanda Grennell How 300 scientists in 12 countries across four continents detected one of the universe's most elusive particles. Continue reading
Jul 11 Watch 8:49 NASA scientists track climate-changing methane leaks from the air By Miles O'Brien Science correspondent Miles O’Brien joins us from the atmosphere above Southern California, where NASA engineers leverage state-of-the-art technology to measure methane. Released through oil and gas production, livestock emissions, and organic waste, methane is about 85 times more potent at… Continue watching
Jul 08 Genetic ancestry tests don't change your identity, but you might By Wendy D. Roth, The Conversation Genetic ancestry tests reinforce what you want to believe rather than offering objective, scientific proof of who you are. Continue reading
Jul 07 Watch 1:50 Global temperatures reach extreme highs, breaking records By PBS News Hour Heat waves broke records around the world this week. While Burbank airport in California touched 114 degrees, Montreal in Canada recorded a high of 97.9 degrees. In Glasgow, Scotland, the temperature was a record-breaking 89.4 degrees on June 28 and… Continue watching