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Paying Farmers To Create Woodland And Wetland Is The Most Cost-Effective Way To Hit UK Environment Targets

Study of farmer preferences shows that turning whole areas of farmland into habitats comes with half the price tag of integrating nature into productive farmland, if biodiversity and carbon targets are to be met.

Groundbreaking 3D Model Reveals Megalodon's Capacity to Devour Prey the Size of Killer Whales

In a remarkable breakthrough, scientists have successfully reconstructed the body of the awe-inspiring prehistoric shark, the Megalodon, using a 3D computer model.

Carbon Emissions From Fertilisers Could Be Reduced By As Much As 80% By 2050

Researchers have calculated the carbon footprint for the full life cycle of fertilisers, which are responsible for approximately five percent of total greenhouse gas emissions – the first time this has been accurately quantified – and found that carbon emissions could be reduced to one-fifth of current levels by 2050.

Small-Scale Octopus Fisheries Can Provide Sustainable Source Of Vital Nutrients For Tropical Coastal Communities

Undernourished coastal communities in the tropics - where children’s growth can be stunted by a lack of micronutrients – can get the vitamins and minerals they need from sustainable small-scale octopus fisheries, say researchers.

‘Antisocial’ Damselfish Are Scaring Off Cleaner Fish Customers – And This Could Contribute To Coral Reef Breakdown

Damselfish have been discovered to disrupt ‘cleaning services’ vital to the health of reefs. And climate change may mean this is only likely to get worse.

Researchers Build More Detailed Picture Of The Movement Of Greenland Ice Sheet

Researchers have found that the movement of glaciers in Greenland is more complex than previously thought, with deformation in regions of warmer ice containing small amounts of water accounting for motion that had often been assumed to be caused by sliding where the ice meets the bedrock beneath.

Cambridge-Led Consortium Receives $35m To Boost Crop Production Sustainably In Sub-Saharan Africa

A Cambridge-led consortium has received US$35m (£28m) over five years to develop sustainable solutions to increasing the yields of small-scale farmers in sub-Saharan Africa, without the need for costly and polluting inorganic fertilisers.

Voluntary UK Initiatives To Phase Out Toxic Lead Shot For Pheasant Hunting Have Had Little Impact

Three years into a five-year pledge to completely phase out lead shot in UK game hunting, a Cambridge study finds that 94% of pheasants on sale for human consumption were killed using lead.

Study Reveals Why Highly Infectious Cholera Variant Mysteriously Died Out

Scientists say continuous monitoring of the cholera bug genome is key to preventing outbreaks of new variants.

GTA South Asian Communities Disproportionately Hit By COVID-19

A COVID CommUNITY – South Asian study led by McMaster University researchers has found that South Asian communities living in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) suffered disproportionately from COVID-19 in the first year of the pandemic.

Iodine Status Varies Across Canada, Raising Deficiency Risk in Some Regions

Iodine deficiency, a public health concern resolved decades ago, may be making a comeback due to changing eating habits, according to new findings by McMaster University researchers.

Social Media Posts Around Solar Geoengineering ‘Spill Over’ Into Conspiracy Theories

Researchers from the University of Cambridge have analysed more than 800,000 tweets and found that negative emotions expressed about geoengineering – the idea that the climate can be altered using technology – can easily fall into conspiracy.

Study Explores Pros and Cons of Changing Diet to Treat Eczema

People with mild or moderate eczema may gain some relief by adjusting their diets, but there are important downsides to consider, McMaster researcher Derek Chu warns.

New Animal Welfare Scoring System Could Enable Better-Informed Food And Farming Choices

Cambridge University scientists have come up with a system of measuring animal welfare that enables reliable comparison across different types of pig farming.

Remarkable Squirting Mussels Captured On Film

Cambridge researchers have observed a highly unusual behaviour in the endangered freshwater mussel, Unio crassus.

Phone-Based Measurements Provide Fast, Accurate Information About The Health Of Forests

Researchers have developed an algorithm that uses computer vision techniques to accurately measure trees almost five times faster than traditional, manual methods.

Photosynthesis ‘Hack’ Could Lead To New Ways Of Generating Renewable Energy

Researchers have ‘hacked’ the earliest stages of photosynthesis, the natural machine that powers the vast majority of life on Earth, and discovered new ways to extract energy from the process, a finding that could lead to new ways of generating clean fuel and renewable energy.

At Least 80% Of The World’s Most Important Sites For Biodiversity On Land Currently Contain Human Developments

At least 80% of sites identified as being internationally important for biodiversity on land currently contain infrastructure − of which more than 75% contain roads. In the future, more sites that are important for biodiversity could contain powerplants, mines and oil and gas infrastructure

Medieval Monks Accidentally Recorded Some Of History’s Biggest Volcanic Eruptions

By observing the night sky, medieval monks unwittingly recorded some of history’s largest volcanic eruptions, according to a new analysis of 12th and 13th century European and Middle Eastern chronicles.

Ice Sheets Can Collapse Faster Than Previously Thought Possible

Ice sheets can retreat up to 600 metres a day during periods of climate warming, 20 times faster than the highest rate of retreat previously measured.