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Understanding spread of COVID-19
Much remains unknown about how the virus that causes COVID-19 spreads through the environment. Environmental engineers describe potential transmission pathways and their implications.
COVID-19 in a world made ripe for pandemics
Emerging infectious diseases have become more likely – and more likely to be consequential – partly as a result of how people move around the planet and relate to the natural world.
How social squid communicate in the dark
Researchers begin to reveal how social squid communicate in the near-blackness of the deep sea.
Crop diversity can buffer the effects of climate change
The researchers found that farms with diverse crops planted together provide more secure, stable habitats for wildlife and are more resilient to climate change than the single-crop standard that dominates today’s agriculture industry.
Climate change means more extreme weather than predicted
Analysis shows global warming is intensifying the occurrence of unprecedented hot spells and downpours faster than predicted by historical trends. New approaches for incorporating global warming into extreme weather analysis could improve global risk management.
What other planets can teach us about Earth
Scientists exploring space are bringing back insights about Earth’s deep past, its complicated relationship with life and our planet’s future.
How did marine animals become so diverse?
Upending an evolutionary theory proposed in the 1950s, scientists have found that the groups most resistant to extinction also contain the greatest ecological diversity – their members perform a larger number of different functions in ecosystems.
A better way to detect underground water leaks
Stanford researchers propose a new way to locate water leaks within the tangle of aging pipes found beneath many cities. The improvement could save time, money and billions of gallons of water.
A better way to build diamonds
With the right amount of pressure and surprisingly little heat, a substance found in fossil fuels can transform into pure diamond.
Machine learning could speed the arrival of ultra-fast-charging electric cars
Using artificial intelligence, a Stanford-led research team has slashed battery testing times – a key barrier to longer-lasting, faster-charging batteries for electric vehicles – by nearly fifteenfold.
Smaller animals faced surprisingly long odds in ancient oceans, Stanford study finds
New fossil research shows extinction for smaller marine animals across most of the past 485 million years was more common than once believed. Why?
Could climate change bring more landslides to High Mountain Asia?
Researchers used satellite estimates and modeled precipitation data to show warming temperatures will cause more intense rainfall in some areas of the High Mountain Asia region, and this could lead to increased landslide activity in the border region of China and Nepal.
Where in the world can plants best soak up carbon emissions?
Plants around the world are growing at a slower than expected. Researchers say insufficient nutrients in the soil may be the culprit. A new world nutrient map provides a framework for predicting what areas around the world will be successful carbon sinks in the future.
Hydropower dams threaten fish habitats worldwide
New research maps the impacts of past and future hydropower development on fish habitats – and points to where restoration efforts may do the most good.
Rust offers a cheap way to filter arsenic-poisoned water
In regions that lack the resources to treat the contaminated water, it can lead to disease, cancer and even death.
More rain and less snow means increased flood risk
By analyzing more than two decades of data in the western U.S., scientists have shown that flood sizes increase exponentially as a higher fraction of precipitation falls as rain, offering insight into how flood risks may change in a warming world with less snow.
Fungal diversity and the future of forests
Stanford researchers predict that climate change will reduce the diversity of symbiotic fungi that help trees grow.
Q&A: Making the case for mobile marine protected areas
Ocean sanctuaries whose boundaries can shift can reduce conflicts between humans and marine life and help protect species under climate change.
Setting fires to avoid fires
Despite having proven effective at reducing wildfire risks, prescribed burns have been stymied by perceived and real risks, regulations and resource shortages. A new analysis highlights ways of overcoming those barriers, offering solutions for wildfire-ravaged landscapes.