environment

Human-wildlife overlap is projected to increase across more than half of all lands around the globe by 2070. The main driver of these changes is human population growth. This is the central finding of our newly published study in the journal Science Advances. Our research suggests that as human population increases, humans and animals will share increasingly crowded landscapes. For example, as more people move into forests and agricultural regions, human-wildlife overlap will increase sharply. It also will increase in urban areas as people move to cities in search of jobs and opportunities. Animals are also moving, mainly in response to climate change, which is shifting their ranges. Across most areas, species richness – the number of unique species present – will decrease as animals follow their preferred climates. But because human population growth is increasing, there still will be more human-wildlife overlap across most lands. We also found areas where human-...

With the Olympic torch extinguished in Paris, all eyes are turning to Los Angeles for the 2028 Olympics. The host city has promised that the next Summer Games will be “car-free.” For people who know Los Angeles, this seems overly optimistic. The car remains king in LA, despite growing public transit options. When LA hosted the Games in 1932, it had an extensive public transportation system, with buses and an extensive network of electric streetcars. Today, the trolleys are long gone; riders say city buses don’t come on schedule, and bus stops are dirty. What happened? This question fascinates me because I am a business professor who studies why society abandons and then sometimes returns to certain technologies, such as vinyl records, landline phones and metal coins. The demise of electric streetcars in Los Angeles and attempts to bring them back today vividly demonstrate the costs and challenges of such revivals. The 2028 Olympi...

A tiny, vibrant world thrives along the rocky bottom of most streams. As sunlight filters through the water, mayfly nymphs, no larger than your fingernail, cling to algae-coated cobbles. Their brushlike mouthparts scrape the greenish coating, leaving faint trails as they feed. Six spindly legs anchor them against the current, while feathery gills wave gently, drawing oxygen from the flowing water. This scene is common in well-maintained creeks and streams that flow through populated areas. But when wildfires sweep through, the toxic materials left behind can devastate this ecosystem. When you think of urban wildfires, you might picture charred trees and houses. But beneath the surface of nearby streams, fires can also cause a silent upheaval – one that affects populations of creatures that are important indicators of the water’s health. Images of some of the benthic invertebrates that help keep streams healthy, and whose disa...

Curious Kids is a series for children of all ages. If you have a question you’d like an expert to answer, send it to curiouskidsus@theconversation.com. Could we use volcanoes to make electricity? – Lawrence, age 7, Dublin, California Turning red-hot lava from an active volcano into electricity would be dangerous and unreliable. Volcanoes don’t erupt on predictable schedules, and lava cools too quickly. But many countries, including the U.S., have found ways to tap volcanic heat to make electricity. Geothermal energy comes from heat generated by natural processes deep within the Earth. In most areas, this heat only warms rocks and underground water near the surface. In volcanically active regions, however, the heat is much more intense. Sometimes it melts rock, forming magma. Volcanoes act like giant heat vents, raising magma closer to Earth’s surface. Some of this mo...

As intense heat breaks records around the world, a little-reported fact offers some hope for cooling down cities: Under even the most intense periods of extreme heat, some city blocks never experience heat wave temperatures. How is this possible? Civilizations have recognized the power of cities to heat themselves up and cool themselves for centuries. City architects in ancient Rome called for narrowing streets to lessen late afternoon temperatures. Narrow streets were found to cool the air by limiting the area exposed to direct sunlight. The whitewashed architecture of the Greek Isles demonstrates another long-practiced strategy. Light-colored walls and roofs can help cool cities by reflecting incoming sunlight. Whitewashed buildings on the Greek island of Folegandros help deflect the heat rather than absorbing it. Etienne O. Dallaire via Wikimedia, CC BY In hot and humid regions of the southern...