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Tata Steel Says NGO Seeks $1.6 Billion for Alleged Health Damage
A Dutch nonprofit is seeking €1.4 billion ($1.6 billion) in compensation from Tata Steel’s Netherlands units, alleging that harmful emissions from its operations have caused environmental harm and health damage to nearby residents.
Loon center welcomes new director of science and conservation
SARANAC LAKE — The Adirondack Center for Loon Conservation announced Monday the appointment of Lizz Schuyler as senior director of science and conservation. A native New Yorker, Schuyler grew up in the Pottersville/Schroon Lake area. She attended State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry for her undergraduate degree and then earned […]
Year in review: Trump’s environmental policy : The NPR Politics Podcast
As we approach 2026, the NPR Politics Podcast is taking a look back at the year that was in different political areas. Today, we look at how America’s stance on environmental policy has shifted under the second Trump administration and what the potential impacts could be.This episode: voting correspondent Ashley Lopez, senior White House correspondent Tamara Keith, climate correspondent Michael Copley, and automotive and energy correspondent Camila Domonoske.This podcast was produced by Casey Morell and Bria Suggs, and edited by Rachel Baye.Our executive producer is Muthoni Muturi.Listen to every episode of the NPR Politics Podcast sponsor-free, unlock access to bonus episodes with more from the NPR Politics team, and support public media when you sign up for The NPR Politics Podcast+ at plus.npr.org/politics.
More House Republicans are leaving Congress to run for governor than in decades amid frustration over ‘toxic environment’
Congressional Republicans have yet to break the record for most retirements in a single year, but some say it’s only a matter of time before widespread frustration with the current state of Washington leads to a tipping point as many in the party head for the exits.
Scientists say evolution works differently than we thought
A major evolutionary theory says most genetic changes don’t really matter, but new evidence suggests that’s not true. Researchers found that helpful mutations happen surprisingly often. The twist is that changing environments prevent these mutations from spreading widely before they become useless or harmful. Evolution, it turns out, is less about reaching perfection and more about endlessly chasing a moving target.
Scientists warn: We are witnessing multiple irreversible changes in Antarctica
Antarctica faces abrupt, irreversible climate changes as warming nears 1.5 °C, threatening ice, oceans, ecosystems, and coasts worldwide.
Health officials warn of possible measles exposure at Denver International Airport
The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) warned of a possible measles exposure at Denver International Airport on Friday.
10 crucial insights for small business owners to succeed in 2026—and beyond
How small business owners can succeed in today's challenging environment.
CDT Environmental Technology Reports 2025 Unaudited Interim Financial Results and Provides Business Updates
Revenue of $7.3 million and loss per share of $0.11 impacted by reduced project activity due to a slowdown in the PRC economySHENZHEN, China, Dec. 23, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- CDT Environmental Technology Investment Holdings Limited (Nasdaq: CDTG) (“CDT”, the “Company”, or “we”), a leading provider of waste treatment systems and services throughout China, today reports its unaudited interim financial results for the six months ended June 30, 2025, and provides updates on key business development
Suburban business cited for big oily asphalt spill in Chicago canal
Trump’s EPA offloaded cleanup to Gov. JB Pritzker’s environmental agency, which accused Apex Oil of violating state laws.
Governments Are Starting to Compete Like Startups — And That Changes Everything for Entrepreneurs
When states begin marketing citizenship and incentives, it often marks deeper shifts toward modernization and capital-friendly policy environments.
Louisiana politicians in 2025 rolled back public health and environmental efforts
There are a range of issues facing Louisiana residents as 2025 draws to a close, from skyrocketing insurance costs, stronger storms, uncertainty over healthcare and limited resources for working families and people experiencing poverty.
Louisiana politicians in 2025 rolled back public health and environmental efforts
There are a range of issues facing Louisiana residents as 2025 draws to a close, from skyrocketing insurance costs, stronger storms, uncertainty over healthcare and limited resources for working families and people experiencing poverty.
NVIDIA's Quest For A "Safe" Linux Kernel For Automobiles, Robotics
NVIDIA engineer Igor Stoppa presented at the Linux Plumbers Conference (LPC) earlier this month around using Linux in safety-critical environments like automobiles and the current shortcomings of the upstream Linux kernel and the challenges on achieving Automotive Safety Integrity Level (ASIL) certifications around the Linux kernel
Prairie Grove residents rally against proposed concrete plant amid health, environmental concerns
Vail Health recognized for commitment to safeguarding the well-being of its nurses
Four years after receiving its initial American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC)’s Pathway to Excellence designation, Vail Health Hospital has earned a redesignation for creating a healthy work environment that empowers and values its more than...
UH: $2M Moore Foundation grant backs new postdoctoral science fellowship
Eleven emerging scientists will soon take on some of Hawaiʻi’s most urgent environmental and scientific challenges through a new University of Hawaiʻi systemwide postdoctoral fellowship program, funded by a $2 million grant from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation.
Turning plastic waste into valuable chemicals with single-atom catalysts
The rapid accumulation of plastic waste is currently posing significant risks for both human health and the environment on Earth. A possible solution to this problem would be to recycle plastic waste, ...
‘Forever Chemicals’ Linked to Another Health Condition, Study Says
Researchers have found a new link between exposure to ‘forever chemicals’ and one lifelong health condition. A Sweden-based study found that people exposed to two major environmental toxins are more likely to be diagnosed with multiple sclerosis.
What scientists found inside Titan was not what anyone expected
For years, scientists thought Saturn’s moon Titan hid a global ocean beneath its frozen surface. A new look at Cassini data now suggests something very different: a thick, slushy interior with pockets of liquid water rather than an open sea. A subtle delay in how Titan deforms under Saturn’s gravity revealed this stickier structure. These slushy environments could still be promising places to search for life.
CTSI to host three-part virtual mini-series on team science
Penn State Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI) will host a three-part virtual mini-series focused on team science, led by Susan Simkins, director of Team Science with Penn State CTSI. Designed for researchers, staff and leaders working in collaborative environments, the series will provide practical, evidence-based strategies to help teams function more effectively and avoid the misalignment that often can slow down good science.
Langmuir’s pump and the optimism of science
Creativity nurtured by an explorative environment
The Year in Science: The most impactful research stories of 2025
Work in fields such as health and medicine, the environment, engineering and technology innovation have put FIU on the map. And 2026 looks to be another blockbuster.
Heading into 2026, Commissioners reaffirm commitment to business community
Douglas County has a strong history of eliminating barriers for business investment, creating effective partnerships, and maintaining a low-tax environment. The Board of Douglas County Commissioners reaffirmed its commitment to…
From Television Host To Media Mogul: How Scott Evans Is Expanding His Entertainment Empire
After years of dominating within the entertainment industry as an in-demand, beloved, and lauded Emmy-nominated television host, he has made shockwaves with his own brand and Webby-award-winning and self-funded show, ‘House Guest’ hosted on YouTube. His success lies in his infectious, warm personality and effortless ability to connect deeply with people, especially celebrities, through his show, ‘House Guest.’ The show filmed at his home with a small but mighty production crew, and curates an intimate environment that fosters authentic, genuine conversations, which typically go viral.
'Long term, Brighton are in a great place'
Former Brighton midfielder Dale Stephens believes the current group of players reflects a model the Seagulls have refined over a number of seasons, but stressed that potential alone is no longer enough once players step into the first team environment. Speaking on BBC Radio Sussex's Albion Unlimited podcast, Stephens believes Brighton's continued reliance on youth has once again put the spotlight on the balance between development and results. Long term, Brighton are in a great place.
Enter the Mob Maze
Step into Mob Maze, a roguelite multiplayer adventure with SUPER-SIZED environments and scaled-up obstacles, available through the Server list in Minecraft: Bedrock Edition! Do you have what it takes to conquer this colossal place with your unique abilities, grab precious loot, and escape before it’s too late? Let’s find out!
Updates to Meta AI Glasses: Conversation Focus, Spotify Integration, and More
The latest software update for our AI glasses lets you hear people more easily in noisy environments, creates playlists based on what you're looking at, and more.
Youth Mental Health Spotlighted at U.S. Launch of the Second Lancet Commission on Adolescent Health and Wellbeing | Johns Hopkins Center for Global Mental Health
In October 2025, global health leaders, policymakers, youth advocates, and researchers convened in the nation’s capital for a two-day A Call to Action for Youth Mental Health. The event served as the U.S. launch of the report of the Second Lancet Commission on Adolescent Health and Wellbeing, an international effort to address the urgent and escalating challenges facing adolescents worldwide. Hosted by the Johns Hopkins Center for Global Mental Health, the convening followed the World Health Assembly launch in May 2025. The next steps will be to continue collaborating with partners across the U.S. and the world to support the actions responsive to youth needs, including, Integrate youth lived experience expertise into mental health research, policy, and practiceApply data-driven accountability for equitable access to quality careShape urban environments to promote youth mental healthUnderstand gendered drivers and tailored responses to support youth mental healthCatalyze intersectoral engagement for youth mental health: health, education, and social support systems
Science Carries On. Here Are Our Top Topics for 2026
Whether space, health, technology or environment, here are the issues in science that the editors of Scientific American are focusing on for 2026
WHO highlights health risks and opportunities in the global waste crisis
A new World Health Organization (WHO) report, Throwing away our health: the impacts of solid waste on human health – evidence, knowledge gaps and health sector responses, warns that poorly managed solid waste is driving a public health crisis and calls for urgent action to protect people and the environments they live in.Globally, the volume of municipal solid waste is growing at an unprecedented rate. Yet, many countries still lack the systems and resources to manage this waste safely. “Solid waste reflects how our societies produce and consume, and how we treat people and the environment in the process,” said Dr Ruediger Krech, Director a.i., Department of Environment, Climate Change, One Health & Migration at the World Health Organization. “If we continue to treat waste as an afterthought, we will lock in avoidable disease, climate pollution and deep social inequities. This report is a clear call to put health and equity at the centre of how we design, manage and ultimately reduce waste.”The report summarizes evidence on how solid waste – especially municipal solid waste – affects health through polluted air, water, soil and food. When waste is not collected, or is dumped, burned or not poorly treated, it can release hazardous chemicals, contaminate drinking-water sources and create breeding grounds for insects and rodents.Communities underserved by waste management services, those living near dumpsites and poorly managed landfills and incinerators, children and pregnant women, as well as waste workers – particularly those working informally – face the greatest risks. For the water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) community, the report underlines that safe management of municipal and health care waste is integral to safely managed, climate-resilient systems.A large share of municipal solid waste is still not collected or is disposed of in uncontrolled conditions, including open dumpsites and open burning. These practices damage ecosystems, contribute to climate change and undermine efforts to build healthy cities. When waste is properly managed, however, it can become a resource – generating energy and creating green jobs. The report calls for a coordinated, multisectoral response grounded in the waste hierarchy: preventing waste where possible, then reducing, reusing and recycling, with safe recovery and disposal.Key actions for governments and partners include reducing waste generation at source; expanding affordable and reliable waste collection services, especially in underserved communities; improving control at recovery and disposal facilities; and eliminating open dumping and burning, including hazardous waste. The new report identifies a central role for the health sector in addressing solid waste as a public health threat. The health sector can prevent and minimize health-care waste at source, improve segregation and safe treatment, invest in cleaner climate-resilient technologies, and advocate for health-protective policies and standards. The report also encourages more surveillance, research and biomonitoring to strengthen the evidence base, and promotes social protection and inclusion of informal waste workers.“This report gives countries and health authorities a very practical agenda,” said Mr Bruce Gordon, Head, Water, Sanitation, Hygiene and Health Unit, WHO. “Health ministries can start now by ensuring safe management of health-care waste, developing strong occupational health programmes for waste workers, and working with municipalities to reduce health risks from solid waste by closing open dumps and burn sites and gradually improving towards safe services. These concrete steps save lives today and will make cities cleaner and healthier in the future.
Southwestern Middle School Holds Inaugural Science Fair
Students at Southwestern Middle School recently had the chance to show off their creative sides in a science fair for students in the Living Environment class. Students collaborated with each other to devise, research, and present the findings for various studies following organisms and living creatures. Students’ interest in their particular projects gave them enough […]
Arc Raiders is getting festive tomorrow, as new environmental effects liven up outdoor maps
A new map condition is coming to Arc Raiders tomorrow, plus a new community event and departure window for expeditions.
How does salt help melt snow on the roads?
Did you know that not all roads are treated with the same salt? Ryan Miller explains the different types and how it can harm the environment.
Builders Movement seeks citizen-based solutions to overcome ‘us vs. them’ politics
In an increasingly polarized political environment, the Builders Movement, a nonprofit political advocacy organization, said that it wants to overcome “us vs. them” thinking in politics. It’s…
The Search for Life Tops NASA's Science Goals for the First Human Mars Mission
A new report identifies searching for life as the top science priority for humanity's first landing on Mars, ranking it above understanding water cycles, mapping geology, or even studying how the Martian environment affects astronaut health. The report outlines four possible exploration campaigns, with the highest ranked approach calling for missions totalling 330 sols at a single scientifically rich site where crews could investigate everything from ancient lava flows to active dust storms. By placing the search for extraterrestrial life at the centre of human Mars exploration, the report reimagines the first crewed mission not just as a milestone for spaceflight but as humanity's best chance to answer whether we're alone in the universe.
December 12, 2025
Over the past century, most cancer research has focused on the tumor itself. Rakesh Jain focused on the tumor’s environment instead. Plus, a glacier’s edge can be a dangerous place to do research. One team is using robots and sound samples to monitor the melting ice. And, when cases of plague pop up in the US, it can feel straight up medieval. It’s treatable, but how and why does it persist?
Policies | Business Conduct and Decisions
Abbott's transparent policies and standards guide our business decisions, ethical conduct and commitment to the environment.
Penske Entertainment establishes formal Independent Officiating Board for IndyCar
Comprised of three members tasked with presiding over the IndyCar Series and its Indy NXT development series, the IOB reports to a new non-profit entity, IndyCar Officiating, Inc, created by Penske Entertainment.
The New WHO Pandemic Treaty and Global Health Governance: Incorporating Common but Differentiated Responsibilities into PABS - Georgetown Journal of International Affairs
On May 20, 2025, the World Health Assembly unanimously adopted the World Health Organization (WHO) Pandemic Agreement, an international treaty designed to strengthen pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response. The product of three years of arduous negotiations, the treaty marks a new era of global cooperation in public health. However, core aspects of the agreement remain unresolved—notably the Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing (PABS) System, which is intended to ensure equitable access to pandemic-related materials and benefits. To support the successful implementation of the WHO Pandemic Agreement, the principle of “common but differentiated responsibilities” should be formally incorporated into the negotiating agenda of the PABS annex. Introduction For the first time, an international treaty has enshrined the principle of “One Health,” the compelling idea that the health of animals, humans, and the environment all contribute to pandemic risks. SARS (2003), H1N1 (2009–10), Ebola (2014–16), and COVID-19 all emerged through zoonotic spillover from animal hosts—respectively, civets, hogs, and bats. Together, they underscore the need for a coordinated, cross-sectoral approach. The Pandemic Agreement responds to this call, requiring state parties to acknowledge the ecological interplay and commit to a comprehensive “One Health” strategy. Specifically, Article 5 charges governments to address “the drivers of pandemics and the emergence and re-emergence of infectious disease at the human-animal-environment interface,” including wild animal markets, deforestation, and antibiotic overuse. Yet the effectiveness of this “One Health” vision depends equally on the free flow of scientific information and data among countries and institutions. Just as environmental and animal health factors have been neglected in past global frameworks, so too has data sharing been marginalized, despite its centrality to timely detection and response. The Pandemic Agreement takes an important step by requiring governments to enhance data collection and cooperate with the World Health Organization (WHO). However, these provisions will remain aspirational without a robust Pathogen Access and Benefit-Sharing (PABS) annex. The PABS system will determine whether countries and researchers can rapidly exchange pathogen samples and genetic data while ensuring equitable access to resulting research and development, including diagnostics, therapeutics, and vaccines. Without such mechanisms, the treaty’s promise to operationalize “One Health” and strengthen global preparedness will risk becoming largely symbolic, echoing earlier failures to translate shared principles into coordinated action. Equity Concerns When the 2025 Health Assembly adopted the Pandemic Agreement, it left the difficult question of access to pathogens and the sharing of resulting benefits to be addressed in a separate agreement. Negotiations on this separate agreement, PABS, are now underway in Geneva. Yet governments remain divided over fundamental questions of equity between the countries that primarily contribute to the system and those that primarily draw from it—and consequently benefit. For example, wildlife in countries bordering the equator is likely to produce PABS materials, but companies in Europe are likely to use them to develop lucrative products. The most likely contributor countries are likely to be those biodiverse countries around the equator, such as Brazil, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Indonesia, where the number of human-mammalian viral host interactions is large. Conversely, countries most likely to benefit from this material are those with the technology, investors, and infrastructure to capitalize on genomic data, such as the United States, EU member states, and Japan. This imbalance reflects a broader pattern seen in prior international frameworks. Now, as in the past, the wealthiest countries in the world (a useful heuristic is membership of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)) disproportionately benefit from systems in which pathogens and genomic sequencing data are contributed to a common source. Under the International Agreement on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (the “Plant Treaty” or “Seed Treaty”) and the Pandemic Influenza Preparedness (PIP) Framework, companies from Europe and North America disproportionately withdraw biological samples and data for development into lucrative medical products. Their governments and companies have both statutory and contractual claims to the products that those companies correspondingly produce. PABS appears poised to follow the same pattern. The text calls for strong language on access to pathogens and associated data, but the corresponding benefits that should flow to poorer countries are couched in equivocal or non-binding language. Common but Differentiated Responsibilities To address these inequities, the principle of “common but differentiated responsibilities” should be formally incorporated into the negotiating agenda of the PABS annex. Common but differentiated responsibilities are often a feature of climate change negotiations. The basic principle is that, even though all countries should reduce carbon emissions, governments that became rich and powerful through massive carbon emissions (e.g., France, the United Kingdom, the United States) should have a greater obligation to address the resulting crises. Applied to PABS, it would require that governments hosting and supporting companies developing lucrative products carry greater obligations toward the cost of running the PABS system; share benefits or final medical products; and transfer technology to help countries worldwide develop their own capacities to innovate and manufacture vaccines during an emergency. For example, an annex could mandate that any company based in an OECD country that withdraws PABS material would be obligated to donate the resulting diagnostics, therapeutics, or vaccines to the WHO during a public health emergency or pandemic. Questions remain about how robust those donations would be, but the principle is that they should deliver highly significant lifesaving benefits to be equitably shared. Theoretically, this approach mirrors the PIP Framework, in which companies withdrawing influenza samples are required to pay half of the operating costs. In practice, however, the framework has fallen short. The PIP Framework Secretariat has struggled to secure payments from companies, with companies often disagreeing over how much is owed. Additionally, without another pandemic influenza to test the strength of the agreement during a public health emergency, corporate compliance with sharing mechanisms remains unknown. Even if these limitations did not characterize the PIP Framework, partially paying for operating expenses does not address the inequity in access to genetic data and pathogen samples that left less developed countries last in line for COVID-19 vaccines (and, before them, H1N1). Common but differentiated responsibilities would go further, addressing governments’ legitimate grievances regarding information sharing. It would make withdrawals of PABS material and resulting products more transparent, building trust across the board. Enforcement and Enduring Success A key implication of this approach is that the governing mechanism of the PABS must have real enforcement authority. The WHO Pandemic Agreement delegates its core governance responsibilities to a Conference of the Parties (COP)—a governing body composed of one representative from each participating government, similar to those established under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. The proposed WHO Pandemic Agreement COP is charged with oversight functions but ultimately possesses no real authority to compel a government to take any action it does not wish to take. The text does not give the COP the ability to, for example, sanction a party that does not comply with either textual obligations or PABS provisions. In other words, there are no effective mechanisms in place to ensure compliance. Perhaps just as significant, establishing a meaningful enforcement mechanism within the PABS system would strengthen the WHO’s credibility and its ability to ensure compliance across global health governance. By setting a precedent for accountability, such a mechanism could enhance the organization’s authority not only within the Pandemic Agreement but also in enforcing the revised International Health Regulations and other frameworks for public health emergencies. Conclusion The PABS annex can—and should—be different. It should establish clear responsibilities for funding as well as for sharing the diagnostics, therapeutics, and vaccines that result from contributions to the system. The system, in turn, must include a dedicated body empowered to hold governments and the corporations they sponsor accountable for their responsibilities before, during, and after pandemics. Doing so would restore trust in the broader agreement, which was eroded as commitments were repeatedly diluted while parties scrambled to meet their own self-imposed deadlines during the Pandemic Agreement negotiations. A robust PABS Annex would cement a grand social bargain. Wealthier countries and their corporations would gain unimpeded access to scientific information essential for developing and manufacturing lifesaving medical products. As such, they would stand to gain considerable economic benefit. Yet that privilege must be matched with responsibility. The grand bargain must include not only the right to innovate, but also the duty to ensure that innovation serves all. As medical products are developed and produced through collective contributions, every person must have equal access. All human beings deserve an equitable chance to survive—to save their own life, the lives of their families, and the well-being of their communities. … Sam Halabi, JD, MPhil, is the Bette Jacobs Endowed Professor at Georgetown University’s School of Health and the Director of the Center for Transformational Health Law at Georgetown Law. He serves as the co-lead for the WHO’s Working Group on Regulatory Consideration on AI and Health’s training workstream. He earned his JD from Harvard, his MPhil from Oxford, and undergraduate degrees from Kansas State University. Lawrence Gostin, LLD (Hon.), JD, BA, is University Distinguished Professor and Founding Director and Timothy and Linda O’Neill Professor of the O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law. He is the author of Global Health Security: A Blueprint for the Future (Harvard University Press, 2021); Global Health Law (Harvard University Press, 2014); Public Health Law: Power, Duty, Restraint (University of California Press, 3rd ed., 2016); Public Health Law and Ethics: A Reader (University of California Press, 3rd ed., 2018); Law and the Health System (Foundation Press, 2014); Principles of Mental Health Law & Practice (Oxford University Press, 2010). He also directs the WHO Collaborating Center at Georgetown University. Image Credit: United States Mission Geneva, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
New group seeks to improve local business environment through work with government
A new business initiative led by Salem attorney Mark Hoyt was unveiled during a Salem Area Chamber of Commerce event on Monday. The group hopes to benefit the community by working with government on behalf of local businesses.
GLOBE Expands with Landsat Land Cover Comparisons
The Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE) Program has launched a new feature that connects citizen scientists directly to Landsat observations.
Danforth Plant Science Center to Lead Multi-Disciplinary Research to Enhance Stress Resilience in Bioenergy Sorghum
ST. LOUIS, MO., December 10, 2025 – Andrea Eveland, Ph.D., Principal Investigator and member at the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center, will lead a multi-institutional project to deepen the understanding of sorghum, a versatile bioenergy crop, and its response to environmental challenges. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Biological and Environmental Research (BER) program supports the three-year $2.
Synthetic chemicals in food system creating health burden of $2.2tn a year, report finds
Scientists issue urgent warning about chemicals, found to cause cancer and infertility as well as harming environment
Axios AI+ DC Summit: Fractured system blocks AI's full potential in health care, experts say
Improving communication and cross-functional collaboration could greatly improve how AI is used in health care environments
Fossil science owes a debt to indigenous knowledge: Lesotho missionary’s notes tell the story
Long ago, people identified fossils in their environment and explained them within their own cultural framework. This was early citizen science.
STEM Students Blend Science and Policy in New Capitol Campus Fellowship
Ella Camp (C'26) has always loved science but wanted to pivot from a career focused solely on research. In a new Earth Commons fellowship, she found an opportunity to dig into environmental public policy.
Scientists just released a map of all 2.75 billion buildings on Earth, in 3D
A new global atlas captures humanity’s entire built environment—from megacities to remote villages.
Humans are built for nature not modern life
Human biology evolved for a world of movement, nature, and short bursts of stress—not the constant pressure of modern life. Industrial environments overstimulate our stress systems and erode both health and reproduction. Evidence ranging from global fertility declines to chronic inflammatory diseases shows the toll of this mismatch. Researchers say cultural and environmental redesign, especially nature-focused planning, is essential.
How Moss Is Solving Mysteries Scientists Never Expected
A new study looks at how microscopic plants have been used as evidence in forensic investigations. Tiny plants such as moss are easy to miss. Many are no larger than an eyelash, and they usually grow low to the ground in damp, shaded environments. Despite their size, these plants can provide impo
Decades Later, Scientists Finally Explain Voyager 2’s Bizarre Readings at Uranus
Powerful waves unleashed by solar storms could be the key to understanding extreme radiation. Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) researchers now think they have found the answer to a puzzle that has lingered for nearly four decades involving Uranus and its unusual radiation environment. When Vo
Target of racist slurs accuses Farage of emboldening ‘toxic environment’ online
Party leader responsible for ‘dangerous’ culture shift, says broadcaster subject to alleged posts from Reform councillor
Scientists are turning Earth into a giant detector for hidden forces shaping our Universe
SQUIRE aims to detect exotic spin-dependent interactions using quantum sensors deployed in space, where speed and environmental conditions vastly improve sensitivity. Orbiting sensors tap into Earth’s enormous natural polarized spin source and benefit from low-noise periodic signal modulation. A robust prototype with advanced noise suppression and radiation-hardened engineering now meets the requirements for space operation. The long-term goal is a powerful space-ground network capable of exploring dark matter and other beyond-Standard-Model phenomena.
Over a third of animals lost in test deep sea mining
The findings contribute to a controversial debate that pits green technology against the environment.
From Confusion to Clarity: How Data-Driven Edge of Emerald Built Environments Helps Businesses Do Sustainability Right
Sustainability is not a checklist; it’s a transformation. And this is the very space Emerald Built Environments has claimed with certainty since its founding in 2008.
Politics is now Americans' No. 1 money worry, financial planners say
Heading into 2026, the political environment has become the top concern clients are raising with their advisor, according to a new report by the CFP Board.
Lanouette leads collaborative research bridging science education, urban ecosystems
Assistant Professor Kathryn Lanouette is leading a research project to better characterize what outdoor environmental education can look like in urban spaces.
Scientists Relaunch the 'Internet of Animals'
German scientists have relaunched a satellite system that will be used to track wildlife all across the globe. The "internet of animals" was first launched in 2020, in collaboration with Russian researchers, but was abruptly halted after Russia invaded Ukraine.
Addressing eminent domain for carbon pipelines among top priorities next Iowa legislative session
Iowa lawmakers are expected to revisit the issue of eminent domain for carbon capture pipelines in the upcoming legislative session, with environmental groups and the ethanol industry presenting opposing views.
DevvStream and Southern Energy Renewables Announce Business Combination Targeting Low-Cost Production of Carbon-Negative SAF and Green Methanol
SACRAMENTO, Calif. & NEW ORLEANS, December 03, 2025--DevvStream Corp. (Nasdaq: DEVS) ("DevvStream"), a leading carbon management and environmental-asset monetization firm, and Southern Energy Renewables Inc. ("Southern"), a U.S.-based producer of low-cost fuels made from biomass, with a flagship Louisiana project that plans to utilize regional wood-waste biomass to deliver green methanol and carbon-negative sustainable aviation fuel ("SAF") at scale, today announced that they have entered into a
Studying the role of the quantum environment in attosecond science
Researchers have developed a new way to model dephasing in attosecond experiments
Intensifying Regulatory Pressures Force Seismic Shift in Health Plan Concerns for 2026 According to HealthEdge Research
BOSTON, December 02, 2025--As healthcare organizations navigate an increasingly complex policy environment, 85% of health plan executives say regulatory pressures are impacting their costs and margins, according to new research published today by HealthEdge®. The report, "The Great Rebalancing: Inside the New Realities Shaping Health Plan Performance," identifies the top challenges in the payer market, how they are evolving, and strategies health plans are deploying to overcome them.
Green Science Alliance Proposes New 3D "Jungle Gym like" Structure for Solar Power Generation
Dr. Ryohei Mori of Green Science Alliance Co., Ltd. - a company engaged in the research and development of cutting-edge environmental and energy technologies for decarbonization and building a carbon-neutral society—has proposed a new solar power generation system utilizing a 3D "jungle gym" structure, with proof-of-concept testing planned in the near future.
$3.5 Million Mindpath Health Data Breach Settlement Gets First Nod
A California Superior Court judge has given preliminary approval to a settlement to resolve litigation against Community Psychiatry Management, LLC, Mindpath Health has agreed to pay $3.5 million to settle a class action lawsuit stemming from a 2022 breach of its Microsoft Office email environment that exposed the protected health information of almost 194,000 individuals.
Mapping the exposome: Science broadens focus to environmental disease triggers
After decades of intense focus on genetics, the biomedical research community is undergoing a major shift, focusing on a new framework called "exposomics."
New study finds cancer-linked compounds in common foods
Scientists have found that common foods can contain hidden contaminants formed during cooking or through environmental exposure. A new testing method called QuEChERS helps identify these chemicals more quickly and with greater ease. The research showed strong accuracy and high sensitivity across multiple food samples. This streamlined approach could improve food safety checks while reducing chemical waste.
Clinical Research Unit moves environmental health research forward
New medical director Lawrence Kirschner highlights the CRU’s role as a hub for translational studies connecting environmental exposures, genetics, and human health.
Science must move from materialism to mystery
Theoretical physicist and neuroscientist Àlex Gómez-Marín argues that modern science has become trapped in a framework that mistakes matter for the whole of reality. In this wide-ranging interview, Gómez-Marín challenges the foundations of materialism, defends the scientific study of near-death experiences, and calls for a new type of science grounded in mystery and a renewed sense of the sacred. He suggests that abandoning materialism could open the door to a deeper understanding of consciousness, death, and the purpose of human existence. Simon Custer: You are both a theoretical physicist and a neuroscientist, and you have also been fiercely critical of materialist theories of mind and consciousness. What do you think the ultimate nature of reality is?Àlex Gómez-Marín: I don't know what the ultimate nature of reality is, but what I try to first assess is whether the stories that they [mainstream science] have told us about it are right, or maybe whether there are other alternatives. That's why I've been a fierce critic of materialism. As a scientist, I realized that they had sold us this idea that to be a good scientist you also had to subscribe to many other -isms, like materialism, reductionism, and even secularism. And so first I think one needs to unmount these -isms, and then, as is happening today in consciousness studies, we have a huge landscape where there isn't only one game in town, the idea that matter is the only thing that really exists. But because we are studying the hard problem of consciousness, it may be the case that other views of reality, like idealism, or even dualism, or other theories like dual aspect monism... these are philosophical ideas that now, I think, have room in science to be taken seriously. How does something like materialism relate to dualism or idealism? What is materialism in the first place?Well, materialism is the philosophical position that matter is the only really ‘real’ thing in the universe. And I think that worked kind of well because science started 400 years ago and Galileo made that split, I call it the foundational wound. It was a great business move.He said, let's start doing science on that portion of reality that lends itself more easily to mathematization and measurement. So, for some reason, the solidity of this table or the movement of planets lend themselves very well to this foundational idea of science. But as time went on, 400 years later, we realized that we had forgotten the other side, which is what really matters.What really matters is pain, is love, is feelings, sensation, consciousness, which is very hard to define, but very intimate. We all know what it is. It's that thing that disappears when we go into deep sleep and comes back in the morning. SUGGESTED VIEWING On the edges of knowledge With Michael Shermer, Rupert Sheldrake, Güneş Taylor It's what it is like to be, as Nagel said. It's the feeling of being alive. So, materialism is good to study certain things, but then when it ossifies into this ideology and then is dressed like science, now it's preventing us from understanding these key questions that are really that everybody wants to know.Why are we here? Why do we feel reality? Where do we go when we die? And so we need other ways. We need pluralism. I'm only asking for having more options on the table and taking them seriously. Why does materialism fail to explain consciousness? For example, if you were to lobotomize me, I would not be a functional human being. What do you say to someone who might think that materialism adequately explains the mind?Well, here we could speak about different things. We could talk about physics or about neuroscience. I happen to have training with both.For instance, for neuroscientists, 99% of them, I'm not included in that portion, believe that the brain can only be a productive organ. It's an organ that somehow, somewhere, consciousness emerges. It's like a lamp. And then something happens, magic happens, and then consciousness emerges.That's the position you need to be if you're a materialist because if the only really ‘real’ thing is matter, then you need to say, just give us some more time and money and we'll figure out how mind emerges or is produced from matter. There are many philosophically sophisticated ways of criticizing this.Now there's another option, which is the brain as a permissive organ. This was said by William James more than 100 years ago.Now then the brain wouldn't be like this machine, like for instance, a heat engine whose smoke is consciousness, which is what we would have in the first big model, the productive model. But in the permissive model, the brain would be a kind of a filter. And so the brain would still have a very important role in consciousness, but it wouldn't be a productive role.It would be permissive, much like a filter or much like a prism which would receive light. And - I'm speaking metaphorically - it would receive the light of the mind and then it could reflect it and refract it.Now, with these two big options on the table, I think we can make progress into what I call the edges of consciousness, which are all these experiences, weird experiences that many people have, but we don't talk about enough, like near-death experiences, precognitive dreams, synchronicities. These experiences are very important for humans and they have a place in the permissive hypothesis and they are literally impossible in the productive hypothesis. So that's yet one more reason to explore alternatives to materialism. There may be anecdotal evidence for near-death experiences, but is there robust evidence that would be accepted by the majority of scientists who subscribe to the scientific method?Sure. And the plural of anecdotes, someone said, is data.And there's a lot of data. Actually, this year is the 50th anniversary, half a century, since Dr. Raymond Moody realized that we have two ears and one mouth and started listening to what his patients had to say about their experiences while they were clinically dead.The heart had stopped, breathing had stopped in these patients. These patients would come back and tell him these amazing stories that some people may say are hallucinations, but for the patients were hyper-real, like seeing light at the end of the tunnels, seeing deceased family members waiting for them, feeling bliss.___I would say the evidence suggests that the mind can survive the death of activity of the brain.___And so he and others started taking them seriously and writing their accounts down. And then you can do a science based on that material of experience that people have. Now, on the more objective side, more recently people have started to measure what's going on in the brain when people are clinically dead and brought back. This has opened a proper field of study, which is near-death studies.Evidence is a difficult word, because sometimes people think that when you say evidence, this is just the final proof. Evidence is like in a jury. You bring testimony, you bring pieces of data that point in one direction or another.I would say the evidence suggests that the mind can survive the death of activity of the brain. When brains are broken or shut off, there can still be mind going on. And that's revolutionary.That would entail that when we die, it's not game over, which, by the way, is the thesis of materialism. If consciousness survives, materialism dies. It's game over for materialism if something of us continues after we die. Do you think that there is mental continuity after death?Well, I think so, and I believe so, and I could also say I may have experienced it myself, because four years ago I had a near-death experience. I was in the hospital, I lost a lot of blood, and I saw those beings at the end of the tunnel, three beings, and there was yellow light. I was in a well, I was looking upwards, and I hadn't read about NDEs by then, but when I came back from this experience, I decided I would try to integrate this also in my professional life. Not just my personal life, of course, but my professional life as a physicist and as a neuroscientist. So I may have had the experience of glimpses of what an afterlife would be, and I'm not ashamed to say it in this way, and then one can do science of it, and then one can do philosophy of it.One can think about what -isms we were discussing, what views on reality would allow those experiences to be really ‘real,’ as opposed to, well, poor guy, the brain was kind of broken, it must have been a hallucination. Do you have a view about whether individuality or “the ego” persists after death, or whether we sort of merge into some sort of cosmic consciousness instead?I don't know, but my view would be along those lines you're suggesting. I think we could speak about a kind of universal mind, and then the problem is not how we emerge from matter, but how we fragment from a more holistic consciousness into these individual eddies and then when we die, this kind of dissipates.But I'm not sure. For instance, idealism would promote that view, but then what would survive of us after these eddies just vanish and become again the big Consciousness, I'm not sure what that would be. I don't know for sure, but I would tell you I believe something of us survives.And there are other lines of research, not just near-death experience, that can address this really hard question of survival. For instance, there are children who remember previous lives. This was studied by Ian Stevenson at the University of Virginia for more than 50 years.___Research takes place within a selection mechanism that also sometimes reinforces things that are not very scientific.___It's amazing research. He went all over the world, especially in the East, and collected all these case studies, all these stories. In plural, these were data of kids, very young age, who would describe up to 40 items that then he could go and verify.There was no internet. There was really no way the kid could know. Why would the kid say that when I was living in this other body and I was a woman and that's how my house would look like or that's how I would die, right? Again, there is evidence, not proof, but there's evidence not only that something weird and interesting is happening as we cross the threshold, but also when we come back to this life.Scientists should not be afraid of studying this, but they are because there's stigma. There's usually stigma upon the enigma, and this is so unfortunate. And one of the reasons is because of the ideology of materialism, because those things cannot be possible. What is wrong with the politics of science such that they have generated this stigma?So many things. Science is a human activity to begin with.So it falls prey to all our passions and ego and greed. That's one thing. Science is a job for the good and for the bad.You need to get a salary. You need to get grants. Research takes place within a selection mechanism that also sometimes reinforces things that are not very scientific.And then, we didn't have time to unpack this, but science for many years become entangled, as I was suggesting before, to other -isms, materialism, secularism. So anything that smells like the afterlife, people may think has to do with God, and then they freak out.Anything that suggests that there's something about the mind that may not need a physical material substrate to exist, it smells like non-materialism. So, all these -isms are ideologically blocking that kind of research, and then there are all these sociopolitical constraints as to what should be studied and what shouldn't be studied.I call it the backstage of science. Sometimes we scientists or science communicators seem to speak as if the data is the only thing that matters. We say, well, data and theory.But then there's a third leg of this stool, which is all the politics that goes behind the scenes. And we often don't speak about this, and it's quite vicious and petty, and it's very real. Why is materialism so attractive to most scientists?Well, an easy answer is because we've grown up with it.It's what the educational system promotes, and that's what you hear when you go to university. So it's like growing in a culture. It feels like the air in which you breathe.So it's very hard to begin with to detect, well, maybe there's another alternative. Maybe there are other ways of doing science, other environments in which one could do science. That's one reason.And other reasons maybe are more profound, and I'm not qualified to explain them, but I could say, looking at this 400-year history of science, since it started around 1623 with Galileo's book The Assayer, that science went and coupled with all what's going on in the West.And so the fall of religion, you could say, and science presented us this new alternative that then could be coupled very well with other -isms, and this idea of growth, and then science losing its good twin brother, which was philosophy. There's a whole natural history of science starting as philosophy, kind of emancipating or breaking out from philosophy, and then marrying technology, and then marrying other social systems.From that point of view, materialism is a very convenient idea to propose. There were attempts, like the German idealists tried to do a more romantic science. But no, the idea prevailed, like Francis Bacon said: You should pursue nature through all her corners, he said, and make her spill her secrets.Our attitude towards nature in the science that dominates is very much reflecting how we treat nature in our society, in our culture, like a resource to extract secrets by force and then dominate it. How is materialism related to the notions of growth and progress? What's wrong with having a productive citizenry?This is another very interesting and very difficult question to answer.But there's this recent book coming out by Paul Kingsnorth. In it, he explains this idea of the machine and this idea of progress. And this, again, this conflation of more is better, of we need to go forward always, and convincing us that the way to do that is to continually extract more from nature. But because we don't have the religious context anymore, because God is dead, then what do we have? We have what we can do as humans with our own gadgets.It's kind of the story of the Promethean fire. We will just build anything to make ourselves God.A good example today is transhumanism. Transhumanism is this pseudo-religion dressed in technoscientific language whose goal is very religious. They promise immortality, they promise redemption, they promise transformation of the entire natural world, but it's done by human means through technology. Are you suggesting that we can't have ethics without religion?Well, we should have ethics with or without religion. That's another pruning that has happened in science. We say, forget about aesthetics, although some physicists still think that beautiful means probably true, and forget about politics. We pretend there's no backstage of science, and even let's forget about ethics.___Science needs to be in the service of mankind.___Scientists, when they become more like engineers, they're just thinking how to make things work so that they can go to the moon, go to Mars, make machines that think, but they don't think whether that's a good idea.And also consider metaphysics. Many scientists for a long time pretended, and maybe that comes from the stream of positivisms, that really one doesn't need metaphysics at all, except that materialism is always the metaphysics running the system.You see, it's not just ethics. It's the pruning of all of these, you could say, five main legs of philosophy that just makes a kind of unconscious science, a science that doesn't really know what it's doing. It's doing it very well locally, but it just doesn't know what it's doing globally. Do you think science has to have an ultimate vision and purpose behind it for it to be effective or for it to be meaningful and transformative?Yes, a way I would say that is that science needs to be in the service of mankind. And it hasn't been that. And we can see it through, you know, when we discovered the secrets of the atom, and all of a sudden, the Manhattan Project, and then we create nuclear weapons.And now we're trying to crack how machines may think, and now we're creating this mess, right? So science needs to be in service of mankind, not in service of a few ideas that maybe want to make more money or just dominate upon nature. What about planes, trains, automobiles, and modern medicine? Hasn't science served mankind by helping us develop those technologies?Yes and no. I see where you're going, and it's fair.I came here by plane, and it's a blessing. When I almost died, the surgeons did their job, and they saved my life. But these two forced choices between Luddites and Silicon Valley types, I think, of course, it's a false dichotomy.Progress, in a way, it's good, but we often don't speak about the dark side of the moon. We say the great things that progress has brought, and we don't speak about the disasters, the side effects that it has come with, and the same when we promise new technologies. We tend to think that any technology is great, that email is going to save us so much time because we don't need to write letters and send them anymore.Is that true? I spend so many hours a week writing emails. Let's just say there are great things about it and bad things about it. People like Harvard psychologist Steven Pinker, for example, argue that we've made moral progress over time because of the Enlightenment. Do you think that's totally wrong-headed?I think he's emphasizing a side of the moon, and he does that very well, and you can find tons of plots where there's a slope going up and say it's great. But I think he should also tell the not-so-friendly story.But if your ideology is just to resist and continue to explain that the Enlightenment is the best thing ever and reason is the best thing ever… this feels to me like you're worshipping these abstractions.I'm very critical of it and also of these, again, science communicators and scientists that say, Oh, science says, in the name of science, experts say. It's like, come on, let's be careful because we can shoot ourselves in the foot by putting forth to the people an image of science that we know is not really true. Recently there's been a resurgence of spirituality and of people who say that they're spiritual but not religious, especially in the United States. If materialism is going away, what is going to fill that gap? Are we going to return to traditional religion? Do you see that being connected with the rise of the political right?I'm not a fortune teller, so I don't know what's going to happen. But, yeah, we could say we're in this post-materialist age and even post-secular age. One cannot come back to the past, but maybe just to contact with the roots is a good idea.What do I mean by that? I think we need to do a science 2.0, a science that says thank you to Galileo and thank you to materialism, but we need to reinvent even a new kind of scientific method. We need to do so in a culture where we realize humans cannot thrive in a vacuum where there's this idea that the sacred has to be removed.Now, how do we do that without bringing in back all the vices of religion? I don't know. I'm from a Catholic country.Here we are in England, so there are differences and interreligious dialogue has always been a challenge. But I think maybe a way of putting it is: after all these conflicts and branchings I was quickly alluding to, science from philosophy and then also from religion, now there's a time of reconciliation perhaps and maybe debates in the proper sense, like exchange of ideas in service of learning and getting into something higher than both poles. We need science to talk to religious people and it's interesting when people say they're spiritual and not religious.I think this is just a way of saying, no, I don't want to go back, I want to go forward. But at the end of the day, religions have offered us practices and grounding that we now desperately need. Everybody can and should just meditate or pray or do whatever they want, but we're in a crisis and it's time for reconciliation. What do you say to critics that say you are merely projecting our need for meaning onto a fundamentally indifferent universe?Yeah, I know that the typical science communicator says something like this. But we're not projecting. Human beings feed on meaning.It's the other way around. If you're a materialist, because the only thing that there is is matter, all that comes next, free will, consciousness, meaning, this is a kind of illusion that we need to explain.They're just craving for meaning, but there isn't really for them. I would also like to remind my materialist friends that for decades, if not centuries, they've said in the name of science, we know that this and this and this doesn't really exist. I think now they sense they're forced to say, well, actually, we don't know. We've been saying, for instance, that there's nothing after you die, and now probably they need to admit that they don't know the answer.___We need to do a science 2.0, a science that says thank you to Galileo and thank you to materialism, but we need to reinvent even a new kind of scientific method.___So it's a moment to open up possibilities and also to gently but fiercely critique these claims that I think harm society. If you say in the name of science, get on with it, when your father dies, you'll never see him again. Well, what the F do you know about it? You haven't studied the literature, you haven't had any of those experiences, and basically what you're doing is you're just doing marketing on ideology. This needs to stop. Do you think that it's scarier for some people to entertain the thought that there might be life after death, compared to a materialist worldview where you just die, given that there might be consequences for unsavory behaviour?Well, death and dying is scary. It's maybe the ultimate ending. It's a limit on life, and when we're in this conquest mode, we don't like limits.And it also has, there's a shockwave backwards, so I think if you change your notion of what death is or may be, you live differently. It also has consequences, as you're saying, for the future because this is not our only goal here and we come back in whatever form. And again, different religions would say different things. I the East, they are more happy with the idea of reincarnation, and here in the West, there are other preferences. But in any case, it changes how we live, and that's really what matters.It's not about just projecting or imagining what we'll be after, but how we live now and also how we treat those who are dying. So it goes from the individual to the families, to the hospitals.Now in the near-death research I do, this has ramifications at all these levels, all the way to society.But our society is thanatophobic. It has a phobia of death. We don't want to hear about death, and this is another thing we need to put on the table and be willing to talk about it. Do you think that we might get closer to answering ultimate questions like why is there anything at all if we jettison materialism?That’s an excellent question, Simon. Two things: we should stop treating reality, I believe, as a great sudoku, as an enigma, as something that with intelligence, money, and time that we will crack and instead treat reality more like a mystery. And what you do for in front of a mystery is not to be the clever guy in a class and say “I’ll solve you” but more like “I will bow and you will transform me.”I know this sounds a bit like a scientist speaking like a mystic. But I think this reorientation is needed. In the end, we won’t crack the big questions, but they will transform us. If we free ourselves from this prison of materialism, the way we will explore these questions will be freer, more creative, and in service of mankind. Do you think exploring mystery is the reason why we are here?I think we are here because, and this pseudo-theological argument I’m making off the cuff, But the One, the Absolute, if there is such a thing, had everything except limitation. We are that absolute experiencing that contingency. It’s like an act of divine proprioception. It’s a wonderful adventure, it’s just incredible to be alive. Perhaps we have forgotten why we are here and the whole point is to experience the flesh.Let me end by saying this. I criticize materialism harshly. I bang on this dead horse, because I think it’s dead. But matter is a great mystery. So maybe my invitation is as follows: hey materialist friends, come here, let’s work on materialism 2.0! Consciousness is a mystery, but matter is also a mystery. The fact that we can have an intersubjective experience consensus, the fact that we can apply mathematics, that we can measure things... the physical world we take for granted, but it is a great mystery too.Maybe that’s related to your last question: why are we here? Why did spirit decide to incarnate? Being in the flesh may be a great thing if spirit decided to do so.Àlex Gómez-Marín, thank you very much.My pleasure.
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