SCIENCE & TECH

Lithium: Not as clean as we thought

Lithium: Not as clean as we thought

 By Alex Kim All Electric Ford F-150 Truck at LA Car Show, 2021. Photographed by James Turner.  While electric cars reduce fossil fuel emissions once they are on the road, the production of the lithium-ion batteries that power them causes more displacement and CO2 emissions than the production of regular gas-powered cars. Disposal of the batteries at the end of their life cycle is also a growing concern. “There are carbon dioxide and other greenhouse emissions that come with the process of extraction,” said Zeke Hausfather, a scientist at climate research nonprofit Berkeley Earth told Climate360. “[It's] not like CO2 comes out of the lithium, but it does take energy to mine things — t...

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What is reef-safe sunscreen, and why is it important?

The most important impact you can make is educating those around you, like family and friends. While your individual changes are a major step, there are still thousands of people using harmful sunscreens as protection. Each person you can educate to make the change means less chemicals effecting our coral reef ecosystems.

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Experts say preparing the next generation to combat climate change involves rethinking how American public schools teach science

By Josh Archote Climate change is what science educator Laura Tucker would call a “wicked problem.”  Its impacts aren’t immediately obvious to many and require proactive, coordinated responses from governments across the world. It’s the kind of global issue that connects science to every other subject: politics, economics, sustainability, social

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How to build in a flood-prone city: a lesson from the Netherlands

By Sami Beekman, Nicole Nguyen BATON ROUGE, LA – What do New Orleans, Louisiana, and Charleston, South Carolina, have in common? The foundation of both southern cities’ modern infrastructure was built on marsh land in the 19th and 20th centuries.  Through a combination of turn-of-the-century drainage systems, the shoring-up of

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