Debate around climate change is based on the idea that Earth is a purely physical and chemical entity, writes Lee Klinger. But what if Earth is a living system? Then things could turn out very differently - and we understand how, we need to develop a new Gaian science of planetary physiology.
… processes and feedbacks, the influence of biology is minor compared to the physics and … meltwaters plays a significant role in the biology of sea ice . Thus, the conditions …
Following the retraction of the Seralini et al scientific paper which found health damage to rats fed on GM corn, over 100 scientists have pledged in this Open Letter to boycott Elsevier, publisher of the Journal responsible.
… B Cking PhD, GERMANY Michel B Gin Ph D Microbiology, CANADA Alick Bartholomew MA in … UNITED STATES Dr Maria Caparis PhD Marine Biology Marine Scientific Expert Consultant to … Botany ethnobotany systematics, Plant Biology Research Institute, Montreal, CANADA …
Three in one: EFSA set to re-licence glyphosate based on secret industry studies; Monsanto moves against IARC verdict that glyphosate is a 'probable carcinogen'; and new science shows that FDA principle of GMO 'substantial equivalence' is bunk.
… Disrupt Molecular Systems Equilibria? Systems Biology May Provide Answers ', authors V A … Prabhakar Deonikar report on their 'systems biology' approach to the question, and find … targeted GM is not plant breeding." "Systems biology" , they propose, "which aims to …
A six-month investigation finds that the revolving door between government and the chemical industry has led the EPA to rely on easily manipulated toxicology research carried out entirely on computers - and this 'in silico' science often trumps both biology and epidemiology when it comes to regulatory action, or lack of it. The result? Toxic substances remain in everyday products.
… this 'in silico' science often trumps both biology and epidemiology when it comes to … policy Leo Trasande. "However, when you have biology telling you there are basic flaws in … of Massachusetts, Amherst professor of biology R. Thomas Zoeller. In other words, the …
Somebody somewhere has to have a cunning plan to fix our environmental problems and save the world – right? Jim Thomas sorts through the big tech ideas you’ll be reading about this year
… terminator (sterility) technology. Synthetic biology Every few years a technology platform … process of reinventing itself as synthetic biology – an extreme form of genetic … scratch. With more than a dozen synthetic biology companies aiming to put products on …
Birds eggs are wonderful, as Tim Birkhead makes clear in his new book. But they are also enigmatic, mysterious, their secrets not lightly surrendered. Every kind of egg is perfect in its own way, writes Martin Spray, but the logic that underlies their characteristic designs, colours and shapes eludes the most assiduous of oologists.
… The reader learns not only about bird biology. The rigorous caution and skepticism …
Increased atmospheric CO2 is doing much more than warming the Earth, writes Tony Juniper - it's also acidifying oceans, something that is already having major impacts on ocean ecology in the Southern Ocean and the North Atlantic. Likely effects: more CO2 in the atmosphere, more jellyfish.
… into the seawater. MacDonald points out that biology is more difficult to predict than …
Just as climate change deniers leap from scientific uncertainty over the precise impacts of greenhouse gas emissions to certainty of little or no impact at all, so 'pro-nuclear environmentalists' conflate uncertainty of the mortality arising from Chernobyl and other nuclear disasters to certainty of few if any deaths, writes Jim Green. Their position is equally indefensible.
Radiation harm deniers? Pro-nuclear environmentalists and the Chernobyl death toll Dr Jim Green | 7th April 2016 News Nuclear Health Science Radiation WMD Ukraine Belarus doll.jpg Just as climate …
Research on the biological effects of radiation near the Fukushima nuclear disaster site finds a powerful response in rice seedlings, writes Gregory McCann. The discovery will do nothing to boost consumer confidence in resumed rice exports from the Fukushima region.
Fukushima radiation damages rice genome Gregory McGann | 18th September 2014 News Radiation Japan Food Farming Science Nuclear Power rice-fukushima-cut.jpg Research on the biological effects of …
The very term 'genetic engineering' implies high precision in the alterations made to genes and deep understanding of their consequences, writes Jonathan Latham. In fact, we have never had either. And even with the arrival of CRISPR and other 'gene editing' systems, that remains the case: technologists are thrashing about in a perilous sea of unfathomable complexities and unknowable outcomes.
… genetic modifications: a new era in molecular biology and crop improvement . Planta 239: …
160 global groups have called for a moratorium on new 'genetic extinction' technology at the UN Convention on Biological Diversity meeting in Cancun, Mexico. Gene drive technology, they say, poses serious and irreversible threats to biodiversity, national sovereignty, peace and food security.
Biodiversity Convention call to block new 'genetic extinction' GMOs GMWatch The Ecologist | 6th December 2016 News GMOs Science Biodiversity Un Mexico aphids-cut.jpg 160 global groups have called for …
Are GMOs safe? Up to a point, writes Jonathan Latham - provided you're not eating them. That's certainly not proven to be safe, indeed the hazards are numerous: protein encoding viral DNA fragments, herbicide metabolites, biotoxins whose operation is not understood, poorly conducted experiments ... and those are just the ones we know about.
… feeling my way in the complex world of biology and of scientific research. Another …
New research shows that biochar in soil strongly stimulates plant growth, more than doubling yields. However the extra growth may come at the cost of reduced plant defences against pests.
… are published in the journal Global Change Biology Bioenergy . The scientists, led by …
A new study shows it's not just neonicotinoids that impair bees' ability to navigate to nectar and pollen sources, and to their nests: now the herbicide glyphosate has been found to have the same impact even at very low levels.
… and published in the Journal of Experimental Biology , researchers evaluate the effects of … is published in the Journal of Experimental Biology . Campaign: Whether the pesticide use …
A broad community of independent scientific researchers and scholars challenges claims of a 'consensus' that genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are 'safe' to grow and eat. The claims - which continue to be widely and often uncritically aired - are a false and artificial construct that have been misleadingly perpetuated through diverse media.
… funding and/or those trained in molecular biology were very likely to have a positive …
There is no stop button......in the race for human re-engineering. Science will soon give some of us the tools to make ourselves cleverer and stronger. What will it mean for humanity?
… Evolution Humanity Science Technology Biology Human Re-engineering Science And … is on the point of being liberated from its biology. In their advocacy of our …
The Precautionary Principle must mean, above all, avoiding the risk of ruinous outcomes for people or the wider environment, write Rupert Read & David Burnham. When the Philippines Supreme Court applied that test to GMOs, they found they had to ban them - not as a moral choice but pragmatically, to avoid potentially devastating consequences.
… introduction of alien species; and synthetic biology. Precaution is simply the new …
Although flowing water is fundamental to river ecosystems, temporary streams are distinctive landscape features that support surprisingly diverse communities, writes Rachel Stubbington. However, the biodiversity of these dynamic ecosystems needs greater recognition and protection.
… recently published in the journal Freshwater Biology indicates that droughts reduce … & Paul J. Wood, and published in Freshwater Biology as an open access paper. Rachel … articles in journals including Freshwater Biology. She is a core member of an EU-funded …
Apparent 'victories' in the fight against toxic chemicals - like the EU's failure to re-approve glyphosate yesterday - are illusory, writes Jonathan Latham. The real problem is not one of specific 'bad actors', but the entire system that allows new, likely to be toxic compounds to pollute the environment in near-total ignorance of their impacts. It's time to take our campaigning to a whole new level.
… Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology 141: 160. Braun JM, Kalkbrenner AE, …
The EU is considering the exclusion of gene-edited plants and animals from GM regulations, write Janet Cotter & Ricarda Steinbrecher. However gene-edited organisms clearly fall within the definition of GMOs in both European and international law. They also present real risks to the environment and human health - and must be regulated like any other GMOs.
… engineered organisms and synthetic biology. She's a founding member of the …
The Royal Society purports to provide unbiased information on scientific issues, writes Steven Druker. But its new guide on GMOs is grossly misleading - glossing over the many dangers inherent to the technology with bland, unsupported re-assurances. The Society must end its partisan promotion of GMOs or risk its reputation as Britain's premier scientific body.
Royal Society must end its partisan, unscientific support for GM crops and food Steven Druker | 13th July 2016 News GMOs Science Health Food Farming royal-society-cut.jpg The Royal Society purports …
Scotland's decision to maintain its GM-free status is in the best interests of the country, its people and its farmers, 30 scientists write to Rural Affairs Secretary Richard Lochhead. It is abundantly justified by the scientific evidence and will support the sustainable, agroecological farming systems of the future.
… Biosafety Dr David Hookes , PhD in molecular biology, Honorary Senior Research Fellow in …
It was 28 years ago today that Reactor 4 at the Chernobyl nuclear plant in Ukraine ruptured and ignited, sending a massive plume of radiation across Europe. Jim Green assesses the scientific evidence for how many people died as a result of the catastrophe.
Chernobyl - how many died? Jim Green - Nuclear Monitor | 26th April 2014 News Nuclear Power Radiation Health Ukraine EU Science fuku-angels-cut.jpg It was 28 years ago today that Reactor 4 at the …
Building on a talk prepared for the Resurgence 'One Earth, One Humanity, One Future' conference, (although not presented at that event) Fritjof Capra explains new scientific evidence supporting the long-held supposition of Buddhists and others that humans are interconnected and part of nature.
Living Networks Fritjof Capra | 20th January 2017 Other Systems Thinking Evolution Science predestination.jpg Building on a talk prepared for the Resurgence 'One Earth, One Humanity, One Future' …