Digg | River - Science

Home » Science

The World’s Electronic-Waste Dump (496 diggs) Guiyu was once a peaceful rice-growing village located in the eastern province of Guangdong, southern China – that is - until a surge of broken computers and laptops arrived from the Western World. Since then, Guiyu has been proclaimed the World’s electronic-waste capital.

500 Million y.o Fossil Of Stromatolite Discovered In US (535 diggs) Scientists have confirmed that an approximately 500 million-year-old stromatolite was recently discovered at the Boxley Blue Ridge Quarry near Roanoke, Virginia. This is the first-ever intact stromatolite head found in Virginia, and is one of the largest complete "heads" in the world, at over 5 feet in diameter and weighing over 2 tons.

Complete Radio Created from a Single Carbon Nanotube (727 diggs) A single nanotube serves as all major components of a radio: antenna, tuner, amplifier, and demodulator. The radio ’s extremely small size could enable radical new apps such as radio controlled devices in the bloodstream, or simply smaller, cheaper, and more efficient cellphones. Check out what Eric Clapton's "Layla" sounds like through the nanotube

Scarcity of Land & Water will Lead to more Violent Conflicts (398 diggs) The problem of population.The world will experience a growing risk of conflicts over food, energy and water in coming years. The population rises each year by about 80 million people, with most of the increase in impoverished regions already facing environmental stress.

Experts Think China’s Wind Energy Could Grow 1667% by 2020 (533 diggs) At present, China produces just over 6 Gigawatts (GW) of wind energy, making it 5th in the world for total wind energy. However, with China ’s massive push for 21st Century renewable technologies, we shouldn’t be surprised if China achieves 100 GW by 2020 say energy experts.

Tom Friedman Calls For Green Revolution (257 diggs) The book's main argument is that the convergence of global warming, global flattening (the rise of middle classes all over the world), and global crowding (the population boom) is driving five key trends that will define the 21st century.

Fresh puzzle over dark energy supernovae (277 diggs) IT'S an embarrassing gap in astronomers' knowledge. Despite relying on type Ia supernovae as tools to measure the dark energy speeding up the universe's expansion, they still don't know exactly what causes the blasts. Now the picture has got even fuzzier.

Surface of Mercury Dominated By Volcanism & Iron-Deficiency (252 diggs) Volcanism has played a more extensive role in shaping the surface of Mercury than scientists had thought. This result comes from multispectral imaging data gathered in January 2008 by MESSENGER, the latest spacecraft to visit the sun's innermost planet.

New West Nile virus strain may worsen epidemic (367 diggs) A new strain of West Nile virus is spreading better and earlier across the United States, and may thrive in hot American summers, researchers said on Thursday. The virus infected an estimated 175,000 people last year, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported in its weekly report on death and disease on Thursday.

Mysteries of time, and the multiverse (1,047 diggs) In his studies of entropy and the irreversibility of time, Caltech physicist Sean Carroll is exploring the idea that our universe is part of a larger structure.

Spacecraft Woken for Asteroid Encounter (403 diggs) A comet-chasing spacecraft has been awoken during its years-long journey so it can study an asteroid it will fly past this September. Launched in March 2004, Rosetta will reach its final destination only in 2014, after traveling a total of about 4 billion miles (6.5 billion kilometers). The spacecraft will also fly by asteroid Lutetia in June 2010.

How the Hubble Telecope Assembles Raw Image Data (687 diggs) From the telescope's raw data to the final, fully processed photograph, this feature shows the various steps and how much effort went into assembling the famous image of the Eagle Nebula.

U.S. not prepared for possible asteroid strike (515 diggs) On the 100th anniversary of the devastating Tunguska event in Siberia, scientists and an Orange County congressman urge the government to take further defensive measures against near-Earth objects. A group of scientists draw attention to their belief that the United States is not doing enough to defend the planet against the dangers.

APOD: Comet Between Fireworks and Lightning (513 diggs) Sometimes the sky itself is the best show in town. Last January, people from Perth, Australia gathered on a local beach to watch a sky light up with delights near and far. Nearby, fireworks exploded as part of Australia Day celebrations. On the far right, lightning from a thunderstorm flashed in the distance. Near the image center, though, seen thr

Outdoor BBQ: A 700,000-year-old Ritual (363 diggs) As we all stand around waiting for the fire to die down so that we can make s'mores, it's also a time to ponder the notion that the barbecue is a ritual 700,000 years old or more, and it might have something to do with our big brains.

Earth Observer: Fires in California (410 diggs) The first major wildfires of the season in California got underway in the first week of summer 2008 when thunderstorms brought lightning but little rain to drought-stricken forests and chaparral in the state. The fires continued to rage in early July. This natural-color image was captured by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS)

Earth's Core, Magnetic Field Changing Fast (773 diggs) Rapid changes in the churning movement of Earth's liquid outer core are weakening the magnetic field in some regions of the planet's surface, a new study says.

10 Ways Methane Could Brake Global Warming or the Planet (315 diggs) Methane is a paradox. It increases global warming at the same time that it promises abundant alternative energy. The gas is all around the planet, from the atmosphere to deep below seabeds. Here are 10 trends and discoveries that may determine methane's ultimate roll in the health of the environment:

Caloric Restriction Comes in a Pill (456 diggs) Scientists have provided the strongest evidence yet that the anti-aging benefits of calorically restricted diets can be duplicated -- minus the near-starvation -- by a pill.

Only Seven Years Left for Global Warming Target (456 diggs) The head of the UN's Nobel-winning panel of climate scientists on Friday said only seven years remained for stabilising emissions of global-warming gases at a level widely considered safe.

Giant Jupiter Shines Bright (442 diggs) Over in the west-northwest sky at dusk, Mars and Saturn remain a lovely sight in close proximity to the bright bluish star, Regulus in Leo. Meanwhile, emerging into view low in the southeast you'll note a very bright silvery "star." That star however, is the planet identified with the supreme sky-god: Jupiter.

Environmentalism Meets Reality (1,033 diggs)

Save the Planet, Save Cash: 25 Best Ways to Green Your Green (611 diggs) "Going eco- friendly.....doesn't that cost extra?" Tired of hearing that line? So are we. So let's bury this assumption once and for all! Here's how to save a ton of cash.

12 Tips To Help You Become an Armchair Environmentalist (486 diggs) Become an environmentalist + increase my home energy savings without having to change my lazy lifestyle? Now we're talking!

Your Laptop's Dirty Little Secret (533 diggs) But the tech industry has a dirty little secret: it has toxic waste of its own. Phones and computers contain dangerous metals like lead, cadmium and mercury, which can contaminate the air and water when those products are dumped.