Why the record low Arctic sea ice this October is so alarming
For the past five months, Melinda Webster has lived on an icebreaker ship frozen in an ice floe near the North Pole. For Webster, a sea ice geophysicist at the…
Big Oil’s hopes are pinned on plastics. It won’t end well.
The fossil fuel industry has not been doing well lately. Even before the Covid-19 pandemic hit, growth in global demand had slowed to 1 percent annually. Now, lockdowns and distancing…
Europe’s second wave of Covid-19 doesn’t excuse Trump’s failures
Europe suffered a big Covid-19 outbreak in the spring, then subsequently suppressed the virus while the United States continued to struggle. But now cases in Europe are surging once again:…
Polls show Trump is losing ground where the coronavirus is surging
The third — and largest — coronavirus wave is hitting the US just in time for the presidential election, with surges in key Midwestern swing states. Numerous polls suggest voters…
Why many Americans refuse to participate in contact tracing
Reluctance to share information about coronavirus infections or contacts seems to run deep in the US — all the way to the White House, where an investigation into the spread…
A second Trump term would mean severe and irreversible changes in the climate
This piece was originally published August 27, and has been lightly updated. During the final presidential debate, both candidates were asked how they would combat climate change and support job…
Trump’s closing message on Covid-19: My only mistake was mishandling public relations
President Donald Trump is closing his 2020 presidential campaign by arguing that his only mistake in dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic was mishandling “public relations.” “We got hit with the…
Why a negative Covid-19 test before Thanksgiving isn’t an all-clear
More frequent Covid-19 testing is one key to help end the pandemic. But as individuals, we can’t rely on testing alone to protect ourselves and others. Take this recent example:…
Giving thanks may make your brain more altruistic
Over Thanksgiving, in between mouthfuls of turkey and sweet potato pie, many of us will be asking ourselves: What are we grateful for? Taking a moment to practice gratitude like…
Covid-19 vaccine efficacy results are not enough
The recent results of Covid-19 vaccine clinical trials from teams at the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca, Moderna, and Pfizer and BioNTech have been some of the most exciting and…
Why the US egg industry is still killing 300 million chicks a year
For every new egg-laying hen born into today’s factory farming system, a male chick is killed — or “culled.” As many as 300 million chicks are killed in the United…
Your state’s Covid-19 epidemic, explained in 4 maps
America’s national Covid-19 epidemic continues, with the US’s daily new cases down from an early January peak but still higher than those of most developed nations — and the country…