Science Corner

Innovation in energy and sustainability is supported by research and discovery in science and engineering. Planet Forward’s Science Corner, brought to you in partnership with the National Science Foundation, takes a look at the science behind the innovations of today and tomorrow.

biochar

Biochar Produces Better Crops and Cleaner Air

by: National Science Foundation

A multinational research team is developing biochars–fine-grained, highly porous charcoal that helps soils retain ... more ...

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Controlling Light Pollution

by: National Science Foundation

New measurements of the NSF-funded Kitt Peak National Observatory near Tucson, Ariz., show that sky brightness has ... more ...

Green Building, Green Communities, Green Living

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Sparking the Algae Harvest

by: National Science Foundation

A team of engineers and scientists at North Carolina State University has developed a new method for harvesting marine ... more ...

Agriculture, Biofuels, Science

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Conversion of Sugars to Make Fuels, Plastics and Pharmaceuticals

by: National Science Foundation

Researchers have developed a way to make an efficient catalyst that transforms biomass-derived sugars into a compound ... more ...

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Engineering Bacteria to Make Biofuels

by: National Science Foundation

Researchers have re-engineered an anaerobic bacterium known as clostridia to prevent spore formation, a change that ... more ...

Biofuels, Transportation

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Identifying Severe Weather Outbreaks Earlier

by: National Science Foundation

A team of scientists from three universities has developed a weather-prediction system that will allow forecasters to ... more ...

Natural Disasters

nanoparticles

Understanding the Nanoparticle in Renewable Energy

by: National Science Foundation

Using a powerful electron microscope, a research group at Arizona State University has observed dynamic behavior in ... more ...

Renewable Energy, Science

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Winter Shrinking by Seven Days Each Decade

by: National Science Foundation

Adaptation, Agriculture

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Toward a Low Energy Computer: Efficient Caches

by: National Science Foundation

In an NSF-sponsored project, computer scientists at the University of Utah have developed techniques to reduce the ... more ...

Adaptation, Business, Clean Tech, Colleges and Universities, Efficiency, Engineering, Green Communities, Green Living

flyash

Oil-spill Cleanup Material: Coal Fly Ash

by: National Science Foundation

A team of undergraduate and graduate students at the University of Central Florida is transforming fly ash–a waste ... more ...

Adaptation, Colleges and Universities, Education, Efficiency, Green Living

nsf

Polymers for Stronger, More Efficient Solar Cells

by: National Science Foundation

Science at work! ... more ...

Clean Tech, Engineering, Science, Solar

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Green Roofs: Reflecting Light and Radiating Cool

by: National Science Foundation

A new study indicates that painting building roofs white could significantly cool cities and mitigate some of the ... more ...

Adaptation, Architecture, Engineering, Green Building, Green Communities, Green Living, Science

Glass Powder Absorbs Oil, Waste from Water and Air

by: National Science Foundation

NSF-sponsored research at an Ohio college has led to a revolutionary discovery, a new form of silica glass that can ... more ...

Adaptation, Business, Clean Tech, Economics, Science

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Embedded Sea Ice Model with Tidal Forcing May Improve Climate Projections

by: National Science Foundation

University of Alaska researchers developed a numerical model of the ice-covered Arctic ocean that includes tides. They ... more ...

Adaptation, Climate Change, Colleges and Universities, Engineering

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New Materials Turn Heat Into Electricity

by: National Science Foundation

Most of today’s power plants–from some of the largest solar arrays to nuclear energy facilities–rely ... more ...

Adaptation, Efficiency, Hydroelectric, Water

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Cameroonian Farmers Model Effective Resource Management

by: National Science Foundation

Counter to conventional wisdom, rural communities demonstrate that self-regulated, community-based resource management ... more ...

Adaptation, Agriculture, Green Communities, Green Living

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Tracking Invasive Plants Using Mobile Phones

by: National Science Foundation

Researchers have come up with an easy way for both park employees and visitors to contribute to conservation ... more ...

Adaptation, Business, Education, Green Living

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Crab Shells Clean Acid Mine Drainage

by: National Science Foundation

Engineers at the Pennsylvania State University have found crab-shell chitin effectively raises acidity (pH) levels and ... more ...

Adaptation, Campus Sustainability, Colleges and Universities, Education, Engineering, Green Communities, Science

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Porous Carbon Captures Greenhouse Gas

by: National Science Foundation

Keith Gubbins of North Carolina State University, Raleigh, in collaboration with industrial partners, has discovered ... more ...

Smaller Particles Could Mean More Efficient Solar Panels

by: National Science Foundation

Studies done by Mark Lusk and colleagues at the Colorado School of Mines could significantly improve the efficiency of ... more ...

Adaptation, Architecture, Clean Tech, Engineering, Green Building, Green Living, Solar

Robots to Monitor Oil Spills Where Humans Can’t Reach

by: National Science Foundation

The University of Minnesota’s Center for Distributed Robotics is developing an amphibious robotic system, the ... more ...

Adaptation, Clean Tech, Engineering

Use of Plug-in Cars May Increase Due to Smaller Batteries

by: National Science Foundation

Researchers determined that hybrid and plug-in vehicles with small battery packs could provide cost-effective reduction ... more ...

Adaptation, Business, Clean Tech, Electric Cars, Green Living, Hybrid Vehicles

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A New Biofuel – Mixed Prairie Grasses

by: National Science Foundation

Mixed prairie grasses, grown on degraded land, may be a better source of biofuel than corn ethanol or soybean biodiesel. ... more ...

Adaptation, Biofuels, Clean Tech, Science

Mammals seek higher elevations as climate warms

Mammals Seek Higher Elevations as Climate Warms

by: National Science Foundation

Many species of mammals in Yosemite National Park have shifted their home ranges to higher elevations over the last ... more ...

Adaptation, Climate Change, Science

Ocean Circulation Plays a Major Role in Controlling Greenhouse Gas Fluctuations

by: National Science Foundation

Over time, warming events in Greenland and the North Atlantic were followed by gradual cooling. These changes correlate ... more ...

Adaptation, Clean Tech, Climate Change, International Climate Negotiations, Oceans, Water

future

Engineering Inspired by Nature

by: National Science Foundation

A research team at George Mason University is applying concepts from nature to the design of better buildings. Their ... more ...

Architecture, Biomimicry, Efficiency, Green Building, Green Communities, Science

mass_spectrometry

New Technique Rapidly Analyzes Chemical Composition of Organic Aerosols

by: National Science Foundation

Researchers have developed a new way to monitor organic aerosols (OA)–a sizable class of atmospheric aerosols, ... more ...

Adaptation, Clean Tech, Climate Change, International Climate Negotiations, Science

Genetic Consequences of Climate Change

by: National Science Foundation

Recently, multiple NSF-funded researchers have documented genetic changes resulting from climate change. These studies ... more ...

Adaptation, Climate Change, Science

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George Mason Studies Resilience Of Arctic People For Adaptation Research

by: National Science Foundation

George Mason University researchers are investigating the resilience of Arctic peoples to changes in their local ... more ...

Adaptation, Climate Change, Green Communities, Science

Rising Seas Bring Salty Risks

by: Victoria Riess

A rising tide may lift all boats, but what does it do to marshlands? In this week's WEBISODE we ... more ...

Adaptation, Climate Change, Natural Disasters, Oceans, Science, Water

Science Nation – Marshes and Sea Level Rise

by: National Science Foundation

Villanova University marine scientist Nathaniel Weston studies how both land use and climate change can impact habitat ... more ...

Adaptation, Climate Change, Oceans, Science, Water

Climate_Mode

New Climate Mode of Variability Links Ocean Climate and Ecosystem Change

by: National Science Foundation

Decadal fluctuations in ocean salinity, nutrients, chlorophyll, a variety of zooplankton species, and fish stocks in the ... more ...

Adaptation, Climate Change, Geothermal, International Climate Negotiations, Oceans, Water

How Climate Change Is Choking Marine Ecosystems

by: National Science Foundation

While investigating the effects of climate change on nitrogen cycling in temperate coastal systems, Rhode Island ... more ...

Adaptation, Climate Change, Science, Water

Thoreau’s Woods Reveal Patterns of Climate Change

by: National Science Foundation

It is not often that a scientist collaborates with a writer and philosopher, let alone one that lived in a previous ... more ...

Adaptation, Climate Change, Science

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Global Climate Change Teacher Institute

by: National Science Foundation

The development of the Global Climate Change Teacher Institute by Kurt Pregitzer of the Michigan Technological ... more ...

Climate Change, Education, Science

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Microgrids Can Be Used To Integrate Renewable Energy Into The Power Grid

by: National Science Foundation

Renewable energy sources that power residences and small businesses are usually integrated into small networks known as ... more ...

Clean Tech, Efficiency, Engineering, Renewable Energy, Science

Greenstreets: Drexel University Researchers Investigate Urban Ecosystem Improvements

by: National Science Foundation

Franco Montalto (assistant professor at Drexel University), Kim DiGiovanni (NSF Graduate Research Fellow), and Nandan ... more ...

Engineering, Green Building, Green Communities, Science

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Mosquito Population will Increase with Climate Change say University of Arizona Researchers

by: National Science Foundation

Research on the impact of climate change on mosquitoes has revealed that their populations will increase, as well as ... more ...

Climate Change, Health

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Researchers at the University of Minnesota are developing Conductive Paint for Flexible Solar Panels

by: National Science Foundation

Researchers at the Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC) at the University of Minnesota are ... more ...

Clean Tech, Engineering, Renewable Energy, Science, Solar

Solar Energy – Green Revolution

by: National Science Foundation

In this episode of Green Revolution, learn how solar cells capture energy from the sun, and how scientists and engineers ... more ...

Raise the Roof!

by: Victoria Riess

In this week's webisode, we bring you an idea from the National Science Foundation about the benefits of green roofs. ... more ...

Adaptation, Climate Change, Green Building, Green Communities, Green Living

Powering Up with Smart Grids – Green Revolution

by: National Science Foundation

How we get our energy is as important as how we make it. In this episode of Green Revolution, hear how scientists and ... more ...

Clean Tech, Science

Microbes! – Green Revolution

by: National Science Foundation

Can bugs save the planet? Join host Lisa Van Pay, PhD (aka a scientist) as she explores exciting alternative energy ... more ...

Biomimicry, Clean Tech, Science

City Car – Green Revolution

by: National Science Foundation

A clean car that you can stack like a shopping cart? That customizes everything from its color to the radio the instant ... more ...

Science, Transportation

Hydrogen as Energy – Green Revolution

by: National Science Foundation

How do we harness the power of hydrogen and turn it into useable energy? This episode of Green Revolution talks to ... more ...

Science, Transportation

Green Roofs – Science Nation

by: National Science Foundation

Ingenuity sprouting from the rooftops. The rooftops of Manhattan are as varied as the city itself. A glance at the city ... more ...

EVs Get the Greenlight: The Science Behind Electric Acceleration

by: Planet Forward

Have you driven an EV and noticed how quickly it accelerates from rest? Cartoonist Mitch Butler explains the phenomenon ... more ...

Electric Cars, Engineering, Transportation

Nobel Argon Gas: The Science of Energy Efficient Windows

by: Planet Forward

Meet Argon, a lazy noble gas, and join him on his journey to find his place in the world.

Architecture, Clean Tech, Science

It’s Electric: The Science Behind Solar Panels

by: Planet Forward

Finalist Danny Kennedy leases solar panels, but, after all these years of looking at the bluish, glassy panels, do you ... more ...

Clean Tech, Science, Solar

Biomass – Green Revolution

by: National Science Foundation

How do we turn biological material into energy? This episode of Green Revolution explores how scientists are studying ... more ...

Science Nation – Green Gasoline from Cellulose

by: National Science Foundation

Carbon neutral gasoline … from plants! Like everyone else, George Huber knows money doesn’t grow on trees. ... more ...

Green Revolution – Wind Power

by: National Science Foundation

We just launched a new partnership with NSF to bring you the Science Corner, where you can get all the science you need. ... more ...