The Planet (on, and off)

Slashdot reader Tangential shares what he describes as “an interesting article on Gizmodo discussing how we could easily contaminate other planets/moons as we explore them.” “Based on our recently demonstrated vulnerability to locally evolved bacteria and viruses, what will other worlds’s pathogens do to us (and what will ours do Read more…

In the most important environmental case in more than a decade, the Supreme Court on Monday will hear arguments in a dispute that could restrict or even eliminate the Environmental Protection Agency’s authority to control the pollution that is heating the planet. A decision by the high court, with its Read more…

Redwood Materials, founded by ex-Tesla CTO J.B. Straubel, is launching an electric vehicle battery-recycling program in California. Automakers Ford and Volvo are the first to partner with the Carson City, Nevada-based company. Redwood Materials announced in a press release this week that it will be collecting and recycling hybrid and Read more…

New submitter Klaxton shares an excerpt from a new report released today by the International Energy Agency (IEA): Global methane emissions from the energy sector are about 70% greater than the amount national governments have officially reported, according to new IEA analysis released today, underlining the urgent need for enhanced Read more…

An object hidden below ground has been located using quantum technology — a long-awaited milestone with profound implications for industry, human knowledge and national security. University of Birmingham researchers from the UK National Quantum Technology Hub in Sensors and Timing have reported their achievement in Nature. It is the first Read more…

When we attached tiny, backpack-like tracking devices to five Australian magpies for a pilot study, we didn’t expect to discover an entirely new social behaviour rarely seen in birds. Our goal was to learn more about the movement and social dynamics of these highly intelligent birds, and to test these Read more…