Is it just me, or is seafood getting … crunchier? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. The waves of the Atlantic carry an invisible danger – nanoplastics. These particles are tiny; about a thousand times smaller than a grain of sand. Enter Dušan Materić and
Continue reading
Does clean energy have a dirty downside? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Electric cars! Sleek, silent, and saving the planet! Or… are they? Jennifer L. Guelfo and team from Texas Tech and Duke University took a closer look at lithium-ion batteries. They detected PFAS
Continue reading
What’s black and white and… full of toxic sludge? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Imagine the ocean was your home until… it became a murky wasteland. Well, prepare to cry: killer whales off British Columbia are in DEEP trouble. Kiah Lee and team from
Continue reading
A benefit concert for the ocean? Try a reef instrument! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Like thriving happy homes—think laughing kids, barking dogs—healthy coral reefs bustle with noise. Damaged reefs are much quieter. Light can help larval polyps settle and coral reefs grow. “What
Continue reading
Those wild birds eat WHAT? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Alice Dunbar and team from the University of South Australia studied the role of foraging on wild birds’ gut health. Okay, we mean coprophagy: eatin’ poop. Ew. But wait! Synthesizing previous studies on birds’
Continue reading
You’ve heard of e-waste, what about Lululemon waste? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Fast fashion generates so much clothing waste: over ninety million tons annually! Sadly, less than one percent of our old clothes currently get recycled. How can we do better? Enter chemical
Continue reading
Happy 2025! Oof da— Have you heard about Norway’s Doomsday Vault? This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Never mind its grim nickname, Norway’s Crop Trust encompasses a storage vault—a kind of Noah’s Ark— for seeds. The purpose: to ensure crop survival and diversity if there’s
Continue reading
Help! Capybara catastrophe! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Forget mice! Imagine if your home was infested with giant brown guinea pigs! South America’s capybaras are the world’s largest rodents. Some consider them pests, but they’re illegal to hunt. Is there a harmless way to
Continue reading
Feeling bloated after Thanksgiving? Good news: a boat that runs on human fat! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. A favorite story from our 20-year archive is that of Earthrace—a high-tech 2007 wave-piercing trimaran powered by biodiesel. Biodiesel is an eco-friendly, zero carbon footprint fuel
Continue reading
I’m not drinking alone! I’ve got… my plant friends! This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science. Yes, plants have Thirsty Thursday too, especially in droughts. So, scientists want to stabilize crop growth during water restriction. Could the answer be… alcohol? Raise your glass to Khurram Bashir
Continue reading