Humanity

The ingenious living bridges of India
When monsoon clouds bring pelting rains to the village of Tyrna, Shailinda Syiemlieh takes the nearest bridge to reach the opposite bank of a gushing stream. The bridge is no ordinary structure made of concrete and metal. Instead, it is composed of a single giant fig tree that sits by the riverbank, and the support that Syiemlieh walks over is a mishmash of aerial roots tightly knotted and woven together. The bridge is not only a part of the landscape, it is helping to support its ecosystem at the same time.
By Fra Tusha3 years ago in Earth
What would a flying-free world look like?
Aviation has long been a pain in the neck for those working to cut human-caused greenhouse gas emissions. It is the pinnacle of a "hard-to-decarbonise" sector: energy-intensive, lacking in immediate technical options to make it lower carbon, and strongly associated with the lifestyles of the richest and most powerful in society.
By Baru Ku3 years ago in Earth
The lost generation of ancient trees
At around 1,100 years old, and almost 11m (36ft) in girth, the Big Belly Oak is the oldest tree in Savernake Forest in south-west England. A tiny sapling at the Battle of Hastings in 1066, Big Belly Oak has lived through the War of the Roses, the Black Death, the English Civil War, the Industrial Revolution and two world wars. Now gnarled and knobbly, Big Belly Oak’s trunk is strapped up with a metal girdle to keep it from falling apart.
By Fra Tusha3 years ago in Earth
The factories turning West Africa’s fish into powder
unjur, a town of some 15,000 people, sits on the Atlantic coastline of southern Gambia, the smallest country on the African continent. During the day, its white-sand beaches are full of activity. Fishermen steer long, vibrantly painted wooden canoes, known as pirogues, toward the shore, where they transfer their still-fluttering catch to women waiting at the water’s edge.
By Udley3 years ago in Earth
Why Nasa is exploring the deepest oceans on Earth
ur oceans cover more than 70% of the Earth's surface, but over 80% of them remain unexplored. In fact, it is often claimed that we know more about the surface of Mars and the Moon than about the ocean floor on our own planet.
By Fra Tusha3 years ago in Earth
How the world's deepest shipwreck was found
On 23 October 1944, the first engagements of a gigantic naval battle began in Leyte Gulf, part of the Philippine Sea. It was the biggest in modern human history.
By Holy horse3 years ago in Earth
The record-breaking dive under the Arctic ice
On 3 August 1958, the commander of the world's first nuclear submarine made an extraordinary, if somewhat tongue in cheek, entry in his logbook: "Embarked following personage at North Pole…" wrote USS Nautilus commander William Anderson, "…Santa Claus, affiliation: Christmas."
By Udley3 years ago in Earth
Plastic is polluting our oceans
The world of waste can be a tangled web of legislation, regulations and rules, which sometimes are difficult to understand and in which it is easy to get lost. In our 50 years of experience dealing with companies of any size and from a variety of different industries in the UK, we can say that a sizable percentage of organisations doesn’t know the difference between Offensive and Hazardous waste.
By W man3 years ago in Earth
Has carnism gone too far?
Society and environmental conditioning have been causing significant pressure and impact on our decisions, as well as the eating norms, so it’s not uncommon that people give up their ideas, succumb to peer pressure, and blindly follow what the majority does, without ever questioning it. Over the last few decades, due to the farming industry and media propaganda, society has been favoring carnism which has been making a lot of people unaware that there are better dietary options to consider.
By Ufreleyi3 years ago in Earth
University life in Germany for international students
In my junior year of college, I went to Germany for the first time as an exchange student at the University of Leipzig. (It was a winter semester.) The closer we got to the winter solstice, the deeper the night became. The hours were long, classes ended at 4:30 and it was often dark outside. When I was waiting for the tram, I was wearing a lot of clothes and I was shivering. The Germans on the street were standing in the cold in their "national unity" wolf claw trench coats. Don't be nervous. Sometimes I even ate a big piece of bread while I was walking. At this point, I had to feel that Germans are freeze-proof ah.
By You - sky3 years ago in Earth
China is the most evolved people in the world
The survival of the fittest is the proposition of Darwin's theory of evolution. Organisms compete with each other, and only those who can adapt can survive. Only by constantly evolving to fit the environment can organisms ensure that they are not eliminated. Generally speaking, the theory of evolution is benign evolution, after all, only constantly evolves stronger to better survive in the natural world.
By Lu Da3 years ago in Earth
Who Owns Florida's Natural Freshwater Resources?
When consuming tap water at home, does one know or care where the water they consume is drawn from or originates? The water one drinks is usually pumped from a freshwater well if living in central Florida and the aquifer the well is pumped from is more likely to be the Floridan aquifer or "public waterways".
By Fester Hammer3 years ago in Earth