How the Pandemic Might Play Out in 2021 and Beyond
Nature, August 05, 2020
This coronavirus is here for the long haul - here's what scientists predict for the next months and years.

Population Immunity Is Slowing Down the Pandemic in Parts of the US
MIT Technology Review, August 11, 2020
The covid-19 pandemic is out of control, but rising infections make it harder to transmit.

America's Obesity Epidemic Threatens Effectiveness of Any COVID Vaccine
KHN. August 06, 2020
Scientists know that vaccines engineered to protect the public from influenza, hepatitis B, tetanus and rabies can be less effective in obese adults than in the general population, leaving them more vulnerable to infection and illness. There is little reason to believe,  obesity researchers say, that COVID-19 vaccines will be any different.

Electric Cooker an Easy, Efficient Way to Sanitize N95 Masks, Study Finds
Science Daily, August 6, 2020
A new study found that 50 minutes of dry heat in an electric cooker decontaminated N95 respirators inside and out while maintaining their filtration and fit.  This could enable wearers to safely reuse limited supplies of the respirators.

America Could Control the Pandemic by October. Let's Get to It.
New York Times, August 08, 2020
The solutions to combating the coronavirus are no mystery. It's time to do this right.

Hair vs. Razor. Why Hair Wins
Cosmos, August 07, 2020
So how come stainless steel, honed to a razor-sharp edge and coated with even harder materials, can't cut it (pun intended) with something as soft as hair?

US Hurricane Experts Predict 'Extremely Active' Storm Season
The Guardian, August 07, 2020
This year, there have already been nine named storms, a record which makes 2020's hurricane season one of the busiest on record in the US.

Landmark Math Proof Clears Hurdle in Top Erdo's Conjecture
Quanta, August 03, 2020
Two mathematicians have proved the first leg of Paul Erdős' all-time favorite problem about number patterns.

DNA from an Ancient, Unidentified Ancestor Was Passed Down to Humans Living Today
Science Daily, August 6, 2020
A new analysis of ancient genomes suggests that different branches of the human family tree interbred multiple times, and that some humans carry DNA from an archaic, unknown ancestor.

How Atomic Bomb Survivors Have Transformed Our Understanding of Radiation's Impacts
Science, July 23, 2020
Kunihiko Iida wants the world to know that the atomic bombs the United States dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki 75 years ago next month are still claiming lives and causing suffering.

Images of the dwarf planet's far side are revealing possible signs of liquid water, mysterious shards of ice and new theories for the frigid world's birth
   
This Giant Crater on Ceres with Bright Spots May Be Most Fascinating Place in Solar System
Space, August 10, 2020
For a few months in 2018, as NASA's Dawn spacecraft used up its last drops of fuel, it gave scientists an incredibly detailed look at one of the strangest places in the solar system: Occator Crater.

Scientists Can't Agree on How Clumpy the Universe Is
Science News, August 10, 2020
A less-lumpy cosmos could hint at cracks in physicists' understanding of the cosmos.

A Star Went Supernova in 1987. Where Is It Now?
New York Times August 07, 2020
Astronomers might have found the ultra-dense remnant of an explosion that wracked a nearby galaxy.
   
Big Bounce Simulations Challenge the Big Bang
Quanta, August 04, 2020
Detailed computer simulations have found that a cosmic contraction can generate features of the universe that we observe today.

Plug It into the Wall
Cosmos, August 12, 2020
Chemists create 'smart bricks' for energy storage.

As Mindfulness App Headspace Booms, Its Popularity Outpaces Its Scientific Evidence
STAT, August 07, 2020
Demand for the mindfulness and meditation app has skyrocketed since the Covid-19 pandemic and its ripple effects began taking a brutal toll on mental health.

North Dakota Oil Workers Are Learning to Tend Wind Turbines-and That's a Big Deal
New Yorker, August 06, 2020 (Bill McKibben)
The skills necessary for operating the derricks that frack for crude in the Bakken shale...translate pretty directly into the skills required for operating the machines that convert the stiff winds of the high prairies into electricity.

Smartwatch Tracks Medication Levels to Personalize Treatments
Science Daily, August 7, 2020
Advance could help doctors choose the right drug at the right dose for the right person

These Dogs Are Trained to Sniff Out the Coronavirus. Most Have a 100% Success Rate
The Conversation, August 03, 2020
What does a pandemic smell like? If dogs could talk, they might be able to tell us.

HEALTH 

9 Reasons to Eat a Lot of Beans
Treehugger, August 11, 2020
From longevity and weight control to being great for the planet, here's why the humble bean is so mighty.

Citrus Flavoring Is Weaponized Against Insect-Borne Diseases
New York Times, August 10, 2020
The E.P.A. has approved nootkatone, which is found in cedars and grapefruit. It repels ticks, mosquitoes and other dangerous bugs for hours, but is safe enough to eat.

Confused by Whole Grain Labels on Food Packaging? Study Finds You're Not Alone
Science Daily, August 10, 2020
Whole grain labels are confusing to consumers, according to a new study that found many made the wrong choice when asked to pick the healthier option based on product labels. The researchers say the results provide legal evidence for changes in labeling policies.

Air Pollution Down in the U.S. but Still Hurts Marginalized Communities Most
PBS NewsHour, August 03, 2020
Fine particulate matter air pollution is especially dangerous: Microscopic particles readily enter the lungs, bloodstream and brain, with health effects that include infant death, reduced life expectancy for adults, cancer, lung disease and heart disease.

Running More Than Ever Before? Here Are Tips for Doing It Safer and Better.
Washington Post, August 06, 2020

Strength training builds muscle, tendon resilience for running.

NATURE

What Is a Derecho? An Atmospheric Scientist Explains These Rare but Dangerous Storm Systems
The Conversation, August 10, 2020
Derechos occur mainly across the central and eastern U.S...They can produce significant damage to structures and sometimes cause "blow-downs" of millions of trees.

Weird 'Boomerang' Earthquake Detected Under Atlantic Ocean
National Geographic, August 10, 2020
The temblor shot eastward across a deep gash in the seafloor, and then zipped back to where it started at incredible speeds. It moved so fast it created the geologic version of a sonic boom.
 

Dolphins Have Hidden Fingers. So Do Seals. These Sea Creatures Did Not.
New York Times, August 08, 2020
A recent analysis of the flippers of living and extinct marine animals shows the enduring power of "baby mittens."

The Life That Springs from Dead Leaves in Streams
Knowable, August 06, 2020
A crunchy brown leaf may seem like an ending. But the food webs it supplies can be far more expansive than the ones it nourished when it was young, green and in its prime.

The Ocean's 12 Mega-Provinces
Hakai, August 05, 2020
Scientists have determined a new way to slice and dice marine ecosystems.

Public Integrity, August 05, 2020
Ammonium nitrate, used by farmers as fertilizer, has been a key component of catastrophic industrial accidents and terrorism, including the 2013 blast at an agricultural-products retailer that killed 15 and injured 260 people in Texas, and the 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City that killed 168.

Marine Heat Waves Are Becoming More Common and Intense. What Can We Do to Minimize Harm?
Ensia, August 11, 2020
Improved "weather forecasts" for oceans hold hope for reducing devastation to fisheries and ecosystems around the world.

Wine Country Women Fight Glyphosate
Pacific Sun, August 05, 2020
Call it Wine Country or call it Glyphosate Country. According to Padi Selwyn, the co-founder of Preserve Rural Sonoma County, and Laura Morgan, a local physician concerned about the health of the environment, millions of pounds of pesticides have been applied, mostly to wine grapes, in Sonoma County.

E.P.A. to Lift Obama-Era Controls on Methane, a Potent Greenhouse Gas
New York Times, August 10, 2020
The reversal is the latest move in the Trump administration's ongoing effort to weaken environmental rules, but it could be quickly undone after the November election.

Science Daily, August 10, 2020
The world's 'best of the last' tropical forests are at significant risk of being lost, according to a new article. Of these pristine forests that provide key services -- including carbon storage, prevention of disease transmission and water provision -- only a mere 6.5 percent are formally protected.

CLIMATE 

Five Years After Speaking Out on Climate Change, Pope Francis Sounds an Urgent Alarm
Inside Climate News, August 07, 2020
The encyclical 'Laudato Si' motivated many people to take action on global warming, but governments, the pope said, have lagged far behind.

The Air Conditioning Trap: How Cold Air Is Heating the World
The Guardian, August 29. 2019 (archive)
The warmer it gets, the more we use air conditioning. The more we use air conditioning, the warmer it gets. Is there any way out of this trap?

After a Brief Lull, Hurricane Season Is Set to Roar Back at Breakneck Pace Later This Month
Washington Post, August 07, 2020
Atmospheric ingredients could combine to generate a slew of storms in late August.  

Climate Change: Warming World Will Be 'Devastating' for Frozen Peat-Lands
BBC News, August 10, 2020
Much of the permanently frozen land will thaw this century, say experts. This will release warming gases at a rate that could be 30-50% greater than previous estimates.

Florida Current Is Weaker Now Than at Any Point in the Past Century
Science Daily, August 7, 2020
A key component of the Gulf Stream has markedly slowed over the past century -- that's the conclusion of a new research paper.