Hungry Elephants Fight Climate Change One Mouthful at a Time
Did the Pentagon Weaponize Ticks? ; Former Peruvian President Arrested in US ; and More Picks
House Orders Pentagon to Review If It Exposed Americans to Weaponized Ticks (Chris)
The author writes, “The House approved an amendment proposed by a Republican congressman from New Jersey, Chris Smith, instructing the defence department’s inspector general to conduct a review of whether the US ‘experimented with ticks and … insects regarding use as a biological weapon between the years of 1950 and 1975.’ The review would have to assess the scope of the experiment and ‘whether any ticks or insects used in such experiment were released outside of any laboratory by accident or experiment design.’”
Former Peruvian President Alejandro Toledo Arrested in US (Reader Steve)
The author writes, “The ex-president is wanted in his home country on accusations of taking $20 million in bribes from Odebrecht, a Brazilian construction company at the center of Latin America’s biggest corruption scandal. Odebrecht has admitted to paying $800 million to officials throughout the region in exchange for lucrative public works contracts.”
Oil Companies Look to Hydrogen (Reader Steve)
The author writes, “Hydrogen as a source of energy is a tough sell. Sixteen years after former president George W. Bush forecast that the age of the hydrogen car was upon us, the world is still waiting. But facing a market clamoring for carbon-free forms of energy, some within the energy sector are wondering whether hydrogen might hold promise after all.”
Climate Change Will Bring More Deadly Heat to Dallas, Study Warns (Judy)
From the Dallas Observer: “Unless drastic action is taken, Dallas could see an average of 18 days per year by century’s end in which heat index values climb so high they can’t be calculated, a new report suggests. The study, which was released Tuesday by the Union of Concerned Scientists, sheds light on some of the possible effects of climate change.”
Researcher Discovers Ancient Nematodes in Melting Permafrost (Chris)
The author writes, “Clocking in at a half-millimeter long, the nematodes that wriggled back to life were the most complex creatures [Tatiana] Vishnivetskaya — or anyone else — had ever revived after a lengthy deep freeze. She estimated one nematode to be 41,000 years old — by far the oldest living animal ever discovered. This very worm dwelled in the soil beneath Neanderthals’ feet and had lived to meet modern-day humans in Vishnivetskaya’s high-tech laboratory.”
