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Co-researcher Professor Will Steffen from ANU said the study for the first time came up with a mathematical equation to describe the impact of human activity on the Earth system, known as the Anthropocene equation.
59% of the world's largest carnivores (more than or equal to 15 kilograms, n = 27) and 60% of the world's largest herbivores (more than or equal to 100 kilograms, n = 74) are classified as threatened with extinction on the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List (supplemental tables S1 and S2).
Here we show that pollen collected by honey bee foragers in maize- and soybean-dominated landscapes is contaminated throughout the growing season with multiple agricultural pesticides, including the neonicotinoids used as seed treatments.
Bacteria isolated from outside a bottle-recycling facility can break down and metabolize plastic. The proliferation of plastics in consumer products, from bottles to clothing, has resulted in the release of countless tons of plastics into the environment.
Mi says that membranes made from graphene or graphene oxide can more effectively remove wastewater contaminants—including pharmaceuticals, pathogens and endocrine disruptors—than current methods and can be applied to wastewater reuse, water desalinization and storm water treatment.
The longstanding problem with graphene oxide membranes has been that adding oxygen makes graphene more likely to dissolve in water.
But when Mi was able to adhere a chemical to the sheets of graphene oxide to "glue" them together, the membrane stayed intact in water. The results of that breakthrough were published in a 2013 academic journal.