Tag: Climate Change

How should AI be governed? Open source syllabus offers framework

Are you ready to bring more awareness to your brand? Consider becoming a sponsor for The AI Impact Tour. Learn more about the opportunities here. Kevin Frazier has ambitious plans to involve more voices in crucial conversations guiding artificial intelligence (AI). As an assistant professor of law at St. Thomas University spearheading an effort to […]

Read More

Accelerated climate action needed to sharply reduce current risks to life and life-support systems

Hottest day on record. Hottest month on record. Extreme marine heatwaves. Record-low Antarctic sea-ice. While El Niño is a short-term factor in this year’s record-breaking heat, human-caused climate change is the long-term driver. And as global warming edges closer to 1.5 degrees Celsius — the aspirational upper limit set in the Paris Agreement in 2015 […]

Read More

Unlocking the secrets of natural materials

Growing up in Milan, Benedetto Marelli liked figuring out how things worked. He repaired broken devices simply to have the opportunity to take them apart and put them together again. Also, from a young age, he had a strong desire to make a positive impact on the world. Enrolling at the Polytechnic University of Milan, […]

Read More

Planet Earth Keeps Shattering the Most Terrible Record of All

Advertisers have long been in revolt against Musk’s designs for the site, which have consistently made the platform less appealing for brands to appear upon. But in recent days, advertisers have found new reason to flee the site, after an explosive Media Matters report published earlier this month revealed that X was routinely placing antisemitic […]

Read More

A mineral produced by plate tectonics has a global cooling effect, study finds

MIT geologists have found that a clay mineral on the seafloor, called smectite, has a surprisingly powerful ability to sequester carbon over millions of years. Under a microscope, a single grain of the clay resembles the folds of an accordion. These folds are known to be effective traps for organic carbon. Now, the MIT team […]

Read More

The U.S. Is in a Spectacularly Bad Position to Talk About Climate Change Right Now

The U.S. has no plan to proactively phase out so-called “unabated” fossil fuel production, despite the pledge it’s made to that effect. There are also no assurances that emissions from ever-expanding fossil fuel production can in fact be abated—a term that refers to capturing and storing carbon emissions—at any meaningful scale. Kerry, meanwhile, said during […]

Read More

At the U.N. Climate Talks, the U.S. Is Just Another Petrostate

The U.S. has no plan to proactively phase out so-called “unabated” fossil fuel production, despite the pledge it’s made to that effect. There are also no assurances that emissions from ever-expanding fossil fuel production can in fact be abated—a term that refers to capturing and storing carbon emissions—at any meaningful scale. Kerry, meanwhile, said during […]

Read More

A green hydrogen innovation for clean energy

Renewable energy today — mainly derived from the sun or wind — depends on batteries for storage. While costs have dropped in recent years, the pursuit of more efficient means of storing renewable power continues. “All of these technologies, unfortunately, have a long way to go,” said Sossina Haile SB ’86, PhD ’92, the Walter […]

Read More

Reconsidering the American Fridge

I spent the past week glued to my phone, as I’m sure many of you did, scrolling through endless news and horrible videos of the violence in the Middle East. Sometimes, when global disasters or conflicts happen, people will whip up an infographic pointing out the (occasionally tenuous) connections to climate change; I generally roll […]

Read More

U.N. Climate Talks Are Crawling with Fossil Fuel Honchos and Flacks

By claiming they will at some point capture massive amounts of carbon dioxide, though, companies like ADNOC and ExxonMobil can sell world leaders on the comforting idea that not much has to change. Unfortunately, the climate models compiled by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change have helped fossil fuel execs make that case. The reports forecast […]

Read More

The Fossil Fuel Industry Has Been Infiltrating U.N. Climate Talks for Decades

By claiming they will at some point capture massive amounts of carbon dioxide, though, companies like ADNOC and ExxonMobil can sell world leaders on the comforting idea that not much has to change. Unfortunately, the climate models compiled by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change have helped fossil fuel execs make that case. The reports forecast […]

Read More

Merging science and systems thinking to make materials more sustainable

For Professor Elsa Olivetti, tackling a problem as large and complex as climate change requires not only lab research but also understanding the systems of production that power the global economy. Her career path reflects a quest to investigate materials at scales ranging from the microscopic to the mass-manufactured. “I’ve always known what questions I […]

Read More

A civil discourse on climate change

A new MIT initiative designed to encourage open dialogue on campus kicked off with a conversation focused on how to address challenges related to climate change. “Climate Change: Existential Threat or Bump in the Road” featured Steve Koonin, theoretical physicist and former U.S. undersecretary for science during the Obama administration, and Kerry Emanuel, professor emeritus […]

Read More

Family of Taylor Swift Fan Who Died After Brazil Concert Calls for Investigation

Taylor Swift (Buda Mendes/TAS23/Getty Images for TAS Rights Management) / Ana Clara Benevides Machado (Supplied by family) The father of a 23-year-old Taylor Swift fan who died shortly after an Eras Tour concert during an unprecedented heatwave in Rio de Janeiro says he’s “devastated” and wants promoters to be investigated after attendees said they faced “unbearable” […]

Read More

Working to beat the clock on climate change

“There’s so much work ahead of us and so many obstacles in the way,” said Raisa Lee, director of project development with Clearway Energy Group, an independent clean power producer. But, added Lee, “It’s most important to focus on finding spaces and people so we can foster growth and support each other — the power […]

Read More

These 15 Foods Could Disappear Due to Climate Change

1) Tomatoes Pomodo-no? That could be a reality, with research suggesting a 6% decline in tomato yields in major growing regions like Italy and California by mid-century, thanks to global warming. The optimal temperature for tomatoes is between 22-28°C. Over 35°C, however, yields go down quickly. Currently, 65% of tomatoes grow in California, Italy and China, […]

Read More

This Weird Evangelical Oil Company Supports Israel—and Seems to Have No Oil

Despite Zion having been granted a new exploration license from the Israeli government in September, the company’s prospects seem, by its own account, bleak. Activities are suspended “as a result of the Israel-Hamas War,” per a quarterly report filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on November 9. So far this year the company has […]

Read More

This Oil Company Wants Your Money, Your Prayers, and Your Support for Israel

Despite Zion having been granted a new exploration license from the Israeli government in September, the company’s prospects seem, by its own account, bleak. Activities are suspended “as a result of the Israel-Hamas War,” per a quarterly report filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on November 9. So far this year the company has […]

Read More

Plastics Are Poisoning Both Our Bodies and Our Politics

I spent the past week glued to my phone, as I’m sure many of you did, scrolling through endless news and horrible videos of the violence in the Middle East. Sometimes, when global disasters or conflicts happen, people will whip up an infographic pointing out the (occasionally tenuous) connections to climate change; I generally roll […]

Read More

Capturing Carbon with Seaweed: What We Do and Don’t Know

What We Know About Seaweed Carbon Storage Globally, seaweeds cover an area bigger than all the world’s mangroves, salt marshes, and seagrasses combined, and they collectively produce as much carbon-filled tissue as the Amazon rainforest. Like trees, seaweeds photosynthesize, turning sunlight and carbon dioxide into energy. Species like giant kelps and sargassum grow the most, drawing […]

Read More

Republicans Are Obsessed With Dead Whales

President Trump took the opportunity to congratulate U.S. Rep Jeff Van Drew, an outspoken wind critic, on Truth Social. (“The whales, which are dying in record numbers because of these wind scams, are very happy tonight,” he wrote. “Way to go Jeff. The people of New Jersey love you!”) Meanwhile, Michael Shellenberger, a popular figure […]

Read More

The Latest Culture War Starts With Dead Whales

President Trump took the opportunity to congratulate U.S. Representative Jeff Van Drew, an outspoken wind critic, on Truth Social. (“The whales, which are dying in record numbers because of these wind scams, are very happy tonight,” he wrote. “Way to go Jeff. The people of New Jersey love you!”) Meanwhile, Michael Shellenberger, a popular figure […]

Read More

Fossil Fuel Companies Are Plowing Ahead to Profit From Israeli Gas

The United States, for its part, approaches fossil fuels in the Eastern Mediterranean as both a business opportunity for American companies and a means to further its own diplomatic aims in the region, premised on the idea that economic interdependence (in this case on gas) breeds stability. A U.S.-brokered agreement between Lebanon and Israel last […]

Read More

Don’t Expect Gas Companies to Pause Business on Gaza’s Behalf

The United States, for its part, approaches fossil fuels in the eastern Mediterranean as both a business opportunity for American companies and a means to further its own diplomatic aims in the region, premised on the idea that economic interdependence (in this case on gas) breeds stability. A U.S.-brokered agreement between Lebanon and Israel last […]

Read More

The power of knowledge

In his early career at MIT, Josh Kuffour’s academic interests spanned mathematics, engineering, and physics. He decided to major in chemical engineering, figuring it would draw on all three areas. Then, he found himself increasingly interested in the mathematical components of his studies and added a second major, applied mathematics. Now, with a double major […]

Read More