Desdemona Despair

Blogging the End of the World™

Polar bear cubs die as ice melts, swims get longer

By Deborah Zabarenko18 July 2011 WASHINGTON — Polar bear cubs forced to swim long distances with their mothers as their icy Arctic habitat melts appear to have a higher mortality rate than cubs that didn’t have to swim as far, a new study reports. Polar bears hunt, feed and give birth on ice or on […]

Rising oceans: Too late to turn the tide?

By Daniel Stolte, University Communications 14 July 2011 Melting ice sheets contributed much more to rising sea levels than thermal expansion of warming ocean waters during the Last Interglacial Period, a UA-led team of researchers has found. The results further suggest that ocean levels continue to rise long after warming of the atmosphere levels off. […]

Oklahoma governor asks for prayers for rain

By MICHAEL MCNUTT, CAPITOL BUREAU15 July 2011 With no forecast of rain in sight, Gov. Mary Fallin suggests Oklahomans seek help from a higher power. The governor on Thursday asked Oklahomans to set aside time Sunday to pray for rain. Dry conditions have contributed to more than 140 wildfires this year, resulting in the loss of […]

Loss of large predators caused widespread disruption of ecosystems – ‘Humankind’s most pervasive influence on the natural world’

Media contactsCheryl Dybas, NSF (703) 292-7734, cdybas@nsf.govTim Stephens, UCSC (831) 459-2495, stephens@ucsc.edu July 14 (NSF) – The decline of large predators and other “apex consumers” at the top of the food chain has disrupted ecosystems across the planet. The finding is reported by an international team of scientists in a paper in this week’s issue […]

Fukushima cleanup recruits ‘nuclear gypsies’ from across Japan

By Justin McCurry in Iwaki-Yumoto, www.guardian.co.uk13 July 2011 The sun has only just risen in Iwaki-Yumoto when groups of men in white T-shirts and light blue cargo pants emerge blinking into the sunlight, swapping the comfort of their air-conditioned rooms for the fierce humidity of a Japanese summer. Four months on from the start of […]

Wars, food shortages and mass immigration: How global warming poses dire threat to Britain’s security

By David Derbyshire8 July 2011 Global warming will threaten Britain’s security by triggering wars, food shortages and mass migration, Energy Minister Chris Huhne warned today. Although the UK may escape the worst physical impacts of rising temperatures and sea levels, the UK will still be exposed to ‘alarming and shocking’ consequences of climate change elsewhere, […]

Radioactive beef from over 500 cattle ‘sold in around Tokyo’

Reporting by Risa Maeda, editing by Jane Baird18 July 2011 TOKYO (Reuters) – More than 500 beef cattle that ate feed contaminated by radioactive material from Fukushima have already shipped to other parts of Japan, an initial result of inspections on the area’s farms showed Monday. Separately, Yomiuri newspaper said Japan’s central government is expected […]

Acidifying ocean expected to damage shellfish around world

By Shelby Lin Erdman, CNN; CNN’s Ninette Sosa and Barbara Hall contributed to this reportJuly 18, 2011 (CNN) – Massive global greenhouse gas pollution is changing the chemistry of the world’s oceans so much that scientists now predict it could severely damage shellfish populations and the nations that depend on the harvests if significant action […]

Photo gallery: Satellite images of the ghost cities of China, 2011

You may recall the Business Insider scoop from December 2010, And Now Presenting: Amazing Satellite Images Of The Ghost Cities Of China. Here’s their follow-up gallery, with more beautiful imagery of doomed architecture viewed from space.   By Gus Lubin16 June 2011 China plans to build 20 cities a year for the next 20 years. […]

Water concerns rising as cattle die in record Texas drought – Ranchers ‘exiting the industry in large numbers due to losses’

By BETSY BLANEY, Associated Press14 July 2011 LUBBOCK, Texas – The unrelenting Texas drought has produced a cruelly ironic twist: cattle dying from too much water. Agriculture officials in parched Texas said Wednesday there are no hard numbers on how many head of cattle have died but reports of deaths from too much water or […]

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