photo: BP America

Scientists are questioning a plan to build berms of sand along the Louisiana coast to shield it from the Gulf oil slick. They worry the berms could disrupt the movement of sediment sustaining barrier islands and that storms will quickly erode the berms away. Denise Reed (2006) suggests that the plan's commander pause to review existing science and assess potential effects so he "can make these decisions with eyes wide open."

photo: Carey James Balboa

A fungal disease has killed off 30 amphibian species in a park in El Copé, Panamá, amounting to 40% of amphibian species in the area, according to a study co-authored by Karen Lips (2005). The study covers the first afflicted place with enough before-and-after data to measure the effects of an epidemic disease that has been ravaging amphibian communities around the world for at least 40 years.

photo: John Kepsimelis, US Coast Guard

Despite their similarities, the Gulf oil spill probably won't cause the same shift in national attitudes on the environment that happened after the Santa Barbara oil spill more than 40 years ago, says Joshua Schimel (2006). He reasons that the Gulf coast has oil-industry connections that Santa Barbara lacks and that, 40 years ago, "people were already waking up to pollution and to the damage we were doing to the environment and to its habitability."

photo: Jefferson Noguera

In a review of past studies on ocean chemistry, Scott Doney (2004) found four key symptoms of human effects: lifeless low-oxygen zones, accumulating industrial pollution, disruption of plankton photosynthesis, and ocean acidification. Doney calls for a development of "a coordinated observational plan" of the ocean and more research into the cell-level mechanisms behind these symptoms. Ocean acidification, for example, threatens the food web largely by affecting shelled animals' ability to build their shells.

photo: Union of Concerned Scientists

The Union of Concerned Scientists launched a series of ads showing how climate scientists, including Julia Cole (2008), first became interested in science. The ads are meant to "capture who [the scientists] are at the heart" and show how their sense of wonder drives them to discover what's happening to our planet.

photo: Rodrigo Ortega

Moore's Law, which states that computer speed doubles about every 1.5 years, has a green parallel: computer efficiency doubles every 1.5 years, according to a study co-authored by Jonathan Koomey.