Today’s modern cities, from Denver to Dubai, could learn a thing or two from the ancient Pueblo communities that once stretched across the southwestern United States. For starters, the more people live together, the better the living standards. That finding comes from a study published in the journal Science Advances and led by Scott Ortman, an archaeologist at...
Editor’s note: The Supreme Court voted, 5-4, on June 18, 2020 that the Trump administration can’t immediately end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, also known as DACA. Sayil Camacho, a Vanderbilt University postdoctoral fellow who studies immigrants, answers four questions about how the decision will affect undocumented students and higher education. 1. What’s...
When it came down to it, the fate of 700,000 immigrants brought to U.S. as children hung on a simple question: Does the White House have to tell the whole truth in justifying its move to deport them? On June 18, the Supreme Court said “yes.” In a 5-to-4 decision that came as a major...
In a new study, researchers recently discovered that Indonesia’s national anti-poverty program reduced deforestation by about 30%. The study’s findings were published in Science Advances. “Two of the great global challenges of the 21st century are to reduce poverty and slow deforestation. Unfortunately, the solutions to those challenges are often perceived as conflicting with each...
A new book tells the story of a man jailed for impersonating a priest in 1693 Spain when he was likely trying to escape racial persecution. It gives readers a fascinating look at a centuries-old legal case against a man on pilgrimage and shows how Iberians of black-African ancestry faced discrimination and mistreatment. The book,...
Bright pink flamingos are more aggressive than paler rivals when fighting over food, new research shows. Pink plumage is a sign of good health in lesser flamingos, and a flush of colour often means they are ready to breed. So when the birds squabble over food, the pinkest flamingos – both male and female –...
A new study published in Economic Modelling by researchers at Ca’ Foscari University and CMCC shows that owning and using an Air Conditioner greatly increases the electricity bills of households, with important implications for the energy poverty of the less well-off. Previous studies, mainly focused on the US, estimated an increase of household spendings for electricity bills...
After a particularly long week of computer based work on my PhD, all I wanted was to hike somewhere exciting with a rich wildlife. A friend commiserated with me – I was based at Newcastle University at the time, and this particular friend wasn’t keen on the UK’s wilderness, its moorlands and bare uplands, compared...
In a study published in Nature Sustainability, an ecosystem scientist and an agricultural economist outline how to develop a more sustainable land management system through data collection and stakeholder buy-in. Bruno Basso, professor in the College of Natural Science at Michigan State University, and John Antle, professor of Applied Economics at Oregon State University, believe the...
Forestation is one of the main strategies recommended by the scientific community for climate change mitigation. But, would a European continent completely covered in forests be any cooler than one without forests? Asking these kinds of questions is fundamental to developing an understanding of the real effects of solutions that have been recommended by the...
