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Scientists Measure Earth’s Vast Underground Fungal Webs
With machine learning and a high-resolution imaging robot, scientists measured and mapped the extent of Earth’s carbon circulatory system.
Entertainment Listing: June 10
Wednesday June 10 Little Nashville • Marion Wing Night Encore, 6 p.m. Thursday June 11 PK’s • Carbondale Advertisement King Juba, 9 p.m. Little Nashville • Marion Justin Grant, 6 p.m. Brews Brothers • Murphysboro Trivia, 8 p.m. Carbondale Public Library Pride Button Making, 3 p.m. – 5 p.m. Sunset Concert, Schryock Lawn Shane...
These underwater 'living pink rocks' help store carbon: Scientists just found four new species
Rhodoliths may look like small rocks on the seafloor, but they are actually living algae that create habitats for marine life and contribute to long-term carbon storage. A new study found that the deeper, ...
How Science Works
The 2nd Weather and Climate Livestream is now underway. It is organized by a group of early-career researchers concerned about declining funding for the field and eager to demonstrate how weather and climate research makes a difference in our lives. Last year’s event was a great success, drawing terrific press coverage including a piece in the NY Times. This year features a strong lineup of talks aimed at a general audience — I highly recommend tuning in. Share I gave a talk yesterday about How Science Works in Three Steps. You can see the short presentation here (I’ve appended a transcript below): And please tune into the livestream here. It runs through tomorrow at 6 pm ET. Thanks for reading The Climate Brink! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support our work. Subscribe Cleaned up transcript: Thank you, and thanks to everyone tuning in. I want to talk about something I think a lot of people don’t really understand: how science actually works. Arguments over any scientific topic — climate change, vaccines, you name it — revolve around competing claims. For climate change, the claims are: Is the Earth warming? Are humans to blame? What will the impacts be? Over the last 150 years, the scientific community has developed a remarkably robust method for sorting out which claims are true and which aren’t. That method is what I want to walk through. So how does science generate knowledge? If you ask a high schooler, they’ll give you the version they learned in ninth grade: an individual scientist forms a hypothesis, runs an experiment, and draws a conclusion. That’s more or less what happens at the individual level, though in practice it’s more iterative — you design, test, and refine all at once, landing on a slightly different idea each time until you reach a conclusion about whatever hypothesis you’ve ended up with. But this isn’t science. It’s only step one. Any individual scientist can make mistakes — scientists are human. Maybe there’s a bug in the code, maybe there’s an error in the experiment. Just because someone ran an experiment and reached a conclusion doesn’t mean it’s right, and scientists don’t treat a single result as settled truth. Step two is peer review, the first layer of quality control. The scientist writes up what they did and submits it to a journal, which sends the paper to other experts in the field. Those experts judge whether the methods are sound, whether it properly references prior work, and whether the conclusions actually follow from the data. Ask any scientist and they’ll tell you peer review is miserable — the comments come back brutal, often harsh, and you have to revise and resubmit, sometimes multiple times, before an editor finally accepts the paper. Peer review catches an immense amount of bad science, but it can’t catch all of it. Reviewers get sloppy or overworked, they miss obvious mistakes, and they can’t catch hidden errors — a bug in the code, a misread instrument. So a peer-reviewed paper making it into a journal doesn’t mean the paper is right. Nobody treats a single paper as the final word. That’s where step three comes in: the crucible of science. Important results get retested by the broader community. If you publish something interesting, it gets dissected. Sometimes people try to reproduce your work directly but more often they test its implications. If someone claims X is true, and that implies that Y is also true, then scientists will go check Y. If a claim survives this gauntlet long enough, it becomes accepted. That’s how we generate knowledge. Let me give an example: the ozone hole. In 1985 — and I doubt many people watching were around then, but I remember it well — Joe Farman and his colleagues published observations from Antarctica showing that a huge chunk of ozone was disappearing every year. This was shocking because most atmospheric chemists had expected ozone loss to occur at mid-latitudes and high altitudes, not over the South Pole. When scientists see something they don’t understand, they rush to explain it, and several competing hypotheses quickly appeared in the peer-reviewed literature. One pointed to chlorine chemistry from chlorofluorocarbons. A second blamed nitrogen chemistry, possibly driven by solar proton events — meaning the sun was responsible. A third argued it wasn’t chemistry at all but dynamics: winds were carrying naturally low-ozone air from the lower atmosphere up into the stratosphere. Then the community went to work testing which theory could survive the crucible. Aircraft flew into the ozone hole and found no nitrogen, ruling out the nitrogen theory. Measurements showed the air in the polar vortex was descending, not rising — which would bring high-ozone air down, eliminating the dynamics theory. Meanwhile, those same flights measured enormous amounts of chlorine, strongly correlated with exactly the regions where ozone was being destroyed. That became known as the “smoking gun” paper, and it established that chlorine chemistry was the cause. Through this process, a consensus emerged. And it’s worth being clear that this consensus is organic. There’s no vote, no poll, no meeting where it gets decided. Scientists go to conferences, talk to one another, and independently arrived at the same answer. It’s the ultimate free market of ideas. After the consensus was established, the peer-reviewed literature doesn’t even mention the rival theories — it simply takes chlorine chemistry as given. That’s what a consensus looks like. It doesn’t mean every single scientist agrees, but it does mean there’s no longer any legitimate debate. So where can you see what scientists actually think? It’s all in the peer-reviewed literature, which contains the entire historical record of the argument: the discovery, the competing theories, the debate, the testing, and finally the community coalescing around one answer. But there’s a lot of room for misrepresentation. You can dig up an old paper claiming the ozone hole was caused by dynamics and wave it around as if there still was a debate about the cause of the ozone hole — without mentioning that the idea was disproven long ago and that even its own authors no longer believe it. There’s a bigger problem, though: the peer-reviewed literature is written in a language I call “nerd.” It’s extremely hard to read — honestly, some of it is hard for me to follow. It takes graduate students years to work through the literature in a single field, so we can’t expect policymakers or ordinary people to do it. This is where scientific assessments come in. The most famous is the IPCC — the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The job of an assessment is to read and summarize the peer-reviewed literature, synthesizing what’s settled, what’s been disproven, and what remains genuinely debated. To ensure the assessments accurately summarize the peer-reviewed literature, assessments are written by large teams, which are far less prone to bias than individuals and which dilute the influence of any one scientist with an axe to grind. The teams are deliberately assembled to avoid stacking the deck, and the reports themselves go through multiple rounds of peer review. That rigorous process is exactly why you can trust them and why people consider the IPCC to be the gold standard of what we know about the climate system. An assessment produced through a different process may well not be credible. You can even watch the consensus evolve across assessments. Take the attribution of warming. The 1990 IPCC report said the observed warming was broadly consistent with model predictions but also comparable to natural variability — in other words, we don’t know whether humans are responsible. By 1995, it concluded that the balance of evidence suggested a discernible human influence — a sentence only a committee could write, and one that barely commits to anything. By 2001, most of the warming over the previous 50 years was judged “likely” due to greenhouse gases; by 2007, “very likely”; by 2013, “extremely likely.” The 2023 report says essentially the same as 2013 — there’s not much stronger language available. So, to wrap up: science is our ultimate tool for deciphering the universe — the most successful method we’ve ever developed for determining what’s true and what isn’t. Our understanding is written into the peer-reviewed literature, so if you want to know what scientists think, that’s where to look. And for those of us who don’t speak nerd, scientific assessments are the Rosetta Stone — they translate nerd into English. Let me open the floor to questions. Thank you.
A hidden pollutant is changing how the world's forests breathe
A massive global analysis found that nitrogen pollution can either speed up or dramatically slow the natural "breathing" of forest soils, depending on the ecosystem's condition. The results reveal hidden tipping points that could affect how forests store carbon and cope with climate change.
AMD Bundles Carbice Ice Pad with Ryzen 7 5800X3D
Carbice, a U.S.-based developer and supplier of next-generation carbon nanotube thermal interface materials (TIMs) and high-performance cooling solutions, today announced that the Carbice Ice Pad is shipping with the relaunched special edition 10th Anniversary AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D chip. The bundle br...
The ocean's health may depend on a tiny microbe inside fish
A surprising new discovery suggests that tiny microbes living inside fish may be helping shape the chemistry of the world’s oceans. Scientists found evidence that bacteria in the guts of marine fish work alongside their hosts to produce calcium carbonate, a mineral that plays an important role in ocean health and carbon storage. For years, researchers believed fish handled this process on their own, but the new findings point to a hidden partnership between fish and microbes.
The ocean's health may depend on a tiny microbe inside fish
A surprising new discovery suggests that tiny microbes living inside fish may be helping shape the chemistry of the world’s oceans. Scientists found evidence that bacteria in the guts of marine fish work alongside their hosts to produce calcium carbonate, a mineral that plays an important role in ocean health and carbon storage. For years, researchers believed fish handled this process on their own, but the new findings point to a hidden partnership between fish and microbes.
A British Icon Returns With 720 Horsepower
The new Cobra GT Coupe returns as a carbon-fiber body, V8-powered monster that should be a brutal good time to drive.
Scientists map the ocean’s invisible workforce of microbes
USC Dornsife research reveals how tiny sea-faring organisms compete for nutrients, recycle carbon and help regulate the planet’s climate
There's A New AC Cobra Coupe, And It's A $537,000 Lump Of Carbon Fiber With Tires As Thin As Rubber Bands
There's a new supercar on the road, and it's a new face on an old idea. This is the new AC Cobra coupe, and it costs $537,000 and has 799 HP.
SBTi validation of FLSmidth’s updated science-based targets
PRESS RELEASEFLSmidth & Co. A/S28 May 2026Copenhagen, Denmark FLSmidth is pleased to share that the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) recently validated its updated climate targets. This validation gives us a clear, science-based roadmap aligned with the 1.5 ºC pathway and strengthen our focus on delivering measurable emissions reductions across our operations and value chain. Together with our customer and suppliers, these updated targets underline that decarbonisation is a shared journey
Entertainment listing: May 27
Wednesday May 27 PK’s • Carbondale Trivia, 8 p.m. Little Nashville • Marion Bingo, 6 p.m. Thursday May 28 Advertisement Booby’s • Carbondale Open Mic Karaoke, 8:30 p.m. Project Human X • Carbondale Donation based paint night: “Sail away with me”, 6 p.m. Brews Brothers • Murphysboro Trivia, 8 p.m. Route 51 • Elkville Carter...
High-Level Climate, Clean Air, and Health Roundtable
Reducing air pollution and climate pollutants represents one of the most immediate opportunities to protect human health while advancing climate goals and driving economic growth. Actions to reduce super pollutants such as methane and black carbon can rapidly slow warming while significantly reducing the global burden of disease linked to air pollution. These health benefits reduce pressures on health systems and improve labour productivity, supporting economic growth.
Tesla Teases the Possibility of Tri-Motor, Model 3 Plaid
Tesla's VP of Engineering Lars Moravy reveals that he thinks "all the time" about putting carbon-sleeved motors into a tri-motor Model 3 Plaid.
Tropical cyclones and the ocean carbon budget
Schematic for the contribution of tropical cyclones to the ocean carbon budget during tropical cyclone events and after their passages.
Can Exxon build the world’s biggest carbon capture business?
Oil major bets billions on technology but backlash on US Gulf Coast threatens its ambitions
Scientists discover a strange hidden state in “sandwich” molecules
Scientists have uncovered a strange hidden structure formed during the creation of metallocenes, a class of sandwich-like molecules used in everything from catalysis to medicine. The newly characterized intermediate features a rare “double ring-slip,” where both carbon rings partially detach from the metal atom. By finally observing this fleeting state, researchers gained fresh insight into how these molecules assemble and transform.
Guest post: How CMIP7 will shape the next wave of climate science
Hundreds of scientists in dozens of institutions are embarking on the next phase of the world’s largest coordinated climate-modelling effort.
EU’s Carbon Border Levy Is Growing Source of Tension for Ukraine
In the fourth year since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine’s industrial heartland, Kyiv faces another challenge—this time from a partner: the European Union’s carbon border adjustment mechanism.
Beloved Italian restaurant in Mass. closing after almost 100 years in business
[This story first appeared on Boston Restaurant Talk.] A longtime Italian restaurant in the western suburbs of Boston that appeared to be closing around the start of the pandemic only to remain open is now closing for real. According to a source, Carbone’s Restaurant in Hopkinton is shutting down, with a MassLive article mentioning that the Cedar Street dining spot…
Soil science: How AI could help scientists secure a vital global resource
Soils store carbon, sustain ecosystems, and underpin global food and water systems. A new Frontiers in Science paper details how AI tools can help us adapt soils—and the systems they nurture—to a changing ...
How AI can help soil scientists secure a vital global resource
AI tools can accelerate soil science by speeding up early-stage work, improving predictions to support decisions on land-use, carbon, and climate adaptation, handling complex data, and freeing scientists to focus on questions that require expert judgment.
CNBC Sport: Utah Jazz and Mammoth owner Ryan Smith says 'sports are the antithesis of AI'
CNBC's Alex Sherman sits down with Ryan Smith, owner of the Utah Jazz and Utah Mammoth.
Scientists discover massive natural hydrogen source beneath Canada
Scientists in Canada have discovered that ancient underground rocks are naturally producing hydrogen gas — and lots of it. Measurements from mine boreholes in Ontario show the gas can flow continuously for years, offering a potential new source of clean energy called “white hydrogen.” Researchers say this hidden resource could help power industries and remote communities while cutting carbon emissions and reducing dependence on fossil fuels.
Large police presence in 800 block of S. Illinois Ave. in Carbondale
A large police presence was reported in the 800 block of S. Illinois Avenue in Carbondale.
Now What? With Carbon Pricing Eroded and Pipeline Politics Advancing, Here Are the Pathways for Climate Success
At the end of a whirlwind week of news on carbon pricing and electricity strategy, capping a madcap year of pretty much non-stop, dramatic change, the word across much of Canada’s climate and energy transition community is that climate policy in this country has been shredded. Eviscerated. Hit with a sledgehammer by policy rollbacks that have pushed the country’s 2050 net zero target “well out of reach”. That means it’s never been more important to look for the rays of hope and glimmers of possibility. To glimpse the seeds of the next set of strategies to get Canada’s climate pollution under control and the country into the accelerating global dash away from fossil fuels. And then, once we’ve spotted those possibilities, get on with the hard, day-to-day slog of trying to make them a reality. Nothing takes away from the frustration and the deep disappointment so many climate and energy hawks are expressing, the sense of betrayal by the author of Value(s) and the former UN special envoy for climate action and finance. But we knew two things as the week drew to a close. We’re looking at the world as it most definitely is. And we don’t get to give up finding the pathways to confront climate change and deliver faster, deeper carbon cuts that leave no one else behind. So really, the first question we all have to ask ourselves is: What’s next? Subscribe All the Oxygen in the Room The outpouring of anger and grief over the carbon pricing deal between Prime Minister Mark Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has been absolutely understandable. So much of the climate community poured years, more than a decade, into dragging the current federal pricing regime across the finish line, then defending it from a deluge of three-syllable rhymes after the Trudeau government proved utterly incapable of delivering its own message. The policy foisted on us by neo-classical economists took up all the oxygen in the room, burned through years of climate response time that we won’t get back, while cornering climate hawks into the position that the best response to the crisis of our lifetimes is a new tax…in an era of historic anti-tax sentiment. I mean, really—what could possibly have gone wrong? Against that history, let’s appreciate columnist Max Fawcett’s point that even a modest carbon pricing agreement with a government as off-the-wall libertarian/conspiracist as Danielle Smith’s—those adjectives are mine, not Max’s—is a win worth savouring (as long as Smith keeps her promises for a change). But part of living in the world as it is (no, I’m not letting that go) is to be clear-headed about what we can and can’t control. And one thing we get to decide, after seeing this week’s carbon price festivities take up all the oxygen yet again, is whether we want to keep letting that happen. Particularly when success down that road depends on a factor that no one with a climate agenda can control or influence—a provincial carbon pricing mechanism that has been manipulated and eroded beyond its lowest possible denominator. Thankfully, that’s not the way it has to go. Not when we have so many other powerful, practical tools at our disposal, including the ones still available to us through this abominable Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between Canada and Alberta. Tools In Our Toolbox When I started roughing out this list, I didn’t expect it to grow to nearly a dozen bullet points. It’s probably still incomplete. Some of the greatest hits in today’s climate solutions toolbox include: • No Carbon Capture, No Pipeline: On Friday, Prime Minister Mark Carney explicitly stated that there’s been no change to the MOU provision that there will be no West Coast pipeline without an industry commitment to build its massive, $16.5-billion carbon capture and storage (CCUS) hub in Northern Alberta, and vice versa. The two megaprojects were joined at the hip when the MOU was signed Nov. 27, and the implementation agreement this week affirmed that they still are. A parade of independent analysts have spent years pointing to the economic and technical flaws in CCUS, while the industry kept postponing its investment decision until it could arm-twist the government for more “clarity” (by which it meant even more lavish taxpayer subsidies) on the project. Now the industry itself is running away from the CCUS hub and insisting the pipeline should proceed without it, but Carney doesn’t seem to be budging from a central tenet of the MOU to which Smith has signed on. • No Subsidies, No Investors: Climate analysts and advocates have quite rightly been hammering away at Carney and his team, insisting that any new capacity the industry wants to build must proceed without new subsidies. The government has responded with a growing collection of funding and financing mechanisms for the very wide menu of industrial development and nation-building projects they say they want to take on, and that menu always includes fossil fuel infrastructure. But it’s hard to see how even the combined fiscal clout of the federal and supportive provincial governments will deliver the financial backing private investors would need when the business case for new fossil fuel development is evaporating before their eyes. Particularly when… • No Market, No Demand, No Investors: As our friend Markham Hislop at Energi Media (our apparently sleepless friend, given the massive volume of great material he’s been churning out) points out this morning, the biggest vulnerability in any pipeline deal is the assumption that Asian buyers will want the oil or liquefied natural ga that our fossil industry is so keen to send them. Hislop writes in part: Ottawa and Alberta are effectively betting that countries like China and India will continue increasing oil imports for decades as their economies grow and energy consumption rises. That assumption underpins the entire economic rationale for expanding oil sands production and building billions of dollars in new export infrastructure. But Asian energy systems are changing rapidly… China, India, South Korea, and other major hydrocarbon importers are now investing hundreds of billions of dollars into electricity systems built around wind, solar, batteries, nuclear, hydro, and expanded transmission infrastructure. Domestic “energy sovereignty” is increasingly replacing the old energy-security model based on stable oil and gas imports. Those investments are expected to sharply slow oil demand growth and eventually reverse it, even as overall energy consumption continues rising. There are also refining constraints. Many Asian refineries and petrochemical complexes are already optimized to process discounted heavy crude from the Middle East and Latin America. That raises serious questions about how much additional Canadian bitumen Asian markets can absorb at profitable prices. Small wonder that there’s still no private sector investor for the project, despite Smith’s government desperately beating the bushes to put together a deal. For now, Alberta is acting as proponent and covering early start-up costs for a pitch to the federal Major Projects Office, which could actually turn into the next tough hurdle for Smith and her pipeline to jump. • Canada Day Looms: How ironic that Canada’s birthday this year could become a major chokepoint for the provincial premier who’s been working so diligently to tear the country apart! The July 1 target date for Alberta’s pipeline proposal is baked into the MOU, was reaffirmed by the implementation plan, but it hadn’t dawned on me that it cuts both ways. As one very smart colleague wrote in an email yesterday, “they’ve thrown the ball into Alberta’s court to get the project proposal on the table really quickly and to have to do a whole pile of work to put together a massive, complicated project that would typically take years to assemble, and they’ve given them weeks to do it.” That makes July 1 a looming deadline that Smith won’t be able to run away from politically, especially with the separatists in her party and her caucus breathing down her neck. (See previous ref to off-the-wall.) But if Alberta comes in with a sloppy, incomplete submission, even after Carney bent over backwards to simplify the application process and the rules that govern it, it may be harder for the province or the industry to blame Ottawa and insist on the faster process they claim their investors are demanding. (Oh, wait—which investors would those be??) • We’ll See You In Court (Then We’ll See You Again): If Carney did cave, that would be just one more reason for Indigenous and other affected communities to take the government and the process to court—Just as Alberta First Nations did, successfully, in response to Smith’s half-baked separation referendum. Veterans of the Harper era have been warning that a shoddy process around fossil fuel infrastructure or other major projects will be a recipe for the very delays that process seeks to avoid. And now more than ever, with renewable energy and energy storage eating fossil fuels’ lunch in import markets around the world, a delayed pipeline or LNG terminal may be as good as a cancelled one. • Charged Up, Ready to Go: With its goal of doubling Canada’s electricity supply to meet a doubling of demand by 2050, the national electricity strategy that Carney unveiled Thursday has a lot to like. With its explicit language about speeding the shift from fuels to more efficient and affordable electricity, global investment and deployment patterns that already favour that shift, an emerging bidirectional power grid, the role of front-line options like rooftop solar and heat pumps, the emergence of electric vehicles as behind-the-meter energy storage, and the domestic jobs and manufacturing to make it all happen, the document doubles down on the essential cornerstone of a faster shift off fossil fuels. The strategy envisions a more prominent role for gas and nuclear power. But some of those provisions were already in the Clean Electricity Regulations that climate hawks are now fighting so hard to defend, inserted as a compromise in a futile attempt to mollify the industry and its political representatives in Alberta and Saskatchewan. But once again, gas will be a tougher sell when it’s more expensive and now so much more unpredictable than the clean alternatives. The new nuclear technologies are still speculative and deeply vulnerable to cost overruns. Increasingly, utilities, developers, and investors know it. Carney declared Thursday that “it doesn’t do us good to be sitting in court all the time with provinces. It doesn’t do us good to be talking past each other. What does do us good is to come together with specific projects.” There are no guarantees, but so much of the language and narrative-building in the electricity strategy suggests the lion’s share of those projects will be renewable. • The Party Has Already Started: The electricity strategy only rarely digs down to specific projects, but provinces representing three-quarters of Canada’s population are already embracing a faster transition. Hydro-Québec is working on a 10-year, $185-billion renewable energy and grid buildout by 2035. Ontario recently brought 10 provinces and territories together in a National Energy Corridor Agreement to boost interprovincial and -territorial transmission infrastructure. And the MOU implementation agreement commits Alberta to facilitate investment in renewable energy projects, a big step back from its continuing, punitive restrictions on renewables development. The electricity strategy envisions much of the financing and infrastructure that will be needed to pull those advances together into an integrated whole. • Delivering on Affordability: The MOU implementation plan has little or nothing to say about affordability (are you surprised?), but the electricity strategy does, with a top-line pledge to reduce home energy costs for seven out of 10 Canadian households by 2050, a total saving of $15 billion across the board. It’s just a start, but it puts affordability on the government’s narrative map. If they’re serious and deliberate about patching together a least-cost energy strategy, it’ll have little if any room for oil, gas, or nuclear—not with powerful evidence, for example, that electricity prices are higher when those prices are set by gas. • Smith Proves that Canada Works: By signing a deal that makes it harder to claim the federal government is blocking a new pipeline, Smith has helped prove Carney’s constant anti-separatist refrain that “Canada works”—incurring the rage, no doubt, of her own political base. Canada also needs to work for anyone who depends on a clean environment, healthy and thriving ecosystems, and safe, stable climate. But with Smith and her separatist constituents setting up as a fifth column for annexation by Donald Trump’s United States, let’s set aside any notion that 51st state status for Canada is a recipe for anything other than climate disaster (and so much else). Resisting and withstanding Trump (just 170 more sleeps until mid-term elections, which is a damn sight better than the 730 we started with) doesn’t mean a free pass for a pipeline, but we can still appreciate it that keeping Canada whole and sovereign is still Carney’s Job One. • The Words Not Spoken: Apart from a commitment to export a million barrels of “low-emission” Alberta bitumen per day (memo to Smith and Carney: You realize that that’s less than the industry is already exporting??), the MOU implementation plan says nothing about the international trade and economic sovereignty deals that Carney has been travelling the world to negotiate. It didn’t have to. Carney doesn’t need permission from Danielle Smith, her American enablers, or her separatist allies to continue building the alliances that will ratchet down our economic dependency on our unstable, unreliable neighbour to the south. But every connection he builds with countries outside North America helps align our economy and our future with a faster shift off fossil fuels. Little if any of this was on our bingo cards a year or two ago. But it’s the pathway that has opened up to us. And if it gives Canada any climate or energy gains at all in an era still dominated by Trump and his increasingly ridiculous tariffs, his loutish trade negotiations and his continuing annexation threats, we have to take the wins. Not least because they’ll be the point of departure for what we can achieve in 2027, 2029, and beyond, as Trump’s grip and this era begin to loosen and then fade. What is Carney Doing? If this line of thought is right—and it’s a possibility, not a prediction—it means that Carney’s actions and decisions are largely about buying time. Time for Trump’s power to wane. Time for Alberta’s separatist/conspiracist virus to spread, mutate, die out, or at least die back, with help from a vaccine of federal steadiness and calm (appropriate enough, for a movement populated largely by vaccine deniers) that no conspiracy theory can dismiss. And time for the government’s trade and investment agenda to deliver results—even knowing that some of those results will bring impacts that front-line communities will not and should not accept. In the immediate moment, none of this changes the way the wider climate community has to respond, from campaigners to investors to front-line practitioners. All of our voices are still essential. But those voices will be stronger and more confident if we have a clearer sense of the brutal game we’ve been pulled into, and a plausible path (or two it three) for playing it to the win we need. This conversation also underscores our biggest task for the remaining years of what was supposed to be the “decisive” decade for climate response: if we can shift the energy narrative in Canada, make it a mainstream view that the country’s preoccupation with oil and gas has us falling farther behind a changing world, we’ll see far better results in the 2030s and beyond. For many veteran climate advocates, taking on that part of the fight will begin with recognizing that most of our friends and family, neighbours and colleagues already understand that climate change is real and right in front of us: they’re looking away and staying silent because they don’t have what climate communicator Katharine Hayhoe calls “efficacy”. As Hayhoe recently pointed out in a feature interview with The Energy Mix, it amounts to science denial to keep hammering away at the dire news about global warming without also helping audiences understand what they can do about it, with multiple studies telling us why that won’t work. Far better to open those conversations with the dominant crises like energy security, food security, emergency preparedness and business continuity, affordability, and financial security that have knocked climate change far lower on the list of public priorities, and will likely keep it there. We Knew This Would Happen Climate hawks have always known this day would come. For decades, we warned that everyone had to pay attention to climate change right now, because it would be much tougher to respond once the crisis itself started affecting our daily lives. We were right, and here we are. But now, thanks to decades of hard work, communities and countries have an alternative to doubling down on fossil fuels. “In 10 years everyone will have ‘always known’ that solar and batteries were going to win,” Morgan Solar Executive Chair Mike Andrade writes on LinkedIn. With the disruption in the Strait of Hormuz roiling energy priorities around the world, Canada and the United States are among the shrinking number of countries that are still very keen on fossil fuel development. Understanding that gap is a first, essential step in spotting the opportunities ahead, and averting the deep economic as well as environmental and social risk we face if we don’t seize them. Thanks for reading The Energy Mix Weekender! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support our work. Subscribe Mitchell Beer traces his background in renewable energy and energy efficiency back to 1977, in climate change to 1997. Now he and the rest of the Energy Mix team scan 1,200 news headlines a week to pull together The Energy Mix and The Energy Mix Weekender. Chart of the Week BYD Eyes 20 Dealership Locations After Canada Greenlights Chinese EV Imports ‘Sledgehammer’ Carbon Price Deal Boosts Emissions by 230Mt, Aims for Fall 2027 Pipeline Approval ‘Worse Than Harper’: Regulatory Rollback Would Stop Canada from Assessing Project Impacts, Critics Warn Electricity Strategy Aims for Doubling by 2050, Allows ‘Flexibility’ for Gas Power Plants Opposition Mounts as O’Leary’s Data Centre Approved in Drought-Stricken Utah Diluted Carbon Price Misses ‘Reality of the World We’re In’, Could Impede Diversified Trade: Climate Institute $200B in Clean Energy Investment Will Need On-Time Delivery, Reliable Policies, Trade Association Says ‘Sovereign Pipeline’: CEO Pitches to Keep Trans Mountain in Government Hands What a Supercharged El Niño Could Mean for Canada Canada’s future is electric, and here’s how a power grid superhighway would get us there (Toronto Star) The Perilous Waters of Hecate Strait (Globe and Mail) Saudi Aramco profits jump despite conflict in Middle East (The Guardian) Farmers confront rising cost of fertilizer and fuel as spring seeding under way (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) Clarkson forecasts 24% decline in offshore oil, gas capital expenditures (Oil & Gas Journal) Pipe Dreams: How Oil and Gas Fail to Deliver Economic Development in Africa (Oil Change International) Developing countries must hold the pen to script the fossil fuel transition (Climate Home News) Iran war threatens the dream of a post-oil economy in the Gulf (Washington Post) U.S. Oil, Gas Work Force Hits Lowest Level Since 2022 (Rigzone) Why Polestar Is Doubling Down on Net Zero as Rivals Pull Back on EVs (Bloomberg) Why this Michigan utility plans to sell its hydro dams for $13 (E&E News/Politico) Levees can no longer save New Orleans (Vox)
The Reddest Supercar Ever Built Hides A Ford V8 With A Gated Manual Under Its $3.4M Skin
A red-tinted resin runs through the carbon tub of the latest 01 Zagato prototype, inspired by 1930s racing Alfas not Ferrari
Southeast Utah Health Dept. asks those with foodborne illness symptoms to report online
The Southeast Utah Health Department began investigating a potential foodborne illness outbreak.The health department said that the outbreak is in Carbon County
Why Sustainability Is a Business Strategy, Not a Nice-to-Have for AstraZeneca
A fireside chat with AstraZeneca's Dafni Kika at ISPE MAST Showcase made the case that decarbonization, AI, and people-centered leadership are converging into one operating...
Scientists discover the strange way CO2 cools part of Earth’s atmosphere
Scientists have finally cracked the mystery behind one of climate change’s strangest fingerprints: while Earth’s surface heats up, the upper atmosphere is rapidly cooling. Researchers at Columbia University discovered that carbon dioxide acts very differently high above the planet, where it actually helps radiate heat into space instead of trapping it. The team found that certain infrared wavelengths fall into a “Goldilocks zone” that becomes increasingly effective as CO2 levels rise, accelerating cooling in the stratosphere.
Scientists finally solve the 100-year mystery behind tough tires
For nearly 100 years, reinforced rubber has powered everything from car tires to airplanes, yet scientists never fully understood why adding tiny particles of carbon black made rubber so incredibly strong. Now, researchers at the University of South Florida have finally cracked the mystery using massive computer simulations that took the equivalent of 15 years of computing time. They discovered that carbon black forces rubber to “fight against itself” when stretched, dramatically boosting its strength and durability.
SIU holds inaugural Science Reception to recognize outstanding students and faculty
The College of Agricultural, Life, and Physical Sciences at Southern Illinois University Carbondale held its inaugural Science Reception at the Gower Translational Research Center on April 30. Around 200 attendees enjoyed the evening, which included a reception, happy hour and awards ceremony.
Where scientists watch the forest breathe, findings uproot how people think about forest-atmosphere interactions
Photosynthesis is the oldest carbon-capture technology on Earth. For eons, plants have pulled carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and locked carbon—the building block of life on our planet—into their bodies ...
Families celebrate Mother’s Day with hands-on science and art activities at Carbondale Science Center - KBSI FOX23 News Cape Girardeau News
CARBONDALE, Ill. (KBSI) — Families spent Mother’s Day getting creative at The Science Center in Carbondale, where mothers and grandmothers received free
New York Is Working on a Blueprint for Greener Buildings
The city is investigating just how much carbon it takes to build its famous skyline, from the concrete foundations all the way up to the glass that frames skyscrapers.
Scientists Identify Another Contributor to Global Warming—and It's Everywhere
Researchers found that airborne microplastics trap nearly one-fifth as much heat as black carbon.
Motorola Beats Apple And Samsung: The Razr Ultra 2026 Debuts Innovative Battery Tech
Motorola’s latest is the first major U.S.-focused smartphone brand to use a carbon-silicon battery.
iPhone 17 Pro Max crushed: I just tested the Oppo Find X9 Ultra's silicon-carbon battery and it's not even close
Oppo Find X9 Ultra's silicon-carbon battery obliterates the iPhone 17 Pro Max in testing
Motorola Beats Apple And Samsung: The Razr Ultra 2026 Debuts Innovative Battery Tech
Motorola’s latest is the first major U.S.-focused smartphone brand to use a carbon-silicon battery.
Meet 2026 RBSI Scholar, Kaitlynne Franklin, Southern Illinois University Carbondale -
Kaitlynne Franklin, Southern Illinois University Carbondale Kaitlynne Franklin is a first-generation Southern Illinois University Carbondale political science student with plans to pursue a Ph.D. in American politics, specializing in race and ethnic politics. She has [...]
Octopus Energy Is Getting Into the Carbon Credit Business
British renewable-power utility said it is seeing growth in companies looking to find ways to offset rising emissions.
Carbon pollution is making food less nutritious and risking health of billions
Surging concentrations of carbon in the atmosphere have produced potent changes in the way plants grow, draining the nutrients from food.
Entertainment Listing: April 29
Wednesday April 29 Hangar 9 • Carbondale Star Wars Trivia, 8 p.m. PK’s • Carbondale Trivia, 8 p.m. Thursday April 30 Advertisement Hangar 9 • Carbondale International Jazz Day, 5 a.m. Urban Cowboy Line dancing, 7 p.m. Brews Brothers • Murphysboro Trivia, 8 p.m. Route 51 • Elkville Nate Graham, Tim Whiteford and Tall and...
Chinese scientists turn carbon dioxide into jet fuel as prices soar
Scientists use iron-based catalyst to overcome barriers in chemical process, bringing tech closer to industrial reality.
Priority research questions in global peatland science
Communications Earth & Environment - Global research prioritization for peatland science engaged 467 participants from 54 countries, identifying 50 priority research questions across carbon...
Graphene kills harmful bacteria “superbugs” but spares human cells
Scientists have uncovered how graphene oxide pulls off a remarkable trick: it hunts down and destroys harmful bacteria while leaving human cells completely unharmed. By targeting a molecule found only in bacterial membranes, this ultra-thin carbon-based material acts with laser-like precision—offering a powerful new alternative to traditional antibiotics. Even more exciting, it works against drug-resistant “superbugs,” promotes faster wound healing, and keeps its antibacterial strength even after repeated washing.
Scientists just uncovered a 3 million-year climate mystery in Antarctic ice
Ancient Antarctic ice is revealing a surprising new chapter in Earth’s climate story, stretching back 3 million years. By analyzing tiny pockets of trapped air and rare gases, scientists have discovered that while the planet cooled significantly—especially in the oceans—levels of key greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide and methane changed only modestly. This unexpected mismatch suggests other powerful forces, such as shifting ice sheets, ocean circulation, and Earth’s reflectivity, played major roles in driving long-term climate change.
What is a Silicon-Carbon Battery? The Samsung Galaxy S27 Ultra’s Secret Weapon Explained
Discover how Silicon-Carbon battery tech gives the Samsung Galaxy S27 Ultra the biggest capacity boost in a decade.
Scientists make breakthrough in solving mystery of volcanic lightning
Research shows fine carbon coating on silica in updraught causes electrical charge – and spectacular display
Entertainment Listing: April 22
Wednesday April 22 Hangar 9 • Carbondale Carbondale Idol, 7 p.m. Open Deck Night, 10 p.m. PK’s • Carbondale Trivia, 8 p.m. Little Nashville • Marion Advertisement Bingo, 6 p.m. Thursday April 23 Hangar 9 • Carbondale Gnarly: A Girlypop dance party, 9 p.m. PK’s • Carbondale Cold Front and RGB Lighthouse, 9 p.m....
A bizarre new state of matter may be hiding inside Uranus and Neptune
Deep inside planets like Uranus and Neptune, scientists may have uncovered a bizarre new state of matter where atoms behave in unexpected ways. Advanced simulations suggest that carbon and hydrogen, under crushing pressures and scorching temperatures, can form a strange hybrid phase—part solid, part fluid—where hydrogen atoms spiral through a rigid carbon framework. This unusual “superionic” structure could reshape how heat and electricity flow inside these distant worlds, potentially helping explain their mysterious magnetic fields.
Leveraging medical device reprocessing to reduce healthcare’s carbon footprint
In celebration of Earth Day, we highlight the impact of our Sustainable Technologies business Many hospitals and health systems have committed to reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 50% by...
Revealed: Scientists tell Colombia fossil-fuel transition summit to ‘halt new expansion’
Around 50 nations will gather in Colombia to debate ways to “transition away” from fossil fuels, in the face of worsening climate change and high oil prices
Samsung Galaxy S27 Will “Most Likely” Ship With A Silicon-Carbon Battery With A Much Higher Lifespan
Samsung refused to adopt the silicon-carbon battery tech until it was truly ready, taking a moral stand that cost it dearly in China.
Entertainment Listing: April 15
Wednesday April 15 Hangar 9 • Carbondale Saluki Con Super Hero Trivia and Costume contest, 8 p.m. PK’s • Carbondale Trivia, 8 p.m. Project Human X • Carbondale Advertisement Open studio, 4 p.m. Paint night: “Spring Gnome,” 6 p.m. Little Nashville • Marion Trivia, 6 p.m. Thursday April 16 Booby’s • Carbondale Karaoke, 8:30 p.m....
Microsoft Rejects Speculation It’s Axing Carbon Removal Business
Microsoft Corp., the world’s biggest investor in carbon removal projects, rejected speculation that it is abandoning its efforts to build out the technology.
Carbon removal project supports Maine’s blue economy, broader marine health
MIT researchers introduce a chemical-free approach to balancing ocean acidity that protects marine life and could have huge impact on the global aquaculture market.
Radiology departments can cut costs and save the planet by limiting ultrasound waste
The modality uses a high volume of linens, gels and other disposable supplies that also can have a significant global carbon footprint in radiology, experts note.
Entertainment Listing: April 8
Wednesday April 8 Booby’s • Carbondale Local band benefit night: Hair of the Dog and Parallel Play, 8 p.m. Hangar 9 • Carbondale Open Deck Night, 9 p.m. PK’s • Carbondale Advertisement Trivia, 8 p.m. Project Human X • Carbondale Open studio, 4 p.m. Little Nashville • Marion Wing night encore, 6 p.m. Thursday...
Impatient Iowa landowners pressure Senate to hold eminent domain vote
Iowa landowners are putting pressure on Senate Republican leaders to hold a vote on legislation restricting eminent domain for carbon pipelines.
Earth’s most powerful ocean current didn’t form the way we thought
A colossal ocean current encircling Antarctica—stronger than all the world’s rivers combined—played a far more complex role in shaping Earth’s climate than scientists once thought. New research shows it didn’t form just because ocean gateways opened, but required shifting continents and powerful winds to align. This shift helped pull carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere, contributing to a major cooling event that transformed Earth into the ice-covered world we know today.
Schematic Diagram of Semiartificial Photosynthesis
A semiartificial photosynthesis system composed of photocatalysts (purple), electron mediators (red), and biocatalysts (green) works together to convert carbon dioxide into useful substances using sunlight.
How carbon capture is becoming one of the biggest fights in Louisiana politics
As local opposition grows, industry groups are pushing back with increasing urgency.
Mars dust storms are sparking electricity and rewriting the planet’s chemistry
Mars may look like a quiet, dusty world, but it’s actually buzzing with hidden electrical activity. Powerful dust storms and swirling dust devils generate static electricity strong enough to spark faint glowing discharges across the planet, triggering chemical reactions that reshape its surface and atmosphere. Scientists have now shown that these tiny lightning-like events can create a surprising mix of chemicals—including chlorine compounds and carbonates—and even leave behind distinct isotopic “fingerprints.”
A massive arctic thaw is unleashing carbon frozen for thousands of years
A sweeping new study reveals that as Arctic permafrost thaws, it is dramatically reshaping rivers and releasing vast amounts of ancient carbon that had been locked away for thousands of years. By analyzing decades of high-resolution data across northern Alaska, scientists found that runoff is increasing, rivers are carrying more dissolved carbon, and the thawing season is stretching further into the fall. This carbon eventually reaches the ocean, where some of it turns into carbon dioxide, intensifying global warming.
FY2027 Budget Request Slashes Billions in Science Funding
The Trump administration is requesting the cancellation of billions of dollars in funds for space science, renewable energy, carbon removal, and climate change education in its FY 2027 budget.
Carbon Emissions in a War-Torn World Threaten Brain Health
The combination of global warming and wars may deliver a double whammy to normal brain function.
The depths of Neptune and Uranus may be “superionic”
Sophisticated models predict that a quasi-one-dimensional superionic state of carbon hydride exists under the extreme pressures and temperatures found deep inside Neptune and Uranus.
Scientists Uncover Massive Climate Secret Beneath Sweden’s Forests
Undisturbed boreal forests may hold far more carbon than expected.
Tories pledges to fully scrap carbon taxes on business
Kemi Badenoch says carbon taxes have made doing business in Britain "much, much harder than it needs to be".
‘Steel for fuel’ — but bill consumers for both
By Sarah Montalbano In 2018, Xcel Energy, an investor-owned utility serving millions of customers across eight states, was the first U.S. utility to pledge to deliver 100% carbon-free electricity by 2050. Eight years later, Xcel is pleading with Colorado regulators to let it continue running its coal plants until 2030. What happened to “steel […]
China doubles down on chemical plant expansion with tech breakthrough
Ethylene glycol plant in Xinjiang is equipped with tech that includes green electricity coupling, carbon capture and storage.
Entertainment Listing: April 1
Wednesday April 1 Hangar 9 • Carbondale Jacob Wolfson All Request Piano Show, 7 p.m. PK’s • Carbondale Trivia, 8 p.m. Project Human X • Carbondale Advertisement Open studio, 4 p.m. Little Nashville • Marion Open Mic with John Wofford, 6 p.m. Thursday April 2 Booby’s • Carbondale Karaoke, 8:30 p.m. Hangar 9 •...
Scientists turn MXene into tiny nanoscrolls that supercharge batteries and sensors
Scientists have transformed a groundbreaking 2D nanomaterial called MXene into an even more powerful 1D form—tiny scroll-like tubes that are incredibly thin yet highly conductive. By rolling flat sheets into hollow nanoscrolls, they’ve created structures that act like fast “highways” for ions, boosting performance in batteries, sensors, and wearable electronics.
This new carbon material could make carbon capture far more affordable
Scientists have created a new kind of carbon material that could make carbon capture much cheaper and more efficient. By carefully controlling how nitrogen atoms are arranged, they found certain structures capture CO2 better and release it using far less heat. One version works at temperatures below 60 °C, meaning it could run on waste heat instead of costly energy. The discovery offers a powerful new blueprint for next-generation climate technology.
Ritzy NYC restaurant Carbone hit with more health violations — while hiding its 'B' rating
Entertainment Listing: March 25
Wednesday March 25 Hangar 9 • Carbondale Open deck night, 9 p.m. PK’s • Carbondale Advertisement Trivia, 8 p.m. Project Human X • Carbondale Open studio, 4 p.m. Little Nashville • Marion Bingo, 6 p.m. Thursday March 26 Booby’s • Carbondale Karaoke, 8:30 p.m. Hangar 9 • Carbondale Jim Foerster and Jeff Bradley, 5 p.m....
Startups juice carbon removal with power generation
The era of relying on carbon removal revenue alone is over.
How chemists turned bourbon waste into supercapacitors
Hydrothermal carbonization can directly convert sloppy stillage into hard or activated carbon.
Carbonsphere launches for carbon science and net-zero solutions
Tsinghua University Press is pleased to announce the launch of Carbonsphere, a new open-access, peer-reviewed journal dedicated to carbon science, technology, and policy. Sponsored by Qinghai University and Tsinghua University and published by Tsinghua University Press, the journal creates a new interdisciplinary platform for research spanning natural systems, engineered systems, and human systems.
SP40 Restomod Is Built Around The One Ford That Edsel Actually Got Right
Carbon-bodied SP40 brings the style of Edsel Ford’s one-off speedster to a wider audience
A Jamiroquai Music Video From 1996 Just Inspired A New Revuelto For 2026
Novitec refines the Revuelto with carbon fiber details, new wheels, and a bump in hybrid V12 performance
A secret weapon to fight carbon emissions was just discovered: Beavers
A new study in Switzerland finds that beaver-built wetlands can trap and store large amounts of carbon, offering a low-cost boost for restoration and climate resilience.
Why mosquitoes always find you and how they decide to attack
Scientists have finally cracked how mosquitoes decide where to fly—and it’s not by following each other. Instead, each insect independently reacts to visual cues and carbon dioxide, zeroing in on humans when both signals align. Dark colors and CO2 together create the strongest attraction, triggering swarming and biting behavior. This insight could reshape how we design traps and prevent mosquito-borne diseases.
Scientists unlock a powerful new way to turn sunlight into fuel
Scientists have developed a powerful new computational method that could accelerate the search for next-generation materials capable of turning sunlight into useful chemical energy. The work focuses on polyheptazine imides, a promising class of carbon nitride materials that absorb visible light and can drive reactions such as hydrogen production, carbon dioxide conversion, and hydrogen peroxide synthesis. By analyzing how 53 different metal ions influence the structure and electronic behavior of these materials, researchers created a framework that predicts which combinations will perform best.
Extreme Ocean Pressure Is Feeding Deep-Sea Life in a Way Scientists Never Expected
High pressure in the deep ocean may squeeze nutrients from sinking “marine snow,” feeding deep-sea microbes and altering how carbon moves through the ocean.
Micah Bob Finds His Foundation in Materials Science
UC Davis materials science and engineering student Micah Bob studies sustainable cement alternatives to reduce carbon emissions. As graduation approaches, he reflects on the transformative course, research experiences and campus life — including MASC and Video Game Orchestra — that shaped his journey.
'Blackwater' lakes and rivers in the Congo Basin are now emitting ancient carbon into the atmosphere
Carbon that has been buried in the Congo Basin's peatlands for millennia is seeping into lakes and rivers. Why this is happening remains unclear, but researchers warn that tropical peatlands could be nearing a tipping point.
Wirral carbon capture pipeline plan 'threatens businesses'
Small business owners voice their fears about the impact of building a 200km (124 mile) pipeline.
Scientists discover tiny plant trick that could supercharge crop yields
Researchers have uncovered a molecular trick used by hornwort plants that could help future crops capture carbon dioxide more efficiently. A unique protein feature called RbcS-STAR causes the key photosynthesis enzyme Rubisco to cluster into dense compartments, helping it work more effectively. When scientists added this feature to other plants, Rubisco reorganized in the same way. The finding raises the possibility of engineering more efficient photosynthesis into major crops.
Crews monitoring carbon monoxide levels at health care facility
Emergency crews responding to reports of elevated carbon monoxide are ventilating a senior living facility.
Samsung’s Mammoth 20,000mAh Silicon-Carbon (Si/C) Smartphone Battery Fails At 960 Cycles
Samsung's experimentation with mammoth silicon-carbon (Si/C) battery cells continues even as the 20,000mAh cell proved to be dead end.
Scientists Analyzed Air Bubbles Frozen in Ice. They’re Full of Warning Signs for Humanity.
While hydrogen itself doesn’t trap greenhouse gases, its interaction with other gases can indirectly heat the atmosphere 11 times faster than carbon dioxide does.
Carbon emissions now more than double the planetary boundary, analysis finds
Earth is not infinite. Pollution beyond certain levels threatens the climate and ecosystems. To prevent this, scientists have proposed planetary boundaries, defining the safe operating limits of the Earth ...
Fixing Society's Toughest Problems? ‘It’s On You’ | Science Friday
Ever heard an alcohol ad that tells you to “please drink responsibly”? Or a gambling ad that warns, "when the fun stops, stop”? Or been urged to reduce your carbon footprint? The ...
Workforce training bills, tort reform, carbon wells top business agenda for Louisiana Legislature
Bills pushed by the business community would consolidate money and authority for badly needed workforce training in Louisiana under the state.
Maryland health department reports increase in carbon monoxide ER visits
This molecule puts a new twist on the Möbius strip
A molecule made of carbon and chlorine is half as twisty as the paper loops common in math classes.
Health officials revoke licenses on transport company after three clients found dead
The Utah Department of Health and Human Services have revoked