Making Headlines

Forbes, December 12, 2019

... Satellite images have also been useful for scientists studying glaciers in other parts of the world. Ohio State University researcher Michalea King looked at the changes in Greenland’s glaciers since 1985, and discovered that they have been retreating by 3 miles on average in that time. She found that the most rapid changes in Greenland occurred in the years since 2000, at which point they started releasing increasingly large amounts of glacial ice into the ocean. ...

Chicago Tribune, December 11, 2019

Coral reefs build up over centuries but can die in just two successive summers of abnormal heat. With such temperature spikes and the resultant coral bleaching events increasing in frequency, reefs may become the first of the planet’s major ecosystems to disappear   ...

The Conversation, Dec. 12, 2019

Although it may not be obvious, there’s a close link between manufacturing technology and innovation. Elon Musk often talks of the “machines that build the machines” as being the real enabler in both his space and automotive businesses. Using less-expensive, more scalable processes allows Space X to launch missions on budgets and with speed that would be unthinkable using NASA’s old-school manufacturing methods. And the new Tesla Cybertruck’s unorthodox design appears to take advantage of a simplified manufacturing process that does away with “die stamping” metal in favor of bending and folding metal sheets. Now a new manufacturing method dubbed “robotic blacksmithing” has the potential to revolutionize the way high-quality structural parts are made, resulting in a new class of customized and optimized products. I am part of a loose coalition of engineers developing this process, a technique I believe can help revive U.S. manufacturing. ...

Columbus Dispatch, Dec. 10, 2019

In a couple of years, the only remnants of the head of the Amungme tribe’s god will be in a freezer at Ohio State University. The tribe lives in Papua, Indonesia, near Puncak Jaya, the highest peak between the Himalayas and the Andes and the site of the last remaining glaciers in the Pacific Warm Pool, a large body of warm water in the western part of that ocean. “They believe that the legs and arms of their god are the mountains and the valleys and the glacier is the head of their god. When they die, their spirit goes to the mountaintops. So these are sacred places,” said Lonnie Thompson, a paleoclimatologist and senior research scientist at Ohio State’s Byrd Polar Research Center. Also:  Nature World News: Warning! Remaining Glaciers in the Pacific Will Soon Melt Away ...

E&E News, Dec. 5, 2019

The governing board for the state ratepayer advocate concluded in a 2016 report on the state of Ohio's power sector with the title "Everyone Is Unhappy." These days, there's still plenty of unhappiness in the Buckeye State, four months after Republican Gov. Mike DeWine signed a law that keeps struggling nuclear and coal plants running and weakens Ohio's renewable energy and efficiency standards. ...

Voice of America, Nov. 29, 2019

New research suggests that planting trees and other plants near factories could reduce pollution by almost one-third. The addition of plant life may even cost less and be more effective than technology designed to cut pollution, a new study found. The findings were reported in the publication Environmental Science & Technology. The lead author of the study was Bhavik Bakshi. He is a professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering at The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio. ...

Columbus Dispatch, Nov. 27, 2019

A new study involving numerous universities shows that a 40% reduction in phosphorous entering Lake Erie can still be achieved by 2025. But it’s going to take the majority of farmers using multiple management practices to make that happen. ...

Ohio's Country Journal and Ohio Ag Net, Nov. 26, 2019

Several research teams, led by The Ohio State University, have concluded a three-year study evaluating the ability of agricultural management practices to reduce phosphorus-causing harmful algal blooms in Lake Erie. In 2012, the United States and Canada set the goal of reducing phosphorus entering the lake by 40%. Now, researchers have a better understanding of what management practices need to be implemented, and what research still needs to be done to meet these goals by 2025. ...

National Post, Nov. 22, 2019

Arguments over the thermostat aren’t cooling down anytime soon — especially for women. A new study from Ohio State University shows gender is the difference between changing the temperature and changing into a warmer outfit. ...

Ohio's Country Journal and Ohio Ag Net , Nov. 22, 2019

Most Ohio farmers will agree that 2019 will go down in the history books as a year with tremendous variability. For those who conduct on-farm research, variability is one thing they attempt to reduce. One way to help reduce variability is to have a plan before you go to the field. A plan that is designed to have multiple replications of the various components can give you options. ...