Science

How many oceans are there? It's National Geographic official now: There are five.

Coming Soon To An Atlas Near You: A Fifth Ocean

7:03pm June 11, 2021

National Geographic has recognized the Southern Ocean as the fifth official ocean. The cartographic update doesn't surprise researchers who study the importance of the waters surrounding Antarctica.

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Black-legged ticks carrying the bacterium that causes Lyme have been found in the coastal chaparrals surrounding California beaches.

Lyme Disease-Carrying Ticks Are Turning Up On California's Beaches

2:34pm June 11, 2021

by Vanessa Romo

The blood-sucking critters are capable of thriving along the West Coast, according to new research, though experts don't exactly know how they're picking up the bacterium that causes the illness.

A sign at a store in El Zonte, El Salvador, advertises that it accepts bitcoins for payment.

Science

El Salvador Plans To Use Electricity Generated From Volcanoes To Mine Bitcoin

12:16pm June 11, 2021

by Joe Hernandez

Bitcoin mining has taken a lot of heat for being harmful to the environment since it requires massive amounts of electricity to generate the invisible currency.

Science

Ayana Elizabeth Johnson: Why The Strange and Wonderful Parrot Fish Is In Trouble

10:23am June 11, 2021

Marine biologist Ayana Elizabeth Johnson is obsessed with one research subject — the parrot fish. She says there is urgent work to be done to save them and their home, the coral reefs.

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Catherine Mohr: A Love Story... That Begins With A Sea Urchin

10:23am June 11, 2021

Catherine Mohr shares the story of a scuba diving trip gone wrong, where getting stabbed by a sea urchin transformed her relationship with the ocean... and ultimately led her to the love of her life.

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Marah Hardt: What Can We Learn From The Sex Lives Of Fish?

10:23am June 11, 2021

Marine biologist Marah Hardt is fascinated with the mating habits of marine life. If we want to save the oceans, she says we have to understand the weird and whimsical sex that helps populate it.

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Mandë Holford presentation on the TED MainStage, as part of TED2020: Uncharted. July 02, 2020. Photo courtesy of TED.

Mandë Holford: Could Snail Venom Someday Save Your Life?

10:23am June 11, 2021

Cone snails are deadly sea predators; their venom can kill fish and even humans. But chemical biologist Mandë Holford says that powerful venom can actually be used for good — to treat human diseases.

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A Subway Microbe Map Shows Life In Cities Around The World

4:28pm June 10, 2021

A team of more than 900 international researchers and volunteers has assembled an atlas of microorganisms present in the subways of 60 cities around the world.

The northern lights (aurora borealis) illuminate the sky over Reinfjorden in Reine, on Lofoten Islands in the Arctic Circle in 2017.

Science

What Causes The Northern Lights? Scientists Finally Know For Sure

9:57am June 10, 2021

by Joe Hernandez

An article suggests the natural light show starts when disturbances on the sun pull on Earth's magnetic field, creating cosmic waves that launch electrons into the atmosphere to form the aurora.

Therapist Kiki Radermacher was one of the first members of a mobile crisis response unit in Missoula, Mont., which started responding to emergency mental health calls last year. That pilot project becomes permanent in July and is one of six such teams in

In Montana, Crisis Support Teams Offer Alternatives To Policing Mental Health

5:00am June 10, 2021

by Katheryn Houghton

Montana now has six mobile crisis response teams — up from one in 2019 — with more in the works. Each team has a different makeup, but all use mental health support to diffuse tricky situations.