New research presented at the the annual meeting of the American Society for Microbiology has demonstrated a novel topical formation containing cannabidiol (CBD) is effective at killing bacterial infections in the skin. The formulation was also found to kill certain antibiotic-resistant bacteria. We have known for some time that certain cannabinoids found in marijuana display impressive […]

By Christopher Thompson We marvel at flying animals because it seems like they can access anywhere, but a first study of its kind has revealed that wind can prevent seabirds from accessing the most important of habitats: their nests We marvel at flying animals because it seems like they can access anywhere, but a first […]

By Ryan Johnson New York state lawmakers could pass as early as Wednesday one of the nation’s most ambitious plans to slow climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions to zero by 2050. That would make it the second U.S. state to aim for a carbon-neutral economy, following an executive order signed by former California […]

By Christopher Thompson The effect of climate change on economic growth is up to six times stronger in the world’s poorest countries. In a song that everybody knows, Leonard Cohen once famously sang “the poor stay poor, the rich get rich.” This statement has purchase beyond the realm of music – it holds true in global economics. Cross-country inequality […]

By Ryan Johnson If you’re trying to be a good global citizen who does their part to stop the impending end of the world, plastic is probably already on your list of waste no-nos. We haven’t been suffering through the flimsy, soggy, melt-after-one-suck abomination that is the paper straw for nothing! It seems like every […]

By Christopher Thompson My bagels come individually wrapped in sealed plastic bags. At the counter, if I’m not paying attention, they’re carefully packed together in another plastic bag, before being placed inside a third plastic with the rest of my shopping. Japan’s obsession with hygiene combined with its pride in “omotenashi,” or customer service, dictates […]

By Ryan Johnson The City of Philadelphia is investing about $8 million for young people to get paid to work this summer, and on Monday, Mayor Jim Kenney announced an additional $1 million to support paid summer jobs for young people, who are around 12-years-old to 24-years-old, through the WorkReady program. The additional support adds […]

By Christopher Thompson The latest global population report from the United Nations estimates the number of people on the planet will peak at 10.9 billion by the end of the century. The vast majority of population growth is expected to come from sub-Saharan Africa, with declining population growth predicted in Asia, Europe and Latin America […]

By Ryan Johnson Climate change may lead to unlikely illnesses in unexpected places, new research suggests: In the past two years, five cases of Vibrio vulnificus, a flesh-eating bacterial infection spread by handling or eating contaminated seafood, have been tied to Delaware Bay, where water temperatures have been on the rise in recent years, according […]

By Christopher Thompson In the recent standoff between the U.S. and Mexico, the Trump administration commingled the issues of trade and immigration. This is the wrong approach, and it ignores one of the root causes of the migration challenge: a rapidly warming planet. Climate change and immigration have become more inextricably linked than ever. As […]