Environmental Science

The environment is truly a thing of beauty and should be protected whenever possible. What can we do to save the environment, and what new technology is available to help us?

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Climate change is the defining issue of our time, and we are at a defining moment of history. What can you do to make a difference? We've got 10 tips for you.

By Katie Lambert & Sarah Gleim

The Bulletin of Atomic Scientists moved the Doomsday Clock to 90 seconds before midnight, the closest it's ever been to global catastrophe. What does this mean for humanity?

By Julia Layton

When the wind blows, particles in the gust of air are moving quickly. And that motion carries kinetic energy, which can be captured and harnessed to create electricity. The principle behind a wind-electric turbine isn't too different from an ordinary dam -- only it's capturing wind instead of water.

By Julia Layton

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In 2023, the U.S. bottled water industry was worth $94 billion, even with the rise of popular reusable water bottle brands.

By Julia Layton

A map is a type of language, a graphic way of representing information, whether it's to show population density or tell you how to get from Point A to Point B. Here's how they're made.

By Tracy V. Wilson & Alia Hoyt

Despite the dangers, oil refineries are essential to society in its current form. Learn how crude oil is converted into everything from butane to gasoline.

By Craig Freudenrich, Ph.D.

How can water cut through steel? A device called a waterjet uses extreme force to cut through all sorts of things.

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Another series of rolling blackouts are hitting California. Learn why this is happening and how it affects you.

By Kevin Bonsor

Is it possible to generate electricity directly from heat? Thermocouples do it, with no moving parts.

A seismograph can accurately measure the movement of the Earth during a quake. How does a seismograph work, though, and what is the Richter scale that is associated with earthquakes? Learn the answers to these questions in this article.

By Sascha Bos

Water is one of the most abundant substances on the planet. About 70 percent of our planet is covered by oceans, but just how much water is there on Earth?

By HowStuffWorks.com Contributors & Yara Simón

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We know that paper comes from trees, but just how much does it take? Let's do the math and figure out how much paper your average tree can be made into.

During the summer I am always hearing about ozone warnings in my city. This ozone is bad. But then I hear about the ozone layer, which is good. How can ozone be both good and bad?

Charcoal is carbon. Activated charcoal is charcoal that has been treated with oxygen to open up millions of tiny pores between the carbon atoms. What does this have to do with its absorbancy?

There are seven different numbers you might see on a plastic container. And each number has its own meaning.

By Melanie Radzicki McManus & Desiree Bowie

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Gravity is a force that we experience every minute of our lives, but hardly notice or give a passing thought to in our daily routines. Have you ever wondered what gravity is and how it works? Learn about the force of gravity in this article.

By Julia Layton & Austin Henderson

One way to store energy is to use a battery, but what other ways can we store energy? Learn about different ways to store energy at HowStuffWorks.

By Yara Simón

Let's say you have a nice fire going, and it's reduced down to a pit of hot "glowing embers." If you now toss a piece of wood, or even a sheet of paper, onto this fire, you see a huge puff of smoke as it heats up.

An oscilloscope measures the voltage and frequency of an electric signal. A machine uses "sweeps" and and an input signal. See how it all comes together.

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You've probably seen solar panels on satellites, call boxes, road signs, homes and businesses. But how do solar panels work?

By Scott Aldous & Talon Homer

What happens to all of that trash you put on the curb every week? It doesn't just disappear into a parallel universe. Much of it probably goes to the local landfill, and how it gets handled there is a very involved system.

By Craig Freudenrich, Ph.D. & Patrick J. Kiger

OK, so volts measure the potential for energy to travel and ohms measure the resistance to the electrical flow, but what are amps and watts?

By Dave Roos

The polar ice caps have been in the news recently because of their alleged shrinking due to global warming. How much would the oceans rise if the ice caps melted completely?

By Marshall Brain & Sascha Bos

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Carbon-14 dating is something that you hear about in the news all the time. Everything from mastodons to the Shroud of Turin has been dated using this technique! Learn about how carbon-14 dating works and why it is so accurate!

By Marshall Brain

Green roofs, long popular in Europe, are making their way into the United States. Find out what a green roof is and how it can solve some problems conventional roofs have.

By Sarah Dowdey