Green Science

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?

Recycling is a pretty simple concept: take something that isn't useful anymore and make it into something new. Learn about the process and the good and bad of recycling.

By Ed Grabianowski

While actual footprints measure size, weight and speed, carbon footprints measure how much carbon dioxide (CO2) we produce in our daily lives. Do you know how big your carbon footprint is?

By Sarah Dowdey

Eco-conscious people purchase carbon offsets to help reduce worldwide greenhouse gas emissions. But do offsets actually help, and what does Pink Floyd have to do with them?

By Sarah Dowdey

Global warming has become a common term, but it’s not commonly understood. Learn about global warming and the greenhouse effect.

By Jonathan Strickland & Ed Grabianowski

We'd be up a creek without Earth's atmosphere and the greenhouse effect it provides, but it turns out that an overactive greenhouse effect can result in a similarly devastating outcome.

By Julia Layton, Ed Grabianowski & Sascha Bos

Organic food promises freedom from synthetic ingredients. Find out what organic food is, how organic farming works, what the pros and cons are, and why you should care.

By Robin Brett Parnes

It's evident the debate over climate change is a heated one. Are skeptics clouding the public judgment for money? Are climate-change believers merely alarmists who risk the present for the future?

By Josh Clark

Crews have to race to contain the damage from major oil spills to prevent damage to beaches, death to marine life and birds, and devastation to local wetlands. So how do they clean them up?

By Josh Clark & Sarah Gleim

Consumers are becoming more and more knowledgeable about food safety and their health. As a result, organic farming has entered the agriculture mainstream. But what methods must be used, and how is organic farming certified?

By Maria Trimarchi

Right now, landfills are all over the place. Yet, no one wants to live near one. So, what if we combined all of those landfills into one? How much space would it take up?

By Marshall Brain

No one likes paying bills. But you wouldn't have quite so many if you lived off the grid. How do you create enough energy to ditch public utilities?

By Charles W. Bryant

Thousands of women around the world choose to combat ecological problems -- they're known as ecofeminists. But what would you do if you found out your house sat atop a toxic waste dump?

By Winifred Fordham Metz

Polar bears are facing a grim future as global warming melts their Arctic home. What problems are they up against and what's being done to save them?

By Julia Layton

How do we reduce greenhouse gas emissions? A carbon tax is one answer. A simpler alternative to cap-and-trade schemes, a carbon tax encourages energy efficiency and reduced consumption.

By Sarah Dowdey

What if the land you relied upon simply blew away? In the 1930s, poor stewardship and crushing drought created black blizzards and an internal American exodus known as the Dust Bowl.

By Maria Trimarchi

Forest-fire prevention has been a touchstone of American consciousness since the creation of Smokey the Bear in the 1940s. But now, environmental experts believe that some amount of fire is good for the forest too.

By Laurie L. Dove

The idea behind a green transportation infrastructure is one that provides opportunities for people to get around their communities using their own power -- such as walking or biking. In this article we 10 ideas for greener transportation.

By Chris Warren

The transportation sector is the second largest producer of carbon dioxide emissions is the U.S. Is it possible to reduce emissions without stiffing the importing and exporting of goods? You'll discover the answer in this article.

By Dave Roos

Lots of people consider recycling to be kind of a no-brainer, something we all should do. It's good for the environment, it re-uses materials rather than creates new ones, it reduces landfills — the list goes on and on.

By Meghan E. Smith

Polystyrene -- the plastic used in items ranging from plastic forks to take-out boxes to life rafts -- can be recycled, but not without costs. What does it take to recycle polystyrene?

By John Kelly

What's the smartest step you can take to help reduce pollution and live in a more sustainable way?

By John Kelly

The automobile is one of the most important inventions of the past 150 years. This is not only because it provides convenient personal transport and great independence through mobility, but also because of the problems it can cause.

By Jane McGrath

Landfills have long been the final destination for garbage, but as they start to fill up, we're left to find ways to reduce our waste. What challenges are involved, and why isn't reducing waste as easy as it sounds?

By Jennifer Sellers