CORVALLIS, Ore. August 9, 2022 – Oregon State University scientists are proposing management changes on western federal lands that they say would result in more wolves and beavers and would re-establish ecological processes. In a paper published today in BioScience, “Rewilding the American West,” co-lead author William Ripple and 19 other authors suggest using portions of […]
Oregon State University
Posted inSci/Tech
OSU study: Thinning moderates forest fire behavior even without prescribed burns – for a while
Mechanical thinning alone can calm the intensity of future wildfires for many years, and prescribed burns lengthen thinning’s effectiveness, according to Oregon State University research involving a seasonally dry ponderosa pine forest in northeastern Oregon. Findings of the study, led by OSU research associate James Johnston and published in Forest Ecology and Management, are important […]
Posted inWorld
Earth’s vital signs worsen amid business-as-usual mindset on climate change
Twenty months after declaring a climate emergency and establishing a set of vital signs for the Earth, a coalition headed by two Oregon State University researchers says the updated vital signs “largely reflect the consequences of unrelenting business as usual.” Authors led by OSU’s William Ripple and Christopher Wolf, in a paper published today in BioScience, are calling for […]
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Socially just population policies can mitigate climate change while advancing global equity
CORVALLIS, Ore. April 28, 2021– Socially just policies aimed at limiting the Earth’s human population hold tremendous potential for advancing equity while simultaneously helping to mitigate the effects of climate change, Oregon State University researchers say. In a paper published this week in Sustainability Science, William Ripple and Christopher Wolf of the OSU College of Forestry also […]
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Study: Narcissists don’t learn from their mistakes because they don’t think they make any, study shows
BEND, Ore. July 22, 2020 — When most people find that their actions have resulted in an undesirable outcome, they tend to rethink their decisions and ask, “What should I have done differently to avoid this outcome?” When narcissists face the same situation, however, their refrain is, “No one could have seen this coming!” In […]
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LGBTQ military service members at higher risk of sexual harassment, assault, stalking
CORVALLIS, Ore. April 21, 2020 — A recent study found that LGBTQ service members face an elevated risk of sexual victimization including harassment, assault and stalking while in the military than their non-LGBTQ counterparts. The study, one of the first funded by the Department of Defense to look specifically at LGBTQ victimization in the military, aims […]
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Responses to environmental tragedies often make matters worse, ethicists find
CORVALLIS, Ore. April 30, 2019 – Without sound decision-making, responses to seeming environmental tragedies can often make matters worse, according to ethicists who analyzed a controversial goat removal program on an Australian island. Michael Paul Nelson of the Oregon State University College of Forestry and collaborators from University of Technology Sydney have developed a framework […]
Posted inRegional
Climate change negatively affects waterbirds in the American West
ORVALLIS, Ore. March 28, 2019 – New research shows that recent climate change is having profound effects on wetlands across the American West – affecting birds that use these wetlands for breeding, migration and wintering. According to a study published in the journal Scientific Reports, higher temperatures and less precipitation have reduced waterbird habitat, resulting […]
Posted inCalifornia
Climate change negatively affects waterbirds in the American West
CORVALLIS, Ore. March 18, 2019– New research shows that recent climate change is having profound effects on wetlands across the American West – affecting birds that use these wetlands for breeding, migration and wintering. According to a study published today in the journal Scientific Reports, higher temperatures and less precipitation have reduced waterbird habitat, resulting […]
Posted inEnviro
Animal species becoming extinct in Haiti as deforestation nearly complete
CORVALLIS, Ore, Oct. 29, 2018 – Species of reptiles, amphibians and other vertebrates are becoming extinct in Haiti as deforestation has claimed more than 99 percent of the country’s original wooded areas. A research collaboration that included two scientists affiliated with Oregon State University found that 42 of Haiti’s 50 largest mountains have lost all […]
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Economic analysis: In the U.S., watershed groups have had a positive impact on their local water quality
CORVALLIS, Ore. Oct. 15, 2018 — Economists have found that in the United States, watershed groups have had a positive impact on their local water quality. The study is published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. This is the first empirical evidence that nonprofit organizations can provide public goods, said Christian […]
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Climate projections show a warmer future for the Pacific northwest
CORVALLIS, Ore. Feb. 20, 2018 – In the midst of an unseasonably warm winter in the Pacific Northwest, a comparison of four publicly available climate projections has shown broad agreement that the region will become considerably warmer in the next century if greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere rise to the highest levels projected in […]
Posted inEnviro
Climate change is luring Kodiak bears away from their iconic salmon streams
CORVALLIS, Ore. Aug. 23, 2017- Kodiak brown bears are abandoning salmon-their iconic prey-due to climate change, according to a new study. The bears are more interested in chowing down on early-arriving red elderberries. The likely result of this “prey switch,” the researchers conclude, is a disrupted ecosystem on Alaska’s Kodiak Island. The research was conducted […]
Posted inWorld
New analysis commissioned by UN identifies global hotspots for water conflict
CORVALLIS, Ore. July 17, 2017 – More than 1,400 new dams or water diversion projects are planned or already under construction and many of them are on rivers flowing through multiple nations, fueling the potential for increased water conflict between some countries. A new analysis commissioned by the United Nations uses a comprehensive combination of […]
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Study finds Earth’s magnetic field ‘simpler than we thought’
CORVALLIS, Ore. July 7, 2017 – Scientists have identified patterns in the Earth’s magnetic field that evolve on the order of 1,000 years, providing new insight into how the field works and adding a measure of predictability to changes in the field not previously known. The discovery also will allow researchers to study the planet’s […]
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More funding for long-term studies necessary for best science, environmental policy
CORVALLIS, Ore. March 6 2017- Environmental scientists and policymakers value long-term research to an extent that far outstrips the amount of funding awarded for it, according to a study published on Friday. Graduate students and faculty members in the Oregon State University College of Science were part of a collaboration that evaluated the perceived benefits […]
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Globe-trotting pollutants raise some cancer risks 4 times higher than predicted
CORVALLIS, OR, Jan. 26, 2017 – A new way of looking at how pollutants ride through the atmosphere has quadrupled the estimate of global lung cancer risk from a pollutant caused by combustion, to a level that is now double the allowable limit recommended by the World Health Organization. The findings, published this week in […]
Posted inCalifornia
El Niño, Pacific Decadal Oscillation implicated in domoic acid shellfish toxicity
CORVALLIS, Ore. Jan. 10, 2017- Researchers reported in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences a strong correlation between toxic levels of domoic acid in shellfish and the warm-water ocean conditions orchestrated by two powerful forces – El Niño events and the Pacific Decadal Oscillation. Using a combination of time-series data spanning two decades, the […]
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Study: West Coast record low snowpack in 2015 influenced by high temperatures
The western-most region of the continental United States set records for low snowpack levels in 2015 and scientists, through a new study, point the finger at high temperatures, not the low precipitation characteristic of past “snow drought” years. The study suggests greenhouse gases were a major contributor to the high temperatures, which doesn’t bode well […]