Katharine Gammon

1 week ago | nautil.us | Katharine Gammon

Picture this: You’re sitting down, engrossed in a meal, when an unfamiliar person walks by. There’s something about them—Hair? Smile? Vibes?—that instantly draws you in and makes you want to strike up a friendship. Nautilus Members enjoy an ad-free experience. Log in or Join now . A new study suggests that it could be the scent they exude that attracts you to them.

1 week ago | theguardian.com | Katharine Gammon

On the eve of the gold rush, California was teeming with grizzly bears – as many as 10,000 of them. They were so popular that the Bear Flag Republic – a short-lived attempt by a group of US settlers to break away from Mexico in 1846 – used the animals as their mascot; an image that still adorns California’s flag. But by the mid-1920s, the bears were all gone.

1 month ago | sierraclub.org | Katharine Gammon

At Virginia's Joint Base Langley-Eustis, the water is rising and the land is sinking. Most of the area, which includes Fort Eustis and Langley Air Force Base, sits just above sea level on a marshy peninsula that juts out where the Chesapeake Bay and the Atlantic Ocean meet. High tides cause some flooding on the base daily. The doors on buildings most at risk are affixed with metal sheets called door dams to keep water out.

1 month ago | bostonherald.com | Katharine Gammon

By Katharine Gammon, KFF Health NewsWhen the catastrophic Los Angeles fires broke out, John Volckens suspected firefighters and residents were breathing toxic air from the burning homes, buildings, and cars, but it was unclear how much risk the public faced. So, the professor of environmental health at Colorado State University devised a plan to get answers.

1 month ago | nautil.us | Katharine Gammon

Planet Earth is blue. Most of its surface is covered in water, the vast majority of which is ocean, and water generally absorbs longer wavelengths of light, such as red and orange, and reflects back the shorter blue wavelengths. When astronauts travel into space and look back at their home, they see a blue sphere in an expanse of jet black. Nautilus Members enjoy an ad-free experience. Log in or Join now .