Sarah DeWeerdt

1 week ago | anthropocenemagazine.org | Sarah DeWeerdt

Getting people to think more about the future, especially their own and that of people they care about, is the most effective way to motivate climate action, according to a new study. The findings come from a head-to-head test of a 17 different strategies to inspire people to fight climate change, ranging from viewing information about carbon footprints to brainstorming the personal benefits of environmentally friendly actions.

2 weeks ago | anthropocenemagazine.org | Sarah DeWeerdt |Emma Bryce

Boosting iron intake to fight weakness and increase energy is not just for humans, new research shows. A team of scientists and engineers have found that injecting iron and other minerals into wood makes it stronger without making it heavier. By making wood more competitive with steel and cement, the finding presented in the journal ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces offers a route to make modern construction more sustainable.

2 weeks ago | anthropocenemagazine.org | Sarah DeWeerdt

People who have a strong drive for novel experiences and tactile sensations are especially drawn to “e-fashion,” according to a new study. E-fashion refers to digital clothing that people – or more precisely their avatars – can wear in virtual environments and represents a growing online trend. Established fashion brands and digital spaces such as video game platforms, social networks, and virtual worlds are rolling out e-fashion collections.

3 weeks ago | anthropocenemagazine.org | Sarah DeWeerdt |Emma Bryce

Human waste contains many valuable nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. That makes it a promising potential fertilizer with a lower carbon footprint than today’s fertilizers. But human waste is also a promising source of untapped energy. And in the latest attempt to tap that energy, researchers have developed a low-cost, efficient way to produce clean hydrogen fuel from human urine. They present this work in the journal Nature Communications.

3 weeks ago | anthropocenemagazine.org | Sarah DeWeerdt

Remote health care appointments in the United States prevented carbon dioxide emissions equivalent to that of 130,000 gasoline-powered cars in 2023, according to a new study. The study is the first large-scale effort to look at the impact of the shift towards telemedicine, which accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic, on carbon emissions. “The health care sector contributes significantly to the global carbon footprint,” says study coauthor A.