UN agency for digital technologies urges collective action in Belém to harness digital technologies and achieve sustainability goals

A team of researchers from the Max Born Institute (MBI) in Berlin and DESY in Hamburg has demonstrated a plasma lens capable of focusing attosecond pulses. This breakthrough substantially increases the attosecond power available for experiments, opening up new opportunities for studying ultrafast electron dynamics. The results have now been published in Nature Photonics.

Researchers have created CAROSEL (Chamber ARray for Observing Sediment Exchanges Long-term), an autonomous underwater system that continuously tracks nutrient exchanges between sediments and water. For the first time, scientists can observe these processes in real time, multiple times daily, over long periods. By revealing how sediment-driven nutrient releases respond to light, oxygen, and weather, CAROSEL offers a powerful new way to understand and manage nutrient pollution, helping protect water quality and prevent harmful algal blooms in lakes, estuaries, and coastal ecosystems.

UBC researchers have identified eight per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in B.C. sea otters.

Known as ‘forever’ chemicals for how long it takes them to break down in the environment, these human-made chemicals are found in many common household products and have been linked to adverse health effects in humans. They are widespread in the environment, found in animals around the world including otters in the U.K., and orcas in B.C.

Now, UBC researchers have found PFAS chemicals in B.C. otters for the first time. Analyzing liver and skeletal muscle samples from 11 dead sea otters, they found eight of 40 tested PFAS chemicals present in every otter, with seven found only in the liver.