Scientists have recently confirmed that the world’s lakes are rapidly losing oxygen. With a seven-year, whole-ecosystem study, a team of freshwater scientists at Virginia Tech has been one of the first to take the next step in asking: What does it mean for water quality that oxygen is declining globally?

Scientists and other experts are calling on governments to start including animal welfare in sustainable development governance now in order to work towards a healthier, more resilient, and more sustainable world for all.

As Australia continues to mop up after one of the wettest years on record, councils might want to consider a new flood mitigation strategy proposed by UniSA engineers - permeable pavements to suit specific soil and rainfall conditions.

Data from a new USC study shows a significant increase in the risk of severe outcomes for COVID-19 patients exposed to fine particles (PM2.5) and nitrogen dioxide (NO2), two common (and correlated) components of ambient air pollution in Southern California. Produced by ground and air traffic, industrial burning and other sources, these air pollutants can exacerbate the effects of the SARS-CoV-2 virus over both the short and long term. Researchers collaborated with Kaiser Permanente Southern California to examine a cohort of more than 74,000 COVID-19 patients diagnosed from March to August 2020. With detailed residential address history linked to Kaiser Permanente members’ electronic medical records, investigators were able to accurately predict exposure history for specific pollutants.

In recently published research analyzing surgical data from almost 35,000 patients, researchers found that when they input eight pre-operative variables into the Surgical Risk Preoperative Assessment System (SURPAS), the SURPAS model accurately predicted post-operative ICU use across nine surgical specialties.