Science Archives - The Westside Story

The Poland climate talks, a diplomat success, fell short of heeding scientists

Dec 16, 2018

The COP24 climate talks wrapped up in Katowice, Poland late on Saturday, following two weeks of dicey negotiations. The end result is diplomatically impressive, balancing the clashing needs of wealthier and dev...

Bias accusations against Google draw on a broader false narrative

West Side Story

Dec 15, 2018

Innovation, Opinion, Science

Google CEO Sundar Pichai answered questions from lawmakers at a Congressional hearing Tuesday, focused on Google’s alleged bias against conservative viewpoints. There was no resolution of the ongoing accusation...

Using CRISPR gene editing, researchers develop self-cloning hybrid rice

West Side Story

Dec 13, 2018

Innovation, Science

After decades of efforts, scientists have managed to modify a hybrid rice strain so that it passes on its favorable traits in its own seeds, according to ScienceDaily. By producing clones from its seeds, instea...

Trump’s EPA to scale back water pollution rules

West Side Story

Dec 11, 2018

Environment, Policy, Science

The Trump administration is scaling back existing federal protections on waterways, exposing streams and wetlands to pollution from agriculture and other sources, according to the LA Times. Internal talking ...

NASA probe finds building blocks of water on a nearby asteroid

West Side Story

Dec 10, 2018

Innovation, Science

NASA’s OSIRIS-REx probe has found the building blocks of water on Bennu, an asteroid which orbits the sun at roughly the same distance, according to Reuters. Bennu is about 1.4 million miles (2.25 million km...

New 10-minute test could revolutionize cancer screening, saving lives

West Side Story

Dec 9, 2018

Health, Innovation, Science

Researchers have developed a cheap, simple, and quick test to detect cancer cells in the bloodstream of patients, according to The Guardian. Using a color-changing fluid to detect the presence of malignant cell...

China launches mission to make first-ever landing on the far side of the Moon

West Side Story

Dec 8, 2018

Innovation, Science

A Chinese spacecraft launched Saturday, carrying a probe set to make the first-ever soft-landing on the far side of the Moon, according to NPR. The Chang'e-4 mission will bring a lander and rover to the Von Kár...

The EPA says its latest move to revive the coal industry won’t make an impact

West Side Story

Dec 7, 2018

Environment, Policy, Science

The Trump administration is once again rolling back Obama-era climate regulations, now targeting regulations on emissions from new coal plants, according to CBS News. The rules would have required any new coal ...

New report projects annual carbon emissions will reach an all-time high in 2018

West Side Story

Dec 5, 2018

Environment, Science

Global carbon emissions are projected to reach an all-time high in 2018, according to a new report from the Global Carbon Project. For the prior three years, increases in carbon emissions had slowed considerabl...

Spain’s far-right gains ground in regional elections, in a blow to ruling socialists

West Side Story

Dec 3, 2018

Science, World

Spain’s Vox party won seats in the Andalusia regional parliament in Sunday’s election, marking the first time the far-right has gained ground in Spain in decades, according to Politico. The Socialist (PSOE) ...