5 Drought-Stopping Inventions

Solution to 'crisis' may be controversial, but problem will only worsen

(NEWSER) - You may receive a water bill every month, but you’re not actually paying for water. You’re paying for the cost of service, and this free-rider problem is contributing to the worsening water crisis that threatens to dehydrate the US, author and law professor Robert Glennon argues in the Washington Post. Last year, metro Atlanta—home to 5 million people—came within 90 days of watching its principal water reserves dry up, and one Tennessee hamlet ran out of water entirely. More»

Long-neglected organ is far from useless, researchers say

(NEWSER) - The human appendix has been assumed to be useless since Charles Darwin first suggested it was a vestigial organ—an evolutionary remnant from the time when our predecessors ate leaves and other now-indigestible foods. But new research suggests the organ had a much more vital function, LiveScience reports. It stored necessary bacteria with which to repopulate the stomach after diarrhea or vomiting, as well as helping to create and train white blood cells. More»

Watch out evil polluters! These hot new devices are mean, lean and very, very green

(NEWSER) - Companies are zeroing in on the emerging eco-market with painfully cool items like a battery-powered scooter from Vectrix, wind-powered tiki torches from Demakersvan, and speakers made from recycled whiskey barrels by Pioneer Electronics. Popular Science's photo montage of the latest in green technology shows that hip and hippie need no longer be at odds. More»

Crank up your ingenuity and combat climate change the MacGyver way

(NEWSER) - If reducing emissions was Plan A to save the earth from global warming, these plans from Popular Science would be more like Plan ... Z:

1. Make more Arctic ice—out of saltwater.
2. Cool the oceans, which feed storms with warm water, by sucking up cold water from the ocean floor with giant floating tubes.

After 40 years, national symbol returns from brink of extinction

(NEWSER) - The national bird is no longer threatened with extinction, an achievement the Interior Department celebrated today by letting a bald eagle frolic in the skies above the Jefferson Memorial. Thanks in large part to conservation laws, the number of nesting pairs has grown more than 20-fold since 1963; the bird had been threatened (in less peril than endangered) since 1995. More»