The "third rock from the Sun"—Earth. With an orbit neither too close nor too far from the Sun, it occupies a unique position in the Solar System. It's the only planet known to man with the right conditions for the origin and evolution of life. During Earth's 4.5 billion-year history, a combination of processes has transformed it into a watery blue, living planet. The Earth's ecosystems involve complex interactions between the biological (living) and physical (non-living) worlds. Scientific research helps us comprehend our effects on the environment and how the environment in turn responds to impacts of our activities.
Study Shows Which Fish Clean Up Coral Reefs
Using underwater video cameras to record fish feeding on South Pacific coral reefs, scientists have found that herbivorous fish can be picky eaters – a trait that could spell trouble for endangered reef systems.
Science of Innovation: Biofuels
A new approach to producing biofuels that uses a marine bacterium called Saccharophagus degradans that left otherwise alone, is mostly known for its damaging impact on the environment.
NSF Science Now
NSF Science Now series spotlights NSF science and engineering research and discoveries
The Art Of Science
Science isn’t just electron microscopes and high-tech instruments. Researchers in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Virginia Tech are examining the intersection of art and science.
Next-Generation Arctic Research Vessel On-track For Voyage Of Discovery
R/V Sikuliaq launched and expected to begin work in Arctic waters in 2014
Megathrust Earthquakes
QUEST Northwest talks with geologists and seismologists about cutting edge research in earthquake prediction, and what it would look like if the next "Big One" hits close to home.
The Power Of Wind
NCAR researcher Bill Mahoney and University of Wyoming professor Jonathan Naughton describe advances in managing the power of wind.
NSF Science Now 6
NSF Science Now series spotlights NSF science and engineering research and discoveries
The Fury Of Fire
NCAR scientist Janice Coen on the latest research to better understand and predict the erratic behavior of wildfires.
Researching Cold Water Corals
Pioneering faculty and students at UMaine's Darling Marine Center dive into the rarely seen world of deep sea coral bringing new and exciting discoveries to the surface.
Institute Connects Water, Food Concerns
Meet the director of the Robert. B. Daugherty Water for Food Institute at the University of Nebraska.
The Chemistry Of Snowflakes
This video tracks the formation of snowflakes from their origins in bits of dust in clouds that become droplets of water falling to Earth.
Geospatial Revolution: Episode 1
This first episode covers what is involved in the geospatial revolution, the origins of mapping and geospatial technology, and a look at the use of crisis mapping in Haitian earthquake relief efforts.
Geospatial Revolution: Episode 2
This episode looks at how local governments and business use geospatial technology to deliver services and run efficiently, keeping a continuing eye on future developments and applications.
Geospatial Revolution: Episode 3
The third episode explores geospatial technology in the world of security: how new technologies help to broker peace, wage war, and fight crime but can also compromise personal privacy.
Geospatial Revolution: Episode 4
The fourth and final episode explores geospatial technology around the world: monitoring global climate change, preventing famine, tracking disease and mapping communities never before seen on a map.
Whales In Fjords
Researcher Eric Keen describes his research about fin whale occurrence and vocalizations within a developing coastal corridor. Produced for the National Science Foundation's Graduate Research Fellowship Program Video Contest.
Turtles In The Deep
This short video explains how Lindsey Peavey's PhD research is shaping the field of sea turtle ecology by taking investigations from nesting beaches into open ocean habitats where threatened turtles spend the majority of their time and encounter major threats. The open ocean foraging ecology insights that result from her research will be instrumental in informing marine resources managers tasked with balancing species protection, fisheries production and ecosystem preservation. Produced for the National Science Foundation's Graduate Research Fellowship Program Video Contest.
The Secrets Of Nitrogenase
Did you know approximately fifty percent of the nitrogen in our bodies comes from an industrial process called the Haber-Bosch process? How is this possible? And why is it important? And what the heck is nitrogenase? Watch and Learn! And find out more than you ever wanted to know about nitrogen.
Lake Temperatures
Lake ecosystems in both high and low latitudes being affected by rising water temperatures
