52 h. ago Something in the water: how kelp is helping Maine’s mussels boom

When a US firm saw the seaweed was making their shellfish the ‘biggest and best’ scientists realised they’d hit upon a natural way to combat ocean acidificationPhotographs by Greta RybusMore on this story: A drop in the ocean: does experimental technology hold the key to saving the world’s seas?On a glimmering May morning, Tom Briggs pilots a 45ft aluminium barge through the waters of Casco Bay for one of the final days of the annual kelp harvest. Motoring past Clapboard Island, he points to a floating wooden platform where mussels have been seeded alongside ribbons of edible seaweed.“This is our most productive mussel site,” says Briggs, the farm manager for Bangs Island Mussels, a Portland sea farm that grows, harvests and sells hundreds of thousands of pounds of shellfish and seaweed each year. “When we come here, we get the biggest, fastest-growing mussels with the thickest shells and the best quality. To my mind, unscientifically, it’s because of the kelp.”Zoe Benisek, oyster l...

Politics

3 d. ago A drop in the ocean: does experimental technology hold the key to saving the world’s seas?

Investment is pouring into companies promising to geoengineer a rapid change in the pH of our waters – but critics are concerned at the speed at which unproven methods are being adoptedIn October 2024, a US company called Ebb Carbon announced the world’s largest marine carbon removal deal to date, signing a multimillion-dollar agreement with Microsoft to try to help fix a very real problem in the world’s seas: ocean acidification.Ebb plans to use a method called electrochemical ocean alkalinity enhancement (OAE) to mimic the natural process of ocean alkalisation – in other words, it wants to add huge amounts of alkaline materials to ocean waters that scientists now know are acidifying at an alarming rate. Continue reading...

Politics

3 d. ago Princesses Eugenie and Beatrice could be set for key royal roles as Prince William eyes revamp

Prince William could hold the key to Prince Andrew's daughters' futures when he takes the throne

Politics

9 d. ago What happened to the White Widow: British mother linked to 7/7 bombings is one of the world's most

Law enforcement agencies across the globe continue to hunt Samantha Lewthwaite, nicknamed the White Widow, over her links to a catalogue of atrocities.

Events

1 week ago Harvey Elliott's view on Liverpool exit as Reds star could hold key to Florian Wirtz deal

Liverpool are in talks with Bayer Leverkusen over what would be a club-record deal for Florian Wirtz but the Bundesliga outfit are said to be eyeing some of their rivals' players

Economics

1 week ago Cafe that may hold key to French murder of British woman who worked there 'with secret lover' reopens exactly one month after the killing

Karen Carter, 65 and a married mother of four, was found dead outside her home in Trémolat, east of Bordeaux, following a night out with friends on April 29th.

Events

1 week ago Dinosaurs may hold unlikely key to cancer breakthroughs say scientists

Researchers explored the fossil of a Telmatosaurus transsylvanicus, a 'marsh lizard' that existed between 66 and 70 million years ago

Science

2 w. ago New dinosaur discovery could hold the key to human cancer treatment

A decade-long study suggests prehistoric creatures could help complete the ‘jigsaw’ of cancer’s molecular building blocks

Politics

2 w. ago Jordan Henderson breaks cover as Rangers murmur explodes but Steven Gerrard doesn't hold key to deal

With the Ibrox hot seat vacant a sensational link up with Gerrard following a return to Glasgow has been floated

Economics

3 w. ago Nathan Collins exclusive interview: ‘Brentford in Europe would be massive, we still have a chance’

The Republic of Ireland captain opens up to Standard Sport on his attendance record, Europe, and keeping hold of key men this summer

Politics

3 w. ago The ick factor that could save a life: US cancer researchers look to fecal waste for treatment clues

The Mayo Clinic hopes to uncover how the microbiome affects how patients react to cancer medicationsA leading US clinic hopes its fecal waste biobank will help researchers make new discoveries about how to treat cancer patients – one of several efforts to turn human waste into medicine.The Mayo Clinic biobank is part of researchers’ years-long effort to “personalize” medicine by uncovering how the microbiome changes how patients react to cancer medications. Continue reading...

Science