New technology is allowing detectives to take DNA evidence from old cases and search for family ties online. But testing that DNA, devoting officers to the case and hiring genealogists to look for clues costs money and not all police forces have the funding. Toronto Police have solved 21 cases …
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Hypothermic turtle rescued in B.C. waters in first sighting since 2015
Loggerhead sea turtles are typically seen in subtropical and temperate seas, and the rescued turtle is only the second ever seen in B.C. waters. It is now recovering in the care of the Vancouver Aquarium Marine Mammal Rescue Society. The loggerhead turtle usually spends time in warmer waters. Lost and …
Read More »Scientists are calling for a new Category 6 for hurricanes — because they already exist
As climate change supercharges some hurricanes, scientists are exploring how to better communicate their force to the public — including adding an extra category to reflect their power. With storms growing more powerful, researchers say we’re underestimating the risk. As climate change supercharges some hurricanes, scientists are exploring how to …
Read More »Snow day, now eclipse day? Why the celestial event has some schools going dark
School boards across the province are bracing for the total solar eclipse that will grace Canadian skies in early April. Several school boards are considering closing while others argue it could be a learning opportunity for students. School board can’t guarantee ‘5-year-old won’t take off their glasses.’ Over 60 years …
Read More »Weird ancient tree from before dinosaurs found in Canadian quarry
Forests of giant, scaly-stemmed club mosses once rose from ancient swamps in Atlantic Canada. But fossils found in a New Brunswick quarry show some trees that grew among them were even stranger — more like the truffula trees in Dr. Seuss books than any tree that exists today. Before age …
Read More »New discoveries show early humans lived in the frigid north alongside Neanderthals
New discovery of human bones suggest that Homo sapiens were living side by side with Neanderthals in Northern Germany, 46,000 years ago. Another discovery of a stone-age ropemaking tools is shedding light on the inventive nature of these ancient humans. Ancient human bones and a stone-age ropemaking tool are re-writing …
Read More »James Webb telescope provides new clues into the nature of our Milky Way galaxy
The James Webb Space Telescope continues to astound astronomers. A recently released gallery of galaxies shows stunning details of 19 nearby spiral galaxies that are similar to our own Milky Way. We can’t take a galaxy selfie, so scientists look to other galaxies to better understand our own. The James …
Read More »How effective a climate solution is removing CO2 from the atmosphere?
In this week’s issue of our environment newsletter, we look at the efficacy of carbon removal and examine the pros and cons of AI as a climate solution. Also: Do we need another giant cruise ship? Our planet is changing. So is our journalism. This weekly newsletter is part of …
Read More »Hungry, hungry otters may help marshes with climate change
A new study in the journal Nature shows that strengthening populations of sea otters in a California salt marsh is changing its physical landscape to become more climate-resilient and less affected by soil erosion. And it comes down to something as simple as what they’re eating. They eat a lot …
Read More »Purple haze, don’t know why? Here’s the science behind the colourful fog seen in B.C.’s Okanagan
Some residents of B.C.’s Okanagan Valley were briefly enveloped in shades of pink and purple this morning, when a hued fog appeared for several minutes. It’s an ‘incredibly rare phenomenon,’ a CBC science specialist says. Hued fog an ‘incredibly rare phenomenon,’ says CBC science specialist. Some residents of British Columbia’s …
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