New study in Science Advances reveals that sinking land, not just rising oceans alone, will be the main cause of future coastal flooding along Indonesia’s most populous island. 

Despite the common perception of landslides to be naturally controlled, a new study reveals that most fatal landslides occur in human-transformed environments. Conducted by an international team of researchers from the University of Vienna, Ankara University, Istanbul Technical University, Bursa Uludag University, and the GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences, the study provides a global overview of how human pressure modulates landslide occurrences. The most important finding of the study is that land-use-land-cover change has a substantially greater influence on landslide fatalities than physical factors such as topography and precipitation, especially in low- and lower-middle-income nations. The study is published in the prestigious journal Science Advances.

Scientists at The University of Manchester have developed a new way to measure how traffic contributes to rising urban temperatures, revealing that everyday vehicle use can play a measurable role in making cities warmer.

Psychological stress during pregnancy is known to affect birth outcomes, but isolating its effects has been difficult. Researchers found that babies born in Japan immediately after the Fukushima nuclear accident were more likely to be born preterm or with low birth weights. Radiation exposure-related maternal anxieties significantly contributed to the differences in birth outcomes. The findings underscore the importance of clear communication and psychological support for pregnant women during crises to help prevent intergenerational harm.

An intelligent monitoring pipe combines optical sensing with machine learning algorithms to monitor and predict 3D soil settlement, which could help provide early warnings of risks from soil settlement and prevent pipeline displacement and accidents from building cracks.