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Sustainability

The global ocean out of balance

Published: 10Nov2021

Surprising as it sounds, all life forms in the ocean, from small krill to large tuna, seem to obey a simple mathematical law that links an organism’s abundance to its body size. For example,...

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Advancing agriculture threatens the livelihoods of forest-dependent people

Published: 26Oct2021

Satellite images reveal where forest-dependent people live inside the forests of the South American Gran Chaco, and how deforestation for cattle ranching leads to an erosion of their resource base....

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How mussels make a powerful underwater glue

Published: 7Oct2021

The mussels’ beards (which cooks remove before preparing them) are made up of byssal threads and are used to help keep the mussels tethered in place. At the end of each thread is a disc-shaped...

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Canada’s nitrogen footprint shows regional variation

Published: 21Sep2021

Reactive nitrogen emissions contribute to greenhouse gases, as well as air and water pollution. For the first time, researchers from McGill University have calculated Canada’s nitrogen footprint ...

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Faecal records show Maya population affected by climate change

Published: 30Jun2021

A McGill-led study has shown that the size of the Maya population in the lowland city of Itzan (in present-day Guatemala) varied over time in response to climate change. The findings, published...

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Songbirds and humans share some common speech patterns

Published: 22Jun2021

If you listen to songbirds, you will recognize repeated melodies or phrases. Each phrase is made up of distinct sounds, strung together. A study from researchers at McGill University has found that...

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Most rivers run dry - now and then

Published: 16Jun2021

A new study led by researchers from McGill University and INRAE found that between 51-60% of the 64 million kilometres of rivers and streams on Earth that they investigated stop flowing...