Environment

Malaysian and UK medical device and composite materials experts have partnered up to research into using natural fibres for prosthetic limb technology to lower the cost of the prosthesis

Asia Research News monitors the latest research news in Asia. Some highlights that caught our attention this week are a banana-peeling robot, pollen-based paper, and fuel made from ocean plastic.

Giants in History: Purnima Sinha (12 October 1927 – 11 July 2015), the first Bengali woman to receive a doctorate in physics, analysed clay structures using x-ray equipment that she built from salvaged World War II-era parts.

Climate changes in the tropical Pacific have temporarily put the brakes on rapid warming and ice melting in Greenland.

伝統的な日本の大学のカルチャーの殻を破り、フラットで国際的な研究所として注目を集める東京工業大学地球生命研究所（ELSI）。今年で10年目を迎えたELSIの魅力や運営のコツについて廣瀬敬前所長が語った。

Soot as a surprising source of haze-building hydroxyl radicals

The urgent need for sustainable development, combined with reaction to climate change from industry and society, has urged many governments in the Asia-Pacific region to develop policies that will lead to a low-carbon economy. The resulting structural changes in labour markets require that new skills be incorporated into technical vocational education and training (TVET). But a research of Dr Margarita Pavlova, Associate Professor at the Department of International Education, The Education University of Hong Kong, revealed that countries in the Asia-Pacific region lack the green skills to implement and sustain low-carbon economies.

Australia's national science agency, CSIRO, will tackle Australia's plastic pollution problem, pledging to help Australia reduce 80 per cent of its plastic waste by the end of the decade.

The theme of MTE 2022 is "Embracing the New Norm and Moving to New Frontiers," and this prestigious event is expected to attract over 10,000 online visitors from all over the world via its virtual exhibition platform.

東京工業大学地球生命研究所（ELSI）は今年、転機を迎える。10年前の設立当初からのテーマであった「地球と生命の起源」から踏み出し、地球外生命の可能性まで研究対象を広げていく。次期所長の関根康人教授にこれからのELSIが目指すところを聞いた。

The Earth-Life Science Institute (ELSI) based at Tokyo Institute of Technology will reach a turning point this year. For the first time in its 10-year history, it will extend the scope of its initial research theme, "The Origins and Evolution of the Earth and Life", to include searching for evidence of extra-terrestrial life. ELSI’s new director, Yasuhito Sekine, told Asia Research News what they hope to achieve in the next phase and how.

Unlike most traditional Japanese universities, the Earth-Life Science Institute (ELSI) at Tokyo Institute of Technology has created a ‘flat’ and diverse research environment. On its ten-year anniversary, Outgoing Director Kei Hirose shares what is special about the institute and the secret behind its successful management.

A recent summertime climate pattern could be driving co-occurring European heatwaves and large-scale wildfires over Siberia, Canada and Alaska.

A study on puddle frogs suggests underestimated biodiversity in Southeast Asia.

Scientists have developed a model that predicts six tropical fish species will expand into northern parts of Japan as sea temperatures rise.

Researchers discovered the gene expression regulation mechanisms that drive coral transition from a floating larvae to one that sits sedentary in reefs.

Giants in History: Roseli Ocampo-Friedmann (23 November 1937 – 4 September 2005) was a Filipino-American scientist whose research focused on cyanobacteria and microorganisms that inhabit extreme environments.

A magnetic hybrid system generates electricity day and night with radiative cooling and solar heating.

The tourism industry’s performance was hampered first by the Easter Sunday bomb explosions in 2019 and then the COVID-19 pandemic. Sri Lanka saw a decline in tourist arrivals from 1,913,702 in 2019 to 194,495 in 2021. It is estimated that revenue declined from USD 3600 million to USD 261 million during 2019-2021, reflecting a staggering 92.75% reduction due to a fall in arrivals.

Whale and dolphin post-mortem imaging could breathe new life into marine conservation.

Device designers at the University of Tokyo are developing cheap and accessible ways to monitor and explore the sea.

Asia Research News monitors the latest research news in Asia. Some highlights that caught our attention this week are an android child, "unhackable" internet, a cancer-fighting nanoparticle from corn, and less-than-green practices by some oil companies.

On the occasion of the One Ocean Summit taking place in the French city of Brest, UNESCO has announced that at least 80% of the seabed will be mapped by 2030, compared to 20% currently, with the support of its Member States and the private sector.

Giants in History: Eminent Filipina scientist and educator Clara Lim-Sylianco (18 August 1925 – 23 July 2013) is remembered for her extensive research on mutagens – often-carcinogenic agents that permanently alter genetic materials such as DNA – antimutagens and bioorganic mechanisms.

Researchers from Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo find that the occurrence of red snow is closely tied to the length of the snow melt season and new snowfall events

Susan Lim (14 February 1952 – 2 August 2014) was a Malaysian parasitologist who specialized in studying a class of flatworms, the Monogeans, which are parasites of fishes.

The lockdowns introduced in 2020 to curb the spread of COVID-19 saw the narrative “nature is healing” gain prominence. However, the notion that nature, in the absence of people, was healing fizzled out fairly quickly with the emergence of fresh environmental challenges, most notably, the resurgence of single-use plastics. This blog examines the ecological fallout of the pandemic and suggests policy options for Sri Lanka to avert the looming environmental disaster.

The critically endangered Batman River loach is the first of Shoal and Re:wild's Top 10 Most Wanted Lost Fishes to be rediscovered