seaweed

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Scientists Are Puzzled Over Record Amounts of Sargassum

They've logged 41M tons in the Caribbean and nearby areas through May

(Newser) - A record amount of sargassum piled up across the Caribbean and nearby areas in May, and more is expected this month, according to a new report . The amount—about 41 million tons, tallied through May—is the biggest quantity of algae observed across the Caribbean Sea, the western and eastern...

Seaweed Could Help Us Survive Nuclear War
Seaweed Could
Save Us After Nuclear War
new study
Jan 31, 2024 2:40 PM CST

Seaweed Could Save Us After Nuclear War

Study finds it could help feed humanity ... if we can make it at least 9 months

(Newser) - Should our planet be ravaged by nuclear war, those who survive may not starve to death, or so suggests a new study. Yes, the million tons of radioactive dust and smoke and soot that result from the fires caused by the bombs will be sent into Earth's atmosphere, sharply...

Xprize Winner Is Betting on Seaweed to Save the Planet

Seaweed farms are a food source and store carbon, but some scientists are wary

(Newser) - The Climate Foundation won a $1 million Milestone award from Elon Musk's Xprize foundation last year for its innovative solutions to trapping carbon via seaweed farming. Now, the group is vying for part of the foundation's $100 million fund alongside 14 other prize winners, but the Guardian reports...

Seaweed Blob Off Florida One of the Biggest Ever

Sargassum may make beach visits on the Gulf coast smelly in the next few months

(Newser) - Scientists are keeping an eye on a massive brown blob of seaweed threatening to make beach-going along the Gulf of Mexico miserable once it comes ashore. As dire as that sounds, sargassum blooms are not a new phenomenon, reports WFLA —but at 5,000 miles wide, this might be...

California Scrambles to Wipe Out Algae Invader

Species that can overtake habitat has been spotted in state waters for the first time

(Newser) - For the first time, scientists say they have seen a species of bright green algae growing in the waters off California—and they are hoping it's the last. The invasive algae can overtake the environment and displace critical food sources for ocean animals on the southern California coast. A...

New Seaweed Species Is Smothering Reefs

'Tumbleweed' algae is covering remote Hawaii reefs

(Newser) - Researchers say a recently discovered species of seaweed is killing large patches of coral on once-pristine reefs and is rapidly spreading across one of the most remote and protected ocean environments on earth. A study from the University of Hawaii and others says the seaweed is spreading more rapidly than...

Your Ice Cream May Contain Seaweed—Contentiously

There's a battle going on over the use of the additive carrageenan

(Newser) - Centuries ago, coastal Irish communities discovered that they could harvest carraigín moss, a type of seaweed, from the rocky waters at Carrigan Head and cook it with milk to produce a thickener. Named after the area, carrageenan—the soluble fiber derived from seaweed—has since gained global popularity as...

Our Next Super Food? Bacon-Flavored Seaweed

Oregon researchers patent new strain of algae called dulse

(Newser) - Researchers at Oregon State University have received a patent for a new strain of seaweed they developed, and there's only one thing you need to know about it: “When you fry it, which I have done, it tastes like bacon, not seaweed," chief researcher Chris Langdon says...

Scientists Make Seaweed-Fuel Breakthrough

Next hurdle: bringing it to market

(Newser) - Algae-based fuel is a step closer to reality. Scientists in California have genetically modified a microbe so that it can convert seaweed into biofuel, the Guardian reports. "Natural seaweed species grow very fast—10 times faster than normal plants—and are full of sugars, but it has been very...

Caribbean Resorts Battle Mysterious Seaweed Invasion

Mysterious hordes of algae shut down resorts

(Newser) - Gigantic piles of brown seaweed that reek of rotten eggs are piling up on beaches in the eastern Caribbean, forcing resorts to shut down and keeping swimmers from the ocean. The stinky, bug-infested algae—named Sargassum—has been creeping up shores in Antigua, St. Maarten, and other Caribbean hotspots since...

Eating Right: Some Unusual Suspects

Celery, seaweed could work wonders for your diet

(Newser) - The usual admonitions we hear at this time of year about eating right are probably going in one ear and out the other, so perhaps these unusual health-food suspects from Men’s Health will catch your attention as you prepare that New Year’s resolution.
  • Celery: Its phytochemicals are thought
...

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