PROJECT EASY GREEN

Could an apple a day really keep the doctor away? Maybe — but it may also be coated in pesticides. Today, the Environmental Working Group , an advocacy nonprofit, released its latest “Dirty Dozen” list of the 12 fruits and vegetables that are most contaminated with pesticides , as an update to its 2010 rankings. And taking first place this year? Apples [...]

Afghan farmers are leaving their poppy harvesting days behind them in favor of a more lucrative beekeeping future, reports British Forces News . Afghanistan’s Helmand province is home to the country’s largest poppy producing region , but Afghan officials say they’ve seen a 15% drop in poppy production this year. This could be partly thanks to the American and British development programs that have [...]

The thought of drinking your own urine might be disgusting to some people, but one Texas town thinks it might be the best option in the face of one of the state’s worst droughts ever . Big Spring, Texas, home to the Colorado River Municipal Water District, will be experimenting with reprocessing wastewater produced by the town’s 27,000 residents, according [...]

Warning: you cannot un-see this. In honor of Shark Week we’ve done what any logical person would do with photos of celebrities: Photoshop shark mouths onto them. Because that’s just what you do. The results are equally horrifying and hilarious, with a smidgen of WTF. From Nicki Minaj to Vice President Joe Biden, we’ve found that pretty much any [...]

It’s amazing how much of the world we’ll never see, even when it’s right in front of our faces. For some people, electron microscopy brings that world into clear view, making seemingly impossible to imagine objects come to life. The shots they get are often incredible, seemingly surreal examples of a world that remains foreign to most. Add a [...]

Maybe they could call this “Snakes On A Windshield”? What would make many drivers lose control of their car seems to have had no effect on one Memphis family. A snake crawled out of their vehicle’s engine and onto the windshield as they were driving down a highway. The scaly creature held on for dear life while the [...]

Jeff Kurr knows a thing or two about sharks. During his two-plus decades with Discovery Channel’s Shark Week , the LA-based filmmaker has captured some of the most ground-breaking and dazzling footage of these feared creatures of the sea. This year, Kurr focuses his attention on the great white shark’s return to our shallow waters and sandy beaches in “Great [...]

Of all the ways to redeem oneself after being jailed for running a prostitution ring for wealthy clients, driving under the influence , and possessing dangerous drugs without a prescription, staring in a reality TV show about parrots seems to be an odd way to do it. However, for better or for worse, that’s exactly what Heidi Fleiss [...]

A return to the moon for NASA may be a distant goal as the organization works to find a replacement for the Space Shuttle orbiter . But some scientists and investors see private space flight as both a path to the moon and a way to alleviate energy concerns at home. Gerald Kulcinski, a nuclear engineering professor at the University [...]

Can you walk to your local grocery store, restaurants and other amenities? Or does each trip require a car ride? The answer may have an impact on your health. According to one study , people of average height who live in walkable neighborhoods weigh eight pounds less (10 pounds for men, six pounds for women) than their car-bound counterparts. [...]

Even NASA scientists have never seen anything like this. These “Dark Fireworks,” as NASA scientists have referred to them, weren’t even noticed at first. In fact, according to the NASA report , it wasn’t until scientists went back and looked at the footage one of their satellites had captured, that they even noticed the event took place. From NASA:

“We’d never seen anything [...]

For those Angelenos that still view the Los Angeles River as depressing, sewage-like infrastructure — boy, do we have something for you. Videographer John Hwang’s ode to the Los Angeles River evokes both lonely and beautiful aspects of our often neglected landmark. The footage includes images of running water, sunbeams, and train tracks. If the video leaves [...]

It may seem like a scene straight out of Bollywood, but a monkey marriage in India has caused some real-world trouble. The marriage, which was not one of love but more of a “traditional” arranged relationship, couldn’t exactly be public knowledge. According to Reuters, the couple was forced into hiding after the announced wedding began garnering more and more [...]

This storm on Saturn is bigger than you can possibly imagine. According to NASA, it’s actually eight times the surface area of Earth. It is the biggest storm ever observed on the planet, and is at least 500 times bigger than any other storm observed by the Cassini spacecraft that orbits the ringed planet. It seems the beast of a [...]

When an incredible wall of sand and dust began wafting through Arizona, folks from Phoenix and other towns standing in the disaster’s inevitable path grabbed their cameras and braved the elements to produce some remarkable, up-close-and-personal footage. The dust wall , known as a haboob, reached peak heights of 8,000 to 10,000 feet, National Weather Service meteorologist Paul Iniguez told [...]

A monstrous dust storm roared through Phoenix, Arizona on Tuesday night, delaying flights and causing power outages for thousands of people. The AP reports that the massive dust cloud, also known as a ” haboob,” was around 5,000 feet when it arrived in Phoenix , but radar data reveals that it reached heights anywhere from 8,000 to 10,000 feet high prior. The [...]

Three fishermen in Stuart, Florida were in for a huge surprise when searching for a catch off Jensen Beach this past weekend. “It was just something that we’d never seen in our lives before,” Robert Benz told WPTV. The three men found a 23-foot-long, 200-pound giant squid floating dead in the Atlantic. Giant squid are known for being [...]

Is wind power too dangerous for America? That’s exactly what these panelists discuss in this hilarious spoof from The Onion . The video shows a new advertisement from the American Coal Lobby warning that wind farms may blow the Earth off orbit. “We like this planet. Let’s not blow it… away,” the ad implores. But as the panel discusses, the dangers [...]

Two police dogs were found dead on Sunday after being locked inside an unventilated car on a hot day in London. An investigation has now been launched to determine how the dogs died. An officer (reportedly named Sergeant Ian Craven ) is said to have forgotten about the Belgian Malanois and German Shepherd, and left them in the car [...]

As eco-conscious travelers embrace energy-efficient cars and alternative forms of transportation, an often overlooked contributor to greenhouses gases is air travel. The Associated Press reports that globally, the aviation industry accounts for a “rapidly rising” three percent of greenhouse gas emissions. Although some airlines are working to curtail their numbers, Reuters reports that the U.S. recently demanded that their airlines [...]