Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, August 31, 2023
Posted: 31st August 2023
A burned car sits in the turning lane of a street in Lahaina. The “X” indicates the car was checked and cleared during search and rescue operations. Photo: State Farm/Flickr, CC BY 2.0CLIMATE CHANGE
Maui residents confront toxic risks after deadly wildfires
As climate change fuels wildfires across the country, many officials are encountering risks that they didn’t know existed a few years ago. Read more.
CLIMATE CHANGE
Study: Just 6 percent of carbon offsets for curbing deforestation lead to emissions reductions
Researchers identify serious flaws in the voluntary carbon offset market and call for “urgent revisions” to certification methods. Read more.
DISRUPTIVE TECHNOLOGIES
Biotech promises miracles. But the risks call for more oversight
Developing a well-balanced oversight system for the bioeconomy will not be easy, write four biotech experts. “Nonetheless, the expanding gaps in national and international governance of dual-use biotechnology dictate that this subject be a core component of national security policies.” Read more.
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Check out designs inspired by the Doomsday Clock, climate change, nuclear risk, disruptive technologies, and more. Shop the Bulletin’s Labor Day sale!
IN THE NEWS
How Oppenheimer beat the Nazis
In this Mashable article, Bulletin editor-in-chief John Mecklin provides some context on the public’s perception of nuclear weapons. “The weapons are so daunting, so off-putting that people don’t like to think about them.” Read more.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“We may need to be a little bit careful [in attributing blame to climate change for single storms], but I do think Hurricane Idalia demonstrates a scenario that we may see in the future.”
— Shuai Wang, a climatology professor at the University of Delaware, “What makes Idalia so potent? It’s feeding on intensely warm water that acts like rocket fuel,” Associated Press