2021-11-20. A Power Struggle Over Cobalt Rattles the Clean Energy Revolution. By Dionne Searcey, Michael Forsythe and Eric Lipton, Photographs by Ashley Gilbertson, The New York Times. Excerpt: The quest for Congo’s cobalt, which is vital for electric vehicles and the worldwide push against climate change, is caught in an international cycle of exploitation, greed and gamesmanship. ...with more than two-thirds of the world’s cobalt production coming from Congo, the country is once again taking center stage as major automakers commit to battling climate change by transitioning from gasoline-burning vehicles to battery-powered ones.… [https://www.nytimes.com/2021/11/20/world/china-congo-cobalt.html]
Warmer, more crowded cities bring out the rats
By Elizabeth Pennisi , Science. Excerpt: Climate change emerged as a driving factor behind urban rat swarms , the researchers report today in Science Advances . As temperatures rise, they conclude, and people flock to urban areas and convert formerly “green” spaces into neighborhoods and shopping centers, they created a perfect storm for rat populations to explode. And the city that’s fared the worst over the past decade? Washington, D.C..... Full article at https://www.science.org/content/article/warmer-more-crowded-cities-bring-out-rats .