1 . When hurricanes left a path of destruction in Puerto Rico, Pennsylvania College of Technology student Natascha G. Santaella felt a variety of painful emotions.

“I spent around six days stressing and having a very hard time with me having all the luxuries I currently do and my family not having any,” the Guaynabo, Puerto Rico, resident said. Santaella said that her hometown is without power and water, and people there are scared of what is to come.

To reduce her stress, Santaella, who is studying for an associate degree in baking and pastry arts, immersed (沉浸) herself in what she knows best: baking. “It started out as just baking bread and shipping it to the island to then be dispersed to the people, but I found that was very expensive for me to do alone, so I spoke with Chef Charles Niedermyer, our instructor of baking and pastry arts about a sale of baked goods in the college’s Bush Campus Center.”

“Natascha is a bright, energetic young lady with a big heart,” Niedermyer said. “I was not surprised to find her in my office, looking for ways to help the people of Puerto Rico.”

To prepare, Santaella had multiple meetings with Niedermyer, spent hours finalizing recipes, designed signage (标志) and decorations, and got friends to staff the sale table with her. And then there was the baking: Santaella and two friends in the baking and pastry arts major spent six hours baking 90 loaves of bread, 24 dozen dinner rolls and 30 cheesecakes in a variety of flavors.

During the six-hour sale, Santaella and her friends raised more than $1,000 for United for Puerto Rico, an initiative designed to provide aid and support to those affected in Puerto Rico by the passage of Hurricane Irma and Hurricane Maria.

“I hope to mainly increase awareness of what has happened, and to show people that there are Puerto Rican students at this school,” Santaella said. “I hope that others had the great experience I had with all my teachers and how understanding they were with me.”

3 . When peanuts are dropped into a glass of beer, they sink to the bottom before floating up and “dancing” in the glass. Scientists investigated this process in a study involving the alcoholic drink beer. The research helped them understand mineral extraction (提炼) or magma (岩浆) in the layer of Earth called the crust.

Brazilian researcher Luiz Pereira told the media that he first had the idea when passing through Argentina’s capital Buenos Aires to learn Spanish. It was common for barkeepers to take a few peanuts and drop them into beers. Because the peanuts are denser (密度大的) than the beer, they first sink to the bottom of the glass. Then each peanut becomes what is called a “nucleation site”. Hundreds of tiny bubbles (气泡) of CO₂ form on their surface. The bubbles act as floatation devices that carry the peanuts upward. The bubbles prefer to form on the peanuts rather than on the glass. When the bubbles reach the surface, they burst. The peanuts sink again before newly formed bubbles send the peanuts up again. Like a dance movement, the peanuts continue sinking and floating until the CO₂ runs out, or someone drinks the beer.

In the experiments, the team of researchers examined how peanuts acted in the “beer-gas-peanut system”. They found the larger the “contact angle” between the curve of an individual bubble and the surface of the peanut, the more likely it will grow. But it cannot grow too much—less than 1.3 millimeters across is best.

Pereira said he hoped that by deeply researching this simple system, we could understand a system that would be useful for industry or explaining natural processes. For example, the floatation process is similar to the one used to separate iron from ore. Air is added into a mixture in which a mineral, such as iron, will rise because bubbles attach themselves more easily to it, while other minerals sink to the bottom. The same process can also explain why volcano scientists find that the mineral magnetite rises to higher layers in Earth’s crust than expected.

4 . Warmer oceans can cause coral (珊瑚) bleaching. Bleaching happens when the coral, colonies of tiny animals called polyps, lose colored algae (藻类) living in their bodies and turn completely white. Without the algae, the coral loses its main food source and can die.

In 2021, the United Nations reported a 14 percent loss of corals across the world largely from rising sea temperatures in the previous 13 years. Australia declared mass bleaching events in 2022 across large parts of the Great Barrier Reef, the fourth since 2016.

Reefs in Hawaii, Florida, and the Caribbean were all severely affected, but thankfully some coral areas were not. Scientists looked into the characteristics of these corals and their ecosystems to see how others could be protected. Warm water reefs in the tropics are the worst affected by bleaching, but they also contain corals with better heat resistance.

Research is focused on finding genes for heat tolerance so that they can be passed on to future generations. Biologists mix corals that are more resilient to higher temperatures with those that are not and the resulting hybrid generation has a better chance of survival.

Researchers in Florida’s reefs have been using ocean nurseries to replant coral with batches that contain genes resistant to heat, acidification, and disease. Those areas have recovered within a year.

Other projects like Revive and Restore are using methods like preserving older coral populations’ sperm and eggs (biobanking) and using corals with better adaptability characteristics in breeding. The project also believes that boosting biodiversity by restoring (恢复) seabirds to islands, and ridding them of invasive species like rats, helps coral reefs thrive.

Ultimately, scientists say that without a serious reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, 99 percent of the world’s coral reefs will be gone by the end of the century. There is a limit to how quickly coral can adapt, especially given the rate of climate change. Computer simulations have shown that mild or moderate warming allows coral to adapt, but if temperatures rise rapidly then extinction is certain.

5 . On any given day Damon Carson will deal with lots of inquiries from large companies looking to unload massive amounts of stuff that would otherwise go to the landfill (废物填埋场). For example, twenty-eight plastic boxes from a store were just waiting for him to repurpose them. And a recreation company wanted to know if Carson was interested in 360 kilograms of blue ropes

“They don’t want to just throw it away,” he explains. “Nor should they. Because it has value. ”The question of what value, and to whom, is what occupies Carson’s days.

For nearly a decade, his company, Repurposed Materials, has been devoted to this. He’s not looking to recycle the stuff he gets—breaking it down to make something new—but rather finding new homes for abandoned goods in their original forms.

In the late 1990s, Carson was on break from business school, when he discovered the profitable world of waste. He and a friend started a small business near construction sites. Working in construction, Carson had become familiar with an almost-everyday phenomenon: “You’d open up one of these big construction dumpster (大垃圾箱) and stuff would start falling out,” he says. He would find perfectly good wood, or a window still wrapped in plastic from the factory. “You can’t wrap your mind around how wasteful America is until you run a waste company,” he says

There is a solid environmental case for repurposing, or upcycling. “When people call, I say we don’t chip, grind, melt.” “Carson notes. Recycling, however noble, still takes energy. “Why melt something down, if it still has value?” he asks. An old oil-field pipe might be melted down and turned into a car bumper, but it still takes a fair amount of power to finish the transformation. Why not put it straight up and turn it into a fence post on a farm? The only cost is transport.

Carson recently opened two new warehouses (仓库), bringing the total to six. “Corporations(企业) are,” he says, “becoming increasingly focused on sustainability, so we’re upping (使升级) our capabilities. You never know when the next 20,000-kilogram spool of 10-centimeter-thick rope might come along, or where it might go.”

8 . How to Survive a Flood: Flood Safety Tips

Flooding is a common natural disaster in the world. It is usually caused by heavy or sudden rainfall. Review the following flood safety guidelines to know what you should do to increase your chances of survival.

    1     If you live in an area that is often flooded—or even if you don’t — it’s a good idea to be prepared for the worst.

Pay close attention to official flooding updates. And know the difference between a flood “watch” and “warning”.     2     But a flood warning means flooding is already occurring or will occur soon. In this case, you should be prepared to leave at a moment’s notice.

Have an emergency survival kit on hand.     3     Things such as water, food, a flashlight, radio, phone chargers and a first aid kit should all be included.

Be aware that flash flooding can occur.     4     Do not wait for instructions to move. When a flood warning is issued for your area, leave. Head for higher ground and stay there until you are told that the area is safe.

Do not walk through moving water. Six inches of moving water can sweep you off your feet. If you have to walk in water, walk where the water is not moving.     5    

Turn around, and don’t drown! If you come upon a flowing stream where water is above your ankles, stop, turn around and go another way. People often underestimate the force and power of water.

9 . On Feb. 23, an environmental advocacy group “Grassroots” led by students hosted its monthly clothing exchange. The clothing exchange is a free activity on campus where students can donate clothes in exchange for new ones.

“One of the key things about sustainability (可持续性) is to reuse,” Crystal Tynon, Co-president and Clothing Exchange Chair, said. “Instead of throwing away old clothes and buying new clothes, you can donate them and give them a new purpose. You might be done with those clothing items, but someone else might not be.”

According to Tynon, “Grassroots” is hoping to expand the activities to other schools. In order to do so, the team is brainstorming new ways to get the word out about donations, hours and events. Now, the clothing exchange is one of the club’s most well-known activities. “Throughout the semester when people realize we have these exchanges, they genuinely bring clothes and participate a lot more. So it does make a difference to clothing sustainability and it does create a community where everyone can share their clothes,” she added.

As “Grassroots” is an initiative dedicated to sustainability, paper advertisement is not an option. Instead, the center relies mostly on word-of-mouth and e-mail announcements. It is bringing speakers to campus to talk about sustainability and environmental advocacy. It also has partnerships with local organizations such as “the Sunrise Rochester”, working together to have volunteers become more involved in local sustainability.

Chloe Mendoza has been a volunteer since her freshman year. Not only does Mendoza appreciate the intended mission of promoting sustainability, but she also thinks the center has transformed into a safe and accepting community space for all students. Those who have come in looking for something practical often end up leaving with an armful of clothing and a heart full of warmth.

“My favorite part about working there is that we get to help people find things that they need for free. Just providing a place for students to go where there isn’t pressure to spend money is really important. A lot of students love saving, so it’s something that students can relate and engage with easily, so I think it’s a really easy way to get students more involved in sustainability,” says Mendoza.