In nature, living things die, decompose, and eventually become nutrients for other life. Yet humans use embalming, coffin-based burial, or cremation in typical after-death practices, which may interfere with this “circle of life.” This video explores the ecology of death and decomposition and provides some greener disposal alternatives.
Are Human Burial Practices Disturbing Earth's Ecosystems?
Thanks to the demands of eco-conscious consumers, biodegradable and compostable plastics are cropping up everywhere. Are these green plastics the solution to our throwaway lifestyle? Well, it's complicated, as this video explains.
Can Plastic Be Composted?
If you've eaten food today that has at least one ingredient that was farmed, you probably owe some thanks to earthworms. How do these lowly invertebrates turn what humans find inedible into beloved compost? Earthworms have an extra enzyme that allows them to munch through cellulose—the ultimate fiber that makes tree bark a non-starter in human diets. Despite this powerful chemistry, not everyone sees earthworms as the greatest creature to crawl the Earth. Find out all the dirt from this video.
How Worms Turn Garbage into Compost
Many people have done it, but few admit to it. This video explains why, from an environmental perspective, it is absolutely acceptable to urinate in the ocean. (Correction: At 1:50, the narration and text should read "250 gallons," not liters.) [Credit: Reactions/American Chemical Society (www.youtube.com/acsreactions)]
Is it Okay to Pee in the Ocean?
Microplastics are tiny plastic particles measuring less than five millimeters (about 0.2 inches) in length whose sources include polymer textile fibers, microbeads from personal care products, and environmental degradation of waste plastic into smaller and smaller pieces over time. Today, microplastics are found globally throughout the environment, including in rainwater collected in Washington D.C., United States, as this video attempts to demonstrate.
Microplastics Are Raining Down on Us
Pond scum is usually just a nuisance, but under certain environmental conditions, blue-green algae (which are actually bacteria) can blossom into harmful algal blooms. These blooms can release all sorts of deadly poisons into the environment. In this video, Sophia Cai explains how the environment and human health could be at risk from algal blooms.
What Makes Blue-Green Algae Dangerous?
