Skeptics Stack Exchange
Skeptics Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [environment]

Referring to the surrounding ecosystem of the planet Earth, its natural mechanisms and balances, and study of the effects of human interaction with it.

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Will elephant dung paper infused with flower seeds grow when planted?

According to this article there is a paper that has been infused with elephant dung and flower seeds that, if planted and watered properly, will actually grow. I guess it sounds plausible but I feel there are a lot of factors that I am not really…
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Do forests increase atmosphere's oxygen?

I've read that forests are important because they absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen to the atmoshpere 1. But other places say that this is false for a mature forest: "On average, then, this mature forest has no net flux of carbon dioxide or…
jinawee
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Is 22-23 Celsius (72-73 degrees F) measurably the optimal temperature for office productivity

I must admit that I lost the original reference for the claim, but almost certain it was LifeHacker, so it is notable enough. The claim is that 72-73 degrees Fahrenheit (or about 22-23 Celsius) is THE optimal temperature range for office…
user5341
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Does the average carbon footprint per bitcoin transaction range from 233.4 to 363.5 kg of CO2?

https://www.cell.com/joule/fulltext/S2542-4351(19)30087-X says, According to the Bitcoin Energy Consumption Index, Bitcoin’s energy use in 2018 translates to a carbon footprint of 19.0 to 29.6 million metric tons of CO2 (475 g CO2 / kWh). The…
Matthew Christopher Bartsh
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Are storms getting more or less severe in the long term for Australia?

Over the past couple of years people have been claiming that storms are getting more severe in Australia. Some linking this to global warming. Specifically Professor Ross Garnaut in the opening paragraph of his first in a series of eight updates of…
going
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Did Finding Nemo encourage people to flush pet fish down the toilet?

A Smithsonian article about goldfish starts out with (emphasis added): The 2003 Pixar film Finding Nemo popularized the misconception that all drains lead to the ocean, encouraging young fans to flush their pet fish down the toilet in an…
Barry Harrison
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Is the Taylor oil spill on the scale of Deepwater Horizon?

According to CNN, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill leaked 176.4 million gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. By comparison, and also according to CNN, they say According to the [the Department of Justice's September] filing, the Taylor spill is…
Evan Carroll
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Are Maryland's vehicle emissions tests a net benefit for the environment?

I am skeptical that vehicle emissions programs like Maryland's VEIP are a net win overall. You generate emissions by driving there in the first place, and idling while you wait your turn. Almost all newer cars will pass. If your car fails for…
wrschneider
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Can Waterseer extract as much as 37 L per day from the air?

Treehugger.com article on Waterseer Wind-powered device can produce 11 gallons per day of clean drinking water from the air [...] The WaterSeer is relatively simple device, designed to be operated without an external power input, and without the…
GordonM
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Has the Orca infant mortality rate been 100% since the Fukushima disaster?

This has been going around Facebook lately. All accounts seem to stem from this NaturalNews article. I don't tend to see them as a reliable source of information, but I also haven't found any proof that contradicts their assertion. Balcomb also…
Sean Duggan
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Did Volkswagen, Chrysler and/or GM cut diesel tailpipe emissions by ~99% over a decade?

This article, dated Jan 5, 2014, makes a rather vague claim that Companies such as Volkswagen AG, Chrysler Group and General Motors have invested billions to make that happen, outfitting vehicles with systems that cut tailpipe emissions by about 99…
Flimzy
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Must Japan's population pay for any accident caused by nuclear power plants sold abroad by Japanese companies?

This image is currently trending on social media: source The caption reads: 海外で日本の売った原発が事故を起こした場合、その費用はすべて日本国民の税金から支払う約束になっていりる If a nuclear power plant sold abroad by Japan causes an accident, then the costs are promised to be paid entirely by…
nic
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Does a full grown oak tree expel 7 tons of water from its leaves in a day?

There are a couple sites with this claim but I can't find any reliable sources... http://www.snapple.com/real-facts/cap-view/715 http://www.chacha.com/question/how-much-water-does-a-full-grown-oak-tree-expel-through-its-leaves-each-day I was hoping…
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Could a solar flare cause economic collapse?

Possible Duplicate: Will the Sun's magnetic activity disrupt electronics on Earth? It seems that solar flares are one of the few things that have any factual weight among the possible causes of a so-called 2012 event. There is also evidence…
Felipe
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How often are recyclable items recycled?

It seems a bit bold for one to think that everything that he or she throws in the recycling bin is recycled. I would like to know how often things that are thrown into the recycling bin (assuming that the truck comes by to pick up the recycling and…
Carter Pape
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