<img height="1" width="1" style="display:none" src="https://www.facebook.com/tr?id=192888919167017&amp;ev=PageView&amp;noscript=1">
Menu
The Columbian logo tagline
Login
Thursday,  November 28 , 2024
Current weather Vancouver, WA

Linkedin Pinterest
Liferight chevron arrow icon

Science & Technology

Astronomers plan to play hooky during August eclipse

April 29, 2017, 6:33pm Northwest

The total solar eclipse that will pass over Central Oregon in August is a big enough deal that the staff at Pine Mountain Observatory will be playing hooky for the day. Read story

In this photo provided by the USDA/APHIS Wildlife Services, newly designed aerial bait cartridges consist of dead mice with 80-mg acetaminophen tablets and a biodegradable streamer-like cartridge. The cartridge is designed to snag on trees where invasive brown tree snakes are known to feed. New, creative but more high-tech methods may finally be turning the tide in the fight against invasive species. Non-native plants and animals cost the world hundreds of billions of dollars a year.

Robots, tasers join battle against invasive species

In this photo provided by the USDA/APHIS Wildlife Services, newly designed aerial bait cartridges consist of dead mice with 80-mg acetaminophen tablets and a biodegradable streamer-like cartridge. The cartridge is designed to snag on trees where invasive brown tree snakes are known to feed. New, creative but more high-tech methods may finally be turning the tide in the fight against invasive species. Non-native plants and animals cost the world hundreds of billions of dollars a year.

April 28, 2017, 10:14am Life

A robot zaps and vacuums up venomous lionfish in Bermuda. A helicopter pelts Guam’s trees with poison-baited dead mice to fight the voracious brown tree snake. A special boat with giant winglike nets stuns and catches Asian carp in the U.S. Midwest. Read story

This image made available by NASA in April 2017 shows a still from the short film &quot;Cassini&#039;s Grand Finale,&quot; with the spacecraft diving between Saturn and the planet&#039;s innermost ring. Launched in 1997, Cassini reached Saturn in 2004 and has been exploring it from orbit ever since. CassiniC?Us fuel tank is almost empty, so NASA has opted for a risky, but science-rich grand finale.

Cassini survives trip between Saturn, rings

This image made available by NASA in April 2017 shows a still from the short film &quot;Cassini&#039;s Grand Finale,&quot; with the spacecraft diving between Saturn and the planet&#039;s innermost ring. Launched in 1997, Cassini reached Saturn in 2004 and has been exploring it from orbit ever since. CassiniC?Us fuel tank is almost empty, so NASA has opted for a risky, but science-rich grand finale.

April 27, 2017, 9:44pm Nation & World

NASA’s Cassini spacecraft has survived an unprecedented trip between Saturn and its rings, and has amazing pictures to show for it. Read story

Hundreds of billions of pieces of plastic are in Arctic Ocean

April 27, 2017, 6:00am Life

Drifts of floating plastic that humans have dumped into the world’s oceans are flowing into the pristine waters of the Arctic as a result of a powerful system of currents that deposits waste in the icy seas east of Greenland and north of Scandinavia. Read story

The scarlet harlequin frog was last seen in 1990.

Scientists launch hunt for 25 ‘lost’ species

The scarlet harlequin frog was last seen in 1990.

April 27, 2017, 6:00am Life

Once upon a time, a subspecies of giant tortoise lived on Fernandina, the least-explored island in the Galapagos. Read story

Jesse Ceja, 12, rides a Segway hoverboard in his neighborhood, which sits adjacent to the Phillips 66 refinery in the Wilmington, Calif. neighborhood where some long-time residents believe their health issues might stem from their proximity to the refinery.

California asks other states to fill void on climate change

Jesse Ceja, 12, rides a Segway hoverboard in his neighborhood, which sits adjacent to the Phillips 66 refinery in the Wilmington, Calif. neighborhood where some long-time residents believe their health issues might stem from their proximity to the refinery.

April 23, 2017, 8:06pm Nation & World

California was clear about its ambitions when it enacted a law on global warming just over a decade ago. Progress on reducing greenhouse gas emissions, the law said, would have “far-reaching effects by encouraging other states, the federal government and other countries to act.” Read story

Test items made in a 3-D printer at Sigma Design&#039;s Vancouver offices. The company&#039;s new HP Jet Fusion 3D 4200 enables it to print hundreds or thousands of physical parts.

3-D printing, industrial revolution could be forming in Clark County

Test items made in a 3-D printer at Sigma Design&#039;s Vancouver offices. The company&#039;s new HP Jet Fusion 3D 4200 enables it to print hundreds or thousands of physical parts.

April 23, 2017, 6:01am Business

Imagine if the parts under the hood of your car were made in layers of color like jawbreaker candies. As the parts become worn, the changing colors would alert you to wear and tear. Read story

Isabella Nicola Cabrera, 10, plays her violin with her new prosthetic Thursday at the engineering department of George Mason University in Fairfax, Va. &quot;Oh my gosh, that&#039;s so much better,&quot; Isabella said as she tried it out.

Undergraduates build prosthetic arm for 10-year-old violinist

Isabella Nicola Cabrera, 10, plays her violin with her new prosthetic Thursday at the engineering department of George Mason University in Fairfax, Va. &quot;Oh my gosh, that&#039;s so much better,&quot; Isabella said as she tried it out.

April 21, 2017, 10:26pm Nation & World

The pressure was on for Abdul Gouda and his classmates at George Mason University: not only did their graduation depend on the success of their project, but so did the hopes of an impossibly cute 10-year-old girl. Read story

Manatees find refuge in the warm waters of Blue Spring located at Blue Spring State Park, Orange City, Fla.

Florida’s manatees facing more promising outlook

Manatees find refuge in the warm waters of Blue Spring located at Blue Spring State Park, Orange City, Fla.

April 21, 2017, 5:11am Life

ORLANDO, Fla. – Florida manatees may continue to die from toxic algae, freezing weather, ecosystem collapse and boat collisions, but the species appears on track to survive through the coming century, according to federal experts. Read story

Sean Askay, right, engineering manager with Google Earth, demonstrates new features on Google Earth, displayed in background, on April 18 in New York.

Google Earth gets a makeover

Sean Askay, right, engineering manager with Google Earth, demonstrates new features on Google Earth, displayed in background, on April 18 in New York.

April 20, 2017, 6:00am Life

Google Earth is getting a revival, as the 3-D mapping service reorients itself to become more of a tool for adventure and exploration. Read story