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Christopher Joyce Christopher Joyce is a correspondent on the science desk at NPR. His stories can be heard on all of NPR's news programs, including NPR's Morning Edition, All Things Considered, and Weekend Edition.
Christopher Joyce 2010
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Christopher Joyce

Environment

U.S., China Step Forward In Climate Debate

As the Copenhagen talks neared collapse last week, President Obama cut a last-minute deal with leaders from China and three other nations to curb greenhouse gases. It's unclear how they'll do that, but one thing is clear: The U.S. and China have become leaders that may shape the new climate diplomacy.

U.S., China Step Forward In Climate Debate

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Science

Dinosaur May Have Used Venom To Kill Prey

Dinosaur fossils found in China show that the Sinornithosaurus had grooved teeth connected to what could be venom ducts. Several researchers hypothesize that the dinosaur may have used venom much the way Gila monsters of the American Southwest do.

Dinosaur May Have Used Venom To Kill Prey

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Scientists Help Ranchers Wrangle Carbon Emissions

Soon, ranchers like this one might be able to use their land to offset carbon emissions. Some are excited that they could use the land to earn a profit, while others don't want to invest in the idea just yet. Charlie Riedel/AP hide caption

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Charlie Riedel/AP

Environment

Scientists Help Ranchers Wrangle Carbon Emissions

Researchers in Marin County, Calif., are experimenting with ways to get plants to absorb more carbon emissions. So far, their plan seems to be working — the grass in the experiment plots is capturing 50 percent more carbon from the air than grass in the untouched plots. But, researchers still need to measure what the net carbon uptake is.

Scientists Help Ranchers Wrangle Carbon Emissions

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U.S. Climate Change Plan Is Idea Rich, Cash Poor

SkyFuel unveiled last year one of the world's highest-performance, lowest-cost solar thermal power systems, in Arvada, Colo. Concentrated solar power, in which a large array of collectors concentrates a beam of energy to heat a fluid and run turbines, is viewed as a more likely source of large-scale electric power. Jack Dempsey/AP/SkyFuel hide caption

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Jack Dempsey/AP/SkyFuel

Energy

U.S. Climate Change Plan Is Idea Rich, Cash Poor

The United States has all the tools it needs to replace its old coal energy economy and drastically cut greenhouse emissions. So what's missing? Political will — and money.

Scientists Turn Trees Into Carbon Banks

Sunlight shines through a grove of redwood trees at the Muir Woods National Monument in Marin County in Northern California. Eric Risberg/AP hide caption

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Eric Risberg/AP

Science

Scientists Turn Trees Into Carbon Banks

Scientists in California are experimenting with carbon banking. The idea is to manage forests so they absorb more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and slow down global warming. Countries could, in essence, be paid to turn their forests into carbon banks. But first, climate scientists need to become climate accountants — to put hard numbers on how much carbon trees breathe in and out.

Scientists Turn Trees Into Carbon Banks

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Darwin: The "Reluctant Revolutionary"

The Butterflies And Beetles Behind Evolution

Alfred Russel Wallace was Darwin's colleague, a globe-trotting naturalist who helped shape the theory of evolution. Thirty years ago, an antique shopper wandered into a modest antique shop in Arlington, Va., looking for Chinese carpets and wound up buying a magnificent rosewood cabinet. It contained Wallace's personal collection of 1,600 butterflies and insects.

The Butterflies And Beetles Behind Evolution

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Researchers Get Dirty To Clean Up Chesapeake

Marine scientist Walter Boynton of the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science is studying mud, ooze, and other material from the Chesapeake Bay's bottom to find out what areas are healthy and where it's dying. John Poole/NPR hide caption

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John Poole/NPR

Science

Researchers Get Dirty To Clean Up Chesapeake

A team of scientists is studying mud, ooze and other material from the bay's bottom to help the EPA crack down on pollutants. The tubes of glop they've collected from throughout the Chesapeake Bay are like biopsies — they indicate where the bay is healthy and where it's dying.

Researchers Get Dirty To Clean Up Chesapeake

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Science

Senate Hearing On Climate Bill Heats Up

A Senate committee has begun hearings on a massive climate bill that would remake the energy economy. Supporters say it will protect the environment and create a new green industry. Opponents say it will kill the fossil fuel industry — costing millions of jobs.

Senate Hearing On Climate Bill Heats Up

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Environment

Using Trees To Curb Climate Change Not So Simple

Forests are fast becoming a great green hope for slowing climate change. Climate planners are keen to create forest carbon banks, places designed to store carbon and keep it out of the atmosphere. But banking carbon in forests turns out to be something of a mystery.

Using Trees To Curb Climate Change Not So Simple

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Slo-Mo Cricket Chirps Reveal Secret Serenades

A snowy tree cricket feeds on a leaf from a mountain dalea plant. Gerardine Vargas hide caption

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Gerardine Vargas

Wild Sounds

Slo-Mo Cricket Chirps Reveal Secret Serenades

The slight differences in the patterns of cricket chirps are undetectable to the human ear, but may actually determine how crickets recognize their own kind.

Slo-Mo Cricket Chirps Reveal Secret Serenades

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Environment

Do Offsets Really Help Reduce Emissions?

The climate bills working their way through Congress are the biggest effort ever to limit greenhouse gases for the U.S. One huge concession to industry is a system of offsets, by which companies that need to lower their carbon "footprint" can pay to reduce carbon emissions somewhere else. But offsets are seen by critics as a dodge for companies that don't want to clean up at home.

Do Offsets Really Help Reduce Emissions?

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Move Over, Lucy; Ardi May Be Oldest Human Ancestor

Science

Move Over, Lucy; Ardi May Be Oldest Human Ancestor

Scientists working in Ethiopia have discovered what they say is the biggest trove of fossils yet from the earliest known human ancestor. Fossils include teeth that suggest a new, more sophisticated procreation strategy for the time: males exchanging food for sex.

Move Over, Lucy; Ardi May Be Oldest Human Ancestor

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