Freckles the goat is part spider. Her milk is loaded with spider silk protein. The silk from Freckles has potential uses in medicine (as a ligament replacement), is stronger than Kevlar and extremely elastic. So why not just harvest the silk from spiders? Spiders can’t be farmed because they are cannibalistic, while goats have been farmed for 10,000 years or so. Genetically engineered ‘spider goats’ also produce vast amounts of spider silk in their milk when compared to tiny golden orb spiders.   Freckles...

It may sound like a Dutch version of UK Prime Minister David Cameron’s Big Society: the government cuts social programs and individuals volunteer to pick up the slack. But in Amsterdam it’s also tourists who are expected to chip in. Imagine a tourist cleaning up your street or telling you to close your shop door in order to save energy by not letting the heat out. The organization Tourist Save the World puts tourists to work doing good deeds instead of just...

Dutch architect Koen Olthuis, from  Waterstudio.NL, hit on the idea of how to create more green areas in cities, which could become habitats for wildlife and to have a  positive affect on improving air quality in a metropolis. He created a  "Tree Sea", which can be placed in a river, lake or at maritime coasts, informs The Dailymail. The construction resembles the design  of a drilling rig. In Olthuis' opinion, their building could be sponsored by large oil companies, so they...

Species: Adelaide pygmy bluetongue skink (Tiliqua adelaidensis) Status: Endangered (EN) Interesting Fact: The Adelaide pygmy bluetongue skink shelters in burrows created by spiders! Surprisingly, the tongue of this skink is not blue as the name suggests, but is instead a rose pink colour. The mottled mixture of browns on the rest of its body enables this species to blend in perfectly with its surroundings in its native Australian habitat. During the heat of the day, the Adelaide pygmy bluetongue skink shelters in holes...

We’ve got two bits of eco-news from Asia this weekend. First we’re off to Vietnam to see how megacity Hanoi is coping with a growing waste problem with the help from scientists in Germany. Enormous amounts of waste, a rising population, over-crowding, and an aging infrastructure: Vietnam's capital Hanoi is a perfect example of a fast-growing megacity. Scientists at Darmstadt University have developed a pilot project that combines wastewater treatment, waste disposal and energy production in one. Their goal is to design...

The UK is now home to a host of non-native plant and animal species. So-called ‘invasive species’ were invariably imported to the UK as pets, introduced for farming and aquaculture or taken here for some other reason – by humans, of course. Now that their impact has (sometimes) proven negative or inconvenient, many people don’t want them around anymore. The Independent features an article on some of the more exotic and rare animals to establish themselves in the UK, including rumors...

By Andrew Freedman It often seems like weather forecasters blame everything unusual on El Niño or La Niña, be it a drought, a heat wave, or a snowless winter. But this natural climate cycle in the equatorial Pacific Ocean may actually have much greater — and far deadlier — impacts. A new study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences explores the possibility that La Niña helps make conditions more favorable for deadly global flu pandemics. The study finds that...

One European bicycle culture consulting firm, Copenhagenize Consulting, released there results for a study exploring the world’s most bicycle friendly cities.  By no coincidence, this index is named after the world capital for bicycle culture, Copenhagen.  The index takes 20 major cities and analyzes them on 13 categories, including; advocacy, bicycle culture, bicycle infrastructure, perception of safety and social acceptance to name a few.  Each category was rated on a scale between zero and four points, with twelve bonus points built...

It may sound like a convenient excuse: it’s not my fault I’m fat, it’s all those common, everyday chemicals I unwittingly ingest through no fault of my own. That and all the burgers, fries and milkshakes I eat on a daily basis. But certain environmental, hormone-altering chemicals, which researchers call ‘obesogens’, may contribute to dramatic weight gain – especially when a fetus is exposed to them in the womb. If obesogens do cause obesity, what about fatty foods? Professor Bruce Blumberg of the University...

On the Eve of St. Antonio’s Day (16th January), dozens of riders jump on their horses and ride them over burning stakes, which are set alight on the streets of San Bartolomé de Pinares in the Spanish province of Ávila. This unusual festival, known as "Luminarias," has been organized for over 500 years. Jumping through the fire is accompanied by the sound of bagpipes playing. The people of San Bartolomé de Pinares believe that the horses don't feel any pain while...

Wasteful battery chargers for smartphones, tablet computers, laptops, etc., will be subject to new, stricter rules in the US state of California. ‘Vampire’ battery chargers can waste up to 60% of the energy they take from electrical outlets. California is the first US state to confront this problem, with the California Energy Commission voting unanimously to improve efficiency standards, which will cover some 170 million chargers. The manufacturers of consumer appliances of course strongly objected to the new regulations, despite projections that...

Giuliano Mauri started building this cathedral in 2001. It is one of the most natural pieces of architecture in the world. The artist, who passed away in 2009, claimed that the supporting structure will decay with time and the eighty hornbeam saplings he planted, will continue growing, forming a roof over the building  "Cattedrale Vegetale" is situated in the North of Italy. Source: img.izismile.com* Source: img.izismile.com* Source: img.izismile.com* Source: img.izismile.com* Source: img.izismile.com* ...

We depend on honeybees to pollinate some 70 crops. Due to a phenomenon known as Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), honeybees, mainly in North America, are dying off at a shocking rate – 30% every year since 2006. In the US, bee die-offs have qualified some beekeepers for disaster relief from the Department of Agriculture. Though the exact cause, or causes, of CCD are murky – it has been attributed to parasites and satellite communication – the most obvious culprits are pesticides, specifically...

Species: (Anodorhynchus hyacinthinus) Status: Endangered (EN) Interesting Fact: The hyacinth macaw is the world’s largest species of parrot! At up to a meter in length and with striking cobalt blue feathers, the hyacinth macaw is certainly a stunning parrot. This species lives in the forests and grasslands of South America, mainly in Brazil, where it feeds mainly on the nuts of native palms. While its powerful bill might make short work of most of these, the acuri nut is so hard that the parrots...

    A solar powered tourist boat, energy efficient office buildings, solar and wind power projects; and greener transport plans are just some of the reasons that Hamburg, Germany has won the title for European Green Capital of 2011. But does this industrial European port city have what it takes to live up to the eco-city image it promotes? Hamburg has scooped up the title European green capital for 2011. The northern German port city convinced the jury by presenting itself not as a...