Cluster: Science

Swiss find frozen Siberia is heating up

This content was published on Feb 20, 2006 Ice-core samples analysed at the Swiss-based Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI) show that the temperature of the Belukha glacier has increased by 2.5 degrees Celsius in the past 150 years. That is three times the northern hemisphere average of 0.9 degrees – an unforeseen result, according to expedition leader Margit Schwikowski, head of the PSI’s analytical…

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Crusader vows to continue tourism fight

This content was published on Jan 10, 2006 Best known for campaigns to stop the Canadian seal hunt and to save wild horses in Australia, Weber has also been active in efforts to preserve Swiss tourism heritage. The train journey to Montreux, where Weber lives and works, passes beneath the Lavaux vineyards, built on steep, terraced slopes above the shores of Lake Geneva.…

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Swiss restore water lifeline

This content was published on Dec 27, 2005 In numerous towns and villages along the devastated coastline of the northern Sumatran province of Aceh, wells have been cleaned, new water sources found, and water purification systems restored. Water specialists from the Swiss Humanitarian Aid Unit (SHA) were among the first foreign teams to arrive in the disaster zone. Spokesman Jean-Philippe Jutzi described what…

Post-tsunami Asia takes shape

This content was published on Dec 25, 2005 Progress is slow with hundreds of thousands of survivors still living in temporary shelters, largely because bureaucracy and ethnic divisions are hampering rebuilding efforts. Assessing the effort so far, the Swiss foreign minister, Micheline Calmy-Rey, earlier this month pronounced herself very happy with the Swiss achievements. She said the country had handled the crisis very…

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Using animal instincts to forecast weather

This content was published on Dec 11, 2005 The unique predictions made by the weathermen are Switzerland’s version of the legendary long-range forecasts of the Farmers’ Almanac in the United States. It is a cold, clear December morning in the village of Rothenthurm in central Switzerland and a thin crust of snow covers the ground. Martin Horat enters the cowshed of a neighbour’s…

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Furry invasion threat to local wildlife

This content was published on Dec 3, 2005 The raccoons, raccoon dogs and grey squirrels munching their way across Europe could destroy local species sharing similar environments. Many of the foreign species carry diseases to which Swiss animals have no immunity. The Swiss environment agency believes the American grey squirrel poses the biggest threat. The introduction of the species in Britain caused the…

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Parliament votes to clear munitions from lakes

This content was published on Nov 29, 2005 However, the government would prefer to allow a research programme now underway to run its course, on the grounds that the toxicity of the munitions has not been proven. On Tuesday the House of Representatives approved a motion proposed by Ursula Haller, a parliamentarian from the rightwing Swiss People’s Party, by 102 votes to 56…

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Bern researchers drill deep into climate history

This content was published on Nov 25, 2005 Drilling more than 3,200 metres into Antarctic ice, they have produced a major new study into greenhouse gases that may fuel global warming. A previous ice-core sample had traced greenhouse gases back about 440,000 years. The new sample goes 210,000 years further back in time. Working with researchers from other European countries, the team has…

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Swiss seek to change law on wolf hunting

This content was published on Nov 23, 2005 The proposal is filed for a meeting of the 1979 Bern Convention on protecting wildlife to be held at the Council of Europe in Strasbourg next week. The international conservation organisation said on Wednesday that the move to allow some hunting of the animal would undermine hopes for the return of wolf populations in western…

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Greens challenge official forest policy

This content was published on Oct 14, 2005 The move comes amid plans by the government to cut public subsidies and focus its forest policy on improving the efficiency of the timber industry. Signed by more than 115,000 people, the initiative “Save the Swiss Forests” was launched by the renowned environmentalist, Franz Weber, and was handed in to the federal chancellery in Bern…

Cluster: Science

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Cluster: Science

More

Swiss find frozen Siberia is heating up

More

Crusader vows to continue tourism fight

More

Swiss restore water lifeline

More

Post-tsunami Asia takes shape

More

Using animal instincts to forecast weather

More

Furry invasion threat to local wildlife

More

Parliament votes to clear munitions from lakes

More

Bern researchers drill deep into climate history

More

Swiss seek to change law on wolf hunting

More

Greens challenge official forest policy

Popular Stories

Most Discussed