大象传媒

There are just over three trillion trees on Earth, according to a new assessment. This is eight times as many as the previous best estimate, which counted perhaps 400 billion at most. The more refined number will now form a baseline for a wide range of research applications - everything from studies that consider animal and plant habitats for biodiversity reasons, to new models of the climate, because it is trees of course that play an important role in removing the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide from the atmosphere.

Drones planting trees
Drones, unmanned aerial vehicles, have been put to use by various military bodies around the world as silent harbingers of death and destruction. But they might also be put to use for good causes: deployed in rescue operations, for example, or accurately dropping seeds to aid reforestation.

Birds and Plastic
A study from Dr Erik van Sebille from Imperial College London says that the majority of seabirds are now swallowing plastic waste.

Phantom Road
Dr Heidi Ware of Boise State University and colleagues created a 鈥減hantom road鈥� using speakers to simulate the effects of traffic noise on the local bird populations. Almost one third of the bird community avoided the noise altogether, while those that remained showed a decline in body condition. Their findings suggest that noise pollution could have serious implications for the conservation of migratory birds.

El Nino
Roland Pease reports on recent warnings that we're heading for one of the most severe El Ninos on record which could distort weather patterns around the world.

Food on the Go Bad for Your Health?
If you are in the habit of eating your breakfast or lunch on the go, you might be ruining your chances of losing weight. Research at the University of Surrey in the UK suggests people who eat while they are walking are more likely eat more later in the day. But how big a contribution to obesity risk is this?

Drone Orchestra
Innovator Liam Young has teamed up with the musician John Cale formerly of the Velvet Underground to form the Drone Orchestra 鈥� a show where Cale鈥檚 music combines with acrobatic manoeuvres where the multi-propeller craft dance above the audience鈥檚 heads. Liam Young showed the audience some of his ornately adorned aircraft in the 大象传媒鈥檚 Radio Theatre in London . And poet Salena Gooden read a new poem inspired by a drone.

The Science Hour was presented by Gareth Mitchell with comments from Jonathan Amos.
Producer: Deborah Cohen

Photo: Sunlight breaking through misty forest
Credit: Thomas Northcut/Thinkstock

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