Science

"FRESNO, Calif. — The government has been collecting dirt — lots of it."

"WASHINGTON — For more than a century, federal scientists have worked on Pivers Island near the historic town of Beaufort, N.C., and the beaches of Emerald Isle studying the ocean, and the fish, turtles and dolphins of its sea grass estuaries and rocky reefs."

"Planet Labs has announced that it has confirmed launches for more than 100 satellites over the next 12 months. The satellites will launch on rockets from the USA and Russia."

"A new report from the Center for American Progress examines some historical industry claims about how much new pollution regulations would cause electricity prices to spike, and finds that industry estimates have been higher than the reality."

"The White House launched an initiative Wednesday aimed at expanding the use of climate data nationwide, to help communities cope with the impacts of global warming."

"One of the planet's top dipsticks is in trouble. The 'Keeling curve,' the most famous measurement of the world's rising levels of carbon dioxide for the past six decades, is in jeopardy from funding shortfalls."

"At least 28 Senate Democrats are pulling an all-nighter on Monday to wake up 'stubborn' climate change deniers in Congress."

"A slowdown in the pace of global warming so far this century is likely to be only a pause in a longer-term trend of rising temperatures, the science academies of the United States and Britain said on Thursday."

The Washington Post, which over the years has set a standard for good science journalism, may be falling on hard times now that it has let so many of its reporters go. While still strong in original science reporting compared to many other daily newspapers in the U.S., the Post has taken to reprinting press releases from universities and science organizations. This has spawned questions about the transparency of the practice and the objectivity of what Post readers are reading.