News

May 24, 2019

How one fern can soak up so much arsenic – and not die

The Pteris vittata fern, also known as the Chinese brake fern, can hyperaccumulate and tolerate high levels of arsenic, making it an effective way to remediate contaminated soil and water. Purdue University researchers have determined the genetic mechanisms that allow the fern to do this, which could lead to modification of other plants that could remediate contamination even more quickly and efficiently.

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May 21, 2019

Cities living with a strong chance of rain

A Purdue University study led by Dev Niyogi, a professor of agronomy and earth, atmospheric and planetary sciences, with statistics and data science graduate student Jie Liu, shows that the heat, humidity and pollution encountered by storms over cities can increase rainfall significantly not only downwind, as previous studies have shown, but also over the city. That information can help those in new or expanding communities plan their infrastructure accordingly.

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May 15, 2019

In developing nations, national parks could save endangered species

Research led by Stacy Lindshield, a biological anthropologist at Purdue University, studies chimpanzee and other animal populations inside and outside a protected area in Senegal, Niokolo-Koba National Park. The study shows that protecting such an area from human interaction and development preserves not only chimps but many other
mammal species.

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