A new study led by a biologist at Scotland’s University of St. Andrews used UW-designed electronic tags to see whether crows might learn to use tools from one another. The findings supported the theory by showing an unexpected amount of social mobility: during one week, the technology recorded more than 28,000 interactions among 34 crows! Read more about this study here. 

As sea ice in the Arctic continues to shrink during this century, more than two thirds of the area with sufficient snow cover for ringed seals to reproduce also will disappear, challenging their survival, scientists report in a new study. Read about this study here; ATMOS‘ Cecilia Bitz and Paul Hezel, co-authors, are quoted. 

An array of volcano-monitoring equipment on Mount Rainier is all serviced and ready for the big one, after maintenance work at high altitude. Learn more about these sensors here; Also check out this interview and photo collection by Jon Connolly, of the PNW Seismic Network, who got to work on the equipment last week. 

This Saturday hundreds of volunteers from the ranks of contractors, developers, craft workers and construction-service providers in Western Washington will upgrade and put a shine on parts of the Center for Urban Horticulture on the University of Washington campus. Learn more, and join them!   [googlemaps width=250 height=250]