school energy&environment
Biodiversity
Biodiversity is the result of 3 billion 800 million years of evolution, and it is essential for the survival of mankind. In fact we depend on nature for many fundamental resources, among which food, building materials, heating, textile fibres and the active ingredients of medicinal products. Furthermore nature provides for other vital functions such as the pollination of plants, purification of the air, water and soil, etc. Today human activities are a severe threat for biodiversity, and they jeopardize the existence of numerous species. The destruction and fragmentation of the habitats, air, water and soil pollution, excessive fishing, the overexploitation of resources, forests and fields, the introduction of alien species and the emission of increasing amounts of gas with the greenhouse effect. that provoke climate changes, are only some of the causes of the loss of biodiversity.
subjects dealt with in Biodiversity
Biological diversity
The Earth is populated by an incredible number of different living creatures. The term that is used to define this…
Loss of biodiversity
The main cause of the loss of biodiversity can be attributed to the influence of human beings on the world’s…
Biodiversity and adaptation
Ecologists believe that every animal has its own “profession”, which consists in finding the perfect correspondence among the species and…
Biodiversity and camouflage
If a subject moves, the eye can see it helped by various elements that are correlated to the visual capacity…
Extinction is for good
Extinction is an evolutive process that leads to the disappearance of a species or a population. When a species becomes…
The value of biodiversity
Due to the growth in the human population, in production and consumption, over the last two centuries the natural ecosystems…
Biodiversity and bioindicators
Ecologic research is more and more oriented towards an assessment of the quality of the environment and its resources. The…
Let’s save biodiversity
With small daily actions also we can do something important to preserve biodiversity. Here is some advice: Don’t buy animals…
special reports
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15 September 2021 / Life
Can you be intelligent without a brain?
Can you be intelligent without a brain? The answer is "in a certain sense, yes" and this is demonstrated by…
26 July 2021 / Life
Japanese beetles and other alien species
There is a beetle that has been invading the Italian countryside and cities for some time now, a small insect…
16 June 2021 / Life
A turtle's life
World Sea Turtle Day is held on 16 June. First established in 2008, the day is now supported by Sea…
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10 June 2021 / Life
The world below
Journey to the Centre of the Earth is a famous science fiction novel written by the great Jules Verne in…
29 April 2021 / Life
Etruscan shrews, ferocity in miniature
Which is the tiniest micromammal, i.e. the smallest mammal on the planet? Up until almost half a century ago, it…
10 March 2021 / Life
International Year of Fruits and Vegetables 2021
This year has been designated by FAO (Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations) as the International Year of…
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8 March 2021 / Life
8 March. We remember Rosalind Franklin, the great female DNA scientist.
DNA was first isolated by Friedrich Miescher, a Swiss biochemist in 1869. It was a brilliant, but not complicated operation:…
27 February 2021 / Life
In search of the riders of icebergs
International Polar Bear Day, set up by Polar Bears International, a non-profit organisation, was held on 27 February. The aim…
8 January 2021 / Life
Smart as a crow
Some people call them "monkeys with feathers" because they can do clever things comparable to many of our monkey cousins.…
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15 September 2021 / Life
Can you be intelligent without a brain?
Can you be intelligent without a brain? The answer is "in a certain sense, yes" and this is demonstrated by…
26 July 2021 / Life
Japanese beetles and other alien species
There is a beetle that has been invading the Italian countryside and cities for some time now, a small insect…
-
16 June 2021 / Life
A turtle's life
World Sea Turtle Day is held on 16 June. First established in 2008, the day is now supported by Sea…
10 June 2021 / Life
The world below
Journey to the Centre of the Earth is a famous science fiction novel written by the great Jules Verne in…
-
29 April 2021 / Life
Etruscan shrews, ferocity in miniature
Which is the tiniest micromammal, i.e. the smallest mammal on the planet? Up until almost half a century ago, it…
10 March 2021 / Life
International Year of Fruits and Vegetables 2021
This year has been designated by FAO (Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations) as the International Year of…
-
8 March 2021 / Life
8 March. We remember Rosalind Franklin, the great female DNA scientist.
DNA was first isolated by Friedrich Miescher, a Swiss biochemist in 1869. It was a brilliant, but not complicated operation:…
27 February 2021 / Life
In search of the riders of icebergs
International Polar Bear Day, set up by Polar Bears International, a non-profit organisation, was held on 27 February. The aim…
-
8 January 2021 / Life
Smart as a crow
Some people call them "monkeys with feathers" because they can do clever things comparable to many of our monkey cousins.…
-
15 September 2021 / Life
Can you be intelligent without a brain?
Can you be intelligent without a brain? The answer is "in a certain sense, yes" and this is demonstrated by…
-
26 July 2021 / Life
Japanese beetles and other alien species
There is a beetle that has been invading the Italian countryside and cities for some time now, a small insect…
-
16 June 2021 / Life
A turtle's life
World Sea Turtle Day is held on 16 June. First established in 2008, the day is now supported by Sea…
-
10 June 2021 / Life
The world below
Journey to the Centre of the Earth is a famous science fiction novel written by the great Jules Verne in…
-
29 April 2021 / Life
Etruscan shrews, ferocity in miniature
Which is the tiniest micromammal, i.e. the smallest mammal on the planet? Up until almost half a century ago, it…
-
10 March 2021 / Life
International Year of Fruits and Vegetables 2021
This year has been designated by FAO (Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations) as the International Year of…
-
8 March 2021 / Life
8 March. We remember Rosalind Franklin, the great female DNA scientist.
DNA was first isolated by Friedrich Miescher, a Swiss biochemist in 1869. It was a brilliant, but not complicated operation:…
-
27 February 2021 / Life
In search of the riders of icebergs
International Polar Bear Day, set up by Polar Bears International, a non-profit organisation, was held on 27 February. The aim…
-
8 January 2021 / Life
Smart as a crow
Some people call them "monkeys with feathers" because they can do clever things comparable to many of our monkey cousins.…
from the Multimedia section
curiosities
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The thousand uses of lichens
Throughout history, humans have used lichens for a variety of purposes. The oldest evidence of lichen use dates back to…
Unusual vegetables
Distributed at all latitudes, lichens are able to conquer extreme biotopes, adapting to living in places where plants would find…
Watch out for aliens!
Italy has some new inhabitants, but that is no cause for celebration: the list of alien species is long. Two…
-
Plants and bacteria giving new "light" to off grid communities
"Planta lampara", a lamp powered by the energy produced thanks to the combination of plants and bacteria...
-
The thousand uses of lichens
Throughout history, humans have used lichens for a variety of purposes. The oldest evidence of lichen use dates back to…
Unusual vegetables
Distributed at all latitudes, lichens are able to conquer extreme biotopes, adapting to living in places where plants would find…
-
Watch out for aliens!
Italy has some new inhabitants, but that is no cause for celebration: the list of alien species is long. Two…
Plants and bacteria giving new "light" to off grid communities
"Planta lampara", a lamp powered by the energy produced thanks to the combination of plants and bacteria...
-
The thousand uses of lichens
Throughout history, humans have used lichens for a variety of purposes. The oldest evidence of lichen use dates back to…
-
Unusual vegetables
Distributed at all latitudes, lichens are able to conquer extreme biotopes, adapting to living in places where plants would find…
-
Watch out for aliens!
Italy has some new inhabitants, but that is no cause for celebration: the list of alien species is long. Two…
-
Plants and bacteria giving new "light" to off grid communities
"Planta lampara", a lamp powered by the energy produced thanks to the combination of plants and bacteria...