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Fall is settling in, the chill is in the morning air, and the leaves are beginning to turn beautiful shades of red, yellow and gold.
While deciduous trees (like maples, aspens and birches) change colour and shed their leaves in the fall, evergreen trees (like pines, firs and spruces) stay green year-round.
In recent decades, scientists have developed a better understanding of the ecological significance of this trait.
Today in The Conversation Canada, Charles Marty, a forest ecologist working at Carbone boréal, a research project of the Université du Québec à Chicoutimi, explains the falling leaves with an analogy: carbon is like currency.
“Thick leaves need to live longer to ‘pay back’ the carbon invested for their construction. In contrast, thinner — and therefore ‘cheaper’ — leaves can capture enough carbon during the growing season to pay back the initial investment, and be free to fall,” he writes.
His article is part of La Conversation Canada‘s series about the boreal forest.
Also today:
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Lisa Varano
Deputy Editor
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Forest of multi-coloured trees. Why do some trees lose their leaves and others don’t?
(Courtesy of Charles Marty)
Charles Marty, Université du Québec à Chicoutimi (UQAC)
The leaves of evergreen species acquire carbon over the long term and improve nutrient conservation, whereas short-lived leaves favour rapid carbon acquisition.
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Changing seasons aren’t only about changes in the weather, but also many additional changes in the rhythms and patterns of our lives.
(Shutterstock)
Ian Hohm, University of British Columbia; Mark Schaller, University of British Columbia
People’s moods and decisions can be affected by changes in weather and seasons. Research shows that relatedly, our moral values can also be influenced by seasonal changes.
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Houses are seen in the distance along with a solar panel array outside the administration building at the Tsleil-Waututh Nation, in North Vancouver, B.C., on June 15, 2023.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
Joshua M. Pearce, Western University
Both solar and battery systems costs have just dropped to the point that grid defection will save the average family money, but this could increase emissions in some cases.
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An elephant wades through flood waters to help bring relief supplies to villagers in Chiang Mai Province, Thailand on Oct. 6, 2024.
(AP Photo/Wason Wanichakorn)
Majid Hashemi, Queen's University, Ontario
While poorer nations face more severe climate impacts, their ‘social cost of carbon’ remains disproportionately low, reflecting deeper economic inequities that complicate global climate action.
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La Conversation Canada
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Une prolifération dense de cyanobactéries est observée dans le réservoir d’eau de Kyiv lors d’une vague de chaleur extrême en Ukraine, en novembre 2020. Bien que ce phénomène soit répandu dans le monde entier, le lac Supérieur était jusqu’à récemment trop froid pour permettre l’éclosion de cyanobactéries.
(AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky)
Sapna Sharma, York University, Canada; Joshua Culpepper, York University, Canada
Les paysages spectaculaires et les eaux pures de la rive nord du lac Supérieur, qui ont autrefois inspiré le Groupe des Sept, sont aujourd’hui vulnérables à la prolifération des algues.
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Un avion de ligne passe devant des nuages et un arc-en-ciel dans le ciel de Pékin, en mai 2024.
(AP Photo/Andy Wong)
Jennifer Garard, Concordia University; H. Damon Matthews, Concordia University
La gouvernance des technologies de modification du rayonnement solaire est entravée par l'absence de consensus sur l'opportunité et la manière d'explorer ces technologies.
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Culture + Society
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James Muldoon, University of Essex
A growing number of people (mostly men) find AI relationship apps addictive and alluring. So what are the likely effects of this technology on us as human beings?
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Politics
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Colleen Murrell, Dublin City University
The Democratic candidate is trying to use the last few weeks to improve her relationship with the media, and win over new allies.
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Science + Tech
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Veera Sundararaghavan, University of Michigan
Two researchers whose work has led to the AI revolution won the 2024 Nobel Prize in physics. A materials physicist explains statistical mechanics, the physics field behind their discoveries.
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