A drone is still a drone by any other name

We’re always on the look out for innovative stories and reporting techniques at Michigan State University’s Knight Center for Environmental Journalism. In a couple weeks we’ll launch a series on civilian applications of drones for gathering information about the environment. I teach a course encompassing remote sensing, including the use of drones, as newsgathering tools. So a story in the print edition of the New York Times, Drones Offer Journalists a Wider View, caught my eye at Monday’s breakfast table. It’s an interesting enough piece about a controversial technology.

Nitrogen air pollution affects atmosphere, forests, water

With every gas-powered car and every traditional wastewater treatment plant, a little nitrogen pollution gets released into the atmosphere. Scientists say it settles into the soil and may even lead to toxic algae blooms that kill fish.