"Last week the University of Texas provost announced he would re-examine a report by a UT professor that said fracking was safe for groundwater after the revelation that the professor pocketed hundreds of thousands of dollars from a Texas natural gas developer. It's the latest fusillade in the ongoing battle over the basic facts of fracking in America."

"NEELUM VALLEY, Jammu and Kashmir -- A journalist has been arrested by police and is being detained after the publication of photos he took of historic trees chopped down by government officials."

"BEIJING – The worst rainstorm to hit the Chinese capital in six decades has given rise to widespread anger against officials who are accused of censoring the scope of massive floods."

For years, controversy has been raging over what little 'science' there is on questions related to the environmental and health impacts of the hydraulic fracturing boom. The scientific controversies may be a proxy for the conflict over the gas-extraction method itself. Billions of dollars are at stake, the debate is getting ever more intense, and its intensity challenges the objectivity of scientists, government regulators, and journalists.

"Environmental health experts, advocates and legislators convened at Yale University on Tuesday to discuss the use of man-made pesticides and the health risks they pose, especially to children. One of the main topics of conversation: pest control marketing campaigns that appear to target children."

"Congressional investigators said Monday that the chief counsel’s office at the Food and Drug Administration authorized wide-ranging surveillance of a group of the agency’s scientists, the first indication that the effort was sanctioned at the highest levels."

"WASHINGTON -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency won't adopt a proposed rule that would have required large livestock farms to report information about their operations."

"WASHINGTON — Federal health officials faced pressure from Capitol Hill and outside groups on Monday to investigate a wide-ranging surveillance program that the Food and Drug Administration mounted against a group of its scientists who raised warnings about the safety of medical imaging devices."

"WASHINGTON -- A wide-ranging surveillance operation by the Food and Drug Administration against a group of its own scientists used an enemies list of sorts as it secretly captured thousands of e-mails that the disgruntled scientists sent privately to members of Congress, lawyers, labor officials, journalists and even President Obama, previously undisclosed records show."

"The beleaguered federal agency that oversees oil and gas pipelines meets today to consider lobbying push-back against congressional orders that it stop charging the public up to $995 to read one of its industry-developed safety standards."

"A conservative group that has used public records requests in an attempt to publicize emails written by climate scientists has turned its attention to reporters who cover the environment."

"The June 29 derecho, which caused widespread damage in Washington, D.C. blossomed to full fury in a record hot environment. Could the heat added to the atmosphere from manmade greenhouse gases have provided extra fuel to this explosive storm?

The amount of energy available to this storm was extreme and, wundergound weather historian Chris Burt called the number of all-time heat records set around the time 'especially extraordinary.'

"In an effort to clear up any potential confusion on the subject of mermaids, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has released a statement confirming that 'no evidence of aquatic humanoids has ever been found.'"

"The devastating wildfires in Colorado have provided a showcase for the latest technology in mapping and tracking emergencies. ESRI and Google Maps are presenting maps of the fires that the two companies continuously update, demonstrating an increasingly popular method for disseminating emergency information."

"Climate sceptic mining billionaire's bid for control of Fairfax Media threatens its journalists' editorial independence."