"Say goodbye to the beads. On Monday, Dec. 28, President Barack Obama signed into law a ban on tiny plastic particles used in personal cosmetic products that scientists say are polluting U.S. lakes, rivers and the oceans."

"Snow, sleet and hail snarled transportation across swaths of the United States on Monday during one of the busiest travel weeks, after dozens died in U.S. storms that were part of a wild worldwide weather system seen over the Christmas holiday period."

"A coalition of green groups has filed a lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) new smog rules."

"When Republican House leaders appointed Texas Republican Lamar S. Smith to lead the House science committee after a headline-grabbing run as chairman of the Judiciary panel, it looked like the veteran lawmaker could head into obscurity."

"A prominent scientist in the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service has just cleared the first hurdle in an ongoing whistleblower claim against the agency."

"The Department of Energy is formally launching its initiative aimed at establishing a disposal site for spent nuclear fuel."

"Final exams and winter break loom large for students at Columbia University, but at the upper echelons of the university's administration, new calls for transparency about the funding of a university affiliated center are likely to create plenty of homework as well."

"An 18-year-old killer whale has died at the SeaWorld park in San Antonio, the park said on Tuesday, raising concern among animal groups that have criticized the company for years over its treatment of captive marine mammals."

"Researchers point to concerns over pesticides as diseases as bee numbers drop while farmland requiring the pollinators increases"

"With California working to list atrazine as toxic to the reproductive system, three of the United States' most-widely used pesticides are under fire for adverse health effects."