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The man who has taken charge of UK research funding says Brexit presents scientists with an opportunity.

Greenhouse gas emissions increased slightly between 2012 and 2013, official figures show

The “carbon footprint” for the pollution caused by UK consumption has increased slightly, official figures show.

The amount of greenhouse gases linked to goods and services consumed by UK households, including emissions from the foreign manufacture of imported products, rose by 3% between 2012 and 2013, the most recent data shows.

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Two recent reports on the state of the world’s coral reefs appear to contradict each other. But which is right?

Over the last six weeks, scientists have published two major reports on coral reef resilience that appear to contradict each other. The first - “Bright spots among the world’s coral reefs” was produced by 39 scientists led by Professor Josh Cinner of James Cook University in Australia and drew on data from 6000 reef surveys from all over the world. Cinner et al concluded that those reefs that were sustainably managed had a much better chance of withstanding bleaching impacts related to global warming and periodic climate events like El Niño. The second however suggested remote coral reefs not subject to human stressors like overfishing or pollution were faring no better than those close to populated areas and that ecosystems management made no real difference to the overall health of reefs. So which is right?

“Coral reef degradation is not correlated with local human population density,” by Professor John Bruno and co-author Abel Valdivia of the University of North Carolina was published on 20 July. It suggests that contrary to prevailing scientific opinion, local pressures do not act synchronously with global stressors (most notably warming) and that their impact on reefs is negligible. According to Valdivia “Widespread arguments that coral reef degradation is mostly caused by local factors are unsupported. We found the problem is better explained by global impacts such as climate change.”

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Oscar-winning actor among 214 signatories of an open letter demanding cancellation of oil firm’s new five-year arts sponsorship deal

Hundreds of figures in the arts and science, including Oscar-winning actor Mark Rylance, artist Conrad Atkinson, composer Matthew Herbert and author Naomi Klein, have called for BP’s new five-year sponsorship deals with some of Britain’s leading cultural institutions to be cancelled.

Rylance, who is the former artistic director of Shakespeare’s Globe theatre and star of Steven Spielberg’s new film The BFG, heads a list of 214 signatories to a letter in the Times claiming that BP uses art sponsorship to help develop its interests in oil extraction, which must be reduced to avoid rapid climate change.

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Telstra's chief scientist says driverless cars are coming, and that they'll force a rethink about how we design our roads.

Dramatic footage from Channel Nine shows a widening sinkhole swallowing a good portion of a back yard in Ipswich, Queensland. The house is owned by a retired couple. A century-old mine shaft has been blamed for the sudden emergence of a six- to eight-metre hole filled with water. The mayor of Ipswich, Paul Pisasale, told AAP he had assured Lyn and Ray McKay that their house would not disappear overnight and engineers were confident of fixing the sinkhole. ‘It’s an exploratory shaft that goes down about 100 metres and there’s no need to panic about a neighbourhood falling in, and we will take all the steps to get Lyn and Ray back in their house’

• The science behind sinkholes: terrifying and relatively unpredictable incidents

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South Australian government to take on networks over grid charges, meaning it is now challenging the market dominance of generators, retailers and network providers as it defends its support of wind, solar and battery storage.

Blackwater Carr, Norfolk If not wealth for cuckoos, the flowers are indisputable riches for bumblebees

As I write I have a small canvas bag of yellow-rattle seed on my desk. It bulges now like a full purse and the disk-like flattened seeds jangle a little like cash when shuggled about. In fact, if I bought it commercially, it would be the equivalent of £30, which is not bad for two hours’ work.

I find it intriguing to discover how a suite of old names once did link yellow-rattle to manmade coin. In Somerset Rhinanthus minor was known simply as “money” and in Leicestershire as “money-grass”. I love most, however, a wry Lanarkshire coinage: “gowk’s sixpences” – “cuckoo’s sixpences”. It was probably intended to suggest the idea of fool’s gold, but for me it carries a different set of associations.

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Ocean waste is a serious problem for companies emotionally and physically connected to the sea, but that connection also gives them a strong incentive to find solutions, said the founder of outdoor clothing company Finisterre in a recent Guardian debate. Here we profile some of the companies doing just that

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Newly released survey data suggests we may have dramatically underestimated the take up of battery storage in Australia.

Our cost of energy charts for battery storage suggest Tesla is now in the middle of the pack, Enphase looks relatively cheap and none of them is cheap enough.

Federal environment department says Unesco sought and was granted heavy redactions in freedom of information documents

The United Nations has tried to cover up its involvement in the Australian government’s successful attempt to have all mentions of the country removed from a report on climate change and world heritage sites, freedom of information documents show.

In May, Unesco published a report with the UN’s environment program, Unep, and the Union of Concerned Scientists about the impact of climate change on world heritage sites, which were also major tourist attractions.

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SolarCity agrees to Tesla offer of $2.6bn, but opinions are divided over Musk's plan to create a "sustainable energy and transport" powerhouse.

EnergyAustralia earnings jump on "favourable" gas market conditions as parent company warns of “long-term challenges” from renewables.

Electricity companies around the world will begin to go bankrupt by 2018. Sounds absurd? Just hear me out.

The World Music Festival, Womad, hosted a science pavilion this year, but are such initiatives successful?

Emissions Reduction Fund Beef cattle herd management method variation released for public consultation. Consultation period closes 15 August 2016

Emissions Reduction Fund Beef cattle herd management method variation released for public consultation. Consultation period closes 15 August 2016

One of the last known populations of woolly mammoths became extinct because of a lack of drinking water, a study concludes.

Slow-motion replays of crimes in courtrooms may be distorting the outcomes of trials, according to US research.