OSCAR THE SLOUCH? Last night's Academy Awards had their share of detractors, and not everyone enjoyed Hugh Jackman's toned-down, low-budget song-and-dance intro. But despite some missteps, it was a high-profile event that exhibited restraint, a recession-era virtue we're all learning to love. Plus, the Academy awarded Wall-E — one of MNN's top 10 eco-disaster movies — "Best Animated Film," although it was overlooked in its five other record-tying nominations. National Geographic helps soften the snubs by looking at "Six Real-Life Wall-Es That Could Save the Earth." (Sources: Los Angeles Times, Reuters, U.S. News & World Report, National Geographic)

 

ORBIT CURIOSITY: The New York Times reports this morning about the Orbiting Carbon Observatory, a NASA satellite that will be launched Tuesday and begin monitoring carbon dioxide from space. It's uncharted territory, but those involved are hopeful it will help improve climate models by tracking evasive CO2 in the sky and deducing where carbon sinks are and how they work. (Source: NY Times)

 

ELECTROLYZED WATER: It's called a miracle liquid, and it's easy to see why. Zap some saltwater with low-voltage electricity and suddenly you have a cleaning fluid and degreaser that's 10 times more effective at killing bacteria than bleach, won't peel skin or emit fumes, costs less than 1 cent per gallon, and is safe enough to drink. Some are skeptical since it just looks like water and doesn't produce lather, but it's being sprayed on lettuce and sushi, onto toilet seats and athlete's foot. It has drawbacks — losing potency quickly and the cost of electrolyzing machines — but many see it as the future of detergents. (Source: LA Times)

 

ECOMIGRATION: The Washington Post this morning examines ecomigration, the trend of moving to a new country or region to avoid the effects of environmental disasters. It's mostly a problem for the world's poor — tens of millions have fled floods, droughts and famines in Bangladesh, the Philippines and Africa's Sahel — and not usually until they have no choice. But the First World isn't immune, as 2.5 million Americans became ecomigrants in the 1930s when they abandoned the Dust Bowl for California's greener pastures. And even looming catastrophes can motivate the well-heeled to high-tail it: The WP profiles one U.S. family fleeing climate change by moving to New Zealand, even though they've never been and know no one there. (Source: Washington Post)

 

LIGHTNING FAST: Even though lightning is one of Mother Nature's deadliest outbursts — taking more lives each year, on average, than tornadoes or hurricanes — we can't ecomigrate away from it. And since it moves at about 136,000 mph, we've had a rough time trying to study it, too. But that's beginning to change, USA Today reports, as superfast cameras are letting us capture images of lightning strikes that once seemed impossible. Experts say these images could help us devise better models and predictions for bolts from the blue. (Source: USA Today)

 

— Russell McLendon