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Rather than pay $10 monthly for Microsoft 365, many users are grabbing a Microsoft Office lifetime license for a one-time $49.97 payment, down from $219.99 for a limited time.

Here’s what you need to know:

• It’s not Microsoft 365: No recurring fees, no frustrating interface updates, and no random app removals like the discontinuation of Publisher.
• Own the essential apps: Download Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams, OneNote, Publisher, and Access to your PC for lifelong use.
• Work offline: Unlike Microsoft 365, you don’t need to be online or connected to the cloud to get your work done.
• Instant delivery and simple download: You’ll receive an email after purchase containing your download link and activation key to install the app suite on your computer.

Download Microsoft Office 2021 for Windows while it’s on sale for $49.97 (reg. $219.99). No coupon is needed to get this price.

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Microsoft Office Professional 2021 for Windows: Lifetime License – $54.97

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The post Microsoft 365 charges rent. This version lets you OWN your Office apps. appeared first on Popular Science.

Along with everything else, tech has gotten expensive. Really expensive. And while new gadgets are shiny and tempting, you don’t always need the latest and greatest—especially when a solid, dependable option like this refurbished MacBook Air exists.

For just $199.97 (with free shipping, no less), you can snag a piece of Apple’s famously sleek hardware that’s powerful enough for everyday use and priced low enough not to cause a panic attack if it falls off your coffee table.

This 13.3″ MacBook Air has a 1.8GHz Intel Core i5 processor, 8GB of RAM, and a 128GB SSD. That’s more than enough horsepower for day-to-day computing tasks—emailing, browsing, writing, streaming, Zooming, maybe a little light photo editing. It boots up quickly and handles multitasking like a champ. 

This refurbished Air is the perfect second laptop. Maybe you work from home on a newer machine and just want a couch-friendly companion for winding down. Or maybe you’re a frequent traveler who wants a lightweight laptop that won’t break your heart (or budget) if it gets scratched up or lost. This MacBook Air weighs just under three pounds and slides into a backpack or tote like it was made for movement.

Plus, it’s ideal for students, teens, retirees—really anyone who wants the Apple experience without the Apple price tag. It has reliable Wi-Fi, Bluetooth for your earbuds or wireless mouse, and enough battery life to keep you productive (or distracted) for hours.

Sure, it’s a few years old. But it’s been refurbished to grade A or B standards, meaning it’s fully functional and in great shape with only minor cosmetic wear. It runs macOS, supports essential apps, and gets you online without drama. And unlike flashy new laptops with monthly payments and pricey add-ons, this one’s yours for a single, very reasonable payment.

Get this quality refurbished MacBook Air from mid-2017 for just $199.97 (reg. $999) with free shipping while you can.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

 

Apple MacBook Air 13.3″ (2017) 1.8GHz i5 8GB RAM 128GB SSD Silver (Refurbished) – $199.97

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What makes this deal special

This refurbished MacBook Air punches way above its price tag. For just $200, you’re getting a lightweight, reliable, and road-ready Apple laptop that’s perfect as a backup computer, home workstation, or travel buddy. It has solid specs for everyday use, a beautiful display, and Apple’s signature minimalist design. You won’t have to baby it, and at this price, you won’t stress over it. It’s a smart buy for anyone who values function, portability, and keeping a few hundred bucks in their pocket.

The post Your expensive laptop doesn’t want to camp—take this $200 MacBook instead appeared first on Popular Science.

Part of the appeal of Google Chrome on the desktop is its simple and intuitive interface—allowing you to focus on the actual webpages you’re looking at. But there are ways to give the browser a fresh lick of digital paint, and customize the look to suit your tastes.

You’re likely to be spending a lot of time looking at your web browser, so it makes sense to take advantage of the personalization options—some of which you may not have realized are available inside Chrome. Here’s everything you can do in the latest version of Google Chrome for Windows and macOS.

Choose a new Chrome theme

The biggest change you can make to Google Chrome is to change its theme: This covers the colors of the tabs and toolbars, the background images and colors on the new tab page, and the accents used in menus and on dialogs. Open a new Chrome tab, then click Customize Chrome (bottom right) to see some color scheme options (with some themes, the Customize Chrome button is just a pencil icon).

Click any color swatch to apply it, and use the Light and Dark options to force Chrome into light or dark mode (the Device setting means Chrome follows the lead of Windows or macOS). If you want to choose your own color, click on the little color picker icon in the bottom-right corner of the grid.

To see even more theme options, choose Change theme. This brings you to a gallery of themes created by artists and picked out by Google. You’ll notice that these themes often come with attractive background images for the new tab page (use the Refresh daily toggle switch to automatically cycle between themes every day). You can also upload an image of your own, or choose a solid color.

Still unable to find something you like? Click the Chrome Web Store link at the bottom of the pop-out panel, and you can browse even more options. Open the Themes tab and you get plenty of choice, including themes developed by Google and themes submitted by other Chrome users. To apply a theme, click on it to see more details, then choose Add to Chrome.

The pop-out customization panel also has a Reset to default Chrome if your interface tweaking gets out of hand. Note that this will wipe out any custom themes you’ve added to the browser, so if you want to get back to them in the future, you might want to bookmark them in the Chrome Web Store.

Set other customization options

Besides theming, you can customize Chrome in a variety of other ways. Click the Customize Chrome button (or the pencil icon) in the bottom-right corner of the new tab page, and if you scroll down you’ll see you can set the shortcuts that appear when you open a new tab: You can curate your own shortcuts, show shortcuts for sites you visit a lot, or hide the shortcuts altogether.

If you’re opting to show your own shortcuts, use the Add shortcut button below the search bar to drop in a new web link. Once links are added, you can click and drag their icons to move them around the new tab page, and click the three dots besides an icon and Remove to delete any of your shortcuts.

Click Toolbar on the pop-out customization panel, and this gives you access to a few options for the toolbar. You’re able to choose which icons appear on the toolbar (from Home to History), and you can rearrange icons by clicking and dragging them on the toolbar itself.

You can find even more options by clicking the three dots in the top-right corner of any Chrome tab, then choosing Settings and Appearance. You can replace the new tab page with a site of your choice from this screen, as well as show or hide the bookmarks bar, customize the fonts used by Chrome, and choose whether the side panel appears on the right or the left.

Finally, it’s well worth browsing through the Chrome Web Store for third-party extensions relating to the user interface. A lot of these extensions enable you to do more with the new tab page and with the way tabs are displayed on screen, though you should be cautious about which extensions you install. To be able to operate effectively and integrate with Chrome, these extensions will need access to data such as your browsing history (each extension comes with user reviews and a privacy policy you can check).

The post How to customize Google Chrome to make it your own appeared first on Popular Science.

There’s nothing quite like when you finally get that perfect ChatGPT prompt and the little robot starts blasting through your work, only to get the notification that you’re out of GPT-4 credits. You could pay for a premium account, but if you do that for every AI tool you rely on, then it starts getting really expensive. 

The alternative is to switch to a platform that gives you lifetime access to the same AI models you’re used to, minus the monthly fee. 1min.AI puts GPT-4.0, Meta AI, Gemini, Midjourney, and more all under one roof, and a lifetime subscription just went on sale for $29.97. 

No more monthly payments

1min.AI is your hub for some of the most popular AI models around. Not only do you get GPT-4 and GPT-4 Turbo for advanced content tasks, but you also get access to Claude 3 from Anthropic, including the Opus, Sonnet, and Haiku versions, which are great for nuanced and creative writing.

1min.AI also includes Gemini Pro if the other text generators just aren’t cutting it. 

You’ll have access to Meta’s Llama models, including the latest Llama 3. Plus, 1min.AI brings you the creative firepower of Midjourney for stunning image generation, and it doesn’t stop there. You can switch between all these models for everything from SEO optimization to content creation, image manipulation, and even audio and video editing.

You don’t need separate AI subscriptions anymore. 

March 30 at 11:59 p.m. PT is the deadline to get a 1min.AI lifetime subscription while it’s on sale for $29.97. 

StackSocial prices subject to change. 

 

1min.AI: Lifetime Subscription – $29.97

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What makes this deal special

Many AI tools have free versions, but they’re very limited in scope. Instead of paying monthly for each individual AI tool you rely on, this 1min.AI lets you get all of them for life for a one-time fee. 

The post This is what happens when you fuse ChatGPT, Gemini, Midjourney, and Meta AI appeared first on Popular Science.

Have a gamer in your life that’s hard to get gifts for? Look no further. These Nintendo Switch controllers come in classic blue and red with RGB lights tracking down the sides for a fun, functional present that costs just $30.99 (reg. $42).

Power to the players

Battery power, that is. How frustrating is it to get most of the way through the level only to get a low battery warning? Players go farther with 30 hours of gameplay battery life on these joy-cons. The charger takes about three to four hours to top up the 600mAh battery.

Gamers can commit hours to mastering a level. Help them do it in style with these controllers. Adjust the built-in lighting from monochromatic to a colorful rainbow effect. Players can even shut the lights off if desired. Easily swap mode from TV to desktop to palm mode for the most complete play experience.

In-game control

When having digital control matters most, these controllers bring it. Slap that Turbo button for quick, repetitive actions in the game. Players can even toggle Turbo on an auto mode to multitask.

Experience immersion thanks to a double shock response, with haptic vibration combined with in-game effects. These controllers have all the features needed to beat that next boss, from a non-slip casing to 360-degree joysticks. Players can rely on new chip tech to maintain advanced connectivity even as they put the 6-axis gyroscope to the test. Get bigger wins with better precision and accuracy in-game.

Bring even more fun to gaming with these light-up wireless controllers for Nintendo Switch, now just $30.99.

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Wireless Controllers for Nintendo Switch with RGB Lights (Blue + Red) – $30.99

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The post Gifts for gamers: Light-up Switch controllers level up play for just $30.99 appeared first on Popular Science.

When you have new visitors to your home, requests for the Wi-Fi password are likely to come in sooner rather than later. Such is the importance of staying online at all times in the modern age.

There’s nothing wrong with giving out access to your Wi-Fi network to friends and relatives, but there are reasons to be cautious. It enables your guests to connect to everything else on the network, from printers to security cameras, and it can start to cause congestion for your own devices.

This isn’t to say your guests are untrustworthy, but it’s usually best to err on the side of caution when it comes to internet security—especially if you’re hosting a big group of people that includes some you don’t know very well.

This is where a guest network comes in. It’s a separate network, just for guests, and it means your main Wi-Fi network is reserved for your use only. Everyone who visits can get connected to the web, and you don’t have to worry about what they might be accessing.

Set up a guest network on your router

Many modern routers and mesh network systems come with guest network capabilities built right in: They’re smart enough to set up a secondary Wi-Fi network, which appears under a separate name and has a separate password. This network appears alongside the main one whenever a device tries to get online.

Every router model handles guest networks differently. We can’t go through all of the different variations here, but if the feature is available, you should be able to find the option somewhere prominently in the router settings. Head into the settings through the router’s companion app on your phone, or through a web browser (a quick web search or the router documentation should tell you how to do this).

As an example, Amazon’s Eero range of routers and mesh systems offers guest network capabilities. If you open up the Eero app for Android or iOS, then head to the Settings tab, you can tap Guest network to configure it. With Eero devices, you can set up the name and the password for the network, and turn it on and off.

The app even comes with options for sharing your guest network Wi-Fi details easily—you can tap the buttons at the bottom of the configuration screen to send the login information via a message or QR code. Your guests can then connect in just a few seconds.

Different routers offer different guest network features—you may be able to limit upload and download speeds, for example. As the Eero app explains, your guests will be able to get online, but they won’t be able to access your streaming devices, smart speakers, and other connected gadgets.

Install a second router for a guest network

If your current router doesn’t offer a guest network feature (or even if it does), there’s another option. You can plug in an additional router to one of the Ethernet ports on your current router, and use it to set up a secondary Wi-Fi network that operates independently.

This is ideal if you have an older router lying around not doing anything, but you can also invest in a new model—it doesn’t have to be particularly expensive or capable, because it’s only for guest use. Something like the Tenda AC1200 Smart Wi-Fi Router ($31) or the TP-Link AC1200 Archer A54 Wi-Fi Router ($35) will do the job without breaking the bank.

With the router powered up, connect an Ethernet cable from the internet port on your second router (often labeled WAN or Internet), to a spare wired port on your original router (often labeled LAN). Your original router will automatically handle the job of feeding internet access to the second device, as and when needed.

You can then go through the setup process for the second router just as you would if you were setting it up as your main one. This is now usually done through a mobile app; you may well see a QR code for it on the router or in the instructions that came with it.

As part of the setup process, you’ll be asked to specify a name and password for the guest Wi-Fi network you’re creating— details you’ll then give out to family and friends. As these visitors won’t be on your main Wi-Fi network, which will still run as normal, they’ll be more limited in what they can do.

The post How to set up a separate Wi-Fi network for guests appeared first on Popular Science.

AI should be saving you time, boosting your productivity, and even helping you think more creatively. But if you’re stuck rewriting prompts, dealing with bad responses, or wondering why it feels so basic, here’s a hard truth: it’s not ChatGPT … it’s you.

But getting your skills up to snuff is simple if you enroll in our best-selling e-degree program. It doesn’t matter if you’re a complete beginner, an aspiring master, or somewhere in between, you’ll learn how to use ChatGPT like an expert for just $19.97 (reg. $790). Don’t worry about fitting time into your schedule—these courses are completely self-paced.

The AI skills everyone wants

Everyone’s on ChatGPT for a different reason—burnout at work, trying to save time, or drumming up inspiration—and these AI training courses acknowledge that with tons of real-world scenarios. 

By example, you’ll learn how to write better ChatGPT prompts. Right now, you’re probably stringing together random words and hoping for a good output, or even fighting with the chatbot. These lectures will help you effectively structure your words to command effective responses.

The courses will also teach you automation tips for visualizing data with AI, whether that’s getting help with Excel or actually generating charts and graphs.

More things you’ll learn:

• Automate the tedious parts of your work
• Create engaging social media content
• Have ChatGPT generate strings of code

Get these ChatGPT training courses on sale for $19.97 (reg. $790). That’s for lifetime access.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

 

ChatGPT & Automation E-Degree – $19.97

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What makes this deal special

AI is quickly becoming a must-have skill in almost every industry, but most people still struggle to use it effectively. Our online ChatGPT courses are only $19.97 and not only show you excellent tips and tricks, but help you build confidence with the AI tool that will certainly only grow in importance in the years to come. In fact, OpenAI plans to release an updated version of ChatGPT (GPT-5) later this year, making now the perfect time to sharpen your AI skills. 

The post Everyone’s using ChatGPT, but most are doing it completely wrong appeared first on Popular Science.

Small decorative details on an iconic helmet belonging to “Britain’s Tutankhamen” could revise our understanding of early medieval Anglo-Saxon history. But the reexamination isn’t due to anything new found at the famous archeological trove known as Sutton Hoo. Instead, it’s owed to a tiny artifact recently found by a metal detectorist over 500 miles away in Denmark. 

Sutton Hoo remains one of the most consequential archeological finds of the 20th century. Located in Suffolk, England, the 6th and 7th century burial sites are regarded as an invaluable source of Anglo-Saxon artifacts since excavations began in 1938. Recovered relics include horse bridles, armor, cookware, and weaponry. Sutton Hoo’s most dramatic discovery was also one of the first: a nearly complete ship burial filled with the body and belongings of a king—possibly Rædwald of East Anglia. Over the years, a piece of headgear called the Sutton Hoo helmet has come to represent an emblem for the site, as well as the larger time period itself.

Experts believe the roughly 5.5-lbs ornate piece of armor likely functioned both as a decorative and a functional helmet, as well as possibly even a royal crown in certain circumstances. Made from iron overlaid with strips of tinned bronze, the helmet features multiple panels depicting one of five engraved designs. Two display interactions between human warriors, another two include interlaced patternwork, while a final one remains unclear due to its deterioration. Archeologists and historians have widely believed for decades that the Sutton Hoo helmet’s motifs clearly showcase cultural influences from Uppland, Sweden. Given the similarities to the helmet described in Beowulf, scholars believe the epic poem’s author drew inspiration from rulers of the time.

Recently, a metal detector hobbyist found a striking artifact buried on the island of Tåsinge in Denmark that challenges assumptions about the time period. Further analysis confirmed the relic to be a small metal stamp known as a patrice. Measuring roughly 2 by 1.4 inches, the patrice features a mounted warrior motif with a few curious details. According to National Museum of Denmark curator Peter Pentz, the figure on the Tåsinge stamp includes a wrist cuff and horse harness that look far more like those on the Sutton Hoo helmet than any Swedish contemporaries. If true, then Denmark’s role in the region at the time deserves a major reworking.

“If the Sutton Hoo helmet is indeed proven to have originated from Denmark, it could significantly alter our understanding of the power dynamics in Northern Europe during the 7th century,” Pentz told Arkeonews.

Instead of a peripheral power, the artwork on the Sutton Hoo helmet and Tåsinge stamp suggest Denmark may have actually been just as dynamic as England and Sweden. It also might imply a previously unknown Danish metalworking tradition that influenced its surrounding cultures.

It remains to be seen if the new hypothesis ultimately proves true. Researchers plan to continue investigating any potential links between the Sutton Hoo helmet and Tåsinge stamp through the use of 3D-scanning equipment. They also hope to conduct archaeological surveys of the area in which it was found. Nearby finds already include various metal scraps, suggesting the existence of a workshop capable of producing items like the stamp—perhaps even armor similar to the Sutton Hoo helmet.

The post Metal detector find may rewrite history of 7th century helmet appeared first on Popular Science.

Anyone who has spent time around a young child knows how quickly loose change can become a serious hazard. Coins—especially the embattled penny—make up roughly 61 percent of the foreign objects ingested by children under the age of five. Swallowed coins can become lodged in a child’s airway or get stuck in their digestive tract, either of which can be life-threatening if not promptly addressed.

But recent research from the The Royal College of Surgeons in the UK shows a noticeable decrease in medical procedures to remove coins and other foreign bodies over the past decade. The researchers theorize that the dropoff in choking incidents is being fueled by a society-wide shift towards digital payment methods. More digital payments means fewer people are carrying cash on hand, which in turn means less stray coins lying around for curious kids to grab. In 2022, they note, there were 689 fewer cases of foreign objects removed from children’s noses, airways, and throats compared to 2012—a 29 percent decline. 

Emergency procedures declined as cashless payments became more common

The findings, published in an open-access format last June, are based on UK National Health Service (NHS) hospital admission data collected between 2000 and 2022. Researchers note that while cashless payments emerged in the UK around 2007, they only gained broader adoption after 2012. From that point onward, they observed measurable declines in procedures to remove foreign objects. In 2012, for example, 2,405 children under the age of 16 required such procedures, compared to just 1,716 in 2022. Specifically, there were 195 fewer procedures to remove swallowed objects and 484 fewer to extract objects stuck in noses during those same time periods. Surgeries to remove objects from the digestive tract also declined by 29 percent over the decade.

Shifts towards cashless payment methods don’t necessarily tell the entire story. Researchers note that improvements in childproof packaging and public awareness campaigns about choking hazards during the same period may have also contributed to the decline. The COVID-19 pandemic may have played a role as well, as fewer children sought hospital care for procedures during that time. A shift towards remote work for some parents may have also increased the overall parental supervision. Still, even with these factors in mind, researchers say the most significant driver of the decline is likely the overall move away from cash payments.

“Although this relationship is multifactorial, our data suggest an association between the introduction of contactless payments and a reduction in the number of FB [foreign body] retrieval procedures from the of [sic] upper aerodigestive tract,” researchers write.

COVID-19 sped up interest in cashless payments

Digital payments have surged in popularity over the past decade, driven by the convenience and widespread adoption of mobile banking, digital wallets, and payment systems like Apple Pay. Platforms like Stripe have also made it easier for small businesses to accept digital payments for everything from coffee to high-end boutique clothing. The COVID-19 pandemic  poured gasoline on that already accelerating trend away from cash. In 2022, cash (including coins) made up on average just 18 percent of total payments made by an average American adult, according to data collected by the the Federal Reserve. That’s compared to 26 percent in 2019. 

The rapid shift to online shopping, driven by lockdowns and concerns over handling physical money during the early days of the pandemic, took hold and never fully subsided. That overall trend appears set to continue. A 2024 market research report from PYMNTS Intelligence found that 82 percent of U.S. millennials and 85 percent of Gen Z respondents preferred digital payments over cash. Nearly all (91 percent) of Gen Z respondents in the same report said they were adopting digital-first payment methods like mobile wallets.
But modern technology introduces its own new set of possible hazards as well. A 2019 study published by Harvard researchers in the journal Pediatrics found that small components and button batteries for consumer electronic devices were responsible for an increasing proportion of foreign object removal in children than in years prior. Even so, small coins were still by far the most common source of accidental ingestion. In other words, those looking for a good reason to discontinue the penny may have just found their next best talking point.

The post Fewer kids are choking on coins—digital payments may be why appeared first on Popular Science.

The ocean is a vast natural sponge for carbon dioxide, taking in about 30 percent of the world’s annual carbon emissions. But certain human activities are rendering that sponge less absorbent, as described in new research. Bottom trawling for fish like sole and crustaceans and dredging to maintain harbors disrupts the seafloor, causing a cascade of chemical changes that reduce the ocean’s ability to sop up climate-warming carbon from the atmosphere, according to a study published March 28 in the journal Science Advances. 

Together the impacts of dredging and trawling release between 2 and 8 teragrams (2-8 million metric tons) of carbon dioxide each year–equivalent to the annual energy emissions from up to 1 million U.S. homes, per the new analysis. Compared with all of the carbon emissions that result from burning fossil fuels globally (or even a single industrialized nation’s annual emissions), the amount of CO₂  is, admittedly, small.

“First and foremost, we need to reduce our emissions. There’s no way around that,” Sebastiaan van de Velde, lead study author and a marine geochemist at the University of Otago in New Zealand, tells Popular Science. Yet when governments and corporate investors are pouring huge amounts of money and resources into moonshot carbon capture projects, the seafloor findings are significant, van de Velde says.

Shifting how and where trawling is done could cut hundreds of times more greenhouse gas emissions than all of the currently operational direct air carbon capture plants on Earth, he notes. Reducing trawling and dredging in a climate-conscious way could have carbon benefits on par with major mangrove and wetland restoration projects, at a fraction of the cost, he explains. That’s not to say we should stop restoring coastal ecosystems, which provide many benefits, like minimizing erosion and boosting storm resilience. But perhaps it means we should also consider changing how we fish. 

Previous studies have found that trawling, and other seafloor disruptions, release greenhouse gases. However, this prior research has focused on the organic carbon: basically the decaying muck at the bottom of the ocean that keeps some sliver of carbon trapped in limbo. Trawling brings that muck back to the surface, where the stored carbon can be cycled through the microbe food web and re-released into the air as CO₂.

The new study examines the other side of the coin: inorganic carbon and ocean acidity. Key chemical reactions involving dissolved rock particles and minerals unfold on the seafloor. These reactions help to turn the marine environment more alkaline (i.e. basic). Generating alkalinity is a central feature of ocean carbon cycles. It’s why the ocean can absorb carbon dioxide from the air in the first place–because CO₂ dissolved in water becomes carbonic acid. If things get too acidic, and the seas get saturated, it’s unable to absorb any more. The alkaline seafloor processes counter acidification and prime the ocean to take in additional carbon dioxide. 

Pulling a heavy set of nets and chains across the seafloor to catch fish or scooping up sediments through dredging throws those standard chemical cycles out of whack. Both activities introduce more oxygen to the ocean bottom than would normally be present. Oxygen reverses the reactions that produce alkaline molecules, instead creating more acidity and impeding seawater’s ability to absorb CO₂ from the atmosphere.

To estimate the full impacts of dredging and trawling worldwide, van de Velde and his colleagues relied on real-world data cataloging seafloor carbon flux, oxygen levels, and pH. They built a global mathematical model of seafloor alkalinity, and then used separate stats on dredging and trawling to infer how much these activities disrupt the acid-base chemistry. They determined that muddy reaches of the coastal shelf are the most important type of seafloor surface for producing alkalinity, and thus the most impacted by the dredging and trawling. 

The final value they came to (again, 2-8 teragrams of carbon dioxide produced per year) includes some uncertainty because data on dredging and trawling is limited, the ocean floor isn’t uniform, and the amount of sediment kicked up by each fishing boat or dredger depends on the type of equipment used and the location. 

“They’re the best numbers we could get, but they’re not necessarily the [100 percent] correct numbers,” Van de Velde tells Popular Science. “There’s a lot of things we’re doing that we don’t really know the impacts of. And in the ocean, there’s a lot of unknown unknowns–things we don’t even know that we don’t know.” He hopes that his study represents the start of a better understanding, and leads to more exact future analyses.

In the meantime, he also hopes this first attempt at quantifying the inorganic carbon effects of trawling and dredging will spur marine industries and regulatory bodies to adjust. Advances in equipment can make trawling less harmful and fuel efficient, without imperiling the seafood supply. And in some regions, trawling could be restricted to 40 percent of the current fishing grounds or even less–setting aside 60 percent for conservation, and yields would only fall by 10 percent, according to a 2021 report from the International Council for the Exploration of Sea. 

“To me, it seems like a no-brainer,” van de Velde says. It’s theoretically possible to have your fish and eat it too (with far fewer climate impacts)–but industry has to be willing to be swept up in the tides of change. 

The post Stop stirring up the seafloor appeared first on Popular Science.