As ice melts in West Antarctica the ground beneath is quickly rising---a process that could prevent the catastrophic(灾难性的) collapse of ice sheets, according to researchers.

A study published in the journal Science provides a glimmer(一丝;一线) of hope for a region affected by climate change. In recent years, several studies have warned the ice sheet, which contributes to a quarter of melted ice worldwide annually, is very easy to break up. Scientists fear even slightly melting could cause global sea levels to rise by 3 meters.

Researchers at the Technical University of Denmark set out to answer how the bedrock underneath the ice sheet of West Antarctica behaves as the ice melts. To study the land, the team analyzed data collected by high-precision GPS equipment positioned on remote rock formations in West Antarctica, which measured movements of the land down to the millimeter over a 10-year period.

“After a heroic effort to install and maintain the network of sensors in one of the least accessible places on the planet, the team has been rewarded with incredibly valuable data, which tell an incredible story about the Barth,” wrote Valentina Barletta.

The team found that the Earth was pushing the bedrock to rise faster than expected. In 2014, the surface rose by 41 millimeters: four to five times quicker than predicted. In 100 years, the land could be up to 10 meters higher than it is currently.

It is hoped that as the ice melts, the Earth's crust(地壳) will bounce back much faster than previously expected. In turn, this could stabilize what the researchers described as the "catastrophic collapse" of the ice sheet.

Barletta told Newsweek the ice sheet will never be stable if global warming becomes too extreme. “Reducing the greenhouse gas will give the ice sheet a better chance of survival because that would allow some known and unknown feedback(反馈) to create better conditions for the ice,” she said.

My wife and I usually don’t keep houseplants. But after I was told I had cancer I wanted to be around some life. When my friend Mitch gave me a lucky bamboo plant in a bowl, we decided to place the plant next to the living room window across from the couch.

I told Hannah I wanted to care for the plant myself. When it didn’t immediately turn yellow or brown or lose all of its leaves, I was pleasantly surprised. Tending to the plant gave me a sense of achievement at a time when I sometimes felt useless. As a physician, I was used to being the one who provided care, not the one who received it. Watering the plant taught me I could still be a caregiver. 

Over the next few months, I recovered from surgery and completed the first round of chemotherapy (化疗). Even after I returned to work, I continued to care for the plant. Soon, it had nearly doubled in height and its leaves were shiny and lush. Both the tree and I were thriving.

Then, mysteriously, it began to show signs of stress. No matter what I did, the leaves kept browning and dropping to the floor. I grew more and more frustrated and uneasy.

“I can’t even care for a simple plant!” I yelled. “I’m failing!” I couldn’t shake the feeling that the plant had become a symbol of my own health. I realized I had wrongly connected my careful nurturing of the plant — something over which I had at least some control — with my own survival — something over which I had no control.

When my tumor (肿瘤) returned, it would not be because of any failure on my part. As my anxiety decreased, I began to research how to heal the plant. After moving it under a sunny window, we both began to thrive again.

Whenever I look at the tree in its new pot, I think of Mitch and all the people who supported me. If the plant outlives me, I hope it will comfort Hannah and remind her that our large community will continue to nurture her after I am gone.

Young Komodo dragons move around in a zoo in the city of Surabaya, Indonesia. Some fight over a female while others look for food in a pond, a small body of water. The zoo in Indonesia is breeding Komodo dragons in an effort to save the world’s largest lizards from dying out.

The large lizards are found on the island of Komodo and several neighboring islands in eastern Indonesia. In September, the International Union for Conservation of Nature put them in its Red List of Threatened Species. The international group noted that the dragons were at an increased risk because of the effects of climate change. It warned that rising temperatures and sea levels due to climate change are expected to reduce the Komodo dragon’s living area by at least 30 percent in the next 45 years.

Zoo officials hope that their efforts to save the lizards will draw the attention of world leaders who are gathered in Glasgow, Scotland, to discuss climate change. Since launching the breeding (孕育) program, the zoo has built up its Komodo dragon population to 108 adults and 35 young ones. In addition, 40 Komodo dragon eggs are being kept warm for birth.

Zoo keeper Rukin said the temperature and humidity had to be just right for mating. The hope is that dragons bred in the zoo could be returned to the wild, he said. “I hope we can breed them well and correctly,” Rukin added. He said, “I hope the project will make sure that future generations will still be able to see the dragons in real life, not just in pictures.”