Decline of the Axolotl

Axolotl batra3x (CC Licensed)

Also in today's link roundup: The book industry has evolved, a mummy mystery is solved, and (of course) more.

• You're reading this on a computer? How retro. The book industry will soon be far more sophisticated.
• You might want to think again before you ask for that new camera or computer or cell phone for Christmas once you learn about the environmental havoc your old electronics will wreak -- even if you think you've recycled them properly.
• The "water monsters" that survived in polluted canals in Mexico City now could be gone within five years. Axolotls -- which can breathe both under water and above the surface, may soon have a sanctuary near the Island of the Dolls, which is hung with doll babies to ward off evil spirits. It's hard to say which looks more alarming -- the dolls or the salamanders.
• Health care is the most energy-intensive industry besides food service and sales -- think about the transportation, petroleum products in medicines and equipment, electricity for machinery. Demand for care isn't going to go away anytime soon, but hospitals are still searching for ways to reduce the environmental impact.
• Scientists find some answers in the mystery of the screaming mummy, with help from the Hardy Boys and Encyclopedia Brown. (Well, not that last part.)