Uncategorized
- Earth
2005 was warmest year on record
Last year's global average temperature was the warmest since scientists began compiling records in the late 1800s.
- Earth
Manganese can make water toxic
Drinking water contaminated with manganese can subtly limit a child's intellectual development.
- Health & Medicine
Rotavirus vaccines pass big safety tests
The largest industry-funded medical trials in history have found that two new vaccines are both safe and effective against life-threatening childhood diarrhea caused by rotavirus.
- Health & Medicine
Tumor’s border cells told to leave
Cells on a tumor's outer layer that touch healthy tissue receive a chemical signal that sends them wandering away.
- Earth
Warming climate will slow ocean circulation
Later this century, rising concentrations of greenhouse gases in Earth's atmosphere could slow the ocean currents that bring warm waters to the North Atlantic.
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19640
This article makes me wonder, Does continental drift cause occasional changes to the ocean’s currents? Would major reorganizations of ocean currents tend to cause ice ages by temporarily disrupting the flow of warm water that normally keeps the ice at bay? Would simulations of past continental positions indicate when reorganizations would have occurred? Matt HenryWhittier, […]
- Animals
New candidates for smallest vertebrate
Two recent scientific papers have described fish species that could, depending on the definition, be the world's smallest known vertebrate.
- Health & Medicine
Diabetes most often begins in March
A person's likelihood of developing type 2 diabetes varies seasonally and is about 50 percent higher in March than in August.
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19639
Trying to explain why “Diabetes most often begins in March,” researchers speculate about “cold weather, inactivity, and overeating.” Did they consider the possible role of a seasonal deficiency of vitamin D? Joseph DewhirstSharon, Mass. Vitamin D would logically be at its most depleted level in the body in March and at its most concentrated level […]
- Earth
A Little Less Green?
Emerging data indicate that use of pyrethroid pesticides, even by home owners, poses significant environmental risks.
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19638
I refer to the article on pyrethroid insecticides. I suggest that all pesticides, regardless of their chemical structure, should be applied by trained operators who are equipped to degrade the run off before it enters public water and soil. This group of products is unsuitable for casual use by people at large. S. BanerjiMumbai, India
- Tech
Microbial Moxie
Microbial fuel cells, which take advantage of the fact that some microbes generate electricity when they break down organic matter, could one day power remote sensors, wastewater-treatment plants, and portable devices.
