Science & the Public

Humans

Pre-chewed baby food common in HIV-positive households, study suggests

Here’s a particularly disturbing stat: 31 percent of babies in households where the mom is HIV-positive get at least some pre-chewed food. In most cases the surveyed caregivers who reported doing that pre-chewing were the infected moms.

Tech

U.S. network detects Fukushima plume

Traces of radioactivity attributable to the earthquake-damaged Fukushima reactor complex in Japan have reached the West Coast of the United States.

Tech

Chernobyl’s lessons for Japan

Radioactive iodine released by the Chernobyl nuclear accident has left a legacy of thyroid cancers among downwinders — one that shows no sign of diminishing. The new data also point to what could be in store if conditions at Japan’s troubled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear-power complex continue to sour.

Tech

Radiation: Japan’s third crisis

As if the magnitude-9 earthquake on March 11 and killer tsunami weren’t enough, a new round of aftershocks — psychological ones over fear of radiation — are rocking Japan and its neighbors.

Humans

Burying potential conflicts of interest

A new study reports evidence that few meta-analyses of human drug trials identify who funded the those trials, even though such information could be useful in identifying potential conflicts of interest

Humans

Early cow’s milk consumption may cut breast-cancer risk

Research studies paint a muddy picture of milk’s malignant threat. Some have linked consumption of cow’s milk with a heightened breast-cancer risk. Others have suggested milk drinking might be protective. A new animal study suggests those data may not be quite as contradictory as they at first seemed.

Humans

In tough economy, PhD appears to help

U.S. residents holding PhD’s in science, health and engineering were considerably more likely to be employed during late 2008 (the most recent period for which data are available) than were Americans generally, according to a just-released National Science Foundation report.

Humans

When meal times no longer focus on food

There’s little doubt that humanity has been tipping the scales at increasingly higher weights and rates. A study now lends support to the idea that meal-time distractions can mask the cues that we really have eaten quite enough. Moreover, it finds, the caloric fallout of not paying attention to what we’re eating doesn’t necessarily end when a meal is over.

Humans

Citation-amnesia paper published

Many biomedical researchers fail to put their findings into context by citing related, previously published work. I termed this citation amnesia, when I wrote about it 18 months ago, based on data presented at a meeting on peer review and publishing. Readers who seek more details than my initial blog provided can now pore over the stats from that research for themselves. The Johns Hopkins University team that I encountered at the Vancouver meeting has now formally published its analysis.

Humans

Night owls may want to dim their lights

People who spend their evenings in relatively bright light run the risk of stressing their bodies by ratcheting down the production of melatonin. This hormone plays a pivotal role in setting the body’s biological clock – and, potentially, in limiting the development of certain cancers.

Humans

One in five has no regular doctor

Not "needing" a doc is a primary justification.

Humans

Calendar marks chemistry milestones

January 1, 2011, ushers in the International Year of Chemistry. The American Chemical Society has compiled on online calendar that points to landmark events and trivia to celebrate.