In new paper, scientists explain climate change using before/after photographic evidence

Posted Posted in Environmental, Geography

A group of scientists offers photographic proof of climate change using images of retreating glaciers in a new paper, “Savor the Cryosphere,” appearing in GSA Today, a peer-reviewed publication of the Geological Society of America. Along with Gregory Baker, adjunct professor of geology at the University of Kansas, co-authors include an Emmy Award-winning documentarian and […]

Economic Case for Wind, Solar Energy in Africa

Posted Posted in Solar Energy, Technology

To meet skyrocketing demand for electricity, African countries may have to triple their energy output by 2030. While hydropower and fossil fuel power plants are favored approaches in some quarters, a new assessment by the Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) has found that wind and solar can be economically and environmentally […]

Dopamine Levels Fall During Migraine Attacks

Posted Posted in Headaches, Health

Dopamine levels fall during migraine attacks, brain scans show Using PET scans of the brain, University of Michigan researchers showed that dopamine falls and fluctuates at different times during a migraine headache. This could help scientists better understand dopamine-based therapies for migraines as well as a patient’s behavior during an attack. The connection between dopamine […]

Chagas Disease: Silent Killer in US

Posted Posted in Public Health, Society

First large-scale survey of Chagas disease in the United States confirms that the ‘silent killer’ is a major public health challenge for the country A study of almost 5,000 Latin American-born residents of Los Angeles County found that 1.24% tested positive for Chagas disease, a parasitic infection that can cause life-threatening heart damage if not […]

Greenhouse gas effect caused by mangrove forest conversion is quite significant

Posted Posted in Agriculture and Food, Environmental

Clear-cutting of tropical mangrove forests to create shrimp ponds and cattle pastures contributes significantly to the greenhouse gas effect, one of the leading causes of global warming, new research suggests. A seven-year study, led by Oregon State University and the Center for International Forestry Research, spanned five countries across the topics from Indonesia to the […]

Deciphering plant immunity against parasites

Posted Posted in Agriculture and Food, Environmental

Nematodes are a huge threat to agriculture since they parasitize important crops such as wheat, soybean, and banana; but plants can defend themselves. Researchers at Bonn University, together with collaborators from the Sainsbury Laboratory in Norwich, identified a protein that allows plants to recognize a chemical signal from the worm and initiate immune responses against […]

Further reductions in radiotherapy to young children with brain tumors less successful

Posted Posted in Cancer, Health

A team of investigators has determined that young children participating in a clinical trial to assess the effectiveness of reduced radiotherapy did worse when there were deviations from the treatment protocol. Results of the study will be available online in advance of publication by Pediatric Blood & Cancer on April 4. “This study shows that […]