World News
Find out what’s happening in Science & Society around the world. Discover changes to science policy and law, new scientific study results, Supreme Court rulings, debates about nature versus nurture, and news about the sharing of genetic information.
Mon, Oct 17
Diarrhea, pneumonia kill children but parents shun life-saving facilities
An ambitious $23-million (Rs 153.5 crore), award-winning five-year-old programme funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to arrest childhood diarrhoea and pneumonia in Bihar–a state with India’s sixth highest mortality rate of children under five–has had little impact on disease prevalence or treatment, according to an evaluation by researchers from Duke and Stanford universities in the USA and the University College of London.
Mon, Oct 17
DEA Blinks on Emergency Ban
Researchers and users of kratom or Mitragyna speciosa were stunned by the Drug Enforcement Administration’s abrupt withdrawal last week of its stated plan to place the Southeast Asian plant under an emergency ban in the United States. One reason for the famously tough federal agency’s unusual move was “a large volume of phone calls from the American public” as well as messages from the scientific community and letters from members of Congress, says DEA spokesperson Russ Baer.
Mon, Sep 12
Why are babies so dumb?
As a species, humans are incredibly smart. We tell stories, create magnificent art and astounding technology, build cities, and explore space. We haven’t been around nearly as long as many other species, but in many respects we’ve accomplished more than any have before us. We eat them and they don’t eat us. We even run scientific studies on them—and are thinking about re-creating some of those that have gone extinct. But our intelligence comes with a curious caveat: our babies are among the dumbest—or, rather, the most helpless—that exist. A baby giraffe can stand within an hour of birth, and can even potentially flee predators on its first day of life. A monkey can grasp its mother and hang on for protection and nourishment. A human infant can’t even hold up its own head.
Fri, Sep 09
Tasmanian Devils fight Contagious Cancer
During the last 20 years, a contagious cancer has decimated Tasmanian devil (Sarcophilus harrisii) populations. Cancer cells, which are spread by biting, grow deadly tumors on the faces and mouths of the aggressive marsupials. Because devil facial tumor disease (DFTD) has been observed in almost all known populations and is nearly 100 percent fatal, epidemiological models have suggested that the most long-infected populations are facing extinction.
Thu, Sep 08
Chipping away at your Smartphones hackability
Random numbers are hugely important for modern computing. They’re used to encrypt credit card numbers and emails. To inject randomness into online gaming. And to simulate super complex phenomena, like protein folding or nuclear fission.