Monthly Archives: February 2019

Alzheimer’s is a chronic disease that causes brain cells to degenerate and eventually die, leading to a decline in cognitive function. Patients often suffer from symptoms such as long-term memory loss, mood swings and difficulty in communicating. Unfortunately, there is currently no cure for the disease. Scientists are still unclear about the exact cause of Alzheimer’s. Genetics, along with aging, appear to be the most significant risk factors for the disease. The composition of an individual’s gut microbiome, the community of bacteria present in the gut, also appears to be important because these bacteria are known to produce chemicals that communicate with the brain. Animal studies have also suggested that environmental factors such as noise pollution (from cars, trains, and airplanes) can cause symptoms consistent with Alzheimer’s disease and alter the gut microbiome. However, a definitive link between these factors remained elusive until now. In this study, a team of…

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Most fish farming in the ocean uses net cages that float because it is easier to feed and remove fish at the surface and because some fish species require access to air. However, the surface of the ocean experiences a wide variety of temperatures, salinity (how salty the water is), and wave action depending on the weather. Changing conditions such as warmer or colder temperatures, reduced oxygen from algal blooms, and reduced salinity from rain can be hard on the fish. Storms also cause large waves that can damage nets and allow fish to escape, which results in a loss of money for the farm and a potential disturbance of local fish populations. Submerged cages also aren’t visible, and thus coastal land owners may be more open to having them off their shores. The black objects in the red circle are sea lice. Peter Malloch [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons…

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Pesticides applied to vegetables are extremely helpful in producing high quality crop yields. With the onset of their use in farming, they have helped bring global food security and stability. Without them, pests would eat and destroy a lot of the vegetables before they are even brought to the market. However, some take a long time to break down in the soil after they are applied to crops. In humans, some pesticides can build up in the body over time. This can lead to serious health hazards such as neurological issues, skin irritations, and reproductive problems. Buying organic produce can reduce the amount and certain types of pesticides on vegetables. But organic veggies are expensive and sometimes impractical for a weekly budget. Washing vegetables in cold water is a good start for removing some pesticides. Does it remove enough Researchers in Pakistan studied how effective some household products were in…

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What was the Earth like way before the dinosaurs? Scientists are interested in that question for many reasons, but for me, it is because the air back then was very different. If you transported yourself in a time-machine to Earth 3 billion years ago, which is more than 2.5 billion years before the dinosaurs, you’d better have brought a breathing mask and some sunscreen. As the doors of your time machine opened on this alien landscape, you would die (with a sunburn), as there was no oxygen in the air, and the UV radiation would have been brutal. Without oxygen, there would have been no protective ozone layer. However, back then, Earth was teeming with microbial life. One of the many reasons I enjoy being a deep time geologist is because it’s fun to picture yourself on this ancient and alien landscape (except for the dying part). Imagine the landscape…

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What was the Earth like way before the dinosaurs? Scientists are interested in that question for many reasons, but for me, it is because the air back then was very different. If you transported yourself in a time-machine to Earth 3 billion years ago, which is more than 2.5 billion years before the dinosaurs, you’d better have brought a breathing mask and some sunscreen. As the doors of your time machine opened on this alien landscape, you would die (with a sunburn), as there was no oxygen in the air, and the UV radiation would have been brutal. Without oxygen, there would have been no protective ozone layer. However, back then, Earth was teeming with microbial life. One of the many reasons I enjoy being a deep time geologist is because it’s fun to picture yourself on this ancient and alien landscape (except for the dying part). Imagine the landscape…

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A recent study has highlighted a link between the appendix and Parkinson’s disease. This is interesting because Parkinson’s disease is well known as a neurodegenerative disorder – disorders in which brain cells, or neurons, die off as the illness develops. As a result, one might not expect to see a link between the appendix, located at the beginning of the large intestine, and a disease like Parkinson’s which occurs primarily in the brain. However, thorough analysis of large amounts of data tracking individuals over 5 decades, the researchers of this study found that removal of the appendix was indicative of a lower risk of developing Parkinson’s disease. The risk was actually 19% lower in individuals who had their appendix removed. In addition, individuals  that did develop Parkinsons disease did so at a later age (disease onset was on average 3.6 years later). What is important is that this research actually…

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A recent study has highlighted a link between the appendix and Parkinson’s disease. This is interesting because Parkinson’s disease is well known as a neurodegenerative disorder – disorders in which brain cells, or neurons, die off as the illness develops. As a result, one might not expect to see a link between the appendix, located at the beginning of the large intestine, and a disease like Parkinson’s which occurs primarily in the brain. However, thorough analysis of large amounts of data tracking individuals over 5 decades, the researchers of this study found that removal of the appendix was indicative of a lower risk of developing Parkinson’s disease. The risk was actually 19% lower in individuals who had their appendix removed. In addition, individuals  that did develop Parkinsons disease did so at a later age (disease onset was on average 3.6 years later). What is important is that this research actually…

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Believe it or not, electric hand dryers have been around since the 1920s. Companies raced to develop the best forced-air hand dryer to cut back on paper towel waste. However, scientists at the time remained skeptical if electric hand dryers really were the best idea. Today, there is a research effort to determine safety risks of electric hand dryers in public spaces. They may save paper and money, but are they hygenic? Hand-washing is one of humanity’s greatest public health achievements, and greatly reduces suffering from preventable infectious disease. So, it makes sense that researchers want to make sure that convenience isn’t coming at a cost to health. Researchers at three separate hospitals in the United Kingdom, France, and Italy put this question to the test by sampling surfaces, dust, and air for bacteria in public restrooms using either paper towels or jet air dryers. The researchers swabbed surfaces such…

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In the United States, deaths from opioid overdoses continue to rise, both from illegally distributed heroin and fentanyl, but also from prescription opioids given by doctors. Currently, prescription opioids are related to 40% of all opioid overdoses here in the US, and are the first type of opioid that many people get before they move onto using illegal opioids. Doctors in the United States prescribe three times more opioids today than in 1999, and those levels are still very high even in regions where many people are dying from opioid overdoses. When pharmaceutical companies directly market drugs to doctors, the rates of doctors prescribing those drugs increase. However, it is not well known if deaths from prescription opioid overdoses are associated with pharmaceutical companies marketing these opioids directly to doctors. Therefore, researchers from around the country looked at data that was collected from the Centers for Disease Control and the…

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