Christmas Week (almost)

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/19/health/epa-toxic-chemicals.html This is a NYT article about the EPA's postponement of bans on the use of TCE (trochloroethylene), NMP (N-methylpyrrolidone) and methylene chloride. These substances are found in paint strippers and dry cleaning agents and are toxic. The Toxic Substances Control Act (AKA Frank Lautenberg Chemical Safety Act) is being reviewed for loopholes. TCE is "carcinogenic to humans by all routes of exposure" and causes developmental and reproductive damage.  Methylene chloride is toxic to the brain and the liver and NMP poses reproductive hazards. But the EPA,postponing the review, has no set deadline and is back-burnering health protections from these and other toxic chemicals, which is unnecessary and dangerous.



https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/19/health/lethal-viruses-nih.html This is a NYT article about the removal of the ban on funding research geared at altering germs to make them more lethal. Francis Collins, the head of the NIH announced that a scientific panel (are there still scientists in the government?) must decide that the benefits override the risks. In 2014 all federal funding to projects designed to make MERS (Middle East Respiratory Syndrome) and SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) more dangerous was halted. The CDC in 2014 accidentally exposed lab workers to anthrax and shipped a deadly flu virus to a lab that had asked for a benign strain. Opinions vary on whether such research is worth the risk to the public, contributing little scientific knowledge but creating the possibility of an accidental pandemic.

Thanksgiving Week

 

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/11/17/opinion/sunday/What-if-You-Knew-Alzheimers-Was-Coming-for-You.html?_r=0 An article from the Sunday Review section about a blood test for the ApoE4 gene variant that has been associated with Alzheimers Disease. A person who's genotype includes two copies of this variant is likely to develop late-onset Alzheimers. Since this blood test is not available yet, to determine your potential to develop AD would require a (PET) brain scan or a spinal tap (not the rock group). Scientists putative goal is to develop tests for the disease prior to the development of symptoms. Bill Gates, who has AD in his family, has devoted $100 million dollars to the cause of early diagnosis. If an individual has one of the gene variants instead of two, what does that mean? AD is also linked to many factors such as poor diet, sedentary lifestyle, chronic inflammation, exposure to chemicals in the environment and genetics.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/26/us/politics/alex-azar-senate-confirmation-hearing-hhs.html?_r=0 Article from the NYT about the former Lilly pharma executive who is Trump's picl to head the Health and Human Services agency, Alex Azar.  He raised prices on Insulin and other drugs but says that he would "take on the greed of the pharmaceutical industry." He is against the ACA and has experience privatizing the Medicare drug benefit under contract with the government. He joined the Bush administration as general counsel to the Department of HHS. He thinks that patients are paying too much for drugs; example is the price of insulin which has tripled in the last decade (as it also became cheaper to produce, author's statement.) Good money has it that drug prices will increase.



https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/19/us/retro-report-evolution-science.html
An article in NYT about new tactics being used by organizations including the Seattle-based Discovery Institute to put evolution under examination in the classroom (again.) Groups like this have become emboldened in the Trump administration.In addition to rejecting evolution, climate change and the human contribution to global warming are also being presented as questionable and not supported by facts.The most recent court case in which the teaching of Intelligent Design was rejected was "Kitzmiller v. Dover", in the Kansas schools. The Discovery Institute in Louisiana is another one of these backward-thinking groups that influenced the Science Education Act of 2008 which permits teaching of "the controversy." Tennessee passed a comparable law to the Louisiana law.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/23/health/bacteria-colon-cancer.html This is an article from NYT about a report in the journal Science about fusobacerium nucleatum, a bacterium found in up to half of colon tumors, which travels with its spread. These bacteria normally inhabit the mouth, but looking at colon cancers that had metastasized to liver, they found the bacteria, but not when they looked at liver cancer that had metastasized to colon. Questions that could be raised: could a vaccine directed against these bacteria cure colon cancer? Bert Vogelstein, a hero of mine, suggests that the bacteria might be altering patients' immune responses.

 

Daylight Savings

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/04/opinion/sunday/relax-you-dont-need-to-eat-clean.html?_r=0
This is an opinion piece about food prohibitions "in the guise of science." Written by a Pediatrics professor who talks about the poorly substantiated arguments behind such things as the demonization of salt, and now the gluten-free frenzy. 1 in 5 Americans routinely chooses gluten-free foods according to a 2015 poll even though fewer than 1% of people in the USA have wheat allergies and fewer than 1% have celiac disease. Besides this, gluten sensitivity is not well-defined and most people who claim the distinction don't meet the criteria.




https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/26/obituaries/isabella-l-karle-dead-findings-on-molecules-helped-husband-win-nobel.html  This is an obit from the NYT announcing the death of Isabella L Karle, an xray crystallographer and chemist. Her husband Jerome Karle along with  Herbert Hauptmann, won the Nobel Prize for extending the crystallographic interpretations to large, 3-dimensional biological molecules like drugs, steroids and toxins, helped substantially by Isabella Karle, who was self-taught in cystallography.




http://www.philly.com/philly/health/health-news/ancestry-dna-genes-23andme-genetics-20171012.html This is a Philly Inquirer piece about people who buy kits for analyzing their DNA. The writer reports that he and his sister had their DNA analyzed and different ancestry was reported for each of them. The results are conveyed via charts and graphs as percentages which, according to the writer, cannot be determined with certainty. Most companies compare snippets of a person's DNA to the company's database of DNA markers from people in various regions of the world. This is where the inaccuracy comes in because in order to find otu where your ancestors lived 500 years ago you would need to compare your DNA to a data base of DNA from people who lived 500 years ago, according to the article.

October, Warmest on Record

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/12/science/skin-color-race.html?_r=0
This is an article by Carl Zimmer on research by Sarah Tischkoff published in Science. This recent work is the first large-scale study of the genetics of skin color in Africans. There were eight genetic variants in four narrow regions of the human genome that influence skin pigmentation, producing either darker or lighter skin coloration. According to Tischkoff, this research "dispels the biological concept of race."African populations vary a lot in skin color. Melanosomes are pouches in the skin packed with pigment molecules; the more pigment, the darker the skin. Even before homo sapiens, our distant ancestors had a mix of genes for dark and  light skin. They could have been dark or light (depending on their genes) or perhaps even the same color due to the blending of genetic variants.




https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/10/upshot/doubtful-science-behind-arguments-to-restrict-birth-control-access.html  From the NYT column "The Upshot", exposing the falacious science behind the efforts to restrict the rights to birth control of millions of women, rolling back the gains of the past almost 6 decades. The 163-page document produced by the Health and Human Services Department quotes studies by the 2011 Institute of Medicine Report that they claim show uncertainty in whether access to contraceptive access and contraceptive use have reduced unintended pregnancy. The HHS document also cherry picks their facts in reporting the negative health consequences in contraceptive use, including oral contraceptives, ignoring the fact that all medical treatments have some negative side effects. The document also brings in the possibility of encouraging risky behaviors.





https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/09/22/climate/arctic-sea-ice-shrinking-trend-watch.html?_r=0 This is a visual record of the amount of arctic sea ice every day since 1979, revealing a steep decline. NASA says that the extent of ice covering Arctic waters has fallen by 13% per decade. This is believed to be a result of climate change, with the year's minimum (sea ice minimum) being recorded on September 13 of this year; also the eighth lowest year's minimum on record. Not good news for polar bears which depend on sea ice for capturing prey; with receding ice there is less prey to be found. The ice loss is also beginning very early.


https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/19/nyregion/little-terror-of-the-flyway.html This is a nyt article about birds migrating south along the Atlantic Flyway.  Hawks and falcons, the writer mentioned the sharp-shinned hawk or sharpie, prey on fellow travelers, hunting "on the wing". Sharpies are accipiters, raptors evolved to hunt in the woodland canopy. Sharpies and other migrants can be viewed in their season, concentrated along the coast as they wend their way south, Brooklyn, Bronx, Southern Queens.


https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/22/climate/epa-scientists.html This is a nyt article about the cancellation by the EPA of a speaking appearance by three agency scientists who were scheduled to discuss climate change at a Rhode Island conference on the state of Narragansett Bay  and Watershed Program in Providence. Scientists prevented from speaking had contributed the bulk of the report to be delivered at the conference. This is an example of scientific censorship by the government. Under Scott Pruitt's leadership the EPA has removed most mentions of the words "climate change" from its website.





https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/21/us/trump-epa-chemicals-regulations.html More on the EPA:
An article from the NYT about a scientist working for the EPA who is a former chemical industry insider.  Nacy Beck joined the EPA in May. Formerly an executive at the American Chemistry Counsel, Dr. Beck's tenure at the EPA may, according to the NYT, result in an underestimation of potential risks to human health and the environment, from an Office of Water's top official in a confidential memo. Beck believes that the government imposes burdensome rules at what she has called "phantom risks".




https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/20/us/new-mexico-science-standards.html?_r=0 Article from NYT about the attempt to water down the language describing evolution and climate change in the guidelines for science education  in New Mexico which met strong opposition at a public hearing in Santa Fe this week. The uproar began last month when there was an attempt o update the K-12 dstandards for science education borrowing from the Next Generation Science Standards but deviating significantly in the changing of NGSS phrases like "rise in temperature" to "fluctuation in temperature in the New Mexico version. The Public Education Department didn't respond to questions about what prompted the attempt to change the language.








https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/10/171025090454.htm From Science Daily an article about the accumulation of triclosan in toothbrushes. Triclosan can disrupt hormones in humans and animals and contribute to antibiotic resistance and has been banned in antiseptic washes by the FDA since September, 2017.  Since it wasn't banned in toothpaste it can accumulate in toothbrush heads causing prolonged exposure. If this is not bad enough, the disposal of used toothbrushes could result in the chemical leaching into the environment.




https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/25/science/cacao-fungus-chocolate.html?_r=0 An article from the NYT about the attempt to protect the cacao crops from diseases and environmental challenges. The International Cacao Collection in Costa Rica grows a wide variety of cacao trees but few cacao varieties are widely cultivated. There was a fungal blight in the 1970s which caused a 96% decline in the cacao crop of Costa Rica. In an attempt to increase the genetic diversity of cacao  since the 1980s researchers have identified the most tolerant and productive cacao trees then hybridized the candidates to create novel varieties in hopes of averting a chocolate crisis.


https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/25/well/vision-and-hearing-loss-are-tied-to-cognitive-decline.html
From the Well column in the NYT an article about the effects of compromised sensory function like poor vision and hearing on a decline in cognitive abilities. The number of Americans with poor vision, often undetected among older adults, is expected to double by 2050; hearing loss affects nearly 2/3 of adults over the age of 70. A study published in JAMA Ophthalmology in August found using two different data sets of older Americans, that poor vision is associated with deficient cognition. There is also evidence that hearing loss can speed cognitive decline. A linkage was also noted between poor hearing and dementia because if one cannot hear well, the brain receives garbled signals, forcing it to work harder.





https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/13/climate/syria-seed-bank.html An article in the NYT about workers in the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) who are hunting for the genes contained in seeds we plant today and their wild relatives from long ago. They maintain a seed bank at ICARDA headquarters in Aleppo, Syria and a back-up copy at Svalbard above the Arctic Circle. In a time of climate change such as this, seed banks are critical for identifying and preserving crops that can adapt to the rapid onset of climate change.



https://www.nature.com/news/genomic-studies-track-early-hints-of-cancer-1.22911 From Nature News an article about the genomes of precancerous growth. In a 3 year pilot program funded by the US National Cancer Institute (NCI) scientists will investigate the genomes of precancerous growths  by sequencing their DNA and also RNA from individual tumor cells and identifying the immune cells within lesions in order to create a pre-cancer genome atlas. Another project in the "Moonshot" will be funded by the American Lung Association and sequence DNA from precancerous growths in the lung. The ideas behind these studies is to intervene earlier in the development of the disease, when it may prove possible to have an effect.

First Day of Fall

http://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-41311087 This is an article written to commemorate the lecture given by Francis Crick 60 years ago for the Society for Experimental Biology at University College, London, predicting the way the genetic code is used to produce proteins.How does the cell get from the linear sequence of bases to the three-dimensional structure of proteins. It still amazes me that this was determined based on the scanty knowledge that was available and the relatively primitive technologies (compared with today's.





http://www.philly.com/philly/health/health-news/penn-scientists-probe-the-mysterious-relationship-between-sleep-deprivation-and-depression-20170922.html An article from the Philly Inquirer about research findings at Penn about sleep deprivation's curative powers over depression. Research has shown that from 3-4 hours of sleep followed by 21 to 36 hours of wakefulness eliminated feelings of depression in 50% of people in 66 studies that were analyzed. This work was published in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry. The problem was that after one good night's sleep, the depression returned.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/21/business/monsanto-dicamba-weed-killer.html?mcubz=1&_r=0
This is a NYT Business Section article about dicamba, a weed killer marketed by Monsanto. Lawsuits are being initiated against the company because farmers who have not bought Monsanto's genetically modified dicamba-resistant seeds are claiming that their crops are being damaged by dicamba drifting sometimes large distances. This is a typical strategy, to develop these resistant seeds and then to spray weed-killers, both marketed by Monsanto. It seems like a viscous cycle, because as weeds become resistant to the herbicides, it requires more pesticide use to kill them. Drift problems have made it impossible to control where herbicides wind up.


https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/21/sports/aaron-hernandez-cte-brain.html?mcubz=1 This is a NYT article about the extremely unfortunate case of Aaron Hernandez, former Patriot's linebacker, found guilty of murder, who committed suicide in prison in April. Studies of his brain have revealed CTE, or Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy. Hernandez was 27 but his the degenerative brain damage was equivalent to the brains of players beyond their 60's. Research has been recently revealed at Boston University showing that players who began playing tackle football before the age of 12 developed more cognitive and behavioral problems as adults later in life than those who started playing after the age of 12.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/09/opinion/sunday/trump-epa-pruitt-science.html?mcubz=0
This is an editorial from NYT about the consistent trend in the current administration to terminate work on important environmental issues such as mountaintop removal of coal and reducing carbon emissions to name only two consequential issues among a multitude. In additional, the lack of appointment of key scientific advisors to various departments and appointment of persons lacking in scientific credentials to key offices shows evident disdain for science and scientific knowledge and its contributions.




https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/21/nyregion/staten-island-bat-watchers-research.html?mcubz=0&_r=0 This is an article on bat researchers in Freshkills Park on Staten Island. Not surprisingly, these researchers are nocturnal, as are their quarry. Wearing anabat detectors strapped to their wrists, seniors at the College of Staten Island along with wildlife biologists, are netting bats in order to study them. The first published study of bats was in 2016 and the work being compiled is some of the first systematic data collected on bats in NYC. White nose disease, caused by a fungus has decimated the bat population across North America on a massive scale. After netting the bats, the researchers are fitted with tracking bands, weighed and checked for fungus.

After Harvey

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/318713.php?utm_source=TrendMD&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Medical_News_Today_TrendMD_1
This is from Medical News Today newsletter about research published in the journal Neuron on new treatments for depression, going beyond SSRIs like Prozac and Zoloft. SSRIs prevent serotonin from being reabsorbed at the synapse by the neuron that secreted it after it does its job on the second neuron. Researchers at the Rockefeller University researched the effects of serotonin on cells in the dentate gyrus using a technique called translating ribosome affinity purification and found a receptor important for SSRIs long-term effects.
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http://www.npr.org/sections/goatsandsoda/2017/09/02/547892623/triple-threat-new-pneumonia-is-drug-resistant-deadly-and-contagious An npr report about drug-resistant pneumonia (klebsiella pneumoniae) found in a hospital in Hangzhou, China, as reported in the Lancet Infectious Diseases, which was resistant to the toughest antibiotics. Similar strains have been isolated from a case in Nevada, which was resistant to 26 antibiotics but the Chinese stains are deemed "hypervirulent.




https://www.statnews.com/2017/08/29/fat-nutrition-study/ From STAT News, a report of a study called PURE (Prospective Urban Rural Epidemiology recording the eating habits of 135,000 adults in 18 countries. People with the highest intake of dietary fat (35%) were 23% less likely to die during the study period than those whose diet was 10% fat. Findings for carb consumption went in the opposite direction, those whose diet was 77% carb were more likely to die, while those with a 46% carb diet were the least likely. These results were published in the Lancet.


http://www.philly.com/philly/health/health-news/what-diabetic-mice-can-teach-us-about-keeping-teeth-healthy-20170901.html  From the Inquirer a report on a study of dental health done at Penn Dental which looked at the oral microbiomes of people with diabetes. Typically, unmanaged diabetes causes changes to the bacteria in the mouth, leading eventually to inflammation of the gums and bone loss. They compared mouth bacteria from diabetic mice to bacteria from normal mice (former were worse) and then transferred mouth bacteria from diabetic mice to germ free mice and found that diabetic mouth bacteria caused 42% more bone loss than bacteria from normal mice.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2017/08/28/teacher-shortages-affecting-every-state-as-2017-18-school-year-begins/?utm_term=.f70ec832f89 Article from the WashPost describing US Dept of Education data of states where there are teacher shortages shows that there are teacher shortages in every state.  Shortages have been in existence since data began to be collected 25 years ago but the problem has been exacerbated recently. The teacher education enrollment dropped 35% from 2009 to 2014. There is also an "acute shortage" in substitute teachers.


https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/06/learning/announcing-a-new-monthly-feature-whats-going-on-in-this-graph.html?mcubz=1 This is an announcement of a new monthly feature in the NYT partnering with the American Statistical Association to produce WGOITGraph? They will offer a NYT graphic and pose questions to students. The graphs will remain online and teachers can use them in the classroom. Students will also be able to post comments.

End of Summer

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/trumps-attack-on-science-isnt-going-very-well/2017/08/10/096a0e1e-7d2c-11e7-a669-b400c5c7e1cc_story.html?utm_term=.397d0ecd0c8f  This is a commentary from The Washington Post by a former member of the EPA Board of Scientific Advisors. The writer reviews Trump's first 200 days in which he drastically cut the budgets of climate change research programs, removed climate change statistics from government websites, and refused to renew more than 30 appointments to the EPA Board of Scientific Counselors, including the author. The writer refers to the draft report received by the NYT which blamed human activities for the recently observed climate changes. In fact, it is advised that the language"weather extremes" be substituted for climate change, which is censorship, and the Orwellian language obfuscation.doesn't lower the temperature of the earth.





https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/08/21/science/the-deep-seas-are-alive-with-light.html?mcubz=1&_r=0 This is an article from the NYT about bioluminescent organisms. Bioluminescence is described in the article as one of the earth's dominant ecological traits. This work was published in Scientific Reports and it was done by the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute in California. Although oceanic bioluminescence existed in the primal seas long before dinosaurs, terrestrial bioluminescence is fairly recent (fireflies, beetles, millipedes, earthworms.)


http://www.philly.com/philly/health/salmonella-outbreak-backyard-chickens-pennsylvania-new-jersey-20170822.html
This is an article from the Philadelphia Inquirer reporting a salmonella outbreak being investigated by the CDC. Almost 1,000 people have been infected since January of this year.  Scientists believe that the infection started with backyard chickens since most of the people who were infected had had contact with live poultry.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-41003105 From BBC News:  Starting in September there will be a new curriculum in Turkey's schools which will include more religious instruction and less evolution. The Education Minister denied that evolution will not be taught, instead says the "repetitious parts" have been eliminated and that the topic was being delayed until college.


https://www.democracynow.org/2017/8/24/headlines/johnson_johnson_speak_out_against_its_drug_being_used_in_execution  This is a Democracy Now Report about  J and J executives protesting its drug being used for lethal injection. The state of Florida is scheduled to use its drug against convicted murderer Mark Asay, the first time this particular drug will have been ushttps://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=3044922893199343269#editor/target=post;postID=4501253204352444230;onPublishedMenu=allposts;onClosedMenu=allposts;postNum=0;src=postnameed for this purpose.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/24/health/syphilis-std-united-states.html?mcubz=1&_r=0 This is a nyt article about recent outbreaks of syphilis, a deadly, sexually-transmitted disease especially difficult to contain and diagnose since most doctors haven't seen a case since the late 1990s.  The Trump administration, confounding the problem, has proposed a 17% decease in the disease prevention budget for 2018.


http://www.philly.com/philly/health/study-annual-mammograms-starting-at-age-40-is-best-strategy-for-breast-cancer-screening-20170825.html Article from the Inquirer about a study published in the journal Cancer that confirmed that having yearly mammograms from the age of 40 and continuing annually thereafter saves the most lives. The three- pronged study also examined lives saved screening annually from 45-54 then every other year from 55 to 79, and every other year from 50 to 74. A problem is that a woman getting screened annually starting at 40 could expect to be called back to evaluate a suspicious mammogram that turns out to be a false alarm once every 13 years.

https://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/disease-diagnostics-take-top-honors-debut-biomedical-engineering-design-competition This is an NIH report of a disease diagnostics bioengineering competition that will focus on undergraduates.  It is called DEBUT Design by Biomedical Undergraduate Teams. The prizes total $65,000, awarded by the partnership of NIH (National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering) and VentureWell, a nnon-profit higher education network. The winning project, which was awarded $20,000 was a portable EEG machine which could aid in the diagnosis of Alzheimers Disease.




https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/26/opinion/sunday/cure-yourself-of-tree-blindness.html?mcubz=0
Opinion piece in the NYT Sunday Review about the importance of tree identification and "consciousness".  According to the author, tree deaths reflect "deeper truths" about our environment. An example would be the death of the ash trees due to the ash borer, an invasive, non-native species. Similar pests have also affected the chestnut, hemlock and elm trees. The piece also recommends eating wild tree fruit such as tree nuts.

https://www.statnews.com/2017/08/30/novartis-car-t-cancer-approved/ This is from STAT about a new cancer drug treatment that has been approved by the FDA. It is extremely expensive (costs $475,000) and is made by removing patients' T cells and reengineering them and injecting them back into the patient. It is called CAR-T cell treatment and the drug, made by Novartis, is Kymriah. It is used to treat children and adults with relapsed Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (a blood cancer) and has been successful in 83% of cases after a single dose.

Back from Western NY

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/29/opinion/sunday/texas-childbirth-maternal-mortality.html?_r=0
This is a commentary by Kristof about health care in America and specifically about Dr. Lisa Hollier, an obstetrician-gynecologist, who is campaigning for better health care for women and abortion law reform. The medical journal Obstetrics and Gynecology reports that the US ranks below every nation in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, except for Mexico, in maternal mortality. Around the world maternal mortality has been reduced by almost half since 1990; the US is a notable exception, where maternal deaths have become more common.





https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/29/opinion/sunday/when-life-on-earth-was-nearly-extinguished.html This is an article in the Sunday Review by Peter Brannen about mass extinctions. Brannen has a new book called "The Ends of the World." There's more to the title but it is about the "big five" mass extinctions and about large scale volcanism as the driver.  There is also a special issue of the journal Paleogeography, Paleoclimatology, Paleoecology, whose readers probably call it PPP. In the special issue, the point is made that volcanic releases of carbon dioxide "may have helped drive many of the most extreme die-offs in the earth's history."  Brannen calls the US exit from the Paris Agreement "hare-brained" and mentions that we are on pace for a 4 degree Celsius warming of the earth by the end of the century.


https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/28/opinion/greenhouse-gas-emissions-trump-funding.html This is a commentary in the NYT about a U of Colorado science center lab that houses a high-precision mass spectrometer that is able to detect fossil fuel contribution to carbon emissions, a critical aid to reducing these emissions. The Boulder lab is one of the few labs with the equipment that is capable of precise enough measurements. The lab was also dedicated to monitoring global greenhouse gasses exclusively. In fact, if the proposed budget cuts to climate science are approved, the whole national greenhouse gas monitoring program may be at risk.




http://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-37211349 This is an article from BBC news reporting that after ten years of administering the HPV vaccine, the death rate due to cervical cancer has decreased 50% . In the US the cervical cancer vaccine has not achieved the approval rating as elsewhere and the results are not as spectacular. There are still several thousand women who die from cervical cancer in the US. The vaccine given protects against two strains and is being replaced with a vaccine the protects against nine strains. Some types of oropharyngeal cancer - the cancers inside the mouth that are caused by these viruses.




https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/31/well/no-crying-over-dry-eyes.html This is an article from the NYT about the perils of "dry eye" also known as keratoconjunctivitis sicca, which sounds more serious. Eye drops, sold over the counter, are mainly methylcellulose, but they prevent burning and protect the eye after sun exposure and long hours at the computer. Which brings up the functions of tears, the components of which include 1,500 proteins (who knew?). I'm going to start using my eyedrops today.


https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/31/science/dogs-shelters-adoption-behavior-tests.html  This is an article from the NYT about the unreliability of dog obedience testing trials which determine whether the shelter dog is euthenized as a danger to people. Personal note: I adopted a shelter dog newly returned by the adopters after clamping its mouth (no blood) on a child's hand. The dog did nip a couple of people in the twelve years we had her (who were entering out house) but certainly would have been euthenized.  There is serious scrutiny being given the shelter tests which are now regarded as poor predictors of whether the dog will be violent since one of the false negatives (negatives can be considered worse for people than false positives because the positives are killed) resulted in a death. One of the points made in the article relates to the shelter environment itself as evoking aggression. One test of dog-on-dog aggression showed that dogs reacted more aggressively to a fake dog than a real one. Shelter staff could carefully observe the interactions between the dog and other dogs and shelter employees in order to make the life-or-death decision.




https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/02/opinion/fda-smoking-nicotine.html This is an op-ed piece by Robert Proctor, a science historian, about nicotine addiction.A fascinating statistic: if the rate of present consumption of cigarettes continues until 2015, 17 million more Americans will die of tobacco-related illnesses. I wonder what the statistic would be if if no one smoked any more cigarettes. I always wondered why nicotine in consumables wasn't made illegal (tobacco lobby) and this article answered my (naive) question. The FDA is barred from requiring the removal of nicotine from cigarettes but they can mandate the reduction by 99%, so they are minimally, or non- addictive. The Goldilocks optimum is between 1 and 2 percent, by weight, which is addictive. Reducing by a factor if ten would make it very difficult for cigarettes to become addictive, and, if addiction did result, not hard to quit.

http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory/scientists-id-tiny-prehistoric-sea-worm-50-head-49013050 This is a piece from abc news about a report in Current Biology about the identification of the 4 inch long capinatator praetermissus fossil from the Cambrian explosion about 541 milliuon years ago. Scientists say these fossils are so different from any previously found that they represent not only a new species but a new genus, a grouping larger than species. It is an ancestor  of the worm grouping called arrow worms, which are abundant in the world's oceans.


https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/02/science/gene-editing-human-embryos.html  This is a report from the NYT of a Nature  report on the use of a novel gene editing technique to remove a deleterious mutated gene from a human embryo. As used in the genetic engineering of human beings, this technique has received widespread scrutiny as it may lead to a new type of eugenics, in which people would pay for the inclusion of certain culturally valued traits and the exclusion of less valued ones. Scientists at the Oregon Health and Science Institute along with colleagues successfully fixed a mutation that affected the heart and leads to sudden death.



https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/07/health/atheists-religion-study.html?_r=0 A report in the NYT about a study published in Nature Human Behavior about people's beliefs about religion. People were given a questionnaire asking them to indicate their religion (or lack thereof) and, given a description of a sociopath with gory criminal details provided, asked whether this person was religious or non. Overwhelmingly, most people chose "non." This is contrary to the actual religious affiliations of serial killers who have been studied, who are sometimes religious believers and sometimes not.




https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/07/climate/climate-change-drastic-warming-trump.html The NYT obtained a copy of a climate change report saying the average US temperature has risen steeply since 1980, directly contradicting the assurances of President Trump and his cabinet. The report is a special section of the National Climate Assessment and the National Academy of Sciences has signed off on it but the president hasn't viewed it, or agreed to release it yet. A small difference in the global temperature makes a big difference. "The difference between a rise in global temperatures of 1.5 degrees Celsius and one of 2 degrees Celsius, for example, could mean longer heat waves, more intense rainstorms and the faster disintegration of coral reefs."


http://www.ledger-enquirer.com/news/business/article165833912.html This is an article from the inquirer about the attempt by the Army Corps of Engineers to keep an invasive species of carp out of the Great Lakes.  I have just completed a book called "The Life and Death of the Great Lakes" on the subject. The Asian carp abounds in the Mississippi and its tributaries but it would not take much to breach the barrier into the Great Lakes. The plan to restrict the invading fish includes technologies such as underwater noisemakers, electronic dispersal barriers (the book said that they already have the latter) and a new lock, costing $275 million. These measures would protect the Great Lakes fishing industry.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/judystone/2017/08/06/germs-on-your-kitchen-sponge-get-a-grip/#6cf94fb9746e This is an article from Forbes in response to a study publicized by the NYT cautioning people about the germs in their sponges. Forbes finds that the few microorganisms that survive sterilization  recolonize the sponges. One of the bacteria, Acinetobacter, causes infections in people who are in the ICU. There was no salmonella or campylobacter or other organisms that cauxe food poisoning. Conclusion: if you want to worry about catching an infection from an object: worry about your cell phone. In a study of 200 hospital workers, 95% of the phones carried nosocomial (hospital-acquired) infections, including MRSA.


https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/09/science/dinosaurs-flying-mammals-squirrels.html?_r=0 Article by Carl Zimmer in the NYT reporting a Nature study of flying mammals in the Mesozoic, the Age of Dinosaurs, done at the University of Chicago.  In the 1990's paleontologists found entire fossils of mammalian skeletons containing even impressions of skin and hair. These and other newly found fossils allow scientists to draw in previously unknown branches of the mammal family tree. One skeleton, Volaticotherium, appears to have been able to fly.


https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/10/health/gene-editing-pigs-organ-transplants.html  A report in the NYT of a Science publication about the increasing possibility of using pig organs in human transplantation. Piglets were created that had human organs with their DNA edited to remove diseases, like the pig version of the HIV virus and other retroviruses, that could be transferred to the human recipients of the transplants. This is an important development and carries forward the treatment of diabetes patients with pig pancreas cells and heart valves from pigs rescue heart disease sufferers. Animal rights activists should not be more concerned than they are with the many pigs raised for the human diet.

In July

http://blogs.plos.org/scied/2017/06/28/the-trivialization-of-science-education/ This is a blog entry by Mike Klymkowsky about the trivialization of science education. Klymkowsky, a professor at the University of Colorado- Boulder, revs up the large engines including Socrates and Richard Feynman in his plaint about the abdication by colleges of their role in students' science literacy. Since most colleges and universities do require non-majors to take at least one science course with associated lab, does this requirement build in students a scientific vocabulary and understanding of methodology in order to approach and evaluate scientific issues critically? The fact that it does not has serious consequences to meaningful, as opposed to pretend, learning.

http://www.philly.com/philly/opinion/20170710_Poor_math_skills_lead_to_bad_politics_and_policy.html  This is an opinion piece from the Philadelphia Inquirer about math illiteracy. in 2003, the National Assessment of Adult Literacy  calculated that 1 in 5 Americans couldn't compute their weekly paycheck or a restaurant tip. The opinion piece suggests that the fact that our technologies can help us with some of these things makes us even more math-illiterate. The 2 million dollar error in the 2018 budget submitted by OMB is an example.


https://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/scientists-replay-movie-encoded-dna
OK so I don't really understand this. This is a link to an NIH news release about a movie encoded in and played from human cells. In a report featured in this week's Nature, Seth Shipman and his group were able to insert into bacterial cells and retrieve from the cells the image of a human hand. After doing this they inserted one frame at a time into bacteria 5 frames of translated DNA of a racehorse in motion movie and then they sequenced the DNA to reconstruct the movie. They intend to use the DNA as a "molecular recorder" to study the brain.


https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/speaking-of-science/wp/2017/07/13/human-evolutions-biggest-problems/?utm_term=.a9a227f64517 This is a position piece from the Washington Post about Trump's explanation, written with a ghostwriter, of how high-status males with "kick-ass attitudes" (like Trump) "who didn't give a crap about what other people in the tribe thought" were able to have "top models" and the most beautiful women. The writer makes the point that "prosociality", caring about the tribe, enabled Trump's ancestors to survive. Trump also says that this is how it always was and will be but the writer again corrects him that nothing about evolution "always was and always will be", since evolution is not static.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/12/well/move/high-intensity-workouts-may-be-good-at-any-age.html This is an article from the Well Column about how short, high intensity workouts (called interval training) are good for any age. This new study reported in the blog centers on older organisms. Mice equivalent to over 65 in human life span were "coaxed" through interval training (little treadmills). The mice that had done the interval study were in some ways "younger" than at the beginning of the trial. They had greater endurance and more muscle mass than the control animals.


http://www.latimes.com/science/sciencenow/la-sci-sn-larson-ice-sheet-20170713-htmlstory.html An article from the LATimes about the loss of an iceberg the size of the state of Delaware in Antarctica's Larsen C Ice Shelf. But a UCIrvine glaciologist reports that this is only the beginning. This collapse could possibly lead to the loss of the entire shelf, which may be decades away.



https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/14/nyregion/seabird-deaths-long-island.html This article in the NYT is about an observation by a wildlife pathologist from the NY Department of Conservation about a type of shorebird that has been found dead on LI beaches in increasing numbers, an unusual observation. The great shearwaters nest on the of the world's most remote islands in the south Altantic before migrating to the waters off New England and Newfoundland. The bird carcasses, when autopsied, were thin and anemic, which leaves the question: why is their health so poor? Since these birds are very rarely seen, gliding up the Gulf Stream, and, after feeding in the Caribbean, passing Long Island, why were they off course? Possibly winds forced the birds over land.



https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/17/health/india-south-asia-castes-genetics-diseases.html?_r=0 This is a NYT article reporting from a Nature Genetics publication about residents of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana in South Asia who can die if administered muscle relaxants due to a mutation in their DNA. An analysis of 2,800 people belonging to 260 South Asian groups showed 81 groups that had lost genetic variation more extreme than Ashkenazi Jews and Finns due to genetic isolation and interbreeding. This lack of genetic variation is due to what is called the founder effect, when a population expands from a small group of founders with resultant genetic similarities which can cause a high incidence of the inheritance of rare diseases.


https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/11/well/live/the-gentler-symptoms-of-dying.html A NYT article about how organ failure, preceding death, shuts the brain down. Each of the major organs, according to the physician reporter, has the ability to shut the brain down, evoking symptoms not as readily discernible to a witness as the classic death rattle. The exception is "terminal lucidity", as described by biologist Michael Nahm, in which case there is a brief state of clarity preceding death.




https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2017/07/toaster-a-bit-more-button/534312/ From the Atlantic, a paean to the Breville toaster. The writer says that this device makes toasting bread "more quantitative".  He references the "a bit more" button, which allows the bread to raise up and have its degree-of-toastness appreciated.  This design element is part of the new culture which responds to the user experience, or "UX". To follow: coffins (just kidding.)

Blogging from Medford, Mass

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/23/world/europe/turkey-evolution-high-school-curriculum.html?_r=0  This is an article from the NYT about the decision of the Turkish government, known to be secular in character, to remove the teaching of evolution from the ninth grade science curriculum, ostensibly because of "controversy". This can be interpreted as a bow to Erdogan's fundamentalist opposition. The teachers' union is against this drastic decision.






https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/21/well/live/fish-as-medicine-for-rheumatoid-arthritis.html
From the Wellness blog of the NYT an article about an observational study published in Arthritis Care and Research documenting the effect of consumption of various types of non-fried fish on rheumatoid arthritis. Them magnitude of the effect, according to the blog, was equivalent to one-third of the standard drug (methotrexate) treatment.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/07/07/nyregion/a-forest-floats-on-the-bronx-river-with-free-produce.html?_r=0  This is an article from the NYT about circumventing rules about foraging on public land by offering produce to all comers because this barge in a South Bronx forest, yielding blueberries, onions and wild carrots, is on the river. Swale is the name of the floating forest project that defies the NYC ordinance against cutting or removing or defacing public trees, plants or flowers with destruction of public property.

This Blog Motivates Me...

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/13/technology/google-education-chromebooks-schools.html  This is an article from the NYT about the encroachment of Google Schools into the classroom. "Today, more than half the nation’s primary- and secondary-school students — more than 30 million children — use Google education apps like Gmail and Docs, the company said." According to the article this has lead to the emphasis of certain skills in the classroom, such as teamwork and problem solving, while de-emphasizing more traditional skills such as the learning of math formulas. Parents are concerned by the urging of seniors to convert their school email accounts to GMail, with the potential for using the students personal information for marketing.




https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/12/world/americas/dinosaur-fossil-nodosaur-alberta-oil-sands.html This is an article in the NYT about a mine in Alberta which has yielded a dinosaur "mummy, 110 million years old. The "mummy", the best preserved specimen of its kind, was found by a shovel operator at  the Millennium Mine. It was photographed for The National Geographic.




https://www.sciencenews.org/article/yes-statins-protect-hearts-critics-question-their-expanding-use This is an article from Science News about the expanding use of the statins and its risks. Statins were discovered in the fermented broth of rice mold that blocks the enzyme action of HMG-CoA reductase, which lead to a discovery of a related compound by Merck which lead to Lovastatin and the rest is history, or rather, pharmacology.  The CTT trials in 1994 revealed other benefits from taking statins. There are downsides, such as effects on muscle (Baycol was removed from the market). A 2008 study in NEJM pointed out that more people developed Type II Diabetes if they took a statin than those who did not.Observational data following real-world data reveal side effects worse than the CTT study; more muscle pain in those taking statins (JAMA) compared with those taking placebo.




https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/15/health/immune-system-drugs-monoclonal-antibodies.html?_r=0  This is an article from the NYT about a study in NEJM about resistance developing to drugs. Many frontline therapeutics are monoclonal antibodies, which are proteins, and the body's immune system can make antibodies which react with the drugs making them inactive against their targets. Pfizer had a drug in clinical trials that reduced cholesterol but had to be pulled due to patients' lack of response because of antibodies to the drug.


http://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2017/06/dinosaur-nodosaur-fossil-discovery/ This is an article from Nat'l Geographic about the newly discovered Canadian nodosaur dinosaur fossil in Millenium Mine. The level of fossilization (it is a whole fossil) was produced by its rapid undersea burial. In most cases, as it describes in the article, it is rare that minerals replace soft tissues before they rot. The nodosaur is a type of Ankylosaur.


http://www.philly.com/philly/health/health-news/Dogs-Lyme-disease-ticks-sentinel-warning-humans-vet.html An article in Philly Inq. about how dogs can be used as indicators whither Lyme will be found next in humans. Although we don't catch Lyme from dogs, the tick bites humans and dogs from the tall grass where it lives. Since there is no foolproof blood test for Lyme and it is difficult to diagnose, modeling animal disease can help determine whether Lyme might be in the area. This study was done by North Carolina State U and is published in PLOSONE.
 http://media.philly.com/images/1200*800/05-17-Lyme-Map.gif

 https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/16/health/ivg-reproductive-technology.html  Article in NYT about the possible use of skin cells to produce babies, also known as in vitro gametogenesis. Researchers have published in Science Translational Medicine their objections to the implications for humans of this work which could potential produce babies from one parent.  Last year, researchers in Japan used IVG to make viable eggs from the skin cells of adult female mice, and produced embryos that were implanted into female mice, who then gave birth to healthy babies.


http://www.philly.com/philly/health/science/philly-museums-fossil-surgeon-reveals-ancient-past-20170519.html  This is an article from the Philly Inquirer about Fred Mullison of the Academy of Natural Sciences, a fossil surgeon who has built a cast of Tiktaalik Roseae from the Canadian Arctic. The fossil preparator was formerly a commercial photographer. Tiktaalik roseae, which resembles a fish, has muscular fins that allowed it to wriggle onto land for short stretches.



https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/20/opinion/sunday/donald-trump-vs-womens-health.html?_r=0 This is an article from the Sunday Review of the NYT about the problems of throwing people off of health insurance and cervical cancer. The US has one of the lowest cervical cancer survival rates in the developed world and is preventable. Trump is linking funding of some organizations that provide cervical cancer screening to their support and support for abortion so the problem of cervical cancer low survival numbers will increase.


https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/19/opinion/sunday/you-still-need-your-brain.html Also from the Sunday Review an article about the Googlization of reading. The brain is better than Google in determining context which is provided by one's memory but not internet dictionaries. Also, memorization is quicker than looking up things, like equations, on the internet. The brain beats the internet in terms of speed and context but the internet bests the brain in terms of volume.




https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/05/18/climate/antarctica-ice-melt-climate-change.html This is a report from the NYT from above the Ross Sea in Antarctica.  Billions of tons of ice every year move from the land to the sea, which was thought to be immutable. But, according to this article, scientists fear that parts of the Antarctic ice sheet may be in the stages of an "unstoppable disintegration." This disintegration could result in the need for millions of coastal refugees to flee their homes for safety inland.


http://time.com/4784029/ebola-outbreak-congo/ This is an article about a new outbreak of Ebola virus in the Congo. Due to a conflict in the Central African Republic and the remoteness of the area of the outbreak, it is difficult for WHO workers to respond to the cases and it make take weeks to begin treatment of those affected.




https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/19/climate/trump-epa-budget-superfund.html  Article about 2018 budget cuts at EPA which would reduce by 40% the funding for EPA employees involved in developing and overseeing environmental regulations and 25% the Superfund cleanup funds.The budget would also eliminate funding on twelve state-run programs to protect watersheds, including the Chesapeake Bay.




https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/21/health/sodium-bicarbonate-solution-critical-shortage-hospitals.html?_r=0 This is a NYT article about the shortage of sodium bicarbonate, found in most kitchens but also a necessary ingredient for open heart surgery.  Pfizer, the main supplier, shifted its distribution location but now its own suppliers are also running low. They attribute the shortage, which is causing surgeries to be postponed, to "a confluence of factors."


https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/22/well/family/pediatricians-say-no-fruit-juice-in-childs-first-year.html An article in the journal Pediatrics is recommending that children under the first year of life not be given fruit juice and furthermore that only four ounces of juice be given to one-to-three year olds. The idea is that consumption of fruit juice may cause babies to cut down on formula or breast milk, which are a preferred source of protein, fat, vitamins, minerals and calories. Parents are informed that whole fruit is preferable to juice and is a better source of fiber than juice. It is not certain whether the next U.S.D.A. guidance will forbid juice for infants based on these recommendations. But an agriculture department spokesman says that for the first time the very young will be included in the 2020 guidelines.