Most children and workers exposed to radioactive fallout from the Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear disaster on 11 March last year received reassuringly low doses of radiation, but some highly-exposed workers will need close monitoring for health problems in the future. That's the main conclusion of an interim report on the health impacts of fallout from Fukushima issued yesterday in Vienna by the UN Scientific Committee on the Effects of Atomic Radiation (UNSCEAR). "For the time being, we don't see anything of major concern," says Wolfgang Weiss, chairman of the committee of 70 scientists. "The levels of exposure are much lower than what we saw at Chernobyl." The committee evaluated data on how much radiation was released from the stricken plant, how much has been absorbed by ... Continue reading →
In Search of Virus Fossils Origin & Evolution of LifePosted: 10/17/11 Author: Michael Schirber Summary: Have viruses been around since life first appeared on Earth? To learn about the history of viruses, scientists are exploring whether salt beds and hot springs preserve viral signatures. This microscopic image shows as laboratory-grown evaporate crystal, similar to the ones that researchers will study for viral signatures. Credit: Jennifer Kyle Here's a theory for a comedian to consider: dinosaurs done-in by avian flu. Silly as that may be, we imagine that viruses have been infecting organisms since life first appeared on Earth, but this is mostly just a hunch. New research is studying whether special environments (not related to dinosaurs) could potentially preserve vestiges of ancient viruses. A census ... Continue reading →
Web My So-Called Quantified Life After tracking my walking, biking, drinking, and stress levels for weeks, I've learned I'm more a creature of habit than I thought. Thursday, May 24, 2012 By Rachel Metz What makes you tick: This screenshot shows data collected by Tictrac, including self-reported stress levels and the frequency of the user’s tweets. Rachel Metz Until recently, I didn't pay much attention to the data that makes up my life—how many steps I take each day or miles I bike each week, how often I update my Facebook status, feel stressed out, or have a drink. A growing group of people do track this sort of data as part of the "quantified self" movement—everything from mood ratings to exercise routines to sleeping ... Continue reading →
News | Energy & Sustainability Apocalypse Soon: Has Civilization Passed the Environmental Point of No Return? Although there is an urban legend that the world will end this year based on a misinterpretation of the Mayan calendar, some researchers think a 40-year-old computer program that predicts a collapse of socioeconomic order and massive drop in human population in this century may be on target By Madhusree Mukerjee | May 23, 2012 Image: flickr/Alexey Kudenko Remember how Wile E. Coyote, in his obsessive pursuit of the Road Runner, would fall off a cliff? The hapless predator ran straight out off the edge, stopped in midair as only an animated character could, looked beneath him in an eye-popping moment of truth, and plummeted straight down into a ... Continue reading →
