Snap Observations: January 8, 2008
New findings suggest Greenland’s glaciers are melting faster than previously thought. The melting has some scientists worried because it could raise sea levels above previous predictions. In light of these findings, some have called for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change to revise its estimates on sea level increases made last year. The Arctic Council, which represents countries with territory bordering the arctic, commissioned a new study on this development to be completed in time for UN-sponsored climate talks scheduled for 2009.
A recent $19 million gift from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation highlights some of the difficulties in garnering support for medical research on diseases affecting the world’s poorest and most neglected people. The donation to the Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative will support research on a new drug for African sleeping sickness, a disease contracted from tsetse flies that infects about a 150,000 people a year and causes vivid hallucinations and eventually death in its victims. The hope is to have a viable drug by the year 2020. Previous intravenous treatments either proved too difficult to administer in rural Africa or were discontinued by the producers for lack of profitability.
Take a look at the little number stamped on the the nearest plastic water bottle. Depending on the number you see, reusing that bottle may pose a health risk by leeching undesirable chemicals into your water as the plastic wears out. But researchers and industry representatives don’t agree on the risks, and manufacturers aren’t forthcoming about the toxic metals that may appear in the materials.
Image credit: NASA.
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