Smog Digest: April - May 2011
Smog digest is a news service on vehicular pollution based on news clippings selected from leading Indian newspapers and newsmagazine. It also highlights the key developments from South Asian countries.
News
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Unsafe Disposal of Child Faeces Harmful: Study
Despite Total Sanitation Campaign leading to increase in the number of households with toilet in the State, adoption of proper sanitation practices by the population still remains a far cry. While the
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Genetic code of a tree gets unlocked
Researchers have deciphered for the first time the genetic code of a tree, which could lead to new varieties better at producing wood, paper and fuel. The work could vastly increase cultivation of
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Astronauts in space at risk of premature aging: Study
Astronauts may be at increased risk of premature aging due to exposure to radiation found in space, suggests a study that could have major implications for long-duration space travel. The findings from the Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Centre at Georgetown University Medical Centre in US shows that astronauts may be at increased risk of colon cancer due to exposure to the high linear energy transfer (LET) radiation found in space. The study shows that the high-energy radiation found in space may also lead to premature aging and prolonged oxidative stress in cells.
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Smog Digest: January 2013
Smog digest is a news service on vehicular pollution based on news clippings selected from leading Indian newspapers and newsmagazine. It also highlights the key developments from South Asian countries.
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Radiation plume reaches US, but is said to pose no risk
Faint traces of very low levels of radiation from the stricken nuclear complex in Japan have been detected in Sacramento, European officials reported on Friday, bringing the distant atomic crisis to American shores for the first time. The readings, picked up by highly sensitive detectors set up to monitor clandestine nuclear blasts, were the first solid evidence of the leading edge of a lon
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Despite warnings, 3 vow to go ahead on human cloning
Despite warnings from leading experts that the experiments in human cloning would inevitably lead to babies that are deformed, or die soon after birth, a fertility doctor, a chemist and a
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Climate Change Rises On World Bank Agenda
Climate Change Rises On World Bank Agenda US: April 11, 2008 WASHINGTON - Climate change is now one of the World Bank's top concerns because of its expected impact on health and economic growth in developing countries, the bank's lead environmental economist said. Latin America, Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia are where global warming's damage will disproportionately be felt, and that makes it a key issue for the World Bank and other financial institutions aiming to foster development, said Kirk Hamilton, co-author of the Global Monitoring Report.
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Estimated exposure to arsenic in breastfed and formula-fed infants in a United States cohort
Previous studies indicate that breast milk arsenic concentrations are relatively low even in areas with high drinking water arsenic. However, it is uncertain whether breastfeeding leads to reduced infant
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Transport costs
Traffic pollution is known to cause chronic bronchitis and asthma, killing thousands every year. But that is not all. Simply living beside a busy road has its consequences. Particles in vehicular exhaust can stick to lungs for longer than was known, endanger the health of an unborn child, lead to joint pains and even trigger male infertility Stickier than glue Smoke from a chulha or
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Tighter laws needed on sale of DNA samples, says research chief
One of UK's leading scientists called on the government to draw up new laws to regulate companies that sell DNA samples which could be used to manufacture a biological weapon. Colin Blakemore, chief
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Health and the environment: addressing the health impact of air pollution
<p>Air pollution is the world's "largest single environmental risk", according to this “landmark resolution” passed at the World Health Assembly, which closed last week in Geneva. It highlights the key role of the national health authorities in raising awareness about the potential to save lives and reduce health costs, if air pollution is addressed effectively. </p>
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Mechanisms of heightened airway sensitivity and responses to inhaled SO2 in asthmatics
<p>Sulfur dioxide (SO2) is a problematic inhalable air pollutant in areas of widespread industrialization, not only in the United States but also in countries undergoing rapid industrialization, such as
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JR Kyushu to ban smoking in '07
Following the lead taken by its Hokkaido counterpart, which has completely banned smoking on limited express trains, Kyushu Railway Co. in Japan is also expected to ban smoking on its trains sometime
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Over 150 ill after food-poisoning
JAIPUR: Over 150 people belonging to the Behrupia tribe fell ill, at least 10 of them seriously, after having a feast at a social get-together in Jamdoli under Kanota police station area on Monday night. Officials said some of the milk-products items were contaminated leading to the food-poisoning. While most of them were discharged after primary treatment, others still were undergoing treatment till Tuesday evening.
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A warning against tech companies storing private health records
In an article in the New England Journal of Medicine, two leading researchers warn that the entry of big companies like Microsoft and Google into the field of personal health records could drastically alter the practice of clinical research and raise new challenges to the privacy of patient records. The authors, Dr. Kenneth Mandl and Dr. Isaac Kohane, are long-time proponents of the benefits of electronic patient records to improve care and help individuals make smarter health decisions.
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Warning on Storage of Health Records
In an article in The New England Journal of Medicine, two leading researchers warn that the entry of big companies like Microsoft and Google into the field of personal health records could drastically alter the practice of clinical research and raise new challenges to the privacy of patient records. The authors, Dr. Kenneth D. Mandl and Dr. Isaac S. Kohane, are longtime proponents of the benefits of electronic patient records to improve care and help individuals make smarter health decisions.
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Strengthening forest fire management in India
<p>Even as India has managed to increase its forest cover to over 20 per cent of its total geographical area, forest fires are a leading cause of degradation of the forest cover in the country says this new report released by the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change</p>
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World Bank picks 20 projects for $1,00,000 grant
Awardees include profit and not-for-profit firms in M.P., Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand The World Bank Institute awarded $2 million (Rs. 10.74 crores) to 20 organisations working in the sectors of financial inclusion, trafficking, health, education and livelihood. The grant of $ 100,000 (Rs. 53.7 lakhs) per project is to help these social enterprises expand in the States of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand. The awards were given by World Bank’s country director Onno Ruhl and Programme Lead (Development Marketplace) Drew von Glahn, at the 2013 India Development Marketplace held at the Indian Institute of Forest Management, here on Wednesday.
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The University of Michigan Dioxin Exposure Study: Population survey results and serum concentrations for polychlorinated dioxins
The University of Michigan Dioxin Exposure Study was undertaken to address concerns that the discharge of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs) and polychlorinated dibenzofurans