Good Food is First Food. It is not junk food. It is the food that connects nature and nutrition with livelihoods. This food is good for our health; it comes from the rich biodiversity of our regions; it provides employment to people. Most importantly, cooking and eating give us pleasure. …
According to a new study, mole rats often use wood as a "pollution mask' to avoid breathing fine dust. The mole rats, Heterocephalus glaber, place a wood shaving or tuber husk between their lips and protruding teeth. Paul Sherman of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, and his colleagues found …
It has long been believed that correcting genes in the womb is one of the best ways to treat congenital diseases. Studies on animals have included injection of modified viruses into amniotic fluid, maternal blood or the foetus. However, this has failed to deliver enough genes, sometimes even injuring the …
the World Health Organisation's (who) plans to eliminate seven major diseases may require more than us $7.5 billion, which the agency has budgeted. Some us officials claim that the programme could even soak up money from other programmes, harming public health. The who targets to eradicate diseases such as lymphatic …
In the recent years, scientists have employed diverse means to protect the environment, among which bioremediation has shown great potential as an effective method to clean up toxic wastes. But how do we know whether the genetically-modified bacteria that are used in this process are doing their job or not? …
despite the developments that have helped doctors understand and fortify the human cardiovascular system, medical science is still groping about blindly when it comes to one very crucial question: how to assess whether an individual will develop heart problems or not? But then predicting the future is never easy, and …
the very first advice that a heart patient is most likely to receive from the doctors and well-wishers is to cut down on salt intake. Public health experts have always maintained that we eat about three to four times more salt than what our bodies need. Close to 80 per …
on behalf of toy companies, the us government is fighting against the European Union's ( eu ) efforts to ban polyvinyl chloride ( pvc ) toys. The us commerce department has directed its diplomats to try and turn around several such bans already in effect. European countries are trying hard …
the use of catalytic converter has significantly contributed to the global warming, according to the Environmental Protection Agency ( epa ). For the last 20 years, these devices have extensively been used to reduce smog from cars. The device breaks down compounds of nitrogen and oxygen from car exhausts that …
Conservationists trying to restore the few remaining patches of prairie in the US have recently begun using fire to promote plant diversity. But new research shows that the technique will not work unless they add something else
Invading zebra mussels have colonised at least 2,000 sq km of soft sediment on the beds of the Great Lakes in the US, says a recent report. Till now, it was thought that these mussels could grow only on hard surfaces. Paul Berkman of Ohio State University, USA, says his …
cancer, the universally-dreaded disease, could soon be eradicated. In a recent development, scientists tested two new drugs they claim can cure laboratory mice injected with the disease. And if all goes well, the first cancer patient could be injected with these drugs well within a year. Some cancer experts say …
tens of millions of tuberculosis ( tb ) patients worldwide are facing a serious risk to their lives. They may succumb to the disease even before medical science comes up with a better vaccine or more effective antibiotic treatments. Barry Bloom of the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New …
it could finally be possible to prevent common cold, say researchers who claim to have figured out the molecular "handshake" that lets the cold viruses sneak into human cells. About 70 per cent of colds are caused by rhinoviruses. These invade cells in the respiratory tract after binding to a …
A radical new approach to the timed release of drugs is being patented by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology ( mit ), usa . It uses a tiny silicon microchip etched with thousands of microscopic pits, each filled with a dose of the drug to be administered. Each tiny pit …
A new genetic technology patented in the US that prevents germination of seeds saved from harvest, may pose serious problems for farmers. The new "Terminator' technology is potentially "lethal' and a global threat to farmers, biodiversity and food security. If commercially viable, the technology developed by the US Department of …
launch pads, manned colonies and perhaps even luxury sight-seeing tours. Yes, all this and more on the Moon - the most happening satellite ever since the us National Aeronautics and Space Administration (nasa) lunar probe discovered what the scientists had always expected our Moon to possess: plain, simple water. Only …
computers are becoming "literate". Using a recently developed software, home computers will now be able to access your writing skills. However, getting rid of critics might just take a little more time. Teachers benefit the most: grading student essays is far from getting tedious, say the developers of the software. …
try bringing order to a child's cupboard. You will soon realise that it inevitably moves from an ordered state to a disorderly one. This tendency is by no means restricted to cupboards. We encounter it all the time around us - a broken cup of coffee, mixing of milk in …
