All Stories by Ben Harder
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Calcium Makes Germs Cluster: Ion dilution leads cholera bacteria to disperse
A protein on the surface of cholera-causing bacteria enables the pathogens to clump together in seawater and to scatter when they enter fresh water, perhaps facilitating seasonal outbreaks of cholera in coastal areas.
- Earth
Seals’ meals, plastic pieces and all
Bite-size pieces of plastic chipped from wave-battered consumer products work their way up marine food chains, suggests a study of fur seals in Australia.
- Earth
Chicken Little? Study cites arsenic in poultry
Most chicken eaten in the United States contains 3 to 4 times as much arsenic as is present in other kinds of meat and poultry.
- Earth
Gulf War vets face elevated ALS risk
Two studies suggest that veterans of the 1991 Gulf War are at elevated risk of developing the fatal neurodegenerative condition amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) compared with other military personnel and with the general population.
- Health & Medicine
Cocoa puffs up insulin in blood
Eating foods flavored with cocoa powder as opposed to other flavorings stimulates surplus production of the sugar-processing hormone insulin, but the metabolic implications of the finding aren’t yet known.
- Earth
Toxic Controversy: Perchlorate found in milk, but risk is debated
Researchers in Texas have detected the chemical perchlorate in milk, crops, and a significant portion of the state's groundwater.
- Earth
Scrutinized chemicals linger in atmosphere
The newly determined longevity in the atmosphere of certain perfluorinated chemicals indicates that they may disperse environmental contamination far and wide.
- Health & Medicine
Timing That First Spoonful: Diabetes risk reflects when cereals enter infant diet
The timing of cereals' introduction into children's diets may affect their risk of developing type 1 diabetes, two studies suggest.
- Health & Medicine
One bug’s bane may be another’s break
People who carry pneumococcus bacteria in their nasal passages may be partially protected against having their noses colonized by Staphylococcus aureus.
- Health & Medicine
Drug combination unexpectedly flops
A combination of therapies that researchers anticipated would work well against HIV failed to stop the virus from replicating in more than half the volunteers who received it.
- Health & Medicine
Resistant staph spreads in communities
Antibiotic-resistant Staphylococcus aureus—once a problem limited mainly to health care settings—has become a menace in communities around the world.
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Toronto travelers wash their hands of disease
Air travelers in Toronto, which experienced an outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) outbreak earlier this year, are more likely to wash their hands after using public restrooms than are travelers in other major North American airports.
