Ben Harder

All Stories by Ben Harder

  1. Earth

    Stung Lung: Volatile chemical may cut respiratory capacity

    Para-dichlorobenzene, a chemical in some air fresheners and pest-control products, may slightly impair lung function in millions of people.

  2. Humans

    Named medical trials garner extra attention

    Naming a medical trial with an acronym increases the frequency with which other researchers subsequently cite the study.

  3. Agriculture

    Demand for Ethanol May Drive Up Food Prices

    The production of ethanol from corn and other crops for fuel could drive up food prices.

  4. Humans

    Close Your Books: Cuts, shutdowns loom for EPA libraries

    Some regional libraries maintained by the Environmental Protection Agency will permanently shut their doors because of a proposed cut to their funding.

  5. Health & Medicine

    In utero factors shape responses to stress, sugar

    Abnormal conditions during pregnancy can lead in unexpected ways to physiological problems in children once they reach adulthood.

  6. Health & Medicine

    Thyroid-hormone mimic lowers LDL

    A compound in a new class of potential anti-cholesterol drugs has passed an early test in people.

  7. Anthropology

    Did small hominids have a genetic defect?

    Miniature humans whose prehistoric remains were recently unearthed on an Indonesian island may have had a genetic disease known as Laron syndrome.

  8. Health & Medicine

    Growth hormone’s risks outweigh its benefits

    Human growth hormone has substantial risks and no functional benefits for healthy, elderly people.

  9. Earth

    The Long Burn: Warming drove recent upswing in wildfires

    Major forest fires in the western United States have become more frequent and destructive over the past two decades, in step with rising average temperatures in the region.

  10. Health & Medicine

    Lavender Revolution: Plant essences linked to enlarged breasts in boys

    Two natural ingredients in many hair- and skin-care products act like a female sex hormone and can cause abnormal breast development in boys.

  11. Humans

    With permission to nap, doctors stay more alert

    Allowing doctors-in-training who are on call to hand off to another doctor the pager that summons them to the next patient increases the amount of sleep they get and reduces their fatigue.

  12. Health & Medicine

    A Vexing Enigma

    While no drug or lab test is approved to treat or diagnose chronic fatigue syndrome, new research into the biology of the disorder may begin to shed light on the problem.