Science & the Public

Humans

Germs’ persistence: Nothing to sneeze at

Years ago, I read (probably in Science News) that viruses can’t survive long outside their hosts. That implied any surface onto which a sneezed-out germ found itself — such as the arm of a chair, kitchen counter or car-door handle — would effectively decontaminate itself within hours to a day. A pair of new flu papers now indicates that although many germs will die within hours, none of us should count on it. Given the right environment, viruses can remain infectious — potentially for many weeks, one of the studies finds.

Animals

Lost to history: The “churk”

More than a half-century ago, researchers at the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center outside Washington, D.C., engaged in some creative barnyard breeding. Their goal was the development of fatherless turkeys — virgin hens that would reproduce via parthenogenesis. Along the way, and ostensibly quite by accident, an interim stage of this work resulted in a rooster-fathered hybrid that the scientists termed a churk.

Tech

Hooking fish, not endangered turtles

A tuna fisherman has taken it upon himself to make the seas safer for sea turtles, animals that are threatened or endangered with extinction worldwide. He’s designed a new hook that he says will make bait unavailable to marine birds and turtles until long after it’s sunk well below the range where these animals venture to eat.

Humans

Contrasting the concerns over climate and ozone loss

On November 7, ozone and climate scientists met in Washington, D.C., to discuss whether the history of stratospheric ozone protection offered a useful case study about how to catalyze global action on carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. The simple answer that emerged: No.

Humans

Infected bats can recover . . . with lots of help

Researchers reported new data today confirming that with enough coddling, many heavily infected bats can recover. The rub: These scientists also pointed out that there really aren’t sufficient resources to save more than a handful this way.

Humans

Sarah’s tale of Arctic warming

Over a half-century or so, Sarah James' town of some 150 Athabascan Indians has watched as the formerly extreme but fairly predictable climate in this amazingly remote region of inland Alaska has become warmer and more erratic. Overall, that’s definitely not been a change for the better, she says. James ventured to South Florida this week — and the Society of Environmental Journalists’ annual meeting — to describe what it’s like to weather life on the frontlines of climate change.

Humans

Really bad year for Arctic sea ice

On October 4, the National Snow and Ice Data Center posted information on its website indicating that the summer melt of sea ice in the Arctic, this year, approached — but did not quite match — the record set four years ago. A team of European scientists now concludes NSIDC underestimated those Arctic losses.

Humans

Study recalibrates trees’ carbon uptake

Photosynthesis appears to be somewhat speedier than conventional wisdom had suggested, a new study finds. If true, this suggests computer projections are at risk of overestimating the potential for trees to sop up carbon dioxide, a major greenhouse gas.

Humans

Arctic ozone: ‘Hole’ or just not whole?

This past spring, the Arctic stratosphere’s ozone layer suffered unprecedented depletion. But whether the record loss constituted a “hole” depends on which experts you consult.

Humans

BPA: What to make of pollutant-laced kids’ foods

The San Francisco-based Breast Cancer Fund has just released some provocative data on the presence of bisphenol A — a hormone-mimicking pollutant — in every brand-name canned food it tested.

Chemistry

HIPPO reveals climate surprises

A major pollution-mapping program that ends September 9 has turned up startling trends in climate-warming gases and soot.

Health & Medicine

Blacks far less likely than whites to land NIH grants

Among minority scientists applying for National Institutes of Health research grants, blacks alone face a substantially lower likelihood of being successful than whites, a new study finds. This investigation, which was prompted by the research agency itself, will catalyze further probes and a host of changes, promises NIH director Francis Collins.