Showing posts with label science. Show all posts
Showing posts with label science. Show all posts
Water found in the moon
Is there water in the moon? Now it can be said, there is. It took painstaking work for scientists to answer the age-old question. The NASA spacecraft which crashed on the moon surface last month disclosed the presence of water---- at least 25 gallons disturbed by the aircraft’s impact in the shadowy southern polar fringes of the heavenly body closest to earth. Anthony Colaprete, the mission's principal investigator at NASA's Ames Research Center was elated to report the find.
“The mission actually involved two moon shots. First, an empty rocket hull slammed into the Cabeus crater. A shepherding spacecraft recorded the drama live before it also crashed into the same spot four minutes later.
Though scientists were overjoyed with the plethora of data beamed back to Earth, the mission was a public relations dud. Space enthusiasts who stayed up all night to watch the spectacle did not see the promised debris plume in the initial images… Scientists spent a month analyzing data from the spacecraft's spectrometers, instruments that can detect strong signals of water molecules in the plume.”----AP (11/13/09 Chang, A.)
The implications of finding significant water are great. The moon is not barren and dry. Not only will this information change the way scientists study the earth’s neighbor, it gives greater possibility of creating a lunar space station needed for future space explorations.
With the presence of water, the chance of finding living organisms is greater--- a step towards understanding the nature of the solar system. It is interesting to know where the lunar water comes from and quantify how much there is. (Photo Credit: AFP/ NASA) =0=
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Smoking ban decreases heart attack rates
Researchers who analyzed studies of smoking ban and its effect on the rate of heart attacks revealed that in communities in America, Canada, and Europe where smoking ban was implemented, a 17% decline in heart attack rate was noted after a year.
Compared to those without smoking restrictions, communities enforcing smoking ban achieved 36% reduction of heart attacks after a three year period. The decrease in heart attacks in time was reported in the journal Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association.
The findings are consistent with the American Heart Association's Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics 2009 data that non-smokers subjected to secondhand smoke at home or in the workplace have a 25 to 30 percent higher chance of contracting heart disease. This adverse effect of smoking do not include respiratory diseases that are linked with the habit.
"This study adds to the already strong evidence that secondhand smoke causes heart attacks, and that passing 100 percent smoke-free laws in all workplaces and public places is something we can do to protect the public,…Now we have a better understanding of how you can predict what will happen if you impose a smoking-free law."--- James M. Lightwood, Ph.D., adjunct professor, Department of Clinical Pharmacy at the University of California-San Francisco. www. consumeraffairs.com ( 09/22/09, Limback, J.) (Photo Credit: cbc.ca) =0=
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Nepenthes attenboroughii: tanom na na-nga-ngakan nin kino, aninipot, sagkod amamangui
“An dahon kan burak naserbing higda’an nin sarong nobya na ang Amang Diyos iyo an na-guibo---kurtina na pano nin olor, malumoy na mga hamot…”---Carl Linnaeus (1707-1778)
Naturaleza nin Kinaban
Talagang may mga tanom na na-nga-ngakan nin mga hayop. Haloy ng nadiskubre iyan--- panahon pa ni Carl Linnaeus. Tubong Uppsala, Sweden, gikan sa Unibersidad de Lund asin Harderwijk (Netherlands), si Linnaeus sarong mahigos na maestro. Siya nagpa-uso kan pag-adal, pag-grupo (taxonomic classification), pagdiskubri nin mga tinanom sa kinaban. Prominenteng nag-contribuir sa sciencia nin Botaniya. Saro sa mga enot na scientipikong nag-tukdo sa pag-apreciar kan kagayunan nin azul na planeta.
Experiencia sa Pilipinas
Kan tiempong Hapon an mga soldados na Amerikano tinukdu'an kun paano mabuhay sa kadlagan nin Pilipinas habang ang guerra ipinaglalaban. Inaram ninda ang mga tinanom sa gubat na pwedeng kakanon, mga yierbas na dapat dulagan ta nakakalason o tanom na na-nga-ngakan nin hayop o tawo!
Ang Amerikano natakot sa mga plantas na karneboro. Paglakaw ninda sa kadlagan, pirme sindang handa! Ang saindang sundang pirmeng matarom, an badil naka-kasa ingkaso. Arog sa takot sa halas o linta, ang mga guerrero maingat na naglikay. Kaipuhan ninda sa sobrevivir (survival) sa marambong na kagubatan.
An tanom na pitsil
Sa www.popsci.com, kan naka-aguing bulan, nabasa ko ang mga Nepenthes, sarong grupo nin plantas na natutuparan sa kadlagan kan Pilipinas. Sarong pagpaguiromdom nin natural na yaman kan satuyang isla sa Asia na dapat tang atamanon.
Si Stewart McPherson sagkod si Alistair Robinson, mga Britanikong dalubhasa (botanists) nin mga plantas nag-anuncio na pinangaran ki Sir David Attenborough (personalidad sa telebisyon, sarong mahilig man sa flora,) an misteriosong tanom sa kagubatan sa satuyang lugar----Nepenthes attenboroughii. Pambihira ang tanom na ini, pero magayon. Maka-nga-ngalas! Uyogon mo, na-nga-ngakan nin kino sagkod alibangbang!
Hilinga ang ang kagayunan kan Nepenthes sa mga retrato. An hitsura garo pitsil na nakolektang tubig sa ambon, ragiri, sagkod uran kan kagubatan. Makolor. Igua siya nin mahamis na taguk na gusto nin animales. Kun mapano ang pitsel kan Nepenthes nin tubig, nakakalamos ini nin mga namok, tanga, aninipot, gamo-gamo, paru-paro, kuto, mga bubuyog atbp.
Pag ang mga insekto nagadan sa pitsil, si sustansiya kan tinanom iyo ang nalusaw kan saradit na hayop. An proceso siempre luway-luway, hanggang mahigop kan Nepenthes an restos asin sustansiya kan mga insekto.
Tan’o ta maski ma-ulyas na kino pwedeng kakanon kan tinanom na ini? Kun an pistil kan Nepenthes dakula, an tubig hararom, pwedeng ang babu, halas, gamgam o ano man na hayop na daradakula mala’om sa pistil. Pwede sindang magkagaradan arog kan mga sadit na duli-duli sagkod mga amamangui.(Photo Credito Red Fern Natioal History/ www.popsci.com x 2)=0=
Nepenthes attenboruoughii among 120 species
Found in the remote mountain in Palawan, Philippines, Nepenthes attenboroughii was discovered in 2007 and was officially named this year after naturalist and TV personality David Attenborough. The plant enthusiast featured the species in his TV series Zoo Quest and also The Private Life of Plants in 1995. It’s one among 120 diverse species so far described by botanist-taxonomist Stewart McPherson in the last three years. About 30 of them are encountered in Palawan, most of them have not been fully studied and described in publcation.
The carnivorous plant produces enzymes that dissolve small mice and insects in a pitcher-like receptacle. The only pitcher plant larger than N. attenboroughii is N. rajah which British naturalist Spencer St John observed in Borneo to have drowned and digested a rodent in 1862.=0=
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Man-made organism opens questions on the limits of genomic science
Controversial scientist Dr. Craig Venter, the noted American biologist who tinkers with the genetic code has announced scientists are on the verge of making a synthetic bacterium from a combination of genetic splices from certain organisms. Speaking from the J. Craig Venter Research Institute in Maryland, the visionary of genomic investigations said researchers have figured to circumvent a key obstacle in the production of simple biologic agents.
Venter says “within months” a vital breakthrough in gene manipulation will unfold to give way to the first man-made species of organism. His team brings a lot of hope to advance research and the potential uses of the genetic engineering. But it also summons doubts.
Laboratory-created organisms can be prodded to make antibiotics and vaccines to combat diseases. With synthetic biologic agents, researchers can build enzymes to fight pollution. A man-made species of algae can be tasked to gobble up pollutants and chemical debris in the ocean floor. Scientists can use tailored bacteria to produce drugs, proteins, and biologic agents of myriad uses.
Venter's Man-Made Organism & Curie's Radioactive Radium
The development of an artificial organism is akin to what Warsaw-born Nobel prize awardee Marie Curie came to know when she bumped on the uses of radium during her studies in a makeshift laboratory in Paris, France. As a result of her astounding scientific work, the radioactive materials became a beneficial agent to diagnose and fight cancer as we know today.
However, radium’s unleashed energy Curie understood, was the basis of something sinisterly horrific---like the dreaded nuclear bomb which killed untold number of innocent people in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Since then, the specter of the misuse of uranium energy stalked the survival of people.
Like radium and uranium research during Curie’s time, Venter’s technology, is not error-proof. With the good uses of their discoveries, comes danger which may put the human race in jeopardy. At present, relying mostly on suppposed credibility, there are very few regulations to oversee the safety of how scientists like Venter keep and manipulate the genetic code of living things. They practically have no accountability. Few people know how their new-found knowledge will be applied and where their discoveries will lead to.
Polar Uses of Scientific Research
While we focus on the positive sides of scientific researches, the experimentations on the basic unit of life can bring “angels” and “devils” flying. In spite of the assurances that studies are safe and are undertaken for “peaceful” purposes only, there is a cause of concern. Whether we are inspired by the universal benefits of these researches or we are stirred by self-gratification, there are moral and ethical questions that we have to grapple. To make an living organism is an ambitious science. Are we playing God?
The synthesized organism can generate precursors of deadly organisms that terrorists will love to get in waging a biologic warfare. On the other hand, it can produce disease-fighting immunoglobulins that can prevent or cure some of the world’s worst afflictions.
God silently watch over man’s folly and fancy. Without proper regulations and oversight, the production of synthetic organisms can be our next Pandora’s box. It teems with benevolent and evil surprises. =0=
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Reconciling dental records and the identity of Ruby Rose Jimenez
In forensic investigations which involve dental records, usually, identification of human remains is not difficult. The landmarks of a person’s teeth and jawbone are unique that when x-rays are compared, the match or mismatch is easily evident. The dentition, the relation of the teeth to the bones, and presence of cavities, dental fillings and appliance are usually enough.
Apparently, this is not the case of a woman found in a steel drum on June 10, 2009. The conflicting report of the National Police and pathologists Dr. Raquel Fortun and Dr. Danilo Magtanong of the University of the Philippines on the identity of suspected murder victim Ruby Rose Barrameda Jimenez is marred by questions on the inconsistency of the dental findings. The controversy casts doubt on the competence of our investigators.
According to Magtanong, the dental charts failed to match because the body had ”a first molar and a missing third molar while Ruby Rose’s 1996 records indicated she had no first molar. “
That is not hard to understand. If such findings are true (barring tampering,) then that skull or jawbone is not that Ruby Rose. Surely, there are other unique features of the remains that may be used to help corroborate the conclusion. This is of paramount importance for any error can bring someone to answer a crime.
The unfortunate tug-of-war among forensic “experts’ has caused tremendous embarrassment and loss of credibility among our investigators. Those in the crime laboratory need not challenge the public about giving up their licenses if only to prove that they are correct in their findings. They must focus on the evidence using the tools of forensic science to arrive at the right conclusion. (Photo Credit: rontgen1) =0=
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Robot fish in London Aquarium
It took three years for scientists from Essex University to make a new version of robotic fish which is now on display in a tank in London Aquarium. The carp-like contraption with improved artificial intelligence swims with the aid of self-moving sensors and controls, bringing delight to visitors.
"This work has many real-world applications, including seabed exploration, detecting leaks in oil pipelines, mine countermeasures, and improving the performance of underwater vehicles," project leader Huosheng Hu told the Associated Press. ---http://news.nationalgeographc.com/news/2005/
Propelled by battery which lasts about 5 hours, the fish is 50 x 15 x 12 cm. and comes with an undulating body and shiny scales. Three of the mechanical fish, supposed to be the smartest and most lifelike, will live with real ones. A competition is set for children to give them their names.(Photo Credit: Adrian and Sarah x 2) =0=
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Obama’s stem cell research policy: the use of embryonic cells from helpless unborn sparks religious debate
As a sign of the moral dilemma and political divide rocking the United States, Pres. Barack Obama reverses the Bush-era stem cell policy that protects the embryo from being used as a tool in finding treatments and cures for illnesses. It is one of the many secularist liberal thrusts of the new administration.
The contentious decision is a triumph for those who want effective treatments against diverse illnesses like cancer, stroke, heart attack, and Parkinson's disease. However, it is a set-back for the outspoken anti-abortion groups and pro-lifers who believe that life starts at conception and therefore the unborn is deserving of social protection.
“Embryonic stem cells are master cells that can morph into any cell of the body. Scientists hope to harness them so they can create replacement tissues to treat a variety of diseases — such as new insulin-producing cells for diabetics, cells that could help those with Parkinson's disease or maybe even Alzheimer's, or new nerve connections to restore movement after spinal injury. But they come with criticism. "I believe it is unethical to use human life, even young embryonic life, to advance science," said Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council, a conservative organization that opposes the move.”:----Yahoo News/ AP (03/08/09, Eliot, J)
Obama is criticized by conservatives for approving the use of embryos in stem cell research to be funded by tax payers’ dollars. But his supporters believe curing sickness and allaying suffering take precedence over the welfare of the embryo. The advocates of the new policy are part of the rising number of Americans who believe that life without maladies is possible. They hope the words "incurable" and "terminal" may one day be banished from the vocabulary.
"This action is morally wrong because it encourages the destruction of innocent human life, treating vulnerable human beings as mere products to be harvested," said Cardinal Justin Rigali, the Archbishop of Philadelphia and Chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' Committee on Pro-Life Activities"----Yahoo News/ AP (03/09/09, Gorski, E)
There are those who believe that the public funding of embryonic stem research is a paradoxical prelude to setting up of a healthcare policy which will use less costly medical services to the aged and the severely ill----a radical triage plan which favors more care for people who are young and productive over those who are old, and disabled.
Despite the advance of modern science and temptations to hasten social engineering, life must be respected at the start of conception. Having seen abortion and selective pregnancies done in the America first hand, I don’t concur with Obama’s stance to use the cells of developing embryos in research investigations.
Though I may well benefit from embyronic stem cells because of my illness and disability, on ethical and religious grounds, I believe researches must find a way to spare the embryo. Life in its early form has been redefined, used and abused to suit certain socio-political agenda. The growing embryo deserves equality, dignity, and protection from society just like any human being.
“Princeton University politics professor Robert George, a Catholic and another member of the Bush-era Council on Bioethics, said the moral argument over embryonic stem cell research is not rooted in religion but in ethics and equality. He said research shows that an embryo is a human being in its earliest form of development, so we have to ask ourselves whether all human life should be treated equally, with dignity and respect. “----Yahoo News/ AP (03/09/09, Gorski, E)
Convenience, easing suffering, prologation of life, and escaping mortality must not be done at the expense of others in society. From the vantage of science, embyronic stem cell research is not the only way to find cures against life-threatening and debilitating illness.
It’s my belief that individuals and governments have no ethical right to use cells of helpless embryos to advance the conveniences of the strong even if the need is pressing. Though cures from stem cells may one day be realized with the use of the conceptus, humanity can’t escape the changes that go with something as natural as sickness and ageing---all that leads to dying and demise. (Photo Credits: California Institute for Regenerative Medicine x 2)=0=
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The Ebola-Reston virus scare in the Philippines
Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever
There was panic and alarm when Ebola virus first emerged as a fatal bleeding disease in Congo (Zaire) in 1978. Similar outbreaks in neighboring countries in Africa occured. Transmitted mainly by body fluids, the acute infection (aka Ebola hemorrhagic fever, EHF) of the Filoviridae family of RNA viruses presented like a typical viral infection--- fever, headache, joint and muscle pain, sore throat, and weakness after an incubation of 2 to 21 days. Some manifested with a skin rash, conjunctival injection, diarrhea, vomiting, stomach pain, internal and external bleeding.
There were those who survived and spontaneously recovered, but many with severe infections showed signs of hemorrhage, fluid loss, shock, and eventual death. EHF is feared because it is highly transmissible and carries a high mortality rate.
Reported cases of EHF have been zoonotic infections (animal borne.) A potential agent of bioterrorism, Ebola can present as a nosocomial infection, a disease contracted in hospitals and medical facilities during an outbreak. The exact origin, location, and natural habitat (known as the "natural reservoir") of Ebola virus aren't fully known. This makes containment of the infection difficult.
The first 4 of the 5 subtypes of Ebola is known to cause disease in humans: Ebola-Zaire, Ebola-Sudan, Ebola-Ivory Coast and Ebola-Bundibugyo. The virulence and lethality of these viral strains are suggested by World Health Organizations's (WHO) containment recommendations below. EHF has no known vaccine nor specific cure.
WHO's containment of Ebola
•Suspected cases should be isolated from other patients and strict barrier nursing techniques implemented.
•Tracing and following up people who may have been exposed to Ebola through close contact with patients are essential.
•All hospital staff should be briefed on the nature of the disease and its transmission routes. Particular emphasis should be placed on ensuring that invasive procedures such as the placing of intravenous lines and the handling of blood, secretions, catheters and suction devices are carried out under strict barrier nursing conditions (biohazard.) Hospital staff should have individual gowns, gloves, masks and goggles. Non-disposable protective equipment must not be reused unless they have been properly disinfected.
•Infection may also spread through contact with the soiled clothing or bed linens from a patient with Ebola. Disinfection is therefore required before handling these items.
•Communities affected by Ebola should make efforts to ensure that the population is well informed, both about the nature of the disease itself and about necessary outbreak containment measures, including burial of the deceased. People who have died from Ebola should be promptly and safely buried. --- World Health Organization (WHO)
WHO's therapy and treatment of Ebola
• Severe cases require intensive supportive care, as patients are frequently dehydrated and in need of intravenous fluids or oral rehydration with solutions containing electrolytes.
• No specific treatment or vaccine is yet available for Ebola haemorrhagic fever. Several potential vaccines are being tested but it could be several years before any is available. A new drug therapy has shown some promise in laboratory studies and is currently being evaluated. But this too will take several years.
• Experimental studies using hyper-immune sera on animals have shown no protection against the disease. ---World Health Organization (WHO)
Ebola Reston virus in the Philippines
"In 1989, Reston, an Ebola virus subtype, was isolated in quarantined laboratory cynomolgus monkeys (Macacca fascicularis) in Reston, Virginia, USA. From 1989 to 1996, several outbreaks caused by the Ebola Reston subtype occurred in monkeys imported from the Philippines to the USA (Reston in Virginia, Alice in Texas and Pennsylvania) and to Italy. Investigations traced the source of all Ebola Reston outbreaks to one export facility near Manila in the Philippines, but the mode of contamination of this facility was not determined. Several monkeys died, and at least four people were infected, although none of them suffered clinical illness."---World Health Organization (WHO)
The Ebola-Reston (ERV,) the fifth subtype of the virus was first found in Philippine monkeys. It has caused disease in primates, but not in humans. Mainly because this that local health authorities seem to be “in control” over the simmering Ebola outbreak that has infected pigs in Pandi, Bulacan.
To make sure the ERV doesn't spread to the general population, the Philippine government in coordination with the World Health Organization (WHO) is on the process of slaughtering 6,000 infected pigs. So far no person has been reported to have fallen ill of the disease, but there are 6 farm workers and butchers who turned positive for Ebola antibodies. This is surely a cause of concern.
In spite the Department of Health's (DOH) effort to contain the disease, nobody knows the extent ERV has spread in the country at this time. It is unclear which other animal species harbor the disease agent and need isolation or killing. Philippine health authorities can only speak of what they know---that a number of pigs and some individuals were proven to be positive for antibodies--- which means they encountered the virus without suffering signs of illness.
With the potential to mutate and acquire virulence, Ebola-Reston can be transmitted to susceptible hosts and become infective to more animals and humans. Though ERV doesn’t cause disease in healthy individuals, it’s unclear what happens if the virus infects people with weak immunity or those sick of debilitating illnesses. That’s why to avoid epidemics, isolation or euthanasia of infected animals (like in the Avian Flu infection) are high in the list of priorities.
Awareness of the disease is enhanced through step-up public health education. Cleanliness is important. There is heightened watch over the sale of “double-dead” meat that may carry the disease agent. As a precaution, testing for ERV is expanded and export of porcine meat to other countries has been halted.
The strategies to combat ERV is complex and tedious. Despite DOH’s monitoring and vigilance, medical workers have to deal with the challenges of a serious health threat whose outcome is just starting to unravel. The danger of Ebola doesn't only rest on the Philippines, but on the entire world as well. It's a global effort that this disease is nipped on the bud. (Photo Credit: [][][][][]/ www.bio.davidson.edu /KeeAun)=0=
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New frogfish species found in Indonesia
A newly discovered odd frogfish called “psychedelica” which according to a University of Washington biology professor is a member of the antennariid genus, Histiophryne is discovered in Indoensia. The fish looks odd. Its pectoral fins on the underside appear like legs and its skin is covered by coral-like dendritic stripes which probably serve as a disguise in its biodiverse tropical habitat.
The colorful inhabitant of shallow waters is said to bounce like a rubber ball. It has a gelatinous fist-sized body covered with thick folds of skin that protect it from sharp-edged corals. It also has a flat face with eyes directed forward, like humans, and a huge, yawning mouth.---- Yahoo.News/ AP (02/28/09, McDowell, J)
Encountered in Ambon Island in Eastern Indonesia by scuba divers, the mustard-colored fish with cerulean blue eyes was reported by Ted Pietsch, in a paper which appeared in a recent publication of Copeia, the journal of the American Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists. A genetic study recognized this fish to be a new species. (Photo Credit: AP/ seaphotos.com/ David Hall)
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Medicine & Religion: Is confession a potent balm against major diseases in RP?
Dr. Francisco Duque III, the secretary of the Department of Health (DOH) reportedly said a staggering 80% of Filipinos are suffering from non-communicable diseases (NCDs) “due to unhealthy lifestyle.” The doctor goes on to say that to combat cardiovascular illnesses, cancers, and diabetes, people have to go to church and make regular “confession.” I find his religious recommendation oddly misleading. It needs clarification.
“Among those considered as NCDs are cardiovascular diseases, cancer, and diabetes. Duque said the three are now among the major health problems in the country. Duque said one way to address this problem is for the people to go on regular confession." I suggest that they go to church to pray and confess their sins because its one way of managing”----GMANewTV.net (02/16/09)
It isn’t unusual to blame stress as a cause of sickness. Though stress goes with almost all diseases, its role is often indirect, sometimes obscure, in many organic diseases. As far as science is concerned, most illnesses have underlying pathogenetic bases whose roles are generally far-reaching than the effects of stress.
Heart diseases are related to high fat diet, sedentary lifestyle, and smoking. Diabetes mellitus may have an autoimmune basis but can come with risk factors like obesity, lack of exercise, and genetics. Certain cancers are triggered by stepwise mutations (alterations in the DNA) that generate clones of abnormal cells that invade, metastasize, and eventually kill the body. In all these, stress plays a role, albeit less strongly than what is suggested by Dr. Duque.
The act of confession (reconciliation) taught by certain religions is not shared by all believers. Confessing sins to a priest by the Catholics has markedly dwindled in recent years. Dr. Duque may encounter criticism and opposition in recommending the holy sacrament to prevent non-communicable diseases. There are non-faith based treatments in medicine which are more predictable and efficacious.
Stress is part of the normal challenges of daily living. Not all people who go through significant emotionally disruptive situations get ill in the process. Sick and healthy individuals, suffer from harrowing conditions in varying degrees. As such the roles of stress in every illness are hard to quantify; their effects on the body aren’t uniformly the same.
I believe emotion plus the working of the mind, and the entire body equilibrium are influenced by stress more than it affects specific organs of the body. It is probably the reason why religion, spirituality, a belief in the supernatural, exercise, meditation, and relaxation regimens have some roles to play in disease management. The mechanisms behind their healing properties aren't fully understood.
Yet, medical science offers credible explanations in disease causation and treatment. Illnesses can be attributed to causes like direct physical injuries, infections, cancers, immunologic conditions, hormonal swings, metabolic derangements, nutritional deficiencies, hereditary disorders, chemical, drug and radiation exposures, poisonings, among others.
Stress is only one among the long list. Therefore, “confession” as Dr. Duque suggested may help in being healthy, preventing sickness, and going through an illness and subsequent recuperation. But surely, we need to account for greater ways to fight diseases more than what have been recommended by the standard and complementary approaches of medicine. This is important in the holistic way of maintaining the health of the nation.(Photo Credits: denislpaul; sacerdotal) =0=
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Fecund birth and elderly parturition
The arrival of a baby is one of the happiest moments of a family. It is even happier for the Duggar family in Arkansas that welcomes Jordyn-Grace Makiya, a 7 pound, 3 ounces baby girl, the 18th member of the brood. Jim Bob Duggar and wife Michele who are devoted to parenting have now 10 sons and eight daughters. “The ultimate gift from God,” said the ecstatic father whose baby was born by caesarean section (CS) on Thursday, December 18, 2008 at Mercy Medical Center in Rogers, AK.
In India, a similarly happy couple celebrates the birth of their healthy daughter after a pregnancy that was made possible by fertility treatment. At 70 years old, two decades beyond the usual age of menopause, Rajo Devi delivered by CS at the National Fertility Center in Hisar, India, Monday, Dec. 8, 2008. She and husband Bala Ram, 72, had been trying to have a baby for about ten years in a community which bears stigma on childless couples.
Because of modern technology, changing cultural norms, and individual preferences, more couples like the Duggars and the Rams are able to decide on unusual choices of family size and age of childbearing. It is unclear what these choices will bring to their children of the future. (Photo Credit: AP/ Beth Hall; AP /Devendra Uppal) =0=
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From the frontiers of space, an explanation of a sky glow seen 436 years ago
Using the distant echoes of light from a thermonuclear flare which an ancient Dutch astronomer witnessed in November 1572, scientists were able to make a composite picture of the event. Astronomer Tycho Brahe described the enigmatic glow in the heavens. He thought it was a new star in the Cassiopeia constellation.
Scientists arrived at an explanation of “SN1572,” the luminescent body which was first seen and documented by Brahe 436 years ago before it faded in the sky. Scientists from Europe and Japan confirmed it was supernova, an old exploding star.
“Supernovae are the explosions of aging stars, that produce enough light to outshine entire galaxies for a few weeks. They are important scientifically because they seed the universe with heavy elements, providing the raw material for successive generations of new stars. The very well defined luminosity of type-Ia supernova also makes them ideal “standard candles”, allowing astronomers, by comparing their observed and actual luminosities, to gauge distances within the universe and thereby chart the cosmic rate of expansion.“ Physicsworld.com (12/03/08, Cartlidge, E)
The interesting findings of the Tycho Brahe’s supernova are important in the understanding of aging stars--- the past, present, and future of the universe in general. Photo Credit: Nasa/AP)=0=
A sugary delight in the outer fringes of the Milky Way
In the outer reaches of our galaxy where the condition is less hostile and potentially habitable, a basic sugar has been detected by scientists. This makes seekers of extra-terrestial life ecstatic. The monosaccharide sugar called glycoldehyde is a molecule on which ribonucleic acid (RNA,) a biochemical construct of life, can originate.
"This is an important discovery as it is the first time glycolaldehyde, a basic sugar, has been detected towards a star-forming region where planets that could potentially harbor life may exist,"---reported Serena Viti of University College London---Wired Science Network (11/26/08, Moskowitz, C)
The discovery of the glycolaldehyde in the outer rim of the Milky Way galaxy, about 26 million light years away from earth, generates more curiosity and effort from researchers to seek life outside our planet. From the gaseous eerie clouds of outerspace, the building elements of life such as carbon, oxygen, hydrogen and nitrogen are studied in the hope that an incovertible evidence of life outside earth will be discovered. (Photo Credit: TQWestphal;Wired Science Network:=0=
RELATED BLOG: "Mars Exploration: Inching Its Way To Find The Ultimate Proof Of Life" Posted by mesiamd at 7/18/2008.
A fresh look at longevity as a supercentenarian dies
Edna Parker, the 115 year and 220 day old American woman, the world’s oldest person died, says the Gerontology Research Group in Los Angeles, California. The Indiana woman who lived in a nursing home followed the passing on August 13, 2007 of the Japanese Yone Minagawa, the Guinness World Book of Records title holder for the oldest person before Parker.
Both persons qualify as “supercentenarians” for having lived beyond 110 years old. It is believed that currently there are 89 supercentenarians worldwide among whom 79 are women and 10 are men.
An amazing Frenchwoman who lived for 122 years
“Jeanne Louise Calment was born in Arles, France on February 21, 1875 and died on August 4, 1997. She once met Vincent Van Gogh in her father's shop. Her genes may have contributed to her longevity as her father lived to the age of 94 and her mother to the age of 86. She married a distant cousin at the age of 21. Her only grandson died in 1963. She rode a bicycle to the age of 100.
In October of 1995, much press coverage announced that Jeanne had exceeded the lifespan of Shigechiyo (Chigechiyo) Izumi, who until then had held the claim to the longest lived human. In fact, work by John Wilmoth indicates that Izumi may have only been 105 when he died, meaning that Jeanne may have outlived Izumi in 1980. If that is accurate, Jeanne would have become the longest lived human in 1991 when she exceeded the longevity of Carrie White, who died at the age of 116.”---Source: ww.wowzone.com
Increasing longevity of people has been a source of fascination of modern society. It is mainly attributed to better healthcare, control of illnesses by science, improved diet and life-style. With a normal maximum life-span of about 120 years, people are enthused by the prospect of extending years of survival or achieving immortality.
Researchers are finding ways of extending longevity, but others are questioning whether a longer life is better than having a shorter one that is meaningful and relatively free of protracted suffering. Ethicists mull on the morality of prolonging survival using means that are controversial. For instance, they struggle on the moral questions on using helpless human embryos in an effort to cure diseases and extend life. (Photo Credits: Ollik; AP/Darron Cummings; www.wowzone.com; [][][][])=0=
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Science and the Mind of God
There is equanimity between Pope Benedict XVI and British cosmologist Stephen Hawkings when they briefly met on Friday, October 31, 2008 in a conference sponsored by the Pontifical Academy of Sciences. In the meeting whose theme was "Scientific Insights into the Evolution of the Universe and of Life," the 81 year-old supreme leader of the Catholic Church and the reknown astro-physics professor of Cambridge seem to agree on God.
Wheel-chair bound and stricken by a severe debilitating neuro-muscular disease called amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS,) Hawkings, author of the book “A Brief History of Time” said:
“"I believe the universe is governed by the laws of science….The laws may have been decreed by God, but God does not intervene to break the laws."
For his part Pope Benedict XVI said, ""There is no opposition between faith's understanding of creation and the evidence of the empirical sciences." Reuters-Yahoo.com (10/31/08 Stewarts, P; Bosley E)
The continuing dialogue of religion and science continues as humanity tries to understand its origin and the purpose of the cosmos. The Catholic Church accepts the theory of evolution as part of God’s plan for the universe and maintains there is no contradiction between faith and empirical science.
By itself, science is profound and has done astounding progress to advance mankind through the ages, yet the concept of God can even be greater. For all the wonders of human discovery, the mind of God may be way beyond what science can possibly comprehend. (Photo Credits: by www.joysf; Vatican; Ossevatore Romano; Reuters)=0=
China's Shenzhou-7 spacecraft, its melamine-contaminated milk & RP’s incapacity to do lab tests
The Beijing Space Command and Control Center announced the successful space walk of astronaut Zhai Zhigang who carried a Chinese flag outside the orbit module. The proud news of being the third country to ever do such a feat in space is bogged by the worsening embarrassment from the sale of melamine-tainted milk which sickened more than 53,000 children (mostly in China,) and blamed for the death of at least 4 people. Melamine-related illnesses had been reported in Taiwan, Shanghai, and Hong Kong.
The Chinese adulterated milk has crept into other dairy and food products including the popular “white rabbit” candies, chocolates, ice-cream, yoghurt, pastries and confectioner’s biscuits. This food safety scandal has been on-going since last year when China has been under criticism for improperly selling pet food, toys, toothpaste laced with industrial toxins. The European Union, Japan, Brunei, Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, and Taiwan are among countries which banned the Chinese imported milk.Amid outrage versus greed and corruption, Prime Minster Wen Jiabao promised food safety and ethical standards in Chinese products. This year, the Philippines bought 2 million kilograms of milk from China. Monitoring by the Department of Health (DOH) for illnesses that may be ascribed to melamine-contamination in milk and dairy products is on-going.
The Philippines has meager laboratory capacity to undertake testing for melamine and other poisons. Authorities mull on sending specimens out to neighboring countries the way they did with the endosulfan scare and fatality identification during the sinking of Princess of the Stars three months ago. To avoid future embarrassments, a self-respecting country must put up a decent laboratory of its own. The government must not rely on its neighbors to do its laboratory work. (Photo Credits: AP; Annasea; brutaldolltx) =0=Update: On September 29, 2008, the popular Cadbury cholocate has been recalled from sale in Great Britain in the wake of melamine-contamination scare. The recall doesn't cover the Cadbury chocolates being sold in United States.
Nature and Nurture: marital crisis and the “bonding gene”
It’s intriguing to think that long term relationships are influenced by a “bonding gene” variant which may help predict if a spouse is likely to stay and be a good “husband material.” Without negating the effects of socio-cultural factors on behavior, this is what researchers from Sweden’s Karolinska Institute in Stockholm Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics suggests in a study first observed in voles (rodents) and later on humans--- species sharing the vasopressin gene 1.
Vasopressin known as the antidiuretic hormone (ADH,) a peptide stored in the posterior pituitary gland and released in the blood in a circadian fashion is mainly known to decrease urine formation in the kidneys, causes vasoconstriction which raises blood pressure, and exerts some influence in memory. Also, vasopressin is thought to play a role in social behavior such as male aggression and pair-bonding.
The researchers’ findings suggest, “men with a certain variant, known as an allele, of the vasopressin 1a gene, called 334, tended to score especially low on a standard psychological test called the Partner Bonding Scale. They were also less likely to be married than men carrying another form of the gene. And carrying two copies of the 334 allele doubled the odds that the men had undergone some sort of marital crisis (for example, the threat of divorce) over the past year.” Healthday (09/03/08, Mundell, E.J.)
If true, this gene which controls the production of vasopressin receptors adds up to the body of knowledge that certain genetic factors influence certain behavior with the interaction of other genes. Psychiatrist John Lucas of the New York Presbyterian hospital believes it’s hard to say a single gene controls “marital commitment.” Though the gene may have some effect on mate bonding, it's unwise to attribute a complex situation such as a rocky marriage to the influence of one gene. =0=
Prank, organic disease, mass hysteria, or “evil-spirit” haunts school
In Calapan, Mindoro, Philippines, a spate of curious incidents occurred in a school of Pedro Panaligan Memorial National High School where children unexplainably fall into fits of convulsion, displayed spells of crying, shortness of breath, and confusion. Some complained of headaches and stomach pains. They and people in their town blamed “angered spirits” after an old tree was cut in the school backyard. Since August 8, 2008, at least 26 students manifested signs of “evil possession.” But no credible authority was able to convincingly explain (particularly to the skeptical) the events which repeatedly disrupt school work.
In a video shown by Philippine Daily Inquirer (PDI,08/22/09,) almost all affected students were notably aided by their fellow schoolmates. Teachers and aides were hardly present. Probably scared, they sought help from local shamans, spiritual healers and asked a priest to say mass and put a stop on the perplexing phenomenon.
Too young to grasp the whole situation, the panicky high school students carried those affected, rested them on their backs, restrained their bodies, and massaged their stomachs. Whether these occurrences are caused by a prank, organic disease, mass hysteria, or “angered evil spirit” must be quickly determined by authorities. The school needs to bring back peace in the community and among its students. (PhotoCredit: PDI)
UPDATE: The Philippine Dailiy Inquirer (PDI) reported that a team of psychologists and psychiatrists was sent to investigate this case. It was concluded that the bizarre phenomenon was caused by "mass hysteria"---a form of conversion disorder that affects a group of people usually incited by a problem, an alarm or enigmatic situation that sweeps the psyche of the affected individuals. (September 7, 2008)
Mourning Gorilla
On August 20, 2008, Gana, the mother gorilla in her home in Muenster, Germany is downtrodden with the death of her newborn. The loss is as heavy as the subdued emotion she displays in her sullen face. Her baby, compressed, dehydrated, and unresponsive four days after it died, rests precariously on her back before she comes to terms with the unspeakable loss.
Disconsolate and grieving, she silently caresses a baby gorilla, a live one born to Changa, another primate in the zoo. (PhotoCredit: AP/Augstein, F)
Human Imagination, DNA Test & the Big Foot Hoax
It’s the stuff that children usually imagine and adults take advantage of. A story of a huge hairy half-ape, half-man named Big Foot doesn’t fail to stimulate our curiosity in spite of tell-tale signs of fakery and hyperbolic imagination. After decades of search for the mythical beast, there’s nobody who has proven (with unequivocal certainty) that the beast truly exists.This week Matthew Whitton and Rick Dyer, co-owners of a business that commercially sells Bigfoot merchandise, ostensibly appeared in a news conference in Palo Alto, California to claim having found the carcass of the creature while hiking in the a forest of northern Georgia. Naturally, curious people were abuzz. The tabloids, talk radio, TV, and the internet had cryptologists and skeptics debating on the legendary bipedal humanoid while the two men hugged public attention.
To clarify their outrageous claim, DNA tests were done on the purported Big Foot corpse. Scientist Curt Nelson of the University of Minnesota who performed the test revealed that of the two samples submitted from the beast, one came from a human being and the other from an opossum, a marsupial. =0=
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