Biomarker can help identify GVHD in cancer patients after hematopoietic stem cell transplant

This article is about doctors being able to graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), where the newly transplanted immune system of the donor attacks the patient's skin and internal organs. In the artivcle, we read, '"We believe we've found a reliable biomarker in the patients' blood that is specific to graft-versus-host disease and therefore can help us to rapidly identify patients for whom standard treatment is likely to be insufficient [...] This marker can also tell us whether a patient is likely to respond to therapy and may lead to an entirely new risk assessment for the disease"' It is great we are able to have these kinds of ways of detecting diseases casued by doners, for it will make people aware ahead of time what is going on in their bodies after having a transplant. 

Link Here.

Ohio Governor Cracks Down on "Dangerous Wild Animal" Owners

This article had to do with what went on in Ohio just  a couple of days ago. The governor of Ogio is onto looking for other safetyh regulations on beingt able to own wild animals. "Ohio is one of seven states that does not restrict ownership of such exotic animals. The others are North and South Carolina, Alabama, West Virginia, Nevada and Wisconsin" which is good since not all places have that fredom to own wild and endangered animals. The article also said, "the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, DNR, will review existing permits to ensure proper compliance and perform onsite inspections "to the fullest extent possible with existing resources." Additional resource needs will be identified for future enforcement." This will hopefully make owners think twice about owning these animals since it is a great responsibility. 

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Deep-reef coral hates the light, prefers the shade

This article talked about the deep-reef coral disliking the light. The researcher explains this is how they are able to survive, "The corals we loked at exhibited distinct physiological strategies - while normally corals are dependent on light for their energy requirements, the deep corals, appeared to have adapted to low light conditions by having an increased capacity to exploit nutrients and plankton."


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World's Only Evidence of co-existing Humans, Dinosaur Tracks Found in China

This article was basically the fact that there were perserved footprints found in China. These preserved footprints help us see how old and the ways things co-existed back in the day. The place contained "350 to 400 footprints that had been preserved in many ways, including concave footprints, convex footprints and multilayered footprints." Xinhua also said, "The fortress' 700 years of history is a rarity in the world, and reflects China's traditional philosophy of the relationship between humans and nature" meaning that this is rare to find and being able to have this now can help us see the importance and the ways humans and nature worked together.

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Many of Earth's species appear to be shrinking in size, a new study reports - and its authors think that's probably due to global warming.

This article was about researching thinking that animals are getting smaller due to global warming. Many researchers are for and many are against. They say that you cannot blame global warming for something that may be a natural phenomenon. The article further reads, “The shrinking specimens, according to the study, include cotton, corn, strawberries, bay scallops, shrimp, crayfish, carp, Atlantic salmon, herring, frogs, toads, iguanas, hooded robins, red-billed gulls, California squirrels, lynx and wood rats.” This demonstrates that animals are not the only ones being affected but also specimen like plants. The article ends with Yom-Tov, a zoologist at Tel Aviv University, saying, “When conditions are favourable, they increase in size or reproduce at higher rates, and when conditions are deteriorating, they do the opposite. I think that most species will adapt to climate change and survive. No need for alarm."

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Huge New Dinosaur Trackway Found in U.S.

Tracks of a dinosaur were found after a rainstorm made them appear. If they would have stayed longer, and no one would have found them, then the tracks may have been eroded and unrecognizable. Researchers are going to use lasers and technology to discover “what the thing looked like when it had meat.

Article here.

Beer-mating beetle study shortlisted for funniest research

The article consists of "a Research co-authored by University of Toronto professor Darryl Gwyne and his Australian colleague David Rentz were the winners in the biology category... A parody of the Nobel Prizes, the Ig Nobel Prizes are handed out annually by the scientific humor magazine Annals of Improbable Research."  Gwyne and Rentz were giving this award for the research they found with beetles. It was said that a beetle tried mating with a bottle since the bottle had a huge resemblance to a “Super female”. The beetle died in the scorching heat of the sun and was later eaten by ants. In the long run, this can affect tremendously because the beetles will think that beer bottles are more like super females than what they really are. Throwing beer bottles around inappropriately shows that this not only affects the environment but also an effect in animals’ life. 

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Conserving Our Shared Heritage

This article talks about how life is becoming instinct and ending. New life forms are being created said by the census, but that does not mean we should not do something about conserving the at risk life. Actions should be taken in consideration in order to maintain the new and old life, and the old life from becoming extinct.

Article here. 

Fish Uses Tool to Dig Up and Crush Clams

An orange-dotted tuskfish fish was recorded using a tool, which was a rock, to crush a clam. Before, many thought that tool use was only seen in humans but after seeing Jane Goodall’s reports in tool use for chimpanzees the world was now with an open mind, “Since then, many other animals have been observed using tools. Including various primates, several kinds of birds, dolphins, elephants, and other animals” the report says. There has been other observations that other types of fish use tools for their benefits.


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Small mammals facing extinction

Many animals are close to instinction. Some of these include the red squirrel, the UK hedgehog, the common dormouse, and the mountain hare. In total there were seven species that were given preference because of the instinction status. The article then talks about other animals that were once extinct but now are better because of the help they received. For example, “Otters have benefited from cleaner rivers in Britain, following a ban on chemicals used in sheep dip in the late 1990s. “ Bats and other animals seem to be increases throughout the years also.

Article here.

   

Can eating fish lower the risk of strokes?

Researchers found that eating fish about three times a week decreases the risk of having a stroke. "I think overall, fish provide a beneficial package of nutrients, in particular the omega-3s, that could explain this lower risk,' says Dariush Mozaffarian, a Harvard School of Public Health epidemiologist whose research was included in the analysis." As you can see, fish does actually help reduce that chance of having a stroke. Researchers followed the tests to 30 years and saw the numbers made sense. Those who ate fried fish or fish sandwiches, as expected did not have a reduced chance of stroke reduction. It is very interesting to see how things like these actually are healthy and we humans benefit from it. In my opinion, this is something that is healthy and good at the same time.

Restoring forests and planting trees on farms can greatly improve food security

In this article, we are exposed to how deforestation has a great impact on our environment and on life. since we are taking away forests from nature there are less and less trees. It is sad that if we plant more trees there would be more security on risking famine like other countries in the nation. Also, stopping deforestation can stop the sudden climate changes we have like humidity and other factors.

Article here.

Study: Virus threatens Galapagos wildlife

The Galapagos Island is under threat from West Nile virus. Basically, this virus can affect anything from birds to humans, and reptiles. Affecting all these species can lead to changes in the way the environment works. For example, if a species dies because of this virus, the other species under them in the food chain can overgrow causing a vast amount of the species, making the environment they live in change. "There is no doubt that West Nile virus poses a serious threat to the survival of the Galapagos' iconic wildlife."


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Snails rode over birds to cross continents?

In the article, it is said that snails may have used birds to fly over different areas like we, humans, use airplanes to travel. I never though this would happen and it was the first time I ever heard of it. Reading this article made me think that creatures may be smarter than we think they are.

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Scientists utilize breath and sweat to detect trapped humans

This article was about a new way of finding human remains under debris of fallen buildings. This is able to happen because “Molecules in their breath, sweat and skin have been used to detect humans in a simulation of a collapsed building, raising the prospect of portable sensors for use in real-life situations.” The sensors placed detect carbon dioxide and ammonia as it leaves the body of the human. When the body is at rest though, the levels of ammonia decrease researchers were not able to identify why this happens. Researchers stated that “The simulations was composed of three separate sections” the environment section which dealt with the environment like the air flow and temperature, the void section where the participant was situated, and the collapsed building section where the debris of the voiding and the materials of the building.

Article here.

Mystery bird: Crimson-hooded manakin, Pipra aureola

In this passage there was a trivia on a mystery bird. This trivia taught me about the animal and what it does for attention. The crimson-hooded manakin “lives subtropical or tropical swamps along the coasts… throughout Brazil, French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname, and Venezuela.” Unlike the female, the male crimson-hooded manakin is brighter than the female. In order to get the female’s attention the males dance in a group. The females then choose the male by the dance moves and plumage colors.

                     

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A guiding light for new directions in energy production. Optofluidic solar lighting system

Science and technology has led us to great things for humanity. What this passage was about was the new way we may be able to use energy as light. Scientists obtained their information from observing how water works with light. The scientist saw that in water, light travels much slower and bends a little. Using this data, scientists used that to create a new way to produce light using the energy of the sun. The sun may already be used to create energy in solar panels, but this is a new way to do produce it. An example of what this new technique of producing light offers is that the light from the sun is obtained from the top of the building and it is bent making able to make light throughout the building with “light pipes or fibre optic cables to the ceilings of office spaces, indoor solar panels, or even microfluidic air filters.” This can save energy and electricity making it better for us to live and healthier for the environment. This whole concept is called optofluidics, the study of microfluidics the microscopic delivery of fluids through extremely small channels or tubes combined with optics.

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