Millennium development goals: the LIDC conference
Measles deaths are sharply down according to the recently released Millennium Development Goals Report 2008. But are they? At a recent conference at the London International Development Centre (LIDC): No goals at half time: what next for the millennium development goals, Professor Kim Mulholland of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine took issue…
Irreplaceable
At 8pm on New Years Eve BBC Radio 4 broadcast the Earthwatch debate “Irreplaceable – the world’s most invaluable species” (listen to the original debate here). Five scientists battled it out to convince an audience that their group of species was more valuable than the other 4. The 5 speakers, their groups and their main arguments…
Save the Guinea worm?
Earlier in December I came across this blog entry about the Guinea worm, a parasite you really don't want to be infected with. For more information about it, follow the link in the previous sentence, or this one about efforts by the Carter Center (founded by former US President Jimmy Carter) to eradicate it. The…
Unforseen effect of the credit crunch?
I didn't expect this one but it makes sense. West Nile virus infections are up in California. The (possible) reason: unmaintained swimming pools, according to a paper in Emerging Infectious Diseases.
What, no sprouts?
I hate Brussels sprouts. There, I've said it. The vegetable that has become synonymous with the British Christmas dinner (presumably because in the days before global trade and improved storage made every type of food available throughout the year, it was one of the few vegetables in season in December) is to me one maliciously…
The Christmas gift that keeps on growing
Still haven’t bought the Christmas present for that special person, who is the hardest one to find a present for? Why not buy your friends and loved ones their own personalised tree in the Scottish highlands and, at the same time, reduce carbon emissions! Plant a tree for life – a great and somewhat unusual…
Precious gifts of frankincense and myrrh…
Here's another Christmas helping from the CAB Abstracts – this time on the seasonal subjects of frankincense and myrrh. These two precious plant resins have numerous uses in perfumes and medicines – not to mention anti-wrinkle creams! Frankincense comes from trees of the genus Boswellia and myrrh from species of Commiphora, both members of the…
How about some gold for Christmas?
After reading about everyday playful behaviour, such as humour and day-dreaming in the last blog by fellow ‘hand-picked’ blogger Dave Hemming, I was sitting here day-dreaming of a white Christmas and the three kings, and their myrrh, frankincense and gold. When I thought of gold I remembered screening Computers & Geosciences the other day, when…
Nothing funny in CAB Abstracts – or is there?
The CAB Abstracts database might not be the most obvious choice for finding out about humour, but as with most subjects, a few well-chosen search terms will pull out some surprises. Readers should be aware that laughing could be a symptom of manganese or carbon monoxide poisoning, nitrogen narcosis or viral-relatic spastic paraparesis, or consumption…
Scope for significant GHG emissions cut in agriculture
At the same time as the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) conference on Climate Change opened in Poznan, a new report on building a low carbon economy was published on Monday, 1st December, by the Government’s Committee on Climate Change, chaired by Lord Turner. The Soil Association welcomed the announcement by Lord…