In the lush rainforests of the Amazon, scientists have discovered a blue-fanged bird-eating spider, a black and blue-colored poison dart frog, a pink river dolphin and a camouflaged anaconda. These and thousands of other species were discovered in the Amazon between 1999 and 2009, at the average rate of one new species every three days, according to a new WWF report.
WWF hopes the report, Amazon Alive: A Decade of Discoveries 1999-2009, will raise awareness about the need for large-scale conservation initiatives that are supported by heads of state.
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sexta-feira, 27 de janeiro de 2012
quinta-feira, 26 de janeiro de 2012
sexta-feira, 13 de janeiro de 2012
TOTALLY DRUG-RESISTANT TB AT LARGE IN INDIA
NEW SCIENTIST, January 12th, 2012 (by Andy Coghlan)
[Population control! By nature!?
No. No way. Human being has exerted a strong influence on this misfortune.]
A strain of tuberculosis that is resistant to all existing TB drugs has emerged in
Mumbai, India.
"We currently have 12 confirmed cases, of which three are dead," says Zarir Udwadia of the Hinduja National Hospital and Medical Research Centre in Mumbai, and head of the team whose diagnoses of four cases has just been published.
The emergence of the disease in such a densely populated city is a major concern as it could spread so easily. "We know one patient transmitted it to her daughter," Udwadia told New Scientist. "It's estimated that on average, a tuberculosis patient infects 10 to 20 contacts in a year, and there's no reason to suspect that this strain is any less transmissible," he warns.
For patients, the outlook is grim. "Short of quarantining them in hospitals with isolation facilities till they become non-infectious – which is not practical or possible – there is nothing else one can do to prevent transmission," says Udwadia.
The worry is that if it continues spreading, TB will become incurable again and patients will have to rely on their immune system, rather than medical intervention, to overcome the illness – a scenario last seen a century ago.
The World Health Organization is urgently organising a meeting to review the evidence and decide what steps to take next. "This is a problem that was predicted," says Paul Nunn, coordinator of the STOP TB department of the WHO in Geneva. "It's a wake-up call for countries to accelerate provision of proper care, particularly for multidrug-resistant patients," says Nunn.
[Population control! By nature!?
No. No way. Human being has exerted a strong influence on this misfortune.]
A strain of tuberculosis that is resistant to all existing TB drugs has emerged in
Mumbai, India.
"We currently have 12 confirmed cases, of which three are dead," says Zarir Udwadia of the Hinduja National Hospital and Medical Research Centre in Mumbai, and head of the team whose diagnoses of four cases has just been published.
The emergence of the disease in such a densely populated city is a major concern as it could spread so easily. "We know one patient transmitted it to her daughter," Udwadia told New Scientist. "It's estimated that on average, a tuberculosis patient infects 10 to 20 contacts in a year, and there's no reason to suspect that this strain is any less transmissible," he warns.
For patients, the outlook is grim. "Short of quarantining them in hospitals with isolation facilities till they become non-infectious – which is not practical or possible – there is nothing else one can do to prevent transmission," says Udwadia.
The worry is that if it continues spreading, TB will become incurable again and patients will have to rely on their immune system, rather than medical intervention, to overcome the illness – a scenario last seen a century ago.
The World Health Organization is urgently organising a meeting to review the evidence and decide what steps to take next. "This is a problem that was predicted," says Paul Nunn, coordinator of the STOP TB department of the WHO in Geneva. "It's a wake-up call for countries to accelerate provision of proper care, particularly for multidrug-resistant patients," says Nunn.
sábado, 7 de janeiro de 2012
BELIEVE IT OR NOT! USING ANTS AND TERMITES TO INCREASE CROP YIELDS
By Graham Salinger [extracted from Worldwatch Institute: http://blogs.worldwatch.org/nourishingtheplanet/innovation-of-the-week-using-ants-and-termites-to-increase-crop-yields/]
With around 1 billion hungry people globally, finding a way to improve crop production remains a challenge. This is especially true in sub-Saharan Africa. Sub-Saharan Africa faces an extraordinary soil fertility crisis which decreases crop yield and contributes to food shortages. Local farmers report that they can no longer maintain soil fertility and that harvests are declining 15–25 percent a year. Most farmers expect that within the next five years their harvests will drop by half, and some villages are already dependent on food aid. One way that farmers are working to increase crop yield, however, is through the use of termites and ants.
Recent research conducted by scientists at the University of Sydney reveals that ants could also help farmers increase crop yields. The findings show that termites and ants improve soil fertility in drylands by digging tunnels that allow plants greater access to water. The research also found that termites provide plants additional nutrients because they increase the amount of nitrogen contained in soil. This is done through nitrogen heavy bacteria in their stomach, which allows them to transmit nitrogen into soil through their saliva and feces. Land that was treated with ants and termites showed a 36 percent increase in the amount of wheat produced. This research gives new scientific insight into how using termites and ants effectively reduces water waste while improving crop yield.
Using termites to improve crop production is widely practiced in Africa. Africa is home to more than 660 species of termites and while many of them destroy crops, especially exotic crops like maize and sugarcane, farmers in Africa have found innovative ways to integrate termites into their farming systems. In many parts of West Africa farmers place wood on soil in order to attract termites to the soil. In Burkina Faso, farmers bury manure in holes near newly planted grains in hopes that the manure will attract termites to their soil.
In other parts of Africa farmers are trying similar techniques to use termites as a natural fertilizer. In Malawi, farmers plant bananas next to termite mounds. Similarly, in Uganda, Niger, and Zimbabwe, farmers plant a variety of fruits and vegetables on top of termite nests while farmers in southern Zambia take soil from termite nests and use it as top soil for their land.
By integrating termites and ants into their agricultural systems, farmers who depend on agriculture for their income and diet are developing low costs sustainable practices that strengthen crop production while maximizing resources.
[Graham Salinger is a research intern with the Nourishing the Planet project].
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