Human Impacts Significantly Altering Ocean Chemistry
WHOI chemist Scott Doney.(Tom Kleindinst, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)
Numerous studies are documenting the growing effects of climate change, carbon dioxide, pollution and other human-related phenomena on the world’s oceans. But most of those have studied single, isolated sources of pollution and other influences.
Now, a marine geochemist at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) has published a report in the latest issue of the journal Science that evaluates the total impact of such factors on the ocean and considers what the future might hold.
“What we do on land—agriculture, fossil fuel combustion and pollution—can have a profound impact on the chemistry of the sea,” says Scott C. Doney, a senior scientist at WHOI and author of the Science report. “A whole range of these factors have been studied in isolation but have not been put in a single venue.”
Doney’s paper represents a meticulous compilation of the work of others as well as his own research in this area, which includes ocean acidification, climate change, and the global carbon cycle.
He concludes that climate change, rising atmospheric carbon dioxide, excess nutrient inputs, and the many forms of pollution are “altering fundamentally the…ocean, often on a global scale and, in some cases, at rates greatly exceeding those in the historical and recent geological record.” (more…)
Ocean Currents Likely to Carry Oil Along Atlantic Coast
This still image is from an animation showing one scenario of how oil released at the location of the Deepwater Horizon disaster on April 20 in the Gulf of Mexico may move in the upper 65 feet of the ocean. This is not a forecast, but rather, it illustrates a likely dispersal pathway of the oil for roughly four months following the spill. (Visualization by Tim Scheitlin and Rick Brownrigg, NCAR; based on model simulations)
A detailed computer modeling study released today indicates that oil from the massive spill in the Gulf of Mexico might soon extend along thousands of miles of the Atlantic coast and open ocean as early as this summer. The modeling results are captured in a series of dramatic animations produced by the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) and collaborators.
The research was supported in part by the National Science Foundation, NCAR’s sponsor. The results were reviewed by scientists at NCAR and elsewhere, although not yet submitted for peer-review publication.
“I’ve had a lot of people ask me, ‘Will the oil reach Florida?’” says NCAR scientist Synte Peacock, who worked on the study. “Actually, our best knowledge says the scope of this environmental disaster is likely to reach far beyond Florida, with impacts that have yet to be understood.”
The computer simulations indicate that, once the oil in the uppermost ocean has become entrained in the Gulf of Mexico’s fast-moving Loop Current, it is likely to reach Florida’s Atlantic coast within weeks. It can then move north as far as about Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, with the Gulf Stream, before turning east. Whether the oil will be a thin film on the surface or mostly subsurface due to mixing in the uppermost region of the ocean is not known. (more…)
Military Develops Multi-Purpose ‘Green’ Decontaminants for Terrorist Attack Sites
Military scientists have developed a suite of eco-friendly cleaners for getting rid of nerve gas, anthrax, and other toxic substances that might be used in a terrorist attack. (iStock)
Chemists with the United States military have developed a set of ultra-strength cleaners that could be used in the aftermath of a terrorist attack. The new formulas are tough enough to get rid of nerve gas, mustard gas, radioactive isotopes, and anthrax. But they are also non-toxic, based on ingredients found in foods, cosmetics, and other consumer products. A detailed evaluation of the cleansers appears in ACS’ Industrial Engineering and Chemistry Research, a bi-monthly journal.
George Wagner and colleagues explained that chlorine- and lye-based decontamination agents have serious drawbacks. In addition to being potentially hazardous, they can react with chemical weapons and materials in the environment to form new toxic substances. If the military needed to decontaminate a large area, the runoff could harm people and the environment.
To solve that problem, military scientists developed the Decon Green suite of decontamination agents. The main ingredients in each Decon Green formula are peroxides, the same substances that are in many household cleaners and whitening toothpaste. To bolster their effectiveness, the peroxides are mixed with bicarbonates or other non-toxic bases. That combination produces peroxyanions, highly reactive ions that can clean just about anything. It ensures that chemical weapons, like nerve gas, will break down completely. (more…)
More on Solutions to Southern Asia Poisonous Well-Water Crisis
This man is pumping water from a typical hand-pump tubewell in a rural village in West Bengal, India, where there is also arsenic. (Photo by Prof. Holly Michael/University of Delaware)
Over 100 million people in rural southern Asia are exposed every day to unsafe levels of arsenic from the well-water they drink. It more than doubles their risks for cancer, causes cardiovascular disease, and inhibits the mental development of children, among other serious effects.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has referred to the situation in Bangladesh, where an estimated 60 million people are affected, as “the largest mass poisoning of a population in history.”
In the May 28 issue of the journal Science, researchers from Stanford University, the University of Delaware, and Columbia University review what scientists understand about this groundwater contamination crisis and offer solutions for the region, which spans Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, and Vietnam.
Holly Michael, assistant professor of geological sciences in the College of Earth, Ocean, and Environment at the University of Delaware, is a co-author of the article, with Scott Fendorf from Stanford and Alexander van Geen from Columbia University. Fendorf received his doctorate from UD in 1992 and is now chair of environmental and Earth system science at Stanford. (more…)
Scientists Offer Solutions to Arsenic Groundwater Poisoning in Southern Asia
Pumping water at a Bangladesh well. (Photo by Seth H. Frisbie. Courtesy Norwich University Office of Communications)
An estimated 60 million people in Bangladesh are exposed to unsafe levels of arsenic in their drinking water, dramatically raising their risk for cancer and other serious diseases, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
Because most of the contaminated water is near the surface, many people in Bangladesh have installed deep wells to tap into groundwater that’s relatively free of arsenic.
In recent years, farmers have begun using the deep, uncontaminated aquifers for irrigation – a practice that could compromise access to clean drinking water across the country, according to a report in the May 27 issue of journal Science.
The report is co-authored by groundwater experts Scott Fendorf (Stanford University), Holly A. Michael (University of Delaware) and Alexander van Geen (Columbia University).
“Every effort should be made to prevent irrigation by pumping from deeper aquifers that are low in arsenic,” the authors wrote. “This precious resource must be preserved for drinking.”
Every day, more than 100 million people are exposed to arsenic-contaminated drinking water in Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan and Vietnam.
Over the last 10 years, Fendorf, Michael and van Geen have conducted long-term groundwater studies throughout southern Asia with the goal of finding low-cost solutions to what the WHO calls the largest mass poisoning in history. (more…)
Dangerously High Lead Levels in New Orleans Prior to Hurricanes Katrina & Rita
Mardi Gras, 24Feb09, New Orleans (Credit: Philippe Leroyer)
While studying the environmental impact of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, recent Texas Tech University-led research has discovered high concentrations of lead in the poorest and oldest parts of New Orleans.
The results, one of five pollution studies related to Katrina, were published online Friday in a special issue of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry.
“Our research to evaluate contaminants in New Orleans was critical to determine if storm surges and flooding altered chemical concentrations or distribution,” said George Cobb, a professor in the Department of Environmental Toxicology at The Institute of Environmental and Human Health at Texas Tech. “We found that long-term, human-health consequences in New Orleans are difficult to attribute to chemical deposition or redistribution by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. However, lead was found in elevated concentrations, particularly in the most disadvantaged areas of New Orleans.”
To calculate the impact of chemical contamination, a multidisciplinary research group from Texas Tech studied 128 sampling sites across New Orleans. The team combined their findings with data sets generated by Burton Suedel with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Maps were then compiled from the resulting data to reveal chemical distribution across the city. (more…)
Danger in Gulf ‘Unfathomable,’ says Cornell Ornithologist
Damage from an earlier Black Sea oil spill.
Ken Rosenberg, director of conservation science at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and a specialist on the conservation of birds throughout the Western Hemisphere, comments on the ecological threat posed by the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.
Rosenberg says:
“The potential danger is unfathomable, because we don’t yet know how the leak can be stopped and how big the spill will get. It’s a full moon, a high tide, and it’s bringing the oil on a free ride right into the coastal salt marshes on a southerly wind. It is also peak migration season for birds crossing the gulf — tens of thousands of exhausted shorebirds are going to be arriving in the next two weeks. They’re flying over water and stopping to refuel on the beaches and in the estuaries along the Gulf Coast directly in the path of this massive spill.
“The big picture view here is: our thirst for fossil fuel means we’ve been playing Russian roulette with our environment, and the gun just went off. (more…)
Children Affected By Mother’s Exposure to Urban Air Pollutants
A study by the Columbia Center for Children’s Environmental Health (CCCEH) carried out in Krakow, Poland has found that prenatal exposure to pollutants can adversely affect children’s cognitive development at age 5, confirming previous findings in a New York City (NYC) study.
Researchers report that children exposed to high levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Krakow had a significant reduction in scores on a standardized test of reasoning ability and intelligence at age 5. The study findings are published today online in Environmental Health Perspectives.
PAHs are released into the air from the burning of fossil fuels for transportation, heating, energy production, and from other combustion sources.
“The effect on intelligence was comparable to that seen in NYC children exposed prenatally to the same air pollutants,” noted Frederica Perera, professor of Environmental Health Sciences and director of the CCCEH at the Mailman School of Public Health, and senior author. “This finding is of concern because IQ is an important predictor of future academic performance, and PAHs are widespread in urban environments and throughout the world.” (more…)
Chemical Cocktail Affects Humans and the Environment
Thomas Backhaus, associate professor for Ecotoxicology, University of Gothenburg and co-author of the report.
Throughout our lives we are exposed to an enormous range of man-made chemicals, from food, water, medicines, cosmetics, clothes, shoes and the air we breathe. At the request of the EU, researchers at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, have looked at the risk of “chemical cocktails” and have proposed a number of measures that need to be implemented in the current practice of chemical risk assessment.
In 2005 an American study showed that newborn babies have an average of 200 non-natural chemicals in their blood - including pesticides, dioxins, industrial chemicals and flame retardants. In a Swedish study, the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences found 57 different pesticides in Swedish rivers and streams, many of them occurring simultaneously. However, the effects of chemicals on humans and the environment are traditionally evaluated on the basis of single substances, chemical by chemical.
Complex cocktail
Research has shown that this type of approach is inadequate as the chemicals that we use form a complex cocktail. The EU’s environment ministers have therefore urged the European Commission to step up its risk assessments and amend the legislation on the combination effects of chemicals. In concrete terms, the Commission has been tasked with producing recommendations in 2010 on how combinations of hormone-disrupting substances should be dealt with on the basis of existing legislation, and with assessing suitable legislative changes in 2011.
(more…)
Environmental Engineers Receive Award for Investigation of Lead Poisoning of Washington D.C. Children
Marc Edwards, Virginia Tech professor of civil and environmental engineering, is the recipient of the Editor’s Choice Award for Best Science Paper of 2009 in Environmental Science and Technology (ES&T) for his investigative work that demonstrated a major increase in childhood lead poisoning of Washington D.C. children during the 2001-2004 lead-in-water crisis. (Virginia Tech Photo)
Marc Edwards and Simoni Triantafyllidou of Virginia Tech’s College of Engineering, along with colleague Dr. Dana Best of Children’s National Medical Center, published a 2009 article in Environmental Science and Technology (ES&T) that demonstrated a major increase in childhood lead poisoning of Washington D.C. children during the 2001-2004 lead-in-water crisis. The research contradicted years of government assertions that no residents in Washington D.C. had been harmed by years of unnecessary exposure to very high levels of lead in their potable water.
These discoveries prompted investigations by Congress and the D.C. Office of Inspector General into potential wrong-doing by the government agencies that made the claims.
ES&T has now selected the paper written by Edwards of Blacksburg, Va., Triantafyllidou of Veria, Greece, and Best of Washington, DC, as the Editor’s Choice Award for Best Science Paper of 2009, and is presenting the award today. ES&T publishes nearly 1500 papers annually. (more…)
New Material Absorbs Oil Spills
A new material made at Case Western Reserve University is designed to clean up oil spills on land and at sea. The superlight material, a clay-based aerogel, absorbs oil out of water, leaving the water behind. The oil can then be squeezed out of the aerogel, and used.
An ultra-lightweight sponge made of clay and a bit of high-grade plastic draws oil out of contaminated water but leaves the water behind.
And, lab tests show that oil absorbed can be squeezed back out for use.
Case Western Reserve University researchers who made the material, called an aerogel, believe it will effectively clean up spills of all kinds of oils and solvents on factory floors and roadways, rivers and oceans.
The EPA estimates that 10 to 25 million gallons of oil are spilled annually in this country alone. Spilled oil ruins drinking water, is a fire and explosion hazard, damages farmland and beaches and destroys wildlife and habitats. The harm can last decades.
The aerogel is made by mixing clay with a polymer and water in a blender, said David Schiraldi, chairman of the Macromolecular Science and Engineering department at the Case School of Engineering.
The mixture is then freeze-dried; air fills the gaps left by the loss of water. The resulting material is super light, comprised of about 96 percent air, 2 percent polymer and 2 percent clay. (more…)
Engineers Explore Environmental Concerns of Nanotechnology
Peter Vikesland and Linsey Marr, both associate professors of civil and environmental engineering at Virginia Tech, are members of the national Center for the Environmental Implications of NanoTechnology (CEINT) at Virginia Tech. They are exploring the impact of nanotechnology research on the environment. (Virginia Tech Photo)
As researchers around the world hasten to employ nanotechnology to improve production methods for applications that range from manufacturing materials to creating new pharmaceutical drugs, a separate but equally compelling challenge exists.
History has shown that previous industrial revolutions, such as those involving asbestos and chloroflurocarbons, have had some serious environmental impacts. Might nanotechnology also pose a risk?
Linsey Marr and Peter Vikesland, faculty members in the Via Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Virginia Tech, are part of the national Center for the Environmental Implications of NanoTechnology (CEINT), funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) in 2008. Along with Michael Hochella, University Distinguished Professor of Geosciences, they represent Virginia Tech’s efforts in a nine-member consortium awarded $14 million over five years, starting in 2008. Virginia Tech’s portion is $1.75 million.
CEINT is dedicated to elucidating the relationship between a vast array of nanomaterials — from natural, to manufactured, to those produced incidentally by human activities — and their potential environmental exposure, biological effects, and ecological consequences. It will focus on the fate and transport of natural and manufactured nanomaterials in ecosystems. (more…)
U.S. Bill Aims To Protect Public from Exposure to Harmful Chemicals
The Endocrine Society has commended Representative Jim Moran (D-VA) and Senator John Kerry (D-MA) for introducing the Endocrine Disruption Prevention Act of 2009 (H.R. 4190; S. 2828). The bill, endorsed by the Society, amends the Public Health Service Act by authorizing the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences to conduct a research program on endocrine disruption aimed at preventing and reducing the production of and the public’s exposure to harmful chemicals.
The legislation reflects the findings and recommendations of The Endocrine Society’s peer-reviewed Scientific Statement (http://www.endo-society.org/journals/scientificstatements/) on endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) released by the Society this past June. The Scientific Statement presents evidence that endocrine disruptors—substances that interfere with hormone biosynthesis, metabolism or action—impact health resulting in adverse developmental, reproductive, neurological and immune effects in both humans and wildlife. (more…)
Childhood Lead Exposure Causes Permanent Brain Damage
A study using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to evaluate brain function revealed that adults who were exposed to lead as children incur permanent brain injury. The results were presented today at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).
“What we have found is that no region of the brain is spared from lead exposure,” said the study’s lead author, Kim Cecil, Ph.D., imaging scientist at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center and professor of radiology, pediatrics and neuroscience at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. “Distinct areas of the brain are affected differently.”
The study is part of a large research project called the Cincinnati Lead Study, a long-term lead exposure study conducted through the Cincinnati Children’s Environmental Health Center, a collaborative research group funded by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The Cincinnati Lead Study followed prenatal and early childhood lead exposure of 376 infants from high-risk areas of Cincinnati between 1979 and 1987. Over the course of the project, the children underwent behavioral testing and 23 blood analyses that yielded a mean blood lead level.
Lead, a common and potent poison found in water, soil and lead-based paint, is especially toxic to children’s rapidly developing nervous systems. Homes built before 1950 are most likely to contain lead-based paint, which can chip and be ingested by children.
“Lead exposure has been associated with diminished IQ, poor academic performance, inability to focus and increased risk of criminal behavior,” Dr. Cecil said. (more…)
Exposures to Metals and Diesel Emissions in Air Linked to Respiratory Symptoms in Children
Exposure shortly after birth to ambient metals from residential heating oil combustion and particles from diesel emissions are associated with respiratory symptoms in young inner city children, according to a new study by researchers at the Columbia Center for Children’s Environmental Health (CCCEH) at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health. The study is the first to analyze the effects of exposure to airborne metals in this very young population and the findings could have important public health implications.
Published in the December 2009 issue of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, the study also contributes to a further understanding of how specific sources of air pollution may impact child health.
The study compared pollutant levels with respiratory symptoms of children between birth and age two living in Northern Manhattan and in the South Bronx, and found that the airborne metals nickel and vanadium, were risk factors for wheezing in young children. Residual oil combustion for heating is a major source in New York City of these metals. Elemental carbon, an indicator of diesel exhaust, was associated with increased frequency of coughing only during cold and flu season (September through April). (more…)
Nuclear Weapons: Predicting the Unthinkable
This picture was taken in 1970 when the French military tested a number of nuclear bombs on the French Polynesian islands of Mururoa and Fangataufa. (Courtesy Sean Buckley)
If a nuclear weapon were detonated in a metropolitan area, how large would the affected area be? Where should first responders first go? According to physicist Fernando Grinstein, we have some initial understanding to address these questions, but fundamental issues remain unresolved.
“The predictive capabilities of today’s state-of-the-art models in urban areas need to be improved, validated and tested,” says Grinstein. “Work in this area has been limited primarily because of lack of consistent funding.”
At the upcoming 62nd Annual Meeting of the American Physical Society’s (APS) Division of Fluid Dynamics in Minneapolis, Adam Wachtor — a student who worked with Grinstein at the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico — will present his efforts to improve the way that models track the movement of radioactive fall-out carried by the wind. His wind models track the aftermath of a plume of hot gas released by a small, one-ton device in a typical urban setting at a three-meter resolution.
Current models use wind direction and wind speed to draw a predicted cone-shape area of fall-out. Wachtor’s results show that these models are too simple in some ways. For instance, they do not include the complex dynamics of wind movements around buildings, which can concentrate fall-out preferentially in certain areas. They also indicate that small changes in the location of the blast and the temperature of the plume released can have a large effect on the contamination patterns. (more…)
Searching for the Green Parking Lot
Paved parking lots and driveways make our lives easier, but they often create an easy pathway for pollutants to reach underground water sources and alter the natural flow of water back into the ground. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency today announced a study that will investigate ways to reduce pollution that can run off paved surfaces and improve how water filters back into the ground. EPA is testing a variety of different permeable pavement materials and rain gardens in the parking lot at the agency’s Edison, N.J. facility, which houses offices and its laboratory. Most major sources of pollution going into our waterways are well-controlled, but pollution runoff from hard surfaces remains a complicated problem.
“Runoff from parking lots and driveways is a significant source of water pollution in the United States and puts undo stress on our water infrastructure, especially in densely-populated urban areas,” said EPA Acting Regional Administrator George Pavlou. “By evaluating different designs and materials, this study will help us develop strategies to lessen the environmental impacts of parking lots across the country and make our communities more sustainable.” (more…)
Remote Sensing of Disasters from Space
An image from TAU's orbiting Hyperspectral Remote Sensor (HRS)
One small step for mankind is now a leap for averting natural and man-made disasters on earth.
New Tel Aviv University technology combines sophisticated sensors in orbit with sensors on the ground and in the air to create a “Hyperspectral Remote Sensor” (HRS). It can give advance warnings about water contamination after a forest fire, alert authorities of a pollution spill long before a red flag is raised on earth, or tell people in China where a monsoon will strike.
Prof. Eyal Ben-Dor of TAU’s Department of Geography describes his team’s HRS technology as a combination of physical, chemical and optical disciplines. “When a devastating forest fire hits the Hollywood Hills, for example, we can see from space how the mineralogy of the soil has changed,” he explains. “Because of these changes, the next rainstorm may wash out all the buildings or leach contaminants into the soil. With our new tool, we can advise on how to contain the pollutants after the fire, and warn if there is a risk for landslides.” (more…)
Breakthrough for Manmade Enzymes, Safer for Nature
By Jes Andersen
Professor Mikael Bols, University of Copenhagen
Custom built enzyme to replace harsh and hazardous chemicals
Perilous and polluting industrial processes can be made safer with enzymes. But only a short range of enzymes have been available for the chemical industry.
Recently a group of researchers at The Department of Chemistry at University of Copenhagen succeeded in producing an artificial enzyme that points the way to enzymes tailor-made for any application.
With their group leader, Professor Mikael Bols, Ph.d. students Jeanette Bjerre and Thomas Hauch Fenger are publishing details of their breakthrough in recognized international ChemBioChem (15/2009) under the title “Cyclodextrin Aldehydes are Oxidase Mimics”
Artificial enzymes for unnatural tasks
An enzyme unlike any seen in nature, this new one distinguishes itself in three ways. Its effect is powerful. It’s easy to produce. And the researchers from the Copenhagen labs are the first to fashion an enzyme that is capable of speeding up oxidizing processes. With the simple and cheap compound Hydrogen Peroxide no less. (more…)
Killer Algae a Key Player in Mass Extinctions
James Castle
Supervolcanoes and cosmic impacts get all the terrible glory for causing mass extinctions, but a new theory suggests lowly algae may be the killer behind the world’s great species annihilations.
Today, just about anywhere there is water, there can be toxic algae. The microscopic plants usually exist in small concentrations, but a sudden warming in the water or an injection of dust or sediment from land can trigger a bloom that kills thousands of fish, poisons shellfish, or even humans.
James Castle and John Rodgers of Clemson University think the same thing happened during the five largest mass extinctions in Earth’s history. Each time a large die off occurred, they found a spike in the number of fossil algae mats called stromatolites strewn around the planet. Castle will be presenting the research on Monday, 19 October at the annual meeting of the Geological Society of American in Portland, Oregon.
“If you go through theories of mass extinctions, there are always some unanswered questions,” Castle said. “For example, an impact – how does that cause species to go extinct? Is it climate change, dust in the atmosphere? It’s probably not going to kill off all these species on its own.” (more…)
Developing Enzymes to Clean Up Pollution by Explosives
Dr Gideon Grogan, York Structural Biology Laboratory
Scientists at the University of York have uncovered the structure of an unusual enzyme which can be used to reverse the contamination of land by explosives.
The discovery, by scientists in the York Structural Biology Laboratory and the Centre for Novel Agricultural Products, will support the development of plants that can help tackle pollution caused by royal demolition explosive, also known as RDX.
Researchers at York have identified bacteria that use RDX as a food source and used that knowledge to develop transgenic plants that can draw pollutants out of the soil and break them down.
The latest findings, published in The Journal of Biological Chemistry, focus on the XplA enzyme which plays an important role in that process.
Dr Gideon Grogan, from the York Structural Biology Laboratory, said: “The biological process for tackling the pollution caused by RDX already exists but we need to find ways of making it work faster and on the scale required. (more…)
Are Common Pills and Plastics Feminizing Fish, Endangering People?
From left, John McLachlan, director of the Tulane/Xavier Center for Bioenvironmental Research; Douglas Meffert, deputy director; and Charles Allen III, assistant director. (Photo by David Maag)
Synthetic and natural hormones from plastics, pesticides and even common prescription drugs are seeping into rivers and streams and having unintended consequences on wildlife, causing some male fish to become feminized and lay eggs. In fact, a recent report found that one third of small mouth bass were feminized in nine major U.S. river basins, and almost all of the rivers and streams tested in the United States contained some hormonally active chemicals.
The long-term consequences of hormones and endocrine disruptors in the environment will be the focus of the Tenth International Symposium on Environment and Hormones (E.hormone 2009), a four-day conference starting Oct. 21 at Tulane University that will bring together leading experts from around the world to talk about the latest research in this emerging field.
“It is one of the hottest topics in environmental biology right now,” says John McLachlan, director of the Tulane/Xavier Center for Bioenvironmental Research, which is hosting the conference. “The biological activity of these compounds both in terms of other species and, potentially, ourselves is something that scientists are becoming more and more aware of through research.” (more…)
Mobile Lab Allows Researchers to Study Air Quality & Health Effects
MSU professor Jack Harkema is seen atop AirCARE 2, his team's second mobile lab to study air pollution and its damaging health effects.
A new mobile air research laboratory will help a team of researchers led by a Michigan State University professor better understand the damaging health effects of air pollution and why certain airborne particles - emitted from plants and vehicles - induce disease and illness.
Jack Harkema, a University Distinguished Professor of pathobiology and diagnostic investigation in the College of Veterinary Medicine, will deploy the new 53-foot, 36,000-pound center - dubbed “AirCARE 2″ - throughout southern Michigan, including metropolitan Detroit.
“The mobile laboratory allows us to analyze ‘real-world’ pollution in communities that may be at risk,” he said. “We can study why certain ailments, such as asthma, cardiovascular disease and even obesity, may be more pronounced after exposure to particulate air pollution.” (more…)
Do Dust Particles Curb Climate Change?
Every cloud is different from the next. It is therefore important to study the types of cloud systems in which aerosols have the greatest influence. (Max Planck Institute for Meteorology / Stevens)
A knowledge gap exists in the area of climate research: for decades, scientists have been asking themselves whether, and to what extent man-made aerosols, that is, dust particles suspended in the atmosphere, enlarge the cloud cover and thus curb climate warming. Research has made little or no progress on this issue. Two scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Meteorology in Hamburg (MPI-M) and the American National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) report in the journal Nature that the interaction between aerosols, clouds and precipitation is strongly dependent on factors that have not been adequately researched up to now. They urge the adoption of a research concept that will close this gap in the knowledge. (Nature, October 1st, 2009)
Greenhouse gases that heat up the earth’s atmosphere have their adversaries: dust particles suspended in the atmosphere which are known as aerosols. They arise naturally, for example when wind blows up desert dust, and through human activities. A large proportion of the man-made aerosols arise from sulfur dioxides that are generated, in turn, by the combustion of fossil fuels. (more…)
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