(English intro to Spanish lang post) All science sections in Latin America and Spain talked yesterday about the transit of Venus between the Earth and the Sun. Many of them just offered a basic description of the phenomena, the time of the transit, recommendations to watch it safely, and the fact it won’t...
Pere Estupinya's Tracker
(English intro to Spanish lang post) All science sections in Latin America and Spain talked yesterday about the transit of Venus between the Earth and the Sun. Many of them just offered a basic description of the phenomena, the time of the transit, recommendations to watch it safely, and the fact it won’t happen again until 2117. We review a few stories that expanded information by explaining historical anecdotes, the black drop effect, details about Venus’ atmosphere and geology, and how astrophysicists are going to use the transit for research purposes. As an example, ESA is testing instruments to detect exoplanets’ atmosphere composition. In Mexico some stories include interesting references to Maya’s first Venus observations. One reporter misinterprets a researcher and says the Mayas predicted yesterday’s transit. Unfortunately, we also read a few stories quoting astrologists explaining the influence of Venus in people’s behavior.
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(English intro to Spanish lang post) Good news: the Uruguayan newspaper El Observador launched yesterday a Science and Technology news website, CROMO. It has many items and stories about the internet, social networks and phone applications, plus a good amount on science and technology. The design is really...
(English intro to Spanish lang post) Good news: the Uruguayan newspaper El Observador launched yesterday a Science and Technology news website, CROMO. It has many items and stories about the internet, social networks and phone applications, plus a good amount on science and technology. The design is really attractive. Some of the stories deal with local research. If the proportion increases, CROMO could become the reference for science topics in Uruguay. It has several topic categories. In the internet one we can read about what makes a tweet viral and that more users use facebook by phone than through a computer. The applications section talks about gadgets to detect earthquakes and to read the future. In technology, futuristic flying cars and a pistol that pointed to you creates a 0.2 seconds delay in the hearing of your own voice. The science section has stories about Uruguayan researchers using gene therapy to restore nerve damage, an article about the disease of a...
(English intro to Spanish Lang post) “In one year I’d like “Materia” to be consolidated as the reference in high quality scientific information for the hundreds of thousands of Spanish-speaking readers that miss this kind of information in the big media”. That’s what Patricia Fernández de Lis (editor of “...
(English intro to Spanish Lang post) “In one year I’d like “Materia” to be consolidated as the reference in high quality scientific information for the hundreds of thousands of Spanish-speaking readers that miss this kind of information in the big media”. That’s what Patricia Fernández de Lis (editor of “Materia”) told this tracker after yesterday’s big announcement of the platform’s intentions. Materia’s team includes several former reporters of the awarded science section in Público that folded a few months ago when the newspaper closed down its print edition. Publico’s science and environmental section was the most extensive of all Spanish speaking daily press. It’s great news for science journalism to see that the team remains at work this on ambitious project. In this Q&A post she explains how they expect to be funded, what will make Materia very different from blog aggregators and newspapers’ daily sections, its big interest in Latin America, how professional...
(English intro to Spanish lang post) Plenty of interesting stories coming from Latin America. A study in Ecuador reveals that the 10 most consumed medications in the country have nothing to do with the real needs of the population. The study says that Ecuadorians choose medications based on advertising not...
(English intro to Spanish lang post) Plenty of interesting stories coming from Latin America. A study in Ecuador reveals that the 10 most consumed medications in the country have nothing to do with the real needs of the population. The study says that Ecuadorians choose medications based on advertising not prescriptions. In Chile we read a good document reviewing the first 10 years of the cosmetic use of botox, and data saying that 20% of interventions in Chile are among women younger than 34. Also from Chile a good story explaining WHO data about high obesity indexes in Vanezuela and Chile, and low diabetes in Peru and Colombia. From Argentina a great interview with an engineer who feels his nation's scientists are too focused on basic research, and they should spend more efforts in developing useful technologies. Another storysays that the science ministry will modify criteria to favor innovation and applied research. From Venezuela we read about a scientist doing research...
(English intro to Spanish lang post) A drug that could prevent Alzheimer’s will be tested in a Colombian community with genetic predisposition to the disease. The cause is a rare mutation that brings early symptoms as soon as 45 years old with full dementia by about 50. It’s been studied for nearly 3 decades by...
(English intro to Spanish lang post) A drug that could prevent Alzheimer’s will be tested in a Colombian community with genetic predisposition to the disease. The cause is a rare mutation that brings early symptoms as soon as 45 years old with full dementia by about 50. It’s been studied for nearly 3 decades by Francisco Lopera from the University of Antioquia. The study is receiving $100 million from NIH, Banner Institute and the Genentech company that makes the drug (crenezumab). The trial is the first for people at high risk and given before symptoms appear. Lasting 5 years, the study should start yielding useful data in less than half that time. US federal officials announced the trial on Tuesday (in English – NYT), and Colombian press has been writing stories this week as well. We highlight the great job by a reporter who has been covering Lopera’s research...
(English intro to Spanish lang post) Today in the Spanish press we find three stories sharing the views of three well-known Spanish researchers about the nation's scientific vigor after recent huge cuts in funding. Of course they complain that the government is not interested enough in research. But they also...
(English intro to Spanish lang post) Today in the Spanish press we find three stories sharing the views of three well-known Spanish researchers about the nation's scientific vigor after recent huge cuts in funding. Of course they complain that the government is not interested enough in research. But they also engage in self-criticism and ask for reforms in Spanish scientific research procedures. Their strongest points are the lack of evaluation and the many mediocre centers that don’t produce good science but receive money nonetheless. Oncologist Barbacid says that Spain is ranked ninth in quantity of publications, but when one checks for impact (quality), it drops to 23rd or even 27th. He argues this is a sign than many centers are lack discipline and good strategy. Massagué says that “in Spain there is a research center at each metro stop”, but says those that are not productive should be closed. Paleontologist Bermúdez de Castro says it’s the end of “coffee for...
(English intro to Spanish lang post) Even in the hypothetical situation that Perú reduces its carbon emissions, the country would experience the same climate change. The impact on global warming by Peruvian greenhouse gases is negligible. If the country wants to minimize effects of climate change, better to do...
(English intro to Spanish lang post) Even in the hypothetical situation that Perú reduces its carbon emissions, the country would experience the same climate change. The impact on global warming by Peruvian greenhouse gases is negligible. If the country wants to minimize effects of climate change, better to do it through adaptation than mitigation. The situation for the US and Europe is somewhat opposite to most countries in Latin America: US and Europe have far larger emissions yet fewer risks compared to other regions. Countries in the Andes or central America have negligible responsibility for climate change but are far more vulnerable to extreme weather, ocean acidification, glacier melting, and so on. This distinction is not clear enough to some reporters in the region. The Peruvian government has presented a plan for a low carbon economy. That’s a great decision. Checking the original document we see it focus on sustainability, energy efficiency and economic development...
(English intro to Spanish lang post) We find four really interesting stories from Latin America: El Universal (México) has a great online graphic describing the risks of overusing antibiotics in farming. According to the story this practice is increasing fast in Mexico with few laws to control it. The well...
(English intro to Spanish lang post) We find four really interesting stories from Latin America: El Universal (México) has a great online graphic describing the risks of overusing antibiotics in farming. According to the story this practice is increasing fast in Mexico with few laws to control it. The well documented story has several sources, examples, and illustrated descriptions of microbes that can get resistantto antibiotics. It also compares Mexican legislation with that in the EU and US. In Brazil, a researcher was accused of scientific fraud and then turned to be innocent. This peculiar case is used by a wise reporter to describe the most common kinds of researchers' misconduct: plagiarism, making up data, stealing original ideas in conferences, but also “data salami” (dividing results to publish several papers), including colleagues as authors, cross-citing, and so on.
Colombian public health officials complain that in the last decades...
(English intro to Spanish lang post) The first sentence in the conclusion of the NEJM paper “Reproductive Technologies and the risk of birth defects” is: “The increased risk of birth defects associated with IVF was no longer significant after adjustment for parental factors”. However, the title of a story in...
(English intro to Spanish lang post) The first sentence in the conclusion of the NEJM paper “Reproductive Technologies and the risk of birth defects” is: “The increased risk of birth defects associated with IVF was no longer significant after adjustment for parental factors”. However, the title of a story in ABC-Spain says: “Reproductive Technologies increase the risk of birth defects”. And in La Nación-Argentina: “Reproductive technologies are riskier”. Man, this is serious stuff, and should be taken more carefully. It’s well-known that test-tube babies have higher rates of birth defects, but what the Australian study has just found is that in the case of simple IVF (mixing sperm and eggs in a lab dish), after adjusting for parameters like age of the mother, smoking or other factors that can affect infertility, differences disappear. On the other hand, intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI – injecting a single sperm in an egg) does indeed seem to increase the risk. So the...
(English intro to Spanish lang post) 29% of Spanish women 18-25 years old are infected with Human Papilloma Virus (HPV), according to a study published this week. Considering the whole range of ages, 14% of women older than 18 are infected. That’s a total of 2 million women. The researchers argue thatchanges in...
(English intro to Spanish lang post) 29% of Spanish women 18-25 years old are infected with Human Papilloma Virus (HPV), according to a study published this week. Considering the whole range of ages, 14% of women older than 18 are infected. That’s a total of 2 million women. The researchers argue thatchanges in sex habits are the cause of this increase in younger populations, and that vaccination should be endorsed. Surprisingly, the stories in the main Spanish newspapers are very superficial, giving only basic info from wires services. Nobody has compared the numbers with other countries; neither has anybody evaluated them in a meaningful way. No other sources apart from the authors get consultation either.
Elsewhere... In Latin America, a Colombian Science writer publishes a great reconstruction of the race against malaria vaccine during the last 4 decades. He features the controversial work of Patarroyo, and includes economic and politic factors apart from...
(English intro to Spanish lang post) El Espectador in Colombia has presented a terrific series of articles about environmental problems of the Magdalena River; the most important in the country. Six stories by 5 reporters have run over the last 4 days. They describe the impacts of overfishing, mining,...
(English intro to Spanish lang post) El Espectador in Colombia has presented a terrific series of articles about environmental problems of the Magdalena River; the most important in the country. Six stories by 5 reporters have run over the last 4 days. They describe the impacts of overfishing, mining, hydroelectric stations, and contamination due to undertreated waste water in big cities. Industrial activity cannot be stopped, but they demand an integrative and sustainable approach to reduce its damage to the river. The package came together with the collaboration of an NGO, The Nature Conservancy. We would have liked to see other sources and data. But it’s definitely a great job. Two weeks ago El Espectador used the same structure to write 5 stories in a row about science policy and funding in Colombia. This tracker was told that the series got important impact.
(English intro to Spanish lang post) Big uncertainty and concern in Perú over the mysterious deaths of dolphins, pelicans, and seals in the north of the country. It started last February. More than 200 dolphins where found dead in the coast of Lambayeque. The numbers are now at 800 according the government and...
(English intro to Spanish lang post) Big uncertainty and concern in Perú over the mysterious deaths of dolphins, pelicans, and seals in the north of the country. It started last February. More than 200 dolphins where found dead in the coast of Lambayeque. The numbers are now at 800 according the government and 3000 according environmental NGO’s. The first hypothesis pointed to offshore drilling. Some newspapers took it for granted and blamed the government and companies. In April the authorities suggested another reason: a virus. This possibility gained weight last weekend when 1200 pelicans and 5 seals showed up dead in the same area. Yesterday a biologist alarmed the population by saying that that if it’s a virus it could mutate and affect humans like bird flu might do. International outlets are taking an interest. Some other hypothesis showed up including, regarding pelicans, a lack of anchovies. In the Peruvian press we can identify outlets that rely mostly on information...
(English intro to Spanish lang post) The science magazine QUO has published issue number 200, noting the occasion in a special report where 26 well-known actors, writers, musicians, sportsmen and Spanish celebrities ask a variety of scientific questions to roughly two dozen researchers. It’s an impressive well-...
(English intro to Spanish lang post) The science magazine QUO has published issue number 200, noting the occasion in a special report where 26 well-known actors, writers, musicians, sportsmen and Spanish celebrities ask a variety of scientific questions to roughly two dozen researchers. It’s an impressive well-illustrated document that aims to illustrate the popularity of science and contrast it to the terrible government financial cuts in Spain.
Elsewhere: In Latin America, Chilean scientists propose the creation of a Ministry of Science. Ecuadorian: researchers warn that they have found anopheles mosquitoes in the Andes higher than ever seen before. A study says that fishing practices are damaging Caribbean corals morethan climate change. An indigenous tribe in the Amazon could be the first to benefit from carbon credits. One year ago Brazilian researchers released 10 million genetically modified dengue-carrying mosquitoes that produce unviable...
(English intro to Spanish lang post) This week El Espectador (Colombia) has published 5 stories in 4 days about “the problems and controversies that upset a good amount of the 20.000 researchers working in the country”, as the lead of the first story put it. The topic is a peculiar budget situation: The...
(English intro to Spanish lang post) This week El Espectador (Colombia) has published 5 stories in 4 days about “the problems and controversies that upset a good amount of the 20.000 researchers working in the country”, as the lead of the first story put it. The topic is a peculiar budget situation: The government has decided to increase the funding for scientific research, but it has distributed the money according to the more fundamental economic needs of each region. This means that some regions with no single research group have received funds, while the main science centers have no benefit from the increase. For some this is good policy that will help to decentralize science and to develop its capacity in more of the country. Others fear the money will be wasted on inefficient projects. Researchers complain that they haven’t been consulted, and that they will be forced to negotiate their projects with local officials who don’t know how scientific research works. Other...
(English intro to Spanish lang post) Chilean researchers have patented a component extracted from algae that, applied to the leaves of trees, boosts photosynthesis and makes the plant grow 25% faster. La Tercera gives a whole page to the story in its print edition. It doesn’t explain the mechanism of action or...
(English intro to Spanish lang post) Chilean researchers have patented a component extracted from algae that, applied to the leaves of trees, boosts photosynthesis and makes the plant grow 25% faster. La Tercera gives a whole page to the story in its print edition. It doesn’t explain the mechanism of action or give data about experimental studies but it declares that the product will be useful for reforestation. The researcher says also that the algae compound protects the trees from pathogenic viruses, bacteria and yeasts. But again, the story doesn’t say how that happens.
Elsewhere: Talk about the promises by Mexican candidates to support public funding for science; Fourteen universities closed in Ecuador after a report reviewing their quality; Spread of a gluten free diet among people without celiac disease; A good job on giant snakes living in the Amazon Rainforest millions of years ago.
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