The United Nations repeated its calls for immediate aid, saying that response efforts must be hundreds of times greater than they currently are in order to meet the threat of an epidemic that, the UN has stated, was outstripping all current efforts. The UN warned that without much higher levels of response, the world would … Read more
WHO officials provided an update Friday on the progress of the Ebola epidemic gripping West Africa and outpacing all efforts to control it. The WHO warned that without immediate, concerted action Ebola could become a global pandemic on the scale of HIV, and added that the current response was only half of what it needed … Read more
Whose art is worth more? The ordinary painter who just took up the craft or the authentic artist who has spent 20 years working at it and believes he will paint until he dies? According to a new joint marketing study, women and men judge the value of art differently, and how an artist is … Read more
[BRIEF] According to the World Health Organization, the spread of Ebola across Europe is “quite unavoidable.” WHO European Director Zsuzsanna Jakab commented Tuesday on the recent first case of Ebola contracted in Europe and said, “Such imported cases and similar events as have happened in Spain will happen also in the future, most likely.” “It is … Read more
According to the largest study ever conducted treating near-death experiences, evidence suggests that there is consciousness after clinical death. A University of Southampton team spent four years examining 2,060 cardiac arrest patients at 15 different hospitals on three continents. The report, “AWAREness during CPR: Be careful with what you say!” was authored by Drs Edgardo … Read more
Most studies have concluded that unemployment in the short run leads to a drop in fertility, but whether the negative effects persist–whether women simply postpone childbearing or if the effect is more long-term–has remained unknown. According to a recent study by Princeton University, living through a recession means that some women will never have a child, … Read more
According to a recent study by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, pesticide use is positively linked to suicide and depression. The study analyzed data from various pesticide classes and found evidence supported a positive association between pesticide exposure and depression. Several specific pesticides were also positively identified as associated. “Few previous studies have … Read more
A nurse who had served on the team that treated a Spanish priest who contracted the disease in West Africa has become the first Ebola case in Europe. She is also the first person to have contracted the disease outside Africa, despite the highest level of precautions having been taken. The nurse tested positive for Ebola in two … Read more
According to a new study led by the Georgia Institute of Technology, just one short burst of weight-lifting can enhance long-term memory for young adults by around 10 percent. “Our study indicates that people don’t have to dedicate large amounts of time to give their brain a boost,” said Lisa Weinberg, a graduate student and … Read more
While experts in the US warned that the US was not prepared to contain an Ebola outbreak, citing mistakes and missteps in the handling of the first US Ebola case which resulted in the death of Thomas Duncan last week, US officials and US President Barack Obama rejected increasing calls for travel restrictions to and … Read more
The Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics held a meeting last week to discuss the definition of what a planet is, and whether Pluto–which had its planet status removed in 2006 after a vote by the International Astronomical Union (IAU)–should be considered a planet. Three experts paneled the meeting, and each argued for or against Pluto as a … Read more
The new chip developed by IBM has 4096 cores, 1 million programmable neurons, and 5.4 billion transistors, heralding what some are calling a new era in computing. The chip, called TrueNorth, is the most advanced neuromorphic (brain-like) chip created, and is incredibly efficient. The chip consumes only 72 milliwatts at maximum load–equivalent to 400 billion synaptic … Read more