Archive by date | November 2010

Vitamin D: A dosing down?

Vitamin D: A dosing down?

A new report concludes that huge doses of the vitamin D are unwarranted and may even be harmful, and it suggests that most Americans and Canadians aren’t suffering from a deficiency in the “sunshine vitamin”. The Institute of Medicine (IOM) report analyzed findings from more than 1,000 studies of vitamin D and calcium intake.

Diplomatic cables detail DNA sleuthing

Diplomatic cables detail DNA sleuthing

The next time you’re at a swanky function at the US embassy, you might want to keep track of your wine glass. At least, if the latest tranche of leaked documents from the US government is any indication: diplomats and other officials have apparently received instruction to collect biometric data—including DNA samples—from major players in certain countries.

The rare earth blues

At this week’s enormous materials science meeting in Boston, Massachusetts, there are scores of talks and posters dealing with the rare earth metals – the fifteen lanthanides, across the bottom of the periodic table, plus scandium and yttrium – which are used in everything from mobile phones to powerful magnets and lasers. But while scientists like those at the Materials Research Society (MRS) event are busily manipulating these atoms, the world has been fretting over their availability.

US Senate enacts historic food safety legislation

The United States Senate today approved a historic food safety bill, responding to repeated oubreaks of food-borne illness and addressing perennial assessments from groups like the Institute of Medicine and the Government Accountability Office, which have called the US food safety system weak and fractured.

Your top science questions answered?

Christmas has come early for geeks. The Royal Society, the UK’s national academy of science, has the answers to all your science related questions, from are we alone the in the universe to what is the value of biodiversity, in a collection of essays to see you entertained through the winter months.

Positive review for California stem cell agency

Positive review for California stem cell agency

The first comprehensive external review of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) has come to overwhelmingly positive conclusions about the state stem cell agency’s progress. But some in the biotech community continue to grumble that the agency, which began operations in 2006, is focusing too much on basic research rather than fulfilling its mandate of taking stem cell therapies from bench to bedside.

Institute of Medicine urges ramp-up of AIDS prevention in Africa

Institute of Medicine urges ramp-up of AIDS prevention in Africa

A report released today by the Institute of Medicine (IOM), part of the US National Academy of Sciences, says that cases of HIV/AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa will greatly outstrip the availability of treatment by 2020. It urges nations inside and outside of Africa to intensify prevention measures as the best long-term strategy for combating the disease.  Read more

PCAST eyes a $10-billion boost for energy innovation

PCAST eyes a $10-billion boost for energy innovation

The administration of Barack Obama should work with Congress to identify an additional $10 billion in annual energy funding as part of a broader effort to “forge a more coordinated and robust federal energy policy,” according to a new report from the president’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.  Read more