TMCnet News
AP Science NewsBrief at 4:57 p.m. EST(Associated Press Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Curbing global warming saves lives, studies sayWASHINGTON (AP) _ Cutting global warming pollution would not only make the planet healthier, it would make people healthier too, new research suggests. Slashing carbon dioxide emissions could save millions of lives, mostly by reducing preventable deaths from heart and lung diseases, according to studies released Wednesday and published in a special issue of The Lancet British medical journal. Shuttle Atlantis leaves space station, headed homeCAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) _ Shuttle Atlantis undocked from the International Space Station early Wednesday and headed home with one astronaut eager to hold his newborn daughter for the first time and another who's been away from her young son since the summer. Before signing off from Mission Control, flight director Mike Sarafin wished the seven crew members a happy Thanksgiving and a good landing on Friday. Experts think toxic algae harming endangered fishGRANTS PASS, Ore. (AP) _ Scientists say they think toxins from a blue-green algae plaguing lakes and rivers around the West are harming an endangered fish in the Klamath Basin, adding another obstacle to restoring species that have forced irrigation shutoffs for farmers. U.S. Geological Survey fish biologist Scott VanderKooi (VAN-der-koy) said Wednesday that liver damage detected in young Lost River and shortnosed suckers in Upper Klamath Lake appears to have been caused by the algae known as microsystin. Ships warned about icebergs headed for New ZealandWELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) _ Ships are on alert and maritime authorities are monitoring the movements of hundreds of menacing icebergs drifting toward New Zealand in the southern Pacific Ocean, officials said. The area is not a major shipping lane and few sailors are out in November _ spring in the southern hemisphere _ but ships that traverse the area have little hull protection and could be significantly damaged by a collision with an iceberg, which typically has 90 percent of its mass under water. Big Bang atom smasher starts speeding proton beamsGENEVA (AP) _ The world's largest atom smasher used its accelerator Tuesday to speed up proton beams for the first time as scientists moved ahead in efforts to learn more about the universe. The $10 billion Large Hadron Collider showed it could raise the energy of the proton beams whizzing around the massive machine by an initial 20 percent. CO2 curve ticks upward as key climate talks loomMAUNA LOA OBSERVATORY, Hawaii (AP) _ The readings at this 2-mile-high station show a troubling upward curve as the world counts down to crucial climate talks: Global warming gases are building in the atmosphere at record levels from emissions that match scientists' worst-case scenarios. Carbon dioxide concentrations this fall are hovering at around 385 parts per million, on their way to a near-certain record high above 390 in the first half of next year, at the annual peak. Comatose for 23 years, Belgian feels rebornBRUSSELS (AP) _ Helped by a therapist, Rom Houben's outstretched finger tapped with surprising speed on a computer touchscreen, spelling out how he felt "alone, lonely, frustrated" in the 23 years he was trapped inside a paralyzed body. After a doctor found he was wrongly diagnosed as being in a vegetative state, and worked out a way for him to communicate, Houben said he now feels reborn. Grand Canyon to change 'unfair' permit systemFLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (AP) _ Getting one of the roughly 11,500 permits granted each year to backpack overnight in the Grand Canyon has become so competitive and "unfair" that managers at the national park have decided to change the system. Now those who want the coveted permits either show up in person or try their luck with mail or fax machines on the day the permits become available. Warming's impacts sped up, worsened since KyotoWASHINGTON (AP) _ Since the 1997 international accord to fight global warming, climate change has worsened and accelerated _ beyond some of the grimmest of warnings made back then. As the world has talked for a dozen years about what to do next, new ship passages opened through the once frozen summer sea ice of the Arctic. In Greenland and Antarctica, ice sheets have lost trillions of tons of ice. Mountain glaciers in Europe, South America, Asia and Africa are shrinking faster than before. EU: US should spell out long-term climate goalSTRASBOURG, France (AP) _ The United States should be ready to spell out its long-term vision for reducing carbon emissions over the next two decades, not just until 2020, the European Union said Tuesday. With two weeks to go before a global climate conference, the EU urged Washington and Beijing to come to the Copenhagen event with meaningful bids to check their greenhouse gas emissions. (c) 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |