Neat News - Neat things do happen

Coral reefs are under threat from global warming. In a study it has been found that corals that survived a heatwave seem to be more resistant to future heatwaves. This gives hope that the coral reefs can adapt to changing temperatures.

A spray has been developed that shows promise to reduce the risk of a cancer regrowing after surgery. Up to now it has been tested on mice and more research is needed.

In a study it has been found that people who live in a leafy neighbourhood have lower levels of stress and have as a consequence a lower risk of cardiovascular problems.

A new drug against malaria has been developed. This is important since the malaria parasite develops a resistance against traditional drugs and they also attack the parasite at a later stage im the cycle. The new attacks the malaria parasite at a much earlier stage, which means that it can be effective before the patient feels very ill.

People use different approaches to memorize things better, for instance, when they revise for an examination. In a study it has been found now that drawing is better for memorization than writing.

A new nano-particle based approach to distribute drugs to support the build-up of cartilage in damaged joints has been developed. The drug can be injected, coats the cartilage, and the penetrates it.

In Kathmandu, Nepal, volunteers have produced a map of the Dead Sea, using 100,000 used plastic bags in order to raise awareness that plastic bags cause big problems for our oceans.

In lake Luonteri in East Finland, Stone Age paintings were found. One of them shows a right hand painted in red.

Health workers test people in Namibia and work with the infected and their partners. They have managed that a high percentage of infected people know about their infection, that a high percentage of infected people take antiviral drugs and that a high percentage of people who are taken antiviral drugs have an undetectable level of HIV. Namibia is on a good way of winning the fight against HIV.

In a trial patients who had recently developed diabetes type 2 had to follow for three months a very low calorie diet with only 800 calories per day. In almost half of patients this was sufficient for the patients to go into remission. More studies are needed to see whether this can be repeated on a bigger scale.

A system has been developed that informs farmers in Africa by a mobile phone app on potential problems with pests. The information is mainly gathered by satellites. It is hoped that the yields of participating farms can be increased by up to 20 percent this way.