Neat News - Neat things do happen

Namaqualand, a desert in Southwest Africa, is one of the driest areas in the region. However, every year in Spring time, it is in full bloom.

For some forms of brain cancer in children there are only very few treatment options and too often these are not effective. At a difficult time a number of parents who have lost a child to brain cancer have agreed that brain tissue is taken in order to gain a better understanding and hopefully in the long to develop new more effective treatments. This way a better understanding has been achieved and some promising treatment options are now available.

At the 70th session of the Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) of the IMO (International Martime Organization), it has been decided that ships (including container ships) must be more environmentally friendly by 2020. By then they have to comply with low sulphur fuel oil requirements (at most 0.5% sulphur then compared to 3.5% now).

Ross Sea in Antarctica will become the biggest marine protected area as decided by the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources. With 1.56 million km² it is four times as big as Germany.

Some species of fish can adapt much faster to global warming than evolution allows by switching on some existing genes. This has been found out with respect to fish in the Gulf of St. Lawrence (off Labrador).

More electricity can now be produced using renewable sources such as solar and wind than using coal. That is not yet the actual amount of electricity since the wind may not be blowing strongly. However, onshore wind production and the installation of solar panels are growing strongly and the fall in cost has meant that they have become very attractive, a devlopment used by China, India, and Mexico, for instance.

The BBC publishes on its Welsh pages beautiful pictures from autumn in North Wales, in particular from the Snowdonia National Park.

A drone has been used to take beautiful pictures of whales without disturbing them. A video has been taken by LGL Limited, the University of British Columbia, VDOS Global, Fisheries and Oceans Canada and WWF-Canada (originally seen at Spiegel Online).

Belize has decided to stop seismic surveying near the World Heritage site of the Belize Barrier Reef with immediate effect.

In underwater expeditions this year new animals such as a purple animal between an octopus and a squid as well as some natural phenomena such as three before unknown "black smokers", hydrothermal vents, have been discovered. One expedition was carried through by NOAA, the US National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration. On their web site beautiful underwater pictures and videos can be found.

There are promising animal tests in macaques that may enable the development of a vaccination against the common cold, against which up to now there is no vaccination and which takes time to cure.

The milk of Tasmanian devils contains substances - so-called peptides - which help to boost the immune system of their babies. In research it has been found that the substances can be used to fight MRSA, a superbug that is difficult to treat otherwise.

Capuchin monkeys in Brazil have been observed how they break stones, this way producing sharp-edged flakes. It means that they can produce tools, an activity that can no longer be ascribed to humans only.

In 2011 the IBM system Watson won the Jeopardy! competition against former winners. It uses the processing of deep knowledge. Now the system is to be used to help in the diagnosis of rare diseases.

An asteroid is made responsible for the extinction of the dinosaurs some 66 million years ago. Glas fragments found in sediment cores in New Jersey support the theory that around 55 million years ago a comet slammed into the Atlantic Ocean and led with a rise of the temperature to the domination of mammals on the Earth.

A giant jade stone that is 4.3m high and 5.8m long with a weight of 174,600kg has been found in the Kachin state of Myanmar. It has an estimated worth of 170 million dollars.

Cave art as old as 14500 years has been discovered in the Basque town of Lekeitio. It shows depictions of different animals among them a 150cm long horse and two lions. The discovery was announced in May 2016 and further investigated since then.

In Württemberg, Germany, an experimental installation of wind turbines is under construction. It uses water to store energy so that in times when there is no wind, the energy stored in the water can be used to generate the electricity. The idea is the same as in traditional hydroelectric power stations that are used to produce electricity at short notice when it is needed, however, the water is stored locally with the turbines themselves.

A paralyzed man could feel - after a four week training period - his hand again by an implanted electrode that stimulated a particular part of his brain. In the long run the research may make it possible to use a mechanical arm through thought.

In a new approach it is tried to deal with the onset of Alzheimer before the brain is seriously damaged and the first symptoms show. In clinical trials drugs are tested that may clear up aggregations of damaging proteins that harm brain cells.

Hydrofluorcarbons (HFCs) are common refrigerator fluids which are also greenhouse gases much more potent than CO₂. They are targeted at the Kigali (Rwanda) meeting of the United Nations to be phased out in a major ammendment to the Paris agreement.

Seagrass plays an important role in ecosystem of the oceans, in particular near the shores where it provides shelter and food for fish and other animals. The World Seagrass Association calls for its international protection.

The treatment with the immunotherapy drug nivolumab shows better results than traditional chemotherapy. Unlike chemotherapy it supports the immune system in attacking cancer cells.

Greenpeace describes how the Nepalese village of Sam Dzong moved because of global warming to a new fertile area since its traditional home became very dry and the villagers could not irrigate their fields any longer.

The aviation industry has been included now in the carbon reduction targets. There is a commitment that by 2020 the additional airline emissions of CO₂ will have to be compensated for, e.g., by planting trees. Previously the industry was exempt from the Paris agreement.

An aeroplane propelled by hydrogen fuel cells had its first test flight in Stuttgart. The plane uses an electric motor which is serviced by fuel cells. Only for the start a high capacity battery is used in addition.

In the Syrian city of Aleppo, known because of the heavy battles in the Syrian civil war, there is a seed bank that is particularly precious since it contains seeds important in the light of climate change, since they are particularly well suited for dry regions. A sister bank is now started in Terbol, Lebanon, which comprises currently 30,000 duplicates.

Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease is a denerative brain condition caused by so-called prions which damage the brain. Up to now a diagnosis is difficult. Work has been done that may lead to a test that is based on urine samples.

Yoshinori Ohsumi receives the 2016 Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine for the discovery how cells recycle material by a process called "self eating" (autophagy). This understanding may pave the way for the treatment of some medical conditions caused by malfunctioning cells.

In order to protect elephants delegates at the UN Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species in South Africa have called for the closure of all domestic ivory markets. Except would be only ivory from before 1947.

In Reykjavik the lights were turned off to have a better view on the Nothern Lights (the Aurora Borealis). As the pictures suggest it was worth it.