Senior Spotlight: Gonzaga’s Spirited Scientist Silje Squires
Senior Spotlight: Gonzaga’s Spirited Scientist Silje Squires – Science News Today – EIN Presswire
WA Looks To Future With New Science And Technology Plan
Cook Government launches 10 Year Science and Technology Plan New plan to position WA as a world leader in Science and TechnologyPlan provides a catalyst to address key global challenges such as decarbonisation, health care, security, biodiversity and conservation The Cook Government has released a 10 Year Science and Technology Plan to unleash and leverage the State’s rapidly increasing scientific and technological capabilities.Science Minister Stephen Dawson said the plan was a catalyst to seize opportunities and realise value for the State, create jobs, improve society, attract talent and investment and boost the economy over the next decade.Science and technology research and commercialisation is key to innovation, lifting productivity, enabling businesses to remain competitive, enter new markets and provide new solutions to complex problems.It is critical to enabling energy transition, food security, advancing healthcare and improving the quality of lives of Western Australians and others around the world.The new plan will enable increased investment in research and development, effective collaborations and partnerships, and build capability and growth of a diverse talent pool.It will also support new critical infrastructure and strong community engagement and leadership across science and technology capabilities.The plan outlines actions across six strategic areas and is supported by WA’s Research and Capability Priorities document and an Action Plan. Research and capability priorities will focus effort to ensure the plan delivers tangible results.The new Science and Technology Plan was created with the assistance of more than 1,000 stakeholders representing a broad range of sectors including government, academia, community and industry.Delivery of Western Australia’s 10 Year Plan will be led by the Department of Jobs, Tourism, Science and Innovation and supported by the establishment of a Science and Technology Council. Expressions of interest are now open.The plan supports Diversify WA and other key State Government policies and strategies including the Western Australian Climate Policy and the WA Health and Medical Research Strategy, as well as WA’s Innovation Strategy and the State STEM Skills Strategy.For more information please visit: The new 10 Year Science and Technology PlanAs stated by Science Minister Stephen Dawson:“We have an incredible pool of scientific and innovative talent based in Western Australia and our Government is focused on how we can better utilise this resource for the benefit of the State.“The Cook Government’s new 10 Year Science and Technology Plan is a catalyst to seize opportunities, create jobs, improve our society and boost our economy.“This plan has gone through extensive consultation and reflects our Government’s commitment to the importance of science and technology to enhance the lives of all Western Australians.“This plan recognises the enormous strengths that our State has gleaned from remote operations for the resource industry to healthcare and renewables and builds on this capability to increase the impact science and technology has for our economy, communities and environment.“Western Australia is well positioned to become a recognised player on the world stage with science and technology and this new 10 Year Science and Technology Plan ensure our eyes are firmly on the future.” Source & references /Public Release. View in full here.
Libre! Philharmonic to perform at Science City of Muñoz gym Dec 9
The local government of Science City of Muñoz, Nueva Ecija will treat its people to a night of music on Monday, December 9.
The city government said the Philharmonic Orchestra, under the baton of Dr. Hermigildo Raniera, is set to perform at the Science City Gymnasium starting at 6:30 p.m.
“Get ready to experience enchanting live music featuring Dr. Raul Sunico, Dio Saraza Jr, Camille Lopez-Molina, Lara Maigue, Arman Ferrer, CLSU Maestro Singers and the harmonious 200 Voices of SCM in Himig ng Pasko para sa Inyo: A Christmas Special Concert” and a GRAND FIREWORKS DISPLAY after the show,” it said.
The event is free and open to the public.
Marsden Fund Refocused For Science With A Purpose
Wednesday, 4 December 2024, 1:29 pmPress Release: New Zealand Government
Hon Judith Collins
KCMinister of Science, Innovation and
TechnologyMinister of Science, Innovation and
Technology Judith Collins today announced the Government has
updated the Marsden Fund to focus on core scientific
research that helps lift our economic growth and contributes
to science with a purpose.“The
Government has been clear in its mandate to rebuild our
economy. We are focused on a system that supports growth,
and a science sector that drives high-tech,
high-productivity, high-value businesses and jobs,” Ms
Collins says“I have updated the
Marsden Fund Investment Plan and Terms of Reference to
ensure that future funding is going to science that helps to
meet this goal.”The new Investment Plan focuses on
supporting research that can be of economic, environmental
or health benefit to New Zealand. The new Terms of Reference
outline that approximately 50 per cent of funds will go
towards supporting proposals with economic benefits to New
Zealand.“The Marsden Fund will continue to support
blue-skies research, the type that advances new ideas and
encourages innovation and creativity and where the benefit
may not be immediately apparent. It is important that we
support new ideas which lead to developing new technologies
and products, boosting economic growth, and enhancing New
Zealand’s quality of life,” Ms Collins
says.“The focus of the Fund will shift to core
science, with the humanities and social sciences panels
disbanded and no longer supported. Real impact on our
economy will come from areas such as physics, chemistry,
maths, engineering and biomedical sciences.“The
Marsden Fund will continue to support excellent researchers
in New Zealand, who are looking to create a better country
for us all.”The Marsden Fund Investment Plan and
Terms of Reference will apply to projects funded from the
2025 round of the
Fund.
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ACT Welcomes Marsden Fund Refocus On Science, Further Changes Needed
Wednesday, 4 December 2024, 1:35 pmPress Release: ACT New Zealand
ACT is welcoming news that the Royal Society’s Marsden
Fund is being updated to focus on core science that is of
economic, environmental or health benefit to New
Zealand.“In recent years, the Marsden Fund’s terms
of reference have seen funding prioritised for spirituality,
activism and identity politics over high-quality public good
research that benefits all New Zealanders,” says ACT
Science, Innovation, and Technology spokesperson Dr Parmjeet
Parmar.Recent Marsden Fund Grants
include:$853,000 to investigate historical and
current relationships between Māori and taxation, aiming to
propose new, Te Tiriti-aligned tax systems.$757,000
to imagine ‘honourable kāwanatanga’ in preparation for a
decolonised nation and a Tiriti-based
future.$360,000 to assess the rhetorics of civic
deliberation in true crime podcasting.$861,000 for
research on linking the celestial spheres to end-of-life
experiences.“These projects are
hard to justify to taxpayers who are struggling to afford
the basics. Every dollar spent on these grants is a dollar
that is not supporting research in the hard sciences, or for
that matter, life-saving medicines, essential
infrastructure, or tax relief for struggling
households.“Politicians shouldn’t decide which
specific research projects are funded, but we have a duty to
ensure taxpayer money is focused on research that delivers
tangible benefits for society and the economy. Today’s
changes will help to ensure that this funding delivers a
long-term benefit for New Zealand.
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“The Marsden Fund
is administered by the Royal Society. ACT says there is an
opportunity to make further improvements in areas the Royal
Society administers. The Royal Society’s Future Leadership
Fellowship Grants award $800,000 each to 20 researchers with
quotas for female, Māori, and Pasifika recipients. What’s
worse, these grants are allocated via a random lottery,
rather than based on the merit of the
recipient.“Where does this leave a New Zealander of
European, Indian, or Brazilian descent, for example? They
could have the best idea in the world but be excluded for
being the ‘wrong’ gender or ethnicity. Even if they meet
the identity criteria, their success is left to
luck.“The Royal Society’s funding should
prioritise merit, excellence, and societal benefit – not
identity politics or lotteries. ACT is calling for a return
to fairness, accountability, and a focus on delivering real
results for New
Zealanders.”
© Scoop Media
Scientists uncover coffee’s surprising effect on gut microbiota
Discover how your daily coffee habit fuels gut health by fostering unique bacterial growth, unlocking new pathways to wellness!
Study: Coffee consumption is associated with intestinal Lawsonibacter asaccharolyticus abundance and prevalence across multiple cohorts. Image Credit: Shutterstock AI
Scientists identify a metabolic link between coffee consumption and the abundance of specific gut microorganisms across different human populations.
The study is published in the journal Nature Microbiology.
Background
Broad Microbial Effects: The study identified 115 gut microbial species positively associated with coffee consumption, showcasing coffee’s widespread impact on gut microbiota.
Coffee is a popular beverage worldwide, with a range of health benefits. Studies have shown that coffee intake can reduce the risks of diabetes, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, cancer, and all-cause and cardiovascular mortality.
The health benefits of coffee can be attributed to its polyphenol content. Chlorogenic acid, a key polyphenol in coffee, is metabolized by gut microorganisms into caffeic acid, quinic acid, and other metabolites. The gut microbiota that helps metabolize coffee has also been found to mediate its health effects. Several studies have reported that coffee intake can lead to changes in the gut microbiota composition and diversity in healthy individuals.
The scientists of the current study have previously reported that among more than 150 food items, coffee exhibits the highest correlation with the gut microbiota composition in over 1,000 individuals.
In the current study, scientists have conducted a multi-omic analysis of metagenomic samples obtained from more than 22,000 individuals who provided detailed reports on long-term coffee consumption. Additionally, they integrated these findings with public data from over 54,000 samples, encompassing diverse populations, including non-Westernized groups, newborns, and individuals with specific diseases.
Study Design
The study analyzed more than 35,000 metagenomic samples from three study cohorts, including the ZOE Personalized Responses to Dietary Composition Trial (PREDICT) metagenomics study, the Mind–Body Study (MBS), and the Men’s Lifestyle Validation Study (MLVS).
Anti-Medicine, Anti-Science and Antiabortion: Preparing for Trump’s Incoming Cabinet
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. at the UFC 309 event at Madison Square Garden on Nov. 16, 2024, in New York City. (Jeff Bottari / Zuffa LLC)Since the election was decided in November, like many people, I have been paying close attention to the individuals selected for appointment by the incoming Trump administration. As an OB-GYN and abortion provider, I know firsthand that these appointees will have a direct and devastating impact on our community’s access to healthcare, public health and social safety net infrastructure, and our ability to be well.Over the last couple weeks, we’ve seen concerning pick after concerning pick for Trump’s cabinet positions. Individuals with anti-medicine, anti-science and antiabortion stances are being elevated to positions that will fundamentally shape the medical and public health systems as we know it. Like the first Trump administration, these picks reify and reinforce an intentional platform rooted in restricting people’s bodily autonomy, making healthcare less accessible and amplifying dangerous pseudoscience, misinformation and disinformation about our healthcare. It is important that we are clear and unequivocal in naming the nominees for what they are: a direct threat to our collective health and well-being. Prior to this election cycle, we saw a notable and dramatic uptick in legislative and judicial attacks against people who need access to all types of reproductive healthcare across the country, especially abortion care and gender-affirming care. It is more critical than ever that we center the needs of people who are accessing this care as we seek solutions to ensure every person can get what they need in the future.In the wake of the Dobbs decision, we saw how harmful abortion bans are, as pregnant people like Candi Miller, Amber Thurman and Porsha Ngumezi were denied lifesaving interventions, resulting in their tragic and preventable deaths. Abortion bans are deadly. They keep people from care. They sow seeds of chaos and fear. We cannot even begin to address the harms that these bans have created without political will and leadership committed to centering the facts about how safe, effective and necessary access to comprehensive care in our communities remains. Abortion bans are deadly. They keep people from care. They sow seeds of chaos and fear.This is not what we are seeing coming out of the incoming administration. As we continue to watch President-elect Trump’s picks for leading critical organizations like the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Systems (CMS), we see individuals with careers devoted to restricting access to care instead of expanding it. This promotes inaccurate and misleading information about medicine and science instead of relying on evidence based research to inform their rhetoric, reinforcing harmful narratives about people so seek and those who provide abortion and gender-affirming care. This is not what we need. This is not what our communities deserve. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has been nominated as secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services and if confirmed, will oversee 13 governmental divisions including NIH, CDC, FDA and CMS. Kennedy has no background in medicine or public health and has shared concerning anti-science rhetoric filled with misinformation about healthcare, including vaccines. His career has been dedicated to anti-vaccine mis- and disinformation campaigns with direct ties to international health crises in places like Samoa where his efforts to discourage people from receiving the measles vaccines led to a deadly and preventable measles outbreak. As a physician who has dedicated my career to understanding the science of disease and the practice of medicine, I know full well that routine vaccination has not only been instrumental in eliminating deadly diseases and health crises worldwide, but it remains critical to curbing existing pandemics and avoiding new ones. The data is clear: The World Health Organization estimates vaccines have saved more than 150 million lives over the past 50 years. As we continue to face increasingly common epidemics and pandemics, worsening morbidity and death due to preventable diseases, we should be expanding access to all preventive care, including vaccines and boosters, to ensure that every person who is eligible has the medically accurate information and resources they need to make informed decisions about their own bodies and their own lives.The World Health Organization estimates vaccines have saved more than 150 million lives over the past 50 years.Many continue to battle the grief, fear and devastation left in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. While we work to recover from that pandemic, we do not need leadership facilitating and precipitating another by prioritizing their own political agenda over the health and well-being of our communities. We continue to see other nominees, like former Rep. Dave Weldon (R-Fla.), tapped to lead the CDC. Despite robust evidence, Weldon spread dangerous misinformation about the disproven link between vaccines and autism. His voting record speaks for itself, voting ban federal funding for needle-exchange programs, along with decreasing regulations around gun ownership and usage despite robust medical and scientific evidence citing gun violence as a public health concern. Heart surgeon and U.S. politician Dr. Mehmet Oz in New York City on Nov. 21, 2024, the day Donald Trump nominated Oz as the next administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). (Fatih Aktas / Anadolu via Getty Images)Dr. Mehmet Oz, tapped to lead CMS, has no government agency experience, has long promoted pseudoscience treatments for COVID and has been found to have promoted lie after lie about medications and medical treatments on his television programs that led him to fame. Dr. Marty Makary, a Fox News correspondent who has repeatedly shared dangerous misinformation about abortion on air, has been tapped to lead the FDA. He was outspoken about his belief in not masking at the height of COVID and encouraged dangerous practices that would make children, those with disabilities and immunocompromised individuals at even greater risk of morbidity and mortality. Collaboratively, these cabinet picks have gained popularity by way of anti-intellectualism, misinformation and scare tactics, ultimately preying on the most vulnerable members of our community. They are not just poorly qualified to lead this work, they are dangerous. Preparing for RFK’s HHSIn addition to pressuring the Senate to refuse the confirmation of these individuals who pose severe threats to our collective well-being, there are also direct steps we can take to prepare for the predicted rule changes and policy changes that might come with this administration should they be appointed. As we brace ourselves for a reality under a Kennedy-led HHS, we should all consider taking steps to prepare ourselves and our communities for the changes sure to come. This includes having conversations with our healthcare providers about getting up to date vaccines and boosters ahead of the inauguration, (re)committing to masking in public indoor spaces to protect ourselves and our communities and following the lead of evidence-based researchers, not misleading politicians.We must pay attention to how decreasing access to healthcare resources is tied to increasing surveillance on individuals accessing abortion care and gender-affirming care. In the wake of the Dobbs decision, we have already seen an increase of arrests and prosecutions of pregnant people for their pregnancy outcomes, whether that be abortion or miscarriage. There is no doubt that these numbers will continue to increase under this administration and its appointees. Increasing information about disrupting cycles of criminalization linked to the healthcare system is vital to ensure we can keep ourselves and each other safe. These cabinet picks have gained popularity by way of anti-intellectualism, misinformation and scare tactics, ultimately preying on the most vulnerable members of our communityAs we prepare for the reality of an anti-reproductive health rule change that could further impact access to abortion care, contraceptive care and emergency contraception, I encourage people to have discussions with their families and healthcare providers about how to achieve goals around either getting pregnant or not getting pregnant as we face uncertain times. I also encourage people to familiarize themselves with the mutual aid organizations, community led and community facing organizations, and abortion funds in their area for up-to-date news about local resources and access to care. I am proud to be in a community of physician advocates across the country who are not only committed to pushing back against the threats posed by the incoming administration, but who are more committed than ever to continuing to provide patients with the information and resources they need to make decisions about their healthcare. They will not silence us. We will continue to show up for the who need it most, always centering our communities.
One thing women can do to reduce chances of heart attack, scientists reveal
Short bursts of exercise such as climbing the stairs or carrying heavy shopping reduces women’s risk of heart attack by half, research shows. Fewer than five minutes a day of such bursts of effort, such as walking quickly for the bus or walking uphill, have been shown to have a big impact, especially for women.…
Opinion | How climate science and conspiracy has become embedded within the culture war: The polarising response to Hurricane Milton
By Anna Dodd, Third Year, English In the shadow of Hurricane Milton, political polarisation and conspiracy theories have arisen in regards to climate change and weather manipulation. Within an increasingly divided and tumultuous political terrain, it is getting more difficult to be surprised by the extremity of opinions being shared online. Ever since Elon Musk infamously took over Twitter, now known as X, in the name of ‘free speech’ in 2022, the platform has been rampant with conspiracy, aggressive rhetoric and right-wing propaganda. The polarising reaction to the natural disasters the US experienced last month, has proven that nothing is safe from the hands of ‘truthers’ on the internet, not even the weather. Seeing the response to these events online compels us to wonder: when did science become political?Hurricane Milton hit the west coast of Florida last month, becoming the second most intense Atlantic hurricane on record over the Gulf of Mexico, and is likely to be the strongest tropical cyclone of 2024. Just two weeks before, Hurricane Helene swept across six states of the US, collectively causing the deaths of more than 200 people, and evicting thousands more from their homes. These consecutive national disasters happened to fall in the middle of a charged election campaign, and thus became swept up within the ongoing ‘culture war.’ This phrase can refer to any form of cultural conflict between social groups who are attempting to impose their particular political ideology into the mainstream. However, in recent years this has become a buzzword largely used to describe arguments over identity politics and social justice movements. Matthew d’Acona explains that this phenomenon has become increasingly more potent in the last twenty years due to the ‘declining trust in institutions that were meant to hold together the cohesion of society’ as well as the development of technologies that enable and encourage people to cluster in cultural groups within online communities.For Alex Jones, a notorious conspiracy theorist who was infamously sued over his claims about the Sandy Hook shooting, weather weapons are old news. Jones has been promoting the idea that the government have the power to install meteorological events where they see fit, for years now. He was quoted in 2013 discussing the origin of the Texan floods, asserting that ‘it was the Air Force.’ However, in the midst of Donald Trump’s election campaign, conspiracies of this nature were exceedingly amped up in the Republican party’s best interests. It is notable that one of the hurricanes coincidently hit the swing state of North Carolina, and this fact was manipulated in the Right’s favour to attest the storm was employed by the US government as a distraction tactic, to ‘steal’ the election from Trump. This implication was supported by Marjorie Taylor Greene, who was reelected as a member of Congress last week, who tweeted ‘Yes they can control the weather. It’s ridiculous for anyone to lie and say it can’t be done.’The fact that government officials are promoting these beliefs, and conspiracy theories have so viscerally entered the mainstream, no longer being reserved for niche online spaces, is objectively concerning. Alex Jones has largely become a figure of ridicule in the mainstream within the last 10 years, but this does not make the conspiracy theories he promotes any less threatening. Having successfully secured his second term in office, the leader of one of the most powerful nations in the world is a man who has declared climate change to be ‘one of the greatest scams of all time’ in a recent Pennsylvania rally. Researchers at Imperial College London revealed that Hurricane Milton was massively intensified by warm sea temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico. Their investigations concluded that in a hypothetical world without climate change, ‘a Milton-type Category 3 hurricane would instead [have] made landfall as a weaker Category 2 hurricane.’ Therefore, almost half of the economic damage caused by Milton and Helene can be attributed to climate change, which should be cause for grave concern, however, is currently being treated as a non-issue by politicians, including Trump.In the aftermath of the violent hurricanes and a correspondingly turbulent election year, it is hard to say how much both the storms themselves, and the conspiracies that followed affected Trump’s win, but what it can lead us to consider more broadly, is the dangers of science becoming wrapped up in politics. The psychology behind promoting and believing conspiracy theories is straightforward; it makes us feel good to know something others don’t, to be part of a secret circle of individuals who all the know the truth, looking onto the clueless outsiders, ultimately giving us control in an increasingly unstable plane of existence. But I’d be willing to consider another, more terrifying reason to so fiercely promote and believe such theories, specifically when they concern something like the weather. The belief in weather manipulation/weapons indicates that someone is in charge; this is human doing, and therefore something can be done about it. The other option is actually far more emotionally difficult to comprehend and manage. Science tells us we are systematically destroying our planet, and we don’t have the will or political backing to stop it, and this reality is in fact far scarier and therefore harder to accept as true. As Brian Klaas acknowledges, ‘unfortunately, humanity has been cursed with brains instinctively tantalised by secret narratives, hidden stories, and grand conspiracies.’ Whilst this certainly isn’t the only reason why key figures of the right are rejecting science, specifically in relation to their response to Milton, it can provide insight into the psychology of conspiracy, which ultimately seems to be working in their favour.The internet in the 21st century has become its own hurricane; a storm of misinformation, lies and conspiracy. As we are catapulted into Trump’s second term; the future feels uncertain. It is likely that conspiracy theories, not just concerning science, are only going to get more extreme as polarising online spaces become more divided, not to mention the impact AI generated content may have. This is a danger facing both the left and the right, with the rise of reliance on curated social media feeds and podcasts for news. To combat this, media literacy is crucial and this is a challenge Gen-Z and generations to come will have to address.
