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| The latest news from the Academies
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Dec. 4 -- Military personnel who suffer severe or moderate traumatic brain injury face an increased risk for developing several long-term health problems, including Alzheimer's-like dementia, aggression, memory loss, and depression, says a new report from the Institute of Medicine. In addition, it calls for stepped up efforts to research and understand brain injuries sustained from the force of an explosion without a direct head blow, a condition that may be underdiagnosed.
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Dec. 3 -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's process of generating risk assessments is bogged down by unprecedented challenges and should be streamlined. To improve its use as a decision-making tool, this should include ensuring that risk assessments make best use of appropriate available science, are technically accurate, and tailor the assessment to the specific needs of the problem, says a new report from the National Research Council.
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Dec. 2 -- To promote patient safety, a new report from the Institute of Medicine recommends reducing the maximum number of hours that medical residents can work without a break for sleep to 16. The report also calls for increased supervision of residents, limits on the number of patients they can care for during a shift, and better monitoring of training hospitals' adherence to hour and workload rules.
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Nov. 20 -- A more integrated and effective nationwide meteorological and chemical weather network is needed that measures atmosphere conditions at various heights and scales, says a new report from the National Research Council. In addition to weather observations, such a system could track dispersion of biological and nuclear contaminants from industrial accidents; monitor smoke from wildfires; provide high-resolution weather information for aviation and waterways, water management, and food production; and support regional climate monitoring.
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| Breaking stories in science
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Nov. 26 -- Scientists have reported the extensive presence of hydrated silicas on Mars after analyzing data from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, which has been gathering information on the planet since 2006. The data, published in the November issue of the journal Geology, also show these water-bearing minerals in areas that were formed less than 2 billion years ago, well into the planet’s 4.5 billion year life.
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Nov. 19 -- According to a study of more than 32,000 postmenopausal women, vigorous exercise may cut risk of breast cancer by 30 percent in normal-weight women. According to the authors of the study, which was published recently in the journal Breast Cancer Research, “Possible mechanisms through which physical activity may protect against breast cancer that are independent of BMI [body mass index] include reduced exposure to growth factors, enhanced immune function, and decreased chronic inflammation, variables that are related both to greater physical activity and to lower breast cancer risk.”
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Nov. 14 -- Can earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and their consequences be predicted? According to the National Research Council report Origin and Evolution of Earth: Research Questions for a Changing Planet, this is one of the 10 most important questions facing earth science this century. Although it may never be possible to predict the exact time and place an earthquake will strike, scientists continue to try new approaches.
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Nov. 5 -- As President-elect Barack Obama prepares to take the helm, he should use the best available science and scientists to help manage the nation’s current and future issues, such as climate change, alternative energy, veterans' health, and the nation's infrastructure, advises a recent report from the National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and Institute of Medicine.
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