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US government and United Airlines to track greenhouse gases
The US government has landed a first-of-its-kind deal with United Airlines to use a commercial Boeing 737 to track greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. The aircraft will be equipped to measure carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide and other pollutants. This comes as part of a new White House initiative to track so-called “super pollutants,” which are substances that have a higher global warming potential per pound than carbon dioxide. The plane could yield four times as much data as current private research flights, according to Bloomberg.
Toddler receives bespoke false eye with innovative design
Nuala Mullholland was just ten months old when she was diagnosed with a form of eye cancer that affects just six people a year in England. After the loss of her eye, doctors were able to design a prosthetic replacement based on scans of her face, in contrast with traditional, invasive methods. In most cases, patients would have a wax mould made of their eye socket, an uncomfortable procedure for a small child. Instead, CT scans were taken remotely, and only the skin-matching process occurring in person. She now wears the piece for several hours a day, with her mother telling Sky News that she’s “adapted so well” to it.
Shingles vaccine could delay onset of dementia
A team at the University of Oxford have discovered a surprising link between new shingles vaccine Shingrix and a decrease in diagnoses of dementia. Examining more than 200,000 medical records in the US, where Shingrix became the dominant vaccine in 2017, they found that the risk of dementia in Shingrix patients decreases by 17% compared to users of older vaccine Zostavax. For those who developed symptoms, onset was delayed by an average of six months. Compared to other vaccines for diseases such as tetanus or flu, Shingrix users were 22-27% less likely to develop dementia. At present, one in three people will develop dementia.
UN makes “global call to action” on extreme global heat
UN Secretary-General António Guterres has announced a “global call to action” following the two hottest days on historical record, both in July. The UN has provided a report with four key focuses for combating extreme heat: care for the vulnerable, protecting workers, boosting economic and societal resilience and limiting temperature rise to 1.5C. Bringing together cross-sector case studies and action plans ranging from finance to natural science, the report estimates that urgent solutions could save over 98,000 lives a year and $1trn in energy bills. Presenting the report before assembled member states, Mr. Guterres argued that it was time to “rise to the challenge of rising temperatures.”
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