BONN, Germany (AP) - The advances made in U.N. climate talks last year appeared at risk Thursday as a rift between rich and poor countries reopened in negotiations aimed at crafting a global pact to stop the planet from overheating.
The session in Bonn was meant to build on a deal struck in Durban, South Africa, in December, but the talks were faltering heading into the penultimate day amid disputes over what, exactly, was agreed on last year.
Delegates were struggling to reach consensus on the agenda for future talks under the new Durban Platform, with China and others reluctant to close existing negotiating tracks that make clear distinctions between the responsibilities of developed and developing nations.
'There is distrust and there is frustration in the atmosphere,' Seyni Nafo, spokesman for a group of African countries, told The Associated Press.
The two-decade-old negotiations have had limited success in creating a global regime to rein in the emissions of heat-trapping gases which a big majority of climate scientists say are warming the Earth, with potentially devastating consequences for poor countries ill-prepared to deal rising sea levels, floods and other effects of a changing climate.
Actions taken and pledged so far fall well short of what the U.N. experts say is needed to achieve the stated goal of preventing global temperatures from rising more than 2 degrees Fahrenheit (1.2 degrees Celsius) above current levels by the end of this century.
The only existing binding treaty, the 1997 Kyoto Protocol, was shunned by the U.S. because it doesn't impose any emissions targets on China, thus leaving out the two biggest carbon emitters on the globe. After Canada, Japan and Russia dropped out, the treaty's second commitment period covers only about 15 percent of global emissions.
After painstaking negotiations in Durban, countries agreed to create a new pact by 2015 that would take effect five years later and include both developed and developing countries.
But the European Union said that package of decisions was at risk of unraveling because of the bickering at the conference in Bonn, which is supposed to lay the groundwork for a bigger climate summit in Qatar, at the end of the year.
'We are very concerned that the spirit of cooperation that prevailed in Durban has not carried over into this session,' EU delegate Christian Pilgaard Zinglersen told the conference Wednesday.
The EU claims China and other developing countries are backsliding on commitments made in Durban to conduct future talks on emissions cuts within the new platform.
Developing countries accuse the U.S., EU and other industrialized nations of trying to evade commitments made under previous negotiating tracks and shift responsibilities for tackling climate change to the developing world.
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Thursday, May 24, 2012
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
150,000 more US heat deaths projected by 2100
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Killer heat fueled by climate change could cause an additional 150,000 deaths this century in the biggest U.S. cities if no steps are taken to curb carbon emissions and improve emergency services, according to a new report.
The three cities with the highest projected heat death tolls are Louisville, with an estimated 19,000 heat-related fatalities by 2099; Detroit, with 17,900, and Cleveland, with 16,600, the Natural Resources Defense Council found in its analysis of peer-reviewed data, released on Wednesday.
Concentrated populations of poor people without access to air conditioning are expected to contribute to the rising death tolls.
Thousands of additional heat deaths were also projected by century's end for Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Columbus, Denver, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, Pittsburgh, Providence, St. Louis and Washington, D.C., the report said.
June, July and August are expected to see above-normal temperatures over most of the contiguous United States, from inland California to New Jersey, and from as far north as Idaho and Wyoming to Texas, Florida and the desert Southwest, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said in a May 17 forecast.
The last 12 months, from May 2011 to April 2012, were the warmest in the contiguous United States since modern record-keeping began; last month was the hottest April on record for the Northern Hemisphere.
These figures show climate change is already being powerfully felt, and more dangerously hot summer days are in prospect under a business-as-usual scenario, said Dan Lashof, director of NRDC's climate and clean air program.
NRDC, which with other environmental groups has pushed for curbs on U.S. emissions of heat-trapping carbon dioxide, is backing a plan by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to limit carbon emissions from new U.S. power plants. The EPA is holding public hearings on Thursday on the dangers of carbon pollution from power plants. The EPA's plan is unlikely to go into effect until after this year's election campaign.
DEADLIEST DAYS
The deadliest days are those designated Excessive Heat Events (EHEs), often in urban areas where air conditioning is scarce or unreliable, with sizable poor populations and municipal services unprepared for large numbers of people sickened by the heat, Larry Kalkstein, a University of Miami professor who wrote two studies on the subject.
One was published in the American Meteorological Society's journal Weather, Climate and Society; the other in the journal Natural Hazards. Both were peer-reviewed.
There could be five times the number of Excessive Heat Event days by mid-century and eight times that number by the end of the century, Kalkstein said in a telephone briefing. The current average number of EHEs per year is 233; by mid-century it could be 1,342, and by 2100, it could be 1,913.
The full report is available online at http://www.nrdc.org/globalwarming/killer-heat/ .
The most disastrous heat waves, like the one that killed more than 700 people in the Chicago area in 1995, come when high heat lasts beyond two days in urban areas without plans to reach the most vulnerable populations: the elderly, the obese and those on medication.
Kalkstein praised Chicago for improving its heat warning system, emergency services and cooling centers since then. He also said Philadelphia and Seattle had put measures in place to lessen the risk from excessive heat days.
The studies considered cities because that is where two-thirds of the U.S. population lives, Lashof said. There is some evidence that heat deaths in rural areas will also rise, but that is harder to document, he said.
U.S. cities aren't the only ones bracing for the impacts of extreme weather. Ten Asian cities are assessing how ready they are to deal with floods, droughts, heat waves and other expected results of climate change.
The Asian Cities Climate Change Resilience Network is working in 10 cities in India, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam to figure out technical indicators -- such as the capacity of water systems, sewage and waste-water services and the size of deforested areas upstream from urban areas -- to help plan to protect city residents. More information on the plan is available at http://www.acccrn.org/ .
(Reporting by Deborah Zabarenko, Environment Correspondent; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)
This news article is brought to you by PERSONAL FINANCE BLOG - where latest news are our top priority.
The three cities with the highest projected heat death tolls are Louisville, with an estimated 19,000 heat-related fatalities by 2099; Detroit, with 17,900, and Cleveland, with 16,600, the Natural Resources Defense Council found in its analysis of peer-reviewed data, released on Wednesday.
Concentrated populations of poor people without access to air conditioning are expected to contribute to the rising death tolls.
Thousands of additional heat deaths were also projected by century's end for Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, Columbus, Denver, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, Pittsburgh, Providence, St. Louis and Washington, D.C., the report said.
June, July and August are expected to see above-normal temperatures over most of the contiguous United States, from inland California to New Jersey, and from as far north as Idaho and Wyoming to Texas, Florida and the desert Southwest, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said in a May 17 forecast.
The last 12 months, from May 2011 to April 2012, were the warmest in the contiguous United States since modern record-keeping began; last month was the hottest April on record for the Northern Hemisphere.
These figures show climate change is already being powerfully felt, and more dangerously hot summer days are in prospect under a business-as-usual scenario, said Dan Lashof, director of NRDC's climate and clean air program.
NRDC, which with other environmental groups has pushed for curbs on U.S. emissions of heat-trapping carbon dioxide, is backing a plan by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to limit carbon emissions from new U.S. power plants. The EPA is holding public hearings on Thursday on the dangers of carbon pollution from power plants. The EPA's plan is unlikely to go into effect until after this year's election campaign.
DEADLIEST DAYS
The deadliest days are those designated Excessive Heat Events (EHEs), often in urban areas where air conditioning is scarce or unreliable, with sizable poor populations and municipal services unprepared for large numbers of people sickened by the heat, Larry Kalkstein, a University of Miami professor who wrote two studies on the subject.
One was published in the American Meteorological Society's journal Weather, Climate and Society; the other in the journal Natural Hazards. Both were peer-reviewed.
There could be five times the number of Excessive Heat Event days by mid-century and eight times that number by the end of the century, Kalkstein said in a telephone briefing. The current average number of EHEs per year is 233; by mid-century it could be 1,342, and by 2100, it could be 1,913.
The full report is available online at http://www.nrdc.org/globalwarming/killer-heat/ .
The most disastrous heat waves, like the one that killed more than 700 people in the Chicago area in 1995, come when high heat lasts beyond two days in urban areas without plans to reach the most vulnerable populations: the elderly, the obese and those on medication.
Kalkstein praised Chicago for improving its heat warning system, emergency services and cooling centers since then. He also said Philadelphia and Seattle had put measures in place to lessen the risk from excessive heat days.
The studies considered cities because that is where two-thirds of the U.S. population lives, Lashof said. There is some evidence that heat deaths in rural areas will also rise, but that is harder to document, he said.
U.S. cities aren't the only ones bracing for the impacts of extreme weather. Ten Asian cities are assessing how ready they are to deal with floods, droughts, heat waves and other expected results of climate change.
The Asian Cities Climate Change Resilience Network is working in 10 cities in India, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam to figure out technical indicators -- such as the capacity of water systems, sewage and waste-water services and the size of deforested areas upstream from urban areas -- to help plan to protect city residents. More information on the plan is available at http://www.acccrn.org/ .
(Reporting by Deborah Zabarenko, Environment Correspondent; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)
This news article is brought to you by PERSONAL FINANCE BLOG - where latest news are our top priority.
EU warns climate talks at risk of floundering
Europe warned at climate talks in Bonn on Wednesday that efforts to forge a new global pact to avert environmental disaster were in danger of floundering, and some pointed fingers at China.
Nine days into talks meant to set the stage for a United Nations gathering in Qatar in December where countries must adopt an amendment to the Kyoto Protocol on climate change, negotiators complained that procedural bickering was quashing progress hopes.
With only two days left in this negotiating round, the parties have failed to appoint a chairperson or agree on an agenda for a newly established body dubbed the ADP tasked with overseeing the drafting of a new pact by 2015.
'If this slow pace of negotiations continues ... it poses the risk of unraveling the Durban package,' Danish chief negotiator Christian Pilgaard Zinglersen warned on behalf of the European Union.
He was referring to an agreement reached in South Africa last year to bind all countries under a new pact from 2020 to curb Earth-warming greenhouse gas emissions, not just developed nations as is the case now.
Pilgaard told the Bonn gathering that some parties, which he did not name, wanted to rehash issues that have already been settled.
'We are very concerned that the spirit of cooperation that prevailed in Durban has not carried over into this session,' the diplomat said.
French climate ambassador Serge Lepeltier said that China 'gives the impression of having hardened its positions since Durban'.
And Wael Hmaidan, director of activist group Climate Action Network, said China was 'blocking the ADP' out of fear that rich nations were trying to shift more of the emissions curbing burden onto poorer states than was historically fair.
'Since the ADP has no firewall between developed and developing countries, that means they will have the same kind of commitments as developed countries under the ADP,' said Hmaidan, who is himself taking part in the talks.
'This is where the fight is.'
As countries bicker, researchers recently predicted Earth's temperature rising by as much as five degrees Celsius (9.0 degrees Fahrenheit) from pre-industrial levels, instead of the 2 C (3.6 F) limit being targeted.
While rich nations bear most of the historical responsibility for global warming, their place is being taken by emerging giants such as China, India and Brazil which emit massive amounts of carbon in their rapid development.
These countries will also have to meet emissions curb under a new deal, but some are reticent for fear the restrictions may slow down their economic growth machines.
Kyoto's first roster of pledges expires at the end of the year, by when an amended version must be adopted to regulate emissions curbs until 2020.
But Zinglersen said Wednesday: 'We are very concerned that success in Doha is currently far from certain. With only two days left in Bonn we have made very little progress on a number of key issues.'
The United States had never ratified the Kyoto Protocol, while Russia and Japan have said they did not intend to sign up from next year. Australia and New Zealand have not confirmed their positions, while Canada withdrew from the protocol last year.
This article is brought to you by MATCHMAKING.
Nine days into talks meant to set the stage for a United Nations gathering in Qatar in December where countries must adopt an amendment to the Kyoto Protocol on climate change, negotiators complained that procedural bickering was quashing progress hopes.
With only two days left in this negotiating round, the parties have failed to appoint a chairperson or agree on an agenda for a newly established body dubbed the ADP tasked with overseeing the drafting of a new pact by 2015.
'If this slow pace of negotiations continues ... it poses the risk of unraveling the Durban package,' Danish chief negotiator Christian Pilgaard Zinglersen warned on behalf of the European Union.
He was referring to an agreement reached in South Africa last year to bind all countries under a new pact from 2020 to curb Earth-warming greenhouse gas emissions, not just developed nations as is the case now.
Pilgaard told the Bonn gathering that some parties, which he did not name, wanted to rehash issues that have already been settled.
'We are very concerned that the spirit of cooperation that prevailed in Durban has not carried over into this session,' the diplomat said.
French climate ambassador Serge Lepeltier said that China 'gives the impression of having hardened its positions since Durban'.
And Wael Hmaidan, director of activist group Climate Action Network, said China was 'blocking the ADP' out of fear that rich nations were trying to shift more of the emissions curbing burden onto poorer states than was historically fair.
'Since the ADP has no firewall between developed and developing countries, that means they will have the same kind of commitments as developed countries under the ADP,' said Hmaidan, who is himself taking part in the talks.
'This is where the fight is.'
As countries bicker, researchers recently predicted Earth's temperature rising by as much as five degrees Celsius (9.0 degrees Fahrenheit) from pre-industrial levels, instead of the 2 C (3.6 F) limit being targeted.
While rich nations bear most of the historical responsibility for global warming, their place is being taken by emerging giants such as China, India and Brazil which emit massive amounts of carbon in their rapid development.
These countries will also have to meet emissions curb under a new deal, but some are reticent for fear the restrictions may slow down their economic growth machines.
Kyoto's first roster of pledges expires at the end of the year, by when an amended version must be adopted to regulate emissions curbs until 2020.
But Zinglersen said Wednesday: 'We are very concerned that success in Doha is currently far from certain. With only two days left in Bonn we have made very little progress on a number of key issues.'
The United States had never ratified the Kyoto Protocol, while Russia and Japan have said they did not intend to sign up from next year. Australia and New Zealand have not confirmed their positions, while Canada withdrew from the protocol last year.
This article is brought to you by MATCHMAKING.
Kyoto Protocol architect 'frustrated' by climate dialogue
UN climate talks are going nowhere, as politicians dither or bicker while the pace of warming dangerously speeds up, one of the architects of the Kyoto Protocol told AFP.
'It seems to me that negotiations are returning to square one,' said Raul Estrada, the 'father' of the world's only treaty to specify curbs in greenhouse gases, as the first talks for a new global pact took place in Bonn.
In a telephone interview from Buenos Aires this week, Estrada defended his beleaguered accord and said efforts to engineer a replacement were in trouble.
'We are throwing the dice and then we advance three or four places. Then you throw again and you go back. This is the exercise on climate,' said the Argentine ex-diplomat who steered the historic 1997 conference which yielded Kyoto's framework.
Kyoto binds 37 rich nations to reducing carbon emissions but does not have any targeted commitments for poor economies.
It is a format that critics say is hopelessly out of date today, given that China, India and Brazil are now giant emitters.
Kyoto's first roster of pledges expires at the end of the year. Renewing it is one of several keys to unlocking a wider deal to be completed by 2015 and take effect by 2020.
Kyoto 'is an excellent source of experience for any successor treaty,' Estrada said.
He added he had 'serious concerns' about the 2020 negotiations launched last December in South Africa under the 194-party UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
Senior officials are meeting in Bonn for the first round of talks to follow up the so-called Durban Platform. The 11-day parlay runs until Friday.
'There is very little science in the discussion, mostly political interests or political arguments trying to use things that were decided 20 or 30 years ago,' Estrada said.
With climate discussions in a fragile state since the chaotic 2009 Copenhagen Summit, Estrada said political and economic problems at home were preventing many countries from tackling climate change with the urgency it needed.
New research recently predicted Earth's temperature rising by as much as five degrees Celsius (9.0 degrees Fahrenheit) from pre-industrial levels on current pledges, instead of the 2 C (3.6 F) limit targeted under the UNFCCC banner.
He pointed the finger at countries that had failed to live up to their Kyoto undertakings.
'I'm frustrated by those governments with whom we adopted the protocol unanimously in Kyoto, not by consensus but unanimously, and later didn't ratify it like the USA or, having ratified the protocol, now they don't comply with it, like Canada and Italy,' said Estrada.
Kyoto, which came into force in 2005, envisioned a five-percent reduction of warming gas emissions by rich countries by 2012 from 1990 levels.
Globally, though, emissions have leapt to ever greater heights, driven especially by emerging giants which are burning coal to power their growth.
The United States signed but did not ratify the accord, while Russia and Japan have said they did not intend to sign up after Kyoto expires this year.
Canada has become the only country to withdraw from the Kyoto Protocol, and recently said it would not achieve the target of reducing emissions by 17 percent by 2020 from 2005 levels.
Estrada said the new 2020 pact must include emission targets not only for countries but for industrial sectors, too -- 'the amount of carbon you are going to emit by ton of iron or steel or 1,000 megawatts or something like that.'
'It seems to me that negotiations are returning to square one,' said Raul Estrada, the 'father' of the world's only treaty to specify curbs in greenhouse gases, as the first talks for a new global pact took place in Bonn.
In a telephone interview from Buenos Aires this week, Estrada defended his beleaguered accord and said efforts to engineer a replacement were in trouble.
'We are throwing the dice and then we advance three or four places. Then you throw again and you go back. This is the exercise on climate,' said the Argentine ex-diplomat who steered the historic 1997 conference which yielded Kyoto's framework.
Kyoto binds 37 rich nations to reducing carbon emissions but does not have any targeted commitments for poor economies.
It is a format that critics say is hopelessly out of date today, given that China, India and Brazil are now giant emitters.
Kyoto's first roster of pledges expires at the end of the year. Renewing it is one of several keys to unlocking a wider deal to be completed by 2015 and take effect by 2020.
Kyoto 'is an excellent source of experience for any successor treaty,' Estrada said.
He added he had 'serious concerns' about the 2020 negotiations launched last December in South Africa under the 194-party UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
Senior officials are meeting in Bonn for the first round of talks to follow up the so-called Durban Platform. The 11-day parlay runs until Friday.
'There is very little science in the discussion, mostly political interests or political arguments trying to use things that were decided 20 or 30 years ago,' Estrada said.
With climate discussions in a fragile state since the chaotic 2009 Copenhagen Summit, Estrada said political and economic problems at home were preventing many countries from tackling climate change with the urgency it needed.
New research recently predicted Earth's temperature rising by as much as five degrees Celsius (9.0 degrees Fahrenheit) from pre-industrial levels on current pledges, instead of the 2 C (3.6 F) limit targeted under the UNFCCC banner.
He pointed the finger at countries that had failed to live up to their Kyoto undertakings.
'I'm frustrated by those governments with whom we adopted the protocol unanimously in Kyoto, not by consensus but unanimously, and later didn't ratify it like the USA or, having ratified the protocol, now they don't comply with it, like Canada and Italy,' said Estrada.
Kyoto, which came into force in 2005, envisioned a five-percent reduction of warming gas emissions by rich countries by 2012 from 1990 levels.
Globally, though, emissions have leapt to ever greater heights, driven especially by emerging giants which are burning coal to power their growth.
The United States signed but did not ratify the accord, while Russia and Japan have said they did not intend to sign up after Kyoto expires this year.
Canada has become the only country to withdraw from the Kyoto Protocol, and recently said it would not achieve the target of reducing emissions by 17 percent by 2020 from 2005 levels.
Estrada said the new 2020 pact must include emission targets not only for countries but for industrial sectors, too -- 'the amount of carbon you are going to emit by ton of iron or steel or 1,000 megawatts or something like that.'
Europe's beaches clean, but France lagging: study
Europe's beaches are generally clean but France is lagging behind other tourist destinations in the south of the continent, a report from European Environment Agency (EEA) showed on Wednesday.
'Good news if you're planning a beach holiday in Europe this summer -- 92.1 percent of bathing waters in the European Union now meet the minimum water quality standards set by the Bathing Water Directive,' the EEA said in a statement accompanying its annual report.
The report compiled water analyses carried out in 2011 at more than 22,000 bathing sites at beaches, rivers and lakes.
Among the sites meeting the minimum water quality standards were the Serpentine Lake in London, which will host several Olympics events, including the Open Water Marathon Swim and the swimming section of the triathlon.
Meanwhile, 'Cyprus, Croatia, Malta and Greece had excellent reports on their bathing water sites, all with more than 90 percent of bathing water sites meeting the most stringent guide values (excellent quality),' the EEA said.
At the opposite end of the scale, the Netherlands, Bulgaria, Latvia, Luxembourg and Belgium had 'relatively low proportions of sites meeting the strict guide values, especially as regards inland waters.'
Spain, Italy and Portugal had more than 80 percent of sites with excellent water quality, it added.
The report noted that in France, home to 16 percent of bathing sites in the EU, only two-thirds were of excellent quality while 88 percent met the minimum mandatory water quality requirements.
'In several countries there is still a problem with pollution from agriculture and sewage, so we need to see more efforts to ensure safe and clean water for the public,' EEA executive director Jacqueline McGlade said.
This article is brought to you by MATCHMAKING.
'Good news if you're planning a beach holiday in Europe this summer -- 92.1 percent of bathing waters in the European Union now meet the minimum water quality standards set by the Bathing Water Directive,' the EEA said in a statement accompanying its annual report.
The report compiled water analyses carried out in 2011 at more than 22,000 bathing sites at beaches, rivers and lakes.
Among the sites meeting the minimum water quality standards were the Serpentine Lake in London, which will host several Olympics events, including the Open Water Marathon Swim and the swimming section of the triathlon.
Meanwhile, 'Cyprus, Croatia, Malta and Greece had excellent reports on their bathing water sites, all with more than 90 percent of bathing water sites meeting the most stringent guide values (excellent quality),' the EEA said.
At the opposite end of the scale, the Netherlands, Bulgaria, Latvia, Luxembourg and Belgium had 'relatively low proportions of sites meeting the strict guide values, especially as regards inland waters.'
Spain, Italy and Portugal had more than 80 percent of sites with excellent water quality, it added.
The report noted that in France, home to 16 percent of bathing sites in the EU, only two-thirds were of excellent quality while 88 percent met the minimum mandatory water quality requirements.
'In several countries there is still a problem with pollution from agriculture and sewage, so we need to see more efforts to ensure safe and clean water for the public,' EEA executive director Jacqueline McGlade said.
This article is brought to you by MATCHMAKING.
Tuesday, May 22, 2012
Glowing Green Orbs & Pink Butterflies Revealed in Winning Bio-Art Images
A pink butterfly, fluorescent mountains and glowing green orbs surrounded by bubbles are some of the imagery that appears in the winning entries in a 'bio-art' competition, which sought to highlight the most artistic portrayals of biomedical research.
This year, 10 images out of about 100 entries were honored in the first Bio-Art Competition, created by the Federation for American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB). The winning entries weren't ranked and all were generated by scientists as a byproduct of of biomedical research.
Art wasn't the purpose of research to create artificial stem cell factories, explore the biological basis for psychiatric disease or look at the production of new neurons in the adult brain. Even so, the winning entries included brightly colored and sometimes abstract images.
The winners include one image depicting a scaffold, which resembles the weave of a fabric, upon which cells can grow to form new tissue. Glowing green orbs surrounded by bubbles reveal systems intended to produce muscle stem cells; and images of species of electric fish are trailed by recordings of the discharges.
'Electric fish recognize other members of their own species using the species-specific waveforms of these heartbeatlike discharges,' write the team lead by Matthew Arnegard of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle who created the image. (Under the contest guidelines, the image and the statement accompanying it should be visually arresting and clearly communicate a cutting-edge concept in biomedical science.)
Another winning entry depicts what looks like a fluorescent three-dimensional map, but is actually genetically labeled cells covering the walls of capillaries in a mouse kidney. [See Photos of the Winning Bio-Art]
University of Iowa's Li-Hsien Lin captured an image that appears to be a pink butterfly, but is actually a rat spinal cord showing the distribution of different types of enzymes. Understanding how these enzymes work and interact in the nervous system, Lin writes, could lead to better treatments for cardiovascular diseases such as hypertension and heart failure.
Other honorees included: abstract art created from tissue from a colon biopsy stained for a particular receptor; converging fibers that form the optic nerve in a mouse retina and their attendant immune cells; a 3D image of the limb from a transgenic, embryonic mouse, with bright colors differentiating the muscles, tendons, bones and nerves; and the growth of new neurons in the adult brain.
FASEB is a coalition of biomedical research associations in the United States. For this competition, the organization sought original, laboratory-based images produced by current or former National Institutes of Health-funded investigators, contractors, trainees or members of FASEB constituent societies, according to a news release.
You can follow LiveScience senior writer Wynne Parry on Twitter @Wynne_Parry. Follow LiveScience for the latest in science news and discoveries on Twitter @livescience and on Facebook.
This article is brought to you by PERSONALS.
This year, 10 images out of about 100 entries were honored in the first Bio-Art Competition, created by the Federation for American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB). The winning entries weren't ranked and all were generated by scientists as a byproduct of of biomedical research.
Art wasn't the purpose of research to create artificial stem cell factories, explore the biological basis for psychiatric disease or look at the production of new neurons in the adult brain. Even so, the winning entries included brightly colored and sometimes abstract images.
The winners include one image depicting a scaffold, which resembles the weave of a fabric, upon which cells can grow to form new tissue. Glowing green orbs surrounded by bubbles reveal systems intended to produce muscle stem cells; and images of species of electric fish are trailed by recordings of the discharges.
'Electric fish recognize other members of their own species using the species-specific waveforms of these heartbeatlike discharges,' write the team lead by Matthew Arnegard of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle who created the image. (Under the contest guidelines, the image and the statement accompanying it should be visually arresting and clearly communicate a cutting-edge concept in biomedical science.)
Another winning entry depicts what looks like a fluorescent three-dimensional map, but is actually genetically labeled cells covering the walls of capillaries in a mouse kidney. [See Photos of the Winning Bio-Art]
University of Iowa's Li-Hsien Lin captured an image that appears to be a pink butterfly, but is actually a rat spinal cord showing the distribution of different types of enzymes. Understanding how these enzymes work and interact in the nervous system, Lin writes, could lead to better treatments for cardiovascular diseases such as hypertension and heart failure.
Other honorees included: abstract art created from tissue from a colon biopsy stained for a particular receptor; converging fibers that form the optic nerve in a mouse retina and their attendant immune cells; a 3D image of the limb from a transgenic, embryonic mouse, with bright colors differentiating the muscles, tendons, bones and nerves; and the growth of new neurons in the adult brain.
FASEB is a coalition of biomedical research associations in the United States. For this competition, the organization sought original, laboratory-based images produced by current or former National Institutes of Health-funded investigators, contractors, trainees or members of FASEB constituent societies, according to a news release.
You can follow LiveScience senior writer Wynne Parry on Twitter @Wynne_Parry. Follow LiveScience for the latest in science news and discoveries on Twitter @livescience and on Facebook.
- Gallery: Vivid Science Visualizations
- Tiny Grandeur: Stunning Photos of the Very Small
- Nature Under Glass: Gallery of Victorian Microscope Slides
This article is brought to you by PERSONALS.
Google closes Motorola acquisition
In line with earlier reports, Google on Tuesday finalized its acquisition of Motorola Mobility. The $12.5 billion merger was approved by regulators in China on Monday after having been given the green light by the United States Department of Justice this past February. Chinese regulators did stipulate terms for its approval, however, namely that Google must continue to make Android open-source and freely available. Former Motorola Mobility CEO Sanjay Jha has stepped down and Google's Dennis Woodside will replace him as chief executive. "I'm excited to announce today that our Motorola Mobility deal has closed," Google CEO Larry Page wrote in a letter published on Google's blog. "Motorola is a great American tech company that has driven the mobile revolution, with a track record of over 80 years of innovation, including the creation of the first cell phone. We all remember Motorola's StarTAC, which at the time seemed tiny and showed the real potential of these devices. And as a company who made a big, early bet on Android, Motorola has become an incredibly valuable partner to Google." An unconfirmed report on Monday claimed that the merger will result in layoffs at Motorola.
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