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Emaho Strategies — Science Communication Consulting

  • Ecosystem Threats,  Featured,  Global Threats,  Science

    Global Threats: Water Scarcity and Uncertainty in the Estimates of Groundwater Availability

    June 28, 2015 / 4 Comments

    By Roberta Attanasio Groundwater is any water that lies in aquifers beneath the land surface. While some of the water that falls as precipitation is channeled into streams or lakes, and some is used by plants or evaporates back into the atmosphere, most of it seeps underground in the cracks and spaces present in soil, sand and rock. Underground layers of rock that are saturated with groundwater are called aquifers. The groundwater contained in aquifers is one of the most important sources of water on our planet, and can be brought to the surface through natural springs or by pumping. Groundwater is constantly replenished (recharged), as part of the natural water cycle,…

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    Roberta Attanasio

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    Childhood Asthma and Traffic-Related Air Pollution

    October 15, 2019

    Small Predator Diversity Plays a Significant Role in the Spread of Infectious Diseases

    March 23, 2015

    As coal mining declines, community mental health problems linger

    August 2, 2016
  • Ecosystem Threats,  Featured,  Science,  Sustainability,  Toxic Exposure

    Neonicotinoid Pesticides: Bad for Bees, Bad for Many Other Species

    May 6, 2015 / 4 Comments

    By Roberta Attanasio Do neonicotinoid pesticides harm bees? According to scientific evidence, the answer is “yes”. Indeed, scientific evidence for the toxic effects of neonicotinoid pesticides on bees is accumulating at an increasing pace. And, on the basis of scientific evidence, the European Commission banned in 2013 the use of three neonicotinoids — clothianidin, imidacloprid and thiamethoxam — on flowering plants. The ban was motivated by findings from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA); these findings were based on the evaluation of the scientific studies available at the time. Now, a report from the European Academies Science Advisory Council (EASAC) emphasizes that bees are not the only species affected by…

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    Roberta Attanasio

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    The $11 Trillion Reward

    August 7, 2013

    Dante’s Fainting: A Medical Enigma from the Middle Ages

    May 15, 2015

    Salmon Farming: The Chilean Massive Die-Off

    May 21, 2016
  • Air Pollution,  Climate Change,  Featured,  Global Changes,  Global Threats,  Health,  Science,  Sustainability,  Toxic Exposure

    Clean Air: The Effects of U.S. Power Plant Carbon Standards on Human Health

    May 4, 2015 / 8 Comments

    By Roberta Attanasio A little more than a year ago, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported that in 2012 around 7 million people died — accounting for one in eight of total global deaths — as a result of exposure to air pollution. These estimates more than doubled the previous ones, and confirmed that air pollution is now the world’s largest single environmental health risk. The WHO concluded that reducing air pollution globally could save millions of lives. But, what policy changes would be most effective at saving lives? The answer comes from a new study published in the journal Nature Climate Change (May 4, 2015.) The study, (US power plant…

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    Roberta Attanasio

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    Neonicotinoid Pesticides: Bad for Bees, Bad for Many Other Species

    May 6, 2015

    Lipstick and Heavy Metals

    June 3, 2013

    J.M.W. Turner’s Sunsets: A Guide to Air Pollution

    March 27, 2014
  • Ecosystem Threats,  Featured,  Global Threats,  Science,  Sustainability,  Toxic Exposure,  Water Pollution

    Global Threats: Contamination of Surface Waters by Agricultural Insecticides

    April 26, 2015 / 15 Comments

    By Roberta Attanasio The use of agricultural insecticides — toxic substances developed to target and kill insects that damage crops — has sparked controversy since the dawn of the “chemical age”, which started in the 1950s. The benefits of agricultural insecticides — for example, increased food production — are undeniable. Unfortunately, along with benefits, there are considerable unwanted effects. Ideally, insecticides must be lethal to the target insects, but not to non-target species. However, these toxic substances do not target only insects — they target many more organisms, including man. Thus, the toxic brew of agricultural insecticides threatens the ecological integrity of aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. Indeed, agricultural systems play a…

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    Roberta Attanasio

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    Climate Change: Influence on the Spread of Lyme Disease

    March 30, 2014

    Climate Change Arguments? Use Flowchart Help!

    April 29, 2013

    Neil Young, Monsanto, Starbucks, and “The Monsanto Years”

    June 18, 2015
  • Air Pollution,  Featured,  Health,  Science,  Toxic Exposure

    Prenatal Exposure to Air Pollutants: Links to Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

    April 11, 2015 / 2 Comments

    By Roberta Attanasio PHAs — short for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons — are bad actors: they’re toxic, ubiquitous pollutants that readily cross the placenta, causing damage to the fetal brain. Now, results from a new study show that PHA-induced fetal brain damage may lead to severe behavioral problems during early childhood, including aggression and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). The deleterious effects of air pollution — greater risk of stroke, heart attacks and cognitive deterioration — are widely recognized. However, the new study assessed prenatal exposure and identified specific physical damage in the brain. The researchers used magnetic resonance imaging to measure the brains of 40 children from a cohort consisting…

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    Roberta Attanasio

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    Global Education: How Simple Can It Be?

    April 21, 2013

    TB Unmasked: Healthcare Workers and the Global Tuberculosis Epidemic

    March 21, 2015

    Global Shortage of Baby Formula

    April 28, 2013
  • Featured,  Global Threats,  Health,  Science

    The Global Travels of Chikungunya Virus: Is it Coming to You?

    March 30, 2015 / 18 Comments

    By Roberta Attanasio Chikungunya virus is spreading fast — worldwide. First described during an outbreak in southern Tanzania in 1952, it caused sporadic illness in Africa and large urban outbreaks in Thailand and India in the 1960s and 1970s. As of now, it has been identified in over 60 countries in Asia, Africa, Europe and Americas. The virus, which causes fever and severe joint pain, is transmitted to humans by the bites of infected female mosquitoes, most commonly by Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus — two species that can also transmit other mosquito-borne viruses, including dengue. There is no vaccine and no specific treatment for the infection. Gemma Handy aptly describes…

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    Roberta Attanasio

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    The unborn baby: Healthy pregnant mothers exposed to air pollution from road traffic inhale toxic particles that may end up in the placenta

    September 28, 2020

    Large Animal Extinctions and Soil Fertility

    August 13, 2013

    Cooking and Indoor Air Pollution

    January 3, 2014
  • Featured,  Health,  Science,  Toxic Exposure

    Food Additives, Microbiota, and Inflammation

    March 27, 2015 / 25 Comments

    By Roberta Attanasio “For centuries, additives have served useful functions in a variety of foods. Our ancestors used salt to preserve meats and fish, added herbs and spices to improve the flavor of foods, preserved fruit with sugar, and pickled cucumbers in a vinegar solution. Today, consumers demand and enjoy a food supply that is flavorful, nutritious, safe, convenient, colorful and affordable. Food additives and advances in technology help make that possible.” But, are food additives safe? Results from a recent study show that some food additives known as emulsifiers can alter the composition and location of the gut microbiota — the diverse population of 100 trillion bacteria that inhabit…

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    Roberta Attanasio

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    Arctic Pollution

    May 15, 2013

    “Iceman” Wim Hof and the Flow Within: The Immune System Goes with It

    May 20, 2014

    Nanoparticles and Sunscreen Products: Toxicity to Sea Life in Coastal Waters

    August 31, 2014
  • Conservation,  Ecosystem Threats,  Featured,  Global Threats,  Health,  Science,  Sustainability

    Small Predator Diversity Plays a Significant Role in the Spread of Infectious Diseases

    March 23, 2015 / 15 Comments

    By Roberta Attanasio Biodiversity is a term coined to describe the diversity of all living things, from human beings to microorganisms. A New York Times editorial published almost two decades ago aptly describes the importance of the biodiversity concept: “Biodiversity is a hugely important concept that stresses the coherence and interdependence of all forms of life on earth and a new willingness to appraise the meaning of that interdependence, not just for humans but for every one of life’s component parts.” The editorial goes on to illustrate the alarming effects of biodiversity loss: “Biodiversity is a way of talking about what scientists have long understood and a way of reminding…

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    Roberta Attanasio

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    Sustainability in Action: Christmas Trees Provide Habitat for Coho Salmon

    December 29, 2013

    A Toxoplasma’s Journey: From Cats to Sea Otters

    January 19, 2014

    Preterm Birth and Exposure to Environmental Pollutants

    November 25, 2013
  • Climate Change,  Ecosystem Threats,  Featured,  Global Changes,  Global Threats,  Science,  Sustainability

    Climate Change: A Key Driver of the Syrian Conflict?

    March 11, 2015 / 2 Comments

    By Roberta Attanasio Climate change is happening here and now, with significant damage to natural systems and society. The shrinking of the Arctic sea ice, the melting of the Greenland and Antarctica ice sheets, the acidification of the oceans, the sea level rise, the shifting patterns of precipitation, and the amplified threat of wildfires, are some of its well-recognized effects. There are also significant concerns related to the consequences that climate change could have on freshwater availability and agricultural productivity worldwide — resulting in increasing poverty and further weakening of fragile governments. Indeed, climate change has been identified as a “threat multiplier” — it can exacerbate political instability in the…

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    Roberta Attanasio

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    Food Additives, Microbiota, and Inflammation

    March 27, 2015

    Environmental Toxins and Damage to the Immune System: Transgenerational Effects

    December 5, 2019

    The Worldwide Obesity Epidemic: Links to Bisphenol A

    June 25, 2013
  • Featured,  Global Threats,  Health,  Science,  Toxic Exposure

    Early Menopause: Links to Ubiquitous Endocrine-Disrupting Chemicals

    February 23, 2015 / 3 Comments

    By Roberta Attanasio There are as many endocrine-disrupting chemicals (also called endocrine disruptors) as there are deleterious health effects caused by them. These chemicals mimic the body’s hormones and confuse our physiological systems — we respond to them with a series of inappropriate changes that, depending on the specific endocrine disruptor, lead to the development of obesity, cancer, malformation of sex organs, and more. They are pervasive in the environment — they’re found in the soil, air and water throughout the world — and many persist for long periods of time. Thus, it’s not surprising that, in 2013, the impact of endocrine disruptors on human health was defined as a…

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    Roberta Attanasio

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    What is Global Competence?

    May 6, 2013

    Redrawing the Energy-Climate Map

    June 12, 2013

    Prenatal Exposure to Pollutants: Influence on the Immune Response

    November 30, 2014
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