The BA Science News Digest - 20 January 2006
In the news this week, why drugs, food and kids are bad for your mental health. Plus, why we all might be moving up North (to the Pole, that is)...
There has been much discussion recently of whether cannabis should be reclassified as a more dangerous drug given concerns over its affect on mental health. However, this week Home Secretary Charles Clarke confirmed that he plans to keep it as a Class C drug, meaning that police take a more lenient line with personal possession and the penalties are lower. As the Daily Telegraph reported, a report by Government drugs advisers has concluded that regular cannabis use can have "real and significant" mental health effects but is unlikely to cause schizophrenia.
It’s not just drugs that affect our mental health, as BBC News Online reported this week. A study by food campaigners Sustain and the Mental Health Foundation claims that changes to diets over the last 50 years may be playing a key role in the rise of mental illness.
So, for the good of your mental health, avoid cannabis, eat well and – don’t have children...
A study in the US has shown that parents are more likely to be depressed than people who do not have children. In a report in the Washington Post, the author of the study, Professor Robin Simon, says her own kids ‘were unimpressed by the study results. "They're like 'Whatever,' " she said.’
A bad diet may be bad for your mental health, but surprisingly, fizzy drinks can improve your memory. The Daily Mail reports that ‘consuming the equivalent of two cans of soft drink can boost memory retention by a fifth and combat dementia in older people’ according to neuroscientists from Glasgow Caledonian University.
Cheerful news this week from Professor James Lovelock, the scientist who developed the Gaia principle. According to Professor Lovelock, global warming is irreversible and billions of people will die over the next century. In fact, he says, by the year 2100 the only place where humans will be able to survive will be the Arctic.
Assuming that there is actually something we can do, reducing carbon dioxide emissions may be the key to reversing climate change. The Government is looking at nuclear power as a possible solution to this problem. But would there be too much opposition to building new nuclear power stations?
A survey commissioned by the University of East Anglia suggests that just over half the population would accept nuclear power if it could be shown to mitigate climate change. (Eastern Daily Press)
But unfortunately, another scientist from UEA’s Tynall Centre for Climate Change Research claims that new nuclear power stations would do little to combat climate change, reported the Guardian.
Daily Mail columnist Melanie Phillips, recently attacked by the Guardian’s Bad Science columnist Ben Goldacre, once again comes in for flak, by another of the newspaper’s columnists, George Monbiot. This time it was her claims that manmade climate change "is a massive scam based on flawed computer modelling, bad science and an anti-western ideology... a pack of lies and propaganda".
In other news this week...
Researchers are testing potentially life-saving techniques for keeping humans in a state of suspended animation while surgeons repair their wounds. US doctors have developed a method of inducing hypothermia to shut down the body's functions for up to three hours. (Sydney Morning Herald)
Scientists say they're thrilled and awed by their first glimpse at the comet particles and samples of interstellar dust returned by the Stardust spacecraft, which dropped safely to Utah's desert floor on Sunday. (National Geographic)
And finally... Revenge is sweeter for men, it seems. According to a brain scanner study, men appear to get greater satisfaction than women from witnessing painful retribution. The Daily Telegraph reports that this suggests men may have evolved to be less empathetic than women so they can more easily mete out punishments to help keep society cohesive, speculate the team at University College London.
Please note that the BA cannot accept responsibility for content of external sites. Also note that some news stories become available to subscribers only after 7 days.
To receive a weekly Science News Digest alert, register here.
There has been much discussion recently of whether cannabis should be reclassified as a more dangerous drug given concerns over its affect on mental health. However, this week Home Secretary Charles Clarke confirmed that he plans to keep it as a Class C drug, meaning that police take a more lenient line with personal possession and the penalties are lower. As the Daily Telegraph reported, a report by Government drugs advisers has concluded that regular cannabis use can have "real and significant" mental health effects but is unlikely to cause schizophrenia.
It’s not just drugs that affect our mental health, as BBC News Online reported this week. A study by food campaigners Sustain and the Mental Health Foundation claims that changes to diets over the last 50 years may be playing a key role in the rise of mental illness.
So, for the good of your mental health, avoid cannabis, eat well and – don’t have children...
A study in the US has shown that parents are more likely to be depressed than people who do not have children. In a report in the Washington Post, the author of the study, Professor Robin Simon, says her own kids ‘were unimpressed by the study results. "They're like 'Whatever,' " she said.’
A bad diet may be bad for your mental health, but surprisingly, fizzy drinks can improve your memory. The Daily Mail reports that ‘consuming the equivalent of two cans of soft drink can boost memory retention by a fifth and combat dementia in older people’ according to neuroscientists from Glasgow Caledonian University.
Cheerful news this week from Professor James Lovelock, the scientist who developed the Gaia principle. According to Professor Lovelock, global warming is irreversible and billions of people will die over the next century. In fact, he says, by the year 2100 the only place where humans will be able to survive will be the Arctic.
Assuming that there is actually something we can do, reducing carbon dioxide emissions may be the key to reversing climate change. The Government is looking at nuclear power as a possible solution to this problem. But would there be too much opposition to building new nuclear power stations?
A survey commissioned by the University of East Anglia suggests that just over half the population would accept nuclear power if it could be shown to mitigate climate change. (Eastern Daily Press)
But unfortunately, another scientist from UEA’s Tynall Centre for Climate Change Research claims that new nuclear power stations would do little to combat climate change, reported the Guardian.
Daily Mail columnist Melanie Phillips, recently attacked by the Guardian’s Bad Science columnist Ben Goldacre, once again comes in for flak, by another of the newspaper’s columnists, George Monbiot. This time it was her claims that manmade climate change "is a massive scam based on flawed computer modelling, bad science and an anti-western ideology... a pack of lies and propaganda".
In other news this week...
Researchers are testing potentially life-saving techniques for keeping humans in a state of suspended animation while surgeons repair their wounds. US doctors have developed a method of inducing hypothermia to shut down the body's functions for up to three hours. (Sydney Morning Herald)
Scientists say they're thrilled and awed by their first glimpse at the comet particles and samples of interstellar dust returned by the Stardust spacecraft, which dropped safely to Utah's desert floor on Sunday. (National Geographic)
And finally... Revenge is sweeter for men, it seems. According to a brain scanner study, men appear to get greater satisfaction than women from witnessing painful retribution. The Daily Telegraph reports that this suggests men may have evolved to be less empathetic than women so they can more easily mete out punishments to help keep society cohesive, speculate the team at University College London.
Please note that the BA cannot accept responsibility for content of external sites. Also note that some news stories become available to subscribers only after 7 days.
To receive a weekly Science News Digest alert, register here.
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