Resistant malaria spreading in South East Asia – BBC News

By James Gallagher Health and science correspondent, BBC News
23 July 2019

Malaria parasites resistant to key drugs have spread rapidly in South East Asia, researchers from the UK and Thailand say.

The parasites have moved from Cambodia to Laos, Thailand and Vietnam, where half of patients are not being cured by first-choice drugs.

Researchers say the findings raise the “terrifying prospect” drug-resistance could spread to Africa.

However, experts said the implications may not be as severe as first thought.

What is happening?

Malaria is commonly treated with a combination of two drugs – artemisinin and piperaquine.

The drug combo was introduced in Cambodia in 2008.

But by 2013, the first cases of the parasite mutating and developing resistance to both drugs were detected, in western parts of the country.

The latest study, published in the Lancet Infectious Diseases, analysed blood samples from patients across South East Asia.

Inspecting the parasite’s DNA showed resistance had spread across Cambodia and was also in Laos, Thailand and Vietnam.

It had also picked up further mutations, making it even more problematic.

In some regions, 80% of malaria parasites were drug resistant.

“This strain has spread and has become worse,” Dr Roberto Amato, from the Wellcome Sanger Institute, told BBC News.

…(read more).

Why ancient Egypt fell

Nile cruise Nile cruisePublished on Jun 5, 2011

http://www.gonilecruise.com/tours/hat… Go Nile Cruise is a day tour operator who have more than 22 years of experience in the tourism industry.We have a goal to offer the best, most afsfordable and versatile deals for the Nile Cruises market in Egypt.Our staff is experienced, professional and trained to provide you with the best services, to advise you in any issue, and give you 100% no matter what task is required. We want you to experience exciting and unforgettable events, sights and moments with us. We want to show you the true colors of Egypt.We want you to discover everything Egypt has to offer, and we are more than willing to do everything we can for you to have a chance to taste the real flavors of our beautiful country.Go Nile Cruise covers all categories of the Nile cruises and travel packages such as:Cheap Nile Cruises,Standard Nile Cruises,Deluxe Nile Cruises,Luxury Nile Cruises,Day Nile Cruises,Dahabiya Nile Cruises,Lake Nasser Cruises,Felucca Sailing Tours,Nile Cruises Travel.

A conversation with Peter Wadhams : The Methane Threat

Part 1:

Just Have a ThinkPublished on Nov 25, 2018

In part two of our conversation, Peter Wadhams explains the risks posed by huge methane emissions that are being caused by arctic ice loss, and we discuss the difficulties and frustrations faced by scientists trying to communicate climate issues to a wider public.

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Mike Mann on the Arctic “Methane Bomb”

greenmanbucket
Published on Feb 9, 2019

I spoke to Michael Mann of Penn State U – one of the world’s pre-imminent atmospheric experts. Our conversation was wide ranging, but I asked him about the widespread panic that exists in the internet fever swamps about an imminent arctic “methane bomb”.

The Methane ‘Time Bomb’: How big a concern?

YaleClimateConnections
Published on Jan 28, 2019

Examining short- and long-term risks of global warming methane “time bomb”. Scientists explain the evidence.

Black Portraitures V: Memory and the Archive: Past. Present. Future.

Memory and the Archive | Past. Present. Future.

The conference will explore the making of visual archives, the narratives they tell, and the parameters that define them as objects of study. As visual collections, photographic archives present specific concerns — especially as digital technologies change the way knowledge is classified, stored, retrieved and disseminated.

The following questions will be considered: How does the gaze visualize and influence the control of historical narratives? What icons dominate the visual culture of slavery and its archives? How do other artistic narratives encode memory, violence, and subjectivities? What is the future of the archive and how does it provide fodder for social change or artistic innovation? How do social and economic histories as well as experiences of race, class, gender and sexuality affect the construction, acquisition and maintenance of archives of the African Diaspora?

We also draw attention to historical landmarks and moments that act as anniversaries of the arrival of Africans in the New World.

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Past Events

Paris bakes, London broils in Europe heatwave

‘You don’t have to look black to be black’: The complex racial identity of a tiny Ohio town

Published on Jul 25, 2019
In the remote Ohio town of East Jackson, which sits in the Appalachian foothills, residents have for decades identified as black – despite the fact they appear white. Tom Silverstone and Francisco Navas visit a place where residents’ racial lines have been blurred to invisibility

What is the jet stream and how does it affect the weather?

Published on May 29, 2018
What is the jet stream, where is it located and how does it affect our weather?

Wet or dry summers are all to do with the positioning of the jet stream. In this video, we look in detail at the Polar Front Jet, which strongly influences the weather over the UK and Europe.

To learn more about the history of meteorology and the science behind the weather headlines, you can listen to our audio podcasts here:

https://soundcloud.com/metofficepodcasts

Protests Erupt in London as Boris Johnson Is Sworn in as New Prime Minister, Promising Swift Bee it

Published on Jul 25, 2019
Boris Johnson was sworn in as the new British prime minister Wednesday, pledging to deliver a swift Brexit and spending his first full day in office Thursday packing his Cabinet with hard-line Brexiteers. His election was the first time that a party’s membership directly chose the prime minister. The membership of the Conservative Party who voted for Johnson represents less than 1% of the British population. Johnson, who previously served as mayor of London and foreign secretary, replaces outgoing Prime Minister Theresa May. Boris Johnson is a highly contentious figure in the United Kingdom who has built his career on controversy. He is known for outrageous political gaffes and is a close ally of President Donald Trump. He has vowed to cut taxes for the rich, and positioned himself as a friend to big banks. Thousands of protesters marched through Central London to protest the new prime minister Wednesday. We speak with Ash Sarkar, senior editor of Novara Media, who says Johnson has crafted a public persona for himself as “bumbling, ineffectual, posh but benign,” but says this facade conceals “someone who has always been a very ambitious man.”