Ecological destruction fuels emerging diseases
The destruction of habitat by human activity and the extinction of species around the world is more than a looming environmental catastrophe, warns a Canadian zoologist. This ecological damage also endangers human health by turning parasites into "evolutionary land mines." Dr. Daniel (Dan) Brooks, a parasitologist at the University of Toronto, says the decline of global biodiversity is li...New molecule may aid in production of biofuels and fungi-resistant plants
In a recent study published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry, scientists report on the discovery of a new molecule that is essential for degradation of the biopolymer chitin. This new molecule could eventually aid in the engineering of fungi-resistant plants and could also lead to the discovery of similar molecules that can be used in cellulose-based biofuel production. The research...Biofuels can replace about 30 percent of fuel needs with significant research and policy effort
With world oil demand growing, supplies dwindling and the potential for weather- and conflict-related supply interruptions, other types of fuels and technologies are needed to help pick up the slack. A group of experts in science, engineering and public policy from the Georgia Institute of Technology, the Imperial College London and the Oak Ridge National Laboratory recommend a comprehensi...Biofuels researcher searches for new sources
The words are becoming familiar, even if the products aren't: biofuel, biobased, biodiesel, bioethanol. All refer to fuel that's made from bio-produced materials such as plants. Chengci Chen (pronounced Chen-see Chen), an assistant professor of cropping systems at the Central Agricultural Research Center at Moccasin, Mont., and his collaborators are investigating Montana's potential for p...DOE publishes research roadmap for developing cleaner fuels
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today released an ambitious new research agenda for the development of cellulosic ethanol as an alternative to gasoline. The 200-page scientific "roadmap" cites recent advances in biotechnology that have made cost-effective production of ethanol from cellulose, or inedible plant fiber, an attainable goal. The report outlines a detailed research plan for devel...Kind approach to leveraging biofuels
Like many farmers in Wisconsin, th...Doyle urges Legislature to support biofuels program
Doyle, in his most pointed remarks to date, said ever...Energy conservation might take us farther than renewable fuels
statistics p...Madison business receives $115,000 of new state biofuels funding
C5-6, which will produce enzymes for use in the development of biofuels, will receive a $115,000 grant as part of the <a href="http://www.wisgov.state.wi.us/journal-media-det...UW-Madison gets $333,000 for biofuels research
The grants, announced by Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman and Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns, include a $333,000 award to UW...Second SARS suspect fuels worry in India
After the country reported a new suspected case of the disease fears of the deadly SARS virus grew in India. This happened hours after doctors gave the cleared a woman suspected of being India's first SARS case. In Hyderabed a 48-year-old software worker was immediately admitted to a hospital after he arrived from Australia via Singapore. He had symptoms of high fever, cough and cold simi...Yellow Oleander Plants Fuels Suicide Rates In Sri Lanka
A British doctor has said that suicide rates in Sri Lanka has increased in multifold with people consuming the poisonous seeds of the common roadside// yellow oleander plants even for the most trivial reasons. This is an ornamental plant often used for hedging that grows all over the island. It has yellow trumpet-like flowers and a fruit the size of a conker. Inside is a single large se...Smoke From Cooking Fuels Cause A Significant Number Of Death Worldwide
The World Health Organization says that smoke from cooking fuel is one of major reasons for causing large number of deaths worlds over. // Authorities of the WHO feel that an investment in curbing smoke from unclean cooking fuels would pay itself back seven times over. The organization is of the opinion that under half of the world's six billion people cook with solid fuels, and many...Cancer Research May Help Biofuels
Nearly a decade ago, Tom Todaro was talking to researchers at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center about techniques the institute had devised to slow down tumor// growth by slowing the rate at which tumor cells divide. Then they had an idea. Why not exploit the reaction in reverse and get cells to grow faster? The result was Targeted Growth, a company that has come up...Poverty Fuels HIV In Poor Indian States
The residents of the poor states of India migrate to the industrialized regions in India's west and south for better prospects and end up with AIDS.// Bihari migrants are estimated to range from two million to ten million. Biharis usually work as taxi drivers, mechanics, security guards or domestic servants in India's big cities. "I just did not think about what I was doing," Srivasta...