HEALTH AND SCIENCE HIGHLIGHTS

June 25, 2015 (San Diego’s East County) -- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting edge news that could impact your health and our future.

HEALTH

• Drug companies donated millions to California lawmakers before vaccine debate (Sacramento Bee)
• In Los Angeles, a national model for how to police the mentally ill (CS Monitor)
• Black market drug injections: dangerous and deadly (CNN)
• New anti-malaria compound discovered (BBC)
• Agent Orange: US makes more veterans eligible for disability benefits (CS Monitor)
• Better off dad: How fatherhood actually 'rewires' a man's brain to make him a better parent (Jewish World Review)

SCIENCE

• Toxic algae bloom off West Coast might be largest ever: scientists (Reuters)
• UK GM wheat does not repel pests (BBC)
• Membranes grow like living cells (U-T)

TECH

• Record year for renewable power (AP)
• The FCC Might Have Just Killed Polling as We Know It—and That's OK (Reason)
• Gmail finally lets you 'Undo Send' emails you wish you didn't send (Mashable)

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.

HEALTH

Drug companies donated millions to California lawmakers before vaccine debate (Sacramento Bee)

Industry gave more than $2 million to current lawmakers in 2013-14. Opponents of SB 277 link

In Los Angeles, a national model for how to police the mentally ill (CS Monitor)

By partnering beat cops with mental health clinicians, the Los Angeles Police Department has reduced incidences of force used on individuals with mental illness and has connected thousands of individuals with counseling and support.

Black market drug injections: dangerous and deadly (CNN)

Sophelay Ouk, 30, of Rhode Island, didn't realize her wish for a more voluptuous derriere would lead to additional, and dangerous, baggage. "I wanted the round butt. The whole J-Lo look," Ouk said…In fact, buttock augmentation is one of the fastest growing cosmetic surgical procedures, according to the American Society of Plastic Surgeons.

New anti-malaria compound discovered (BBC)

Scientists at Dundee University develop an "exciting" new single-dose malaria drug to combat drug-resistant parasites.

Agent Orange: US makes more veterans eligible for disability benefits (CS Monitor)

Now eligible are more than 2,000 Air Force personnel who were exposed to Agent Orange while in contact with aircraft that were contaminated during the Vietnam War. The change came after research by the National Academy of Sciences.

Better off dad: How fatherhood actually 'rewires' a man's brain to make him a better parent (Jewish World Review)

A man walks down the street with his wife, who is pregnant with the couple's first child. With no kids, he has existed until now in his own orbit and paid little attention to the offspring of others.

SCIENCE

Toxic algae bloom off West Coast might be largest ever: scientists (Reuters)

A toxic algae bloom in the Pacific Ocean stretching from California north to Washington state might be the largest ever detected off the U.S. West Coast, scientists said on Tuesday.

UK GM wheat does not repel pests (BBC)

…While it worked in the lab, out in the field, the wheat was still attacked by the pests.

Membranes grow like living cells (U-T)

UC San Diego researchers have replicated a key feature of life in synthetic membranes.

TECH

Record year for renewable power (AP)

The growth of renewable energy outpaced that of fossil fuels in the electricity sector last year, with a record 135 gigawatts of capacity added from wind, solar, hydropower and other natural sources, a new study shows.

The FCC Might Have Just Killed Polling as We Know It—and That's OK (Reason)

Nobody likes getting robo-called. But in an effort to protect Americans from the deluge of unwanted advertising and political recordings they receive, pollsters fear the federal government may have just dealt a fatal blow to the survey research industry as we know it… Among the new rules, the FCC said phone companies can start providing call-blocking technology to their customers without violating federal laws. 

Gmail finally lets you 'Undo Send' emails you wish you didn't send (Mashable)

Perhaps the best Gmail feature that Google has been testing for years is one you might not even know exists: Undo Send. It delays sending your email for a few seconds after you click Send, so you can take it back if you, for example, spell someone's name wrong.