HEALTH AND SCIENCE HIGHLIGHTS

East County News Service

September 13, 2016 (San Diego's East County) -- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting-edge news that could impact your health and our future.

HEALTH

• UN changes guidance about sex for travelers to Zika zones (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• Could air pollution cause brain damage? (BBC)
• Gonorrhea Is Becoming Untreatable, U.N. Health Officials Warn (NPR)
• 10 things you need to know about the new U.S. chemicals law (TruthOut)
• Lobbyists for EpiPen Maker Included Former Clinton and McConnell Aides (Reason)
•  Drop in Teen Pregnancies Is Due to More Contraceptives, Not Less Sex (NPR)
• TB kills three people every minute – the world must wake up to this pandemic  (Guardian)

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

• How to hack an election in 7 minutes (Politico)
• EPA dodges responsibility on ethanol (Denver Post)
•  Scientist discover a second Great Barrier Reef behind the first (CS Monitor)
• How the tides could fuel a greener future (+video) (CS Monitor)
• FAA Expects 600,000 Commercial Drones in The Air Within a Year (NPR)
• Cyber Bombs Reshape U.S. Battle Against Terrorism (NPR)

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

HEALTH

UN changes guidance about sex for travelers to Zika zones(San Diego Union-Tribune)

The U.N. health agency is changing its advice to travelers returning from areas facing a Zika virus outbreak, saying both men and women should now practice safe sex or abstinence for six months.

Could air pollution cause brain damage? (BBC)

New research suggests air pollution could be contributing to diseases such as Alzheimer's.

Gonorrhea Is Becoming Untreatable, U.N. Health Officials Warn(NPR)

The World Health Organization released new treatment guidelines that acknowledge an entire class of antibiotics is now all but useless against the sexually transmitted disease.

10 things you need to know about the new U.S. chemicals law (TruthOut)

This is a big deal," said President Barack Obama as he signed into law the bill that updates -- for the first time in 40 years -- the nation's main chemical safety legislation.

Lobbyists for EpiPen Maker Included Former Clinton and McConnell Aides (Reason)

The lobbying disclosure forms tell a remarkably bipartisan story

 Drop in Teen Pregnancies Is Due to More Contraceptives, Not Less Sex (NPR)

Sexually active teenagers are more likely to use birth control and are choosing forms that are more effective, a study finds. Births to teens dropped by 36 percent from 2007 to 2013.

TB kills three people every minute – the world must wake up to this pandemic  (Guardian)

In 1993, after decades of decline, deaths from TB had to started to increase. The WHO declared TB a global emergency, we had taken our eye off the ball and cases of TB in parts of London became as common as in some areas of sub-Saharan Africa.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

How to hack an election in 7 minutes(Politico)

With Russia already meddling in 2016, a ragtag group of obsessive tech experts is warning that stealing the ultimate prize—victory on Nov. 8—would be child’s play.

EPA dodges responsibility on ethanol (Denver Post)

The federal ethanol fuel mandate is costly to consumers and damaging to the environment, but it will never be scaled back or eliminated unless Congress and the executive branch are given up-to-date scientific assessments they trust. So why won’t the Environmental Protection Agency develop the needed analysis?

 Scientist discover a second Great Barrier Reef behind the first (CS Monitor)

With the help of LiDAR data from the Australian Navy, a team of researchers have found that the Great Barrier Reef is much larger than previously expected.

How the tides could fuel a greener future (+video) (CS Monitor)

The Shetland coast of Britain now hosts an array of tidal energy gathering turbines that are connected to the grid. Yet experts say there is a long way to go before hydrokinetic energy can really take off. 

FAA Expects 600,000 Commercial Drones in The Air Within a Year (NPR)

The soaring number of drones for hire is forecast in response to new federal rules that simplify and streamline the process of getting government approval and certification.

Cyber Bombs Reshape U.S. Battle Against Terrorism (NPR)

Fifteen years after 9/11, the battle against terrorist groups has gone high tech with the leveling of what Defense Secretary Ash Carter called cyber bombs. NPR looks at how this cyber war is being waged against ISIS and what it means for the future fight against terror.