Health & Science

• Saturday, October 18th 2014 - 08:13 UTC

  Ebola scare reaches cruise industry: Carnival vessel barred from Mexico and Belize

  

  A laboratory technician from the Dallas hospital where a Liberian died of the Ebola virus, and who handled some of his fluid samples for analysis, has been placed in quarantine aboard a cruise ship, the State Department said on Friday.

• Monday, October 13th 2014 - 00:26 UTC

  Ebola's exponential growth

  

  By Gwynne Dyer - Here are two good things about the Ebola virus. It is unlikely to mutate into a version that can spread through the air, as some other viruses have done. And people who have been infected by Ebola cannot pass it on to others during the incubation period (between two and 21 days). Only when they develop detectable symptoms, notably fever, do they become infectious to others, and only by the transfer of bodily fluids.

• Saturday, October 11th 2014 - 09:11 UTC

  Argentina claims in can detect the ebola virus in patients in less than 24 hours

  

  Argentina has developed a molecular biological method to detect the presence of the Ebola virus in a patient in less than 24 hours, the Argentine health ministry has announced.

• Saturday, October 11th 2014 - 06:04 UTC

  Brazil testing patient suspected of Ebola infection; another 64 in quarantine

  

  Brazilian Health Minister Arthur Chioro said on Friday the results of tests on a patient suspected of Ebola infection would take 24 hours. At a press conference in Brasilia, the minister assured the situation was under control and that proper precautions had been taken to isolate the patient.

• Thursday, October 9th 2014 - 07:55 UTC

  Chemistry Nobel Prize for creators of 'nanoscopy' which peers into molecules of cells

  

  A German and two American scientists won on Wednesday the 2014 Nobel Prize for Chemistry for smashing the size barrier in optical microscopes, allowing researchers to see individual molecules inside living cells.

• Wednesday, October 8th 2014 - 03:58 UTC

  Inventors of new energy efficient LED light bulbs, awarded Nobel for Physics

  

  An American of Japanese origin and two Japanese scientists won the 2014 Nobel Prize for Physics on Tuesday for inventing a new energy-efficient and environment-friendly light source, leading to the creation of modern LED light bulbs.

• Wednesday, October 8th 2014 - 03:40 UTC

  Ebola outbreak threatens Africa with dramatic consequences, says IMF

  

  Saharan Africa's economic growth remains strong and should accelerate to 5.8% in 2015 but if the Ebola outbreak in its western corner is protracted or spreads it will have “dramatic consequences” for that zone, the IMF said on Tuesday.

• Thursday, October 2nd 2014 - 06:24 UTC

  Mysterious outbreak of hemorrhagic fever syndrome in Venezuela kills ten

  

  An outbreak of a mysterious hemorrhagic fever syndrome in the Venezuelan state of Aragua and the country’s capital Caracas has left ten people dead in the last three weeks. Reports indicate that nine people have so far succumbed to the disease in the northern state and a tenth person has died in the capital.

• Friday, September 26th 2014 - 05:38 UTC

  Cut on the salt, Monday 29 September is World Heart Day, recommends WHO

  

  On World Heart Day, held 29 September, the World Health Organization (WHO) is calling on countries to take action on the overuse of salt by implementing WHO’s sodium reduction recommendations to cut the number of people experiencing heart disease and stroke, and, in turn, save lives.

• Wednesday, September 24th 2014 - 16:35 UTC

  FIFA proposes three minute stoppage if a player suffers a suspected concussion

  

  FIFA says its executive committee will this week discuss a proposal to introduce a three-minute stoppage if a player suffers a suspected concussion. Michel D'Hooghe, head of FIFA’s medical committee, recommended the new rules for the treatment of head injuries following a series of incidents in recent months that have sparked criticism of FIFA.