Bloodless Test Detects Malaria With Light, Wins Prize
Languishing with fever and frustrated by delays in diagnosing his illness, Brian Gitta came up with a bright idea: a malaria test that would not need blood samples or specialized
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Swat Team Needed in Volgograd Where Insects Bug Fans & Players
Before it became one of the venues for the World Cup, the city of Volgograd in southwest Russia was famous for an overabundance of small, annoying flies called midges. While
Read MoreNew Smithsonian Exhibit Examines Past and Present Pandemics
Globalization in the 20th century facilitated the exchange of goods, ideas and technology. But it also helped spread deadly germs and viruses around the world. A new exhibit at the
Read MoreSeparation Stress May Permanently Damage Migrant Children
President Trump signed an executive order Wednesday to keep migrant children with their parents at the southwestern U.S. border, but more than 2,000 children are living in shelters without their
Read MoreAlgorithms Aid Tracking of Migrating Songbirds in Arctic
Tracking wildlife migration has been historically difficult in the rugged terrain of Alaska. Researchers primarily rely on either surveys or GPS tracking to understand bird migration patterns. Both methods are
Read More1 More American Confirmed Hurt by Mystery ‘Attack’ in Cuba
One more U.S. Embassy employee in Havana, Cuba, has been affected by mysterious health incidents, the State Department said. State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said one of two Americans recently
Read MoreOverweight? Depressed? It May Be Your Microbes
Microbes may be helping stir up anxiety and depression in obese people, if results from a new mouse study hold true in humans. The authors link the effects to how
Read MoreStudy: Leptospirosis Spread by Cattle, Not Just Rats
Fever, chills, and muscle pain aren’t the symptoms just of malaria. They could be signs of leptospirosis, which infects millions of people each year — primarily in tropical regions. The
Read MoreScientists: Nations Must Slow Plastic Buildup Caused by China’s Ban
China’s decision to stop accepting plastic waste from other countries is causing plastic to pile up around the globe, and wealthy countries must find a way to slow the accumulation
Read MoreFantasy-drama ‘Nathan’s Kingdom’ Explores World of Autism
A new film explores the bond between a young man with autism and the sister who cares for him. Nathan’s Kingdom stars Jacob Lince, a 24-year-old actor who has autism.
Read MoreWorld Giraffe Day Brings Attention to Their Declining Numbers
June 21st is World Giraffe Day, celebrating the iconic long-necked African animal. But giraffe populations have been decreasing at a rapid pace, and researchers warn they could become extinct in
Read MoreCities Face Dramatic Rise in Heat, Flood Risks by 2050, Researchers Say
In just 30 years, cities around the world will face dramatically higher risks from extreme heat, coastal flooding, power blackouts and food and water shortages unless climate-changing emissions are curbed,
Read MoreAs DRC Grapples with Ebola, Guinea Keeps Up Its Guard
Just after a morning rain, Gourma Mamadou was shopping in this capital city’s crowded, open-air Kaloum market. The young man said he was well aware of the current Ebola outbreak
Read MoreKenya Seeks to Boost Girls’ Education by Providing Free Sanitary Products
Menstruation often means missing school for many girls in parts of Africa. But should the state provide sanitary products to girls who cannot afford them to prevent them from falling
Read MoreWarned 30 Years Ago, Global Warming ‘Is in Our Living Room’
We were warned. On June 23, 1988, a sultry day in Washington, James Hansen told Congress and the world that global warming wasn’t approaching — it had already arrived. The
Read MoreAs Venezuela’s Health System Crumbles, Pregnant Women Flee to Colombia
Exhausted but relieved, Yariani Flores lay next to her healthy newborn son, along with four other Venezuelan women who just gave birth in a hospital in Colombia’s border city of
Read MoreClimate Change a ‘Man-made Problem with a Feminist Solution’ says Robinson
Women must be at the heart of climate action if the world is to limit the deadly impact of disasters such as floods, former Irish president and U.N. rights commissioner
Read MoreFor 6 Weeks, Mars Will Appear Larger, Brighter to Earth Stargazers
Astronomers and stargazers will get a chance to get up close and personal with Mars over the next six weeks, as the Earth passes between the Red Planet and the
Read MoreFighting TB in Remote Areas
The technology for reading a person’s genetic code, called ‘DNA sequencing,’ is moving from fully-equipped laboratories to portable devices. Doctors can now take them to remote hospitals and fight endemic
Read MoreCongo’s Ebola Outbreak Poses Challenges for Bush Meat
For 25 years, Patrick Matondo has earned a living buying and selling monkeys, bats and other animals popularly known as bush meat along the Congo River. Standing on the riverbank
Read MoreCalifornia Moves to Clear Coffee of Cancer-Risk Stigma
California officials, having concluded coffee drinking is not a risky pastime, are proposing a regulation that will essentially tell consumers of America’s favorite beverage they can drink up without fear.
Read MoreTechnology Makes Soccer Training More Efficient
Among the millions of fans watching the World Cup are amateur football players who have dreams of being as good as their heroes, Now, they have a new way to
Read MoreCosta Rican Research Institute Develops Snakebite Antidotes
The Central American nation of Costa Rica is among the tropical countries in the world with a very high concentration of snakes. Twenty of the country’s more than 130 species
Read MoreAntarctica Losing Ice Faster Than Thought
Once again, hard facts support the claim that the planet is getting warmer. According to a new report, published in the scientific journal Nature, Antarctica is losing ice so fast
Read MoreThanks to People, Many Animals Become Nocturnal
Lions and tigers and bears are increasingly becoming night owls because of us, a new study says. Scientists have long known that human activity disrupts nature. Besides becoming more vigilant
Read MoreSushi Served With a Secret Ingredient: Microplastic
The beautiful, all-you-can-eat sushi platter you shared with friends last week might have included a special ingredient: plastic. Microplastics — the remnants of plastic bags, takeout containers and straws that
Read MoreFor Some High-School Students, Graduation is ‘Magic’
Millions of high school students are done. So done. In flowing gowns and square caps, more than 3 million will walk across a stage this month and be handed a
Read MoreHealth Experts Dispatch Experimental Vaccine to Fight Congo’s Latest Ebola Outbreak
Health experts are dispatching an experimental vaccine in areas of The Democratic Republic of the Congo that are considered ground zero in the fight against Ebola. Their hope is to
Read MoreUN: World Facing ‘Defining Moment’ in Battle Against HIV/AIDS
The head of UNAIDS says the global community is at a “defining moment” in the effort to end the HIV/AIDS epidemic by 2030. “This midpoint is important for us
Read MoreScientists: Antarctica Ice Loss Is Accelerating
Antarctica is melting at an astonishing pace, losing three trillion tons of ice since 1992, a global team of scientists has concluded in a new assessment of the effects of
Read MoreFruit and Veg Off the Menu for Indonesian Girls as Myths Fuel Malnutrition
From fears that eating chicken wings makes it hard to find a husband to beliefs that pineapple jeopardizes fertility, a host of food taboos are fueling malnutrition among Indonesian girls,
Read MoreWHO Chief: ‘We Are Still at War’ With Ebola
The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) on Tuesday cautioned against declaring victory too early in Congo’s Ebola epidemic, despite encouraging signs that it may be brought under control.
Read MoreFrustrated AMA Adopts Sweeping Policies to Cut Gun Violence
With frustration mounting over lawmakers’ inaction on gun control, the American Medical Association on Tuesday pressed for a ban on assault weapons and came out against arming teachers as a
Read MoreTest of Ebola Vaccine Raises Hopes, Doubts in Congo
Irene Mboyo Mola spent 11 days caring for her husband as he died of Ebola in a hospital where she said nurses were too scared to get close. She helped
Read MoreClimate Change May Boost Cost of Eating Your Greens
Keeping healthy could become more costly as climate change and water scarcity cause a huge drop in the global production of vegetables and legumes, scientists said Monday. The amount of
Read MoreVaccines Make Major Dent in Child Deaths from Pneumonia, Meningitis
A vaccine against bacterial pneumonia and another against meningitis have saved 1.45 million children’s lives this century, according to a new study. The diseases the vaccines prevent are now concentrated
Read MoreHurricane Bud Intensifying Off Mexico’s Pacific Coast
Tropical Storm Bud intensified late Sunday afternoon into a Category 1 hurricane some 254 miles (410 km) west of the Pacific coast of Mexico, the country’s weather service said. With
Read MoreImpossible Makes Plant-based, Meat Free Burger Possible
After years of research and 400 million dollars from investors, Impossible Foods has produced the hottest new item on the vegan market, meat-free burgers. The goal of the California-based start-up
Read MoreStudy Discourages Chemotherapy for Some Breast Cancer Patients
The University of Hawaii Cancer Center is the leader in a groundbreaking national study that found that early-stage breast cancer patients with the most common form of the disease do
Read MoreStudent and Street Vendor Has Passion for Inventions
A Yemeni student has taken his passion for invention to a new level by building household appliances such as refrigerators, vacuum cleaners, and cooling fans out of cardboard. Surprisingly, the
Read MoreFighting Infections in Post-antibiotic World
Scientists say due to indiscriminate use of antibiotics, for treating even minor infections, many bacteria have developed strong immunity against this type of drug. In their words, we may have
Read MoreSea Waves Offer New Energy Source for Power-starved Gaza Strip
Necessity, they say, is the mother of invention … and Gaza needs electricity. The coastal enclave’s two million residents now receive only three to four hours of power per day.
Read MoreGreenpeace: Microplastic, Chemical Pollution Widespread in Antarctica
Plastic and chemical pollution has been detected in most samples of snow and seawater taken by researchers in Antarctica, said the nongovernmental environmental group Greenpeace. Greenpeace scientists gathered water and
Read MoreSoft Soil Saving Pisa Tower from Falling
Earthquakes happen frequently in Italy, but the famous leaning tower in Pisa still stands, puzzling scientists. An earthquake expert from University of Bristol thinks he knows why. VOA’s George Putic
Read MoreFrench Emergency Room Tests Virtual Reality Path to Pain Relief
The very thought of visiting a hospital emergency department is stressful enough for many people, even without the discomfort or pain of an examination or treatment. Enter an immersive virtual-reality
Read MoreWHO Cautiously Optimistic About Halting Ebola Spread in DR Congo
The World Health Organization (WHO) says it is cautiously optimistic about containing the spread of the Ebola virus in Democratic Republic of Congo, but warns that much work lies ahead.
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