Hikers and campers can now keep their cameras charged with FlameStower, which uses heat from a campfire, stove or even candles to charge any device powered by a USB connection. While this can seem superfluous — powering up while getting away from it all — creators Andrew Byrnes and Adam Kell says the device can also bring power to people in developing countries where wireless technology has leapfrogged others, places where people have cellphones but not electricity.
Byrnes and Kell were both studying materials science at Stanford University and at first thought about a generator wired to a toaster, but they quickly dismissed that idea. They spoke to a business school professor, who told them something that's been their guiding principle since — build something that can cook a pot of rice and charge a cellphone at the same time.
The technology is fairly simple. The FlameStower has a blade that extends out over the fire, while the other end is cooled by a reservoir of water. That means one part of the blade is hotter than the other. The temperature difference generates electricity, and semiconductors amplify the voltage to a useful amount. It gives you the same charge as connecting your phone to a laptop. The Mars Curiosity Rover uses the same technology, though its heat source comes from decaying radioactive materials.
This phenomenon of heat to electricity is called the Seebeck effect, and it doesn't generate a lot of energy, which means it wasn't that useful until people started walking around with cameras and smartphones.
"Now you have these tools that are insanely powerful, and increasingly are stingy on their energy use, so that value of the low amount of electricity is getting higher," Byrnes says.
He and Kell want to bring the FlameStower not only to stores in the U.S. but to developing countries as well. Kell recently returned from a trip to rural Kenya and Ethiopia to refine the FlameStower for users there, because around 65 percent of people in Africa have cellphones, but only 42 percent have electricity.
"[The cellphone] has been the first technology that people in rural villages are actually buying," Kell says.
Kell says products sold in developing countries are usually made to be cheaper than their counterparts in the U.S., with the exception of energy, which is much more expensive and less reliable.
Kell and Byrnes aren't the only people to come up with something like this. The BioLite CampStove and PowerPot are both pots that will charge a device and cook your food or boil water at the same time. But Kell says they weren't as successful in developing countries because people there often want to use their own pots, so the FlameStower founders made something that can work on any stove or fire.
At the moment a FlameStower costs $80, and the project is being funded on Kickstarter until late October.
The great deal on the Anker Astro E4 we recently featured is back, and we recommend acting quickly because last time it didn't last long. It's Lifehacker's favorite, our favorite, and Dealzmodo readers loved it the last time we posted it. Use code BDDL6ZN9. [Amazon]
High school teams receive Lemelson-MIT InvenTeam grant for invention projects
Public release date: 16-Oct-2013 [
| E-mail
| Share
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Contact: Stephanie Martinovich smartino@mit.edu 617-258-0632 Lemelson-MIT Program
Grants awarded to 15 high schools nationwide
A recent study from the McKinsey Global Institute pinpoints talent development among K-12 students as one of five "game changers" that will drive future economic growth. Enhancing classroom instruction, turning around underperforming high schools, and introducing digital learning tools can boost student achievement and contribute to gross domestic product. A strong educational foundation during the K-12 years, which includes hands-on learning, can help students develop new skills and adapt to changing work environments later in life.
The Lemelson-MIT Program provides a select group of high school students with the opportunity to show what is possible in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM); areas known to play a significant role in boosting the economy. Today, the Lemelson-MIT Program is awarding 15 teams of high school students up to $10,000 each in grant funding as part of its 2013-2014 InvenTeam initiative.
"STEM-related jobs have been predicted to outweigh non-STEM jobs over the next 10 years. Further, studies show that STEM careers are among the fastest growing job sectors" said Joshua Schuler, executive director of the Lemelson-MIT Program. "The Lemelson-MIT InvenTeam initiative helps students foster skills in these fields so they are better prepared to make both a social and economic impact through their career choices."
The 2013-2014 InvenTeam projects are largely driven by current events, outlining inventive solutions to address challenges in healthcare, the environment and safety in schools. The teams, representing high schools from Alaska to Washington, D.C., will pursue year-long hands-on invention projects merging learnings in STEM with creative thinking and technical skills. Proposed invention projects include an Alzheimer's patients' safety bracelet, a coffee pod recycler and a school emergency door-locking mechanism.
"The inventions that this year's teams have undertaken focus heavily on improving the safety and wellbeing of those in their communities. I feel optimistic that the students are seeing issues affecting others around them, and responding quickly with original and useful ideas to technically solve problems," said Leigh Estabrooks, invention education officer for the Lemelson-MIT Program.
Meet the 2013-2014 InvenTeams
A respected panel of invention and academic leaders from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), the Lemelson-MIT Program, industry and InvenTeam student alumni selected the InvenTeams from a national pool of applicants. The 2013-2014 Lemelson-MIT InvenTeams and their proposed inventions are:
Safety First
Benjamin Banneker Academic High School (Washington D.C.): School emergency door-locking mechanism
Mt. Edgecumbe High School (Sitka, Alaska): Search and rescue Unmanned Aerial Vehicle
School of Dreams Academy (Los Lunas, N.M.): Remote sensing protection for stationary police vehicles
SOAR High School (Lancaster, Calif.): Alcohol level detection bracelet
Tenafly High School (Tenafly, N.J.): Alzheimer's patients' safety bracelet
Wausau West High School (Wausau, Wis.): Autonomous snow removal device
Inventing Green
Bridgewater-Raynham Regional High School (Bridgewater, Mass.): Coffee pod recycler
Catlin Gabel School (Portland, Ore.): Aquatic vegetation collector
Middlesex County Academy for Science, Mathematics and Engineering Technologies (Edison, N.J.): Agriculture crop spraying Unmanned Aerial Vehicle
Providence Day School (Charlotte, N.C.): Pedal powered classroom desk generator
Sand Creek High School (Colorado Springs, Colo.): Biosand-mechanical filter for water sanitation
Wallenpaupack Area High School (Hawley, Pa.): Lake wave generator
Into the Future
Elkins High School (Missouri, Texas): 3D glasses washer
St. Francis DeSales High School (Columbus, Ohio): Automatic page turner
Vandegrift High School (Austin, Texas): Indoor personal GPS device
The 2013-2014 InvenTeams will showcase their projects at EurekaFest in June 2014. EurekaFest is the Lemelson-MIT Program's public, multi-day celebration of the inventive spirit at MIT in Cambridge, Mass.
###
Calling All Young Inventors!
The Lemelson-MIT InvenTeam application for the 2014-2015 school year is now available at http://web.mit.edu/inventeams. Teams of high school students, teachers and mentors are encouraged to apply.
ABOUT THE LEMELSON-MIT PROGRAM
Celebrating innovation, inspiring youth
The Lemelson-MIT Program celebrates outstanding innovators and inspires young people to pursue creative lives and careers through invention.
Jerome H. Lemelson, one of U.S. history's most prolific inventors, and his wife Dorothy founded the Lemelson-MIT Program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1994. It is funded by The Lemelson Foundation and administered by the School of Engineering. The Lemelson Foundation uses the power of invention to improve lives, by inspiring and enabling the next generation of inventors and invention based enterprises to promote economic growth in the US and social and economic progress for the poor in developing countries. http://web.mit.edu/invent/
Mckinsey Global Institute. (2013) Game changers: Five opportunities for US growth and renewal Website: http://www.mckinsey.com/insights/americas/us_game_changers?cid=game_changers-eml-alt-mgi-mck-oth-1307
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
High school teams receive Lemelson-MIT InvenTeam grant for invention projects
Public release date: 16-Oct-2013 [
| E-mail
| Share
]
Contact: Stephanie Martinovich smartino@mit.edu 617-258-0632 Lemelson-MIT Program
Grants awarded to 15 high schools nationwide
A recent study from the McKinsey Global Institute pinpoints talent development among K-12 students as one of five "game changers" that will drive future economic growth. Enhancing classroom instruction, turning around underperforming high schools, and introducing digital learning tools can boost student achievement and contribute to gross domestic product. A strong educational foundation during the K-12 years, which includes hands-on learning, can help students develop new skills and adapt to changing work environments later in life.
The Lemelson-MIT Program provides a select group of high school students with the opportunity to show what is possible in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM); areas known to play a significant role in boosting the economy. Today, the Lemelson-MIT Program is awarding 15 teams of high school students up to $10,000 each in grant funding as part of its 2013-2014 InvenTeam initiative.
"STEM-related jobs have been predicted to outweigh non-STEM jobs over the next 10 years. Further, studies show that STEM careers are among the fastest growing job sectors" said Joshua Schuler, executive director of the Lemelson-MIT Program. "The Lemelson-MIT InvenTeam initiative helps students foster skills in these fields so they are better prepared to make both a social and economic impact through their career choices."
The 2013-2014 InvenTeam projects are largely driven by current events, outlining inventive solutions to address challenges in healthcare, the environment and safety in schools. The teams, representing high schools from Alaska to Washington, D.C., will pursue year-long hands-on invention projects merging learnings in STEM with creative thinking and technical skills. Proposed invention projects include an Alzheimer's patients' safety bracelet, a coffee pod recycler and a school emergency door-locking mechanism.
"The inventions that this year's teams have undertaken focus heavily on improving the safety and wellbeing of those in their communities. I feel optimistic that the students are seeing issues affecting others around them, and responding quickly with original and useful ideas to technically solve problems," said Leigh Estabrooks, invention education officer for the Lemelson-MIT Program.
Meet the 2013-2014 InvenTeams
A respected panel of invention and academic leaders from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), the Lemelson-MIT Program, industry and InvenTeam student alumni selected the InvenTeams from a national pool of applicants. The 2013-2014 Lemelson-MIT InvenTeams and their proposed inventions are:
Safety First
Benjamin Banneker Academic High School (Washington D.C.): School emergency door-locking mechanism
Mt. Edgecumbe High School (Sitka, Alaska): Search and rescue Unmanned Aerial Vehicle
School of Dreams Academy (Los Lunas, N.M.): Remote sensing protection for stationary police vehicles
SOAR High School (Lancaster, Calif.): Alcohol level detection bracelet
Tenafly High School (Tenafly, N.J.): Alzheimer's patients' safety bracelet
Wausau West High School (Wausau, Wis.): Autonomous snow removal device
Inventing Green
Bridgewater-Raynham Regional High School (Bridgewater, Mass.): Coffee pod recycler
Catlin Gabel School (Portland, Ore.): Aquatic vegetation collector
Middlesex County Academy for Science, Mathematics and Engineering Technologies (Edison, N.J.): Agriculture crop spraying Unmanned Aerial Vehicle
Providence Day School (Charlotte, N.C.): Pedal powered classroom desk generator
Sand Creek High School (Colorado Springs, Colo.): Biosand-mechanical filter for water sanitation
Wallenpaupack Area High School (Hawley, Pa.): Lake wave generator
Into the Future
Elkins High School (Missouri, Texas): 3D glasses washer
St. Francis DeSales High School (Columbus, Ohio): Automatic page turner
Vandegrift High School (Austin, Texas): Indoor personal GPS device
The 2013-2014 InvenTeams will showcase their projects at EurekaFest in June 2014. EurekaFest is the Lemelson-MIT Program's public, multi-day celebration of the inventive spirit at MIT in Cambridge, Mass.
###
Calling All Young Inventors!
The Lemelson-MIT InvenTeam application for the 2014-2015 school year is now available at http://web.mit.edu/inventeams. Teams of high school students, teachers and mentors are encouraged to apply.
ABOUT THE LEMELSON-MIT PROGRAM
Celebrating innovation, inspiring youth
The Lemelson-MIT Program celebrates outstanding innovators and inspires young people to pursue creative lives and careers through invention.
Jerome H. Lemelson, one of U.S. history's most prolific inventors, and his wife Dorothy founded the Lemelson-MIT Program at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1994. It is funded by The Lemelson Foundation and administered by the School of Engineering. The Lemelson Foundation uses the power of invention to improve lives, by inspiring and enabling the next generation of inventors and invention based enterprises to promote economic growth in the US and social and economic progress for the poor in developing countries. http://web.mit.edu/invent/
Mckinsey Global Institute. (2013) Game changers: Five opportunities for US growth and renewal Website: http://www.mckinsey.com/insights/americas/us_game_changers?cid=game_changers-eml-alt-mgi-mck-oth-1307
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| Share
]
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
In her PhD thesis Ruth Sanz-Barrio, an agricultural engineer of the NUP/UPNA-Public University of Navarre and researcher at the Institute of Biotechnology (mixed centre of the CSIC-Spanish National Research Council, Public University of Navarre and the Government of Navarre), has demonstrated, for the first time, the viability of using specific tobacco proteins (known as thioredoxins) as biotechnological tools in plants. Specifically, she has managed to increase the amount of starch produced in the tobacco leaves by 700% and fermentable sugars by 500%. "We believe that these genetically modified plants," she explained, "could be a good alternative to food crops for producing biofuels, and could provide an outlet for the tobacco-producing areas in our country that see their future in jeopardy owing to the discontinuing of European grants for this crop."
Thioredoxins (Trxs) are small proteins present in most living organisms. In the course of her research Ruth Sanz demonstrated the capacity of the thioredoxins f and m in tobacco as biotechnological tools not only to increase the starch content in the plant but also to increase the production of proteins like human albumin. "For some time Trxs have been known to have a regulating function in living organisms, but in the thesis we have shown that they can also act by helping other proteins to fold and structure themselves so that they become functional."
Human albumin is the most widely used intravenous protein in the world for therapeutic purposes. It is used to stabilize blood volume and prevent the risk of infarction, and its application in operating theatres is almost a daily occurrence. It is also used in burns, surgical operations, haemorrhages, or when the patient is undernourished or dehydrated, and in the case of chronic infections and renal or hepatic diseases.
Although commercial albumin is extracted from blood, the lack of a sufficient volume in reserve has prompted many researchers to seek new formulas for obtaining this protein on a large scale economically and safely. "We have come up with an easier, cheaper procedure for producing it in the tobacco plant and extracting it. By fusing the genes encoding the Trxs f or m, we increased the amount of recombinant protein (the albumin, in this case). We also managed to improve the solubility and folding of the albumin, which helps to extract it from the plant and lowers the costs involved in this process."
Tobacco for producing bioethanol
As the research progressed, thioredoxin f was shown for the first time in vivo to be more efficient than Trx m in regulating the metabolism of carbohydrates, as it causes "a significant increase in the amount of starch in the leaves, which can reach 700% with respect to the amount obtained from non-modified control plants." Ruth Sanz explained that this was also new, since "up until now both Trxs were thought to act in the same way, but we have shown that this is not so."
Once the regulating function of Trx f in starch synthesis had been proven, the researcher focussed on its possible application in energy crops used to produce bioethanol: "We saw that the leaves of the genetically modified tobacco plants were releasing 500% more fermentable sugars. With these sugars, which could later be turned into bioethanol, one could obtain up to 40 litres of bioethanol per tonne of fresh leaves according to the theoretical calculation provided by the National Centre for Renewable Energies where the enzymatic test was conducted which would mean an almost tenfold increase in bioethanol yield with respect to the control tobacco plant that had not been modified."
Genetically enhanced tobacco could be an alternative source of biomass in areas like Extremadura and Andalusia, the traditional tobacco producers. The estimated calculations of the starch production of these enhanced varieties would be the equivalent to those of crops like barley or wheat. "As cereals are currently being used as the raw material to produce bioethanol, genetically enhanced tobacco could be an alternative source of biomass and for obtaining clean energies."
###
The thesis "Caracterizacin y aplicaciones biotecnolgicas de las tiorredoxinas plastidiales f y m de tabaco" (Characterization and biotechnological applications of plastidial thioredoxins f and m in tobacco) was supervised by Prof Inmaculada Farran-Blanch of the department of Agricultural Production of the Public University of Navarre.
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Research shows that genetically modified tobacco plants are viable for producing biofuels
In her PhD thesis Ruth Sanz-Barrio, an agricultural engineer of the NUP/UPNA-Public University of Navarre and researcher at the Institute of Biotechnology (mixed centre of the CSIC-Spanish National Research Council, Public University of Navarre and the Government of Navarre), has demonstrated, for the first time, the viability of using specific tobacco proteins (known as thioredoxins) as biotechnological tools in plants. Specifically, she has managed to increase the amount of starch produced in the tobacco leaves by 700% and fermentable sugars by 500%. "We believe that these genetically modified plants," she explained, "could be a good alternative to food crops for producing biofuels, and could provide an outlet for the tobacco-producing areas in our country that see their future in jeopardy owing to the discontinuing of European grants for this crop."
Thioredoxins (Trxs) are small proteins present in most living organisms. In the course of her research Ruth Sanz demonstrated the capacity of the thioredoxins f and m in tobacco as biotechnological tools not only to increase the starch content in the plant but also to increase the production of proteins like human albumin. "For some time Trxs have been known to have a regulating function in living organisms, but in the thesis we have shown that they can also act by helping other proteins to fold and structure themselves so that they become functional."
Human albumin is the most widely used intravenous protein in the world for therapeutic purposes. It is used to stabilize blood volume and prevent the risk of infarction, and its application in operating theatres is almost a daily occurrence. It is also used in burns, surgical operations, haemorrhages, or when the patient is undernourished or dehydrated, and in the case of chronic infections and renal or hepatic diseases.
Although commercial albumin is extracted from blood, the lack of a sufficient volume in reserve has prompted many researchers to seek new formulas for obtaining this protein on a large scale economically and safely. "We have come up with an easier, cheaper procedure for producing it in the tobacco plant and extracting it. By fusing the genes encoding the Trxs f or m, we increased the amount of recombinant protein (the albumin, in this case). We also managed to improve the solubility and folding of the albumin, which helps to extract it from the plant and lowers the costs involved in this process."
Tobacco for producing bioethanol
As the research progressed, thioredoxin f was shown for the first time in vivo to be more efficient than Trx m in regulating the metabolism of carbohydrates, as it causes "a significant increase in the amount of starch in the leaves, which can reach 700% with respect to the amount obtained from non-modified control plants." Ruth Sanz explained that this was also new, since "up until now both Trxs were thought to act in the same way, but we have shown that this is not so."
Once the regulating function of Trx f in starch synthesis had been proven, the researcher focussed on its possible application in energy crops used to produce bioethanol: "We saw that the leaves of the genetically modified tobacco plants were releasing 500% more fermentable sugars. With these sugars, which could later be turned into bioethanol, one could obtain up to 40 litres of bioethanol per tonne of fresh leaves according to the theoretical calculation provided by the National Centre for Renewable Energies where the enzymatic test was conducted which would mean an almost tenfold increase in bioethanol yield with respect to the control tobacco plant that had not been modified."
Genetically enhanced tobacco could be an alternative source of biomass in areas like Extremadura and Andalusia, the traditional tobacco producers. The estimated calculations of the starch production of these enhanced varieties would be the equivalent to those of crops like barley or wheat. "As cereals are currently being used as the raw material to produce bioethanol, genetically enhanced tobacco could be an alternative source of biomass and for obtaining clean energies."
###
The thesis "Caracterizacin y aplicaciones biotecnolgicas de las tiorredoxinas plastidiales f y m de tabaco" (Characterization and biotechnological applications of plastidial thioredoxins f and m in tobacco) was supervised by Prof Inmaculada Farran-Blanch of the department of Agricultural Production of the Public University of Navarre.
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Illinois river otters exposed to chemicals banned decades ago
Public release date: 15-Oct-2013 [
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Contact: Diana Yates diya@illinois.edu 217-333-5802 University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Researchers report that river otters in Central Illinois are being exposed to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and pesticides that were banned in the U.S. in the 1970s and '80s.
Their analysis appears in the journal Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety.
The Illinois Department of Natural Resources collected 23 river otters between 2009 and 2011, after the animals were incidentally killed (hit by cars or accidentally caught in traps, for example). The agency passed the carcasses along to researchers at the Illinois Natural History Survey (INHS) for analysis, and the University of Illinois Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory conducted autopsies.
As part of this effort, the research team, led by wildlife technical assistant Samantha Carpenter and wildlife veterinary epidemiologist Nohra Mateus-Pinilla, both with the natural history survey, and U. of I. animal sciences professor Jan Novakofski, looked at liver concentrations of 20 organohalogenated compounds once used in agriculture and industry (all but one of which were later banned). Andreas Lehner, of Michigan State University, conducted the toxicological tests.
The researchers were surprised to find that average concentrations of one of the compounds they analyzed, dieldrin -- an insecticide (and byproduct of the pesticide aldrin) that was used across the Midwest before it was banned in 1987 -- exceeded those measured in eight river otters collected in Illinois from 1984 to 1989.
Liver concentrations of PCBs and DDE (the latter a breakdown product of the banned pesticide DDT) were similar to those in the earlier study, the researchers report.
"The PCBs, dieldrin and DDE were the contaminants that we detected in highest concentration, in terms of average concentrations," Carpenter said. "And male river otters had significantly higher concentrations of PCBs compared to females."
PCBs were once used as insulators and coolants in motors and electrical systems, but were banned in 1979 in the U.S. after studies found that exposure to these compounds caused cancer and other deleterious health effects in animals. PCBs are classified as "probable human carcinogens" and there are fish consumption advisories for this contaminant in many Illinois rivers.
DDT was banned in the U.S. in the early 1970s after decades of widespread use. Studies indicated that DDT and DDE contribute to eggshell thinning in several bird species and are toxic to fish, shellfish and other organisms. In mammals, these compounds can cause gene disruption and interfere with hormone function, particularly in a developing fetus.
Dieldrin was used extensively to kill crop pests, termites and mosquitoes before it was banned in 1987 in the U.S. Its use in the Midwest agricultural belt was particularly pronounced. Before these compounds were banned, U.S. farmers applied more than 15 million pounds of dieldrin and aldrin (its parent compound) to their crops every year -- much of it in the Midwest.
"Some studies (of dieldrin) exposure find links to cancer, Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's and some do not," Carpenter said. "But perhaps most concerning is that both dieldrin and PCBs can act as developmental neurotoxicants, meaning that developing fetuses can be harmed at concentrations much smaller than those that can impact the health of adults."
Concentrations of contaminants in river otters ranged widely. One male had a concentration of PCBs in its liver of 3,450 parts per billion (ppb), while another had only 30 ppb. Dieldrin concentrations ranged from 14.4 to 534 ppb.
Since the otters were collected from counties all over Central Illinois, the findings could indicate that some watersheds have a worse contamination problem than others, Carpenter said.
"For many of the contaminants we did detect a large range," she said. "This is a red flag. We need to understand more about what humans and wildlife are being exposed to in different watersheds."
More research is needed to understand the factors that contribute to the river otters' exposure to these chemicals, Mateus-Pinilla said.
"We don't have a good understanding of how much time they spend in a particular area, how long they stay there, how far they go or where they spend most of their time during the winter versus the summer," she said. "All of these can contribute to differences in exposure."
The researchers do not know why the male otters in the study carried a heavier burden of PCBs than the females, Carpenter said. It may be simply that the males are larger. They may range further than the females, picking up more toxins as they go. Or the females might transfer some of the contaminants to their offspring during nursing, as previous research suggests.
"Maternal transfer is particularly interesting," Novakofski said. "In some watersheds humans may have the same kind of risk because they're eating the same kinds of fish that the otters might be."
Studies have shown that PCBs and dieldrin can be transferred through breast milk, he said.
"We don't know enough about how these contaminants behave synergistically," Carpenter said, especially since "the cocktail of contaminants that we're exposed to here in the Midwest differs from what humans and wildlife are exposed to in eastern or western North America."
###
The research team also included Illinois pathobiology professor Kuldeep Singh, Robert Bluett of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, and Damian Satterthwaite-Phillips and Nelda Rivera, both of the natural history survey. The INHS is a division of the Prairie Research Institute at the U. of I.
The US Fish & Wildlife Service Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration
Projects (W-146-R and W-167-R) and the natural history survey provided
funding for this research
Editor's notes: To reach Samantha Carpenter, email samantha@illinois.edu.
Jan Novakofski, call 217-333-6181; jnova@illinois.edu.
Nohra Mateus-Pinilla, 217-333-6856; nohram@illinois.edu.
The paper, "River Otters as Biomonitors for Organochlorine Pesticides,
PCBs, and PBDEs in Illinois," is available online or from the U. of I.
News Bureau.
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Illinois river otters exposed to chemicals banned decades ago
Public release date: 15-Oct-2013 [
| E-mail
| Share
]
Contact: Diana Yates diya@illinois.edu 217-333-5802 University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. -- Researchers report that river otters in Central Illinois are being exposed to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and pesticides that were banned in the U.S. in the 1970s and '80s.
Their analysis appears in the journal Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety.
The Illinois Department of Natural Resources collected 23 river otters between 2009 and 2011, after the animals were incidentally killed (hit by cars or accidentally caught in traps, for example). The agency passed the carcasses along to researchers at the Illinois Natural History Survey (INHS) for analysis, and the University of Illinois Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory conducted autopsies.
As part of this effort, the research team, led by wildlife technical assistant Samantha Carpenter and wildlife veterinary epidemiologist Nohra Mateus-Pinilla, both with the natural history survey, and U. of I. animal sciences professor Jan Novakofski, looked at liver concentrations of 20 organohalogenated compounds once used in agriculture and industry (all but one of which were later banned). Andreas Lehner, of Michigan State University, conducted the toxicological tests.
The researchers were surprised to find that average concentrations of one of the compounds they analyzed, dieldrin -- an insecticide (and byproduct of the pesticide aldrin) that was used across the Midwest before it was banned in 1987 -- exceeded those measured in eight river otters collected in Illinois from 1984 to 1989.
Liver concentrations of PCBs and DDE (the latter a breakdown product of the banned pesticide DDT) were similar to those in the earlier study, the researchers report.
"The PCBs, dieldrin and DDE were the contaminants that we detected in highest concentration, in terms of average concentrations," Carpenter said. "And male river otters had significantly higher concentrations of PCBs compared to females."
PCBs were once used as insulators and coolants in motors and electrical systems, but were banned in 1979 in the U.S. after studies found that exposure to these compounds caused cancer and other deleterious health effects in animals. PCBs are classified as "probable human carcinogens" and there are fish consumption advisories for this contaminant in many Illinois rivers.
DDT was banned in the U.S. in the early 1970s after decades of widespread use. Studies indicated that DDT and DDE contribute to eggshell thinning in several bird species and are toxic to fish, shellfish and other organisms. In mammals, these compounds can cause gene disruption and interfere with hormone function, particularly in a developing fetus.
Dieldrin was used extensively to kill crop pests, termites and mosquitoes before it was banned in 1987 in the U.S. Its use in the Midwest agricultural belt was particularly pronounced. Before these compounds were banned, U.S. farmers applied more than 15 million pounds of dieldrin and aldrin (its parent compound) to their crops every year -- much of it in the Midwest.
"Some studies (of dieldrin) exposure find links to cancer, Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's and some do not," Carpenter said. "But perhaps most concerning is that both dieldrin and PCBs can act as developmental neurotoxicants, meaning that developing fetuses can be harmed at concentrations much smaller than those that can impact the health of adults."
Concentrations of contaminants in river otters ranged widely. One male had a concentration of PCBs in its liver of 3,450 parts per billion (ppb), while another had only 30 ppb. Dieldrin concentrations ranged from 14.4 to 534 ppb.
Since the otters were collected from counties all over Central Illinois, the findings could indicate that some watersheds have a worse contamination problem than others, Carpenter said.
"For many of the contaminants we did detect a large range," she said. "This is a red flag. We need to understand more about what humans and wildlife are being exposed to in different watersheds."
More research is needed to understand the factors that contribute to the river otters' exposure to these chemicals, Mateus-Pinilla said.
"We don't have a good understanding of how much time they spend in a particular area, how long they stay there, how far they go or where they spend most of their time during the winter versus the summer," she said. "All of these can contribute to differences in exposure."
The researchers do not know why the male otters in the study carried a heavier burden of PCBs than the females, Carpenter said. It may be simply that the males are larger. They may range further than the females, picking up more toxins as they go. Or the females might transfer some of the contaminants to their offspring during nursing, as previous research suggests.
"Maternal transfer is particularly interesting," Novakofski said. "In some watersheds humans may have the same kind of risk because they're eating the same kinds of fish that the otters might be."
Studies have shown that PCBs and dieldrin can be transferred through breast milk, he said.
"We don't know enough about how these contaminants behave synergistically," Carpenter said, especially since "the cocktail of contaminants that we're exposed to here in the Midwest differs from what humans and wildlife are exposed to in eastern or western North America."
###
The research team also included Illinois pathobiology professor Kuldeep Singh, Robert Bluett of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, and Damian Satterthwaite-Phillips and Nelda Rivera, both of the natural history survey. The INHS is a division of the Prairie Research Institute at the U. of I.
The US Fish & Wildlife Service Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration
Projects (W-146-R and W-167-R) and the natural history survey provided
funding for this research
Editor's notes: To reach Samantha Carpenter, email samantha@illinois.edu.
Jan Novakofski, call 217-333-6181; jnova@illinois.edu.
Nohra Mateus-Pinilla, 217-333-6856; nohram@illinois.edu.
The paper, "River Otters as Biomonitors for Organochlorine Pesticides,
PCBs, and PBDEs in Illinois," is available online or from the U. of I.
News Bureau.
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James Blake addresses the crowd during an interview with Mary Joe Fernandez after losing on day three of the 2013 U.S. Open.
Matthew Stockman/Getty Images
James Blake addresses the crowd during an interview with Mary Joe Fernandez after losing on day three of the 2013 U.S. Open.
Matthew Stockman/Getty Images
Neither of them is over 35 years old. One of them played in ATP World Tour events just months ago; the other did so last year. But none of that will keep recently retired tennis players Andy Roddick, 31, and James Blake, 33, from joining a circuit of senior players.
The pair will be playing in the PowerShares Series, a touring set of one-day tournaments featuring tennis legends such as Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, John McEnroe and Ivan Lendl. By joining the tour, Roddick could eventually get a chance to play alongside his former coach, Jimmy Connors.
We will pause here to acknowledge that any of the people listed above would make short work of us on any court, under any conditions. And it can be debated that the PowerShares Series isn't a traditional senior tour, as its minimum age requirement is that players be just 30.
"I am looking forward to playing on the PowerShares circuit," Roddick says, in a report on the Tennis site. "Having a chance to stay connected with tennis and compete on a limited basis through events like these fits perfectly with my life these days."
A look at the PowerShares site shows that it features a Tennis article identifying it as "the newly-named senior circuit" last year, when it changed its name from the Champions Series. The tour was founded in 2005 by a group that includes former tennis star Jim Courier, who plays in many events.
If you're wondering about the age cutoff for other senior tours, so were we:
In tennis, the ATP Champions Tour requires that players be retired and meet career criteria, such as holding a world No. 1 ranking or being a Grand Slam finalist.
While some sources report the Champions Tour requires that players are at least 35, Roddick is scheduled to play a tour event in early 2014, when he'll still be 31. The Champions Tour is also said to require a player be at least two years past their retirement; details about its policies weren't available for review at the time of this post.
In professional golf, the standard minimum age to join a senior tour is 50.
BEIRUT (Reuters) - Syrian air force jets and helicopters bombed rebel-held districts across the country on Tuesday, the first day of the Muslim festival of Eid al Adha, and rebel fighters fired rockets into the heart of Damascus.
President Bashar al-Assad, whose forces are battling a civil war which grew out of protests against his rule two years ago, was shown on state television attending morning prayers with ministers at a Damascus mosque at the start of the Eid holiday.
But there was no let-up in the violence which has torn Syria apart and divided the Middle East between Sunni Muslim supporters of the rebels and Shi'ite backers of Assad, despite a joint plea from regional Arab and Muslim organizations for both sides to mark the occasion with a ceasefire.
Activists said warplanes bombed targets in rebel strongholds to the east and south of the capital. Video footage uploaded on the Internet showed explosions and thick columns of smoke rising above the town of Daraya, on the southwestern edge of Damascus.
Rebels fired rockets and mortars into the Old City and the Mazraa district in the city center, activists said.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which monitors the violence in Syria through a network of activists and medical and military sources, also said air force helicopters carried out 11 bombing raids on the rebel town of Latamna in Hama province.
It said the helicopters dropped large improvised explosives, or barrel bombs, on the town. Three children were killed in one of the early waves of bombing, it said.
The Observatory says at least 115,000 rebels, soldiers and civilians have been killed in the 2-1/2 year civil war which has also driven 2.1 million Syrians to seek refuge abroad and displaced millions more inside their country.
A further 170 people were killed on Monday, it said.
REBEL CLASHES ON BORDER
The fighting also pits rival rebel factions against each other. On Tuesday activists said militants from al Qaeda-linked Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant clashed with local Northern Storm fighters at the Bab Salam border post with Turkey.
Video footage showed grey smoke rising from what the activists said were Northern Storm positions which had been shelled by the Islamic State fighters. The clashes were close to a refugee camp on the Syrian side of the border, they said.
The divisions among Assad's opponents and the growing power of the Islamist fighters have made it increasingly difficult for international aid workers to operate in the lawless rebel-held northern provinces.
Six Red Cross workers and a colleague from the Syrian Arab Red Crescent were abducted on Sunday after delivering medical supplies in the northern province of Idlib. Four were released the next day but an ICRC spokesman said on Tuesday there was no news on the other three.
The violence has continued despite a U.N.-endorsed mission to oversee the elimination of Assad's chemical weapons, which was set up as a result of a rare agreement between the United States and Russia after an August sarin gas attack in Damascus.
Experts from the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons have visited eight of a total of around 20 sites where they are due to oversee the destruction of Syria's chemical arsenal and production facilities.
Some of the destruction work has already started and the OPCW - which last week was awarded this year's Nobel Peace Prize - has reported that Syrian authorities have so far cooperated with the process.
However the most complex stage of their work, the destruction of chemical agents and precursors, has yet to start and the teams will likely have to visit at least one site - near the northern town of Safira - where fighting is continuing.
The Observatory said on Sunday that Assad's forces bombarded rebel-held Safira, which is located close to storage and production sites which are believed to be linked to Syria's chemical weapons program.
Unless a local ceasefire can be agreed or government troops push the rebels back the chemical teams would face the prospect of trying to work in the midst of a conflict, close to rebel fighters whose ranks may include anti-Western jihadists.
(Writing by Dominic Evans, Editing by Angus MacSwan)
DUBAI (Reuters) - The Yemen-based branch of al Qaeda said on Monday that its attack on a Yemeni army base last month targeted an operations room used by the United States to direct drone strikes against militants, and threatened more such assaults.
Dozens of militants stormed and captured the headquarters of the Yemeni army's Second Division in the eastern city of al-Mukalla on September 30 and took some military personnel hostage. Military officials said four Yemeni soldiers were killed and nine wounded in a counter-strike to retake the base.
Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) is regarded by the United States as one of the most active wings of the diffuse international jihadi network, posing a serious threat to Western interests including nearby sea lanes plied by oil tankers.
AQAP said Yemen had turned a number of its military facilities in recent years into "intelligence and operations rooms to direct the war against the Mujahideen (holy fighters) and operate pilotless planes".
"The Mujahideen have directed a harsh blow to one of these headquarters," it said in a message posted on Shumukh al-Islam, an Islamist website, referring to the September 30 attack.
"Such joint security targets, which participate with the Americans in their war on the Muslim people, are a legitimate target for our operations, and we will puncture these eyes that the enemy uses."
It said that dozens of officers were killed in the three-day assault and the operations room was destroyed. AQAP made no mention of any Americans present in the facility and there were no reports of foreigners killed in the attack.
The authenticity of the statement could not immediately be verified.
The United States regularly stages drone strikes to hunt down al Qaeda militants in a campaign that has been criticized by rights groups as tantamount to carrying out executions without trial, with civilians often being hit.
Yemeni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi has angered many compatriots by giving unequivocal support for drone operations, which have increased since President Barack Obama took office in 2009. Hadi has also asked Washington to supply drones to the Yemeni armed forces.
The Yemeni army, with U.S. backing, last year drove al Qaeda militants and their allies from some of their south Yemen strongholds. But the jihadists have since regrouped and mounted attacks on government officials and installations.
Militants took advantage of political chaos in Yemen during the Arab Spring uprising in 2011 to seize control of some towns and their hinterland in the south of the Arabian Peninsula state.
They were subsequently beaten back by Yemeni armed forces, with assistance from the United States, and dispersed into smaller groups spread across the south.
But they have since carried out a series of attacks on important military and civilian targets, killing hundreds of soldiers and some senior officers, including Major General Salem Qatan, commander of the Yemeni army in southern Yemen.
(Reporting by Ahmed Tolba in Cairo, writing by Sami Aboudi, editing by Mark Heinrich)
CEBU, Philippines (AP) — The death toll from a 7.2-magnitude earthquake that struck the central Philippine island of Bohol on Tuesday rose to 93, as rescuers struggled to reach patients in a collapsed hospital. Centuries-old stone churches crumbled and wide areas were without power.
Bohol police chief Dennis Agustin said 77 of the deaths came from the province. At least 15 others died in nearby Cebu province and another on Siquijor Island.
The quake struck at 8:12 a.m. and was centered about 33 kilometers (20 miles) below Carmen city, where many small buildings collapsed.
Many roads and bridges were reported damaged, making rescue operations difficult. But historic churches dating from the Spanish colonial period suffered the most. Among them was the country's oldest, the 16th-century Basilica of the Holy Child in Cebu, which lost its bell tower.
Nearly half of a 17th-century limestone church in Loboc town, southwest of Carmen, was reduced to rubble.
The highest number of dead — 18 — were in the municipality of Loon, 42 kilometers (26 miles) west of Carmen, where an unknown number of patients were trapped inside the Congressman Castillo Memorial Hospital, which partially collapsed. Rescuers were working to reach them, said civil defense spokesman Maj. Reynaldo Balido.
As night fell, the entire province was in the dark after the quake cut power supplies. Windy weather and rain also forced back a military rescue helicopter.
Authorities were setting up tents for those displaced by the quake, while others who lost their homes moved in with their relatives, Bohol Gov. Edgardo Chatto said.
Extensive damage also hit densely populated Cebu city, across a narrow strait from Bohol, causing deaths when a building in the port and the roof of a market area collapsed.
The quake set off two stampedes in nearby cities. When it struck, people gathered in a gym in Cebu rushed outside in a panic, crushing five people to death and injuring eight others, said Neil Sanchez, provincial disaster management officer.
"We ran out of the building, and outside, we hugged trees because the tremors were so strong," said Vilma Yorong, a provincial government employee in Bohol.
"When the shaking stopped, I ran to the street and there I saw several injured people. Some were saying their church has collapsed," she told The Associated Press by phone.
As fear set in, Yorong and the others ran up a mountain, afraid a tsunami would follow the quake. "Minutes after the earthquake, people were pushing each other to go up the hill," she said.
But the quake was centered inland and did not cause a tsunami.
Offices and schools were closed for a national holiday — the Muslim festival of Eid al-Adha — which may have saved lives.
The earthquake also was deeper below the surface than a 6.9-magnitude temblor last year in waters near Negros Island, also in the central Philippines, that killed nearly 100 people.
Aledel Cuizon said the quake that caught her in her bedroom sounded like "a huge truck that was approaching and the rumbling sound grew louder as it got closer."
She and her neighbors ran outside, where she saw concrete electric poles "swaying like coconut trees." It lasted 15-20 seconds, she said.
Cebu city's hospitals quickly moved patients into the streets, basketball courts and parks.
Cebu province, about 570 kilometers (350 miles) south of Manila, has a population of more than 2.6 million people. Cebu is the second largest city after Manila. Nearby Bohol has 1.2 million people and is popular among foreigners because of its beach and island resorts and famed Chocolate Hills.
President Benigno Aquino III said he would travel to Bohol and Cebu on Wednesday.
Regional military commander Lt. Gen. Roy Deveraturda said he recalled soldiers from holiday furlough to respond to the quake. He said it damaged the pier in Tagbilaran, Bohol's provincial capital, and caused some cracks at Cebu's international airport but that navy ships and air force planes could use alternative ports to help out.
___
Associated Press writers Hrvoje Hranjski, Oliver Teves, Teresa Cerojano and Jim Gomez in Manila contributed to this report.
Lotus trackside operations director Alan Permane: “He doesn’t like the front end. He doesn’t like the turn in. It is not sharp enough for him. But, if you try to sharpen it up too much, you then lose the rear.”
“While it is understandable that many may lament the season as boring, it is less fair to direct that ire at the man whose task is to win the championship and because he will have done exactly that four times on the trot. Beyond a shadow of doubt any other driver would not consider for a moment that their role was to entertain or extend the season to its finale with a title at stake. Nor can one imagine the same expectation or the same opprobrium being directed at a British driver in similar circumstances.”
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Some more Japanese Grand Prix statistics from @Andae23[8]:
Sebastian Vettel has won five of six races in Asia this season so far. The last time he won fewer than three race in Asia was in 2008, when he scored his first win.
Esteban Gutierrez became the first rookie to score points this season – we had to wait until the fifteenth round for it. The last time the wait for rookies to score was that long was in 1998, when Esteban Tuero and Tora Takagi failed to score a single point that year.
Valtteri Bottas still hasn’t scored a point. The last driver who started more than two races for Williams and didn’t score a single point that year was Alessandro Zanardi in 1999. Sadly the last driver to do so before Zanardi was Ayrton Senna in 1994.
For the first time this season, neither Mercedes managed to finish in the top seven.
Max Chilton has still finished every race he started. This levels him with Lewis Hamilton, who also managed to finish his first fifteen Grands Prix. He is one race finish away from Tiago Monteiro’s record.
After Paul di Resta finished his streak of six consecutive points finishes, he hasn’t scored a point in the last seven races. @Andae23[9]
From the forum
Happy birthday!
Happy birthday to Fer No. 65 and Sebastiaan Huizinga!
Nelson Piquet[13] won his second world championship 30 years ago today in the South African Grand Prix at Kyalami.
Three drivers went into the final race with a shot at the title: Piquet was two points behind Alain Prost[14] while Rene Arnoux also had an outside chance.
Arnoux’s slim chances were ended by engine failure after nine laps. Just before half-distance Prost was out too. So Piquet handed the lead to team mate Riccardo Patrese[15] and stroked the car home in the third place he needed to reclaim the title.
Piquet was reunited with his title-winning car at the Goodwood Fest
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