The Marvels And The Misfortunes

Hafsa Ahsan looks at some scientific and environmental issue that made news last year

This is the beginning of 2009, and looking back, one can only marvel at the many achievements that this year has witnessed. From scientific discoveries to medical breakthroughs and space-related insights, science and technology in 2008 have been there and done almost everything.

Here is a brief flashback of the major events that took place in the course of last year, which will surely have a much bigger impact in the years to come.

NATURAL DISASTERS
ReliefWeb’s listing of the natural disasters of 2008 illustrates that many countries were on the receiving end of nature’s wrath this year. Earthquakes, hurricanes, floods and volcanic eruptions took place all over the world.

The earthquake which caused the most damage hit Central China in May 2008, killing over 80,000 people and rendering 10 million people homeless (according to Reuters). CNN reported the earthquake as being the worst-ever in a generation. Measuring 7.9, the epicentre of the quake was Sichuan Province. Poor weather combined with equally poor logistics delayed the rescue and rehabilitation efforts. Moreover, the constant aftershocks triggered landslides as well, adding to the misery of the victims.

Pakistan, too, was not spared this year when it came to earthquakes. The Baluchistan province was hit by a 6.4 earthquake, followed by another one, again measuring 6.4. Over two hundred people lost their lives, while 120,000 were rendered homeless. Countries like Iran and the island of Simeulue, in Indonesia, were also hit by very powerful earthquake. Volcanic eruptions happened in Chile and Columbia.

SCIENTIFIC DISCOVERIES
Thanks to UC Berkeley, the Invisibility Cloak has an existence outside the world of Harry Potter. The university scientists used nanowire grown inside a porous aluminium tube to create a sheeting 10 times thinner than a piece of paper. Once an object was wrapped in this sheet, it would be invisible in light. Now this is something a lot of people would love to get their hands on!

When it comes to security systems, face recognition technologies are invaluable. Till now these technologies were not 100 per cent accurate because of variations in the images that were captured. This year, R. Jenkins and A. M. Burton from the University of Glasgow, discovered that if the camera captures multiple images of the same individual and produces an average image of sorts, the result would be more accurate than when only one image was captured.

As the price hike of petrol continues the world over, there is an increasing emphasis on discovering new ways in which fuels can be generated. The latest means on the block through which it can be done is sugar. A group of researchers discovered there is a process whereby sugar from plant biomass can be converted into liquid transportation fuel. Now this is surely a sweet way to travel!

ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES
It is disheartening to note that the call to “go green” still has not found commercial backing.

This year, researchers David B. Lobell, Marshall B. Burke, Claudia Tebaldi, Michael D. Mastrandrea, Walter P. Falcon and Rosamond L. Naylor combined statistical crop models with global climate projections for 2030 to analyse the risks of crops in 12 regions across the world. These 12 regions are already home to malnourished populations.

And the results of this research indicate that there is a possibility of a harmful impact on crops in the regions of South Asia and South America. On a more heartening note, a team of researchers discovered that high levels of carbon dioxide, which increase ocean acidification, do NOT decrease the process of calcification by marina organisms, as was previously thought. And a pressure of carbon dioxide actually increases this process, thus increasing the production of calcium carbonate.

Some disturbing findings, with regard to global warming also came to light. It was discovered that as the world climate becomes warmer, the solubility of oxygen in ocean water will significantly decrease. This will spell disaster for marine organisms and, eventually, for those on land.

Furthermore, a team of researchers studied 704 reef-building micro organisms and then rated them according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) standards of extinction risk. It was discovered that one-third of these species are at a threat for extinction, due to factors such as pollution, over-fishing and increased sea surface temperatures. And this in turn puts the coral reefs at a risk of extinction too.

OUT IN SPACE
In May, Nasa’s Phoenix Lander visited, for the first time ever, the polar region of Mars. However, it did not really find anything that could change the image of Mars as a “dead world.” In June, Swiss astronomer Michel Mayor got luckier than that — he discovered 45 exoplanets with extremely hot orbits.

MEDICAL ACHIEVEMENTS
Stem cell research is one of the most exciting and most controversial avenues of science. In July, researchers at Harvard and Columbia University generated the first motor neurons from stem cells in two elderly women with Lou Gehrig’s disease, also known as ALS. The method they used did not require the use of embryos at all — instead, they simply built upon a technique developed in 2006 by Shinya Yamanaka, a scientist in Kyoto University. This technique involved reprogramming a patient’s ordinary skin cells, causing it to behave like stem cells.

Later, these cells would be coaxed into the desired tissue-specific cells. This breakthrough means that scientists can now closely study the progress of ALS disease. This will enable them to suggest a more effective treatment for it.

Alzheimer’s disease is definitely a painful one, and there is no cure for it. However, 2008 witnessed the discovery of four new genes which emerged after a study of 1300 plus families. Although their exact role in Alzheimer’s is not known yet, researchers think they may contribute to the death of nerve cells. The newly identified genes may shed light on how to keep those nerves alive, something which may be an important target for future therapies.

All children and many adults hate receiving immunisation injections. There is good news for such children and their parents as a new vaccine Pentacel was discovered which will collectively immunise children from diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, polio and haemophilic influenza type B.

It has to be administered in four different doses and the toddlers who have received this injection so far have showed minor side effects like fever and swelling.

The above was by no means an exhaustive list. There were many milestones in the field of science and all of them have, in some way or another, contributed to make 2008 a remarkable year.