The changes that the Amazon River promotes in the tropical North Atlantic ocean water make an unfavorable environment for reef development. Every second, 175 million liters of water mixed with sediments are brought to the ocean. The result is low sunlight penetration, variability in nutrient concentration, salinity and pH, extensive moody bottoms and significant changes in temperature and oxygenation levels towards the bottom - conditions not associated with reefs. The plume generated by the Amazon River has 1.3 million km2 and flows mostly to the North, reaching areas as far as the Caribbean Sea.

It's a weekday morning, and senior Reuben Brough is running around a gym at King Street Youth Center waving his hands in the air and screeching like a cheetah. A stream of children is in hot pursuit of him and four other UVM students who implore the preschoolers to "catch the cheetah."

It looks like total chaos as Brough, now a shark, yells "fishies, fishes cross my ocean," daring the children to run past him at half court. But there's a method to the madness, which is really a highly structured, research-based fitness program designed by Betsy Hoza, Bishop Joyce Chair of Human Development and professor of psychological science, called Children and Teachers (CATs) on the Move.

By switching from four wheels to two, bicyclists help reduce traffic and air pollution -- all while getting much-needed exercise. But that health benefit could be costly, due to exposure to potentially harmful compounds in motor vehicle exhaust. In a first-of-its-kind study, researchers analyzed breath samples to find out how much of these compounds are absorbed by the body. They report their findings in ACS' Environmental Science & Technology.

Galileo is regarded as an important figure today, because he was put under house arrest by his church for ridiculing the Pope, but for much of his career he was derided by other scientists. Both Kepler and mathematics knew Galileo was wrong about the moon, for example, but his flavor of science insisted that the tides only happened once per day if they happened at all, they happened at the same time every day, and that Luna had nothing to do with them.

Alexandria, VA (May 4, 2016) -- Three-quarters of Americans are concerned about potential eye problems from the sun's ultraviolet rays, yet only 31 percent protect their eyes with sunglasses or other UV-protective eyewear every time they go outside, according to a new nationwide survey released today. The report by The Vision Council, based on a survey of more than 10,000 adults, finds 34 percent of adults have experienced symptoms of prolonged UV exposure, such as eye irritation, trouble seeing, and red or swollen eyes.

Persons with the serious disorder ALS, can have a genetic mutation that causes the protein SOD1 to aggregate in motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord. Researchers at Umeå University have discovered that, when injected into mice, the SOD1 aggregation spreads rapidly leading to ALS. The discovery has been described in the Journal of Clinical Investigation.

ALS, Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, is a disorder which causes death of motor neurons in the brain and the spinal cord in charge of controlling muscles. This leads to progressive paralysis and death, often due to carbon dioxide narcosis.