Science Education & Policy

The White House Plan To Combat Antibiotic Resistance

There has been much press lately about President Obama’s plan to address the growing crisis of antibiotic-resistant bacterial pathogens. And I agree with many that there is much to like in the plan.   But I also find a number of key deficiencies that will ...

Article - David Shlaes - Mar 31 2015 - 3:41pm

After A Cease And Desist Letter, GNC Agrees To Herbal Supplement Reforms

Just a month after getting a cease and desist letter from New York State Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman, GNC has become the first vitamin and supplement retailer to implement new standards in authenticating herbal supplements, ensuring their purity ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 2 2015 - 1:43pm

Nature Beats Nurture When It Comes To Taking Tests

In a study of more than 6,500 pairs of twins, researchers found that more than half of the differences between pupils performance on the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) can be explained by differences in genetics. The research found that ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 4 2015 - 8:00am

Pediatric Cholesterol Guidelines For Young Adults Would Mean 400,000 More Statin Users

Sometimes guidelines cause people to be on medication who otherwise would not need to be. We have seen this concern due to runaway claims about the nebulous "pre-diabetes" diagnoses being discussed, and in commercials on television for prescript ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 10 2015 - 9:23am

3 Myths About International Climate Talks

With only nine months to go before the most important international meeting on climate change since Copenhagen in 2009, what are the chances of success at this year’s Paris talks? What might “success” mean? And can the mistakes and challenges that have be ...

Article - The Conversation - Apr 6 2015 - 6:00pm

Conservation Win: Hawksbill Turtle Numbers Up 200 Percent

An analysis of 22 years of data on hawksbill turtles in the Arnavons, located in the Solomon Islands, shows signs of recovery after 150 years of excessive hunting by natives. The data included both beach counts and turtle tagging data and show a 200% incre ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 8 2015 - 1:53pm

Kindergartners Who Share Tablets Do Better On Achievement Tests

Using technology like tablets in schools has turned into a heated political debate. Los Angeles infamously spent $1.3 billion on a program to give iPads to each student, a program that has been plagued with problems. In the United Kingdom, the head of the ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 17 2015 - 7:09pm

Virtual Money Puts A Price On Natural Ecosystem Services In Agriculture

Like virtual water and virtual emissions, looking at organic food through a prism of implicit benefits translated into estimated dollars makes it look a lot more economically viable than it otherwise might appear. The new estimate says that organic farming ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 14 2015 - 3:12pm

Is Carbon Farming The Right Approach At The Right Price?

Climate change and the loss of biodiversity are two of the greatest environmental issues of our time. Is it possible to address both of those problems at once? In Australia, farmers and landholders will this week be able to apply for payments through the ...

Article - The Conversation - Apr 15 2015 - 8:00am

Teachers More Likely To Label Black Students As 'Troublemakers'

Teachers are likely to interpret students' misbehavior differently depending on the student's race, according to a new paper.  Racial differences in school discipline are widely known, and black students across the United States are more than th ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 21 2015 - 4:30pm