Culture

Boston, Mass. -- Millions of children in the United States between the ages of 1 and 11 may suffer from suboptimal levels of vitamin D, according to a large nationally representative study published in the November issue of Pediatrics, accompanied by an editorial.

The study, led by Jonathan Mansbach, MD, at Children's Hospital Boston, is the most up-to-date analysis of vitamin D levels in U.S. children. It builds on the growing evidence that levels have fallen below what's considered healthy, and that black and Hispanic children are at particularly high risk.

Existing research shows that rates of binge eating among adult women is virtually identical across race. However, among college age women, it's a different story: Caucasian women are more apt to exhibit binge eating behaviors than African American women, according to a study presented at this month's annual scientific meeting of the Obesity Society.

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- A study about why African American seniors do or do not get influenza vaccinations finds that many of them do not have accurate and complete information about the flu itself, the safety and efficacy of the inoculations, and the ease and necessity of getting the shots.

Pasadena, Calif.—Scientists at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) have uncovered the physical mechanism by which arrays of nanoscale (billionths-of-a-meter) pillars can be grown on polymer films with very high precision, in potentially limitless patterns.

MBL, WOODS HOLE, MA—An international team of top climate scientists has found a critical, but fixable, error in the accounting method used to measure compliance with carbon limits. The flaw, which centers on the measurement of CO2 emissions from the use of bioenergy, could undermine greenhouse gas reduction goals if not addressed.

A new study of chimpanzees living in the wild adds to evidence that our closest primate relatives have cultural differences, too. The study, reported online on October 22nd in Current Biology, a Cell Press publication, shows that neighboring chimpanzee populations in Uganda use different tools to solve a novel problem: extracting honey trapped within a fallen log.

Kibale Forest chimpanzees use sticks to get at the honey, whereas Budongo Forest chimpanzees rely on leaf sponges—absorbent wedges that they make out of chewed leaves.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — Contrary to conventional wisdom, scientific evidence proving that overlapping multiple sexual partners — concurrency — drives the HIV epidemic in sub-Saharan Africa is actually quite limited, Brown University researchers have concluded.

As a result, they say, far more research is needed to prove what has been a long-held assertion for close to 15 years — that the sexual practice of concurrency has accelerated the spread of HIV in Africa.

A dramatic rise in antidepressant prescriptions issued by GPs has been caused by a year on year increase in the number of people taking antidepressant drugs on a long-term basis, according to researchers from the University of Southampton.

In a paper, published in the printed edition of British Medical Journal (BMJ) tomorrow, scientists found that despite a drop in the number of new patients diagnosed with depression over 11 years, the number of prescriptions doubled.

More students than ever before have been accepted onto science and engineering related degree courses this autumn, according to the University and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS). Science is also now the most popular subject at school according to a new poll of children aged 5 to 18.

Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) Chief Executive Dave Delpy has welcomed the news and says this strengthens the case for supporting our future scientists and engineers:

Two in five at-risk American adults who would benefit from vaccination against seasonal flu are missing out on the protective shots because they believe they do not need them and are not inclined to be vaccinated. And among those who say they do intend to take up the vaccine, nearly half get around to it, according to Dr. Katharine Harris from the RAND Corporation* in Arlington, USA, and her team.

LIVERMORE, Calif. — The United States should create a high-level independent council to analyze and communicate critical issues to energy policymakers and the public, a group of 27 leaders in academia, government, and the private sector recommends in a new report.

The report, "Perspectives on Energy Policy: Security, Economics, and the Environment," is the result of a workshop convened by Sandia National Laboratories and the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) Sustainability Solutions Institute (SSI) in March.

A recent study by Dave Marcotte, Ph.D., from the University of Maryland Baltimore County found women graduating from community college with a 2-year degree earn 45.8% more annually than high school educated women. Men who enroll at a community college and attain a 2-year degree earn, on average, 12.2% more annually than male peers who merely graduate high school. Full details of the study appear in the October issue of Contemporary Economic Policy, published on behalf of the Western Economic Association International by Wiley-Blackwell.

Midwives often struggle to meet the needs of pregnant women who are lesbians, with patients reporting that the focus is often on their sexuality rather than the fact that they are expecting a baby, according to research in the November issue of the Journal of Advanced Nursing.

The findings have led Swedish researchers from Linkopings University and Uppsala University Hospital to call for special training for midwives, more neutral healthcare routines and forms and special education groups for pregnant women who are lesbians and their partners.

CHICAGO – The American Dietetic Association welcomes a report issued Wednesday, October 21, by the Institute of Medicine encouraging federal school meal programs to adopt standards that increase the nutrition content and limit the calories in meals served to schoolchildren.

Doctors have less respect for their obese patients than they do for patients of normal weight, a new study by Johns Hopkins researchers suggests. The findings raise questions about whether negative physician attitudes about obesity could be affecting the long-term health of their heavier patients.