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Science In Action

Factual: Science & Nature

Factual: Science & Nature: Science & Technology

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Science In Action: 06/11/2009

06/11/2009

BBC World Service - Science In Action, 06/11/2009

Small earthquakes could be aftershocks from quakes 100's of years ago;is nanomedicine safe

Some tremors may be aftershocks of bigger earthquakes that occurred 100’s of years ago.  Can low pressure trigger landslides and dealing with underground pests that eat our crops.

AFTERSHOCKS
Some tremors may be aftershocks of bigger earthquakes that occurred hundreds of years ago.  Professor Seth Stein joins Jon Stewart to explain why he thinks this research will change the way seismologists predict future quakes.


LANDSLIDES
The Slumgullion landslide in the western United States has been moving almost continuously for over 100 years – and now scientists have found that it moves everyday when air pressure is at its lowest.  We speak to Bill Schulz from the United States Geological Survey who carried out the research and believes that atmospheric low tides may also be involved in earthquakes and volcanic eruptions.


NANOMEDICINE
Medically used nanoparticles can damage the DNA of cells without crossing cellular barriers in the body.  This latest research is published in the journal Nature Nanotechnology.  It was carried out on cells grown in the lab and used much higher concentrations of nanoparticles than are used in treatments but it still raises questions about the safety of using them to treat patients.  Science in Action invited Dr. Gevdeep Bhabra from the University of Bristol, one of the team behind the work, to explain more.


GLACIERS
The glaciers on Mount Kilimanjaro are disappearing and will be gone for good by 2033.  Science in Action talks to Professor Lonnie Thompson who has just published this latest research in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.  He says that the glaciers that he's studied in the Andes and Himalayas are all also retreating at an alarming rate.


UNDERGROUND PESTS
As the global population continues to rise, the pressures increase on food supplies. Staple foods like rice, maize and potatoes are critical, but we're not the only ones who eat them.  Underground crop pests cause billions of dollars worth of damage every year, and unlike pests that eat the top parts of the plant, they are difficult to treat with pesticides.  But help is at hand. Our reporter Anna Lacey went to the University of Innsbruck in Austria to speak to insect and underground food web experts who are trying to control these underground beasts.

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06/11/2009

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