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Viewing choices through a sustainable lens

TEMPE, Ariz. — Sustainability is a human decision — a responsibility that relies on good information and how we choose to use it — according to George Basile, a senior sustainability scientist at Arizona State University, who made that point in this month's cover story in Sustainability: The Journal of Record.

Reframing sustainability as a human decision challenge, rather than "some version of people, planet and profit coming together," was one of the subjects discussed by Basile in the "On the Record" feature with journal editor Jamie Devereaux.

Economists, Environmentalists Gather To Show They Know Nothing About Business

Top economists gathered at the Wharton School's Lauder Institute at the University of Pennsylvania April 12-13, 2012 for the second annual Globalization TrendLab 2012 conference entitled, "Sustainability: New Perspectives and Opportunities."

The conference brought together economic and environmental experts from management, engineering, environmental policy, public policy, and the social sciences to learn from each other's perspectives on environmental sustainability.

Landslides kill ten times more people than previously thought

Landslides kill ten times more people across the world than was previously thought, according to research by Durham University, UK.

A new database of hazards shows that 32,300 people died in landslides between 2004 and 2010. Previous estimates ranged from 3,000 to 7,000 fatalities.

The database, which provides the first detailed analysis of fatal landslides across the world, maps hotspots including China, Central and South America, and India.

Study identifies potential new class of drug for treating ulcerative colitis

An investigational drug currently under FDA review for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis has now shown positive results in patients with moderate-to-severe ulcerative colitis, according to researchers at the University of California San Diego, School of Medicine. The study will appear in the August 16, 2012 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM).

BPA link to narrowing of the arteries

A research team from the Peninsula College of Medicine and Dentistry (PCMD), University of Exeter, and University of Cambridge has for the first time established a link between high levels of urinary Bisphenol-A (BPA) and severe coronary artery stenosis (narrowing of the arteries).

The study is published in PLoS ONE today, 15th August 2012.

Lost letter experiment suggests wealthy London neighborhoods are 'more altruistic'

Neighbourhood income deprivation has a strong negative effect on altruistic behaviour when measured by a 'lost letter' experiment, according to new UCL research published today in PLOS ONE.

Researchers from UCL Anthropology used the lost letter technique to measure altruism across 20 London neighbourhoods by dropping 300 letters on the pavement and recording whether they arrived at their destination. The stamped letters were addressed by hand to a study author's home address with a gender neutral name, and were dropped face-up and during rain free weekdays.

Doing the math to fight childhood obesity

Dieters often use online calorie calculators to stay true to their weight-loss plan. Translating the concept to the population health arena, researchers at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health created the Caloric Calculator to help policymakers, school district administrators, and others assess the potential impact of health policy choices on childhood obesity.

Infant ethics: Babies may not have a 'moral compass' after all

New research from New Zealand's University of Otago is casting doubt on a landmark (and overhyped) US study that suggested infants as young as six months old possess an innate moral compass that allows them to evaluate individuals as 'good' or 'bad'.

The 2007 study by Yale University researchers provided the first evidence that 6- and 10-month-old infants could assess individuals based on their behavior towards others, showing a preference for those who helped rather than hindered another individual.

Nurses as effective as doctors in treatment of HIV patients

Nurse-centred care of HIV patients can be just as safe and effective as care delivered by doctors and has a number of specific health benefits, according to a new study led by the University of East Anglia (UEA) and the University of Cape Town (UCT).

Performance pay for physicians may backfire

In today's BMJ, leading experts in health policy and behavioral economics argue that pay-for-performance (P4P) schemes – which financially reward doctors and hospitals for hitting specific, numerical targets in such matters as preventing hospital readmissions or prescribing certain drugs – are likely to do more harm than good.

UK recession may be to blame for over 1,000 suicides in England

A paper published on bmj.com today suggests that over 1000 people have committed suicide due to the 2008-2010 economic recession in the UK (846 men and 155 women).

Suicides began to rise in the UK in 2008 following 20 years of decline - suicides rose 8% among men and 9% among women in 2008, compared to 2007. And even though suicides did begin to fall in 2010 figures were still above the 2007 averages.

Couple's therapy appears to decrease PTSD symptoms, improve relationship

CHICAGO – Among couples in which one partner was diagnosed as having posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), participation in disorder-specific couple therapy resulted in decreased PTSD symptom severity and increased patient relationship satisfaction, compared with couples who were placed on a wait list for the therapy, according to a study in the August 15 issue of JAMA, a theme issue on violence and human rights.

Girls with ADHD more prone to self-injury, suicide in adulthood

Girls with Atention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) – and their families – often look forward to the likely decline in visible symptoms such as fidgety or disruptive behavior as they mature into young women.

However, new findings from UC Berkeley caution that, as they enter adulthood, girls with histories of ADHD are more prone to internalize their struggles and feelings of failure, a development that can manifest itself in self-injury and even attempted suicide.

Elementary schools implicated in German children weight gain

Professor Dr. Dr. Perikles Simon, head of the Sports Medicine division of Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) in Germany, and a team suggest that German children gain weight soon after entering elementary school. From birth up to the age of five years, children's weight development is nearly identical to those from twenty years ago. Then as now there are about 10 percent of the children in this age range who are classified as being overweight. There is even a slight tendency that in the first five years of their life, today's children weigh less as it was 20 years ago.

GWU consensus report outlines new approaches for evaluating benefits and risks of obesity drugs

The George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services (GW) today released a report representing consensus findings from a cross-section of stakeholders that could help transform the process used to evaluate interventions to treat obesity, a public health crisis that now affects one in three adults. The report, "Obesity Drug Outcome Measures," results from a stakeholder dialogue group convened by GW that, over a period of nine months, explored why development and approval of obesity drugs have proven so difficult.