Danger Dust

While flames may be the most visual wildfire danger, experts say smoke and fire retardant slurry can have long-lasting effects on human health and the environment.

New research has linked wildfire smoke exposure to higher rates of dementia, reproductive health issues and lung and heart disease, and forest service employees say the iconic, red fire retardant slurry dropped out of planes has been linked to thousands of fish kills.

Recent studies have linked wildfire smoke exposure to increased cases of the flu, decreases in lung function, and higher rates of depression, anxiety and dementia.

The increase in influenza cases was first noticed after a bad wildfire season several years ago, and researchers believe that exposure to wildfire smoke may have made people's lungs more susceptible to infection when exposed to the virus.

Health, environmental impacts of fire retardant

Wildfire retardants contain about 85% water, 10% ammonium phosphate fertilizer and 5% minor ingredients—including a colorant to help pilots see where the slurry has already been dropped.

It's bad for the environment when it's dumped into water because the ammonium phosphate turns into ammonia and ammonia is highly toxic to fish,"

Highlights

• Derived from silica photonic crystals, inverse opal microspheres have a regularly connected porous structure and inherit structural color properties.

• Combined with the stable scaffold and the photothermal phase-transition of the secondary filling material, the inverse opal composite microspheres are endowed with self-healing properties and the ability for controllable drug release.

• Inverse opal microspheres were significantly treated for diabetic wound, via promoting tissue regeneration, collagen deposition and angiogenesis. Meanwhile, the release of drugs could be monitored by the structural color characteristic.

Color-changing, self-healing hydrogel microparticles: A smart solution for advanced wound care

Chronic diabetic wounds are prevalent in patients and are difficult to heal, presenting a significant medical challenge. The development of multifunctional hydrogel dressings with a well-designed morphology and structure can enhance their flexibility and effectiveness in wound management.

https://phys.org/news/2024-09-hydrogel-microparticles-smart-solution-advanced.html

In conclusion, designing and manufacturing PPE to meet the needs of today's diverse workforce is essential for ensuring the safety and wellbeing of workers in the UK. Key to this is manufacturers’ recognition of the diverse needs of different individuals and leveraging new technologies and materials, so that designers can create equipment that is functional, comfortable and suitable for the needs of as many individuals as possible. This inclusivity will keep people safe in the workplace; both from the hazards present today and from those which may be experienced in the future.

Tok Pisin

Tok Pisin often referred to by English speakers as New Guinea Pidgin or simply Pidgin, is a creole language spoken throughout Papua New Guinea.

It is an official language of Papua New Guinea and the most widely used language in the country.

However, in parts of the southern provinces of Western, Gulf, Central, Oro, and Milne Bay, the use of Tok Pisin has a shorter history and is less universal, especially among older people.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tok_Pisin

In building their model, the researchers acknowledged that solar powered devices capable of pulling water from the air only work well under certain conditions—where humidity levels regularly reach 30%, where there is plenty of sunshine and where it is warm enough.

To account for people living in areas with such conditions, the researchers pulled average weather data from sites across the globe and mapped them with populations facing water challenges. In doing so, they found that more than a billion people could benefit from such a device that could produce on average five liters of drinking water per day.

They conclude by claiming that current technology trends suggest that the hypothetical device they envisioned in their model could soon become reality. At that point, however, it would fall to those who are able to pay for and distribute them to do so.

Often overlooked, soil is one of our planet's largest living ecosystems and the foundation of our lives. It provides 95% of our food, supports global biodiversity and helps balance the climate by storing atmospheric carbon.

Soil is also a huge source of raw materials, from iron ore and bauxite (the rock used to make aluminum) to natural gas which is used to power our society.

A new report from Save Soil—a campaign from the global people's movement Conscious Planet—outlines the surprising ways that healthy soil is directly connected to our mental and physical health.

Literally touching soil, including walking barefoot on it or getting your hands dirty, can improve your gut health. We carry many of the same bacteria as soil does in our intestines and on our skin. So the human body is covered inside and out with microbes that are found in soil.

"Our study shows that different parts of a material, and even different grains of sand, can behave in very different ways during the same impact event "

The researchers found that, in addition to other chemical reactions, the heat created by intense compression leads to the grains fracturing, melting, and re-solidifying.

The team observed that different metallic materials exhibit distinct ways of dissipating energy during high-speed impacts. Materials such as aluminum absorb energy by the formation of defects and plasticity, while brittle materials like soda lime glass dissipate energy by fracturing and fragmenting.

Quantifying 3D time-resolved kinematics and kinetics during rapid granular compaction, Part I: Quasistatic and dynamic deformation regimes

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S002250962400231X

The recent overhaul of welding fume regulations in Australia has ushered in a new era of workplace safety.

With the new, safer exposure limit reduced to 1 milligram per cubic meter from 5 mg/m3 of air, it’s imperative that companies and workers adapt swiftly to maintain compliance and protect the health of the workforce. This tightening of regulations reflects a growing recognition of the serious health risks posed by welding fumes, including potential respiratory and neurological damage.

Silicosis is caused by the inhalation of crystalline silica dust, which is present in many types of rocks.

McNeill was not given any form of protection from the dust, which can cause lung cancer, tuberculosis, kidney disease and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

New national laws that take effect today give workers the right to demand multiple safety control measures, such as PPE, water suppression, on-tool extraction systems and local exhaust ventilation systems.

Published online 2019 Jun 5

Considerable evidence indicates that autoimmune disease expression depends on both genetic and environmental factors.  These results support a multihit model of autoimmunity, where exposure to different environmental factors acting on distinct immunostimulatory pathways complements limited genetic predisposition and increases the risk of autoimmunity above a critical threshold.

A key question raised by the present study relates to the mechanistic basis of the synergisms between virus and silica in autoimmunity. Considering the essential role of the innate immune system in spontaneous lupus, we hypothesize that virus and silica might contribute by inducing distinct innate immune pathways that, acting in concert, more efficiently promote inflammatory cell activation both in the lungs and systemically, break of tolerance, and autoimmune disease onset and severity.

In conclusion, the present study provides evidence that a chronic viral infection can significantly enhance the risk of developing autoimmunity following silica exposure and vice versa. Thus, susceptibility to lupus, and likely other autoimmune diseases, appears to depend on the additive effects of a sufficient number of genetic and environmental factors to which an individual is progressively exposed throughout life.

The name “Morgellons” is derived from a disease recognized in the seventeenth century in French children by Sir Thomas Browne. These children were noted to have “coarse hairs” protruding from their backs. The distinguishing feature of MD is the appearance of skin lesions with filaments that lie under, are embedded in, or project from skin.

Filaments can be white, black, or brightly colored.Furthermore, MD patients exhibit a variety of manifestations that resemble symptoms of Lyme disease (LD), such as fatigue, joint pain, and neuropathy.

A study found that 98% of MD subjects had positive LD serology and/or a tickborne disease diagnosis, confirming the clinical association between MD and spirochetal infection. Conversely, 6% of LD patients in an Australian study were found to have MD.

Nearly half of the world's land surface is now classified as drylands and these areas are accelerating their own proliferation, according to new research.

The findings, published August 29 in the journal Science, show around 45% of global land surface comprises deserts, shrublands, grasslands, and savanna woodlands. A chief characteristic of these regions is water scarcity, which significantly affects natural ecosystems and human-managed landscapes, including agriculture, forestry and livestock production.

While it has long been known that climate change and land management practices contribute to dryland expansion, the results revealed a surprising factor: drylands themselves are accelerating their own spread.

The Suomi NPP satellite acquired this image of a plume of Saharan dust as winds lofted it over the Atlantic Ocean on Aug. 24, 2024.

The Sahara Desert is Earth's largest source of airborne dust, and the particles can travel for thousands of miles. From late spring to early fall, it is common for the dry, dusty Saharan Air Layer to carry the particles westward across the Atlantic Ocean high in the atmosphere.

Saharan Air Layer activity subsides after mid-August, according to NOAA, making it less likely that the plume shown here is bound for a transoceanic journey. Instead, it arcs to the north after blowing out over the ocean. Earlier in the summer, however, several clouds of fine dust from the Sahara reached the United States, creating hazy skies over Texas.

Safety Video- Dropped Objects Demonstration

Now there's your incident mate !

The Ghanaian government has significantly ramped up the approval of mining permits under legislation passed in late 2022, intensifying concerns about runaway environmental damage.

The country is already the top gold producer in Africa, but much of the mining is done in forest reserves and other biodiverse ecosystems.

The government has long cracked down on artisanal illegal gold miners, but activists say the real damage is being wrought by industrial operations, both legal and illegal.

A debt default in 2022 has seen Ghana lean even more heavily on its gold to mitigate the crisis, prompting warnings that such a policy is neither economically nor environmentally sustainable.

In 2022, the West African nation of Ghana lost 18,000 hectares, or 44,500 acres, of forests — an area the size of 30,000 football fields.

But instead of strengthening restrictions, that November, the Ghanaian government decided to further expose the country’s protected woodlands to the corrosive effects of mineral extraction. The legislative changes allowed mining in critical biodiversity areas, relaxed rules for obtaining exploitation permits, and opened the door to more mining in forest reserves.

Even before the measure was passed, many of Ghana’s protected forests were exposed. Environmental campaigners had been advocating for curbing mining in these reserves altogether. The country has fought a highly publicized battle against small-scale artisanal miners, known as galamsey, yet the effects of industrial-scale mineral extraction have gone largely ignored.

Between 2000 and 2019, industrial mining was the leading cause of forest loss in Ghana, putting it in the same category as countries like Indonesia and Brazil, which have vastly larger forest areas.

‘Gold for oil,’ forests for gold?

Gold has always been central to the Ghanaian economy. Under British colonial rule, this West African nation was known as the Gold Coast.

In 2022, Ghana was the largest producer of gold in Africa, putting out 3.7 million ounces, or 105 metric tons. That same year, the country saw a jump in its industrial mining output, recording its highest ever production: 3.1 million ounces (88 metric tons) of gold.

But years of extraction of this precious metal have diminished the country in other ways: mutilating landscapes, destroying forests, polluting waterways, and degrading farmland.

Astronomers back call for review of bonkers rule that means satellite swarms fly without environment checks

Space boffins want pollution from the likes of Starlink regulated

Astronomy researchers from several US universities have joined a campaign coordinated by US Public Interest Research Group (US PIRG) to pause low Earth satellite launches and convince the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to reconsider exempting swarms of small satellites from environmental review requirements.

US PIRG notes that the number of satellites in low Earth orbit has increased by a factor of 127 over the past five years, driven largely by the deployment of mega-constellations of communications satellites from SpaceX's Starlink subsidiary.

Launching large numbers of small satellites presents potential pollution and safety risks, and spoils stargazing. With 6,000 SpaceX satellites in orbit – a number planned to reach 40,000 in a few years – and a satellite lifespan of just five years, US PIRG expects tons of satellite debris will be burned daily upon re-entering the Earth's atmosphere. That's in addition to the pollution caused by satellite launches, which US PIRG projects will be "equivalent to seven million diesel dump trucks circling the globe each year."

"We don’t know the long-term effects of the huge number of proposed satellites on our ozone, climate, and environment," argued Samantha Lawler, associate professor of astronomy at University of Regina in Saskatchewan, Canada, in a statement. "What we do know is relying on a decades-old decision to exclude 50,000 satellites from environmental review defies common sense."

The company found its own toxic compounds in human blood—and kept selling them.

Several of 3M’s most successful products contained man-made compounds called fluorochemicals. In a spray called Scotchgard, fluorochemicals protected leather and fabric from stains. In a coating known as Scotchban, they prevented food packaging from getting soggy. In a soapy foam used by firefighters, they helped extinguish jet-fuel fires.

Johnson explained to Hansen that one of the company’s fluorochemicals, PFOS—short for perfluorooctanesulfonic acid—often found its way into the bodies of 3M factory workers. Although he said that they were unharmed, he had recently hired an outside lab to measure the levels in their blood. The lab had just reported something odd, however. For the sake of comparison, it had tested blood samples from the American Red Cross, which came from the general population and should have been free of fluorochemicals.

Instead, it kept finding a contaminant in the blood.

What Hansen wanted to know was how PFOS was making its way into animals.

She found an answer in data from lab rats, which also appeared to have fluorochemicals in their blood. Rats that had more fish meal in their diets, she discovered, tended to have higher levels of PFOS, suggesting that the chemical had spread through the food chain, and perhaps through water. In male lab rats, PFOS levels rose with age, indicating that the chemical accumulated in the body. But, curiously, in female rats the levels sometimes fell. Hansen was unsettled when toxicology reports indicated why: mother rats seemed to be off-loading the chemical to their pups. Exposure to PFOS could begin before birth.

Fluorochemicals had their origins in the American effort to build the atomic bomb. During the Second World War, scientists for the Manhattan Project developed one of the first safe processes for bonding carbon to fluorine, a dangerously reactive element that experts had nicknamed “the wildest hellcat” of chemistry. After the war, 3M hired some Manhattan Project chemists and began mass-producing chains of carbon atoms bonded to fluorine atoms. The resulting chemicals proved to be astonishingly versatile, in part because they resist oil, water, and heat. They are also incredibly long-lasting, earning them the moniker “forever chemicals.”

In the early fifties, 3M began selling one of its fluorochemicals, PFOA, to the chemical company DuPont, for use in Teflon. Then, a couple of years later, a dollop of fluorochemical goo landed on a 3M employee’s tennis shoe, where it proved impervious to stains and impossible to wipe off. 3M now had the idea for Scotchgard and Scotchban.

Tuberculosis, caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis, is still one of the world’s deadliest infectious diseases. However, the origins and rise of M. tuberculosis as a successful pathogen are not well understood.

Here, we report the isolation and characterisation of a marine sponge-derived mycobacterium (M. spongiae) from the Great Barrier Reef that has striking genotypic similarity to M. tuberculosis, with 80% average nucleotide identity. We further show by proteomic and lipidomic analyses that M. spongiae shares virulence factors and unique cell wall lipids with the tubercle bacillus.

In spite of these conserved genotypic and phenotypic features, M. spongiae was not virulent in a mouse model of infection, leading us to investigate its potential as a vaccine strain or genetic donor for enhancing the current BCG vaccine for tuberculosis. Our findings contribute to understanding the evolutionary origins of M. tuberculosis and provide further insights into its pathogenesis.

A new tool for monitoring immune health patterns over time has revealed how a pair of checkpoint inhibitor therapies works together to recruit new cancer-fighting T cells with every infusion.

The study challenges fundamental assumptions about how a common immunotherapy drug combination activates different types of T cells to defeat cancer and could help researchers more precisely measure immune response in future clinical trials.

Immune checkpoint inhibitors work by unleashing T cells to find and kill cancer cells.

Despite being on the decline after the 1970s, the prevalence of black lung has been on the rise over the last 2 decades, and the federal government has issued a new rule on miners' safety. With changes in mining technology, miners can dig deeper, exposing them more to silica, which is highly toxic and is driving rising rates of black lung

Pneumoconiosis, which encompasses the family of interstitial lung diseases—those that cause progressive scarring of lung tissue and eventually a lack of oxygen in the blood—can result from an autoimmune condition. It can also develop after an individual has inhaled either organic or nonorganic compounds that include bird and animal droppings, cotton or other fibers, silica, asbestos, diacetyl, beryllium, and talc.

Common forms of pneumoconiosis are asbestosis, silicosis, mixed-dust pneumoconiosis, and byssinosis, and they all are considered occupational lung diseases. One of the most well-known types of pneumoconiosis and potentially the best-known occupational illness in the US—perhaps infamous—is coal workers’ pneumoconiosis, also known as miner’s lung and black lung disease.

As its eponymous name states, this subtype of pneumoconiosis results from inhalation of coal dust and is most often seen in coal miners. It entails both inflammation and fibrosis of the lung tissue, and cases can be simple or complicated.

Described as far back as the 16th century as a blue-black marbling of the lung and in the 19th century as black pigmentation and darkening of the lungs, black lung disease is most often seen in miners of hard coal but can also be found among those who work in soft-coal or graphite mines.

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a group of synthetic chemicals that resist degradation, posing a significant environmental and health risk.

Current methods for removing PFAS from water are often complex and costly. Here we report a simple, cost-effective method to synthesize an iron oxide/graphenic carbon (Fe/g-C) hybrid photocatalyst for PFAS degradation. This photocatalyst efficiently degrades perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), a common type of PFAS, achieving over 85% removal within 3 hours under ultraviolet light. The catalyst also maintains high degradation rates over extended periods, demonstrating its stability and potential for long-term use.

This innovative approach offers a promising solution for addressing PFAS contamination in water, contributing to a cleaner and healthier environment.

Bacterial cells can "remember" brief, temporary changes to their bodies and immediate surroundings. And, although these changes are not encoded in the cell's genetics, the cell still passes memories of them to its offspring—for multiple generations.

Not only does this discovery challenge long-held assumptions of how the simplest organisms transmit and inherit physical traits, it also could be leveraged for new medical applications. For example, researchers could circumvent antibiotic resistance by subtly tweaking a pathogenic bacterium to render its offspring more sensitive to treatment for generations.

The study also suggests that other organisms have the necessary elements to exhibit non-genetic heritability.

Irreversibility in bacterial regulatory networks

https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/sciadv.ado3232

A thickness of around 65 micrometers was a paper cut sweet spot — or sore spot.

That makes dot matrix printer paper the most treacherous, the researchers say. (That paper is seldom used today — fortunately for pinkies and pointer fingers alike.) Paper from various magazines was a close second in the scientists’ tests.

The angle of slicing also played a role. Paper pressed straight down into the gelatin was less likely to cut than paper that cleaved across and down.

Rather than fighting paper’s tendency to cut, the researchers embraced it. They designed a 3-D printed tool they call the Papermachete, which, when loaded with a strip of printer paper, acts as a single-use knife. The blade can cut into cucumbers, peppers, apple and even chicken. The cutting-edge device could serve as a new type of cutlery with low-cost replacement blades.

Many of the near-term problems with wildfire smoke exposure are now well understood.

The most serious, of course, is death. A recent working paper for the National Bureau of Economic Research estimated that the U.S. would see nearly 28,000 more deaths each year by 2050 due to the climate-driven rise in wildfire smoke—that's 76% higher than the average annual deaths between 2011 and 2020.

More people experience milder but still serious consequences, like worsening asthma and debilitating headaches. When smoke from Canadian wildfires wafted thousands of miles to hang over large tracts of the U.S. last summer, it led to a 17% rise in asthma-related ER visits, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

More recently, less-obvious health issues have come to light. Multiple studies have found a connection between wildfire smoke and pregnancy complications, including preeclampsia (a form of dangerously high blood pressure) and premature births.

Recent study follows 2020 research that linked exposure to neurological disorders among Ontario miners

The medical records of Ontario miners exposed to McIntyre Powder over the years are giving up more information about the long term impact of aluminum dust on their health.

A new study published in the American Journal of Industrial Medicine finds a link between occupational exposure to McIntyre Powder and cardiovascular disease.

McIntyre Powder was a fine dust containing aluminum developed in Timmins that was dispersed in the air before each shift and miners told to breathe it in, as a method to coat their lungs and prevent silicosis.

It was licensed for use in mines around the world including in South America and western Australia and was used between the mid-1940s and 1979.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/sudbury/study-research-mcintyre-powder-cardiovascular-disease-1.7306430?cmp=rss