The lack of air-quality monitoring capabilities across the U.S. affects the health of millions of people and disproportionately impacts minority and low socioeconomic-status communities, say researchers. Motivated by a new U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) standard for air pollution, the team employed a model for fine-scale air pollution mapping using real-world data, and it indicates there is an urgent need to address gaps in the agency's monitoring network.
Read more …US air pollution monitoring network has gaps in coverage, say researchers
When the outside temperatures rise, people tend to lose their cool. That connection is well known, but a new study found that emotional responses to heat are highly individualized and only one factor moderated it -- age. Overall, researchers found that the actual temperature at which the majority of people felt uncomfortable during a hot summer depended on the individual. When they did feel discomfort, it often negatively affected their mood. The exception: older adults on average became more uncomfortable in high heat more quickly, but it did not affect their mood as much as it did younger adults.
Read more …Older adults appear less emotionally affected by heat
Alzheimer's disease may damage the brain in two distinct phases, based on new research using sophisticated brain mapping tools. According to researchers who discovered this new view, the first, early phase happens slowly and silently -- before people experience memory problems -- harming just a few vulnerable cell types. In contrast, the second, late phase causes damage that is more widely destructive and coincides with the appearance of symptoms and the rapid accumulation of plaques, tangles, and other Alzheimer's hallmarks.
Read more …Alzheimer's disease may damage the brain in two phases