The Risks of Being a Night Owl, and More
In a review of 17 studies with data from more than 465,000 people, researchers found that night owls have an increased risk of heart disease and type 2 diabetes compared with early risers. Why? Individuals who went to bed later tended to consume more alcohol, sugar, and caffeine. Also, eating later in the day causes glucose levels to spike in the evening, which could have an impact on the body’s natural metabolism.
Scientists Wipe Out Disease-carrying Mosquitoes
Although the majority of mosquitoes don’t spread diseases, the three most deadly types (aedes, anopheles, and culex) live on almost every continent and are responsible for transmitting approximately 17 percent of the infectious diseases around the world, according to the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation. In an experiment with global implications, scientists released more than three million sterile male Aedes aegypti mosquitoes in three tropical towns in northern Australia. The sterile males mated with wild females, and more than 80 percent of the entire population was eventually wiped out.
ORANGES WARD OFF MACULAR DEGENERATION
An orange a day might keep macular degeneration away, according to a study of more than 2,000 adults age 49 and older. The Westmead Institute for Medical Research in Australia, which conducted the study, found that people who ate an orange daily reduced their risk of acquiring this age-related visual impairment by up to 60 percent. In addition to vitamin C, oranges have flavonoids, which might explain the effect: These compounds prevent oxidative stress and reduce inflammation in the body.
DETECTING FAKE MEDICINE
Engineers from the University of California, Riverside, have built an unusual sensor that can distinguish between real and fake medications (at least those that come in liquid form). The device, inspired by the traditional African thumb piano called an mbira, is based on a simple premise: Metal containers filled with liquids of different densities will produce different sounds when struck or plucked. In this case, the researchers filled metal tubes with glycerol (a syrup used in cold and flu medicine) and diethylene glycol (a clear liquid often used in counterfeit medicine). A simple tap on each tube created telltale notes.