- Why is strep A surging — and how worried are scientists?
- France makes condoms free for 18 to 25 year olds
- Defying extinction: These 8 species prove there is hope for the world’s endangered wildlife
- Analogue aesthetics: What's the lure of old school film photography?
- Sequencing projects will screen 200,000 newborns for disease genes
- Degrowth can work — here’s how science can help
Why is strep A surging — and how worried are scientists?
為什麼A型鏈球菌感染會激增——科學家們有多擔心？
Health
As the days lengthen and temperatures rise each spring, British paediatricians know what to expect: an increase in group A streptococcal infections that should tail off by the summer. But an off-season outbreak of the bacterial infections this year has jumbled expectations, made scores of people ill and killed 13 children under the age of 15 in England since September. “To my knowledge, we’ve never seen a peak like this at this time of year, at least not for decades,” says microbiologist Shiranee Sriskandan at Imperial College London. One theory is that lack of exposure to group A Streptococcus (strep A) during lockdowns at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic means that young children lack immunity against the bacteria. But it is too early to say for certain if this is behind the strep A surge, says molecular microbiologist Claire Turner at the University of Sheffield, UK.
--from Nature
隨著春天逐漸延長的白晝時間和攀升的氣溫，英國的小兒科醫生們已經知道會發生什麼事：A型鏈球菌（group A Streptococcus，strep A）的感染數量應該會在夏季逐漸減少。然而，今年淡季期間爆發的感染者超出預期，自9月以來，在英格蘭多人患上該病症，且造成13名15歲以下的孩童死亡。「據我所知，我們從未在過去每年的這個時段見過這樣的高峰，至少這十幾年來沒有」倫敦帝國理工學院（Imperial College London）的微生物學家Shiranee Sriskandan說道。有一理論認為，在COVID-19大流行最嚴重的全球封鎖期間，因為幼兒沒有接觸A型鏈球菌，導致他們對該病菌缺乏免疫力。但英國謝菲爾德大學（The University of Sheffield）的分子微生物學家Claire Turner表示，現在斷言緣由還為時尚早。
--摘錄翻譯自Nature
France makes condoms free for 18 to 25 year olds
法國為 18 至 25 歲的青少年免費提供避孕套
Health
Young people in France will have free access to condoms from January, in a bid to minimise the spread of sexually transmitted infections (STIs). The French president announced the new health measure on Thursday at an event for young people's health. Emmanuel Macron said young people would be able to collect them from pharmacies, and described the move as a "small revolution in prevention". In 2020 and 2021 France experienced a 30% national increase in STI rates. Mr Macron said France had educational challenges around sexual education. In 2018 the French government started reimbursing the costs of condoms to individuals, if purchased in a pharmacy with a prescription from a doctor or midwife. Earlier this year the government made contraception free for all women up to 26 years old - a move that affected three million women. Contraception had previously been free for women and girls 18 or younger.
--from BBC
從一月起，法國的青少年將有權獲得免費保險套，這是為了減少性病感染的傳播（Sexually transmitted infections, STIs）。法國總統在週四的一場青少年健康活動上宣佈了這項新健康措施。艾曼紐·馬克宏表示年輕人可以到藥局領取保險套，並描述此舉為「預防的小革命」。於2020年與2021年間，法國全國的STIs數值增長了30%。馬克宏先生表示法國在性教育領域存在著挑戰。自2018年起，法國政府便開始提供個人報銷保險套費用的服務；前提是購買者必須憑醫生或助產士處方至藥局購買。本年早些時候，政府為全國26歲的女性免費提供避孕藥——這為300萬名女性帶來巨大影響。在這之前，法國還提供18歲以下的女性享有免費避孕的服務。
--摘錄翻譯自BBC
Defying extinction: These 8 species prove there is hope for the world’s endangered wildlife
向滅絕說再見：8種瀕臨滅絕生物讓我們看見希望
Culture
The World Wildlife Fund estimates that global wildlife populations have decreased by almost 70 percent in just 50 years. Deforestation, human exploitation, pollution and climate change were the biggest drivers of the loss. Yet hope is not lost. At the COP15 biodiversity summit, which kicked off this week, countries are coming together to combat threats like these.
--from Euronews
世界野生動物基金會估計，全球野生動物種群數量在短短 50 年內減少了近 70%。森林砍伐、人類急速擴展、污染和氣候變化是造成損失的最大因素。然而希望並沒有消失。在本週開幕的COP15生物多樣性峰會上，各國齊心協力應對此項威脅。
--摘錄翻譯自Euronews
Analogue aesthetics: What's the lure of old school film photography?
底片美學：復古電影風的拍攝手法到底有甚麼魅力?
Culture
Kodak’s film finishing factory in Rochester, US, was having hired 350 people in the last year the company needed 100 more to keep up with increased demand related to film photography. In recent years vinyl unexpectedly made a comeback, with even cassette tapes enjoying a resurgence. A return to film photography might seem odd in a digital age but in the current iteration of social media it makes a lot of sense. The noughties saw an era of mass uploads of photos taken with a digital camera to Facebook. Today professional and amateur photographers alike upload videos of them using their analogue cameras to TikTok.
--from Euronews
柯達在美國羅徹斯特的膠片印後加工廠去年僱用了 350 名員工，公司需要再增加 100 人才能跟上與膠片攝影相關的不斷增長的需求。近年來，黑膠唱片出人意料地捲土重來，甚至連卡帶也開始復甦。回歸底片攝影在大數據時代可能很奇怪，但在社群媒體當道的現在卻極具意義。上世紀20年代是一個見證將數位相機相片大量上傳到Facebook的時代。如今，專業/業餘攝影師都將底片相機拍攝的媒體檔上傳到TikTok。
--摘錄翻譯自Euronews
Sequencing projects will screen 200,000 newborns for disease genes
基因定序計畫將篩檢20萬新生兒的疾病基因
Sciences
The United Kingdom lately announced plans to sequence the genomes of 100,000 newborns for about 200 rare genetic diseases starting next year. In New York City, a similar project already underway will screen for a slightly larger number of diseases in 100,000 babies from the city’s diverse population. The goal is to catch treatable diseases that standard newborn screenings cannot detect. If sequencing delivers an early warning of a problem, the baby could receive care that averts permanent disability or even death. But sequencing the full genomes of newborns raises a host of ethical questions, including who will get access to the data, and whether it will needlessly worry parents by revealing genes that may never cause serious illness.
--from Science news
英國稍早宣布計劃從明年開始對10萬名新生兒進行大約200種罕見遺傳病的基因組定序。在紐約市，一個已經在進行的類似計畫將對來自該市不同人口的10萬名嬰兒進行數量稍多的疾病篩檢。目標是發現標準新生兒篩檢無法檢測到的可治療疾病。如果定序對問題傳遞了早期預警，嬰兒可接受照護以避免永久性殘疾甚至死亡。但對新生兒進行全基因組定序卻引發了一系列倫理問題，包括誰將取得這些數據，以及「揭露可能永遠不會導致重症的基因」是否會造成父母不必要的擔心。
--摘錄翻譯自Science news
Degrowth can work — here’s how science can help
去成長能奏效－看科學如何協助
Sciences
The global economy is structured around growth — the idea that firms, industries and nations must increase production every year, regardless of whether it is needed. This dynamic is driving climate change and ecological breakdown. High-income economies, and the corporations and wealthy classes that dominate them, are mainly responsible for this problem and consume energy and materials at unsustainable rates. Researchers in ecological economics call for a different approach — degrowth. Wealthy economies should abandon growth of gross domestic product (GDP) as a goal, scale down destructive and unnecessary forms of production to reduce energy and material use, and focus economic activity around securing human needs and well-being. This approach, which has gained traction in recent years, can enable rapid decarbonization and stop ecological breakdown while improving social outcomes.
--from Nature
全球經濟大約由成長所建構－無論是否需要，企業、產業和國家每年都必須提高產量。這種動態正將氣候變化和生態推向崩潰。高收入經濟體以及主導它們的公司和富裕階層，對這個問題負有主要責任，並以非永續的速率消耗能源和原料。生態經濟學研究人員呼籲採用不同的方法－去成長。富裕的經濟體應該放棄將國內生產毛額（GDP）增長視為目標，減少破壞性和非必要的生產形式以減少能源和材料的使用，並將經濟活動的重點放在確保人類需求和福祉上。此法近年來深受關注，可以實現快速脫碳並阻止生態破壞，同時改善社會成果。
--摘錄翻譯自Nature