- Coffee could be more than a morning pick-me-up, according to new research
- Toxic chemicals used in food preparation leach into human bodies, study finds
- New evidence upends contentious Easter Island theory, scientists say
- First image of ill-fated Titan submersible wreckage revealed at hearing into tragedy
- Can these underwater habitats ‘make humans aquatic’?
- Diving lizard’s built-in ‘scuba tank’ allows it to breathe underwater, scientists say
Coffee could be more than a morning pick-me-up, according to new research
最新研究顯示，咖啡不只可以用來當作早晨的提神劑
Health
A morning cup of coffee may do more than just perk you up, according to new research. Moderate amounts of caffeine intake — defined as about three cups of coffee or tea a day — were associated with a lower risk of developing cardiometabolic multimorbidity, said the study’s lead author, Dr. Chaofu Ke, associate professor of epidemiology and biostatistics at Soochow University in Suzhou, China. Cardiometabolic multimorbidity, or CM, is the coexistence of at least two cardiometabolic diseases such as coronary heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes. Moderate caffeine consumers had a reduced risk of new onset cardiometabolic multimorbidity. The risk was reduced by 48.1% if they had three cups a day, or 40.7% if they had 200 to 300 milligrams of caffeine daily, compared with people who didn’t drink or drank less than one cup, Ke said. Plenty of literature shows a benefit from caffeine consumption. Several studies have suggested a lower risk of diabetes, Marcus said. And contrary to popular wisdom, drinking caffeine in coffee is associated with experiencing a lower risk of abnormal heart rhythms, he added, pointing to his and others’ research. Although the new study should provide comfort to those who already have a coffee or tea habit, it isn’t necessarily a sign to start a regular caffeine routine, Marcus said. “It is also important to mention that more is not necessarily better,” he said. “Even if caffeine, coffee, and tea in the amounts described in this study … are indeed healthy, there is also strong evidence that high-dose caffeine, particularly when included in artificial concoctions like energy drinks, may actually cause harmful and even dangerous heart rhythm problems.”
---from CNN
一項新研究表明，一杯晨間咖啡除了可以提神之外，還有其他作用。 中國蘇州大學流行病學與生物統計學副教授Chaofu Ke博士表示，適量攝取咖啡因——每天約三杯咖啡或茶——與降低心血管代謝性多重病症(CM)的風險相關。心血管代謝性多重病症是指，至少兩種心血管代謝疾病的共存，如冠心病、中風和第二型糖尿病。 適量攝取咖啡因的人對於罹患心血管代謝性多重病症的風險明顯降低。柯博士說：「與不喝、或少於一杯的人相比；每天喝三杯咖啡的人風險降低了48.1%，而每天攝入200到300毫克咖啡因則降低了40.7%的風險。」 許多文獻顯示，攝取咖啡因有許多益處。Marcus博士引用了自己和其他人的研究，近一步補充道：數項研究表明，咖啡因攝取與罹患糖尿病風險降低有關。他還指出，與普遍認知的相反，咖啡因本身其實可以降低心律不整的風險。 儘管這項新研究應該可以讓已有攝取咖啡或茶習慣的人感到安心，但Marcus博士同時也說，這並不一定意味著鼓勵規律地攝取咖啡因。 「同時也需要強調，更多不一定更好。」他說：「儘管這項研究中描述的咖啡因、咖啡和茶的攝取量的確對健康有益，但也有強有力的證據表明，對於超高劑量的咖啡因飲品，特別是包含在人工配製的能量飲料，實際上可能會引發危險的心律問題。」
---摘錄翻譯自CNN
Toxic chemicals used in food preparation leach into human bodies, study finds
研究發現，製作食物過程中使用的有毒化學物會滲入人體
Health
More than 3,600 chemicals that leach into food during the manufacturing, processing, packaging and storage of the world’s food supply end up in the human body — and some are connected to serious health harms, a new study found. “This is a staggering number and shows that food contact materials are a significant source of chemicals in humans,” said Martin Wagner, a professor of biology at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Trondheim, in an email. “The study is the first to systematically link the chemicals we use in materials to package and process foods to human exposure,” said Wagner, who was not involved in the research. Seventy-nine of the food-processing chemicals found in the body are known to cause cancer, genetic mutations, endocrine and reproductive issues, and other health concerns, according to the study published Monday in the Journal of Exposure Science & Environmental Epidemiology. Many more chemicals may be harmful in ways that science does not yet know, said senior study author Jane Muncke, managing director and chief scientific officer at the Food Packaging Forum, a nonprofit foundation based in Zurich, Switzerland, that focuses on science communication and research. For the first time, the FDA will hold a public hearing, slated for September 25, on enhancing its assessment of chemicals found in food, including food and color additives, food contact substances, potential contaminants and pesticides, and ingredients considered generally recognized as safe.
---from CNN
根據一項新研究發現，超過3,600種化學物質在食品的製造、加工、包裝和儲存過程中滲入食品，最終進入人體——其中一些化學物質與嚴重健康危害有關。 挪威科技大學生物學教授Martin Wagner在電子郵件中說：「這是一個驚人的數字，顯示食品接觸材料是人體內囤積化學物質的重要來源。」 Wagner指出：「這項研究首次系統性地將我們用於包裝和加工食品的化學物質與人體暴露聯繫起來。」不過Wagner本身未參與該研究。 根據週一發表在《暴露科學與環境流行病學雜誌》上的研究，人體內發現的79種已知食品加工化學物質會引起癌症、基因突變、內分泌和生殖問題等健康問題。 該研究的資深作者Jane Muncke表示，還有更多化學物質可能正以科學界尚未了解的方式危害健康。她是位於瑞士蘇黎世食品包裝論壇，非營利基金會的總經理兼首席科學官，專注於科學傳播與研究。 美國食品藥物管理局(FDA)將首次於9月25日舉行公開聽證會，討論該如何加強對食品中化學物質的評估，包括食品和顏色添加劑、食品接觸物質、潛在污染物和農藥，以及被認為普遍認為沒有安全疑慮的成分。
---摘錄翻譯自CNN
New evidence upends contentious Easter Island theory, scientists say
科學家提出的最新證據推翻了爭議性的復活節島理論
Culture
Rapa Nui, also known as Easter Island, never experienced a ruinous population collapse, according to an analysis of ancient DNA from 15 former inhabitants of the remote island in the Pacific Ocean. The analysis also suggested that inhabitants of the island, which lies about 3,700 kilometers (2,300 miles) from the South American mainland, reached the Americas in the 1300s — long before Christopher Columbus’ 1492 landing in the New World. Settled by Polynesian seafarers 800 years ago, Rapa Nui, today part of Chile, has hundreds of monumental stone heads that echo of the past. The island has long been a place of intrigue. Some experts, such as geographer Jared Diamond in his 2005 book, “Collapse,” used Easter Island as a cautionary tale of how the exploitation of limited resources can result in catastrophic population decline, ecological devastation and the destruction of a society through infighting. To investigate Rapa Nui’s history further, researchers sequenced the genomes of 15 former residents who lived on the island during the past 400 years. The remains are stored at the Musée de l’Homme, or Museum of Mankind, in Paris, which is part of the French National Museum of Natural History. The researchers found no evidence of a genetic bottleneck corresponding to a steep drop in population, according to the study that published Wednesday in the scientific journal Nature. The genomes also revealed that the Easter Islanders had exchanged genes with a Native American population, suggesting that the inhabitants crossed the ocean to South America somewhere between 1250 and 1430, ahead of Columbus’ arrival in the Americas — and well before Europeans reached Rapa Nui in 1722. Matisoo-Smith noted that scholars based in Pacific regions had questioned the narrative of ecocide and society collapse based on a range of archaeological evidence.
---from CNN
根據對15位拉帕努伊島 (Rapa Nui) 又稱做復活節島 (Easter Island)古代居民的DNA分析，這個位於太平洋的偏遠島嶼從未發生過毀滅性的人口崩潰。該分析還顯示，這個距離南美大陸約 3,700公里（2,300英里）的島嶼上的居民，早在西元1300年就已經到達美洲，遠遠早於哥倫布（Christopher Columbus）1492年登陸新世界的時間。 800年前，波利尼西亞的航海家在此定居，今天的復活節島是智利的一部分，島上有數百個不朽的石頭雕像，回憶著過去的歷史。長久以來，這座島嶼一直是令人感到好奇的地方。 一些專家，例如地理學家Jared Diamond在2005年出版的《崩塌》（Collapse）一書中，將復活節島的故事作為一個警示，說明有限資源的開發將如何導致災難性的人口下降、生態破壞，以及社會內部鬥爭的破壞。 為了進一步調查復活節島的歷史，研究人員對過去400年間住在島上的15位前居民進行了基因測序。這些遺骸存放在位於巴黎的人類博物館 (Musée de l'Homme)，該博物館是法國國家自然歷史博物館的一部分。 根據週三發表在《Nature》期刊上的研究，研究人員並沒有發現任何與人口急劇下降相對應的基因瓶頸的證據。 基因組還顯示出，復活節島居民曾經與美洲原住民有過基因交流，這說明居民在1250年至1430 年間曾跨洋到南美洲，比哥倫布抵達美洲還要早，甚至遠早於歐洲人在1722年抵達復活節島。 Matisoo-Smith指出，太平洋地區的學者已根據一系列的考古證據，對生態滅絕與社會崩解的說法提出質疑。
---摘錄翻譯自CNN
First image of ill-fated Titan submersible wreckage revealed at hearing into tragedy
在調查聽證會上首次公開了泰坦號失事悲劇的殘骸照片
Culture
The first image of the Titan submersible sitting at the bottom of the ocean following its catastrophic implosion last year was shared by the US Coast Guard on Monday as investigators opened a hearing into the tragedy. All five people on board the vessel were killed last June in its final ill-fated dive to the Titanic shipwreck, after a desperate search mission that gripped the world. In the photo released Monday, the submersible’s broken tail cone is seen on the hazy blue floor of the North Atlantic Ocean. The tail cone was severed from the rest of the vessel, its edges ragged, while a ripped fragment of the vessel is seen nearby. In its opening presentation, the Marine Board of Investigation said the tail cone and other debris were located by a remotely operated vehicle on June 22 last year, providing “conclusive evidence” the submersible experienced a catastrophic implosion – a sudden inward collapse caused by immense pressure. The board on Monday called its first witnesses, including former employees of OceanGate, the firm that developed and operated the submersible. The presentation also revealed the submersible’s final message – just six seconds before it lost contact with the surface. “Dropped two wts,” the Titan’s text to its mother ship read, referring to weights the submersible could shed in hopes of returning to the surface. Seconds later, the Titan was “pinged” for the last time, and the mother ship lost track of the vessel.
---from CNN
美國海岸防衛隊於週一公布了泰坦號潛水艇於去年發生災難性內爆後，沉於海底的首張圖片，調查人員同時也舉行了關於這場悲劇的聽證會。 去年六月，這艘潛水艇在前往鐵達尼號沉船的最後一次不幸潛水中，船上五人全部遇難。此事件幾乎成為全球最急迫的搜查任務。在週一發布的照片中，可以看到潛水艇破碎的尾錐部分位於模糊的北大西洋海底。尾錐與船體的其他部分斷裂，其邊緣破碎不堪，而在附近可見船體被撕裂後剩餘的碎片。 海洋調查委員會在開場陳述中表示，去年6月22日，遙控載具找到了尾錐部分和其他殘片，並提供了「實質的證據」，證明潛水艇經歷了災難性的內爆——由於巨大壓力而突然向內坍塌。 委員會在週一傳喚了第一批證人，包括開發與操作潛水艇的公司OceanGate的前員工。這份簡報也揭露了潛水艇失事前最後的訊息——就在它與海面失去聯繫的六秒前。 泰坦號傳送給母船的訊息是「Dropped two wts」，指的是潛水艇為了返回水面而可能減掉的重量。幾秒鐘後，泰坦號最後一次「被砰到！」，母船也失去了泰坦號的蹤跡。
---摘錄翻譯自CNN
Can these underwater habitats ‘make humans aquatic’?
這些水下棲息地能讓人類活在水裡嗎？
Sciences
When a dive center in a flooded quarry near Bristol, in the UK, was suddenly shut down in early 2022, many recreational scuba divers were left scratching their heads. Almost two years later, they got some answers. DEEP, a UK-based ocean technology company that purchased the dive spot as a research hub and company campus, came out of stealth mode last September, revealing its mission to “make humans aquatic.” The cornerstone of its plan is an underwater habitat called the Sentinel system, which it says will allow people to live and work at a depth of 200 meters (656 feet) for up to a month. The Sentinel system is comprised of interconnected modules and can be used for purposes ranging from collecting data about the oceans’ chemistry to excavating historical shipwrecks. The scalable habitat can be configured in different shapes, making it as suitable for a six-person mission as a 50-person research station, according to DEEP. The company hopes that its habitats can catalyze a permanent human presence underwater, like an International Space Station (ISS) – which, since 2000, has allowed humans to live and work in space – for the ocean. Today, there is only one operational undersea research lab in the world, run by Florida International University, which is used by everyone from researchers studying corals to NASA astronauts undergoing extreme environment training. If all goes to plan, Sentinel will be ready to go by 2027, and Wolpert hopes to see them deployed in locations across the world. But DEEP acknowledges that it’ll take a major effort to reach its ambitious goals. He hopes DEEP’s holistic approach will help sustain the wave of interest in the oceans. “There’s a very large disconnect between the human race and the ocean,” said Wolpert. “Our goal is driving that generational shift and reconnecting humanity with the sea.”
---from CNN
2022年初，位於英國布里斯托爾附近的一處深水潛水中心突然關閉，讓許多休閒潛水愛好者感到困惑。將近兩年後，他們終於得到了答案。英國海洋技術公司DEEP購買了該潛水點，並將其作為研究中心和公司校區，該公司於去年九月首次公開其使命，，目標是——讓人類成為水生物種。該計劃的核心是一個名為Sentinel System的水下棲地。據DEEP所說，該系統將可以讓人們在水深200米生活和工作整整一個月。Sentinel System由相互連接的模組組成，可以用於各種目的，從收集海洋化學數據到發掘久遠的沉船。該棲息地具擴展性，可以任意配置成不同的形狀，使其既適合六人小組的任務，也能擴展成50人的研究站。 該公司希望該棲息地可以發展成，能使人永久待在水面下的存在，就像國際太空站（ISS）自2000年以來，允許人類在太空中生活和工作一樣——但這次是針對海洋。 目前，全球僅有一個由佛羅里達國際大學運營的水下研究實驗室，該實驗室被各類研究人員使用，從研究珊瑚的科學家到接受極端環境訓練的NASA太空人。如果一切按計劃進行，Sentinel將在2027年正式啟用，Wolpert希望該系統能夠部署於全球各地。但DEEP也承認，要實現這些充滿雄心壯志的目標將需要付出巨大的努力。 他希望DEEP的整體方式將有助於維持人們對海洋的興趣。Wolpert 表示：「人類與海洋之間存在著很大的隔閡。我們的目標是推動世代的轉變，讓人類與海洋重新連結。」
---摘錄翻譯自CNN
Diving lizard’s built-in ‘scuba tank’ allows it to breathe underwater, scientists say
科學家表示，潛水蜥蜴內建的「水肺」能讓他們在水裡呼吸
Sciences
In a Costa Rican rainforest, a small, semiaquatic lizard called a diving anole leaps into a stream. Minutes pass, but the anole doesn’t surface for air, as these lizards typically do. Instead, the submerged lizard crouches on a river rock, a small air bubble atop its head expanding like a balloon and then shrinking. Like a scuba diver, the reptile is breathing a reservoir of stored oxygen. Using this bubble helps anoles prolong their stay underwater, according to Dr. Lindsey Swierk, an assistant research professor of biological sciences at Binghamton University in New York. Footage that Swierk recently captured of submerged anoles shows prominent bubbles swelling and deflating on the reptiles’ heads. This technique could help anoles hide from predators on land, Swierk reported Tuesday in the journal Biology Letters. To get a closer look at the anoles’ bubble-breathing method, Swierk collected A. aquaticus anoles at Costa Rica’s Las Cruces Biological Station. Their destination was a nearby “arena” — a clear plastic tank containing stream water and rocks. In one group of anoles, the researchers daubed the reptiles’ snouts and heads (avoiding the nostrils) with a thin layer of emollient to prevent air bubbles from adhering to the anoles’ heads. The scientists then submerged the anoles and filmed them in the arena until they surfaced. The mechanism of anoles’ bubble breathing is something that Swierk is hoping to piece together through collaborations with multiple research groups. One part of the puzzle is whether the anoles’ head shapes or microscopic structures in their scales affect the volume of air filling their bubbles. Another unresolved question is how diving anoles store and circulate oxygen while underwater. “To our knowledge right now, the oxygen that the lizard is using, it takes underwater with it,” Swierk said. That oxygen may be stored in its lungs, in other parts of the respiratory system or in air pockets adhering to its skin, which are then incorporated into the head bubble.
---from CNN
在哥斯大黎加的熱帶雨林中，一隻被稱為潛水變色龍的小型的半水生蜥蜴跳入溪裡。隨著時間一分一秒地過去，這隻變色龍卻沒有像往常那樣浮出水面呼吸。相反地，這隻沉入水中的蜥蜴蹲在河中的石頭上，頭頂上冒出一個小氣泡，像氣球一樣膨脹和收縮。就像一名潛水員，這隻爬行動物正利用儲存的氧氣呼吸。 紐約賓漢頓大學生物科學系助理研究教授Lindsey Swierk博士表示，這個氣泡可以幫助變色龍延長它們在水下的停留時間。Swierk最近拍攝的潛水變色龍畫面顯示，這些蜥蜴頭頂的氣泡顯著地膨脹和收縮。週二，她在《生物學通訊》期刊發表的報告指出，這項技巧可能幫助變色龍躲避陸地上的掠食者。 為了更仔細地觀察變色龍的氣泡呼吸方式，Swierk在哥斯大黎加拉斯克魯塞斯生物站收集了許多Anolis aquaticus變色龍。實驗地點是附近的一個「場所」——一個透明的塑膠箱，裡面裝有溪水和岩石。研究員將一組變色龍的鼻尖和頭部塗上乳膏（避開鼻孔），以防止氣泡附著在它們的頭上。然後，科學家將這些變色龍放入水中，直到它們浮出水面，並記錄畫面。 變色龍氣泡呼吸的機制是Swierk希望通過與多個研究小組合作來解開的其中一個謎題。謎題的一部分是關於變色龍頭部的形狀或其鱗片的微觀結構是否會影響氣泡裡的空氣量。另一個謎題則是，潛水變色龍究竟是如何在水下儲存和循環氧氣的。
---摘錄翻譯自CNN