Science Updates is a weekly email alert from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC)
==DR KARL ON TRIPLE J==
If you missed Dr Karl answering science questions this morning you can listen to it at your leisure online, or subscribe to the podcast and you'll never miss a show.
http://abcmail.net.au/t/88529/686964/1921/0/
== TOP STORIES FROM NEWS IN SCIENCE == http://abcmail.net.au/t/88529/686964/1759/0/
AIRPORT NOISE LIFTS BLOOD PRESSURE AS YOU SLEEP
Aircraft noise can boost your blood pressure while you're asleep, say researchers who show that living near an airport isn't just irritating, it can also be unhealthy.
http://abcmail.net.au/t/88529/686964/1922/0/
SMALLEST PTERODACTYL LIVED IN TREES
A tiny, toothless pterodactyl with bat-like wings, bird-like claws and a sharp, pointy beak has just been identified from a remarkably well-preserved Chinese fossil, scientists say.
http://abcmail.net.au/t/88529/686964/1923/0/
NERDS SEIZE POWER AT SCHOOL FORMALS
Vote rigging and the overthrow of the elite are just part of the power play at high school formals, an Australian researcher has found.
http://abcmail.net.au/t/88529/686964/1924/0/
SATURN MOON AWASH WITH OIL
Saturn moon Titan has hundreds of times more liquid hydrocarbons than all the known oil and natural gas reserves on Earth, scientists report.
http://abcmail.net.au/t/88529/686964/1925/0/
== IN THE SKY THIS WEEK == http://abcmail.net.au/t/88529/686964/1764/0/
The First Quarter Moon is Thursday February 14 and the Full Moon is Thursday February 21. The evening sky is to the north is still dominated by bright Mars. Mars forms a delightful broad triangle with the bright red stars Alderbaran and Betelgeuse, and is close to the bright star Elnath. With the Pleiades cluster and Orion's belt nearby, the evening sky is particularly beautiful now. The Waxing Moon joins Mars and Elnath on Saturday, February 16. In the late evening sky, Saturn can be seen in the north-east. Saturn is at its largest and brightest this and next week, so now is an excellent opportunity to observe the ringed world in a small telescope. The Full Moon is very close to Saturn on Thursday February 21. In the morning twilight, Venus and Jupiter are readily visible. Mercury joins the pair by the middle of the week, and by Thursday February 21 Mercury and Venus can be seen close together. this is the best time to see Mercury in the morning this year.
== ABC HEALTH & WELLBEING == http://abcmail.net.au/t/88529/686964/1765/0/
== THE PULSE: CHEMIST! A SICK NOTE PLEASE! ==
Doctors may not like it, but pharmacists issuing medical certificates for simple ailments is a win-win for everybody.
http://abcmail.net.au/t/88529/686964/1777/0/
== FACT FILE: ERECTILE DYSFUNCTION ==
Erectile dysfunction, or impotence, is a common problem, especially in older men. It's often the result of an underlying health condition. Our fact file looks at the different possible causes, and the treatment options.
http://abcmail.net.au/t/88529/686964/1849/0/
== TRANSCRIPTS NOW ONLINE
DON BRADSHAW
In Conversation: 07/02/2008
http://abcmail.net.au/t/88529/686964/1926/0/
PROUST WAS A NEUROSCIENTIST
All In The Mind: 09/02/2008
http://abcmail.net.au/t/88529/686964/1927/0/
BALANCING NATURE 3 - THE PHILIPPINES
Science Show: 09/02/2008
http://abcmail.net.au/t/88529/686964/1928/0/
TASMANIAN TIGERS
Science Show: 09/02/2008
http://abcmail.net.au/t/88529/686964/1929/0/
TASMANIAN MUSEUM AND ART GALLERY
Science Show: 09/02/2008
http://abcmail.net.au/t/88529/686964/1930/0/
ANTS
Science Show: 09/02/2008
http://abcmail.net.au/t/88529/686964/1931/0/
== COMING UP ON ABC RADIO == http://abcmail.net.au/t/88529/686964/1773/0/
SCIENCE SHOW - Balancing Nature - Balancing nature - Part 4 - New Zealand
Saturday 16 February, 12.05pm & Monday 18 February, 7.05pm RN
Invasive species can rapidly destroy the heart of a biodiversity hotspot and nowhere better has this been witnessed than in New Zealand. The country's unique population of birds and reptiles has been decimated by introduced mammals such as the possum, rat, mouse and stoat. However in a pioneering experiment some of the country's smaller islands have had their invasive pests eradicated allowing the native flora and fauna to thrive. Lynne Malcolm explores how this radical approach is being applied to the mainland in an attempt to re-establish the species there that gave this ancient biodiversity hotspot its unique quality.
http://abcmail.net.au/t/88529/686964/902/0/
ALL IN THE MIND – Greening the psyche
Saturday 16 February, 1.05pm, & Monday 18 February, 1.05pm RN
Intuitively we sense that nature relaxes us – even small pockets of green in the concrete urban jungle seem to make a difference. But finding good scientific evidence for what's behind this effect has been more difficult – until now. Could a bit of greening make all the difference to crime rates, academic performance, aggression and even ADHD? And, ecology on the couch – a self-described 'ecotherapist' shares some novel techniques.
http://abcmail.net.au/t/88529/686964/903/0/
THE PHILOSOPHER'S ZONE – Philosophy in action
Saturday 16 February, 1.30pm, & Monday 18 February, 1.35pm RN
This week, we meet a philosopher who's been giving political and ethical advice to the Prime Minister of Spain. We also look at the career of a thinker who did rather less well in the world of practical affairs: Nicolo Machiavelli.
http://abcmail.net.au/t/88529/686964/1774/0/
OCKHAM'S RAZOR - Peace technology
Sunday 17 February, 8.45am RN
Sydney author of Taming War – culture and technology for peace Andrew Greig suggests that the problems of war may be solved by technology. Over many thousands of years humans have developed tools of warfare and eventually the atom bomb which killed140.000 people in Hiroshima either directly, or by the end of the year, from radiation sickness. His hope is that we can turn our technological skills away from war and focus on technologies for peace.
http://abcmail.net.au/t/88529/686964/910/0/
INNOVATIONS
Sunday 17 February (0830hrs UT), Monday 18 February (1330 & 1705hrs UT), Wednesday 20 February (0430hrs UT), Radio Australia
New traffic lights set to drastically reduce greenhouse gases; a new area of the brain linked to attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder in children and, how Australian scientists are driving to a hydrogen future.
http://abcmail.net.au/t/88529/686964/1775/0/
HEALTH REPORT - Reconstructive breast surgery after mastectomy
Monday 18 February, 8.30am and 8.05pm RN
Cosmetic breast surgery is booming. So why isn't there a greater demand for reconstructive breast surgery when so many women are losing their breasts to cancer? There's a silence around breast reconstruction following mastectomy that's not helping women to make informed decisions about this major surgery, even though there are clear benefits for recovery. Deb Nesbitt, who prepared this special feature, questions the silence and looks at the dilemmas women face when thinking about breast reconstruction.
http://abcmail.net.au/t/88529/686964/920/0/
IN CONVERSATION - Saving the kakapo
Thursday 21 February, 7.35pm RN
New Zealand's flightless nocturnal parrot, the kakapo is still critically endangered. There are now 86 of them left in the world, protected on a few offshore islands of New Zealand. During the seventies they were on the brink of extinction due to predation by rats and stoats but now, thanks to the Kakapo Recovery team there is hope that the species will survive. Ron Moorehouse tells the fascinating story of the intensive scientific efforts to save this strange bird which has become an international icon of bird conservation.
http://abcmail.net.au/t/88529/686964/1468/0/
== HIGHLIGHTS ON ABC TV == http://abcmail.net.au/t/88529/686964/1773/0/
THUNDERHEADS
ABC 1, Monday 18 February, 9.35pm
Seven planes staffed by some of the world's most experienced pilots, a ship, 250 scientists and researchers and the best gadgets money can buy, a daring and intrepid group try to catch the 'perfect storm'. A thrilling ride as they battle to better understand the role of thunderstorms in the climate change puzzle.
http://abcmail.net.au/t/88529/686964/1932/0/
OUR HISTORY - INDIGENOUS AUSTRALIANS: LIVING IN COUNTRY
ABC 1, Tuesday 19 February, 10.35am
How indigenous Australians lived prior to European settlement: the different tasks for male and female members of the clans where women and girls gathered plants and fish and cooked and men and boys hunted, made tools and bark canoes.
http://abcmail.net.au/t/88529/686964/1933/0/
CATALYST
ABC 1, Thursday 21 February, 8pm
Travels to Cambridge, England, to investigate the roots of man's earliest migrations; an unlikely source of deadly particles in the office; and juggling whiz and bio-remediation expert, Mike Manefield.
http://abcmail.net.au/t/88529/686964/834/0/
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