Science News

Collaborations with various media allow us to create a bank of science news of relevance to the Puerto Rican and Hispanic communities and give a venue that our scientific members can use to keep their communities informed and engaged with science.

Also, the news archive can be used as a resource for students and educators

In this section you can find: news written by members of the CienciaPR team and written by other news media and which are reproduced with permission from the original source.

If you want to collaborate with CienciaPR in writing an article, please read this writing and editorial guide and then contact us.

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Serious global warming predictions

Submitted on 30 January 2007 - 9:47am

This article is reproduced by CienciaPR with permission from the original source.

Global warming is going to be greater than what was predicted in 2001, between 2 and 4.5 degrees Celsius warmer than what was predicted by scientists. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) predicts a global warming greater than what they had predicted in 2001, when they expected a global temperature rise of 1.4 to 5.8 degrees for 2100. Numbers about the rise of the sea level, due to the melting of the polar caps and the increase in the water’s volume due to the warming, have narrowed from a range of 9 to 88 centimeters to a range of 28 to 43 centimeters.

MIT students visit Hamilton Sundstrand in Santa Isabel

Submitted on 30 January 2007 - 9:30am

This article is reproduced by CienciaPR with permission from the original source.

More than 50 graduate students from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) visited the Hamilton Sundstrand plant in Santa Isabel, where generators, fans and electrical pieces for aeronautics and electrical companies are manufactured. The first year students of the master’s degree program “Leaders for Manufacturing” and their professors, visited the plant as part of an annual tour through the US plants of the MIT program’s sponsoring companies.

New discovery about learned fear

Submitted on 29 January 2007 - 1:12pm

This article is reproduced by CienciaPR with permission from the original source.

A study developed by two neuroscientists of the Ponce School of Medicine found that the prelimbic cortex of the brain regulates learned fear in animals. This discovery could widen the treatment options for people who suffer of Post-traumatic Stress Disorders and other anxiety disorders, because it suggests that with the manipulation of that part of the brain, learned fears could be controlled without affecting innate reflexes, necessary for the survival of any organism, explain the neuroscientist that directs the project, Gregory J. Quirk.

Islands exceed continents in the number of endemic species

Submitted on 29 January 2007 - 9:43am

This article is reproduced by CienciaPR with permission from the original source.

In spite of their small size, islands like Puerto Rico have more endemic species than the bigger continents. For example, United States has 11 endemic bird species, while Puerto Rico has 17. Jamaica and the Hispaniola (Dominican Republic and Haiti) have 28 endemic bird species each, and Cuba has 26. According to what Puerto Rican biologists Miguel Acevedo and Luis Villanueva explained this phenomenon is due to the evolution of the species. “The islands in general were isolated from the continents and, because of this, bird species evolved through time without having any contact with other species; there was a geographic isolation,” said Acevedo.

New endemic bird

Submitted on 29 January 2007 - 9:31am

This article is reproduced by CienciaPR with permission from the original source.

The addition of the Puerto Rican oriole (Icterus portoricensis) to the list of endemic birds of Puerto Rico increases the number in this list to 17. The Puerto Rican oriole lives in dry and humid forests, shadow coffee bushes, mangroves and gardens. It can be seen all around the Island, between palm trees or banana trees. It main food source are insects, fruits and the juice of ripe oranges. Its singing is high-pitched, and it can be heard mainly during dawn.

Nanotechnology moving forward

Submitted on 29 January 2007 - 9:19am

This article is reproduced by CienciaPR with permission from the original source.

CienciaPR Contribution: 

The Professional is a member of CienciaPR
Nanotechnology is present in many of the things we use everyday. However, according to a study published in Nature recently, 69% of the population knows little or nothing about nanotechnology. In this article, part of our collaboration with El Nuevo Dia, Wilfredo Ortiz, collaborator and CienciaPR member, talks about the importance of this discipline and knowing about it.

New options for recycled tires

Submitted on 29 January 2007 - 9:07am

This article is reproduced by CienciaPR with permission from the original source.

Two professors of the University of Puerto Rico in Mayagüez are studying the possible applications of shredded used tires for the treatment of used or contaminated waters. Doctors Oscar Perales Pérez and Félix Román of the Material Sciences and Engineering and Chemistry Departments, respectively, are the principal investigators of the project. Also collaborating are the Solid Waste Authority of Puerto Rico, the Puerto Rico Water Research and Environmental Research Institute, the Toyota Foundation and the Puerto Rican enterprise REMA Inc., which produces recycled granulated tires. The researchers are investigating the capacity that shredded tires have to absorb organic and inorganic species, from metals to antibiotics, and removed them from the water.

Joint efforts to finance technology projects

Submitted on 29 January 2007 - 8:48am

This article is reproduced by CienciaPR with permission from the original source.

Researchers from the University of Puerto Rico in Mayagüez recently participated in a financing workshop for the commercialization of technology and innovation offered by the Economic Development Bank, the Industrial Development Company and the Commerce and Export Company of Puerto Rico. The workshop included subjects ranging from how to start a business in Puerto Rico to financing opportunities for the commercialization of technology.

RCMI Programs in Puerto Rico Host 10th RCMI International Symposium on Health Disparities

Submitted on 29 January 2007 - 8:34am

This article is reproduced by CienciaPR with permission from the original source.

The 10th RCMI International Symposium on Health Disparities took place on December 13 - 16, 2006 at the Caribe Hilton Hotel in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Over 650 participants from the Caribbean, Brazil, Africa and the United States attended the meeting.

Research in the UPR-RP vision

Submitted on 26 January 2007 - 5:24pm

This article is reproduced by CienciaPR with permission from the original source.

The Project “Vision University 2016”, approved last November by the academia senate, is a guide that sees a University that privileges research, the creation and spread of knowledge, and that is committed to an integral learning and formation of the student. Also, this project will serve as a guide to elaborate, in a participative way, strategic courses of action and development plans for the different faculties and units of the system.

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