CienciaPR's Podcasts

Showing 1 - 4 of 4
Scientists find 800 year-old cojoba remains on Taino artifacts
By Wilson Gonzalez-Espada | 28 March 2014


Archaeological starch grains consistent with those produced and stored in modern cojoba (Anadenanthera peregrina) seeds were identified, for the first time in the West Indies, in a coral milling base recovered in a small precolonial habitation site of Eastern Puerto Rico, in a context dated to A.D. 115–1250. Ethnohistoric, ethnographic, and previous archaeological data on cojoba from the West Indies and South America were surveyed in order to form plausible sociocultural interpretations of the findings.

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Stop wasting money on dietary supplements
By Wilson Gonzalez-Espada | 28 March 2014


Three articles in this issue address the role of vitamin and mineral supplements for preventing the occurrence or progression of chronic diseases. First, Fortmann and colleagues systematically reviewed trial evidence to update the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommendation on the efficacy of vitamin supplements for primary prevention in community-dwelling adults with no nutritional deficiencies.

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Protecting the scaly-naped pigeon
By Wilson Gonzalez-Espada | 28 March 2014


The scaly-naped pigeon (Patagioenas squamosa) is threatened by hunting in the Caribbean. At present, the pigeon is abundant in Puerto Rico, but overharvesting is a major concern; therefore, the development of a sustainable harvest strategy is a management priority. The management objective of the harvest strategy is to maximize hunting opportunity while keeping the population above an abundance threshold (NT) of 260,000 pigeons.

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Must college science always be in English, even if I speak Spanish?
By Wilson Gonzalez-Espada | 28 March 2014


The undisputed position of English as the “international language of science” has resulted in a push for its use in college science classrooms in non-English dominant contexts worldwide. This study uses classroom observation and interviews to examine the use of Spanish and English in college science classrooms at a land-grant university in Puerto Rico.

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