EARTH: Drinking toilet water

The science (and psychology) of wastewater recycling

2013-01-29

(Press-News.org) Alexandria, VA – Would you drink water from a toilet? What if that water, once treated, was cleaner than what comes out of the faucet? Although the imagery isn't appealing, as climate change and population growth strain freshwater resources, such strategies are becoming more common around the world — and in the United States.

Over the last several decades, local and regional water shortages have become increasingly common. These shortages have led to increased friction over water resources. Technologies are currently being developed to help make wastewater recycling more efficient and less expensive, but talking people into drinking "flush to faucet" water is the bigger challenge, experts say. Will recycled wastewater become the norm where you live? And will enough wastewater be available to offset expected freshwater shortages? Read the story and find out at http://bit.ly/V508eW.

Read this story and more in the February issue of EARTH Magazine. Learn how the sun provides water to the moon; spy on Indonesian volcanoes with satellites; and discover Israel's undersea gas reservoirs all in this month's issue of EARTH.

### Keep up to date with the latest happenings in Earth, energy and environment news with EARTH magazine online at http://www.earthmagazine.org/. Published by the American Geosciences Institute, EARTH is your source for the science behind the headlines.

The American Geosciences Institute is a nonprofit federation of geoscientific and professional associations that represents more than 250,000 geologists, geophysicists and other earth scientists. Founded in 1948, AGI provides information services to geoscientists, serves as a voice of shared interests in the profession, plays a major role in strengthening geoscience education, and strives to increase public awareness of the vital role the geosciences play in society's use of resources, resiliency to natural hazards, and interaction with the environment.

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

1 in, 2 out: Simulating more efficient solar cells

2013-01-29

Using an exotic form of silicon could substantially improve the efficiency of solar cells, according to computer simulations by researchers at the University of California, Davis, and in Hungary. The work was published Jan. 25 in the journal Physical Review Letters. Solar cells are based on the photoelectric effect: a photon, or particle of light, hits a silicon crystal and generates a negatively charged electron and a positively charged hole. Collecting those electron-hole pairs generates electric current. Conventional solar cells generate one electron-hole pair ...

Study finds eating deep-fried food is associated with an increased risk of prostate cancer

2013-01-29

SEATTLE – Regular consumption of deep-fried foods such as French fries, fried chicken and doughnuts is associated with an increased risk of prostate cancer, and the effect appears to be slightly stronger with regard to more aggressive forms of the disease, according to a study by investigators at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. Corresponding author Janet L. Stanford, Ph.D., and colleagues Marni Stott-Miller, Ph.D., a postdoctoral research fellow and Marian Neuhouser, Ph.D., all of the Hutchinson Center's Public Health Sciences Division, have published their findings ...

Study shows climate change could affect onset and severity of flu seasons

2013-01-29

The American public can expect to add earlier and more severe flu seasons to the fallout from climate change, according to a research study published online Jan. 28 in PLOS Currents: Influenza. A team of scientists led by Sherry Towers, research professor in the Mathematical, Computational and Modeling Sciences Center at Arizona State University, studied waves of influenza and climate patterns in the U.S. from the 1997-1998 season to the present. The team's analysis, which used Centers for Disease Control data, indicates a pattern for both A and B strains: warm winters ...

Research: Military women may have higher risk for STIs

2013-01-29

As the number of women in the military increases, so does the need for improved gynecologic care. Military women may be more likely to engage in high-risk sexual practices, be less likely to consistently use barrier contraception, and, therefore, more likely to contract sexually transmitted infections (STIs), according to research recently released by a physician at Women & Infants Hospital of Rhode Island. Vinita Goyal, MD, MPH, followed up earlier research into the rates of contraception use and unintended pregnancy by today's military women and veterans with her latest ...

USGS-NOAA: Climate change impacts to US coasts threaten public health, safety and economy

2013-01-29

According to a new technical report, the effects of climate change will continue to threaten the health and vitality of U.S. coastal communities' social, economic and natural systems. The report, Coastal Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerabilities: a technical input to the 2013 National Climate Assessment, authored by leading scientists and experts, emphasizes the need for increased coordination and planning to ensure U.S. coastal communities are resilient against the effects of climate change. The recently released report examines and describes climate change impacts ...

When food porn holds no allure: The science behind satiety

2013-01-29

New research from the University of British Columbia is shedding light on why enticing pictures of food affect us less when we're full. "We've known that insulin plays a role in telling us we're satiated after eating, but the mechanism by which this happens is unclear," says Stephanie Borgland, an assistant professor in UBC's Dept. of Anesthesiology, Pharmacology and Therapeutics and the study's senior author. In the new study published online this week in Nature Neuroscience, Borgland and colleagues found that insulin – prompted by a sweetened, high-fat meal – affects ...

Power helps you live the good life by bringing you closer to your true self

2013-01-29

How does being in a position of power at work, with friends, or in a romantic relationship influence well-being? While we might like to believe the stereotype that power leads to unhappiness or loneliness, new research indicates that this stereotype is largely untrue: Being in a position of power may actually make people happier. Drawing on personality and power research, Yona Kifer of Tel Aviv University in Israel and colleagues hypothesized that holding a position of authority might enhance subjective well-being through an increased feeling of authenticity. The researchers ...

Artificial pancreas: The way of the future for treating type 1 diabetes

2013-01-29

Montréal, January 28, 2013 – IRCM researchers, led by endocrinologist Dr. Rémi Rabasa-Lhoret, were the first to conduct a trial comparing a dual-hormone artificial pancreas with conventional diabetes treatment using an insulin pump and showed improved glucose levels and lower risks of hypoglycemia. Their results, published today in the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ), can have a great impact on the treatment of type 1 diabetes by accelerating the development of the external artificial pancreas. The artificial pancreas is an automated system that simulates ...

Why are there redheads? Birds might hold the clues

2013-01-29

Red coloration—historically seen as costly in vertebrates—might represent some physiological benefit after all, according to research published in the journal Physiological and Biochemical Zoology. Pheomelanin, which is responsible for red hair and freckles in humans and orange and chestnut coloration in other animals, is known to increase the damage to skin cells and melanoma risk when present in large amounts. Furthermore, its creation involves the consumption of glutathione, a beneficial antioxidant. In an attempt to unearth the factors favoring the evolution of ...

AGU Journal Highlights -- Jan. 28, 2013

2013-01-29

The following highlights summarize research papers that have been recently published in Geophysical Research Letters (GRL), Water Resources Research, Journal of Geophysical Research – Planets (JGR-E), Journal of Geophysical Research – Oceans (JGR-C), and Journal of Geophysical Research-Biogeosciences (JGR-G). In this release: 1. Io's volcanism controls Jupiter's magnetospheric activity 2. Projected U.S. water use likely to increase as climate warms 3. Mercury's crust likely made of magnesium-rich basalt 4. Assessing the Great Whirl, despite all the pirates 5. Tracing ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Do animals fall for optical illusions? What fish and birds can teach us about perception

New guideline emphasizes conversations about mood, mental health between patients and clinicians

Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia researchers observe significant reduction in diagnosis of food allergies following expert guidelines encouraging early peanut exposure