The economic value of nutrient cycling in the Swartkops and Sundays River estuaries (why estuaries are so important as natural "wastewater treatment" facilities). sajs.co.za/article/view... Paper estimates nutrient recycling outcomes would cost US$7.13 million (2022), Area is 7.5K hectares.

Learning scientific communication from the comics. www.the-scientist.com/a-comic-styl...

Estimate: life span heritability about 50% To live a long life, pick parents that will live a long life. www.nature.com/articles/d41...

Caffeine and A Fib. jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...

Predictions of the outcome of the current MAHA fad. jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...

Climate-related evolution of kangaroos and wallabies. www.eurekalert.org/news-release... If it happened to them, it can happen to us!

How often do you get to see a headline like this one? World's oldest dinosaur vomit discovered in Germany. www.popsci.com/science/olde...

Is this abundant ocean bacterium at risk from climate change? phys.org/news/2026-01...

Secret weapon against Lyme disease? Genetically modified mice that are immune. Once bitten, the infection dies and cannot be transmitted. www.media.mit.edu/articles/7-i...

www.theguardian.com/commentisfre... Early tetrapod climbing onto land, as modern human on all fours walks back into the ocean. Callout reads, "Trust me, mate, you're going to want to turn around.

TED-Ed: an entertaining (and usually accurate) sources of health care information in a low-stress media environment (and also with links to back-up, support, and additional information. This week: Herpes. ed.ted.com/lessons/what...

Unvaccinated kids hit hard with the flu as pediatric deaths rise to 52. The vast majority of children who have died of flu so far this season did not receive the flu vaccine. www.nbcnews.com/health/healt...

@drneilstone.bsky.social #medsky

Regional school district ups investment in security. www.addisonindependent.com/2026/01/29/a... Concerns include cybersecurity, student safety, and incursions by ICE (with a college campus in the district, lots of families from other countries. (ask for PDF for fill story)

The merger of arts and science. www.addisonindependent.com/2026/01/29/t... Tapestry that will chronicle climate change and will be part of permanent collection at local museum. (Ask me for PDF)

Proud to stand with fellow citizens of our Brave Little State to move this bill out of committee in the new session www.addisonindependent.com/2026/01/29/s... Incremental implementation starting with universal access to primary care. Still have a PCP shortage. Wait time can be 18 mos or more.

Browsing a real old-fashioned Indy book store in the nearest village, I was happy to have a whole rack of Oxford's series: "A Very Short Introduction". However, I have to admit, THIS one brought me up short. Not the usual topic that I look for in this series!

For people who love history: The political rise of Bernie Sanders. www.sevendaysvt.com/news/politic... (book review of the "Bernie for Burlington" book also in this edition: www.sevendaysvt.com/arts-culture...)

'''America Is Respected Again': Trump Brags About America's Global Standing While Mocking The UN In Disparaging Remarks To The General Assembly" (www.msn.com/en-us/news/p...). Someone forgot to tell Charlie!

Creative writing by spell checker? In essay on surgical transplantation of faces, a student wrote: "[D]ata support face transplantation...[for] patient health, well-being, and overall quality of life benefits; but there are complexions that show up from case to case..." Prolly meant "complications.

New survey from CBC: 1-in-3 students surveyed violate academic rules using AI for their schoolwork. ici.radio-canada.ca/recit-numeri... Not yet posted on the English service, maybe soon? Interesting details in the reported survey results (graphic format, so less need for translation).

Let's talk/Parlons. Neighbor-to-neighbor, person-to-person discussions about our countries' relationship. www.vermontpublic.org/show/vermont... Keep the spirit of the Haskell Free Library and Opera House (haskelloperahouse.org). CBC English (cbc.ca); not sure about the French (ici.radio-canada.ca)

“Misinformation Studies Meets the Raw Milk Renaissance" | Article by Renée DiResta (@noupside.bsky.social) for @lawfaremedia.org: www.lawfaremedia.org/article/misi...

A concept of a plan is emerging. Deep pockets of for-profits should spend their money on political donations rather than patients care. www.nytimes.com/2026/01/27/u... The word for this is on the tip of my tongue...

Did DOGE save any money? usafacts.org/articles/wha... the horizontal green bars appear to show a running average of expenditures. The average expenditures during the "DOGE" era was slightly higher than in 2022–2025. Spending in Oct 2025 (Trump) was about 0.05% lower than in Jan 2025 (Biden).

Republican governor if our brave little state steps up and speaks out. www.vermontpublic.org/local-news/2...

6% decline in ACA enrollment so far. www.vermontpublic.org/local-news/2... Options limited and unsatisfactory.

"The problem with shared decision making in this context, is you're suggesting that both options are equally valid. And the fact is: Not getting vaccinated puts your own child at risk, puts you at risk and puts your community at risk. So it's not an equal decision." www.npr.org/2026/01/25/n...

Another opportunity for a public health crisis this year. www.cbc.ca/news/health/... Any bets on what Washington is foing about this?

www.cbc.ca/news/canada/... People are still seeing small numbers, and not appreciating how fast this disease can spread or how serious it can be. At least there is (near) universal health care.

Cancer deaths younger than 50yrs. jamanetwork.com/journals/jam... Trends in data 1990–2023; vary for specific sites by available data. colorectal ca is up; most cancers own (44% reduction in mortality for all cancers), but only a slight mortality decline for this group's most common cancers.

Just imagine: www.thelancet.com/commissions-... describes in The Lancet as "a transformative approach to India’s health system by placing the needs of citizens front and centre." Not limited to medical services, but including "social determinants of health: educ, housing, poverty, etc. Radical, eh?

Borowitz Report—Stating He had had “just about enough of this idiot,” on Saturday God wreaked revenge on Donald J. Trump by transforming the USA into Greenland. In a terse public statement, the Almighty declared, “Prayers answered, jerkwad.” Canada PM Carney offered to make the US its 11th province.

The World’s Worst Bet. David J. Lynch. PublicAffairs (2025). In the 1990s, the US govt promoted globalization to generate prosperity at home and encourage political liberalization abroad.” US workers harmed and political systems abroad largely unchanged. Review in Nature by Andrew Robinson.

What happens if fewer children get vaccinated? Japan holds lessons for US and is racing to make up for lost ground after decades of setbacks. www.nature.com/articles/d41... Like the proposed Hep-B vaccine "study" in Africa, we already know the answer (if we take the trouble to look at data!)

Measuring "toxic masculinity": defining features and types. Sanders SM, Garcia-Aguilera C, Borgogna NC, et al. The Toxic Masculinity Scale: Development and Initial Validation. Behav Sci (Basel). 2024;14(11):1096. Published 2024 Nov 14. doi:10.3390/bs14111096 www.nature.com/articles/d41...

Move over apes and birds, this cow has learned to use tools! www.science.org/content/arti...

The USA quits 66 scientific organizations. www.nature.com/articles/d41... Bad for the US, bad for the world, bad for the future. To misquote Ricky Ricardo, someone "got a lot of splainin' to do!" In science, as in geopolitics, is it possible to resume international leadership after this debacle?

And suggestions from 6 researchers on preparing the groundwork for science after the deluge: www.nature.com/articles/d41...

Lost Science? US science after a(nother) year of Trump: www.nature.com/immersive/d4...

Why we need a connection to a WORLD health organization: outbreaks are not strictly local anymore. link.springer.com/article/10.1...

Real effects of delaying or skipping vaccinations www.statnews.com/2026/01/02/m...

Newest health hack? Sleep more. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/202...

Watch out, gramma! Deaths from accidental falls have surpassed those due to automobile crashes. usafacts.org/articles/why...

How Lindsey Vonn’s new titanium knee helped her become Olympic-bound once again "We're learning things from Lindsey," said the orthopedic surgeon who helped give Vonn a second career. Everyone is. www.nytimes.com/athletic/694...

What we long expected is now confirmed in changes at EPA www.nytimes.com/2026/01/21/c... And also most of the other federal agencies, too.

Dietary shift among baleen whales to bigger prey (whole fish) as watming in Gulf of St Lawrence causes decline in krill availability. Also puts them in competition with humpbacks in the region. www.cbc.ca/news/science...

Spending $1.6M to find an answer that we already now in an action that will increase disease, disability, and death... but only in a foreign country where citizens have a surfeit of melanin. www.npr.org/2026/01/22/g...