Tag Archives: Washington

Rise in Teen Marijuana Use Stalls, Use of Synthetic Marijuana and ‘Bath Salts’ is Very Low

By Guest PostDecember 22, 2012Culture, Generaladderall, amphetamines, barbiturates, bath salts, cannabinoids, cannabis, cocaine, colorado, crack, daily use, dea, designer drugs, ecstasy, hallucinations, hallucinogens, heart rate, herbs, heroin, illicit drug, index, indicator of use, k 2, lloyd johnston, lsd, marijuana use, narcotics, oxycontin, paranoia, psychotherapeutic drugs, rise, salvia, salvia divinorum, sedatives, side effect, spice, statistical significance, suicidal thoughts, synthetic cathinones, synthetic marijuana, teen marijuana, tobacco, tranquilizers, vicodin, violent behavior, Washington

ANN ARBOR — National samples of 45,000 to 50,000 students in three grades (8, 10, and 12) have been surveyed every year since 1991 as part of the nationwide Monitoring the Future study. Among the most important findings from this year’s survey of U.S. secondary school students are the following:

Marijuana. After four straight years of increasing use among teens, annual marijuana use showed no further increase in any of the three grades surveyed in 2012. The 2012 annual prevalence rates (i.e., percent using in the prior 12 months) were 11%, 28%, and 36% for 8th, 10th, and 12th graders, respectively. (Among the 8th graders there was a modest decline across the past two years—from 13.7% in 2010 to 11.4% in 2012—that reached statistical significance.) (more…)

Congress Works Better Than Many Think, New Research Shows

By Guest PostDecember 15, 2012Politicscambridge university press, colorado boulder, conflict, congress, congressional productivity, democrat, factor, fiscal cliff, gridlocked institution, house, legislative agenda, Media, policy change, political friction, political science, president, republican, scott adler, senate, university, Washington

The perception of Congress as a gridlocked institution where little happens is overblown, according to new research by scholars at the University of Colorado Boulder and the University of Washington.

And the way much of Congress’ work gets done is through self-manufactured crises like the “fiscal cliff,” say political science professors Scott Adler of CU-Boulder and John Wilkerson of UW.

“Yes, Congress has taken on a more partisan tone in recent decades,” Adler said. “We do hear a lot about the conflicts between Democrats and Republicans on key pieces of legislation. But we’re also seeing Congress exceeding public expectations. Congress does govern.” (more…)

Crowdsourcing Site Compiles New Sign Language for Math and Science

By Guest PostDecember 11, 2012Education, Scienceamerican sign language, asl, asl stem forum, byte, caroline solomon, crowdsourcing, dictionary, eukaryote, Europe, google corp, harry lang, kyle rector, lexicon of science, light year, multimedia feature, national science foundation, new york times, organism, photosynthesis, raja kushalnagar, richard ladner, science signs lexicon, sign language, united states, university, urban dictionary, Washington, Wikipedia

A multimedia feature published this week in the New York Times, “Pushing Science’s Limits in Sign Language Lexicon,” outlines efforts in the United States and Europe to develop sign language versions of specialized terms used in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

The article shares newly defined signs for terms like “light-year,” “organism” and “photosynthesis.” It also describes a successful crowdsourcing effort started at the University of Washington in 2008 that lets members of the deaf and hard-of-hearing community build their own guide to the evolving lexicon of science.

“It’s not a dictionary,” explained Richard Ladner, a UW professor of computer science and engineering. “The goal of the forum is to be constantly changing, a reflection of the current use.” (more…)

Moths Wired Two Ways to Take Advantage of Floral Potluck

By Guest PostDecember 9, 2012Naturearizona, behavior, brain, brain activity, bright green, buffet, caterpillar, channels, chemical composition, favored blossoms, floral environment, flower, hong lei, humans, insects, jeffrey riffell, john hildebrand, leif abrell, manduca sexta, mechanism, moth, naive moths, neural pathways, neurobiology, north, olfactory information, oxygenated aromatic compounds, pollinator, process, scent samples, science express, scientist, sources of nectar, south america, soybean, tobacco hornworms, university, Washington

Moths are able to enjoy a pollinator’s buffet of flowers – in spite of being among the insect world’s picky eaters – because of two distinct “channels” in their brains, scientists at the University of Washington and University of Arizona have discovered.

One olfactory channel governs innate preferences of the palm-sized hawk moths that were studied – insects capable of traveling miles in a single night in search of favored blossoms. The other allows them to learn about alternate sources of nectar when their first choices are not available.

For moths, the ability to seek and remember alternate sources of food helps them survive harsh, food-deprived conditions. Scientists knew bees could learn, but this is the first proof that moths can too. (more…)

Support for Gay Marriage Grows in Michigan

By Guest PostNovember 25, 2012Culture, General2012 survey, american, ballot, catholics, charles ballard, district of columbia, election, gallup organization, gay marriage, grow, income level, maine, maryland, michigan, michigan residents, michigan state university, michiganders, pew research center, protestants, religious preference, state survey, support, united states, Washington

EAST LANSING, Mich. — Support for gay marriage is growing in Michigan, mirroring changing attitudes in many parts of the United States, according to Michigan State University’s State of the State Survey.

A recent survey found that 56 percent of the state’s residents support gay marriage while 39 percent oppose it. Two years ago, 48 percent supported gay marriage and 51 percent were opposed. (more…)

Roots of Deadly 2010 India Flood Identified; Findings Could Improve Warnings

By Guest PostNovember 14, 2012Environmentarabian sea, bay, bengal, big thompson canyon, black hills, clouds, colorado, desert, dramatic rain, flash flood, himalayas, indian town, kristen rasmussen, leh, moisture, mountain, natural disaster, plains, reanalysis data, remote region, robert houze, satellite images, south dakota, storms, tibetan plateau, torrential downpour, total rainfall, university, valley, warning, Washington, weather forecaster

On the night of Aug. 5, 2010, as residents slept, water began rushing through Leh, an Indian town in a high desert valley in the Himalayas.

Average total rainfall in the area for August is about a half-inch. During this 24-hour period more than 8 inches fell, causing severe damage and leaving 193 dead, hundreds missing and thousands homeless.

“Flash flooding events don’t happen often but when they do they are some of the scariest, most dangerous and quickest natural disasters that can happen,” said Kristen Rasmussen, a University of Washington graduate student in atmospheric sciences. “But now that we know what types of conditions to look out for, flash flood warnings in remote regions of India might be possible.” (more…)

Long-Term Sea Level Rise Could Cost Washington, D.C. Billions

By Guest PostNovember 2, 2012Environment100 years, air force base, annual rate, bilal ayyub, bolling, capital, city, climate change, commercial property, damage, dc, extreme weather, federal bureau, geographic information system, gis, global warming, government infrastructure, hurricane sandy, intensity, internal revenue service, investigation, isabel, justice department, maryland, millennium, naeem qureshi, northern virginia, property, real estate, rise, risk analysis, sea level, storms, tool, tropical storm, university, Washington

College Park, MD – A University of Maryland study projects that Washington, D.C. city and federal property could suffer billions of dollars in damage if sea level rise from global warming increases over the next century. Potential for significant damage will be even greater in the event of extreme weather like Hurricane Sandy

The study by Civil and Environmental Engineering Professor Bilal Ayyub, Haralamb Braileanu and Naeem Qureshi, of the Clark School of Engineering’s Center for Technology and Systems Management, looks at possible long term effects of projected sea level rise on Washington, D.C. real-estate property and government infrastructure. They conclude that over the next 100 years, continuing sea level rise could cause damages of more than $24.6 billion to Washington’s commercial property, museums, and government agencies. (more…)

Transforming America by Redirecting Wasted Health Care Dollars

By Guest PostOctober 30, 2012Generalalternative, ambitious plans, americans, childhood education, congressional, county department, economic sector, Environment, fraud, frederick zimmerman, Health, health care, health industry, jeffrey mccullough, jonathan fielding, los angeles, myriad, public health, quality, social value, spending, steven teutsch, super committee, system, Washington, waste, wasteful, well being

Eliminating excessive spending could mean windfall for U.S., study suggests

The respected national Institute of Medicine estimates that $750 billion is lost each year to wasteful or excessive health care spending. This sum includes excess administrative costs, inflated prices, unnecessary services and fraud — dollars that add no value to health and well-being.

If those wasteful costs could be corralled without sacrificing health care quality, how might that money be better spent? (more…)