Paraguay’s capital still without a wastewater treatment plant, Mexico City’s warmer winters and Latin America’s smartest cities.

PARAGUAY The Paraguay river–which flows through and supplies water to four Latin American countries and is a major commercial waterway–is polluted by millions of liters of wastewater every hour, reports EFE. Paraguay’s capital alone spews 3.2 million liters of untreated residential and commercial sewage each hour, admits Osmar Sarubbi, president of Paraguay’s sanitation services company … Continue reading Paraguay’s capital still without a wastewater treatment plant, Mexico City’s warmer winters and Latin America’s smartest cities.

Weekly digest: An in-depth look at Belo Monte dam, the threat of a fungus on Latin America’s bananas and exporting the Galapagos model to Chile.

BRAZIL In mid-2011, construction started on Brazil’s Belo Monte hydroelectric dam on a southeast tributary of the Amazon started and by early 2015 should supply 18 million people with its 11,200 MW capacity. Of course, that’s when the Xingu river is flowing at full strength. The average capacity will generate 4,500 MW. Folha de Sao … Continue reading Weekly digest: An in-depth look at Belo Monte dam, the threat of a fungus on Latin America’s bananas and exporting the Galapagos model to Chile.

State-of-the-art soccer ball for the 2014 World Cup, a new variety of stevia in Peru, and combating dengue in Argentina.

ARGENTINA Researchers at the University of Buenos Aires are using applied mathematics to track mosquito populations and generate growth and development models in hopes of controlling the insects. The researchers hope to avoid the spread of the virus that causes dengue. The science magazine Ciencia Hoy turned 25 with its 135th edition. This bimonthly publication is … Continue reading State-of-the-art soccer ball for the 2014 World Cup, a new variety of stevia in Peru, and combating dengue in Argentina.

New rodent found in Patagonia, algae help double eucalyptus production in Chile, and Nicaragua commits to science.

ARGENTINA Scientists in Patagonia have discovered a new species of rodent in the province of Chubut. The rodent belongs to the genus Tympanoctomys and it was dubbed T. kirchnerorum as a tribute to Nestor and Cristina Kirchner for “their efforts in promoting science.” A prehistoric common ‘latrine’ was found in La Rioja in northern Argentina where … Continue reading New rodent found in Patagonia, algae help double eucalyptus production in Chile, and Nicaragua commits to science.