Category: Latin America

Central America The chikungunya virus is quickly spreading through Central America and has alerted health authorities in several countries. The disease is transmitted by mosquitoes and can cause profound fatigue, nausea and rashes. It has no cure and can cause death in the elderly. Chile A group of Chilean, Norwegian and Canadian scientists have cracked … Continue reading Chikungunya spreading through Central America, Chileans help decipher the Atlantic salmon genome, and Cretaceous fossils found in Cuba.

Costa Rica Despite being an area that emits less than 0.5% of the world’s greenhouse gases, Central America is one of the planet’s regions most vulnerable to climate change, according to a study involving four Costa Rican universities. Latin America According to the latest issue of the journal Nature, investment in science and scientific studies … Continue reading Central America’s vulnerability to climate change, Nature magazine highlights South American science, and recreating Alzheimer’s in fruit flies.

Mexico Scientists at the University of Sonora are studying desert plants in order to find active ingredients that could be used for cancer treatments. They have found promising alkaloids and fatty acids in the species Argemone gracilenta and the substance is now being assessed against tumor cells. Chile An ultra-precise atomic clock was built for … Continue reading Studying desert plants in Mexico for cancer treatments, an atomic clock on Chile’s ALMA telescope, and an artificial heart in Argentina.

Argentina Argentine researchers studied the brains of 80 tango dancers and determined that some could predict–or better anticipate–actions. Using sample videos of tango steps executed with different correction levels and correlating these with high density EEG, they determined that the anticipatory activity depends on the degree of experience of the subject. Rosario scientists designed a … Continue reading This is your brain on tango, combating coffee rust in Central America, and developing vaccines in Cuba.

Argentina The fossilized remains of a long-necked sauropod have been found in Patagonia. The paleontologists estimate that the animal inhabited the area 140 million years ago. Seven other dinosaurs have been found in the same area; scientists believe it is a place they chose to die. Mexico In a cenote (water hole) in the Yucatan … Continue reading A long-necked dinosaur found in Patagonia, one of America’s first settlers found in Mexico, and how to protect the World Cup mascot the giant armadillo