Tag: Americas

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A scientific study of Patagonia’s Beagle Channel, deforestation in the Gran Chaco, and a ‘planetarium on wheels’ in Mexico.

CHILE Scientists from Chile will be traveling to the southernmost part of Patagonia to study the continental tip that Darwin rounded on his voyage on the Beagle. The scientific expedition will study things like biodiversity, effects of climate change and anthropology of the local indigenous tribes. Critics are worried that Chile’s new energy minister will … Continue reading A scientific study of Patagonia’s Beagle Channel, deforestation in the Gran Chaco, and a ‘planetarium on wheels’ in Mexico.

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Ethnobiological drug discovery in Latin America

In the 1530s, the French seafaring explorer Jacques Cartier noticed that indigenous slaves did not die from the debilitating disease that was spreading through the ranks of his sailors. Upon inquiry, Cartier learned from Dom Agaya, one of the Huron natives, that the use of decoctions from the ameda tree protected them against scurvy. This … Continue reading Ethnobiological drug discovery in Latin America

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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.