Preventive lung cancer screening is seen as a key first line of defense against a disease that kills more than 120,000 Americans a year. But research suggests the criteria widely used to decide who can be screened, and when, disadvantages Black patients. The question of how to fix it is fraught.

via Undark Magazine https://undark.org/2024/01/31/lung-cancer-screening-race/

Despite the steep price, some Indian landowners are turning to drones to spray their fields. The tech is faster and more efficient than laborers, and is adaptable to a wide range of farm duties. As the nascent industry grows, the potential consequences for agricultural laborers are profound.

via Undark Magazine https://undark.org/2024/01/30/india-drone-revolution/

Some neurosurgeons have begun to offer deep brain stimulation, which uses implanted electrodes to tamp down problematic neural signals, as a last-ditch treatment for people struggling with opioid use. But a dearth of clinical trial data makes it difficult to know how well, if at all, the procedure works.

via Undark Magazine https://undark.org/2024/01/29/brain-implant-addiction/

In “Curing Cancerphobia,” risk expert David Ropeik takes a deep dive into the world of cancer screening and raises a troubling question: Has screening, despite its clear benefits, inadvertently created an irrational fear of cancer that in some cases has needlessly frightened or harmed people?

via Undark Magazine https://undark.org/2024/01/26/book-review-cancerphobia/

The Israeli bombardment has displaced many of Gaza’s citizens. In the past, programs to alleviate stress among displaced and refugee populations haven’t taken religion and spirituality into account. A molecular biologist who studies trauma says that more treatments rooted in science are needed.

via Undark Magazine https://undark.org/2024/01/25/opinion-trauma-epigenetics-faith/

A study suggests the world’s deadliest humanitarian crisis in 2022 was not in Afghanistan, Ukraine, or other places featured regularly in the news — but in the Central African Republic, a landlocked country just north of Congo. Why did the outside world not seem to notice?

via Undark Magazine https://undark.org/2024/01/24/central-african-republic-mortality/

Researchers want real-world impact. Lawmakers want programs that work. The public wants to benefit from taxpayer-funded research. But there’s a disconnect between the lab and the legislatures that keeps information from flowing freely between them. Building new bridges between academics and lawmakers could help.

via Undark Magazine https://undark.org/2024/01/23/opinion-science-policy-connections/

In a field where minutes can mean the difference between life and death, researchers have attempted to make search tactics more efficient. By analyzing reports of people who wandered off track and sorting them into behavior profiles, researchers are advancing the science of “lost person behavior.”

via Undark Magazine https://undark.org/2024/01/22/science-search-rescue/

In “Our Moon,” a sweeping survey of lunar science and lore, journalist Rebecca Boyle makes a convincing case that our planet — and the evolution of life — cannot be understood without turning attention to the moon. And as humanity makes plans to return to our luminescent satellite, Boyle ponders its future.

via Undark Magazine https://undark.org/2024/01/19/book-review-our-moon/

Does alien life exist? The many unknowns about detecting biological signatures of life on Mars and other planets shouldn’t undermine support for high-risk space exploration, says one evolutionary biologist. The key is to clearly communicate this uncertainty to protect public trust in science.

via Undark Magazine https://undark.org/2024/01/18/opinion-uncertainty-life-beyond-earth/