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  • Citizens’ body alarmed over recurrent flooding

    Citizens’ body alarmed over recurrent flooding


    KARACHI:

    The Karachi Citizens’ Forum (KCF) held a press conference on Tuesday, expressing concern over recurring urban flooding that paralyses the city after every rainfall. The Forum noted that even a brief spell of rain damages property, disrupts businesses, results in the loss of lives, leads to the closure of schools, causes traffic gridlocks, and leaves citizens stranded on flooded roads.

    The conference noted that, despite weather warnings by the Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) and the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), the city, once again, remained unprepared this monsoon season. The conference recommended the establishment of a central authority, composed of urban planners and citizen stakeholders, to coordinate efforts among land-owning entities. It emphasised the need for a city plan addressing current challenges as well as future demands, highlighting the importance of transparency and accountability in infrastructure spending, which it stated should be ensured through digitisation and public oversight. Further, the conference urged prioritising public welfare initiatives, such as repairing sanitation systems, completing mass transit projects, and rehabilitating water treatment facilities, rather than allocating resources to non-essential cosmetic developments.

    The conference urged thorough enforcement of environmental regulations, holding negligent officials accountable, curbing illegal encroachments, and regulating the production and use of plastic bags. It concluded by stating, “Karachi deserves competent governance, honest supervision, and a sustainable development.”

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  • Sugary drinks linked to higher risk of hair loss – samaa tv

    1. Sugary drinks linked to higher risk of hair loss  samaa tv
    2. New study suggests sugary sodas and fizzy drinks could raise risk of hair loss  WXYZ Channel 7
    3. Struggling with Thinning Hair? It May Be Caused by What You Drink  People.com
    4. What You Drink Could Be Sabotaging Your Hair  Men’s Journal
    5. Sugary drinks increase hair loss risk, scientists warn  News-Medical

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  • Hypertension Control Rate, Associated Factors, Facilitators, and Barriers in Kerala, India: A Mixed-Methods Study

    Hypertension Control Rate, Associated Factors, Facilitators, and Barriers in Kerala, India: A Mixed-Methods Study


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  • All Android Developers Will Have to Verify Their Identities Soon

    All Android Developers Will Have to Verify Their Identities Soon

    One of the biggest reasons to choose an Android phone over an iPhone is the fact that you actually own it, as you can install whatever you want easily. However, it will change next year when Google starts verifying the identities of Android app developers, whether they publish their products on the Play Store or not.

    “You shouldn’t have to choose between open and secure,” Google says, and it sounds sweet at first glance, but we all know where this is going. Thankfully, the conpany won’t be checking the contents of the app, just the developer.

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  • Mixed results: Lung from a genetically modified pig transplanted into a human – Genetic Literacy Project

    1. Mixed results: Lung from a genetically modified pig transplanted into a human  Genetic Literacy Project
    2. Pig-to-human lung xenotransplantation into a brain-dead recipient  Nature
    3. Gene-edited pig lung transplanted into a brain-dead patient for first time  statnews.com
    4. Pig Lung Transplanted Into Man for 9 Days in Groundbreaking Study  The Mountaineer
    5. Scientists perform the world’s first pig-to-human lung transplant; having a purpose tied to lower risk of dementia; a new look at brain cancer treatment – Morning Medical Update  Medical Economics

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  • Why a building contractual dispute doesn’t necessarily trigger a policy claim: Clarification from NS : Clyde & Co

    Why a building contractual dispute doesn’t necessarily trigger a policy claim: Clarification from NS : Clyde & Co

    Claims notification under a professional liability policy and construction disputes. The test to join an insurer to a claim. The decision made in the Supreme Court of New South Wales in 374, 376 New South Head Road Pty Ltd v SMLXL Projects (NSW) Pty Ltd [2025] NSWSC 886 addresses a key contention at the intersection between alleged building contractual disputes and professional indemnity insurance coverage.

    The courts refusal to grant leave to commence proceedings against the insurer, based on the finding that there was no arguable case of coverage under the insurance policy, underscores the notion that not all contractual disputes automatically give rise to an insurable claim. 

    Brief Factual Overview

    The plaintiff, the registered proprietor, of the property 374 and 376 New South Head Road entered into a design and construct contract with the first defendant, SMLXL Projects for alterations and additions to an existing building. SMLXL was insured by the second defendant, Chubb Insurance Australia Ltd under three design and construct professional indemnity insurance policies under three consecutive policy years on a claims made basis. SMLXL entered into liquidation without achieving practical completion of the contracted works and so the plaintiff sought leave under section 5 of the Civil Liability (Third Party Claims Against Insurers) Act 2017 (NSW) to commence proceedings against Chubb Insurance. The plaintiff’s claims against SMLXL were for the alleged breach of the building contract, including claims for liquidated damages and defects in the design and construction of various building elements. 

    The plaintiff could not demonstrate an arguable case that SMLXL’s liability was covered under the policy and so the court ordered that the plaintiff’s claim for leave to join the insurer was dismissed and costs be paid by the plaintiff, in this instance, the court found a mere notice of a contractual dispute did not satisfy a policy claim.

    Legal Issues and Court Reasoning

    For leave to be granted under section 5, the applicant had to establish three elements; (a) an arguable case that SMLXL is liable to them, (b) a reasonable possibility that SMLXL will be unable to satisfy in full any judgement that may be entered against it in respect of that liability, and (c) an arguable case that any liability of SMLXL would be an “insured liability” under the insurance policy with Chubb. The standard of an arguable case is ‘fairly low’ but as Chubb submitted, not automatic and determination of such relies on proper characterisation of written correspondence based on the standard of an ‘ordinary businessperson’. There were no substantive issues regarding limbs (a) and (b). 

    However, limb (c), the fact that SMLXL would be entitled to an indemnity for such liability under its insurance policies was opposed by Chubb. This was based on the fact that the plaintiff made no written demand for civil compensation, civil damages nor non-monetary civil relief against SMLXL during the policy period, and the plaintiff’s contractual demands were not notified to Chubb during any policy year. So it was argued no resulting valid ‘insured’ claim for loss had occurred. The court held that a valid ‘claim’ under the policy could be express or implied, but the evidence presented by the plaintiff in respect of all six of their building claims did not sufficiently amount to a ‘claim for civil liability in respect of the conduct of professional services’, as required by the precise wording of the policy. 

    Evidence of written email correspondence between the plaintiff and SMLXL alongside sworn affidavits of the project manager were considered. The court found they merely conveyed the plaintiff’s dissatisfaction and contractual entitlements to liquidated damages, but did not constitute a written demand for civil compensation or civil damages’ as required by the policy. Relevantly a reservation of a contractual right, a claim for liquidated damages or the exercising of a right of set off under a building contract was not a claim under the policies.

    With regard to the plaintiff’s defect claims, the court accepted Chubb’s submission that the relevant correspondence only alleged contractual non-compliance and not an actual claim for compensation. Much of the correspondence regarding defects was seeking SMLXL’ s response to addressing the plaintiff’s concerns.

    The court also found the plaintiff had not satisfied it that the building claims were, in any event, arising out of the Professional Services provided by SMLXL, as defined in the policies.

    Thus, the plaintiff failed to present an arguable case under limb (c), that SMLXL would have been indemnified under the insurance policy and the application for leave was dismissed. 

    Implications 

    The Supreme Court’s decision has emphasised the need for a clear, written demand for compensation to satisfy a definition of a “Claim” required by a policy. An assertion of a right of a claim to be made under a professional liability policy is distinguishable from the mere assertion of rights under a building contract between builder and owner and an arguable case to be made under section 5 of the Civil Liability Act, notwithstanding that there may be genuine and arguable claims between owner and builder.

    As always, the wording of the policy and the definition of a Claim in the policy is important, as are the facts behind the claim communications. The court considered other decided cases that had found a claim had been made by characterising the totality of the communications in the context of the notification.  

    Importantly the case shows a mere dispute over a problematic building project and rights under the relevant building contract may not be enough to trigger a policy response.

    In this case the joinder of an insurer, which requires an otherwise low threshold, was denied following the liquidation of the builder despite the existence of what appeared to be a valid contractual dispute.

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  • Moon phase today explained: What the moon will look like on August 27, 2025

    Moon phase today explained: What the moon will look like on August 27, 2025

    The moon is slowly becoming brighter and brighter, and after days of nothing to see, NASA tells us we’ll be able to spot some interesting features on the moon’s surface tonight.

    The lunar cycle takes about 29.5 days, according to NASA, and these different phases happen as the Sun lights up different parts of the moon whilst it orbits Earth. 

    So let’s see what’s happening with the moon tonight, Aug. 27.

    What is today’s moon phase?

    As of Wednesday, Aug. 27, the moon phase is Waxing Crescent, and 18% will be lit up to us on Earth, according to NASA’s Daily Moon Observation.

    After days of darkness, there’s plenty we can see on the moon tonight. With no visual aids, look to the top right (bottom left if you’re in the Southern Hemisphere) to see the Mare Crisium and the Mare Fecunditatis. With binoculars or a telescope, you’ll also get a glimpse of the Endymion Crater.

    When is the next full moon?

    The next full moon will be on Sept. 7. The last full moon was on Aug. 9.

    What are moon phases?

    According to NASA, moon phases are caused by the 29.5-day cycle of the moon’s orbit, which changes the angles between the Sun, Moon, and Earth. Moon phases are how the moon looks from Earth as it goes around us. We always see the same side of the moon, but how much of it is lit up by the Sun changes depending on where it is in its orbit. This is how we get full moons, half moons, and moons that appear completely invisible. There are eight main moon phases, and they follow a repeating cycle:

    Mashable Light Speed

    New Moon – The moon is between Earth and the sun, so the side we see is dark (in other words, it’s invisible to the eye).

    Waxing Crescent – A small sliver of light appears on the right side (Northern Hemisphere).

    First Quarter – Half of the moon is lit on the right side. It looks like a half-moon.

    Waxing Gibbous – More than half is lit up, but it’s not quite full yet.

    Full Moon – The whole face of the moon is illuminated and fully visible.

    Waning Gibbous – The moon starts losing light on the right side.

    Last Quarter (or Third Quarter) – Another half-moon, but now the left side is lit.

    Waning Crescent – A thin sliver of light remains on the left side before going dark again.

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  • ‘Built for cutting flesh, not resisting acidity’: sharks may be losing deadly teeth to ocean acidification

    ‘Built for cutting flesh, not resisting acidity’: sharks may be losing deadly teeth to ocean acidification

    image: 

    Blacktip Reef Shark at Sealife Oberhausen, where teeth used in the study were collected. Credit: Max Baum.


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    Credit: Max Baum

    Sharks can famously replace their teeth, with new ones always growing as they’re using up the current set. As sharks rely on their teeth to catch prey, this is vital to the survival of one of the oceans’ top predators.

    But the ability to regrow teeth might not be enough to ensure they can withstand the pressures of a warming world where oceans are getting more acidic, new research has found. Researchers in Germany examined sharks’ teeth under different ocean acidification scenarios and showed that more acidic oceans lead to more brittle and weaker teeth.

    “Shark teeth, despite being composed of highly mineralized phosphates, are still vulnerable to corrosion under future ocean acidification scenarios,” said first author of the Frontiers in Marine Science article, Maximilian Baum, a biologist at Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf (HHU). “They are high developed weapons built for cutting flesh, not resisting ocean acid. Our results show just how vulnerable even nature’s sharpest weapons can be.”

    Damage from root to crown

    Ocean acidification is a process during which the ocean’s pH value keeps decreasing, resulting in more acidic water. It is mostly driven by the release of human-generated CO2. Currently, the average pH of the world’s oceans is 8.1. In 2300, it is expected to drop to 7.3, making it almost 10 times more acidic than it currently is.

    For their study, the researchers used these two pH values to examine the effects of more and less acidic water on the teeth of Blacktip reef sharks. Divers collected more than 600 discarded teeth from an aquarium housing the sharks. 16 teeth – those that were completely intact and undamaged – were used for the pH experiment, while 36 more teeth were used to measure before and after circumference. The teeth were incubated for eight weeks in separate 20-liter tanks. “This study began as a bachelor’s project and grew into a peer-reviewed publication. It’s a great example of the potential of student research,” said the study’s senior author, Prof Sebastian Fraune, who heads the Zoology and Organismic Interactions Institute at HHU. “Curiosity and initiative can spark real scientific discovery.”

    Compared to the teeth incubated at 8.1 pH, the teeth exposed to more acidic water were significantly more damaged. “We observed visible surface damage such as cracks and holes, increased root corrosion, and structural degradation,” said Fraune. Tooth circumference was also greater at higher pH levels. Teeth, however, did not actually grow, but the surface structure became more irregular, resulting in it appearing larger on 2D images. While an altered tooth surface may improve cutting efficiency, it potentially also makes teeth structurally weaker and more prone to break.

    Small damage, big effects

    The study only looked at discarded teeth of non-living mineralized tissue, which means repair processes that may happen in living organisms could not be considered. “In living sharks, the situation may be more complex. They could potentially remineralize or replace damaged teeth faster, but the energy costs of this would be probably higher in acidified waters,” Fraune explained.

    Blacktip reef sharks must swim with their mouths permanently open to be able to breathe, so teeth are constantly exposed to water. If the water is too acidic, the teeth automatically take damage, especially if acidification intensifies, the researchers said. “Even moderate drops in pH could affect more sensitive species with slow tooth replication circles or have cumulative impacts over time,” Baum pointed out. “Maintaining ocean pH near the current average of 8.1 could be critical for the physical integrity of predators’ tools.”

    In addition, the study only focused on the chemical effects of ocean acidification on non-living tissue. Future studies should examine changes to teeth, their chemical structure, and mechanical resilience in live sharks, the researchers said. The study shows, however, that microscopic damage might be enough to pose a serious problem for animals depending on their teeth for survival. “It’s a reminder that climate change impacts cascade through entire food webs and ecosystems,” Baum concluded.

    Journal

    Frontiers in Marine Science

    Method of Research

    Experimental study

    Subject of Research

    Animals

    Article Title

    Simulated ocean acidification affects shark tooth morphology

    Article Publication Date

    27-Aug-2025

    COI Statement

    The author(s) declared that they were an editorial board member of Frontiers, at the time of submission. This had no impact on the peer review process and the final decision.

    Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert system.

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  • Dinosaur Teeth Unlock Secrets of Earth’s Ancient Climate

    Dinosaur Teeth Unlock Secrets of Earth’s Ancient Climate

    Teeth of a Camarasaurus, found in the Morrison Formation, USA, which were also analyzed in the research. Credit: Sauriermuseum Aathal

    A new method allows scientists to reconstruct carbon dioxide levels and photosynthesis from fossilized tooth enamel.

    A surprising new line of evidence is providing fresh insights into Earth’s ancient climate. Fossilized dinosaur teeth reveal that the atmosphere during the Mesozoic era (between 252 and 66 million years ago) contained much higher levels of carbon dioxide than today. This conclusion comes from a study led by researchers at the Universities of Göttingen, Mainz, and Bochum, who examined oxygen isotopes preserved in tooth enamel. Their approach relies on a newly developed technique that offers exciting opportunities for studying Earth’s climate history.

    The analysis also showed that global photosynthesis, the process by which plants convert sunlight into energy, was occurring at about twice the rate seen today. According to the researchers, this surge in plant activity likely played a role in shaping the highly dynamic climate that existed during the time of the dinosaurs. The team’s findings were published in the journal PNAS.

    To reach these results, the scientists studied dinosaur teeth unearthed in North America, Africa, and Europe from both the late Jurassic and late Cretaceous periods. Tooth enamel, one of the hardest and most resilient biological substances, preserves oxygen isotope signatures that record what dinosaurs inhaled as they breathed. Because the ratio of oxygen isotopes is influenced by atmospheric carbon dioxide and plant photosynthesis, these traces provide a valuable window into both climate conditions and vegetation during the age of the dinosaurs.

    Tooth of a Europasaurus
    Tooth of a Europasaurus, a dinosaur similar to Diplodocus, in limestone, found in the Langenberg quarry in the Harz Mountains which was also analyzed in the study. Credit: Thomas Tütken

    Evidence of High CO₂ and Climate Spikes

    In the late Jurassic period, around 150 million years ago, the air contained around four times as much carbon dioxide as it did before industrialization – that is, before humans started emitting large quantities of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.

    And in the late Cretaceous period, around 73 to 66 million years ago, the level was three times as high as today. Individual teeth from two dinosaurs – Tyrannosaurus rex and another known as Kaatedocus siberi which is related to Diplodocus – contained a strikingly unusual composition of oxygen isotopes.

    Tooth of a Tyrannosaurus rex
    Tooth of a Tyrannosaurus rex – like the teeth analyzed in this study – found in Alberta, Canada. Credit:
    Thomas Tütken

    This points to CO₂ spikes that could be linked to major events such as volcanic eruptions – for example, the massive eruptions of the Deccan Traps in what is now India, which happened at the end of the Cretaceous period. The fact that plants on land and in water around the world were carrying out more photosynthesis at that time was probably associated with CO₂ levels and higher average annual temperatures.

    A Breakthrough for Paleoclimatology

    This study marks a milestone for paleoclimatology: until now, carbonates in the soil and “marine proxies” were the main tools used to reconstruct the climate of the past. Marine proxies are indicators, such as fossils or chemical signatures in sediments, that help scientists understand environmental conditions in the sea in the past. However, these methods are subject to uncertainty. By analyzing oxygen isotopes in tooth fossils, the researchers have now developed the first method that focuses on vertebrates on land.

    “Our method gives us a completely new view of the Earth’s past,” explains lead author Dr Dingsu Feng at the University of Göttingen’s Department of Geochemistry. “It opens up the possibility of using fossilized tooth enamel to investigate the composition of the early Earth’s atmosphere and the productivity of plants at that time. This is crucial for understanding long-term climate dynamics.” Dinosaurs could be the new climate scientists, according to Feng: “Long ago their teeth recorded the climate for a period of over 150 million years – finally we are getting the message.”

    Reference: “Mesozoic atmospheric CO2 concentrations reconstructed from dinosaur tooth enamel” by Dingsu Feng, Thomas Tütken, Eva Maria Griebeler, Daniel Herwartz and Andreas Pack, 4 August 2025, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
    DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2504324122

    The study was funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG) and by the VeWA consortium as part of the LOEWE programme of the Hessisches Ministerium für Wissenschaft und Forschung, Kunst und Kultur.

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  • Anaemia prevalence and risk factors among nonpregnant and pregnant women of reproductive age in Ghana: an analysis of the Ghana demographic and health survey data | Tropical Medicine and Health

    Anaemia prevalence and risk factors among nonpregnant and pregnant women of reproductive age in Ghana: an analysis of the Ghana demographic and health survey data | Tropical Medicine and Health

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