1. CORAL: 2 lines, 20 counts each<\/p>\n
Dynamite, cyanide destroy
\ncoral reefs in S. Sulawesi<\/p>\n
The widespread use of sodium cyanide and explosives in fishing
\nhas caused massive damage to coral reefs in South Sulawesi over
\nthe past decade, local environmentalists say.<\/p>\n
\"Some studies show that about 70 percent of coral reefs in the
\nSpermonde islands and on the west coast of South Sulawesi are
\nseriously damaged because fishing activities in these areas
\nignore the environmental aspect\", said Willem Moka, of the
\nMaritime Biology and Research Center for Coral Reefs at
\nHasanuddin University.<\/p>\n
The area is well-known for its strong winds and huge waves and
\nexplosives and cyanide are considered effective to catch fish
\nquickly.<\/p>\n
In addition, conventional fishing gear will not ensure a good
\ncatch. Hence a shortcut is necessary: the use of sodium cyanide
\nand explosives. They are unaware, sadly to say, that this method
\ndoes great damage to the environment.<\/p>\n
Sodium cyanide and explosives are used, among other things,
\nbecause certain expensive species of fish, for example kerapu,
\nusually hide behind coral reefs and they can be caught only after
\nthey are anesthetized by spraying chemicals into the gaps in the
\nreefs.<\/p>\n
If they cannot catch the fish easily, they will damage the
\ncoral reefs to chase the fish.<\/p>\n
The use of chemicals in fishing causes the death of living
\ntissues and the ecosystem of the coral reefs.<\/p>\n
Moka says that once a coral reef ecosystem is damaged by
\nchemicals or explosives, its restoration will be very difficult.<\/p>\n
It will take about 40 years to 50 years to restore a damaged
\ncoral reef ecosystem while broken corals will take about four to
\nfive years to return to their normal condition.<\/p>\n
\"Coral can survive as long as they have living tissues,\" Moka
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
To prevent the damage to coral reefs from worsening, Moka
\nsuggested that a nucleus zone, a protection zone and an
\nexploitation zone be established and modeled upon Maluku's sasi
\nsystem in which an island is alternately isolated and then opened
\nagain. Under this system, locals will be prohibited from fishing
\nat particular times.<\/p>\n
Efforts to cut the destruction of coral reefs have been made
\nby some institutions such as the government, non-governmental
\norganizations (NGOs) and the World Bank through its Coral Reef
\nRehabilitation and Management Project (Cormap). The South
\nSulawesi-based Research Institution for Coastal Villages and
\nCommunity (LP3M) is one of the institutions focusing themselves
\non the rehabilitation of coral reefs and providing guidance to
\nthe people living in the Taka Bonerate National Sea Park in the
\nregency of Selayar.<\/p>\n
2. TURTLE: 2 lines, 28 counts<\/p>\n
Giant Pacific sea turtles
\non verge of extinction
\n or
\nNumbers of the giant Pacific
\nleatherback turtle dwindling<\/p>\n
Giant Pacific leatherback sea turtles are on a fast track to
\nextinction as commercial fishing and man-made destruction of
\ntheir beach nesting areas threaten to wipe out the 150 million-
\nyear-old species, scientists said.<\/p>\n
Speaking at the Leatherback International Survival Conference
\nin Monterey, researchers said only a handful of females returned
\nto nesting beaches along the Pacific coast last season -- down
\nfrom thousands who did so just 20 years ago.<\/p>\n
The week-long meeting that began last Tuesday is aimed at
\nbringing together marine biologists, environmental activists and
\nfishing industry representatives to seek ways to ensure the
\nsurvival of the only sea turtles without shells.<\/p>\n
\"The decline is an example of the greatest extinction of a
\npopulation of animals that we have probably witnessed since
\nhumans have recorded this sort of thing,\" James Spotila, a
\nresearcher at Philadelphia's Drexel University told a telephone
\nnews conference.<\/p>\n
\"It is almost as rapid as the extinction of the bison in North
\nAmerica in the 1800s.\"<\/p>\n
Currently there are some 30,000 leatherbacks swimming in the
\nworld's oceans, down from about 115,000 in the 1980s, the
\nresearchers said. The turtles can reach 9 feet (2.7 metres) in
\nlength and weigh 2,000 pounds (907 kg). The females come ashore
\nonce a year to lay their eggs.<\/p>\n
But the situation of Pacific leatherbacks -- which are
\ngenetically distinct from those in the Atlantic Ocean -- is
\nparticularly perilous because their numbers have sunk to about
\n3,000 from 91,000 just 20 years ago.<\/p>\n
This creates a downward spiral where fewer and fewer females
\nare left to reproduce, leaving the leatherbacks swimming toward
\nan uncertain future, scientists said.<\/p>\n
For example, last year just 68 of the animals, which spend
\nmost of their time in the water, nested on Costa Rica's most
\npopular leatherback beach, down from 1,600 only 15 years ago.<\/p>\n
More worrying, along Mexico's coast -- once described as the
\nlargest and most important leatherback nesting area in the world
\n-- only 50 females returned to lay eggs this past season,
\nresearchers said.<\/p>\n
3. PLASTIC: 2 lines, 27 counts<\/p>\n
'Smart' surgical plastic can
\nform new shapes inside body<\/p>\n
A plastic material that can be made to tie itself into a knot
\nshows promise for use as a surgical thread and for some medical
\nimplants.<\/p>\n
The material, made of thermoplastic polymers that can be
\nabsorbed by the body, can be engineered to retain a memory of a
\nspecific shape and to then transform itself into that shape when
\nwarmed to body temperature, said Robert Langer, the co-author of
\na study appearing in the electronic version of the journal
\nScience.<\/p>\n
The other author is Andreas Lendlein, a former researcher at
\nthe Massachusetts Institute of Technology, now teaches at the
\nUniversity of Technology in Germany,YTevtththehe TEchissbhe
\nLanger, a professor of chemistry at MIT, said the plastic could
\nbe used to make implants or bone screws that are not much bigger
\nthan a piece of string when they are inserted into the body. Once
\nthey warm up, the devices change to form the appropriate implant.<\/p>\n
\"In a test on mice, we showed we can make these sutures
\n(surgical stitches) actually tie themselves,\" said Langer.<\/p>\n
He said that since the material has a memory, it could be
\nthreaded into an incision as a loose knot. When it warms to the
\nbody's temperature, the material \"remembers\" its designed shape
\nand size and shrinks to tighten the wound. Later, after the wound
\nis healed, the material dissolves and is harmlessly absorbed by
\nthe body.<\/p>\n
\"It is like a smart suture,\" said Langer. \"That could be very
\nimportant in closing an incision in a place that is hard to reach
\nby surgeon.\"<\/p>\n
Langer said that modern, minimally invasive surgery often
\ninvolves a small incision through which is passed a flexible
\ntube. The surgical work is done by passing tools, stitching
\nmaterials and even implants down the small diameter of the tube
\nto site within the body.<\/p>\n
By using materials that are small when they enter the body and
\nthen spring into the proper size later, it may be possible to do
\nmore complicated operations using the flexible tube technique,
\ncalled laparoscopy, he said.<\/p>\n
The researcher said the material could be used to make
\nvascular stents, devices that hold open blocked arteries to allow
\neasy blood flow. Stents made of thermoplastic polymer material
\nwith a memory could be inserted as a small thread or string and
\nwould then spring to a designed shape and size once it is warmed
\nby the body, said Langer.<\/p>\n
More research on animals needs to be conducted before the
\nmaterial can be tested in humans, but Langer said that the basic
\npolymer materials have all been used in other implanted medical
\ndevices and been shown to be nontoxic. He said only basic
\nresearch with the material has been completed and more detailed
\nstudies are needed before the polymer-with-memory material can be
\ntested in humans.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/1-coral-2-lines-20-counts-each-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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