Photo: Susan G. Komen 3-Day/Unsplash (CC0)
In today’s edition: a genomic test could help millions of breast cancer patients avoid chemotherapy in favour of more effective and less taxing treatments, Brazil’s lower house voices overwhelming support for a reduced working week, and a Dutch company is offering free poffertjes to patrons under one condition: they hand over cigarette butts.
For decades, there has been little choice for breast cancer patients. Now scientists have developed a genomic test that can spot who needs chemotherapy and who doesn’t. The breakthrough enables doctors to determine which patients can safely skip it, paving the way for a new era of personalised medicine.
Source: The Guardian
An experimental drug for hepatitis B is letting some patients stop treatment without showing signs of the dangerous liver virus, according to new research. In multiple studies, roughly 1 in 5 patients given the experimental drug saw their virus reduced to levels low enough for the immune system to keep in check.
Source: CNN
Batteries counter the long-used arguments against renewables by letting solar power be stored and used when it is needed. But while solar panel prices fell rapidly a few years ago, it is only in recent years that batteries have become similarly available and affordable.
Source: The Guardian
Large battery-electric ferries are now rolling through Incat’s production line – a family-run Tasmanian company historically famous for making some of the world’s fastest aluminium ferries. Now, the shipbuilders have switched gears, looking to deprioritise speed in favour of low-energy alternatives.
Source: Renew Economy
In line with a growing number of other countries across Latin America that have shortened working hours, Brazil’s parliament have provisionally backed a change to existing labour laws. The proposal is widely popular in Brazil, with cross-party support within government.
Source: AP News
A relic of slavery times more than 200 years after its abolition in France, the so-called “Black Code” that classifies humans as property has nonetheless stayed on the books. Last week in an emotional and historic session, France’s lower house of parliament voted to officially remove it
Source: AP News
With twelve social housing apartments spread across three floors, ViliaSprint² was created by developer Plurial Novilia. Their goal is to reduce the amount of time allotted to conventional construction and to lower the costs of building homes substantially.
Source: New Atlas
Cigarette butts are the most common form of plastic waste in the world, with more than 4.5tn butts produced every year. To tackle the problem, one company is accepting them as payment for a plate of poffertjes: small Dutch pancakes usually eaten with mountains of butter and sugar.
Source: The Guardian
“Schule ohne Rassismus – Schule mit Courage” is Germany’s largest school network, walking 10th and 11th-grade students through workshops on racism, bystander intervention and sexualised violence. The event known as a “Day of Courage” is far from a one-off awareness campaign: it’s part of a wider effort to embed anti-discrimination into everyday school life.
Source: Reasons To Be Cheerful
Ian Hughes has dedicated more than a decade to conserving the tiny mollusc and other rare species, often with only his enthusiastic family for help. These gastropods live in low-calcium habitats, meaning their shells are extremely delicate. Along with his son, Hughes builds and installs shell-shaped concrete refuges for the snails.
Source: The Guardian
