HEALTH AND SCIENCE HIGHLIGHTS

October 1, 2016 (San Diego's East County) -- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting-edge news that could impact your health and our future.

HEALTH

• Zika mystery: How did a 73-year-old man infect his son? (NPR)
• The drug industry might finally have an answer for migraines (PBS)
• 'No proof' fitness trackers promote weight loss (BBC)
• Walking Fends Off Disability, And It's Not Too Late to Start (NPR)
• Miami Neighborhood Declared Zika Free as CDC Lifts Warning (NPR)
• Don't Kiss That Kitty: Cat-Scratch Fever Is Making People Sicker (NPR)
• 50 Years Ago, Sugar Industry Quietly Paid Scientists to Point Blame at Fat (NPR)
• EPA Weighs in On Glyphosate, Says It Doesn't Cause Cancer (NPR)
• Older People Might Consider Waiting a Bit Longer to Get Flu Shot (NPR)
• Denmark's 'House of Memories' Re-Creates 1950s for Alzheimer's Patients (NPR)

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

• Hardware hack defeats iPhone passcode security (BBC)
• Wilderness on Earth diminishes by 10 percent, says study (CS Monitor)
• Chinese space station set to fall out of sky. How did that happen? (CS Monitor)
• How a wobbly Earth may have drawn ancient migrants out of Africa (CS Monitor)
• NASA's Hubble Spots Possible Water Plumes Erupting on Jupiter's Moon Europa (Hubblesite)
• European Union seeks to tighten up copyright laws (Marketplace)
• Republicans Say Obama Administration Is Giving Away the Internet (NPR)
• Is your flat-screen TV gulping more electricity than advertised? (CS Monitor)

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.

HEALTH

Zika mystery: How did a 73-year-old man infect his son? (NPR)

…the level of virus in his blood was astronomical.

The drug industry might finally have an answer for migraines (PBS)

There are few effective treatments for migraines — but that could soon change. 

'No proof' fitness trackers promote weight loss (BBC)

Wearing an activity device that counts how many steps you have taken does not appear to improve the chances of losing weight, research suggests.

Walking Fends Off Disability, And It's Not Too Late to Start (NPR)

Nobody wants to spend the last few decades of their lives in a wheelchair. People in their 70s and 80s recovered more quickly from physical setbacks if they remained active, a study finds.

Miami Neighborhood Declared Zika Free as CDC Lifts Warning (NPR)

In Miami, officials touted the good news that the first area in the continental U.S. with local transmission of Zika, the Wynwood neighborhood, has had no cases for 45 days. The news comes as a second area with local Zika transmission on Miami Beach was expanded after new cases were found.

Don't Kiss That Kitty: Cat-Scratch Fever Is Making People Sicker (NPR)

Doctors have long thought that cat-scratch fever is no big deal, but an analysis finds that more people are getting sicker from it. Small children are especially at risk, as are people in the South.

50 Years Ago, Sugar Industry Quietly Paid Scientists to Point Blame at Fat (NPR)

Documents show that in the '60s, the sugar industry funded Harvard researchers who, examining risk factors of heart disease, dismissed concerns about sugar and doubled down on the dangers of fat.

EPA Weighs in On Glyphosate, Says It Doesn't Cause Cancer (NPR)

The Environmental Protection Agency says that the country's most widely used weedkiller, glyphosate, does not cause cancer. The chemical has been under intense international scrutiny.

Older People Might Consider Waiting a Bit Longer to Get Flu Shot (NPR)

Immunologist Laura Haynes suggests people over 65 wait until Halloween to get their flu shots, to make sure the immunity lasts through the flu season.

Denmark's 'House of Memories' Re-Creates 1950s for Alzheimer's Patients (NPR)

The apartment in a museum is a detailed reconstruction of a 1950s home, with all its smells, sounds and textures. Psychologists say it can spark memories for people with dementia.

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

Hardware hack defeats iPhone passcode security (BBC)

IPhone passcodes can be bypassed using just £75 ($100) of electronic components, research suggests.

Wilderness on Earth diminishes by 10 percent, says study (CSMonitor)

Scientists from the Wildlife Conservation Society used satellite and survey data to conclude that human interference has led to a 10 percent decline in wilderness on Earth over the last few decades.  At the moment, only about 23 percent of the world's land area is made up of wilderness, the study found.

Chinese space station set to fall out of sky. How did that happen? (CS Monitor)

Chinese officials appear to have admitted they lost control of the Tiangong-1, the country's first space station. 

How a wobbly Earth may have drawn ancient migrants out of Africa (CS Monitor)

Small changes in the Earth's tilt may have shifted the climate enough to drive a dispersal of ancient humans from their original native continent.

NASA's Hubble Spots Possible Water Plumes Erupting on Jupiter's Moon Europa (Hubblesite)

Europa. This finding bolsters other Hubble observations suggesting the icy moon erupts with high-altitude water vapor plumes.

The observation increases the possibility that missions to Europa may be able to sample Europa's ocean without having to drill through miles of ice.

European Union seeks to tighten up copyright laws (Marketplace)

A new proposal for regulating the internet is out today in the European Union, following months of work by the European Commission to clarify rules and regulations about broadband and copyright.  But the copyright rules have already proven controversial, and are likely to face pushback from both U.S.-based companies like Google and Facebook, and European consumer advocates.  

Republicans Say Obama Administration Is Giving Away the Internet (NPR)

The U.S. is about to complete its long-planned handover of Internet domain name management to a global non-profit. Republicans argue it's an example of the Obama administration giving up U.S. power.

Is your flat-screen TV gulping more electricity than advertised? (CS Monitor)

An environmental group on Wednesday accused three major television manufacturers of misleading consumers and regulators about how much energy their high-definition screens devour by designing them to draw less power during government testing than in ordinary use.