Feature Article

The US Centers for Disease Control has been accused of withholding data related to health risks in and around the Great Lakes area. But the agency says the report, pairing toxin concentrations with human health concerns, which was due out last year, had "deficiencies'.

Observations have shown that the hydrological cycle of the western United States changed significantly over the last half of the 20th century. We present a regional, multivariable climate change detection and attribution study, using a high-resolution hydrologic model forced by global climate models, focusing on the changes that have already affected this primarily arid region with a large and growing population.

The report by K.Van Oost et al., "The impact of agricultural soil erosion on the global carbon cycle" (26 October 2007, p. 626) raises two serious concerns. First, the eroded soil is severely depleted of its soil organic matter (SOM) pool, which is preferentially removed by surface runoff because it has low density and is concentrated in the surface layer. Second, the process of soil erosion by water entails three distinct stages : (i) detachment, (ii) transport/redistribution, and (iii) deposition. (Letters)

One million tons of atmospheric carbon dioxide are dissolved into the oceans every hour, a process that helps maintain the Earth's delicate carbon balance. But CO2 also makes seawater more acidic, and too much of it can wreak havoc on a marine species.

The use of new sampling techniques has cut by half the estimated number of wild tigers in India. A new report from the Indian government puts the number at 1411, compared with 3642 in 2002. Experts say the decline reflects more than just a change in methodology: Poaching, human encroachment and habitat loss take a heavy toll.

Lawmakers are again asserting that the Bush Administration is meddling in science. House Science Committee Democrats charge that federal officials have suppressed a report on potential health threats from pollution in the Great Lakes. They also say officials at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, Georgia, may have punished a career federal scientist who oversaw it. CDC says the report had genuine scientific flaws.

Seabirds are sensitive indicators of changes in marine ecosystems and might integrate and/or amplify the effects of climate forcing on lower levels in food chains. Current knowledge on the impact of climate changes on penguins is primarily based on Antarctic birds identified by using flipper bands.

In September 2003, the government of Gujarat introduced the Jyotirgram Yojana to improve rural power supply. Two major changes have since taken place: (a) villages get 24 hour three-phase power supply for domestic use, in schools, hospitals, village industries, all subject to metered tariff; and (b) tubewell owners get eight hours/day of power but of full voltage and on a pre-announced schedule. It has, however, offered a mixed bag to medium and large farmers and hit marginal farmers and the landless. This article offers an assessment of the impact of Jyotirgram, and argues that with some refinements it presents a model that other states can follow with profit. Feb 16-22, 2008

Bihar's fall from a state with healthy socio-economic indices to now being one of India's least developed states has been drastic. The major failures lie in governance, and in the downfall of the agricultural sector. A study of the perennial story of flooding and relief measures and the consequent failure of agriculture show how disorganised the state of affairs is. Feb 16-22, 2008

This article critically examines the use of the Rural Infrastructure Development Fund by different states and finds that a number of aspects need to be improved to ensure proper utilisation and to reduce intra-rural disparity in India. Feb 16-22, 2008