The Science Show

Diabetes type 2 cured by surgery Type 2 diabetes accounts for 90-95% of diabetes. Despite 20 years of research, the problem has not been solved. There are medicines to take, but when onset is early, patients will die early despite the many treatments. People think of diabetes as a chronic, progressive incurable disease. Richard Stubbs says this is wrong. He performs gastric bypass surgery for severely obese people. These people certainly lose weight. But in addition, if diabetic, their diabetes also stops. Richard Stubbs claims diabetes is a disease of the gut. His hypothesis is the portion of the gut bypassed in surgery is producing a hormone, currently unknown, which is antagonistic to insulin. Richard Stubbs is trying to identify the hormone, and when this happens, it can be targeted by drugs. Mercury released as coal is burnt in power stations It is estimated 60,000 babies are born each year in the United States with mercury-related diseases from the burning of coal in power stations. Other countries have less stringent regulations. World wide, this is a significant problem. Mercury also enters the environment and the food chain. Suresh Bhargava is working on monitoring mercury at power stations. The next step is to remove it at the source. WA school students compete in US BioGENEius challenge Yasmin Soliman and Kayla Mizzi are the two high school students who are finalists from Western Australia for the BioGENEius challenge in Atlanta Georgia. Yasmin has worked on selective spraying of wheat, rather than blanket spraying. Kayla Mizzi has worked on genetic therapy for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, a muscle-wasting disease that affects one in 3,500 young boys around the world. Science Student of the Year Western Australia 2008 Jacinta Delhaize received a scholarship to travel to Chile and work at the Gemini South Observatory in the Andes Mountains. She went on to talk about her experience with high school students and for this received the Science Student of the Year award. Her PhD will look at the evolution of hydrogen gas in galaxies. Western Australia´s Young Scientist of the Year 2008 Ben Corry works in the field of molecular biophysics and has advanced the understanding of biological ion channels - the proteins that regulate electrical signalling between cells. Using reverse osmosis and his understanding of ion channels, Ben has proposed cheaper ways for generating clean drinking water. Lakes in Antarctica The discovery of glacial lakes under the ice in Antarctica actively transporting water between reservoirs was a surprise. These lakes can be up to 3km beneath ice. The pressure of the ice melts the ice. Helen Amanda Fricker is mapping the lakes and monitoring the flow of water and ice. Ice melt in Greenland and Antarctica Snow reflects about 80% of incoming radiation. Ice reflects just 40%. So ice absorbs more heat. In Antarctica, melting occurs where the ice sheet meets the ocean. In Greenland, there is more melting over the whole ice sheet. Antarctica has experienced major shelf collapse recently. Mark Tedesco describes what it is known about melting over Greenland and in Antarctica and how he collects data in these extreme conditions.