News at a glance: A respiratory disease vaccine, observing intensifying cyclones, and shaking a tall wooden building

ENGINEERING Tall wood building is shaken, but not scathed A 10-story wooden building survived two severe, simulated earthquakes intact this week as scientists sought to show that wood can rival steel and concrete to safely support tall buildings. The structure is the tallest ever tested at the University of California, San Diego’s earthquake simulator. As part of a project funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation, the machine subjected the building to the equivalent of the 1994 6.7 magnitude Northridge, California, quake. A few minutes later it re-created a 1999 7.7 magnitude temblor that struck Taiwan. The building is reinforced by narrow wooden panels running from the ground to the top of each of its four sides. These “rocking walls” are pinned in place by metal rods anchored to the ground and running through the panels to the top. They enable the walls to sway during a quake, then return to vertical. Scientists say using wood to construct tall buildings could lower their environmental footprint. INFECTIOUS DISEASES FDA approves first RSV vaccine A decadeslong effort to develop a vaccine against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), a respiratory pathogen that targets infants and the elderly, succeeded last week when the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) green-lighted one made by manufacturer GlaxoSmithKline. The vaccine, the first ever approved, will become available to people ages 60 and older if, as...
Source: Science of Aging Knowledge Environment - Category: Geriatrics Source Type: research