Moral judgments soften with time and distance, UCLA-led study shows
New research suggests that the human mind is disturbingly flexible about moral judgments.
An international team led by UCLA anthropology professor Daniel Fessler studied members of seven disparate societies, from rural New Guinea to urban California. They found that, regardless of where they were from, people judged acts like lying, theft and assault to be wrong — but less wrong if those acts happened far away or long ago, or if an authority figure suggested the acts were acceptable.
“This troubling finding helps explain why a blind eye is often turned to atrocities that occur abroad or are sanctioned by influential in...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - August 5, 2015 Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news
How science can help lessen the impact of storm surges on coastal communities – video
Australian scientists have used the example of the Cook Islands to look at how communities can prepare for violent storm surges. Across the South Pacific, tropical storms bring tidal surges that can devastate low-lying coastal communities. But complex modelling by researchers at the University of New South Wales is helping shed light on just how these wave systems workCatastrophic Science is a science and technology series produced by the University of New South Wales Continue reading... (Source: Guardian Unlimited Science)
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - July 22, 2015 Category: Science Authors: Guardian Staff Tags: Science South Pacific Tonga Samoa Fiji Source Type: news
People Are Asking Google If Climate Change Is Real
This year is shaping up to be the hottest on record. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on Monday released temperature data for June, ranking it as the warmest June in history. As temperatures remain high, people are turning to Google to ask about climate change -- what it is, if it's real and how to stop it, among other queries. (Though Google's data doesn't necessarily reflect people's attitude toward climate change or other environmental issues, there is a consensus in the scientific community that climate change is happening, that humans are largely responsible for ...
Source: Science - The Huffington Post - July 21, 2015 Category: Science Source Type: news
Iguana captive breeding program in Fiji posts first positive results
A group of endangered iguanas introduced to the Fijian island of Monuriki two months ago have been tracked down and appear to be healthyScientists have welcomed the first results of a captive breeding program aimed at saving a group of critically endangered Fijian crested iguanas, the first such attempt to reintroduce a species in that country.Some of the iguanas that were introduced to the Fijian island of Monuriki two months ago have been tracked down by scientists and appear to be healthy. Continue reading... (Source: Guardian Unlimited Science)
Source: Guardian Unlimited Science - July 14, 2015 Category: Science Authors: Monica Tan Tags: Fiji Asia Pacific Animals World news Wildlife Environment Science Source Type: news
High Hopes for High Seas!
When I took on the role of Pacific Ocean Commissioner in December last year, I was humbled and somewhat daunted at the prospect -- being a highlander from Papua New Guinea growing up far from the sea. However, the ocean is central to everything we do. It is our culture, our livelihood, our economy and, for many, the ocean is the mother of all things.
The centrality of the ocean in our lives was underscored at our inaugural Pacific Ocean Alliance meeting held in Suva, Fiji, 25-27 May 2015. As Pacific Ocean Commissioner, it is my job to facilitate this multi-stakeholder alliance of national, regional and international partn...
Source: Science - The Huffington Post - June 12, 2015 Category: Science Source Type: news
U.N. Challenges Asia-Pacific to Be World’s First Region to End AIDS Epidemic
HIV-positive women gather in Kathmandu, Nepal for a skills training. Credit: Bhuwan Sharma/IPSBy Thalif DeenUNITED NATIONS, Jun 5 2015 (IPS)The United Nations has expressed confidence that the Asia-Pacific region, with almost five million people living with HIV, is politically committed towards the elimination of the deadly disease AIDS.Michel Sidibé, executive director of UNAIDS, said the Asia-Pacific region is moving the world forward into new frontiers of development. "Our region has broken many barriers and saved countless lives, showing how developing countries can share responsibility, cooperate and take the lead in...
Source: IPS Inter Press Service - Health - June 5, 2015 Category: Global & Universal Authors: Thalif Deen Tags: Asia-Pacific Development & Aid Gender Global Governance Headlines Health Human Rights IPS UN: Inside the Glasshouse LGBTQ Population Poverty & SDGs Women's Health HIV/AIDS Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) Uni Source Type: news
Scientists 'amazed' at spread of typhoid 'superbug'
ConclusionThis study has provided information about the spread of a strain of typhoid called H58, which is commonly antibiotic-resistant, by looking at the genetics of samples collected between 1903 and 2013. It has shown that the strain was likely to have arisen in South Asia and then spread to Southeast Asia and Africa. The strain showed different patterns of antibiotic resistance in different regions – likely driven by different patterns in the use of antibiotics. While this study has not estimated the number of cases or deaths worldwide attributable to this strain specifically, there are reported to be 20-30 million ...
Source: NHS News Feed - May 12, 2015 Category: Consumer Health News Tags: Medical practice Source Type: news
Sendai Conference Stresses Importance of Women’s Leadership
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe says boosting women’s leadership in disaster risk reduction would be a key element of the country’s new programme of international support. Credit: Jamshed Baruah/IPSBy Jamshed Baruah and Katsuhiro AsagiriSENDAI, Japan, Mar 16 2015 (IPS)Women play a critical role in reducing disaster risk and planning and decision-making during and after disasters strike, according to senior United Nations, government and civil society representatives.In fact, efforts at reducing risks can never be fully effective or sustainable if the needs and voices of women are ignored, they agreed.WFP Executive ...
Source: IPS Inter Press Service - Health - March 16, 2015 Category: Global & Universal Authors: Jamshed Baruah and Katsuhiro Asagiri Tags: Active Citizens Aid Asia-Pacific Civil Society Development & Aid Featured Gender Global Global Governance Headlines Human Rights Humanitarian Emergencies Population Poverty & MDGs TerraViva United Nations Women & Climate Chan Source Type: news
When Ignorance Is Deadly: Pacific Women Dying From Lack of Breast Cancer Awareness
Local women's NGO, Vois Blong Mere, campaigns for women's rights in Honiara, capital of the Solomon Islands. Credit: Catherine Wilson/IPSBy Catherine WilsonSYDNEY, Jan 28 2015 (IPS)Women now face a better chance of surviving breast cancer in the Solomon Islands, a developing island state in the southwest Pacific Ocean, following the recent acquisition of the country’s first mammogram machine.But just a week ahead of World Cancer Day, celebrated globally on Feb. 4, many say that the benefit of having advanced medical technology, in a country where mortality occurs in 59 percent of women diagnosed with cancer, depends on i...
Source: IPS Inter Press Service - Health - January 28, 2015 Category: Global & Universal Authors: Catherine Wilson Tags: Asia-Pacific Civil Society Development & Aid Editors' Choice Education Featured Gender Global Governance Headlines Health Human Rights Population Poverty & MDGs Projects Regional Categories Women's Health Annals of Global H Source Type: news
Retrospective autopsy based study of fatal road traffic accidents in Fiji - Kalougivaki JJVP, Goundar RPS.
Road Traffic Accidents (RTA) account for 1.7% of global mortality and 91% of the world's fatalities on the roads occur in the low-income and middle-income countries [1]. In middle-income and developing countries like Fiji, the costs incurred as a result of... (Source: SafetyLit: All (Unduplicated))
Source: SafetyLit: All (Unduplicated) - January 5, 2015 Category: Global & Universal Tags: Distraction, Fatigue, Chronobiology, Vigilance, Workload Source Type: news
Apollo Hospitals and Fiji National University collaborate for healthcare development in Fiji
India-based Apollo Hospitals has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Fiji National University to develop healthcare in Fiji. (Source: Hospital Management)
Source: Hospital Management - November 24, 2014 Category: Hospital Management Source Type: news
Apollo Hospitals ties up with Fiji varsity for healthcare
The MoU was signed by Joint Managing Director of Apollo Group of Hospitals, Sangita Reddy and Vice-Chancellor of Fiji National University in Fiji. (Source: The Economic Times)
Source: The Economic Times - November 20, 2014 Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news
Mohamed Nasheed: 'There's Nothing More Conservative Than Conserving The Planet'
For Mohamed Nasheed, former president of the Maldives, stopping carbon emissions and adapting to climate change is a necessity. The Maldives sit at an average height of four feet above sea level, making them extremely vulnerable to rising seas. Nasheed, the the first democratically-elected president of the Maldives, called attention to the issue in 2009 by holding the first ever underwater cabinet meeting. Dressed in scuba gear, Nasheed called on world leaders to cut their carbon emissions. He was also the subject of a 2011 documentary about his work on climate change, called "The Island President."
Nasheed at the BLUE O...
Source: Science - The Huffington Post - November 14, 2014 Category: Science Source Type: news
Youth activists help adolescents beat the odds in remote Vanuatu - 03 October 2014
FIJI, South Pacific – When Bobby Shing’s grandmother died in 2001, it was a turning point. The musician from Aneityum, one of the most remote islands of Vanuatu, was just a child at the time, but he had already fallen into substance abuse. The loss of his grandmother made him realize he wanted to do more with his life. Now 23 years old, he runs a UNFPA-supported music programme that reaches out to vulnerable young people. (Source: UNFPA News)
Source: UNFPA News - November 3, 2014 Category: Global & Universal Source Type: news
