| Diplomats agree on "weak" text for Rio+20 summit Jun 20th 2012, 01:10 1 of 4. Giant fish made with plastic bottles are exhibited at Botafogo beach, in Rio de Janeiro June 19, 2012. Credit: Reuters / Ueslei Marcelino RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - Diplomats from over 190 countries agreed on a draft text on green global development on Tuesday to be approved this week at a summit in Rio de Janeiro, but environmentalists complained the agreement was too weak. The summit, known as Rio+20, was supposed to hammer out aspirational, rather than mandatory sustainable development goals across core areas like food security, water and energy, but the draft text agreed upon by diplomats failed to define those goals or give clear timetables toward setting them. It is "telling that nobody in that room adopting the text was happy. That's how weak it is," the European Union's climate commissioner Connie Hedegaard said on social network Twitter. The text "has too much 'take note' and 'reaffirm' and too little 'decide' and 'commit'. (The) big task now for U.N. nations to follow up" on this, she added. Expectations were low for the summit because politicians' attention is more focused on the euro zone crisis, a presidential election in the United States and turmoil in the Middle East than on the environment. The first Rio Earth summit in 1992 paved the way for a global treaty on biodiversity, and the 1997 Kyoto Protocol on greenhouse gases, which is due to expire this year. The Rio+20 moniker is a nod to the 1992 summit. Heads of state and ministers, including Russian President Vladimir Putin, French President Francois Hollande and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, will meet with diplomats representing other nations from Wednesday for three days to discuss the text and possibly make some changes to its wording. Observers do not expect major amendments. U.S. special envoy for climate change, Todd Stern, told reporters on Tuesday he did not expect the document to change much after heads of state meet to discuss it. "We don't have anything that we are expecting to try to drive into the document that is not there yet," he said. 'OVER BEFORE IT'S STARTED' Environmental groups criticized the text, saying it omitted or watered down important proposals and challenged heads of state to act urgently to respond to climate change. "This summit could be over before it's started. World leaders arriving tonight must start afresh. Rio+20 should be a turning point," said Oxfam spokesman Stephen Hale. "There's no sign of that here. Almost a billion hungry people deserve better." The draft text omitted a clause calling for governments to phase out fossil fuel subsidies, which have nearly tripled since 2009, despite a pledge by G20 countries to eliminate them. Phasing out fossil fuel subsidies by 2020 would reduce annual global energy demand by 5 percent and carbon dioxide emissions by nearly 6 percent, according to the International Energy Agency. Oil producing countries, including Venezuela and Canada, blocked inclusion of the clause, despite a huge social media push on Monday to include phase-out language in the text, with over 100,000 tweets on Twitter with the hashtag
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Posted by Melody on 3:21 PM
Blogtrottr | Reuters: Science News | | Reuters.com is your source for breaking news, business, financial and investing news, including personal finance and stocks. Reuters is the leading global provider of news, financial information and technology solutions to the world's media, financial institutions, businesses and individuals. // via fulltextrssfeed.com | | | Diplomats agree on "weak" text for Rio+20 green summit Jun 19th 2012, 21:59 1 of 2. Giant fish made with plastic bottles are exhibited at Botafogo beach, in Rio de Janeiro June 19, 2012. Credit: Reuters / Ueslei Marcelino RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - Diplomats from over 190 countries agreed on a draft text on green global development on Tuesday to be approved this week at a summit in Rio de Janeiro, but environmentalists complained the agreement was too weak. The summit, known as Rio+20, was supposed to hammer out aspirational, rather than mandatory sustainable development goals across core areas like food security, water and energy, but the draft text agreed upon by diplomats failed to define those goals or give clear timetables toward setting them. It is "telling that nobody in that room adopting the text was happy. That's how weak it is," the European Union's climate commissioner Connie Hedegaard said on social network Twitter. The text "has too much 'take note' and 'reaffirm' and too little 'decide' and 'commit'. (The) big task now for U.N. nations to follow up" on this, she added. Expectations were low for the summit because politicians' attention is more focused on the euro zone crisis, a presidential election in the United States and turmoil in the Middle East than on the environment. The first Rio Earth summit in 1992 paved the way for a global treaty on biodiversity, and the 1997 Kyoto Protocol on greenhouse gases, which is due to expire this year. The Rio+20 moniker is a nod to the 1992 summit. Heads of state and ministers, including Russian President Vladimir Putin, French President Francois Hollande and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, will meet with diplomats representing other nations from Wednesday for three days to discuss the text and possibly make some changes to its wording. Observers do not expect major amendments. U.S. special envoy for climate change, Todd Stern, told reporters on Tuesday he did not expect the document to change much after heads of state meet to discuss it. "We don't have anything that we are expecting to try to drive into the document that is not there yet," he said. 'OVER BEFORE IT'S STARTED' Environmental groups criticized the text, saying it omitted or watered down important proposals and challenged heads of state to act urgently to respond to climate change. "This summit could be over before it's started. World leaders arriving tonight must start afresh. Rio+20 should be a turning point," said Oxfam spokesman Stephen Hale. "There's no sign of that here. Almost a billion hungry people deserve better." The draft text omitted a clause calling for governments to phase out fossil fuel subsidies, which have nearly tripled since 2009, despite a pledge by G20 countries to eliminate them. Phasing out fossil fuel subsidies by 2020 would reduce annual global energy demand by 5 percent and carbon dioxide emissions by nearly 6 percent, according to the International Energy Agency. Oil producing countries, including the United States, Venezuela and Canada, blocked inclusion of the clause, despite a huge social media push on Monday to include phase-out language in the text, with over 100,000 tweets on Twitter with the hashtag
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Posted by Melody on 10:15 PM
| Reuters: Science News | | Reuters.com is your source for breaking news, business, financial and investing news, including personal finance and stocks. Reuters is the leading global provider of news, financial information and technology solutions to the world's media, financial institutions, businesses and individuals. // via fulltextrssfeed.com | | | Biotech improved in 2011; future uncertain: report Jun 19th 2012, 04:21 (Reuters) - The aggregate financial performance of biotechnology companies in four of the world's major markets -- the United States, Europe, Canada and Australia -- improved in 2011, but funding for small companies is increasingly scarce, raising questions as to whether that growth is sustainable long term, according to a new report. Revenue growth rose 10 percent last year, excluding revenue from three large companies that were acquired, the first time top-line growth has reach double digits since the financial crisis hit the industry in 2009, according to a new report by accounting firm Ernst & Young. "While this is still a far cry from the high double-digit growth rates the industry delivered through much of the last decade, companies are also operating in a new reality now, with more cautious regulators and increased pricing pressure from payers," the report noted. Spending on research and development, an indicator of a company's financial health and confidence in the future, rose 9 percent, compared with 2 percent in 2010 and a decline of 21 percent in 2009. Still, net income fell an adjusted 5 percent. Ernst & Young said the decline was a sign companies may have become more willing to loosen their purse strings after sharply cutting costs in 2009 and, to a lesser extent, in 2010. "A decline in profitability may simply be a sign that things are indeed starting to return to normal," the report said. Mergers and acquisition activity increased. The number of transactions increased to 57 from 49 in 2010. Total deal value rose to $25 billion from $20 billion, excluding some $30 billion from three large deals -- Sanofi SA's $20.1 billion acquisition of Genzyme; Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd's $6.8 billion acquisition of Cephalon; and Grifols SA's $3.4 billion acquisition of Talecris Biotherapeutics. Among the 57 transactions that took place or closed in 2011, only seven buyers were big pharmaceutical companies. The rest were big biotech firms such as Amgen Inc, specialty drugmakers such as Forest Laboratories Inc and Japanese pharmaceutical companies. "We are unlikely to see many, if any, additional megadeals involving big pharma in the foreseeable future, as most companies have announced their intention to focus on smaller "tuck-in" deals" valued at below $5 billion," the report noted. GROWTH SLOWED BY DEBT, PATENT EXPIRATIONS Many drug companies have taken on more debt as a result of prior mergers. They are also seeing slowing revenue growth as many top-selling drugs lose patent protection. At the same time, they are maintaining dividends and engaging in stock buybacks. All these actions have reduced the acquisition "firepower" of the pharmaceutical industry by as much as 30 percent, according to an Ernst & Young analysis. Meanwhile, the market value of the top biotech companies -- Biogen Idec Inc, Celgene Corp and Gilead Sciences -- all top $30 billion, most likely placing them out of reach as acquisition targets. Amgen's market value now tops $55 billion. It issued more than $10.5 billion in debt, repaid $2.5 billion, bought back $8.3 billion of its shares and paid its first dividend of $400 million. Overall, the biotech industry raised $33.4 billion in funding in 2011, second only to 2000, the height of the biotech bubble. However, much of the increase in 2011 came from debt, which rose to $17 billion, the highest in a decade. The biggest companies took advantage of low interest rates to raise debt to finance stock buybacks or acquisitions, the report said. Unlike the United States, financing in Europe has not regained pre-crisis levels, reflecting the battle within Eurozone countries over the debt of some members. (Reporting By Toni Clarke; Editing by Bob Burgdorfer) - Link this
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Posted by Melody on 10:12 AM
| Reuters: Science News | | Reuters.com is your source for breaking news, business, financial and investing news, including personal finance and stocks. Reuters is the leading global provider of news, financial information and technology solutions to the world's media, financial institutions, businesses and individuals. // via fulltextrssfeed.com | | | Expectations low for Rio+20 U.N. development summit Jun 18th 2012, 16:38 By Paulo Prada and Nina Chestney RIO DE JANEIRO | Mon Jun 18, 2012 12:28pm EDT RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - As Brazil welcomes nearly 120 heads of state and government for a summit on global development this week, the mood could not be more different than it was two decades ago, when global leaders gathered here for the landmark Earth Summit. Back then, once-arcane concerns about climate change and deforestation had finally grabbed the world's attention, leading to a global treaty on biodiversity and decisions that cleared the way for the Kyoto agreement on greenhouse gases. Now, though, the minds of global leaders are elsewhere. Instead of clean energy, food, the oceans and other topics scheduled for debate at Rio+20, as the summit is known, political focus is attuned to a teetering Europe, turmoil in the Middle East and a presidential campaign in the United States. Although more than 50,000 visitors are expected in Rio de Janeiro by the end of the three-day event starting Wednesday, few concrete results are expected from the summit. At best, officials could agree on clarity for proposed "sustainable development goals," a loose tripod of economic, environmental and social objectives that proponents believe could help guide global development. So dim are the prospects that Brazil's lead negotiator in the run-up warned that the summit risked being "held hostage" by other priorities. "We are here to think about the long term," said Luiz Alberto Figueiredo, an undersecretary at Brazil's Foreign Ministry, "not crises that may be overcome in one or two years." But hopes have long been low for the summit, officially called the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development. U.S. President Barack Obama said months ago he would not attend. The leaders of Germany and Britain are staying home, too. Many of those who do come likely will be focused on matters discussed Monday and Tuesday at the Group of 20 meeting in Mexico, where leaders of the world's major economies are debating the global economic downturn. Still, some reject the notion that gains cannot be made in Rio. Former U.S. President Bill Clinton, on a conference call about climate issues, called Rio+20 an important "working conference." "Everybody has made all the speeches they can make," Clinton said on Monday, predicting that delegations from the United States and Europe would still be productive despite the absence of major heads of state. His wife, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, is leading the U.S. delegation. FOCUS ON DEVELOPMENT, NOT ENVIRONMENT Brazil, a prominent voice in the environmental debate as home to the world's biggest rainforest, for months has been tempering the hopes of environmentalists seeking a repeat of the 1992 summit. After a decade-long economic boom, Brazil and other big emerging nations refuse to put environmental concerns ahead of their own drive for growth. "The summit can't just be about the environment," Antonio Patriota, Brazil's foreign minister, said in a recent interview. "It has to be about development." Environmentalists say the planet is no better off now than in 1992. With continued melting of polar icecaps, record greenhouse emissions last year and a global population on track to grow to at least 9 billion by 2050, according to U.N. projections, existing policies have done little to assuage human demands on the global ecosystem, they argue. A key difference from two decades ago is that the Earth Summit was the culmination of years of negotiations to fashion some of the first international environmental policies ever created. This meeting, by contrast, is the beginning of a process to establish so-called "sustainable development goals." When established, the goals are expected to build upon a current round of objectives, known as the millennium goals, which U.N. members agreed to pursue at least through 2015. Those objectives include eradicating hunger and extreme poverty, improving access to education and reducing child mortality. LITTLE PROGRESS IN PRE-SUMMIT NEGOTIATIONS U.N. negotiations are slow-moving processes that require finding common ground among 193 member countries and bridging huge gulfs in priorities between the developed world and emerging markets. And the sustainable development goals, while still being defined, are built around three vague issues that mean different things to different countries: economic development, social inclusion and the environment. "The specific objectives differ globally, between and within societies," Jeffrey Sachs, the Columbia University economist, wrote in a recent essay, noting no consensus on priorities. Delegations hammering out a declaration for Rio+20 in recent days have not gotten far on building that consensus. After plans to wrap up a draft by the weekend failed, delegations are now scrambling to get something together by the time their leaders descend upon Rio mid-week. "We see a lopsided victory of weak words over action words," said Lasse Gustavsson, leader of the World Wildlife Fund's delegation at the summit. As with long-simmering differences over greenhouse emissions, use of the seas and other divisive issues, negotiators are haggling over wording and implications the text could have on the entrenched positions of rich countries, developing nations and regional blocs. The United States, for instance, opposes the inclusion of a phrase favored by emerging markets. The phrase, "common but differentiated responsibilities," reflects what developing nations consider their right to catch up with the rich world and as such have more leeway on emissions and other environmental concerns. China, for instance, is now the world's largest emitter of greenhouse gases but it is still far behind developed nations in per-capita prosperity. The timing of the summit also means countries are reluctant to consider financial commitments. Talk of the creation of a $30 billion fund for development goals quickly faded. "We dont think there is any one fund that can solve these problems," Kerri-Ann Jones, an assistant U.S. secretary of state, said in a briefing last week. RIO BRACES FOR GRIDLOCK In Brazil, organizers hope that at least the logistics of the event come off successfully. As the country gears up to host the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympics, it is scrambling to upgrade highways, airports, stadiums, and other facilities needed to accommodate the expected crush of visitors. With millions of new cars on the road after a decade of prosperity, cities like Rio and Sao Paulo are routinely crippled by traffic and minor emergencies that strain old and rickety infrastructure. In recent days, Rio residents have been bracing for gridlock once authorities close lanes, slow air traffic and beef up security to make way for expected leaders including Russian President Vladimir Putin, Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao, and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Meanwhile, the already colorful city has seen a splash of summit-related demonstrations by activists. On Sunday, demonstrators on Copacabana beach unfurled a giant "trillion dollar bill" to protest fossil fuel subsidies by governments. On Tuesday, demonstrators are scheduled to cart a replica of a military tank, made of bread, into a slum to protest the precedence of defense budgets over social spending. - Link this
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Posted by Melody on 10:12 AM
| Reuters: Science News | | Reuters.com is your source for breaking news, business, financial and investing news, including personal finance and stocks. Reuters is the leading global provider of news, financial information and technology solutions to the world's media, financial institutions, businesses and individuals. // via fulltextrssfeed.com | | | Real-time gene sequencing used to combat superbug Jun 18th 2012, 06:49  An employee displays MRSA (Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) bacteria strain inside a petri dish containing agar jelly for bacterial culture in a microbiological laboratory in Berlin March 1, 2008. Credit: Reuters/Fabrizio Bensch LONDON (Reuters) - Scientists have used genome sequencing technology to control an outbreak of the superbug MRSA in a study that could point to faster and more efficient treatment of a range of diseases. The work adds to a burgeoning body of research into better techniques for diagnosing disease more quickly and at an earlier stage to allow more effective treatment and reduce healthcare costs. Much of this is being driven by whole genome sequencing, which has enabled scientists to identify the genetic markers for a range of afflictions. MRSA, or Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus, is a drug-resistant bacterial infection, or superbug, and major public health problem. When outbreaks occur in hospitals it can lead to the closure of whole wards and lengthy investigations. The bug kills an estimated 19,000 people in the United States alone each year, and even when the infection is successfully treated it can double the average length of a hospital stay and thereby increase healthcare costs. A team of scientists from the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, the University of Cambridge and genome sequencing company Illumina Inc, used samples from a 2009 MRSA outbreak in a hospital neo-natal intensive care ward to recreate and respond to it, as if in real time. They found that genome sequencing produced results in roughly 24 hours, using the latest technology from Illumina, gave much more detailed information. The researchers were able to identify the particular strain of MRSA causing the outbreak, and which strains were not, quickly enough to feed back into treatment and nip the outbreak in the bud faster than current clinical testing methods. "I think we are at the very beginning of an explosion of evidence to support the use of whole genome sequencing in public health," Sharon Peacock of Cambridge University, who led the study, told Reuters. The research, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, comes hot on the heels of similar work done on MRSA and Clostridium difficile by a team from Oxford University with Illumina and a group of hospitals in Britain. That study was published earlier this month in the journal BMJ Open. Oxford microbiologist Derrick Crook, who worked on that project, said that as recently as two years ago "it would have taken months and thousands of pounds to process such informative sequence information on hospital infections." Until recently, genetic analysis was more often done after outbreaks of MRSA and other infections to draw lessons for the future, but advances in sequencing have made the process much faster. Experts say current techniques for analyzing MRSA do not give such detailed data meaning they are a blunt tool for dealing with an outbreak. "Quick action is essential to control a suspected outbreak, but it is of equal importance to identify unrelated strains to prevent unnecessary ward closures and other disruptive control measures," said Julian Parkhill, who worked on the study at the Sanger Institute. The researchers say this kind of fast genome sequencing could eventually form the basis for a regional or national infection surveillance program designed to head off MRSA outbreaks before they happen. It could also be used for outbreaks of food-borne infections like salmonella or E.coli. Genome sequencing was used in an E.coli outbreak in Europe in 2011 but only in the latter stages to help identify the source. But there are a number of hurdles before the new technique becomes a routine part of monitoring in hospitals. Peacock says the next stage is to develop software that interprets the data in a way doctors can both understand and use in a hospital. She also points out that while the study indicates this kind of sequencing is cheaper than existing, less detailed, tests, there will also need to be rigorous cost-benefit analysis. Nevertheless, Illumina's senior director of research Geoffrey Smith, who co-led the study, said the results demonstrate "how advances in whole genome sequencing can provide essential information to help combat hospital outbreaks in clinically relevant turnaround times." (Editing by Jon Hemming) - Link this
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