The Know Daily - Wednesday 9 August 2023

_{Wednesday 9 August ∙ Read in 5m 20s ∙ Listening to The Cure}

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A series of underwater sculptures have been installed off the coast of Nacula Island, Fiji, as part of a pioneering new eco project. The installation, which is made from marine grade stainless steel and designed by not-for-profit Counting Coral, features 30 different species of coral with the aim of growing and restoring coral reefs as they face the threat of bleaching.

🌳 Amazon agreement

Eight South American countries agreed to form an alliance to protect the Amazon at a regional climate summit on Tuesday - but the nations have fallen short of a common goal to end deforestation.

Tell me about the summit.
Delegates from the eight countries that share the Amazon basin - Brazil, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Peru, Suriname and Venezuela - have been meeting in the Brazilian city of Belém for a two-day summit about the future of the world’s largest rainforest.

The first such gathering of its kind in 14 years was convened by Brazil’s leftist president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. The Guardian described the summit as a “handbrake turn” in Brazilian government policy following four years of Amazon destruction under his predecessor, Jair Bolsonaro.

What was agreed?
Ahead of the summit, Lula had called for a common goal of ending deforestation by 2030 - a policy his own government has already adopted. But the nations ultimately failed to agree on this, which Reuters said pointed to the “larger, global difficulties of forging an agreement to combat climate change”.

Instead, the Belém Declaration has outlined plans to cooperate on common negotiating positions at climate summits and fight illegal mining in the Amazon. It also strongly asserts indigenous rights and protections.

Why is this such a big deal?
Protecting the Amazon rainforest is regarded as key to the global fight against climate change - and the joint declaration states that the new alliance would aim to “prevent the Amazon from reaching a point of no return”.

“Some will be disappointed the language is not stronger,” said the BBC, “but the summit has signalled a desire among countries in the region to work towards solutions to one of the biggest challenges of our time”.

🩸 A bloody important study

Scientists hope that the first study to compare the absorbency of period products using human blood will help consumers better understand which products to opt for.

Tell me more.
Experts at Oregon Health and Science University in Portland, US, used packed red blood cells (what remains of whole blood after the plasma and platelets have been removed) to measure the capacity of 21 sanitary products.

This is unusual as manufacturers traditionally use “saline or water to estimate the absorption of their products” - even though blood has a different consistency, explained The Guardian.

What did they find?
The results, published in the journal BMJ Sexual & Reproductive Health, show that diaphragm-shaped menstrual discs hold the most blood on average, at 61ml. Tampons, pads and menstrual cups hold less (each are between 20-50ml). Absorbent knickers hold just 2ml of blood on average.

“The majority of products reported that they had greater capacity than our testing found,” researchers concluded, attributing the discrepancy to product testing with non-blood liquids such as saline.

What does this mean for consumers?
The findings have intensified expert calls to standardise the absorbency of period products. They argue that this would help menstruators to better understand which products to opt for - benefiting their health and their wallets. 

Researchers also stressed that their findings could help improve diagnosis and treatment for those experiencing a heavy flow - which, in rare cases, can be an indicator of an underlying health problem such as fibroids.

🚰 Sewage suit: Millions of households in England and Wales could receive compensation totalling more than £800m as a result of the first class action against water companies. The case alleges that six companies have failed to properly report sewage spills and the pollution of rivers and seas to the regulator.

🪜 A step down: Only 5,000 steps a day are needed to stay healthy, according to a new analysis of more than 226,000 people around the world - counteracting the belief that 10,000 steps a day is the “magic number” for staying fit and well.

🚓 PSNI data breach: Every police officer in Northern Ireland has had their data compromised in what the chair of the Police Federation for Northern Ireland (PFNI) described as a “monumental” security breach made as a result of human error.

⚖️ Sentencing for Stallion shooter: Canadian rapper Tory Lanez has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for shooting Grammy-winning artist Megan Thee Stallion on the way home from a pool party hosted by Kylie Jenner in 2020.

😕 Perkūnas the Pole: Kent locals have been baffled by a mysterious 8ft totem pole which appeared overnight along the cliff-top path on the North Downs Way. The installation has been carved from a single tree and is inscribed with the name Perkūnas - a Baltic God.

Trivia answer: B) A bear escaped from its crate in the hold of an Iraqi Airways plane and passengers were asked to disembark while the bear was removed. After checking out this video of the incident, we’re not sure whether we would have found the whole thing scary or adorable…

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