Meeting in the city of Windoek (Namibia), the plenary of the IPBES - Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services - has ratified two new reports: the Nexus Assessment and the Transformative Change Assessment. Three of their authors explained the main findings and the changes they propose at a briefing organised by SMC Spain.

The report 'Experiences of researchers who interact with the media and social networks in Spain', carried out by FECYT’s Science Media Centre Spain (SMC) in collaboration with the research group Gureiker, from the University of the Basque Country, analyses data from a survey, the first of its kind in Spain, on the relationship with the media and social networks of the expert sources contacted by the SMC Spain from March 2022 to July 2024. The results show that scientists have a positive or very positive perception of their participation in the media (83.12%). However, 51.05% of respondents admit to having suffered an attack after communicating science. Women receive significantly more attacks than men: 56.86% of female scientists report attacks compared to 46.21% of male scientists. The social network X (formerly Twitter) is the most common avenue for this type of attack. 

Most cases of autism have no known cause. Now, a study led at IRB Barcelona has discovered a mechanism that could explain a good part of these situations. The loss of a few amino acids in a crucial protein would affect the activity of hundreds of genes and the development of neurons. To explain the study, which is published in the journal Nature and which could open the door to future treatments, the Science Media Centre Spain organized an informative session with Raúl Méndez and Xavier Salvatella, the two scientists who have led the research. 

The DANA that devastated the province of Valencia on 29 October, leaving more than 200 people dead and many missing, has been followed by another one, still located over the peninsula. How can we adapt to these extreme phenomena? What repercussions do they have on public health? How can the public prepare for them? The Science Media Centre España organised a briefing session with two experts and an expert from the CSIC to discuss these questions. 

The largest carbon balance report shows that carbon dioxide emissions have not yet peaked and are projected to reach 37.4 billion tonnes by 2024. In a briefing organised by SMC Spain, Pep Canadell, one of the people in charge of the Global Carbon Budget 2024, analysed these data and what Donald Trump's return as US president means for climate action in the framework of COP29 in Baku.

A team led by the Carlos III Health Institute has analyzed how short-term concentrations of particles associated with wildfires and Saharan dust incursions influence hospital admissions in Spain due to mental and behavioral disorders. The results were explained in a briefing organized by the Science Media Centre Spain. 

A study published in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives has analysed hospital admissions in 48 Spanish provinces during the months of June to September between 2006 and 2019. Its results, discussed at a briefing organised by Science Media Centre Spain, show that high temperatures increase admissions for issues related to obesity and renal and urinary insufficiency, among other causes. 

Research involving more than 3,000 adolescents and children from all Spanish autonomous communities concludes that those living in less walkable neighbourhoods with lower socioeconomic status walk less and engage in less physical activity at weekends than those living in more walkable areas with higher socioeconomic status. The paper, published in the journal PLOS ONE and part of the PASOS study, was presented by two of its authors at a briefing organised by SMC Spain. 

At an informative meeting organized by the Science Media Centre Spain, the coauthor of a paper published this week in the journal Cell discussed his findings with journalists. Although the study was conducted with mice, he is confident in being able to analyze human eggs to see if his conclusions could explain the loss of fertility that occurs in women with age.

The largest meta-analysis to date that studies the risk of children of people with a mental disorder also suffering from some type of mental disorder during their lifetime has been published, with Spanish participation. According to the study, the risk is more than double that of the rest of the population. To explain the study and resolve any doubts that may arise, the Science Media Centre Spain organised an information session with one of the authors, psychiatrist Joaquim Raduà.