Publications by authors named "M Balick"

Based on original ethnographic and ethnobotanical research, we share how in the cosmology of Tanna, an island in Vanuatu's southernmost province of Tafea, the Sun is viewed as a living, interactive being. Our initial interviews explored knowledge and beliefs concerning individual plant species, then subsequent follow-up interviews further explored topics that emerged therefrom. The results of these interviews are a series of oral narratives of the mytho-historical past involving the Sun, and the description of contemporary practices which are influenced by the Sun.

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Assessing how forests respond to, and recuperate from, cyclones is critical to understanding forest dynamics and planning for the impacts of climate change. Projected increases in the intensity and frequency of severe cyclones can threaten both forests and forest-dependent communities. The Pacific Islands are subject to frequent low-intensity cyclones, but there is little information on the effects of high intensity cyclones, or on how forest stewardship practices may affect outcomes.

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A method to identify anticancer compounds in plants was proposed based on the hypothesis that these compounds are primarily present in plants to provide them with an ecological advantage over neighboring plants and other competitors. According to this view, identifying plants that contain compounds that inhibit or interfere with the development of other plant species may facilitate the discovery of novel anticancer agents. The method was developed and tested using , , , and , which are plant species known to possess compounds with cytotoxic activities.

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Background: The global spread of COVID-19 has shown that reliable forecasting of public health related outcomes is important but lacking.

Methods: We report the results of the first large-scale, long-term experiment in crowd-forecasting of infectious-disease outbreaks, where a total of 562 volunteer participants competed over 15 months to make forecasts on 61 questions with a total of 217 possible answers regarding 19 diseases.

Results: Consistent with the "wisdom of crowds" phenomenon, we found that crowd forecasts aggregated using best-practice adaptive algorithms are well-calibrated, accurate, timely, and outperform all individual forecasters.

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Article Synopsis
  • TriCurin, a mixture of curcumin, EGCG, and resveratrol, effectively eliminates HPV(+) cancer cells in laboratory settings.
  • The study shows that TriCurin and its components significantly inhibit the growth of cervical cancer cells, activate tumor-suppressing genes, and are safe for cervical tissue use.
  • TriCurin combined with another compound, tanshinone IIA, enhances its cancer-fighting effects, making it a promising option for cervical cancer treatment and prevention.
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