Concerning new report reveals hidden health risks of cryptocurrency mining: ‘I can feel it in my chest’

Residents in Granbury, Texas, where a 300-megawatt mining operation runs day and night, describe the sound as similar to living next to a jet engine. “It wakes you up. I’ll be asleep, and everything will be fine, and then I’ll wake up because I can feel it in my chest,” says Shenice Copenhaver, who lives less than a mile from the facility, per The Guardian.

“Disrupted sleep causes a cascade of other issues in someone’s life. Lack of sleep is linked to depression, higher stress levels and chronic diseases like hypertension,” explains Mary Willis, assistant professor of epidemiology at Boston University.

Why Massachusetts women have fewer children and Trump’s $5,000 ‘baby bonus’ won’t help

Experts caution that much of the nuance gets lost in the political noise. To better understand what’s behind Massachusetts’ baby bust — and whether proposals like President Trump’s suggested $5,000 “baby bonus” could reverse it — the Globe spoke with leading demographers, epidemiologists, and public health researchers. These experts point not to a single cause, but to a tangle of interwoven factors — some personal, others structural.

The links between unstable housing and health

Children and their caregivers who live in unstable housing situations are more likely to have health-related issues than their more financially stable peers.

That was keynote speaker Stephanie Ettinger de Cuba’s main message at Polk County Housing Trust Fund’s recent Housing Matters Symposium.

“Families struggling to pay rent or are being evicted experience [poor health] in both the children and their parents,” Ettinger de Cuba said. “They are not getting the attention they need because they cannot afford it.”

Proposed SNAP Cuts: The Health and Economic Impact on Families With Young Children

Using data from 2007–2015, we studied how reductions or terminations in SNAP benefits — triggered by modest income increases — affected families with children under the age of 4. We focused on economic hardships (such as food and energy insecurity, unstable housing, and forgone health or dental care), as well as caregiver and child health.

Global Warming Can Lead to Inflammation in Human Airways, New Research Shows

In a recent, cross-institutional study partially funded by the National Institutes of Health, researchers report that healthy human airways are at higher risk for dehydration and inflammation when exposed to dry air, an occurrence expected to increase due to global warming. Inflammation in human airways is associated with such conditions as asthma, allergic rhinitis and chronic cough.

How is Climate Change Affecting New England?

Climate change is here, all around us, affecting the four seasons that define New England’s identity and the activities we anticipate as the weather changes throughout the year: fall foliage and leaf-peeping. Quiet walks in the woods. Skiing down slopes of fresh powder. Swimming in beautiful lakes and at ocean beaches. Jogging along the Esplanade. Downing a dozen oysters at the end of a summer afternoon.

Professor Awarded $3.2M Grant to Expand Urban Heat Research

Wellcome, a charitable foundation based in the United Kingdom, has granted Patricia Fabian, associate professor of environmental health, a $3.2 million Climate Impacts Award to expand the scope of her ongoing research on extreme heat and health.

Why Do Urban Trees Grow Faster than Rural Ones?

Established in 1954, the Los Angeles–based philanthropic organization supports science, engineering, and medical research with a focus on novel proposals that strive to break new ground. The latest BU project is being led by forest microbial ecologist Jennifer Bhatnagar, a College of Arts & Sciences associate professor of biology and director of the BU Biogeoscience Program. She and her colleagues hope to use a better understanding of how urban trees adapt to sometimes harsh conditions to support preservation initiatives.