BROWN U. (US) — In Ethiopia researchers are using a simple, low-cost device to get honest answers from teens about risky sexual behavior and their knowledge of HIV/AIDS.

The nonverbal response card—an 8.5-by-11 inch laminated sheet of paper—developed by sociologists at Brown University allows respondents to communicate nonverbally and confidentially during face-to-face interviews.

]]> http://www.futurity.org/society-culture/stigma-free-way-to-talk-about-sex/feed/ 1 http://www.futurity.org/earth-environment/seafloor-dynamics-at-work-splitting-continent/ http://www.futurity.org/earth-environment/seafloor-dynamics-at-work-splitting-continent/#comments Tue, 03 Nov 2009 20:12:46 +0000 Jonathan Sherwood-Rochester http://futurity.org/?p=5416

Reconstruction of events showed that the rift did not open in a series of small earthquakes over an extended period of time, but tore open along its entire 35-mile length in just days. A volcano called Dabbahu at the northern end of the rift erupted first, then magma pushed up through the middle of the rift area and began “unzipping” the rift in both directions, says Cindy Ebinger.

U. ROCHESTER (US)—In 2005, a gigantic, 35-mile-long rift broke open the desert ground in Ethiopia. At the time, some geologists believed the rift was the beginning of a new ocean as two parts of the African continent pulled apart, but the claim was controversial.

Now, scientists from several countries have confirmed that the volcanic processes at work beneath the Ethiopian rift are nearly identical to those at the bottom of the world’s oceans, and the rift is indeed likely the beginning of a new sea.

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