Hide and won鈥檛 seek
Banning displays of cigarettes in shops could help to reduce smoking amongst teenagers. Teens interviewed before and after a 2009 ban on such displays in Ireland were less likely to recall advertising displays, and said fewer of their friends smoked, after the ban (Tobacco Control, ).
HIV decline
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Over the past decade, the number of new HIV infections worldwide has decreased by 20 per cent, reports the United Nation鈥檚 AIDS partnership. The rate of new infections has decreased by more than 25 per cent in 33 of the 63 countries from which they had reliable data, with the success attributed to prevention measures.
Alien worlds
The number of planets discovered outside our solar system has passed the 500 mark, according to the Interactive Extrasolar Planets Catalogue. The latest discovery, the fourth giant planet found orbiting the star HR8799, is puzzling astrophysicists as current models can鈥檛 explain how all four formed ().
Mexico climate warning
All the emissions cuts promised in Copenhagen, Denmark, last year will only get us 60 per cent of the way to avoiding dangerous climate change, says the UN Environment Programme. Their report says countries must go further at the Canc眉n climate change summit, which begins in Mexico next week.
Heroin shortage
A mystery fungus has halved Afghanistan鈥檚 opium crop for this year, according to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime. Afghanistan produces 92 per cent of the world鈥檚 opium, and the shortage is thought to have forced UK drug dealers to mix heroin with other substances.