Strokes, 101
A stroke occurs when blood flow to part of the brain is suddenly interrupted, either by a blockage or bleeding. Each year, nearly 800,000 Americans experience a stroke—with about one happening every 40 seconds (watch explainer).
While age is the greatest risk factor (stroke risk doubles each decade after 55), high blood pressure is the single most important controllable risk factor, contributing to both types of stroke (see all risk factors).
About 85% of cases are events called ischemic strokes where blood clots block blood vessels that supply the brain. These clots can form locally or travel from elsewhere in the body. Less common (15% of cases) are hemorrhagic strokes, where blood vessels in the brain can rupture and bleed.
... Read our full deep dive on strokes here.
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> Why hibernating bears don't get blood clots. (More)
> A quiz to find your brain care score. (More)
> An interactive map of heart disease and stroke in the US. (More)
The Panama Canal, explained
The Panama Canal is a 51-mile-long waterway across the Isthmus of Panama in Central America. Each year, it allows as many as 14,000 vessels to travel between the Pacific and Atlantic oceans.
After its debut in 1914, the canal shaved weeks off global shipping times, helping to make the United States a global superpower. It now accounts for about 5% of global seaborne trade.
To traverse the region's elevation, American engineer John Frank Stevens proposed a series of locks—watertight chambers that can be filled or emptied as needed to raise and lower transiting ships. Vessels entering from the Atlantic side pass through a set of ascending locks, sail across a 15-mile artificial lake, then descend to the Pacific—a process that now takes 8 to 10 hours to complete
... Read our full deep dive on the canal here.
Also, check out ...
> Watch a ship pass through the canal. (More)
> The doctor who made the Panama Canal possible. (More)
> Mapping the world's shipping chokepoints. (More)
SOURCE: 1440 NEWS
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