Monday, November 24, 2008

ScienceDaily: Latest Science News

ScienceDaily: Latest Science News

'Fish Technology' Draws Renewable Energy From Slow Water Currents

Posted: 24 Nov 2008 11:00 AM PST

Slow-moving ocean and river currents could be a new, reliable and affordable alternative energy source. Engineers have made a machine that works like a fish to turn potentially destructive vibrations in fluid flows into clean, renewable power.

Hairspray Is Linked To Common Genital Birth Defect, Says Study

Posted: 24 Nov 2008 11:00 AM PST

Women who are exposed to hairspray in the workplace during pregnancy have more than double the risk of having a son with the genital birth defect hypospadias, according to a new study in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives.

When It Comes To What's For Dinner, Baboon Society Is No Democracy

Posted: 24 Nov 2008 11:00 AM PST

In decisions about where to eat, baboons don't all have an equal say, according to a new report. Rather, most baboons in a group will follow their leader to a dining spot of his choosing, even if it means a considerably more meager meal for themselves than they could have had otherwise.

New Technique Eliminates Toxic Drugs In Islet Transplant In Diabetic Mice

Posted: 24 Nov 2008 11:00 AM PST

Islet cell transplantation is a promising therapy for people with type 1 diabetes, but it requires a regime of powerful immunosuppressive drugs so the immune system won't reject the insulin-producing islets. The drugs raise the risk of infections and cancer and are toxic to the islets themselves. Researchers have developed a new technique that eliminated the need for these drugs. The strategy is a potential therapy for human islet cell transplantation.

The Network Of Everything: Personal Networks Will Have To Cope With At Least A Thousand Devices

Posted: 24 Nov 2008 11:00 AM PST

Wireless experts believe that, by 2017, personal networks will have to cope with at least a thousand devices, like laptops, telephones, mp3 players, games, sensors and other technology. To link these devices will require a 'Network of Everything'. It represents an astonishing challenge, but European researchers believe that they are moving towards the solution.

Ancient And Modern Plagues Show Common Features

Posted: 24 Nov 2008 11:00 AM PST

The Plague of Athens is one of 10 historically notable outbreaks described in an article in The Lancet Infectious Diseases. The phenomenon of widespread, socially disruptive disease outbreaks has a long history prior to HIV/AIDS, severe acute respiratory syndrome, H5N1 avian influenza and other emerging diseases of the modern era, note the authors.

Mars Express Observes Aurora On The Red Planet

Posted: 24 Nov 2008 08:00 AM PST

Scientists using ESA's Mars Express have produced the first crude map of aurora on Mars. These displays of ultraviolet light appear to be located close to the residual magnetic fields generated by Mars's crustal rocks. They highlight a number of mysteries about the way Mars interacts with electrically charged particles originating from the Sun.

New Species Of Ebola Virus Discovered

Posted: 24 Nov 2008 08:00 AM PST

Scientists report the discovery of a new species of Ebola virus, provisionally named Bundibugyo ebolavirus. The virus, which was responsible for a hemorrhagic fever outbreak in western Uganda in 2007, has been characterized by a team of scientists.

Bee Swarms Follow High-speed 'Streaker' Bees To Find A New Nest

Posted: 24 Nov 2008 08:00 AM PST

How does a swarm of bees find its way to a new nest site when less then 5 percent of the community knows the way? Filming bee swarms as they relocated to new nest site and analyzing the insects' apparently chaotic course, scientists have found that "streaker" bees fly through the swarm at high speed to guide it.

Soluble Fiber, Antispasmodics And Peppermint Oil Should Be Used To Treat Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Study Suggests

Posted: 24 Nov 2008 08:00 AM PST

Fiber, antispasmodics and peppermint oil are all effective therapies for irritable bowel syndrome and should become first-line treatments, according to a new study.

Remote Real-time Rendering On-demand -- Now Just A Mouse-click Away

Posted: 24 Nov 2008 08:00 AM PST

A new technology has the potential to dramatically change the way that architects operate. Architects and engineers teamed up to develop an on-demand service that allows architects to submit designs for rendering from a remote location at a fraction of the time that would be required on a local PC.

Ability To Quit Smoking May Depend On ADHD Symptoms, Researchers Find

Posted: 24 Nov 2008 08:00 AM PST

Tobacco use is more prevalent and smoking cessation less likely among persons with attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder. In a study of smokers with attention deficit and hyperactivity symptoms, those who exhibited elevated hyperactivity and impulsivity, with or without inattention, showed lower quit rates after eight weeks than those with inattention symptoms alone or those without the ADHD symptoms.

New Mechanism For Superconductivity?

Posted: 24 Nov 2008 05:00 AM PST

Researchers have posited an explanation for superconductivity that may open the door to the discovery of new, unconventional forms of superconductivity. They offer a new explanation for superconductivity in non-traditional materials -- one that describes a potentially new state of matter in which the superconducting material behaves simultaneously as a nonmagnetic material and a magnetic material.

Brain Abnormalities That May Play Key Role In ADHD

Posted: 24 Nov 2008 05:00 AM PST

A new study reveals shape differences in the brains of children with ADHD. Researchers used a new tool, large deformation diffeomorphic mapping, allowing them to examine the shape of the basal ganglia. Boys with ADHD had shape differences and decreased volume of the basal ganglia compared to typically developing children.

The Lightning Flash Before The Flood

Posted: 24 Nov 2008 05:00 AM PST

Flash floods are the most common natural disaster in the United States, and because of their unpredictability they're the leading weather-related cause of death for Americans. They usually arrive with little or no warning, but researchers are now trying to predict where and when they will occur ― using lightning.

Tissue Analyses Indicate Survival Benefits For Some Lung Cancer Patients

Posted: 24 Nov 2008 05:00 AM PST

Taking small tissue samples from patients with lung cancer and examining them under a microscope, a procedure called histology, is now being utilized to better tailor the chemotherapy treatments to improve survival in some patients with non-small cell lung cancer, according to a study presented at the 2008 Chicago Multidisciplinary Symposium in Thoracic Oncology, cosponsored by ASTRO, ASCO, IASLC and the University of Chicago.

Seismometer Able To Measure Earth Tremors Over Longer Periods Is Unveiled

Posted: 24 Nov 2008 05:00 AM PST

Researchers have developed an ocean bed seismometer that operates using a data acquisition and storage system based on CompactFlash memory cards such as those used in commercial digital cameras. The machine's low energy consumption means it can operate independently for two months at depths of up to 6,000 metres.

Beauty Is Truth In Mathematical Intuition: First Empirical Evidence

Posted: 24 Nov 2008 05:00 AM PST

First empirical evidence for the use of beauty as truth in mathematical intuition reported. French mathematician Jacques Hadamard wrote in 1954 in his famous book "The Psychology of Invention in the Mathematical Field" that a sense of beauty seems to be almost the only useful "drive" for discovery in mathematics. However, until now evidence has been anecdotal, and the nature of the beauty-truth relationship remained a mystery.

Can China's Future Earthquakes Be Predicted?

Posted: 24 Nov 2008 02:00 AM PST

On May 12, 2008, at 2:28 p.m., China's Szechwan province changed forever. In the space of 90 seconds, an earthquake equivalent to 1,200 H-bombs pulverized the earth's crust for more than 280 kilometers. Entire cities disappeared and eight million homes were swallowed up. This resulted in 70,000 deaths and 20,000 missing. According to one researcher, this tragedy could have been avoided. "There hasn't been one earthquake in Szechwan province for 300 years. Chinese authorities thought the fault was dead," he says.

Cooling The Brain Prevents Cell Death In Young Mice Exposed To Anesthesia

Posted: 24 Nov 2008 02:00 AM PST

New research suggests cooling the brain may prevent the death of nerve cells that has been observed in infant mice exposed to anesthesia. The effects of anesthesia on human infants and young children have been debated among neuroscientists, but growing evidence suggests exposure to anesthetic drugs during brain development may contribute to behavioral and developmental delays.

Networks Of Small Habitat Patches Can Preserve Urban Biodiversity

Posted: 24 Nov 2008 02:00 AM PST

Sets of small and seemingly insignificant habitat patches that are within reach for mobile species may under certain circumstances, as a group, provide an acceptable alternative to larger and contiguous habitats. This finding can make preservation of important ecological functions possible even in urban and other heavily exploited areas.

Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumors: Study May Result In More Targeted Drugs

Posted: 24 Nov 2008 02:00 AM PST

There is strong evidence that patients can have varying clinical responses to medications depending on the specific makeup of their cancer. A new study which focused on gastrointestinal stromal tumors, also called GIST, found that the genetic variations in their disease appear to determine which medications will be most effective.

Scientists Study Cracks In Brittle Materials

Posted: 24 Nov 2008 02:00 AM PST

The Naval Research Laboratory is part of an international team of scientists that is learning more about how cracks form in brittle materials. The team used both computer modeling and experimentation to investigate how cracks grow at low speeds in silicon. This information has potential applications in the development of a variety of materials ranging from armor to machine parts.

Intervention Program Boosts Survival In Breast Cancer Patients

Posted: 24 Nov 2008 02:00 AM PST

A new study provides the best evidence to date that a psychological intervention program designed for breast cancer patients not only improves their health, it actually increases their chance of survival. Researchers here found that patients participating in an intervention program reduced their risk of dying of breast cancer by 56 percent after an average of 11 years.

Genes Associated With Fat Metabolism Could Increase Kidney Cancer Risk

Posted: 23 Nov 2008 11:00 PM PST

A team of international scientists has identified three genes associated with the body's processing of fats that may increase susceptibility to kidney cancer.

Hope For Treating Relapse To Methamphetamine Abuse

Posted: 23 Nov 2008 11:00 PM PST

A new study suggests that vigabatrin blocks drug-seeking behavior in animals previously trained to associate methamphetamine with a particular environment.

Safety In Numbers For Community Hospitals Performing Emergency Angioplasty

Posted: 23 Nov 2008 11:00 PM PST

Heart experts at Johns Hopkins have evidence that life-saving coronary angioplasty at community hospitals is safer when physicians and hospital staff have more experience with the procedure.

Pharmaceutical Testing: Test Identifies Toxic Platinum And Palladium Without Time-consuming Sample Pretreatment

Posted: 23 Nov 2008 11:00 PM PST

The painstaking process of detecting toxic species of platinum and palladium mixed in with the form of platinum essential to certain pharmaceuticals could be reduced to one simple step, researchers report.

Money Motivates Doctors To Reduce Ethnic Differences In Heart Disease Treatments, UK Study Finds

Posted: 23 Nov 2008 11:00 PM PST

Financial incentives for doctors can improve the management of coronary heart disease and reduce ethnic differences in quality of and access to care, according to public health experts in the UK.

Stomach Ulcer Bug Causes Bad Breath

Posted: 23 Nov 2008 09:00 PM PST

Bacteria that cause stomach ulcers and cancer could also be giving us bad breath, according to research published in the Journal of Medical Microbiology. For the first time, scientists have found Helicobacter pylori living in the mouths of people who are not showing signs of stomach disease.

Scientists Discover 21st Century Plague

Posted: 23 Nov 2008 09:00 PM PST

Bacteria that can cause serious heart disease in humans are being spread by rat fleas, sparking concern that the infections could become a bigger problem in humans. New research published in the Journal of Medical Microbiology suggests that brown rats, the biggest and most common rats in Europe, may now be carrying the bacteria.

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