ScienceDaily: Latest Science News

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• Dolphins Get A Lift From Delta Wing Technology
• Superfood Soy Linked To Reduction In Smoker's Lung Damage Risk
• Mars Rover Yielding New Clues While Lodged In Martian Soil
• Measuring Brain Atrophy In Patients With Mild Cognitive Impairment
• Scientists Reach Milestone In Study Of Emergent Magnetism
• Why Saints Sin And Sinners Get Saintly
• Why A Low-Calorie Diet Extends Lifespans: Critical Enzyme Pair Identified
• New Gene Discovery Links Obesity To The Brain
• Implant Bacteria, Beware: Researchers Create Nano-sized Assassins
• Mad Cow And Related Diseases: Copper Linked To Normal Functioning Of Prions
• Air Pollution From Freeway Extends One And A Half Miles Away
• Early Alzheimer's: Not Remembering What Is Important To Remember
• Ulysses Hears The Siren's Song: End Of Mission To Chart Unexplored Regions Of Space
• Statins Can Protect Against Alzheimer’s Disease, According To New Study
• More Gene Mutations Linked To Autism Risk
• Gastrin Plays Significant Role In Helicobacter-induced Stomach Cancer
• Fecal DNA Sampling Provides Extremely Accurate Estimates Of Tiger Populations
• Nicotine Dependence Remains Prevalent Despite Recent Declines In Cigarette Use
• QuikScat Finds Tempests Brewing In 'Ordinary' Storms

Dolphins Get A Lift From Delta Wing Technology Posted: 28 Jun 2009 02:00 PM PDT Dolphins are supremely agile swimmers, but it wasn't clear how their fins help them maneuver though water. Building scale models of whale and dolphins' fins, a team of US scientists has found that some dolphins' fins work just like delta wing aircraft.

Superfood Soy Linked To Reduction In Smoker's Lung Damage Risk Posted: 28 Jun 2009 02:00 PM PDT People who eat lots of soy products have better lung function, and are less likely to develop the smoking-associated lung disease COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease). A new study has shown that consumption of a wide variety of soy products can be associated with a reduction in the risk of COPD and other respiratory symptoms.

Mars Rover Yielding New Clues While Lodged In Martian Soil Posted: 28 Jun 2009 02:00 PM PDT NASA's Mars rover Spirit, lodged in Martian soil that is causing traction trouble, is taking advantage of the situation by learning more about the Red Planet's environmental history.

Measuring Brain Atrophy In Patients With Mild Cognitive Impairment Posted: 28 Jun 2009 02:00 PM PDT Scientists have shown that a fully automated procedure called Volumetric MRI -- which measures the "memory centers" of the brain and compares them to expected size -- is effective in predicting the progression from mild cognitive impairment (MCI) to Alzheimer's disease. The procedure can be readily used in clinics to measure brain atrophy, and may help physicians to predict decline in MCI patients.

Scientists Reach Milestone In Study Of Emergent Magnetism Posted: 28 Jun 2009 02:00 PM PDT Studying simple metallic chromium, scientists have discovered a pressure-driven quantum critical regime and has achieved the first direct measurement of a "naked" quantum singularity in an elemental magnet.

Why Saints Sin And Sinners Get Saintly Posted: 28 Jun 2009 02:00 PM PDT A new study suggests that people with ample moral self-worth in one aspect of their lives can slip into immorality or opposite behavior in other areas -- their abundant self-esteem somehow pushing them to balance out all that goodness. Conversely, the study shows, people who engage in immoral behavior cleanse themselves with good work to restore an ideal level of moral self-worth.

Why A Low-Calorie Diet Extends Lifespans: Critical Enzyme Pair Identified Posted: 28 Jun 2009 08:00 AM PDT Experiment after experiment confirms that a diet on the brink of starvation expands lifespan in mice and many other species. But the molecular mechanism that links nutrition and survival is still poorly understood. Now, researchers have identified a pivotal role for two enzymes that work together to determine the health benefits of diet restriction.

New Gene Discovery Links Obesity To The Brain Posted: 28 Jun 2009 08:00 AM PDT A variation in a gene that is active in the central nervous system is associated with increased risk for obesity, according to a new study. The research adds to evidence that genes influence appetite and that the brain plays a key role in obesity.

Implant Bacteria, Beware: Researchers Create Nano-sized Assassins Posted: 28 Jun 2009 08:00 AM PDT Infected implants now have a foe. Researchers have created a nanoparticle that can penetrate a bacterial-produced film on prosthetics and kill the bacteria. The finding is the first time that iron-oxide nanoparticles have been shown to eliminate a bacterial infection on an implanted prosthetic device.

Mad Cow And Related Diseases: Copper Linked To Normal Functioning Of Prions Posted: 28 Jun 2009 08:00 AM PDT Researchers have discovered a link between copper and the normal functioning of prion proteins, which are associated with transmissible spongiform encephalopathy diseases such as Cruetzfeldt-Jakob in humans or "mad cow" disease in cattle. Their work could have implications for patients suffering from these diseases, as well as from other prion-related diseases such as Alzheimers or Parkinson's.

Air Pollution From Freeway Extends One And A Half Miles Away Posted: 28 Jun 2009 08:00 AM PDT Scientists have found that during the hours before sunrise, freeway air pollution extends much further than previously thought. Pollutants were found 1.5 miles from I-10 in California during early morning hours.

Early Alzheimer's: Not Remembering What Is Important To Remember Posted: 28 Jun 2009 08:00 AM PDT People in very early stages of Alzheimer's disease already have trouble focusing on what is important to remember, psychologists report.

Ulysses Hears The Siren's Song: End Of Mission To Chart Unexplored Regions Of Space Posted: 28 Jun 2009 02:00 AM PDT Upon receipt of the last command from Earth, the transmitter on Ulysses will switch off on 30 June, bringing one of the most successful and longest missions in spaceflight history to an end. Ulysses, which operated for more than 18 years, had charted the unexplored regions of space above the poles of the sun.

Statins Can Protect Against Alzheimer’s Disease, According To New Study Posted: 28 Jun 2009 02:00 AM PDT High cholesterol levels are considered to be a risk factor not only for cardiovascular disease including stroke, but also for the development of Alzheimer's disease. Therefore, many cholesterol lowering drugs, including statins, have been developed in recent years. In addition to the cholesterol reducing effect of statins scientists have demonstrated that statins can protect nerve cells against damage which we know to occur in the brain of Alzheimer's disease patients.

More Gene Mutations Linked To Autism Risk Posted: 28 Jun 2009 02:00 AM PDT More pieces in the complex autism inheritance puzzle are emerging in the latest gene study of autism spectrum disorders. This study identified 27 different genetic regions where rare copy number variations -- missing or extra copies of DNA segments -- occurred in the genes of children with ASDs, but not in healthy controls. The copy number variations are thought to interfere with gene function, disrupting the production of proteins necessary for normal neurological development.

Gastrin Plays Significant Role In Helicobacter-induced Stomach Cancer Posted: 28 Jun 2009 02:00 AM PDT Scientists have studied the role of Helicobacter infection in the development of stomach cancer, and found that the hormone gastrin, which stimulates secretion of gastric acid, plays a key role in the development of Helicobacter-induced stomach cancer, may have distinct effects on carcinogenesis in different parts of the stomach.

Fecal DNA Sampling Provides Extremely Accurate Estimates Of Tiger Populations Posted: 28 Jun 2009 02:00 AM PDT High-tech DNA fecal sampling will help save tigers. Researchers will be able to accurately count and assess tiger populations by identifying individual animals from the unique DNA signature found in their dung.

Nicotine Dependence Remains Prevalent Despite Recent Declines In Cigarette Use Posted: 28 Jun 2009 02:00 AM PDT Despite recent declines in cigarette use in the US, nicotine dependence has remained steady among adults and has actually increased among some groups. The finding suggests that public health initiatives have been far more successful in preventing Americans from taking up smoking than in persuading hardcore smokers to stop.

QuikScat Finds Tempests Brewing In 'Ordinary' Storms Posted: 26 Jun 2009 09:00 PM PDT "June is busting out all over," as the song says, and with it, U.S. residents along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts begin to gaze warily toward the ocean, aware that the hurricane season is revving up. In the decade since NASA's QuikScat satellite and its SeaWinds scatterometer launched in June 1999, the satellite has measured the wind speed and wind direction of these powerful storms, providing data that are increasingly used by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) National Hurricane Center and other world forecasting agencies. The data help scientists detect these storms, understand their wind fields, estimate their intensity and track their movement.

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