ScienceDaily: Latest Science News

---

• Most distant galaxy cluster revealed by invisible light
• Generic drug may be potential treatment for deadly brain cancer
• New insights into how deadly amphibian disease spreads and kills
• Rare toxic algae identified
• Sum of digits of prime numbers is evenly distributed: New mathematical proof of hypothesis
• Violent teenage girls fail to spot anger or disgust in others’ faces
• New water-splitting catalyst: Researchers expand list of potential electrode materials that could be used to store energy
• Rate of childhood peanut allergies more than tripled from 1997 to 2008
• Investigating how spiders spin their silk, researchers unravel a key step
• Angiogenesis inhibitors are safe cancer drugs despite hypertension risk, panel concludes
• New plastic-like materials may say 'shhhh' to hush disease-causing microbes
• Giving sweet solutions to children before immunization reduces pain, study finds
• What makes world's strongest animal -- the tiny copepod -- so successful?
• Response to vaccines could depend on your sex, researchers find
• New project aims for fusion ignition: Ignitor reactor could be world’s first to reach major milestone
• Mirror neuron system functions normally in individuals with autism
• New fingermark analysis technique can give extra suspect details
• Music aids Alzheimer's patients in remembering new information
• Insects not 'hard-wired': Young male crickets grow larger in the presence of abundant male song
• 'Safe' cigarettes are as hazardous as tobacco, researchers demonstrate
• Stem cells: In search of a master controller
• New way to 'rescue' treatment sensitivity of breast cancer cells
• Plankton disease epidemic this year? Check the lake's shape
• Dementia takes away the meaning of flavours: Clues to brain basis for abnormal food preferences
• Why is breast milk best? It's all in the genes
• Study overturns decade-old findings in neurobiology: Research suggests potential target for drugs to combat alcohol addiction
• Cages and emetics rescue wading birds: Decoy eggs injected with a drug to induce vomiting in predators
• Vaccination reduces burden of childhood rotavirus disease
• Tunable terahertz wire laser
• Doctors interrupted at work give shorter and poorer care to patients, study finds
• Killer seaweed: First proof that chemicals from seaweeds damage coral on contact
• Level of frailty predicts surgical outcomes in older patients, researchers find
• Volcanic ash in Meridiani Planum
• Why can surgical treatment improve type 2 diabetes mellitus?
• Speeding-up broadband spectroscopy
• Traffic density and increased body mass index linked
• Researchers use entire islands in the Bahamas to test survival of the fittest
• High-dose vitamin D linked with increased risk of falls, fractures among older women
• 50-year-old laser is only just getting started, physicists say
• Rapid prenatal test for alpha-thalassemia
• Biofuel chemistry more complex than petroleum, say researchers
• Nationwide study: One in four women show ambivalence toward pregnancy
• Quantum move toward next generation computing
• Safer alternative to laser eye surgery?
• For comfort, mom's voice works as well as a hug
• Directing immune traffic: Signposts to the lung
• NASA's declining research facilities could prevent agency from meeting important mission goals, report finds
• Schizophrenia: Regular exercise guidelines still apply

Most distant galaxy cluster revealed by invisible light Posted: 13 May 2010 02:00 PM PDT An international team of astronomers from Germany and Japan has discovered the most distant cluster of galaxies known so far -- 9.6 billion light years away. The X-ray and infrared observations showed that the cluster hosts predominantly old, massive galaxies, demonstrating that the galaxies formed when the universe was still very young. These and similar observations therefore provide new information not only about early galaxy evolution but also about history of the universe as a whole.

Generic drug may be potential treatment for deadly brain cancer Posted: 13 May 2010 02:00 PM PDT Medical researchers report evidence that the orphan generic drug dichloroacetate may hold promise as potential therapy for perhaps the deadliest of all human cancers: a form of brain cancer called glioblastoma.

New insights into how deadly amphibian disease spreads and kills Posted: 13 May 2010 02:00 PM PDT Scientists have unraveled the dynamics of a deadly disease that is wiping out amphibian populations. New findings suggest that infection intensity determines whether frog populations will survive or succumb to an amphibian disease called Chytridiomycosis. The research identifies the tipping point in infection intensity, beyond which Chytrid causes death and extinction, and finds that continual re-infection causes the disease to reach this threshold.

Rare toxic algae identified Posted: 13 May 2010 02:00 PM PDT Scientists have identified an unusual species of pathogenic algae that causes human skin infections. The finding should improve our understanding of how rare species of algae are sometimes able to cause serious disease in humans and animals.

Sum of digits of prime numbers is evenly distributed: New mathematical proof of hypothesis Posted: 13 May 2010 02:00 PM PDT On average, there are as many prime numbers for which the sum of decimal digits is even as prime numbers for which it is odd. This hypothesis, first made in 1968, has recently been proven by mathematics researchers in France.

Violent teenage girls fail to spot anger or disgust in others’ faces Posted: 13 May 2010 02:00 PM PDT Girls appear to be "protected" from showing antisocial behaviour until their teenage years, new research has found. The study sheds new light on antisocial behavior in girls compared with boys and suggests that rather than violence or antisocial behavior simply reflecting bad choices, the brains of people with antisocial behavior may work differently from those who behave normally.

New water-splitting catalyst: Researchers expand list of potential electrode materials that could be used to store energy Posted: 13 May 2010 11:00 AM PDT Researchers have found yet another formulation, based on inexpensive and widely available materials, that can efficiently catalyze the splitting of water molecules using electricity. This could ultimately form the basis for new storage systems that would allow buildings to be completely independent and self-sustaining in terms of energy: The systems would use energy from intermittent sources like sunlight or wind to create hydrogen fuel, which could then be used in fuel cells or other devices to produce electricity or transportation fuels as needed.

Rate of childhood peanut allergies more than tripled from 1997 to 2008 Posted: 13 May 2010 11:00 AM PDT Results of a nationwide telephone survey have shown that the rate of peanut allergies in children more than tripled from 1997 to 2008.

Investigating how spiders spin their silk, researchers unravel a key step Posted: 13 May 2010 11:00 AM PDT Scientists in Germany have unraveled a decisive step in nature's way of producing spider silk. With industrial partners, they are working toward biomimetic production of synthetic fibers with comparable strength and elasticity. The researchers report how spider silk proteins can be stored in high concentrations without clumping and then drawn at a moment's notice into fibers with five times the tensile strength of steel.

Angiogenesis inhibitors are safe cancer drugs despite hypertension risk, panel concludes Posted: 13 May 2010 11:00 AM PDT A new class of cancer drugs can be used effectively while minimizing hypertensive side effects if patients' blood pressure is closely monitored and controlled, a clinical panel has determined.

New plastic-like materials may say 'shhhh' to hush disease-causing microbes Posted: 13 May 2010 11:00 AM PDT Scientists are silencing the biochemical conversations that disease-causing bacteria use to marshal their forces and cause infections. They have used specially designed plastic-like materials to soak up the substances that bacteria produce and pass to one another as messages.

Giving sweet solutions to children before immunization reduces pain, study finds Posted: 13 May 2010 11:00 AM PDT Infants who receive sweet solutions before being immunized experience less pain and are more comfortable, reveals new research.

What makes world's strongest animal -- the tiny copepod -- so successful? Posted: 13 May 2010 08:00 AM PDT The world's strongest animal, the copepod, is barely one millimeter long. It is also the world's fastest animal and the most abundant multicellular animal on the planet. So what is it that makes the copepod so successful?

Response to vaccines could depend on your sex, researchers find Posted: 13 May 2010 08:00 AM PDT Biological differences between the sexes could be a significant predictor of responses to vaccines, according to researchers. They examined published data from numerous adult and child vaccine trials and found that sex is a fundamental, but often overlooked predictor of vaccine response that could help predict the efficacy of combating infectious disease.

New project aims for fusion ignition: Ignitor reactor could be world’s first to reach major milestone Posted: 13 May 2010 08:00 AM PDT Russia and Italy have entered into an agreement to build a new fusion reactor outside Moscow that could become the first such reactor to achieve ignition, the point where a fusion reaction becomes self-sustaining instead of requiring a constant input of energy. The design for the reactor, called Ignitor, originated with MIT physics professor Bruno Coppi, who will be the project's principal investigator.

Mirror neuron system functions normally in individuals with autism Posted: 13 May 2010 08:00 AM PDT Neuroscientists have found that the mirror neuron system, which is thought to play a central role in social communications, responds normally in individuals with autism. Their findings counter theories suggesting that a mirror system dysfunction causes the social difficulties exhibited by individuals with autism.

New fingermark analysis technique can give extra suspect details Posted: 13 May 2010 08:00 AM PDT A new technique to analyse fingermarks from crime scenes has the potential to give crucial additional details about a suspect such their medications, diet and the time at which they accidentally left the fingermark.

Music aids Alzheimer's patients in remembering new information Posted: 13 May 2010 08:00 AM PDT Researchers have shown that patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) are better able to remember new verbal information when it is provided in the context of music even when compared to healthy, older adults. The findings offer possible applications in treating and caring for patients with AD.

Insects not 'hard-wired': Young male crickets grow larger in the presence of abundant male song Posted: 13 May 2010 05:00 AM PDT Biologists have found that male crickets growing up in the presence of abundant male song tend to be larger, behave differently, and invest nearly 10 percent more reproductive tissue mass in their testes than male crickets growing up in a silent environment. The subtle modifications of behavior depending on the environment, not genes, means that even in insects, animals are not "programmed" or "hard-wired" to do what they do.

'Safe' cigarettes are as hazardous as tobacco, researchers demonstrate Posted: 13 May 2010 05:00 AM PDT Using a technique they developed to document the harmful effects of tobacco products, researchers have found that so-called "safer" cigarettes made without tobacco or nicotine may be more carcinogenic by inducing more extensive DNA damage than tobacco products.

Stem cells: In search of a master controller Posted: 13 May 2010 05:00 AM PDT With thousands of scientists across the globe searching for ways to use adult stem cells to fight disease, there's a growing emphasis on finding the "master regulator" that guides the day-to-day operations of stem cells. New research suggests that a closely connected trio of regulatory proteins fulfills that role in hematopoietic stem cells, the self-renewing cells the body uses to make new blood cells.

New way to 'rescue' treatment sensitivity of breast cancer cells Posted: 13 May 2010 05:00 AM PDT Researchers have identified a potential new combination therapy to "rescue" treatment sensitivity to fulvestrant in estrogen receptor-positive breast cancers.

Plankton disease epidemic this year? Check the lake's shape Posted: 13 May 2010 05:00 AM PDT Of all the things that might control the onset of disease epidemics in Michigan lakes, the shape of the lakes' bottoms might seem unlikely. But that is precisely the case, and a new report explains why.

Dementia takes away the meaning of flavours: Clues to brain basis for abnormal food preferences Posted: 13 May 2010 05:00 AM PDT Flavor is literally the spice of life and for many people life without the pleasures of the table would be unthinkable. Yet just this aspect of everyday life is vulnerable in certain degenerative dementias, with patients developing abnormal eating behaviors including changes in food preferences, faddism and pathological sweet tooth. New research has revealed evidence that these behaviors are linked to a loss of meaning for flavors.

Why is breast milk best? It's all in the genes Posted: 13 May 2010 02:00 AM PDT The ability to track which genes are operating in an infant's intestine has allowed scientists to compare the early development of breast-fed and formula-fed babies. For the first time, researchers can see that breast milk induces genetic pathways that are quite different from those in formula-fed infants.

Study overturns decade-old findings in neurobiology: Research suggests potential target for drugs to combat alcohol addiction Posted: 13 May 2010 02:00 AM PDT In findings that should finally put to rest a decade of controversy in the field of neurobiology, researchers have found decisive evidence that a specific neurotransmitter system -- the endocannabinoid system -- is active in a brain region known to play a key role in the processing of memory, emotional reactions and addiction formation.

Cages and emetics rescue wading birds: Decoy eggs injected with a drug to induce vomiting in predators Posted: 13 May 2010 02:00 AM PDT The number of waders (shorebirds) in Sweden is falling rapidly. Scientists have tested drastic new methods to protect species such as the Northern lapwing and redshank from predators, including protective cages over their nests and decoy eggs injected with a drug to induce vomiting.

Vaccination reduces burden of childhood rotavirus disease Posted: 13 May 2010 02:00 AM PDT Vaccination of infants with Rotarix or RotaTeq significantly reduces the rate of severe rotavirus diarrhea, hospitalizations, medical attention due to rotavirus and severe diarrhea from all causes. The vaccines are not associated with increased numbers of serious adverse events, according to a new review.

Tunable terahertz wire laser Posted: 13 May 2010 02:00 AM PDT Terahertz (THz) radiation is one of the hottest areas of modern physics research. This is because THz light waves, or T-rays as they are sometimes called, have great potential for spectroscopy and for the scanning of objects in a homeland security setting that are opaque to infrared and visible light. Now scientists have combined several technologies to obtain a versatile source of THz light.

Doctors interrupted at work give shorter and poorer care to patients, study finds Posted: 13 May 2010 02:00 AM PDT Hospital doctors who are frequently interrupted while working in a clinical environment spend less time on tasks and fail to return to almost a fifth of their jobs in hand, reveals new research.

Killer seaweed: First proof that chemicals from seaweeds damage coral on contact Posted: 12 May 2010 11:00 PM PDT Field studies have shown for the first time that several common species of seaweeds in both the Pacific and Caribbean Oceans can kill corals upon contact using chemical means.

Level of frailty predicts surgical outcomes in older patients, researchers find Posted: 12 May 2010 11:00 PM PDT A simple, 10-minute "frailty" test administered to older patients before they undergo surgery can predict with great certainty their risk for complications, how long they will stay in the hospital and -- most strikingly -- whether they are likely to end up in a nursing home afterward, new research suggests.

Volcanic ash in Meridiani Planum Posted: 12 May 2010 11:00 PM PDT Deposits of volcanic ash color a new view of the Meridiani Planum, as seen by the Mars Express High Resolution Stereo Camera. They also give clues to the prevailing wind direction in this region of Mars.

Why can surgical treatment improve type 2 diabetes mellitus? Posted: 12 May 2010 11:00 PM PDT Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (RYGB) is a commonly used surgical treatment for patients with morbid obesity. It significantly and persistently decreases the levels of blood glucose and glycosylated hemoglobin in 80-100 percent of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients. A study group from China found the possible mechanism of treating T2DM with RYGB surgery. This study has provided new basis for surgery to treat T2DM and explained why the post-surgical nesidioblastosis occurs in RYGB patients.

Speeding-up broadband spectroscopy Posted: 12 May 2010 11:00 PM PDT Frequency can be measured quite accurately in the radio portion of the electromagnetic spectrum, where pulsations can be counted directly by electronic circuits. The "frequency comb" approach, introduced a few years ago, has revolutionized spectroscopy by allowing more accurate measurements of frequencies characteristic of infrared, visible, and ultraviolet light. The trick is to convert higher-frequency light into the lower radio frequency range, where the waves can be subjected to detailed measurement.

Traffic density and increased body mass index linked Posted: 12 May 2010 11:00 PM PDT People living in neighborhoods where they perceived traffic made it unpleasant to walk were more likely to have a higher body mass index (BMI) than those who didn't, according to a new study looking at the relationship between the built environment, socio-economic status, and changes in BMI over a six year period.

Researchers use entire islands in the Bahamas to test survival of the fittest Posted: 12 May 2010 08:00 PM PDT By using entire islands as experimental laboratories, biologists have performed one of the largest manipulations of natural selection ever conducted in a wild animal population. Their results show that competition among lizards is more important than predation by birds and snakes when it comes to survival of the fittest lizard.

High-dose vitamin D linked with increased risk of falls, fractures among older women Posted: 12 May 2010 08:00 PM PDT Women age 70 years or older who received a single annual high dose of vitamin D had a higher rate of falls and fractures compared to women who received placebo, according to a study in the May 12 issue of JAMA.

50-year-old laser is only just getting started, physicists say Posted: 12 May 2010 08:00 PM PDT On the laser's 50th birthday, physicists assert that the discovery's usefulness has far further to go, despite already underpinning some of the last half century's most disruptive technologies (not least, the optical fibers which make today's high speed internet possible). While we can now find lasers in every industry from manufacturing, retail and medicine to entertainment and communications, lasers are also being developed for much more, such as personalised medical treatment and the production of virtually infinite, clean energy from nuclear fusion.

Rapid prenatal test for alpha-thalassemia Posted: 12 May 2010 08:00 PM PDT Researchers in Thailand have developed a rapid, high-throughput screening method for prevention and control of the blood disease thalassemia.

Biofuel chemistry more complex than petroleum, say researchers Posted: 12 May 2010 08:00 PM PDT Understanding the key elements of biofuel combustion is an important step toward insightful selection of next-generation alternative fuels.

Nationwide study: One in four women show ambivalence toward pregnancy Posted: 12 May 2010 08:00 PM PDT For years, a widely held assumption was that women of childbearing age fell neatly into two camps: those trying to have children, and those not trying to have children. A new nationwide study suggests, however, that nearly a fourth of women consider themselves "OK either way" about getting pregnant -- a wide swath of ambivalence that surprised researchers, and that could reshape how doctors approach many aspects of women's health care. The results surprised researchers, and could reshape how doctors approach women's health care.

Quantum move toward next generation computing Posted: 12 May 2010 05:00 PM PDT Physicists have developed a system for measuring the energy involved in adding electrons to semi-conductor nanocrystals, also known as quantum dots -- a technology that may revolutionize computing and other areas of science.

Safer alternative to laser eye surgery? Posted: 12 May 2010 05:00 PM PDT A new type of procedure for correcting short-sightedness could be safer than laser eye surgery, according to a new review. The study also shows that patients prefer the new procedure, despite there being little difference between the two in terms of improving vision.

For comfort, mom's voice works as well as a hug Posted: 12 May 2010 05:00 PM PDT A simple phone call from mom can calm frayed nerves by sparking the release of a powerful stress-quelling hormone, according to researchers.

Directing immune traffic: Signposts to the lung Posted: 12 May 2010 05:00 PM PDT Inducing cellular immunity as a means to protect against influenza virus is the focus of researchers who have recently identified two important signaling components required by the immune system that might allow us to pre-position our own virus-fighting T cells to the lungs, the site of initial infection.

NASA's declining research facilities could prevent agency from meeting important mission goals, report finds Posted: 12 May 2010 05:00 PM PDT NASA's abilities to meet major mission goals such as advancing aeronautics, exploring the outer planets, and understanding the beginnings of the universe are being seriously jeopardized by a steady and significant decrease in the agency's basic research capabilities, says a new report from the National Research Council. Congress and NASA should provide the support necessary for needed equipment and services to conduct fundamental high-quality research.

Schizophrenia: Regular exercise guidelines still apply Posted: 12 May 2010 05:00 PM PDT Regular exercise can play an important a role in improving the physical and mental wellbeing of individuals with schizophrenia, according to a new review. Following a systematic review of the most up-to-date research on exercise in schizophrenia, researchers concluded that the current guidelines for exercise should be followed by people with schizophrenia just as they should by the general population.

You are subscribed to email updates from ScienceDaily: Latest Science News To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now.	Email delivery powered by Google
Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610