ScienceDaily: Latest Science News

Good Luck, Not Superiority, Gave Dinosaurs Their Edge, Study Of Crocodile Cousins Reveals Posted: 12 Sep 2008 10:00 AM CDT Researchers have challenged the general consensus among scientists that there must have been something special about dinosaurs that helped them rise to prominence. Good luck, not general 'superiority,' was the primary factor in the rise of the dinosaurs according to new research.

Cancer Stem Cells Isolated: Could Lead To New Drugs To Stop Cancer From Returning Posted: 12 Sep 2008 10:00 AM CDT Cancer prevention researchers have discovered a protein marker that allows them to isolate cancer stem cells from regular cancer cells. By targeting this marker, scientists are developing new drugs to kill the stem cells and stop cancer from returning.

Air Pollution Can Hinder Heart's Electrical Functioning Posted: 12 Sep 2008 10:00 AM CDT Tiny particles of air pollution and black carbon, a marker for traffic exhaust fumes, may adversely affect heart function among heart attack survivors. Researchers say people with recent heart attacks and even healthy people should avoid being around heavy traffic after hospital discharge.

70 Years Old And Going Strong With Down Syndrome And No Dementia Posted: 12 Sep 2008 10:00 AM CDT In the world of Down syndrome, 'Mr. C' is a rarity. A real person whose progress has been tracked for the past 16 years, at seventy, 'Mr. C' has well surpassed the average life expectancy of a person with Down syndrome, currently in the late fifties, but in the teens when 'Mr. C' was born. Further, 'Mr. C' does not exhibit clinical symptoms of Alzheimer's disease.

Titanium Work Surfaces Could Cut Food Poisoning Cases, Say Scientists Posted: 12 Sep 2008 10:00 AM CDT Food factory work surfaces coated in titanium could cut the number of food poisoning cases every year, scientists report.

Remote Brainwaves Predict Future 'Eureka' Moment Posted: 12 Sep 2008 10:00 AM CDT The brain mechanism underlying the eureka or "ah-ha" moment is poorly understood. What happens in the brain during that particular moment? Is that moment purely sudden as often reported by the solver or is there any (neural) precursor to it? Can we predict whether and when, if at all, the solver will hit upon the final eureka moment? New research addresses these questions by measuring brainwaves of human participants as they attempted to solve puzzles or brainteasers that call for intuitive strategies and novel insight.

Nano-sized 'Cargo Ships' To Target And Destroy Tumors Developed Posted: 12 Sep 2008 07:00 AM CDT Scientists have developed nanometer-sized "cargo ships" that can sail throughout the body via the bloodstream without immediate detection from the body's immune radar system, and ferry their cargo of anti-cancer drugs and markers into tumors that might otherwise go untreated or undetected.

Stem Cell Regeneration Repairs Congenital Heart Defect Posted: 12 Sep 2008 07:00 AM CDT Medical investigators have demonstrated that stem cells can be used to regenerate heart tissue to treat dilated cardiomyopathy, a congenital defect.

Hurricane Ike Tracked By European Space Agency's Envisat Posted: 12 Sep 2008 07:00 AM CDT Residents along the Gulf Coast are bracing for Hurricane Ike as it travels over the Gulf of Mexico after ripping through Cuba and Haiti. ESA's Envisat satellite is tracking the storm, which is forecast to make landfall on the Texas coast by Sept. 13.

Calcium During Pregnancy Reduces Harmful Blood Lead Levels, Study Finds Posted: 12 Sep 2008 07:00 AM CDT Pregnant women who take high levels of daily calcium supplements show a marked reduction in lead levels in their blood, suggesting calcium could play a critical role in reducing fetal and infant exposure.

Copper-bottomed Guarantee For Safe Shellfish In Restaurants Posted: 12 Sep 2008 07:00 AM CDT Putting brass where your money is could be a guarantee of safety according to researchers looking at the dangers of eating raw fish and shellfish in seafood restaurants, scientists report.

Survival Instincts Propel 'Difficult Patient' To Insist On Quality Care Posted: 12 Sep 2008 07:00 AM CDT Michelle Mayer had to become a "difficult patient" before she could get her physicians to accurately diagnose the disease that was destroying her health.

Beautiful Death: Halos Of Planetary Nebulae Revealed Posted: 12 Sep 2008 04:00 AM CDT Stars without enough mass to turn into exploding supernovae end their lives blowing away most of their mass in a non-explosive, but intense stellar wind. Only a hot stellar core remains in the form of a white dwarf; the rest of the star is dispersed into the interstellar medium, enriching it with chemically processed elements, such as carbon, that is found in all living organisms on Earth. These elements were cooked in the stellar furnace during a stellar life span covering billions of years. The high-energy radiation from the hot white dwarf makes the blown gas to shine for a short period of time, and the result is one of the most colourful and beautiful astronomical objects: a planetary nebula.

Protein Opens Hope Of Treatment For Cystic Fibrosis Patients Posted: 12 Sep 2008 04:00 AM CDT Scientists have finally identified a direct role for the missing protein that leaves cystic fibrosis patients open to attack from lung-damaging bacteria, the main reason most of them die before their 35th birthday, scientists report.

An Advance On New Generations Of Chemotherapy And Antiviral Drugs Posted: 12 Sep 2008 04:00 AM CDT Researchers are describing progress toward developing a new generation of chemotherapy agents that target and block uncontrolled DNA replication — a hallmark of cancer, viral infections, and other diseases — more effectively than current drugs in ways that may produce fewer side effects.

How To Differentiate Benign From Malignant Bile Duct Strictures? Posted: 12 Sep 2008 04:00 AM CDT The differentiation of benign and malignant strictures is difficult. Recently, a group of clinical specialists in Netherlands attempted to find possible criteria for differentiation of malignant from benign bile duct strictures. They found that except for vascular involvement which was associated significantly with malignancy, there were no conclusive features of malignancy on regular imaging modalities.

Engineers Develop Laser Solution To Power Plants Slowed By Slagging Posted: 12 Sep 2008 04:00 AM CDT The system relies on laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy to provide instant analysis of the elemental composition of coal as it is being burned. LIBS was developed by engineers at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pa., and at the Energy Research Company in Staten Island, N.Y. Slagging and related problems cost coal-fired power plants an estimated $2.4 billion each year.

Tsunami Survivors Experienced Complex Trauma And Grieving Process, Says New Study Posted: 12 Sep 2008 04:00 AM CDT People who survived the Indian Ocean tsunami or lost loved ones in the disaster went through a complex process of trauma and grief, according to research published in the latest Journal of Advanced Nursing.

Flies, Too, Feel The Influence Of Their Peers, Studies Find Posted: 12 Sep 2008 01:00 AM CDT Researchers have found that group composition affects individual flies in several ways, including changes in gene activity and sexual behavior, all mediated by chemical communication

Light-activated Treatments Could Solve MRSA Problems After Surgery Posted: 12 Sep 2008 01:00 AM CDT Killer dyes that can wipe out bacteria could help solve the superbug problems faced by surgical patients, scientists report.

Nanoscopic Golden Rods Posted: 12 Sep 2008 01:00 AM CDT Scientists have now developed a new method for the production of nanoscopic gold rods. In contrast to previous methods, they have achieved this without the use of cytotoxic additives, using an ionic liquid as a solvent.

Breast Cancer Screening May Lower Mortality And Disease Burden In India Posted: 12 Sep 2008 01:00 AM CDT Regular screening of women between the ages of 40 and 59 could substantially reduce breast cancer mortality in India, according to new study.

NASA Report Explores Use Of Earth Data To Support National U.S. Priorities Posted: 12 Sep 2008 01:00 AM CDT The United States faces challenges in utilizing Earth science information to manage resources and protect public health, according to a NASA-sponsored report issued by the U.S. Climate Change Science Program. The report examines the computer-based decision support tools that many government agencies use to make predictions and forecasts in areas such as agricultural productivity, air quality, renewable energy resources, water management, and the prevention of vector-borne disease.

New Way To Help Schizophrenia Sufferers' Social Skills Posted: 12 Sep 2008 01:00 AM CDT Researchers in Australia are investigating a new way to help schizophrenia patients develop their communication and social skills.

Female Spiders Eat Small Males When They Mate Posted: 11 Sep 2008 10:00 PM CDT A number of hypotheses have been proposed for why females eat males before or after mating. After looking at a wide range of data, researchers found that sexual cannibalism may not be a complex evolutionary balancing act of costs and benefits but rather a case of a hungry female eating a male when he is small enough to catch.

Infectious Heart Disease Death Rates Rising Again, Say Scientists Posted: 11 Sep 2008 10:00 PM CDT Infectious heart disease is still a major killer in spite of improvements in health care, but the way the disease develops has changed so much since its discovery that nineteenth century doctors would not recognize it, scientists report.

Vitamin B12 May Protect The Brain In Old Age Posted: 11 Sep 2008 10:00 PM CDT Vitamin B12, a nutrient found in meat, fish and milk, may protect against brain volume loss in older people, according to a new study.

U.S. Hospitals 'Flunk' Colon Cancer, Study Finds Posted: 11 Sep 2008 10:00 PM CDT A new study has found the majority of hospitals don't check enough lymph nodes after a patient's colon cancer surgery to determine if the disease has spread. Leading oncology organizations have recommended a minimum of 12 lymph nodes be examined to determine if colon cancer has metastasized. That affects whether a patient receives chemotherapy, which significantly improves survival. Yet, more than 60 percent of nearly 1,300 institutions in the United States failed to check enough nodes.

Food Poisoning Bacteria Prefer Duck To Beef On Meat Factory Surfaces Posted: 11 Sep 2008 10:00 PM CDT The food poisoning bacterium Listeria could survive on surfaces in meat processing factories if certain other bacteria are present, scientists report.

Dance To The Music: Learning And Exercising At YMCA Can Prevent Diabetes, New Study Says Posted: 11 Sep 2008 10:00 PM CDT Community-based exercise organizations, such as the YMCA, are an effective tool in the fight against diabetes, according to new study. More than 60 million Americans have pre-diabetes, and most of them are unaware. Adults with pre-diabetes are at more than 10 times the normal risk for developing diabetes and at twice the risk for heart attack or stroke. Reaching this growing population is a concern for diabetes educators and physicians.

Brewing A Great Beer: DNA Study Reveals Evolution Of Beer Yeasts Posted: 11 Sep 2008 07:00 PM CDT Lager lovers convinced that their beer of choice stands alone should prepare to drink their words this Oktoberfest. New research by geneticists at the Stanford University School of Medicine indicates that the brew, which accounts for the majority of commercial beer production worldwide, owes its existence to an unlikely pairing between two species of yeast -- one of which has been used for thousands of years to make ale.

Aberrations In One Region Of One Chromosome Associated With Broad Range Of Disorders In Children Posted: 11 Sep 2008 07:00 PM CDT A submicroscopic variation in a region of human chromosome 1q21.1 is associated with a broad range of disorders and levels of impairment, including mental retardation, autism, heart defects, hand deformities and other conditions.

Toward Improved Antibiotics Using Proteins From Marine Diatoms Posted: 11 Sep 2008 07:00 PM CDT Researchers in Florida are reporting an advance toward tapping the enormous potential of an emerging new group of antibiotics identical to certain germ-fighting proteins found in the human immune system. Their study may help fight the growing epidemic of drug-resistant infections.

Clinicians Debate Use Of Arthroscopy In Patients With Osteoarthritis Posted: 11 Sep 2008 07:00 PM CDT Arthroscopic surgery for osteoarthritis of the knee provides no additional benefit to optimized physical and medical therapy, a new study shows. An accompanying editorial, however, points out that the study has some weaknesses and argues strongly that arthroscopy does have a role in some patients with osteoarthritis.

Switched-on New Nanotechnology Paints For Hospitals Could Kill Superbugs Posted: 11 Sep 2008 07:00 PM CDT New nanotechnology paints for walls, ceilings, and surfaces could be used to kill hospital superbugs when fluorescent lights are switched on, scientists report.

Army Still Using Physicians In Interrogation, Bioethicist Says Posted: 11 Sep 2008 07:00 PM CDT U.S. Army psychiatrists may be participating in the interrogation of detainees, while ignoring recommendations to the contrary from professional medical associations, according to a Penn State bioethicist.

NASA Developing Fission Surface Power Technology Posted: 11 Sep 2008 04:00 PM CDT NASA astronauts will need power sources when they return to the moon and establish a lunar outpost. NASA engineers are exploring the possibility of nuclear fission to provide the necessary power and taking initial steps toward a non-nuclear technology demonstration of this type of system.

Bleeding Gums Linked To Heart Disease Posted: 11 Sep 2008 04:00 PM CDT Bad teeth, bleeding gums and poor dental hygiene can end up causing heart disease, scientists report.

Injured Brains 'Work Harder' To Perform At Same Level As Healthy People Posted: 11 Sep 2008 04:00 PM CDT Brain imaging experts have found a distinct "brain signature" in patients who have recovered from head injuries that shows their brains may have to work harder than the brains of healthy people to perform at the same level.

As Head And Neck Cancer Risks Evolve, More Treatment Options Emerge Posted: 11 Sep 2008 04:00 PM CDT Recent advances in the treatment of head and neck cancer are bringing patients more treatment options, improved quality of life and opportunities for prevention. These advances include new targeted therapies, refinements in radiation and chemotherapy and the identification of a link with human papillomavirus.

Oil-eating Microbes Give Clue To Ancient Energy Source Posted: 11 Sep 2008 04:00 PM CDT Microbes that break down oil and petroleum are more diverse than we thought, suggesting hydrocarbons were used as an energy source early in Earth's history, scientists report.

Real-world Behavior And Biases Show Up In Virtual World Posted: 11 Sep 2008 04:00 PM CDT Americans are spending increasing amounts of time hanging around virtual worlds in the forms of cartoon-like avatars that change appearances according to users' wills, fly through floating cities in the clouds and teleport instantly to glowing crystal canyons and starlit desert landscapes. Simply fun and games? A new study shows that avatars responded to social cues -- and revealed racial biases -- in the same ways that people do in the real world.

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