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Here is your customized PHYSorg.com Newsletter for July 16, 2010:
Spotlight Stories Headlines
- GRASP lab demonstrates quadrotors (w/ Video)- Scientists say plants can remember properties of light
- Chemists grow crystals with a twist -- and untwist
- Redundant genetic instructions in 'junk DNA' support healthy development
- Narcissists bring pluses, minuses to the workplace
- World's smoothest roller coaster ride: Swedish mathematicians draw the perfect loop
- Website, Google Earth offer 3-D views of Hawaii
- Findings overturn old theory of phytoplankton growth, raise concerns for ocean productivity
- Apple: Free cases to alleviate iPhone 4 problems
- Even mild immune reactions have significant energy costs, evolutionary anthropologist finds
- Cometary Impact on Neptune Two Centuries Ago
- Scientists identify nature's insect repellents
- Cancer drugs may help stop major parasite
- Study shows how memory is disrupted in those with disease linked to learning disabilities
- June Earth's hottest ever: US monitors
Space & Earth news
Scientific coral reef survey to be conducted in Bonaire
Starting Monday, July 19 through Tuesday, July 27, 2010, the Khaled bin Sultan Living Oceans Foundation will conduct a scientific coral reef survey in Bonaire, Netherlands Antilles. The main objective of this project is to reevaluate coral sites previously studied by the Foundation in order to produce management decision aids and tools needed by resource managers and other stakeholders in Bonaire to achieve effective coral reef conservation results.
US Senate votes to extend space shuttle program
A key Senate panel approved Thursday a 2011 budget proposal for the US space agency NASA that would extend the space shuttle program in a compromise from the Obama administration's demands.
Herschel: The first science highlights
This week, Astronomy & Astrophysics is publishing a special feature devoted to the first science results obtained with Herschel, an ESA space observatory with science instruments provided by European-led Principal Investigator consortia and with important participation from NASA. It includes 152 articles dealing with various subjects based on the first few months of science observing. A few papers describe the observatory and its instruments, and the rest are dedicated to observations of many astronomical targets from bodies in the Solar System to distant galaxies.
Photos 'show Himalayan glaciers receding'
When British climbing legend George Mallory took his iconic 1921 photo of Mount Everest's north face, the mighty, river-shaped glacier snaking under his feet seemed eternal.
Carbon trading used as money-laundering front: experts
Organised crime gangs are using carbon emissions trading schemes as fronts for money-laundering, experts warned Friday.
Cluster's decade of discovery
(PhysOrg.com) -- ESA's pioneering Cluster mission is celebrating its 10th anniversary. During the past decade, Cluster's four satellites have provided extraordinary insights into the largely invisible interaction between the Sun and Earth.
June Earth's hottest ever: US monitors
Last month was the hottest June ever recorded on Earth, the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said Thursday, amid global climate warming worries.
BP halts Gulf oil flow for first time since April
British energy giant BP says it has temporarily stopped oil flowing into the Gulf of Mexico for the first time in three months as it began key tests hoping to stem the spill for good.
25,000 new asteroids found by NASA's sky mapping
(AP) -- Worried about Earth-threatening asteroids? One of NASA's newest space telescopes has spotted 25,000 never-before-seen asteroids in just six months.
Breakthrough achieved in explaining why tectonic plates move the way they do
A team of researchers including Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego geophysicist Dave Stegman has developed a new theory to explain the global motions of tectonic plates on the earth's surface.
Findings overturn old theory of phytoplankton growth, raise concerns for ocean productivity
A new study concludes that an old, fundamental and widely accepted theory of how and why phytoplankton bloom in the oceans is incorrect.
Cometary Impact on Neptune Two Centuries Ago
(PhysOrg.com) -- (PhysOrg.com) -- A comet may have hit the planet Neptune about two centuries ago. This is indicated by the distribution of carbon monoxide in the atmosphere of the gas giant that researchers - among them scientists from the French obser-vatory LESIA in Paris, from the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Re-search (MPS) in Katlenburg-Lindau (Germany) and from the Max Planck Insti-tute for Extraterrestrial Physics in Garching (Germany) - have now studied. The scientists analyzed data taken by the research satellite Herschel, that has been orbiting the Sun in a distance of approximately 1.5 million kilome-ters since May 2009. (Astronomy & Astrophysics, published online on July 16th, 2010)
Technology news
Advanced weapon system helps ONR respond to Navy needs
The Low-Cost Imaging Terminal Seeker (LCITS), an Office of Naval Research (ONR)-sponsored technology, could soon give the U.S. Navy and coalition military ships an upper hand in swiftly defeating multiaxis attacks by small swarming boats.
Dell: SEC staff to recommend accounting settlement
(AP) -- Computer maker Dell Inc. said Friday it's getting closer to settling investigations by regulators into its accounting and the actions of CEO Michael Dell.
Venture-cap investments climb 53 pct in 2Q
(AP) -- Venture capitalists funneled more money into U.S. startups in the second quarter, indicating continuing confidence that the economy is on the mend.
June video game sales decline again, NPD says
(AP) -- Summer doldrums weighed on the video game industry in June, with U.S. retail sales of hardware, software and accessories down 6 percent from a year earlier, to $1.1 billion.
Insecurities plague electronic health care
Information security and privacy in the healthcare sector is an issue of growing importance but much remains to be done to address the various issues raised by healthcare consumers regarding privacy and security and the providers' perspective of regulatory compliance.
Turkey unveils its own drone plane for first time
(AP) -- Turkey on Friday unveiled its first drone airplane, a surveillance craft able to fly for 24-hour stretches over the rugged mountains where Kurdish rebels are waging a deadly insurgency.
Gannett to partner with Yahoo on local advertising
(AP) -- Gannett Co., the largest U.S. newspaper publisher, is partnering with Yahoo Inc. to sell local online advertising. It's a deal that could help Gannett boost revenue as its traditional print business declines.
The city, 2.0. (w/ Video)
Augmented reality tours of real monuments, instant visualisation of virtual objects on living cityscapes and user-generated, digital story telling around famous landmarks are just some of the new applications made possible by breakthrough European research into mixed reality. This is the city, 2.0.
TV, digital operations give Gannett a boost
USA Today owner Gannett said Friday that net profit surged in the second quarter on a strong performance from its television and digital properties and an improved print advertising climate.
Taiwan's TSMC to invest over $9 billion in plant
Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., the world's largest contract microchip maker, said Friday it would invest more than nine billion US dollars building a new plant on the island.
Clouds gathering over German solar sector: study
Germany's once innovative solar energy sector seems to have lost some of its lustre and is increasingly being put in the shade by rivals in China and the United States, a study said on Friday.
HTC blazes discreet trail in U.S. smart-phone market
After mulling over which smart phone to buy for months, Seth Chapman decided against jumping on the iPhone, BlackBerry or Droid X bandwagons and instead went with the HTC Evo 4G.
Website, Google Earth offer 3-D views of Hawaii
(AP) -- A new website backed by eBay founder Pierre Omidyar says it will offer potential visitors to Hawaii the ability to view hotels, shops and tourist attractions in three dimensions and from different angles in an interactive virtual tour.
N.Zealand inventors unveil bionic legs for paraplegics (w/ Video)
Two New Zealand inventors have produced what they claim are the world's first robotic legs to help paraplegics walk again.
Broadband picture may not be so bleak
In March, the Federal Communications Commission released its National Broadband Plan, in which it reported that "the actual download speed experienced on broadband connections in American households is approximately 40-50% of the advertised 'up to' speed to which they subscribe." That finding, which the FCC had previously cited, caused some consternation among bloggers and op-ed writers, to say nothing of broadband subscribers.
GRASP lab demonstrates quadrotors (w/ Video)
(PhysOrg.com) -- Quadrotors, robotic vehicles resembling tiny helicopters, have been demonstrated by a group of scientists in the US. The quadrotors were shown carrying out impressive maneuvers and lifting payloads both singly and in groups working together.
Medicine & Health news
Simple screening test reduces invasive examinations for suspected bowel disease
A simple screening test identifies patients who are most likely to have inflammatory bowel disease and reduces the need for expensive, invasive and time consuming endoscopies, finds a study published in the British Medical Journal today.
Putting Alzheimer's on early notice
Australian scientists have presented key findings at an international Alzheimer's disease conference this week. Their major focus is on early detection and discovering why the disease progresses.
Meds Not Always Best Solution for Chronic Heartburn
(PhysOrg.com) -- If you constantly pop pills and still suffer from irritating heartburn, there may be an underlying problem more effectively -- and safely -- addressed with surgery.
Indigenous Australians are not heavy smokers
(PhysOrg.com) -- A recent study has busted the myth Indigenous Australians are heavy smokers and has indicated those living in remote communities consume fewer cigarettes a day than other smokers, even though they continue to suffer from higher rates of smoking-related diseases.
WHO criticizes Amnesty report into NKorea health
(AP) -- The World Health Organization found itself Friday in the strange position of defending North Korea's health care system from an Amnesty International report, three months after WHO's director described medicine in the totalitarian state as the envy of the developing world.
Swallowing safely is no choke
That's the message of Drs. Roya Sayadi and Joel Herskowitz. They are a wife-husband team from Natick, Massachusetts, who are spreading the word that swallowing problems are everywhere - and they can be deadly.
New recommendations issued for use of cetuximab in colon cancer therapy
In a report published in the July 2010 issue of the American Society for Clinical Oncology Post, new recommendations on the use of the drug cetuximab have been issued after officials halted enrollment in a phase III clinical trial in patients with spread of colon cancer into regional lymph nodes whose tumors had been surgically removed.
Brain Fluid Sensor May Improve Hydrocephalus Treatment
(PhysOrg.com) -- Hydrocephalus, or "water on the brain" as it is often called, is a condition that is diagnosed in tens of thousands in the U.S. every year, causing symptoms from mild gait problems to life-threatening seizures.
UC Berkeley psychologists bring science of happiness to China
(PhysOrg.com) -- The ranks of China's millionaires continue to grow, but the increased wealth has done little to boost the country's gross domestic happiness, according to psychologists at the University of California, Berkeley. They say the pursuit of prosperity in the nation is fast outpacing mental health and well-being, and are seeking to correct that imbalance by spreading the science of happiness in China.
FDA panel rejects experimental weight loss pill
(AP) -- A panel of federal health experts dealt a surprising setback Thursday to a highly anticipated anti-obesity pill from Vivus Inc., saying the drug's side effects outweigh its ability to help patients lose weight.
Scientists devise guide to the perfect handshake
Help is here for people who are overcome with nerves when faced with the age-old custom of shaking hands -- British scientists have unveiled a step-by-step guide to the perfect handshake.
Insight into why low calorie diet can extend lifespan -- even if adopted later in life
New research being presented this week is giving scientists new insight into why a restricted diet can lead to a longer lifespan and reduced incidence of age-related diseases for a wide variety of animals. Scientists have known for some time that a restricted diet can extend the lifespan of certain animals but this work shows how it affects ageing mechanisms - and significantly has also shown that the effects occur even if the restricted diet is adopted later in life.
When does obesity become a child protection issue?
Childhood obesity alone is not a child protection concern, nor is failure to control weight. But consistent failure to change lifestyle and engage with outside support indicates neglect, particularly in younger children, say experts in a paper published in the British Medical Journal today.
Thousands of New Proteins Discovered in Spinal Fluid
(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists and doctors have a far better understanding of the proteins in healthy spinal fluid, thanks to a U.S., Swedish team who identified 2,630 proteins in the clear fluid that protects the brain and spinal cord. This discovery nearly triples the number of proteins known to exist in spinal fluid. Another striking finding was that slightly more than half of the proteins were not found in blood.
Vitamin deficiency after weight loss surgery can cause vision loss in newborns
Biliopancreatic diversion surgery for morbid obesity is known to cause multiple vitamin deficiencies that may worsen during pregnancy. In the June issue of the Journal of AAPOS, the Official Publication of the American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus, a group of Australian clinicians report a child who was born blind as a result of Vitamin A deficiency caused by his mother's obesity surgery.
FDA says breast cancer drug did not extend lives
(AP) -- Federal health scientists said Friday that follow-up studies of a Roche breast cancer drug show it failed to slow tumor growth or extend patient lives, opening the door for a potential withdrawal in that indication.
Study shows how memory is disrupted in those with disease linked to learning disabilities
(PhysOrg.com) -- Imagine if your brain lost its working memory -- the ability to hold and manipulate information in your mind's eye. That's the plight faced by millions of people with neurofibromatosis type 1, or NF1. The genetic condition affects one in 3,500 people and is the most common cause of learning disabilities.
Cancer drugs may help stop major parasite
A parasite estimated to afflict as many as 12 million people worldwide relies on a family of genes that should make it vulnerable to compounds developed to treat cancer and other disorders, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found.
Biology news
Sea turtles rescued from Gulf spill released
(AP) -- The first group of sea turtles that are part of a sweeping effort to save threatened and endangered hatchlings from death in the oily Gulf of Mexico have been released into the Atlantic Ocean.
It Takes 'Guts' to Explore the Next Proteomics Frontier
(PhysOrg.com) -- In the quest to find new sources of biofuel, researchers are studying one of the most efficient bioreactors on earth: the termite. The same insect that causes distress to homeowners with its wood-consuming abilities also provides scientists with a fascinating area of study: the symbiotic microbial community that enables the termite to digest wood cellulose.
UMaine Researchers Look for Answers to Growing Fire Ant Populations
(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers from the University of Maine are working on solutions to the rapid population growth of invasive stinging fire ants, now showing up in alarming numbers from Massachusetts to Nova Scotia, and beyond — taking much of the fun out of backyard barbecues, nature walks and other outdoor activities.
The protective brain hypothesis is confirmed
"In the past, it was thought that one of the selective advantages of having a large brain is that it facilitates the development of new behaviour to respond to the ecological challenges that the individual has not experienced before, such as a sudden reduction in food or the appearance of a new predator ", Cesar González-Lagos, main author of the study and researcher at the Centre of Ecological Research and Forestry Applications (CREAF) associated with the Autonomous University of Barcelona, highlights to SINC.
Segmentation is the secret behind the extraordinary diversification of animals
Segmentation, the repetition of identical anatomical units, seems to be the secret behind the diversity and longevity of the largest and most common animal groups on Earth. Researchers from CNRS and Universite Paris Diderot have shown that this characteristic was inherited from a common segmented ancestor thought to have lived 600 million years ago and whose presence "changed the face of the world". This discovery is published in Science on 16 July 2010.
Researchers find mice cages alter brains
Researchers at the University of Colorado's Anschutz Medical Campus have found the brains of mice used in laboratories worldwide can be profoundly affected by the type of cage they are kept in, a breakthrough that may require scientists to reevaluate the way they conduct future experiments.
Scientists identify nature's insect repellents
In the battle between insect predators and their prey, chemical signals called kairomones serve as an early-warning system. Pervasively emitted by the predators, the compounds are detected by their prey, and can even trigger adaptations, such a change in body size or armor, that help protect the prey. But as widespread as kairomones are in the insect world, their chemical identity has remained largely unknown. New research by Rockefeller University's Joel E. Cohen and colleagues at the University of Haifa in Israel has identified two compounds emitted by mosquito predators that make the mosquitoes less inclined to lay eggs in pools of water. The findings, published in the July issue of Ecology Letters, may provide new environmentally friendly tactics for repelling and controlling disease-carrying insects.
Redundant genetic instructions in 'junk DNA' support healthy development
Seemingly redundant portions of the fruit fly genome may not be so redundant after all.
Even mild immune reactions have significant energy costs, evolutionary anthropologist finds
The energetic costs of fighting off simple respiratory infections result in heightened resting metabolic rates and lower testosterone levels in men, an Indiana University anthropologist shows in research pointed toward quantifying how immunological burdens and trade-offs play a role in human evolution.
Scientists say plants can remember properties of light
(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers in Poland say plants are able to remember and react to information on light intensity and quality by transmitting information from leaf to leaf.
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