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Here is your customized PHYSorg.com Newsletter for July 4, 2011:
Spotlight Stories Headlines
- Endocannabinoids, body's natural marijuana-like chemicals, make fatty foods difficult to resist- Scientists solve mystery of nerve disease genes
- 'Cling-film' solar cells could lead to advance in renewable energy
- Inspired by teflon, researchers create super durable proteins
- Gene mutations in fruit flies help shed light on inherited intellectual disability in humans
- Most of 'missing species' live in known hotspots, study finds
- Next gen video games let players control the story
- Surprising results in a new study on childbearing and education
- Antarctic krill help to fertilize Southern Ocean with iron
- Crucial role for molecule in muscle development
- Balance tips toward environment as heritability ebbs in autism?
- T-shirt charges your phone by absorbing ambient sound (w/ video)
- Airlines positioned for big gains in efficiency
- Americans aren't hitting their prime till after 65
- A novel enzymatic catalyst for biodiesel production
Space & Earth news
Merkel: binding, verifiable climate targets needed
(AP) -- All nations must commit to binding and verifiable goals to reduce their carbon emissions to reach a new international climate agreement as the Kyoto Protocol expires next year, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Sunday.
Europe drought leading to more property damage: study
Increasing occurrences of drought have led to a jump in European insurance claims for damage to homes owing to subsiding soil, a study by reinsurer Swiss Re and the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology said on Monday.
Greenpeace ship Rainbow Warrior III debuts
Greenpeace unveiled a new weapon in its campaign against environmental destruction on Monday -- a 23 million euro ($33.4 million) ship dubbed the Rainbow Warrior III.
Oil spilled into Yellowstone River in US
An oil pipeline in northwestern US state Montana has ruptured and spilled crude oil into the Yellowstone River, a key tourist attraction in the region that runs through a famed national park, the pipeline operator acknowledged late Saturday.
Space shuttle veterans were a different breed of astronaut
As a teenager in Costa Rica, Franklin Chang-Diaz had an improbable goal: becoming an American astronaut. Ultimately, he would fly a record seven shuttle missions and today wants to fly to Mars.
Fewer rain storms across southern Australia
(PhysOrg.com) -- Decreasing autumn and winter rainfall over southern Australia has been attributed to a 50-year decrease in the average intensity of storms in the region – a trend which is forecast to continue for another 50 years.
More rain, less snow leads to faster Arctic ice melt
Rising air temperatures in the Arctic region have led to an increase in rainfall and a decrease in snowfall, making the sea ice more susceptible to melting, a new study has revealed.
Wind of change: Aussie 'farting camels' cull under attack
The world's association of camel scientists fought back angrily on Monday over Australian plans to kill wild dromedaries on the grounds that their flatulence adds to global warming.
Fla.'s Space Coast feels pain of shuttle's end
(AP) -- Workers at the Kennedy Space Center always knew the end of the shuttle program would bring hard times to Florida's Space Coast.
Mass tourism threatening Venice lagoon, say ecologists
An Italian environmental group warned on Monday that mass tourism is slowly eroding the Venice lagoon, which it said is also threatened by major real estate development and an inadequate transport network.
Drug disposal can be tricky
Getting rid of a television, a gallon of kerosene or a set of tires in an environmentally friendly way can be done with relative ease in most states.
Last 4 shuttle astronauts arrive for countdown
(AP) -- The four astronauts who will close out NASA's space shuttle program are at their Florida launch site, eager for a Friday takeoff.
Mysterious seaweed dump chokes S.Leone's coastline
Massive piles of seaweed have washed ashore along Sierra Leone's coastline, covering the white sand and raising fears for tourism and the fishing industry, officials said Monday.
Antarctic krill help to fertilize Southern Ocean with iron
A new discovery reveals that the shrimp-like creature at the heart of the Antarctic food chain could play a key role in fertilising the Southern Ocean with iron – stimulating the growth of phytoplankton (microscopic plant-like organisms). This process enhances the ocean's capacity for natural storage of carbon dioxide.
Big rips and little rips
One of a number of seemingly implausible features of dark energy is that its density is assumed to be constant over time. So, even though the universe expands over time, dark energy does not become diluted, unlike the rest of the contents of the universe.
Global warming pause linked to sulfur in China
Scientists have come up with a possible explanation for why the rise in Earth's temperature paused for a bit during the 2000s, one of the hottest decades on record.
Technology news
Diesel cars gain traction slowly in US market
After many fits and starts, diesel cars are gaining traction in the US market, fueled largely by German carmakers including Volkswagen, which opened a plant in May in Tennessee.
Swiss solar plane returns after European flights
Swiss solar-powered aircraft Solar Impulse returned to Switzerland Sunday from Paris' Le Bourget airport, where it been on show, the plane's team said.
Sony to restore PlayStation network, Qriocity in Japan
Sony said Monday it would fully restore all PlayStation Network and Qriocity online distribution services in Japan on Wednesday, after shutting them down in April due to hacker attacks.
Unlocked iPhones can save some users a lot of money
Three years ago, Vivek Wadhwa used his iPhone while traveling in India.
DARPA's compact high-power laser program completes key milestone
Enemy surface-to-air threats to manned and unmanned aircraft have become increasingly sophisticated, creating a need for rapid and effective response to this growing category of threats. A potential solution for countering these threats is high-powered lasers, which can harness the speed and power of light to counter multiple threats. But these lasers need to be lighter and require less space than current state-of-the-art for use on many of today’s air assets. The goal of DARPA’s High-Energy Liquid Laser Area Defense System (HELLADS) is to develop a 150 kilowatt (kW) laser weapon system that is ten times smaller and lighter than current lasers of similar power, enabling integration onto tactical aircraft to defend against and defeat ground threats.
Hacking on Fox News Twitter reports Obama's death
(AP) -- Hackers broke into Fox's political Twitter account early Monday, posting updates saying President Barack Obama had been assassinated.
Baidu teams up with Microsoft for English searches
Chinese web giant Baidu said on Monday it had reached an agreement with Microsoft to provide English-language results generated by the US software giant's Bing search engine.
Air France to power planes with cooking oil
In a giant nod to the growing recycled fuel industry, Air France-KLM has announced that it will start flying planes in September using a blend of kerosene and used cooking oil. More than 200 flights between Paris and Amsterdam will be the first to embrace the alternative fuel.
Secret Service to probe hack on Fox News Twitter
(AP) -- The Secret Service said Monday it will investigate the hacking of Fox's political Twitter account over updates claiming that President Barack Obama had been assassinated.
WikiLeaks to file complaint against Visa, Mastercard: lawyer
WikiLeaks will lodge a complaint with the European Commission against credit card giants Visa and MasterCard if the two companies refuse to lift their ban on donations to the site, their lawyer said Monday.
Taiwan in stealth technology breakthrough: report
Taiwan has developed a radar-absorbent material in a breakthrough in the island's development of stealth technology, local media reported Monday.
Google temporarily disables 'Realtime' search
Google Inc. has temporarily shut down a search engine feature that allows users to find real-time updates from Twitter, Facebook, FriendFeed and other social networking sites.
Airlines positioned for big gains in efficiency
Planes are being built out of the same lightweight materials used for Formula 1 race cars. Their engines are being redesigned to squeeze more thrust out of every gallon of fuel. And governments are developing air-traffic systems that will allow airlines to fly shorter routes.
T-shirt charges your phone by absorbing ambient sound (w/ video)
First there was tie-dye, then there was hypercolor. Could piezoelectric fabrics that charge your mobile phone while you wear them be the next big T-shirt fad? That's what the French telecom company, Orange, is counting on, reports the Telegraph.
Next gen video games let players control the story
Menacing alien machines descend on Earth, and amid all-out war, a soldier searches a building to find a frightened boy hiding in a vent.
Medicine & Health news
Getting aid to where it is needed
In the early 2000s, the international aid community started to fund health programs through Global Health Initiatives (GHIs) which provide aid and support for tackling infectious diseases, and for implementing immunization programs against childhood diseases. However priorities set by GHIs and by governments are not always the same. New research published in BioMed Central's open access journal Globalization and Health uses 'agency theory' to examine the conflicts between donor and recipient countries.
Biomarker MIA shows presence of neurofibromas
Neurofibromatosis (NF1) is a genetic condition which affects one in every 3,000 people. The severity of symptoms can range from benign 'cafe au lait' patches on the skin, through small tumors under the skin and deep plexiform neurofibromas, to malignant tumors of the nerve sheath. New research published in BioMed Central's open access journal BMC Medicine shows that a simple blood test for the protein melanoma-inhibitory activity (MIA) could be used to indicate the presence of neurofibromas even if they cannot be seen.
Diet soda doesn't make you fat -- it's the extra food
You are making a healthier choice when opting for a diet soda instead of a calorie-laden drink, but beware that you don’t sabotage your good behavior by indulging in extra-calorie foods, said an obesity specialist at Loyola University Health System.
Technology poses no harm to nursing home residents
(Medical Xpress) -- The federal government is pushing doctors and hospitals to convert to electronic medical records by 2015, touting reductions in costs, increased patient safety and greater efficiencies in the U.S. health care system.
URMC surgeon is nation's first to implant pacemaker-like device for bowel incontinence
(Medical Xpress) -- Since the technology secured FDA approval this spring, a University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC) surgeon this month became the first in the nation to implant a pacemaker-like device that could help millions of Americans with fecal incontinence regain bowel control and live more normal lives.
Major palliative care funding review published
A team from the Cicely Saunders Institute at King’s College London, partnered with South West Public Health Observatory and Whole Systems Partnership, has made a major contribution to the Palliative Care Funding Review for England, published today (1 July).
Patients with eating disorders have an elevated rate of death
Individuals who have eating disorders have an elevated mortality rate, especially those with anorexia nervosa (AN), according to a meta-analysis of previous studies, reported in the July issue of Archives of General Psychiatry.
Study examines trends in withholding treatment for infants in neonatal intensive care units
Withdrawal of life-sustaining support and withholding lifesaving measures (such as CPR) appear to be the primary modes of infant deaths in a neonatal intensive care unit, according to a report in the July issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.
Urban children are healthier commuters than rural teens
The children most likely to walk or cycle to school live in urban areas, with a single parent, and in an economically disadvantaged home, according to survey results that were published in Pediatrics today by Dr. Roman Pabayo of the University of Montreal Hospital Research Centre and the university's Department of Social and preventive medicine. Pabayo's study is unique in that it follows the same group of children as they age throughout the school years, and it shows that children increasingly use "active transport" to travel to school until they reach ten or eleven years of age, at which point the trend then reverses.
Could ovarian stimulation cause an increase in oocyte chromosome abnormalities?
Ovarian stimulation undertaken by women of advanced maternal age (over 35 years) receiving fertility treatment may be disrupting the normal pattern of meiosis – a critical process of chromosome duplication followed by two specialised cell divisions in the production of oocytes and sperm – and leading to abnormalities of chromosome copy numbers (aneuploidy) that result in IVF failure, pregnancy loss or, more rarely, the birth of affected children with conditions such as Down's syndrome, which is caused by the inheritance of three copies of chromosome 21 (trisomy 21).
Scientists develop blood test for vitamin D deficiency
Weakening of the immune system is the result of not enough vitamin D coursing through the human body, potentially raising the risk of cancer and osteoporosis. But a British team of scientists has created a novel, super accurate blood test with the capacity to determine just how big a role a person's diet plays in vitamin D deficiency. The test is presented in two papers of the Nutrition Journal.
'You're going to fall over soon'
A new technology to stop falls before they happen could help the elderly stay in their own homes longer.
Sunny days possibly not so great for some hitters
Texas Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton hasn't had much trouble slugging like an All-Star during night games this season, but has struggled mightily during day games, exaggerating a career-long trend. When he blamed his blue eyes and light sensitivity for the discrepancy, media reports quickly examined the statistics of other light-eyed players and found little difference between most batters' performances in day and night games. But according to some vision experts, there are legitimate reasons why a player might hit worse under the sun than under the lights.
Old is new again: Study determines dosing for 1950s drug now being used to treat drug-resistant infections
(Medical Xpress) -- An ongoing study led by a University of Pittsburgh researcher has established the first scientifically-based dosing guidelines for a more than 50-year-old drug that has re-emerged as the best, and often only, treatment for some bacterial infections that are resistant to modern therapies. The study appears in the July issue of the journal Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy.
Surface layer effectively kills malaria mosquitoes in rice paddies
A thin, liquid layer applied on the surface of inundated rice paddies effectively kills malaria mosquito larvae without having an impact on other aquatic life. Rice yield remains the same and water was saved because of the anti-evaporative properties of the layer.
Research shows phonics not always the best reading tonic
(Medical Xpress) -- Ground-breaking research in learning has found that children are primarily geared towards learning to read through storing words in the brain, and that phonics, used for “sounding out” words, is not necessary past the initial stages of learning to read.
Why do women suffer autoimmune diseases more often?
Researchers at National Jewish Health have discovered a type of cell that may contribute to autoimmune disease. The findings also suggest why diseases such as lupus, multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis strike women more frequently than men.
Heart disease, No. 1 killer, can sneak up on women
Heart disease can sneak up on women in ways that standard cardiac tests can miss. It's part of a puzzling gender gap: Women tend to have different heart attack symptoms than men. They're more likely to die in the year after a first heart attack.
Varenicline for smoking cessation linked to increased risk of serious harmful cardiac events
The use of varenicline to stop smoking is associated with a 72% increased risk of a serious adverse cardiovascular event, states an article in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal).
Generics advancing on lucrative pet drug market
When Samantha Lowe's 12-year-old Labrador retriever needed anti-inflammatories to ease her arthritis, she found herself facing the same question humans face when it comes to prescriptions: Name-brand drug, or generic?
Swedish model slashes multiple-birth risk in IVF pregnancies
Swedish doctors on Monday presented a new method they said dramatically reduces the risk of multiple births from in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) without affecting chances of having a baby.
Study shows answers for treating obesity-related diseases may reside in fat tissue
Researchers at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) and Boston Medical Center (BMC) have shown that the quality – not just the quantity – of adipose, or fat, tissue is a significant contributing factor in the development of inflammation and vascular disease in obese individuals. The study, which is a special feature on the iPAD version of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, provides compelling evidence that the answer to treating cardiovascular disease and other obesity-related disorders, such as type 2 diabetes and cancer, might be found in the adipose tissue itself.
Exposure to certain antidepressants in pregnancy may modestly increase risk of autism spectrum disorders
Prenatal exposure to selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, especially during the first trimester, is associated with a modest increase the risk of developing an autism spectrum disorder, according to a report published Online First in the Archives of General Psychiatry.
Length of parental military deployment associated with children's mental health diagnoses
Children with a parent who was deployed in the U.S. military efforts Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) and Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) for longer periods were more likely than children whose parents did not deploy to receive a diagnosis of a mental health problem, according to a report published Online First today by Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine.
In homes with substantiated child abuse reports, study identifies groups at higher risk for reabuse
Children who remain in the home after a substantiated report of abuse may have more or less risk of further abuse depending on certain characteristics of their caregivers, according to a report published Online First today by Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine.
Massage eases low back pain in randomized controlled trial
Massage therapy helps ease chronic low back pain and improve function, according to a randomized controlled trial that the Annals of Internal Medicine will publish in its July 5 issue. The first study to compare structural and relaxation (Swedish) massage, the trial found that both types of massage worked well, with few side effects.
Higher chance of twins after IVF for taller women: study
Taller women who become pregnant after receiving two embryos through in-vitro fertilisation have more chance of giving birth to twins, a Dutch study presented Monday found.
Overweight men have poorer sperm count
Overweight or obese men, like their female counterparts, have a lower chance of becoming a parent, according to a comparison of sperm quality presented at a European fertility meeting Monday.
Americans aren't hitting their prime till after 65
Whether you are a twentysomething, Gen Xer or Baby Boomer, the older crew has an edge on you, according to new research.
Crucial role for molecule in muscle development
Research led by the University of East Anglia has discovered the crucial role of a molecule in skeletal muscle development.
Balance tips toward environment as heritability ebbs in autism?
The largest and most rigorous twin study of its kind to date has found that shared environment influences susceptibility to autism more than previously thought.
Endocannabinoids, body's natural marijuana-like chemicals, make fatty foods difficult to resist
Recent studies have revealed potato chips and french fries to be the worst contributors to weight gain – and with good reason. Have you ever wondered why you can't eat just one chip or a single fry? It's not just the carbohydrates at fault.
Gene mutations in fruit flies help shed light on inherited intellectual disability in humans
Clumsy fruit flies with poor posture are helping an international team of scientists understand inherited intellectual disability in humans – and vice versa.
Scientists solve mystery of nerve disease genes
For several years, scientists have been pondering a question about a genetic disease called Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT) disease type 2D: how can different types of mutations, spread out across a gene, produce the same condition?
Biology news
Study will determine whether viruses can help orchids
Plant scientists from Murdoch University will be investigating whether the viruses hosted by orchids in Western Australia are actually benefitting them under the changing climatic conditions.
Cattle plague's defeat holds valuable lessons
(PhysOrg.com) -- Lessons learned from the recently successful 50-year campaign to rid the world of cattle plague (rinderpest), could assist in controlling other devastating diseases such as foot and mouth disease, according to world renowned veterinarian, Dr Peter Roeder.
Biofuels from the sea
Seaweed may prove a viable future biofuel – especially if harvested in summer.
Nearly 200 rhinos killed this year in South Africa: WWF
Nearly 200 rhinos were killed in South Africa in the first half of 2011, with most slaughtered in the world-famous Kruger National Park, environmental group WWF said.
How flowers use a touch of bling to woo the bees
(PhysOrg.com) -- Beetles use it, birds use it. Plants use it too. Iridescence is the shimmery colour effect that makes things eye-catching.
Geneticists seek mother of all macadamias on the Gold Coast
(PhysOrg.com) -- The DNA of rare and endangered macadamia species will soon be fingerprinted in an effort to determine the original wild tree or trees that launched the global macadamia industry.
Insights into the story of the eye
(PhysOrg.com) -- Although it is well established that embryonic stem cells (ESCs) have the capacity to develop into every adult cell type in the body, mysteries abound regarding the process by which the differentiation of these cells is coordinated during the formation of complex tissues.
Biologists study how insect moms fight cannibalistic neighbors
(PhysOrg.com) -- On sandy beaches, hidden beneath rocks and driftwood, there are mothers with problems. Assistant Professor of Biology Andy Zink and his students have published new research on the parenting dilemmas faced by maritime earwigs as they try to defend their nests against cannibalistic invaders.
NY biologists map strategy to save spruce grouse
Genetic analysis at the state museum confirms what biologists squishing through Adirondack bogs already knew: New York's population of the spruce grouse, a chicken-like bird of the boreal forest, is nearing extinction.
Most of 'missing species' live in known hotspots, study finds
Most of the world's "missing" or undiscovered species live in regions already identified by scientists as conservation priorities, according to a new study published this week in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
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