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Here is your customized Phys.org Newsletter for July 27, 2012:
Spotlight Stories Headlines
- Aging worker termites explode themselves in suicide missions- Black Hat presentation shows iris-scanning breach
- Google hands developers keys to enliven interactive rooms
- Hackers could haunt global air traffic control: researcher
- BELLA laser achieves world record power at one pulse per second
- Newly discovered scaffold supports turning pain off
- Fat gives nanoparticles a fighting chance
- The seat of meta-consciousness in the brain
- 'Diving board' sensors key to DNA detection
- Study finds novel therapy that may prevent damage to the retina in diabetic eye diseases
- Computers can predict effects of HIV policies
- Google: Didn't delete Street View data after all
- In-utero exposure to magnetic fields associated with increased risk of obesity in childhood
- Researchers link Martian surface "oddities" with subsurface water and impact craters
- Research makes possible rapid assessment of plant drought tolerance
Space & Earth news
Georgia forests, 2011: Forest area remains the same, while ownership changes
Georgia contains the largest area of forest cover of any state in the South, with forests making up 67 percent of land cover or 24.8 million acres, according to a Forest Inventory Analysis (FIA) Factsheet just released by the USDA Forest Service Southern Research Station (SRS). While this land area remains stable, timber inventory has increased.
Vale plays down fears Amazon rail project will harm tribe
Mining giant Vale on Friday played down fears that its planned expansion of a railway line in the Brazilian Amazon will harm the already vulnerable Awa tribe.
Ancient reservoir could bring water to dry Namibia
A stone-age underground water reservoir could transform life in arid Namibia, a government official said Friday, holding up to five million cubic metres of water that could supply the area for 400 years.
Europe's plans to visit the Moon in 2018
The European Space Agency is aiming for the Moon with their Lunar Lander mission, anticipated to arrive on the lunar surface in 2018. Although ESA successfully put a lander on the surface of Titan with the Huygens probe in 2005, this will be the first European spacecraft to visit Earth’s Moon.
DARPA moving ahead with building zombie Frankensatellites
“Alien” meets “Bride of Frankenstein” and “Night of the Living Dead?” Straight from a possible sci-fi/horror movie mashup, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) wants to harvest components from dead, non-working “zombie” satellites to build new ones in space, all done remotely via a grasping, mechanical arm.
Beneath the mask, Titan looks surprisingly smooth and youthful
Saturn’s largest moon, Titan has long been hidden beneath the thick shroud of its methane- and nitrogen-rich atmosphere. That all changed in 2004 when NASA’s Cassini mission was able to penetrate the haze and sent back detailed radar images of the surface. These showed an icy terrain, carved over millions of years, by rivers similar to those found here on Earth. However, Titan’s surface doesn’t look as old and weather-beaten as it should. The rivers have caused surprisingly little erosion and there are fewer impact craters than would be expected. So what is the secret to Titan’s youthful complexion?
Mercury's many colors
Although composited from expanded wavelengths of light, this wide-angle image from NASA’s MESSENGER spacecraft shows the amazing variation of colors and tones to be found on Mercury’s Sun-scoured surface.
Melting Arctic sea ice: How much is down to us?
(Phys.org) -- Natural climate variations could explain up to 30% of the loss in Arctic sea ice since the 1970s, scientists have found.
The lights of London
(Phys.org) -- Billions of people will see London through many different filters and lenses during the 2012 Olympic Games and Paralympic Games. None of those views will look quite like this one from the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership satellite.
Future of major high-speed rail project looks green
(Phys.org) -- California has reason to be optimistic that the state's proposed high-speed rail project, due to begin construction next year, can prove to be a viable transportation alternative from environmental and sustainability standpoints.
Author of US fracking study had gas industry ties: watchdog
A university study that claimed fracking for gas deep beneath the Earth's surface did not cause water contamination was led by a US professor with financial ties to the gas industry, a watchdog group said Friday.
US 'extreme drought' zones triple in size
The drought in America's breadbasket is intensifying at an unprecedented rate, experts warned, driving concern food prices could soar if crops in the world's key producer are decimated.
Researchers link Martian surface "oddities" with subsurface water and impact craters
(Phys.org) -- Investigating extremely detailed images of Mars produced by the High Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE) camera – the largest ever carried on a deep space mission – researchers from Western University have discovered further evidence linking subsurface volatiles, such as water or ice, to previously recognized (but thought to be rare) pits, which commonly arise on the floors of Martian impact craters.
Technology news
Amgen posts higher 2Q sales, profit to beat views
(AP) — Amgen Inc.'s second-quarter net income rose 8 percent as the world's largest biotech company benefited from higher sales for its top-selling drugs and a gain from selling its share of an experimental medicine.
British man wins 'Twitter threat' appeal
(AP) — A British man on Friday won a High Court challenge of his conviction for tweeting that he would blow up an airport if his flight was canceled, a ruling that had made him an Internet free speech cause celebre.
Multilayer ceramic chip capacitors: MLCCs with a rated AC withstanding voltage
TDK Corporation has developed a multilayer ceramic chip capacitor that – in addition to its rated DC voltage of 630 V – can withstand a rated AC voltage of 500 VRMS for 60 s and 600 VRMS for 3 s. Thanks to its optimized internal electrode structure the new TDK C3216 and C3225 types exhibit superior AC withstanding voltage, allowing guaranteed ratings to be given not only for the customary DC voltages but also for AC voltages.
Judo switches to video technology to cut scandals
Video replay technology will be used at the Olympic judo competition for the first time in an effort to eradicate judging controversies.
Galaxy phones drive Samsung to record profit again
(AP) — Samsung, the world's largest technology company by revenue, reported another record-high quarterly profit as customers flocked to Galaxy smartphones, helping it outdo rivals at a challenging time for the global tech industry.
Twitter explains new mystery outage
A freak double failure in its data centers took Twitter down for around an hour Thursday, leaving millions without updates from friends, celebrities and news providers a day ahead of the Olympics.
Amazon profit plunges on acquisition cost
Online retail titan Amazon said its profit in the past quarter plunged 96 percent, with the cost of buying a robotics firm hurting already weak results.
Facebook shares hit new low on growth worries
Facebook shares on Thursday sank to a new low after the world's leading social network reported a loss of $157 million in its first earnings after its public offering.
Japan's Fujitsu says posts 16% fall in Q1 profit
Japanese high-tech giant Fujitsu on Friday said its first quarter net loss widened and cut its sales forecast for the fiscal year as it was hit by weaker demand and a strong yen.
Facebook shares sink to new low after 2Q results (Update)
(AP) — Facebook's stock hit a new low Friday after it reported lukewarm second-quarter results and didn't give an outlook for the coming months.
Samsung extends smartphone lead over Apple
Samsung extended its lead in the worldwide mobile phone market in the second quarter of 2012, as the South Korean giant doubled US rival Apple in the smartphone market, a new survey showed.
Apple buying AuthenTec for about $356 million
(AP) — Apple has agreed to buy fingerprint reader AuthenTec Inc. for approximately $356 million as the maker of iPhones and iPads looks to strengthen its digital security capabilities.
Safety chief defends probe of Toyota acceleration
(AP) — The government's top auto safety official is denying a U.S. senator's claim that his agency failed to thoroughly investigate unintended acceleration problems in Toyota cars and trucks.
Google asks dismissal of authors' digital books suit
Google asked a US court Friday to dismiss a lawsuit over the Internet giant's massive book-scanning project, saying the effort is "not a substitute" for books themselves.
US newspaper group moves toward 'paywalls'
McClatchy Co., one of the largest US newspapers group, said Friday it would begin moving toward paywalls for its news websites in response to the industry's economic woes.
Networcsim hoping to broaden wireless revolution
A Tennessee company has licensed award-winning software from Oak Ridge National Laboratory that will help industries install wireless networks more cost-effectively in challenging environments such as mines, offshore drilling platforms and factory floors.
Hackers could haunt global air traffic control: researcher
Air traffic control software used around the world could be exploited by hackers to unleash squadrons of ghost planes to befuddle those entrusted to keep the skies safe, a security researcher said Thursday.
GM working on Wi-Fi Direct application to prevent vehicle/pedestrian accidents
(Phys.org) -- General Motors has announced that it is working on a way to use Wi-Fi Direct to alert drivers to the presence of pedestrians so as to avoid running over them. Wi-Fi Direct is a new technology that is beginning to be implemented into many new smart phones that allows the phones to communicate with one another directly, i.e. without the need for a hot spot, cell tower etc. GM had previously announced it was looking into using the technology to allow cars to communicate with one another so that the system could alert driver’s to slow-downs, accidents or road hazards.
Computers can predict effects of HIV policies
Policymakers struggling to stop the spread of HIV grapple with "what if" questions on the scale of millions of people and decades of time. They need a way to predict the impact of many potential interventions, alone or in combination. In two papers to be presented at the 2012 International AIDS Society Conference in Washington, D.C., Brandon Marshall, assistant professor of epidemiology at Brown University, will unveil a computer program calibrated to model accurately the spread of HIV in New York City over a decade and to make specific predictions about the future of the epidemic under various intervention scenarios.
Google: Didn't delete Street View data after all
After being caught spying on people across Europe and Australia with its Wi-Fi-slurping Street View cars, Google had told angry regulators that it would delete the ill-gotten data.
Google hands developers keys to enliven interactive rooms
(Phys.org) -- Google this week announced it is opening code for building interactive experiences in physical spaces. The Monday posting on its open-source blog site, which carries news about its open source projects, announced the release of Interactive Spaces. As such, Google has a special invitation for developers: “Make a room come alive,” using this framework for creating interactive spaces. The release is described as a new API and runtime that allows developers to build interactive applications for physical spaces.
Black Hat presentation shows iris-scanning breach
(Phys.org) -- A research team from Universidad Autonoma de Madrid and West Virginia University have troubling findings for those who think iris scanning is one of the safest methods of biometric security. Their reverse-engineered, “replicated eye” image was able to bypass iris scanning, fooled into thinking the synthetic image was real and correct. Javier Galbally and his team printed out synthetic images of irises taken from codes of real irises stored in security databases to test iris-scanning vulnerabilities.
Medicine & Health news
Thalidomide maker 'ignored birth defects for years'
The German makers of thalidomide were warned of birth defects years before it was withdrawn and Australian distributors used pregnant women as the world's first test subjects, court papers alleged Friday.
Canada's provinces plan to pool drug purchases
The leaders of Canada's 13 provinces and territories unveiled a plan Thursday to pool their purchases of generic drugs to gain a bulk discount amid concern over soaring healthcare costs.
Are Computer Tutors the key to learning for Autistic pupils?
A series of open days for school pupils with autism have been held at the University following a three-year-long project funded by EPSRC during which researchers worked with the youngsters to develop a computer-based tutor aimed at improving their mathematics learning.
WHO urges Philippine senate to defy tobacco lobby
(AP) — The World Health Organization urged Philippine senators Friday to resist tobacco industry pressure and pass legislation to boost cigarette taxes to help deter smoking in a country where tobacco-related disease kills 87,000 people a year.
Belgian pharmaceuticals giant Solvay posts profit rise
Belgium's pharmaceuticals giant Solvay announced a better-than-expected 6.0 percent rise in net profit for the second quarter on Friday, sending its shares rising sharply.
Indian rail is world's largest 'open toilet': minister
A top Indian minister has proposed projects worth $130 million project to rid India of the scourge of open defecation and clean up a rail system he described as the world's "largest open toilet", reports said Friday.
Merck's 2Q net falls on charges, but sales rise
Merck & Co.'s second-quarter net income fell 11.4 percent as slightly higher sales were offset by acquisition and restructuring costs. However, the drugmaker beat Wall Street expectations, and Merck shares jumped in early trading.
Dissecting the mechanisms behind chronic inflammation
European scientists joined forces to unravel how a physiological process such as inflammation can turn pathological. Project findings have the potential to provide answers to many inflammatory disorders.
Even with insurance, racial disparities in breast cancer treatment persist
More White women are diagnosed with breast cancer than Black women, yet Black women with breast cancer have a higher mortality rate. One potential explanation for this disparity is delayed treatment, perhaps due to differences in socioeconomic status and access to care. However, a new study in Ethnicity & Disease finds that some disparities persist even when Black and White patients have the same Medicaid health insurance and similar economic status.
Research tackles attitudes to concussion
(Medical Xpress) -- Rugby players and the sports media continue to underestimate the seriousness of concussion, a School of Psychology study has concluded.
Study prompts safety precautions for cyclists
Interviews with cyclists hospitalised following road crashes have reinforced the importance of measures such as wearing helmets and bike lights, and better interaction between all road users.
Mental health 2.0
(Medical Xpress) -- The internet and new media could play a vital role in the delivery of mental health care, according to a series of research papers published in the Journal of Mental Health.
Project shows benefits of applying sex and gender analysis in research
In the United States and Europe, osteoporosis is considered primarily a "woman's disease" and men are rarely evaluated for the condition, which causes bones to become weak and brittle, and increases the risk of wrist, hip and spine fractures.
Utah researchers developing prosthetic implant
Thousands of veterans and warfighters returning to the U.S. suffer with limb amputations, and for many, standard prosthetics are not an option. Skin issues or short remaining-limb length can cause amputees to forgo the typical socket-type attachment systems.
The Olympics and bare feet: What have we learned?
Ethiopian runner Abebe Bikila made history when he earned a gold medal at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome. His speed and agility won him the gold, but it was barefoot running that made him a legend.
Standard radiation therapy dose provides pain relief for painful heel spurs
Patients with plantar fasciitis (painful bone heel spur) experience significantly less pain and improved quality of life following a standard dose of external beam radiation therapy, a common cancer treatment similar to receiving an X-ray, according to a randomized, cooperative group study that was published online July 25, 2012, in the International Journal of Radiation, Oncology, Biology, Physics (Red Journal), the official scientific journal of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO).
Protective eyewear can ward off injuries in young athletes
Doctors warn of spike in sports-related eye injuries with start of training season.
Expanded analysis of HPTN 052 study results show cost-effectiveness of early treatment of HIV
When the HIV Prevention Trials Network (HPTN) 052 investigators released their landmark study results last year showing that treatment can reduce HIV transmission by 96% in serodiscordant couples, questions were raised about the cost of early antiretroviral therapy (ART) and if it should be universally implemented. Data presented today at the XIX International AIDS Conference in Washington, D.C. show that treatment as prevention is "very cost-effective". Using an HIV microsimulation model (CEPAC-International) to further expand analysis of HPTN 052 data, study investigators were able to project the clinical impact, costs, and cost-effectiveness of early ART. They found that this strategy increases survival, prevents costly opportunistic infections, averts early transmissions and is very cost-effective.
Swaziland HIV incidence results announced at AIDS 2012
The results from a nationally representative HIV incidence study in Swaziland indicate that the national rate of new HIV infections is 2.38% among adults ages 18-49. This figure, comparable to the 2009 UNAIDS estimate of 2.66% for Swaziland adults ages 15-49, suggests that the HIV epidemic in Swaziland may have begun to stabilize in the past few years. The findings of the Swaziland HIV Incidence Measurement Survey (SHIMS) were presented today at the XIX International AIDS Conference in Washington DC.
Stability of fragrance patch test preparations examined
(HealthDay) -- Concentrations of several fragrance allergens applied to test chambers well in advance of patient testing may be reduced by 20 percent or more within hours when stored at room temperature, according to a study published online July 14 in the British Journal of Dermatology.
Celiac disease linked to lymphoproliferative disorders
(HealthDay) -- Patients with celiac disease, particularly those presenting with malabsorption symptoms later in life, have a higher incidence of lymphoproliferative disorders (LPDs), according to research published in the August issue of the American Journal of Hematology.
Using exhaust fan on a gas stove cuts pollution: study
(HealthDay) -- Turning on the exhaust fan above your kitchen stove and cooking on the back burners can reduce the amount of air pollution from gas stovetops and ovens, a new study says.
Study shows pre-hospital electrocardiography (ECG) for chest pain patients leads to faster transport
(Medical Xpress) -- A study conducted by researchers from the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine along with colleagues from Rural/Metro Ambulance San Diego and the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department, shows that emergency medical personnel can obtain an electrocardiogram (ECG) in the field for chest pain patients without an increase in scene time or transport time to the hospital. Furthermore, in patients with an ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) diagnosed on the electrocardiogram– in the field prior to transporting to the hospital – care is actually expedited and the patients are more rapidly transported to the hospital. The study appears in the July 25 online version of the Journal of American College of Cardiology.
Potential new drug for alcohol dependence
(Medical Xpress) -- Research from Karolinska Institutet has identified a monoamine stabiliser as a potential new drug for the treatment of alcohol dependence. Tested on rats, whose reward system is gradually blunted by long-term alcohol abuse, the compound OSU6162 balances dopamine levels in the brain. This serves to reduce the craving for more alcohol to maintain normal feelings of wellbeing while removing the pleasure from drinking.
Molecule found that inhibits recovery from stroke
(Medical Xpress) -- Researchers at UCLA have identified a novel molecule in the brain that, after stroke, blocks the formation of new connections between neurons. As a result, it limits the brain’s recovery. In a mouse model, the researchers showed that blocking this molecule—called ephrin-A5--induces axonal sprouting, that is, the growth of new connections between the brain’s neurons, or cells, and as a result promotes functional recovery.
Words that describe feelings lost in dementia
(Medical Xpress) -- Dementia can affect a person’s ability to recognise the meaning of common emotional words such as ‘thrilled’ and ‘annoyed’, according to new research.
Accelerated resolution therapy significantly reduces PTSD symptoms, researchers report
(Medical Xpress) -- Researchers at the University of South Florida (USF) College of Nursing have shown that brief treatments with Accelerated Resolution Therapy (ART) substantially reduce symptoms associated with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) including, depression, anxiety, sleep dysfunction and other physical and psychological symptoms. The findings of this first study of ART appear in an on-line article published June 18, 2012 in the journal Behavioral Sciences.
Study busts sports-drink myths
(Medical Xpress) -- With the Olympics starting July 27, reaching the top of the podium is on the minds of thousands of athletes worldwide. But a new study published in the British Medical Journal shows that those amateur athletes can’t count on sports drinks or special shoes to help them achieve their goal of competing for gold at the Games.
Diversifying populations of Japanese men used in study plotting their risk to prostate cancer reveals a potential dietar
Three previously unknown loci, or regions of the genome, are associated with an increased risk of Japanese men developing prostate cancer, according to RIKEN-led research on single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with this disease1. An SNP associated with prostate cancer at a fourth locus—related to one found earlier in European men—appears to be associated with diet, the first hard evidence of such an environmental link.
Molecular causes for life-threatening fungal infections in case of sepsis unravelled
(Medical Xpress) -- Pathogenic fungi cause infections with a high mortality rate in patients with weakened immune systems. At Karl Kuchler’s CD Laboratory at the MedUni Vienna, the molecular causes of the life-threatening inflammatory reactions that are triggered by fungal infections are being deciphered.
Study finds gaps in services for heterosexual men with HIV
Heterosexual men make up a small but growing number of people infected with HIV in Canada. Yet a new study has found that many of them feel existing HIV-related programs and services don't meet their needs and are geared primarily or exclusively toward gay men and heterosexual women who are living with the virus.
Children missing out in battle against TB
(Medical Xpress) -- The number of children diagnosed with tuberculosis only represents the tip of the iceberg, according to the University of Sydney's Associate Professor Ben Marais, a specialist in childhood tuberculosis writing in the latest issue of The New England Journal of Medicine.
The longer you're awake, the slower you get
Anyone that has ever had trouble sleeping can attest to the difficulties at work the following day. Experts recommend eight hours of sleep per night for ideal health and productivity, but what if five to six hours of sleep is your norm? Is your work still negatively affected? A team of researchers at Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) have discovered that regardless of how tired you perceive yourself to be, that lack of sleep can influence the way you perform certain tasks.
Boys' impulsiveness may result in better math ability, researchers say
In a University of Missouri study, girls and boys started grade school with different approaches to solving arithmetic problems, with girls favoring a slow and accurate approach and boys a faster but more error prone approach. Girls' approach gave them an early advantage, but by the end of sixth grade boys had surpassed the girls. The MU study found that boys showed more preference for solving arithmetic problems by reciting an answer from memory, whereas girls were more likely to compute the answer by counting. Understanding these results may help teachers and parents guide students better.
Landmark HIV treatment-as-prevention study shows additional health benefits, cost-effectiveness
WHAT: Further analyses of the landmark NIH-funded treatment-as-prevention study (HPTN 052) have found that providing antiretroviral treatment to HIV-infected individuals earlier, when their immune systems are healthier, delays AIDS-related health events, such as chronic herpes simplex virus and tuberculosis, as well as death. Additionally, researchers found that earlier HIV treatment is also cost-effective because it increases survival, prevents costly opportunistic infections and averts transmission of the virus to uninfected individuals.
Researchers find link between childhood abuse and age at menarche
Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) have found an association between childhood physical and sexual abuse and age at menarche. The findings are published online in the Journal of Adolescent Health.
Racial disparity in diabetes mostly due to lifestyle
(HealthDay) -- For postmenopausal women there are large racial/ethnic differences in diabetes incidence, but these are mostly attributable to lifestyle factors, according to a study published online July 25 in Diabetes Care.
MRSA skin infections up, linked to furunculosis
(HealthDay) -- The incidence of community-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA) in the United States is increasing and is associated with follicular infection, most commonly folliculitis followed by furunculosis, according to a review published online July 16 in the British Journal of Dermatology.
Low-dose duloxetine deemed safe for urinary incontinence
(HealthDay) -- Duloxetine appears safe for the routine clinical care of women with stress urinary incontinence (SUI), according to a study published online July 23 in the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology.
Quality of life good after salvage nasopharyngectomy
(HealthDay) -- For patients with residual or recurrent nasopharyngeal carcinoma who undergo salvage nasopharyngectomy using a maxillary swing approach, postoperative quality of life is generally good, according to a study published in the Aug. 1 issue of Cancer.
Oral contraceptives typically have little impact on libido
(HealthDay) -- For most women, oral contraceptives do not affect libido, but health care providers should be aware that some women may experience negative effects on sexual function, according to a study published online July 12 in The Journal of Sexual Medicine.
The care and feeding of Olympic athletes
(HealthDay) -- It seems there's virtually no end to the power and stamina of Olympic athletes, which is due in part to the detailed guidance they get from experts about the right amount and type of food they need.
What's that symptom? Experts warn of self-diagnosis via the web
(HealthDay) -- Got a weird ache or pain? A rash that's hung around too long? With the wealth of information now available at the click of a mouse, it's common to search the Web to figure out what may be wrong with you.
Only 1 in 4 americans with HIV has virus under control: CDC
(HealthDay) -- Among the 1.1 million Americans living with HIV, just one in four has the virus under control, U.S. health researchers say.
Scientists reveal new clues to Alzheimer's risk gene
(Medical Xpress) -- A study by scientists at the University of Southampton has revealed new clues to why people who carry the Alzheimer's risk gene APOE4 may be more likely to develop the disease.
Why cutting-edge medical technology may not lead to exploding health care costs
Sophisticated medical imaging is often cited as a leading driver of health care costs. The increasing availability of techniques such as computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and positron emission tomography (PET), while aiding large number of patients, has also made the treatment of disease and injury more expensive.
Golfing like a pro is all in your head
When it comes to golf, practice doesn’t necessarily make perfect – but perfect practice might.
In-utero exposure to magnetic fields associated with increased risk of obesity in childhood
In-utero exposure to relatively high magnetic field levels was associated with a 69 percent increased risk of being obese or overweight during childhood compared to lower in-utero magnetic field levels, according to a Kaiser Permanente study that appears in the current online version of Nature's Scientific Reports.
Newly discovered scaffold supports turning pain off
(Medical Xpress) -- Johns Hopkins scientists have discovered a "scaffolding" protein that holds together multiple elements in a complex system responsible for regulating pain, mental illnesses and other complex neurological problems.
The seat of meta-consciousness in the brain
Studies of lucid dreamers visualize which centers of the brain become active when we become aware of ourselves.
Study finds novel therapy that may prevent damage to the retina in diabetic eye diseases
Researchers at the University of Michigan Kellogg Eye Center have identified a compound that could interrupt the chain of events that cause damage to the retina in diabetic retinopathy. The finding is significant because it could lead to a novel therapy that targets two mechanisms at the root of the disease: inflammation and the weakening of the blood barrier that protects the retina.
Tumor cells' inner workings predict cancer progression
Using a new assay method to study tumor cells, researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine and UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center have found evidence of clonal evolution in chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). The assay method distinguishes features of leukemia cells that indicate whether the disease will be aggressive or slow-moving, a key factor in when and how patients are treated.
Biology news
Onlookers hamper whale rescue in Indonesia
Rescuers in Indonesia fought Friday to help a sperm whale stuck in shallow waters to return to sea, as their efforts were hampered by local residents arriving on boats and driving it back to shore.
Only a few 'smart' irrigation controllers were able to deal with drought
Only a few “smart” irrigation controllers performed well during the 2011 drought, according to Texas AgriLife Extension Service experts.
Apple's software brings attention to mountain lion research
Apple's release this week of its Mac OSX "Mountain Lion" operating system is drawing attention to the real thing prowling the wooded hills just a few miles from the company's Cupertino headquarters.
Gorilla accidentally hangs himself at Prague zoo
A gorilla accidentally hanged himself on Friday at the Prague zoo, five years after gaining the spotlight when his birth was broadcast live on the internet.
Newly found genes may lead to nematode-resistant upland cotton
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) researchers have made significant progress in finding genetic resistance to two key cotton pests—the root-knot nematode and the reniform nematode.
Into the Matorral: Scientists track Avifauna in coastal Chile's thorn-scrub
(Phys.org) -- Camanchaca, or coastal fog, drapes the mountains of coastal north-central Chile, supporting remnants of a Valdivian temperate rainforest. The forest is a legacy of the last glacial period.
Research makes possible rapid assessment of plant drought tolerance
(Phys.org) -- UCLA life scientists, working with colleagues in China, have discovered a new method to quickly assess plants’ drought tolerance. The method works for many diverse species growing around the world. The research, published in the journal Methods in Ecology and Evolution, may revolutionize the ability to survey plant species for their ability to withstand drought, said senior author Lawren Sack, a UCLA professor of ecology and evolutionary biology.
Researchers find shark teeth made of natural fluoride
(Phys.org) -- German researchers studying shark teeth have found at least two species that have fluorinated calcium phosphate - mineral fluoroapatite, as a main component, one of the main ingredients in toothpaste, which partly explains why sharks don’t ever get cavities. The researchers looked at Isurus oxyrinchus and Galeocerdo cuvier (mako and tiger sharks) and found, as they explain in their paper published in the Journal of Structural Biology, after very close examination, that the outer coating of the shark teeth contained one hundred percent fluoride.
Aging worker termites explode themselves in suicide missions
(Phys.org) -- A new study of termites has revealed that older workers are equipped with suicide packs of chemicals on their backs to fight off intruders.
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