Dear Reader ,
Here is your customized Phys.org Newsletter for August 19, 2012:
Spotlight Stories Headlines
- NanoTritium battery is good for twenty years (or more)- Typhoon-like data wiper is latest computer virus headache
- Physicists demonstrate that 15=3x5 about half of the time
- Computer-simulated knitting goes right down to the yarn (w/ Video)
- A new route to dissipationless electronics
- Artificial intelligence helps detect subtle differences in mutant worms
- Improving water quality can help save coral reefs (w/ Video)
- Inspired by genetics, chemistry finally takes hold of its own code
- Massachusetts butterflies move north as climate warms (w/ Video)
Space & Earth news
World must brace for higher food prices, experts say
With drought parching farms in the United States and near the Black Sea, weak monsoon rains in India and insidious hunger in Africa's Sahel region, the world could be headed towards another food crisis, experts say.
Satellite imagery hints that Tropical Depression 7 may be reborn
Satellite imagery on August 17 is showing signs of re-organization in the remnants of Tropical Depression 7 (TD7). TD7 has moved into the warm waters of the Bay of Campeche where it is regaining strength and appears much more organized.
Mars rover takes 'cool' detour: NASA
The US space agency NASA's Mars rover Curiosity will make a wide detour to explore a "cool" geographical hot spot on Mars, scientists said Friday.
Legendary expedition ship found off Greenland
(AP) — A U.S.-based oceanographic institute says it has found the wreckage of a ship that was manned by a crew of doomed Antarctic explorers more than a century ago.
Like NASA rover, family switches over to Mars time
(AP) — One California family of five is learning what it's like to live on "Mars time" this summer.
Sea Launch conducts satellite launch for Intelsat
(AP) — A rocket carrying an Intelsat satellite has successfully lifted off from the oceangoing Sea Launch platform on the equator.
Improving water quality can help save coral reefs (w/ Video)
Research from the University of Southampton and the National Oceanography Centre, Southampton has found that an imbalance of nutrients in reef waters can increase the bleaching susceptibility of reef corals.
Technology news
Myanmar moderates risk ire to calm sectarian rift
A Myanmar blogger who was a poster boy for online resistance to the former junta has become the target of a backlash by social media users for speaking out against hatred aimed at Rohingya Muslims.
As smart electric grid evolves, engineers show how to include solar technologies
An economically feasible way to store solar energy in existing residential power networks is the subject of an award winning paper written by two Virginia Tech electrical engineers and presented at an international conference.
Air show spotlights Brazil's booming aviation sector
A major air show in Sao Paulo this week turned the spotlight on the robust health of Brazil's general aviation market, which is thriving despite the global economic slowdown.
New world record set at mobile-phone throwing contest
A Finnish teenager has smashed the world record -- and probably his phone -- in this year's annual mobile-phone throwing contest in Finland.
Computer-simulated knitting goes right down to the yarn (w/ Video)
To put clothes on their characters, computer graphic artists usually simulate cloth by creating a thin sheet, then adding some sort of texture. But that doesn’t work for knit sweaters. To make the image realistic, the computer has to simulate the surface right down to the intricate intertwining of yarn.
NanoTritium battery is good for twenty years (or more)
(Phys.org) -- Florida-based City Labs says it has created an adult’s thumb-sized, battery, NanoTritium, that can last 20 years or more in the most extreme conditions, such as extreme temperature and vibrations.
Typhoon-like data wiper is latest computer virus headache
(Phys.org) -- A new computer virus is leaving security experts asking what could be the motive and where is the source—but one suspicion is that it is targeting infrastructure in the energy industry. The culprit, called Shamoon, wipes out files and then makes the affected computer unusable.
Medicine & Health news
After stroke, when and how to use assistive devices?
Difficulty in remembering and using spoken or written words, known as aphasia, can be a painful side effect of stroke. For some patients, that difficulty can last long after their stroke, causing a severe decrease in their quality of life.
Weight-loss surgery results in positive changes in social life, medical conditions
New research shows that people who have bariatric surgery to treat obesity report an overall improvement in quality of life issues after surgery, from their relationships to their medical conditions. Arizona State University researchers will present their findings at the 107th Annual Meeting of the American Sociological Association.
Medicare in focus as Obama, Ryan trade charges
(AP) — Vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan introduced his 78-year-old mother to voters Saturday as he defended the Republican ticket from withering criticism from President Barack Obama for proposals to overhaul the government's popular Medicare program that provides health care coverage to seniors.
Buenos Aires, city of tango and psychoanalysis
Buenos Aires, the Argentine capital known for its tango bars, has another claim to fame: it may well be the world's capital of psychoanalysis.
Bill would expand fertility coverage for veterans
(AP) — The roadside bomb that exploded outside Andrew Robinson's Humvee in Iraq six years ago broke the Marine staff sergeant's neck and left him without use of his legs. It also cast doubt on his ability to father a child, a gnawing emotional wound for a then-23-year-old who had planned to start a family with his wife of less than two years.
Simple new test to combat counterfeit drug problem in developing countries
In a thrust against the major problem of counterfeit medicines sold in developing countries, which causes thousands of illnesses and deaths annually, scientists today described development of a simple, paper-strip test that people could use to identify counterfeit versions of one of the most-frequently faked medicines in the world.
Refugees often face greater challenges in adapting to US than other immigrants
Many refugees to the U.S. travel thousands of miles to a safe harbor, but once here find that adjusting to linguistic and cultural differences is an equally daunting task, according to new research to be presented by two University of Dayton sociologists at the 107th Annual Meeting of the American Sociological Association.
Study reveals new molecular target for melanoma treatment
A laboratory study led by UNC medical oncologist Stergios Moschos, MD, demonstrates how a new targeted drug, Elesclomol, blocks oxidative phosphorylation, which appears to play essential role in melanoma that has not been well-understood. Elesclomol (Synta Pharmaceuticals, Lexington, MA) was previously shown to have clinical benefit only in patients with normal serum lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), a laboratory test routinely used to assess activity of disease.
US men prefer beer, women love wine
US men like to drink beer, though wine is the beverage of choice for women and older adults, a poll showed Friday.
After Ramadan fast, Indonesians 'eat with a vengeance'
As Indonesia shifts from a month of fasting during Ramadan to a week-long eating binge for the Eid al-Fitr Muslim holiday, doctors are braced for an annual spike in complaints of rapid weight gain.
Study examines the relationship between marriage and alcohol
New research examining relationships and the use of alcohol finds that while a long-term marriage appears to curb men's drinking, it's associated with a slightly higher level of alcohol use among women. The study, led by the University of Cincinnati (UC), will be presented at the 107th Annual Meeting of the American Sociological Association.
Sociologist examines the challenges of women in professional football
Women playing full-contact tackle football face challenges beyond the playing field—yet there's little research about this niche in athletics. Jennifer Carter, a University of Cincinnati doctoral student in the UC Department of Sociology, will present her research on body maintenance in women's professional football at the 107th Annual Meeting of the American Sociological Association.
Plain packets loom but puff left in Tobacco Inc.
Health advocates declared a "brave new world of tobacco control" following Australia's historic packaging victory over the cigarette industry, but analysts warn that smoking is far from a dying trade.
Ebola outbreak in DR Congo
Nine people have died in an outbreak of the deadly Ebola virus in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Health Minister Felix Kabangue said on Saturday.
Marital separations an alternative to divorce for poor couples
(Medical Xpress) -- Married couples who undergo long-term separations generally appear to be those who can't afford to divorce, a new nationwide study suggests.
Red wine compound could help seniors walk away from mobility problems
In a stride toward better health in later life, scientists reported today that resveratrol, the so-called "miracle molecule" found in red wine, might help improve mobility and prevent life-threatening falls among older people. The finding, believed to be the first of its kind, was presented today to some 14,000 scientists and others gathered at the 244th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society, the world's largest scientific society.
Good mood foods: Some flavors in some foods resemble a prescription mood stabilizer
New evidence reveals the possibility of mood-enhancing effects associated with some flavors, stemming at least in part from natural ingredients bearing a striking chemical similarity to valproic acid, a widely used prescription mood-stabilizing drug, scientists reported here today. This effect joins those previously reported for chocolate, teas and some other known comfort foods.
New technology combats global pandemic of drug counterfeiting
Drug counterfeiting is so common in some developing countries that patients with serious diseases in Southeast Asia and elsewhere are at risk of getting a poor-quality drug instead of one with ingredients that really treat their illness, a scientist involved in combating the problem said here today.
Work has more benefits than just a paycheck for moms
Working moms striving to "have it all" now can add another perk to their list of benefits — health. New research from University of Akron Assistant Sociology Professor Adrianne Frech finds that moms who work full time are healthier at age 40 than stay-at-home moms, moms who work part time, or moms who have some work history, but are repeatedly unemployed.
'DNA wires' could help physicians diagnose disease
In a discovery that defies the popular meaning of the word "wire," scientists have found that Mother Nature uses DNA as a wire to detect the constantly occurring genetic damage and mistakes that ― if left unrepaired ― can result in diseases like cancer and underpin the physical and mental decline of aging.
Middle-class children: Squeaky wheels in training
A study by Indiana University sociologist Jessica McCrory Calarco found that working-class and middle-class parents often take very deliberate -- but different -- approaches to helping their children with their school experiences.
Contaminated pickles kill seven in Japan
Seven people, most of them elderly women, died after eating pickles contaminated with E. coli in northern Japan, officials said Sunday, in the country's deadliest mass food poisoning in 10 years.
Regulatory science for public health: From functional food to modified-risk tobacco products
Consumers face a barrage of product claims each day. These claims create consumer expectation of safety and product performance and, assuming they are accurate, facilitate well informed choice. But increased scrutiny of claims, especially where the claim involves potential health outcomes, means that claim substantiation and the science behind it are more important than ever.
Biology news
Artificial intelligence helps detect subtle differences in mutant worms
Research into the genetic factors behind certain disease mechanisms, illness progression and response to new drugs is frequently carried out using tiny multi-cellular animals such as nematodes, fruit flies or zebra fish.
Massachusetts butterflies move north as climate warms (w/ Video)
The authors of a Harvard study published today in Nature Climate Change gathered their data from an unlikely source—the trip accounts of the Massachusetts Butterfly Club. Over the past 19 years, the amateur naturalist group has logged species counts on nearly 20,000 expeditions throughout Massachusetts. Their records fill a crucial gap in the scientific record.
This email is a free service of Phys.org
You received this email because you subscribed to our list.
If you no longer want to receive this email use the link below to unsubscribe.
http://phys.org/profile/nwletter/
You are subscribed as jmabs1@gmail.com
No comments:
Post a Comment