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Here is your customized Phys.org Newsletter for October 14, 2012:
Spotlight Stories Headlines
- Dyson engineers labor toward hair-free turbine solution (w/ Video)- Early-Earth cells modeled to show how first life forms might have packaged RNA
- Graphene researchers make a layer cake with atomic precision
- Solar wind particles likely source of water locked inside lunar soils
- Researchers spray-paint ultrathin coatings that change color with only a few atoms' difference in thickness
- How to hunt a space rock
- Rare B cells regulate immune responses, may offer novel treatment for autoimmune diseases
- Having too many algal symbionts makes corals bleach more severely in response to warming
- Austrian daredevil succeeds in space jump (LIVE webcast)
- Chronic stress during pregnancy prevents brain benefits of motherhood, study shows
- Shuttle passes obstacle, heads toward LA museum
- Bird flu debate: Should H5N1 experiments resume?
- Soyuz rocket launches two Galileo satellites
- Text spam messages on the rise
- What you hear could depend on what your hands are doing
Space & Earth news
Poland to invest 12.5 billion euros in shale gas by 2020
Poland will invest 50 billion zlotys (15.5 billion euros) in the exploration of shale gas by 2020, Finance Minister Mikolaj Budzanowski said Saturday.
Austria hails daredevil Baumgartner after space jump
Austrian leaders were quick to congratulate daredevil Felix Baumgartner after their compatriot jumped from the edge of space Sunday, breaking the sound barrier.
Shuttle Xing: Endeavour treks through LA streets
The shuttle Endeavour is rolling again early Saturday after an hourslong delay as crews prepared it to cross over a major Los Angeles interstate overpass.
Austrian daredevil to make new space jump bid Sunday (Update)
An Austrian daredevil is preparing to make a new attempt Sunday to jump from the edge of space, days after his initial bid was aborted at the last minute due to the weather.
Shuttle inches toward retirement home at LA museum
At every turn of Endeavour's stop-and-go commute through urban streets, a constellation of spectators trailed along as the space shuttle ploddingly nosed past stores, schools, churches and front yards.
Space shuttle's final trip is an all-night affair (Update)
(AP)—In thousands of Earth orbits, the space shuttle Endeavour traveled 123 million miles (198 million kilometers). But the last few miles (kilometers) of its final journey are proving hard to get through.
Red Bull set for marketing history with supersonic jump
Felix Baumgartner, set to leap from the edge of space on Sunday, is no stranger to breaking records. But neither is the firm bankrolling and sponsoring his audacious jump: energy drink maker and marketing trailblazer Red Bull.
Austrian skydiver reached Mach 1.24: official (Update)
UPDATE: Austrian daredevil Felix Baumgartner reached a top speed of 834 miles per hour, or 1.24 times the speed of sound, in a record-breaking freefall from the edge of space, officials said Sunday. The speed, revealed at a press conference a few hours after the unprecedented leap, was significantly higher than that given earlier by a spokeswoman, who had put his maximum speed as 706 miles (1,136 kilometers) per hour.
Endeavour finally reaches permanent LA museum home
(AP)—It took much longer than expected, but the Space shuttle Endeavour has finally reached its permanent resting place at a Los Angeles museum.
How to hunt a space rock
(Phys.org)—Peter Willis and his team of researchers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., had a problem. Actually, more like they had a solution that needed a problem. Confused? Let's let Peter give it a shot...
Soyuz rocket launches two Galileo satellites
A Soyuz rocket launched two Galileo satellites into orbit on Friday, marking a crucial step for Europe's planned navigation system, operator Arianespace announced.
Shuttle passes obstacle, heads toward LA museum
Slowly surmounting a key obstacle, the shuttle Endeavour maintained a heading Saturday through the streets of Los Angeles toward its retirement home at a museum.
Austrian daredevil succeeds in space jump (LIVE webcast)
Austrian daredevil Felix Baumgartner made a record-breaking leap from the edge of space Sunday, landing safely in the New Mexico desert after freefalling from more than 24 miles above the Earth.
Having too many algal symbionts makes corals bleach more severely in response to warming
A new study by scientists at the University of Miami (UM) Rosenstiel School of Marine & Atmospheric Science shows that corals may be more severely impacted by climate warming when they contain too many symbiotic algae. The single-celled algae living inside corals are usually the key to coral success, providing the energy needed to build massive reef frameworks. However, when temperatures become too warm, these algae are expelled from corals during episodes of coral 'bleaching' that can lead to widespread death of corals. Until now, it was thought that corals with more algal symbionts would be more tolerant of bleaching because they had 'more symbionts to lose.' The new study shows that the opposite is true.
Solar wind particles likely source of water locked inside lunar soils
The most likely source of the water locked inside soils on the moon's surface is the constant stream of charged particles from the sun known as the solar wind, a University of Michigan researcher and his colleagues have concluded.
Technology news
EU Nobel peace award sparks fiery online backlash
The decision to award the Nobel Peace Prize to the crisis-torn EU on Friday sparked a stunned Twitter backlash, many reacting with derision and anger, although some web users came to its defence.
Israel facing 'increasing number of cyberattacks'
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday said Israel was facing an increasing number of cyberattacks, just days after Washington issued a veiled warning to Iran over digital attacks on its interests.
YouTube seeks to click with a more diverse audience
Russell Simmons has made a career - and a fortune - programming to audiences that the mainstream media has ignored.
US thinks Iran behind cyberattack in Saudi: ex-official
The United States believes Iran was behind a major cyberattack on Saudi Arabia's state oil company and a Qatari gas firm, a former US official who has worked on cybersecurity issues said.
Retailers large and small find advantages to mobile payments
The way we pay for things is changing. Those credit-card keypads yielding paper receipts are giving way to a new group of mobile payment devices that merchants say charge cheaper swipe fees, and are faster and easier to use.
Dissonance over US bid to cut Web radio royalties
A push to lower music royalties paid by Internet radio has created political disharmony in Washington.
Virginia Congress races aim to cross digital divide
Congressman Scott Rigell faces the tightest re-election battle in all of Virginia, so while he steps up his campaign ground game, the lawmaker is turning to what helped get him elected in the first place: social media.
Obama and Romney's social media face-off
Democrat Barack Obama and his Republican challenger Mitt Romney may be neck and neck in the polls as the November 6 election draws close, but on social networks, the US president is the clear winner.
Text spam messages on the rise
Lesley-Ann Thompson's cell phone buzzed the other week with a text message telling her she had won a $1,000 gift card from Best Buy.
Dyson engineers labor toward hair-free turbine solution (w/ Video)
(Phys.org)—At such an innovation rich time of telepresence, 3-D printing, advanced cryptography, advanced medical imaging, and robotics, you need to wonder why in all this time we never got a break with someone somewhere coming up with a hair-clog solution for vacuum cleaners. Better late than never. Dyson has a tool that avoids the problem of having to scrape off and cut away at hair around the brush bars. Called the Dyson Tangle-Free Turbine the problem solver is listed at $69.99 and is promoted as a tool to reduce hair entanglements that occur during vacuum cleaning.
Medicine & Health news
Dutch authorities: at least 1 salmonella death
(AP)—The Dutch public health watchdog says at least one elderly patient has died and more than 500 people have been sickened in a major salmonella outbreak caused by tainted salmon.
Suicide in children and adolescents
As part of suicide prevention, evaluation of suicide risk should be carried out on a regular basis in order to attempt early intervention. The EU-funded Suicidality: Treatment Occurring in Paediatrics Programme was developed to provide suicidality measures, and is being piloted in children and adolescents to alert clinicians about increased suicide risk and prompt early intervention.
NM company linked to illness expands peanut recall
(AP)—A New Mexico food company that produced the peanut butter linked to an outbreak of salmonella poisoning has expanded an ongoing recall of its products to include raw and roasted peanuts.
Life after death? Neurosurgeon says he's been there
Eban Alexander's quick trip to heaven started with a headache.
India fights to protect its traditional home remedies
For centuries, Indian housewives have used homemade remedies based on cow's milk to cure constipation—but in 2009 Swiss giant Nestle applied for a patent to protect a similar product of its own.
Abraxane approved to treat advanced lung cancer
(HealthDay)—Abraxane (paclitaxel protein-bound) has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration—in combination with the drug carboplatin—to treat advanced or spreading non-small cell lung cancer among people who aren't candidates for surgery or radiation therapy, the agency said Friday.
Treatment of obstructive sleep apnea improves blood pressure in men
A new study suggests that when prescribed by physicians in routine practice and used appropriately by patients, treatment for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) could reduce blood pressure in men with hypertension.
Long wait for answers in US tainted drug outbreak
Thousands of Americans who may have been injected with a tainted steroid will have to wait weeks to see if they have been infected with meningitis as investigators seek answers to a widening outbreak.
US meningitis outbreak death toll rises to 15
The death toll from an unprecedented US meningitis outbreak tied to a tainted steroid jumped to 15 after another person died from a fungal form of the disease, health authorities said Saturday.
At CDC, scientists fight to halt a deadly outbreak
(AP)—At the main campus of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, dozens of people are working day and night to bring a meningitis outbreak under control.
Botox shows promise against persistent neck, shoulder pain
(HealthDay)—Botox injections, long used to smooth away wrinkles, might also soothe chronic neck and shoulder muscle pain, new research suggests.
Language barrier blocks epidural use in childbirth: study
(HealthDay)—Language barriers may help explain why Hispanic women in the United States are less likely than white women to receive an epidural for pain relief during childbirth, a new study finds.
Sphere-templated tissue scaffold is a viable subcutaneous implant
(HealthDay)—Compared with high-density porous polyethylene (HDPPE) implant materials, sphere-templated poly (2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (poly[HEMA]) tissue scaffold stimulates a minimal inflammatory response; supports cellular ingrowth, collagen formation, and neovascularization; and may induce less scar formation, according to an experimental study published online Oct. 8 in the Archives of Facial Plastic Surgery.
Gene signature validated for oral cancer metastases
(HealthDay)—A multigene signature effectively predicts the presence of lymph node metastases in squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity (OSCC) and oropharynx (OPSCC), according to a study published online Oct. 8 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
Gastro illness in infancy linked to islet autoimmunity
(HealthDay)—Gastrointestinal illnesses are associated with increased risk of islet autoimmunity (IA) among children who are exposed to wheat or barley either early or late in infancy, according to a study published online Oct. 5 in Diabetes Care.
Drug class linked to worse outcomes after transplant
(HealthDay)—Kidney transplant patients who receive mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) inhibitors after transplant have a greater probability of death or transplant failure than patients receiving calcineurin inhibitors, according to a study published online Oct. 1 in the American Journal of Transplantation.
Leflunomide considered safe, effective for psoriatic arthritis
(HealthDay)—Leflunomide is effective for the treatment of patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA) in daily clinical practice, according to a study published online Oct. 6 in Arthritis Care & Research.
Cardiovascular IED infections have distinct features, outcomes
(HealthDay)—Cardiovascular implantable electronic device (CIED) infections caused by Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) and coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS) have distinct clinical features and outcomes, according to research published in the Oct. 15 issue of The American Journal of Cardiology.
Methotrexate use linked to reduced mortality in RA
(HealthDay)—Use of methotrexate for one year or more is associated with a reduction in the risk of mortality for patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), according to a study published online Oct. 8 in Arthritis & Rheumatism.
Tadalafil effective, safe in complete erectile dysfunction
(HealthDay)—In men with complete erectile dysfunction (ED), tadalafil 2.5 and 5 mg once-daily result an in intercourse success rate of 32.4 and 46.4 percent, respectively, according to research published online Oct. 4 in The Journal of Sexual Medicine.
Filaggrin mutations up risk of irritant contact dermatitis
(HealthDay)—Both atopic dermatitis (AD) and loss-of-function mutations in the filaggrin gene (FLG) are independently associated with an increased risk of developing chronic irritant contact dermatitis (ICD), with people having both mutations at about a five-fold higher risk, according to research published online Oct. 5 in the British Journal of Dermatology.
Relapse or recovery? Neuroimaging predicts course of substance addiction treatment
An Indiana University study has provided preliminary evidence that by measuring brain activity through the use of neuroimaging, researchers can predict who is likely to have an easier time getting off drugs and alcohol, and who will need extra help.
Taking terror out of nightmares: tips for parents
(HealthDay)—Nightmares are common in children and upsetting for both youngsters and parents, but there are some things you can do to manage and prevent them, an expert says.
Avoid scary calorie counts this Halloween
(HealthDay)—Waiting until the last minute to buy Halloween candy is a good way to stick to a healthy diet and cut extra calories, an expert suggests, because if the candy isn't sitting around the house, you won't be tempted to eat it.
Bird flu debate: Should H5N1 experiments resume?
Virologists making mutated versions of the H5N1 bird flu halted their research in January after a U.S. government advisory panel suggested that their work, though well-intentioned, had the potential to endanger the public.
Chronic stress during pregnancy prevents brain benefits of motherhood, study shows
A new study in animals shows that chronic stress during pregnancy prevents brain benefits of motherhood, a finding that researchers suggest could increase understanding of postpartum depression.
Rare B cells regulate immune responses, may offer novel treatment for autoimmune diseases
Reproducing a rare type of B cell in the laboratory and infusing it back into the body may provide an effective treatment for severe autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis or rheumatoid arthritis, according to researchers at Duke University Medical Center.
What you hear could depend on what your hands are doing
New research links motor skills and perception, specifically as it relates to a second finding—a new understanding of what the left and right brain hemispheres "hear." Georgetown University Medical Center researchers say these findings may eventually point to strategies to help stroke patients recover their language abilities, and to improve speech recognition in children with dyslexia.
Biology news
Taiwan butterfly pioneer laments threat to species
Chen Wei-shou, the pioneer of Taiwan butterfly research, remembers being spell-bound when as a boy of six he first saw "a flower that could move". A life-long obsession had begun.
Scientists urge Britain to cancel badger cull
British wildlife experts on Sunday condemned a plan to cull thousands of badgers in the UK in a bid to fight bovine tuberculosis, saying that killing the animals could worsen the problem it aims to solve.
Early-Earth cells modeled to show how first life forms might have packaged RNA
Researchers at Penn State University have developed a chemical model that mimics a possible step in the formation of cellular life on Earth four-billion years ago. Using large "macromolecules" called polymers, the scientists created primitive cell-like structures that they infused with RNA—the genetic coding material that is thought to precede the appearance of DNA on Earth—and demonstrated how the molecules would react chemically under conditions that might have been present on the early Earth. The journal Nature Chemistry will post the research as an Advance Online Publication on 14 October 2012.
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