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Dear Reader ,
Here is your customized Phys.org Newsletter for April 3, 2015:
Spotlight Stories Headlines
- Altamura Man yields oldest Neanderthal DNA sample- Fine-tuning organic circuits: Monolayer terminal groups and molecular junctions
- New group seeks to timeline the Anthropocene—when humans became the dominant force on Earth
- Crystal studies reveal malaria's weak spots
- Toward a model of synchrony in brain networks
- Camera chip provides superfine 3-D resolution
- Frustrated magnets: New experiment reveals clues to their discontent
- Targeting dangerous inflammation inside artery plaque
- CRISPR-Cas editing of C. albicans holds promise for overcoming deadly fungal infections
- Study: $1 test outperforms PSA screening for prostate cancer
- New genetic clues emerge on origin of Hirschsprung's disease
- Rice can 'borrow' stronger immunity from other plant species, study shows
- Tesla reports 'record' quarter for auto sales
- Light gets around in a bowl-like serving of Hue by Philips
- Computational framework for optimizing traffic flow could be the beginning of a road revolution
Technology news
Light gets around in a bowl-like serving of Hue by PhilipsPhilips is in the news with its introduction of Hue Go, a bowl-like structure of light that can get around anywhere you want to take it. A bulb serving a hanging lamp in the living room is so old news. We did put up with it in the 20th century but this is the 21st and Philips wants its consumers to lighten up, so to speak and leverage smart technologies. This is a time when lighting should be versatile, adjustable, beyond a light-shedding connected bulb, and getting smarter. | ||
Computational framework for optimizing traffic flow could be the beginning of a road revolutionDrivers trying to get to work or home in a hurry know traffic congestion wastes a lot of time, but it also wastes a lot of fuel. In 2011, congestion caused people in US urban areas to travel an extra 5.5 billion hours and purchase an extra 2.9 billion gallons of fuel costing $121 billion. But despite the tangle of vehicles at busy intersections and interstate ramps, most of the country's highways are open road with vehicles occupying only about 5 percent of road surface. | ||
Octopus-inspired robot—the fastest underwater robot based on the given powerScientists in Singapore have developed a new octopus-inspired robot which can zip through water 10 times its body length within one second, in an ultra-efficient manner. This first-ever ultra-fast propulsion and super-manoeuvrability demonstrated in underwater vehicles is unprecedented; and is the work of researchers and an engineer from the Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology (SMART). The first author, originally from SMART, is now with the University of Southampton. | ||
Physically dynamic surfaces may herald another tablet revolutionApple's iPad arrived five years ago. It is a device that changed the way we think about computing, marking a seismic shift from keyboard and mouse to direct manipulation with our fingers. The iPad wasn't the first tablet computer – it wasn't even Apple's first tablet computer – but it was the first to capture the world's imagination and sell tens of millions of devices. | ||
Tesla reports 'record' quarter for auto salesElectric carmaker Tesla announced Friday it delivered a "record" number of vehicles in the first quarter, as it began more timely reporting of sales figures. | ||
Computer sharing of personality in sight: inventorThe world has only touched the surface of technological progress and computers may soon be able to transmit the complexities of human personalities, a prominent inventor says. | ||
Nissan pledges self-driving cars in Japan in 2016The boss of Nissan wants to put self-driving cars on Japan's roads next year, and says they will be able to navigate busy urban environments on their own by 2020. | ||
Disaster expo shows innovations in thriving Japan industryMankind is powerless to prevent calamities such as typhoons and earthquakes, but in Japan where the devastating 2011 tsunami still looms large, there's a flourishing industry in devising ways to cope with catastrophe. | ||
Augmented reality for dronesAffordable eyes in the sky, drones have fast become a popular and versatile tool for land mapping. Now ESA-backed startup Sysveo has developed a way of integrating user-made augmented reality objects into a drone's video stream. | ||
Researchers study sounds from colliding football helmets as alternative to understanding forcesWhen football helmets collide, they produce an unmistakable sound. With concerns rising over concussion risks, some parents and others are increasingly concerned about each pop they hear. | ||
Tapping into mine water for geothermal energyMillions of miles of tunnels criss-cross the ground under old mining communities across the United States. Abandoned, falling apart and choked with water, the tunnels are often viewed as a dangerous legacy. But the water in these mines could actually be a major geothermal resource. | ||
TV service DishWorld changes name to Sling InternationalDish Network's Sling TV said Friday that the live streaming, multi-language television service DishWorld will now be called Sling International. | ||
Facebook, Tesla, Airbnb host world's ambassadors for crash course in Silicon Valley cultureSome came to replicate Silicon Valley, others to regulate it. Thirty-five foreign ambassadors representing countries as big as China and as small as Kiribati, Barbados and Monaco toured the Bay Area this week in what the U.S. State Department described as the biggest such diplomatic meet-up outside of Washington. |
Medicine & Health news
Toward a model of synchrony in brain networks(MedicalXpress)—Resting state networks (RSNs) in the brain are topographies of neural structures between which lag states propagate due to fluctuations of physical and other activities. Studying these networks reveals information about the functional connectivity of neural structures and regions. Results from various studies have confirmed that brain activity is spatially structured, linked to the representation of function, and has clinical relevance. | ||
New genetic clues emerge on origin of Hirschsprung's diseaseGenetic studies in humans, zebrafish and mice have revealed how two different types of genetic variations team up to cause a rare condition called Hirschsprung's disease. The findings add to an increasingly clear picture of how flaws in early nerve development lead to poor colon function, which must often be surgically corrected. The study also provides a window into normal nerve development and the genes that direct it. | ||
Study: $1 test outperforms PSA screening for prostate cancerA test that costs less than a $1 and yields results in minutes has been shown in newly published studies to be more sensitive and more exact than the current standard test for early-stage prostate cancer. | ||
Targeting dangerous inflammation inside artery plaqueA research team showed that a nanotherapeutic medicine can halt the growth of artery plaque cells resulting in the fast reduction of the inflammation that may cause a heart attack, according to a study led by researchers from Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and published April 3 in Science Advances. | ||
France moves to ban ultra-thin models (Update)French lawmakers on Friday voted to ban ultra-thin models, despite howls of protest from modelling agencies in the world's fashion capital. | ||
One in three teenage boys experiencing sexual assault tries to take his own life, study findsA psychologist studying the symbiotic role that sexual assault and obesity play in attempted suicide among teens has found that while there is no connection between the two, one of three male teens who experienced sexual assault had attempted suicide in the previous year. | ||
Circulating tumor DNA in blood can predict recurrence of the most common type of lymphomaMeasurement of circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) in blood can be used to detect disease recurrence in patients with a curable form of cancer known as diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). In most patients, measurement of ctDNA enabled detection of microscopic disease before it could be seen on computerized tomography (CT) scans, which is the current standard for disease assessment. Monitoring for recurrence by testing blood samples may reduce the need for multiple CT scans that increase a patient's exposure to radiation and add to health care costs. Advances in the ability to monitor for disease recurrence earlier may also improve the ability of physicians to successfully treat the disease at the time recurrence is diagnosed. This research was conducted by investigators at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health, and appeared April 2, 2015, in Lancet Oncology. | ||
Researcher discusses advances in gene therapyAfter leading successful clinical trials of gene therapy in Milan, Roncarolo hopes to build on that success at Stanford through collaboration with colleagues in the fields of genetics and stem cell science. | ||
Emotional fit important between patient and doctor, research showsA good bedside manner does count after all, new Stanford research shows. | ||
HPV's link to head, neck cancerTobacco and alcohol use may be the most common cause of head and neck cancers, but a new culprit has come on the scene in recent years. | ||
Subtle discrimination is easier to acknowledge when self-esteem is high, according to new studyIdentifying discrimination is a necessary first step toward confronting and ultimately eliminating the stain of prejudice, yet victims may be unlikely to recognize some types of discrimination unless they have higher self-esteem, according to the results of a new study by two University at Buffalo psychologists. | ||
A new look at language delay in children with autismA new study by a linguistics professor and an alumnus from The University of Texas at Austin sheds light on a well-known linguistic characteristic of autistic children—their reluctance to use pronouns—paving the way for more accurate diagnostics. | ||
Cancer genes deactivated in deadly brain cancerNorthwestern Medicine scientists have identified a small RNA molecule called miR-182 that can suppress cancer-causing genes in mice with glioblastoma mulitforme (GBM), a deadly and incurable type of brain tumor. | ||
Bullied girls, but not boys, benefit from mom's supportChildren who are bullied become tolerant of aggressive and antisocial behavior, such as cheating, lying or being cruel to others. | ||
Zebrafish accelerate research against pancreatic cancerFor more than a decade, a glassy striped fish smaller than a door key has proved an important model organism in scientific research. Named for the uniform horizontal stripes on the side of its body, the zebrafish is a tiny creature that packs a punch in terms of biological similarities with the human. | ||
Strength training still advisable in older ageIn Austria, around ten per cent of over-65-year-olds are frail, while a further 40 per cent are in a preliminary stage of frailty. The Healthy For Life project, with the MedUni Vienna as the academic lead, aims to raise fitness levels and quality of life for older people whose nutritional condition is inadequate. The first results show that regular strength training is particularly beneficial for increasing hand strength, and thus enabling people to live independently, says Thomas Dorner of the MedUni Vienna's Centre for Public Health to mark World Health Day this coming Tuesday (7 April). | ||
Researchers track the effects of insidious crop molds on childrenNearly 162 million children under the age of 5 suffer from stunted growth, a condition that leads to smaller stature later in life, according to a 2014 United Nations study. Shorter height may not sound like such a big deal, but Patrick Webb, the McFarlane Professor at the Friedman School, says even minor stunting can lead to serious health problems. | ||
Epigenetic mechanism may influence the pattern of nerve connections during retinal developmentVision is a highly complex process, and requires the construction of a correspondingly complicated functional network made up of diverse nerve-cell types in the developing retina. In mammals, these circuits are formed within a week after the eye's first direct exposure to light. During this period, neuronal precursor cells differentiate into various types of mature nerve cells, which form specific patterns of functional connections with each other. The profound morphological and functional changes that occur during this maturation process require exquisitely precise control of the genetic programs that direct them. | ||
Genetic disposition most important factor for difference in school performancesWhy does one child learn easily, whereas another has difficulty keeping up at school? Why does the one child find it so difficult to remain sitting on a chair whereas another can work independently without any problems? Researcher Eveline de Zeeuw from VU University Amsterdam investigated the causes of differences in school performances and behaviour between primary school children. She discovered that the differences between children are largely caused by genetic disposition. On 24 March 2015 she defended her doctoral thesis about a twin study she did thanks to funding from NWO. | ||
A new quality indicator for sources of health knowledgeA little health knowledge can be a very dangerous thing, especially if the information comes from the Internet. Now, research published in the International Journal of Intelligent Information and Database Systems, describes a new quality indicator to remedy that situation. | ||
What are your children eating beyond the school gate?More than three quarters of young people buy food or drink beyond the school gate at least twice a week, according to a new report by a University of Hertfordshire research team, on behalf of Food Standards Agency in Scotland (FSA). | ||
Study translates genetic risk factor into Alzheimer's disease prevention strategyWhat if a failed leukemia drug could reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease? A team at the University of Kentucky recently led an effort to investigate this hypothesis. Their results were published today in the journal, Human Molecular Genetics. | ||
Gender difference in moral judgments rooted in emotion, not reasoning, study findsIf a time machine was available, would it be right to kill Adolf Hitler when he was still a young Austrian artist to prevent World War II and save millions of lives? Should a police officer torture an alleged bomber to find hidden explosives that could kill many people at a local cafe? When faced with such dilemmas, men are typically more willing to accept harmful actions for the sake of the greater good than women. For example, women would be less likely to support the killing of a young Hitler or torturing a bombing suspect, even if doing so would ultimately save more lives. | ||
Texting bans tied to drop in car crash injuries(HealthDay)—Most U.S. states now have bans on texting while driving, and those laws may be preventing some serious traffic accidents, a new study suggests. | ||
Researchers combine common genetic variants to improve breast cancerRecent large-scale genomic analyses have uncovered dozens of common genetic variants that are associated with breast cancer. Each variant, however, contributes only a tiny amount to a person's overall risk of developing the disease. | ||
Possible progress against Parkinson's and good news for stem cell therapiesBrazilian researchers at D'OR Institute for Research and Education (IDOR) and Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ) have taken what they describe as an important step toward using the implantation of stem cell-generated neurons as a treatment for Parkinson's disease. Using an FDA approved substance for treating stomach cancer, Rehen and colleagues were able to grow dopamine-producing neurons derived from embryonic stem cells that remained healthy and functional for as long as 15 months after implantation into mice, restoring motor function without forming tumors. | ||
Doctors develop Ebola virus diagnostic toolAdam C. Levine, M.D., an emergency medicine physician at Rhode Island Hospital and The Miriam Hospital who treated Ebola-infected patients in Liberia last year, used his field experience to create a tool to determine the likelihood that patients presenting with Ebola symptoms will actually carry the virus. His research was published in the Annals of Emergency Medicine today. | ||
France moves to ban sunbed adverts, access for kidsFrance's parliament approved a draft law Friday banning advertising for artificial tanning beds and salons, and prohibiting people under 18 from using to the popular yet potentially dangerous ultraviolet technology. | ||
Fertility patients' history is best predictor of risk for major depressionA potent risk factor for developing major depressive disorder (MDD) during fertility treatment is something health providers are likely not even looking for, according to new research from San Francisco State University. | ||
Study reveals molecular genetic mechanisms driving breast cancer progressionResearchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have uncovered how the body's inflammatory response can alter how estrogen promotes the growth of breast cancer cells. | ||
Exercise might boost mental function in people with schizophrenia(HealthDay)—Aerobic exercise might boost memory and thinking skills in people with schizophrenia, a small study finds. | ||
Review: Opioids reduce breathlessness in COPD(HealthDay)—In chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), opioids can improve breathlessness, but not exercise capacity, according to a review published online March 24 in the Annals of the American Thoracic Society. | ||
Botulinum toxin-A beneficial in painful diabetic neuropathy(HealthDay)—Botulinum toxin-A (BTX-A) appears to be beneficial for painful diabetic neuropathy (PDN), according to a meta-analysis published online March 20 in Pain Medicine. | ||
Contemporary PCI outcome predictors defined(HealthDay)—For patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), predictors of outcome include previous anemia, previous chronic kidney injury, and previous moderate to severe left ventricular dysfunction, according to a study published in the April 1 issue of The American Journal of Cardiology. | ||
Key disordered eating info not reaching overweight youth(HealthDay)—Eating disorder education needs to reach overweight youth, according to a study published in the April issue of the International Journal of Eating Disorders. | ||
Pediatric discoid lupus carries significant progression risk(HealthDay)—Pediatric discoid lupus erythematosus (DLE) carries a significant risk of progression to systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), according to a review published in the April issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology. | ||
Easter doesn't have to be a diet disaster(HealthDay)—Lots of chocolate and big family meals can make Easter a challenging time for people trying to control their weight. | ||
Faster, taller youth league pitchers may face greater risk of injury(HealthDay)—Faster pitching, being taller and playing on multiple baseball teams are linked to a higher risk of pitching-related injuries in youth baseball players, a new study found. | ||
Medical device maker settles lawsuit for $4.4 millionMedtronic has agreed to pay $4.4 million to settle a lawsuit filed by the federal government accusing the company of selling medical devices made in China and Malaysia to the U.S. military. | ||
Study: NYC health workers' ethics are compromised in jailsNew York City jail health workers say their medical ethics are often compromised by the demands of treating patients who are also prisoners, such as when they witness guards' use of force or are asked to approve stints in solitary confinement, according to a first-of-its-kind city study. | ||
Costco Canada recalls chicken salad over listeria riskCostco Canada is recalling Kirkland Signature brand roasted chicken salad because of a possible listeria contamination. |
Biology news
Scientists unveil sex-linked control of genesMany proteins interact with an RNA molecule called Xist to coat and silence one X chromosome in every female cell. Learning how genes are targeted and silenced may help researchers studying sex-specific diseases. | ||
Tarantula coordination disintegrates in heatScuttling across the floor, a spider's movements have more in common with robots than you may at first realise. Instead of contracting muscles to extend a limb, spiders inflate their joints with haemolymph to straighten them – in much the same way that hydraulic fluid propels robot limbs. And temperature fluctuations may affect the movements of spiders and robots alike: fluid viscosity can increase dramatically as temperature falls, prompting undergraduate Nick Booster from Pitzer College, USA, to ask whether spider movements are affected by temperature change. 'I've always wanted to study spiders because they use hydraulics', says Anna Ahn from Harvey Mudd College, USA, so when Booster approached Ahn and Steve Adolph with his idea to study the effects of temperature on the arachnid's movements, they jumped at the chance. 'This is a fascinating question', Ahn chuckles, adding, 'We wanted to understand how temperature affects the haemolymph and whether impaired haemolymph movement might influence the spiders' ability to run'. | ||
Darwin's finches highlight the unity of all lifeWhen Charles Darwin visited the Galapagos Islands in October 1835, he and his ship-mates on board HMS Beagle collected specimens of birds, including finches and mockingbirds, from various islands of the archipelago. | ||
Rice can 'borrow' stronger immunity from other plant species, study showsLike most other plants, rice is well equipped with an effective immune system that enables it to detect and fend off disease-causing microbes. But that built-in immunity can be further boosted when the rice plant receives a receptor protein from a completely different plant species, suggests a new study led by UC Davis plant-disease experts. | ||
CRISPR-Cas editing of C. albicans holds promise for overcoming deadly fungal infectionsBy modifying the CRISPR-Cas genome editing system, Whitehead Institute researchers are now able to manipulate Candida albicans' genome systematically—an approach that could help identify novel targets for therapies against this serious pathogen for which there are a limited number of anti-fungal agents. | ||
Foot webbing coloration signifies visual signals of maturation in frogsColor and pattern change upon maturation is not uncommon among numerous animals. These changes tend to signify sexual development within the species and also increased male–male competition in searching for mates. Among frogs, color and pattern changes are quite common. Although vocal signals are normally used as a mode of communication, some frog and toad species use visual cues as well. | ||
New insight into how proteins find their DNA binding sites in the genomeRemo Rohs is looking for some deep connections. He is integrating genomics and structural biology to uncover some significant insights into how proteins recognize DNA. | ||
Black vultures return to southern PortugalAfter four decades, Eurasian black vultures have finally returned to Portugal's Alentejo region to nest – using artificial platforms constructed by conservationists. | ||
Moths prefer to reproduce in the darkNight-time is no longer dark by definition in our country. 'Light pollution' is increasing by around 6% each year, while the ecological consequences are still largely unknown. 'Cloaked in darkness,' as Koert van Geffen puts it. Van Geffen earned his PhD from Wageningen University for his research into the effects of artificial light on moths. His research showed that the effects go much further than, for example, an attraction to lampposts. | ||
Group wants to stop elephants' move from one zoo to another (Update)Animal welfare activists who want two elephants at a Seattle zoo sent to a wildlife sanctuary are seeking to block the animals' transfer to another zoo in Oklahoma City, arguing that putting them in zoos is inhumane. | ||
Spring signals return of dangerous pet parasitesWarm weather and longer days mean many pets and their owners will be spending more time outside. Spring also brings the return of fleas that can pose as dangerous parasites to pets. |
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