Science X Newsletter Tuesday, Sep 4

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Here is your customized Science X Newsletter for September 4, 2018:

Spotlight Stories Headlines

Identifying deep network generated images using disparities in color components

4-D printing reversible shape changing materials with light-based grayscale patterning

Human eye capable of seeing 'ghosted' images

Researchers investigate a white dwarf exhibiting transits of planetary debris

Small fish passes classic self-awareness test

Ultracold atoms used to verify 1963 prediction about 1-D electrons

New California bridge gets sensors to gather earthquake data

Europe's news agencies blast Google, Facebook for 'plundering' content

Going up! Japan to test mini 'space elevator'

Terahertz spectroscopy enters the single-molecule regime

Using AI to make cancer evolution more predictable

Changing the type of silicon etching drops solar power costs by more than 10 percent

Study says coral bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef not limited to shallow depths

Simulations reveal role of calcium in titanium implant acceptance

Study of monotreme and marsupial brains suggests hemispheres communicated before development of corpus callosum

Astronomy & Space news

	Researchers investigate a white dwarf exhibiting transits of planetary debris An international group of astronomers has conducted a study of a peculiar white dwarf known as WD 1145+017 that showcases periodic transits of planetary debris. The new research, presented in a paper published August 22 on arXiv.org, determines fundamental parameters of this object and provides essential insights into the nature of debris around it.
	Going up! Japan to test mini 'space elevator' A Japanese team working to develop a "space elevator" will conduct a first trial this month, blasting off a miniature version on satellites to test the technology.
	Little star sheds light on young planets Astronomers from the Department of Physics at the University of Tokyo discovered a dense disk of material around a young star, which may be a precursor to a planetary system. Their research could vastly improve models of how solar systems form, which would tell us more about our own place in the cosmos.
	Veiled supernovae provide clue to stellar evolution At the end of its life, a red supergiant star explodes in a hydrogen-rich supernova. By comparing observation results to simulation models, an international research team found that in many cases this explosion takes place inside a thick cloud of circumstellar matter shrouding the star. This result completely changes our understanding of the last stage of stellar evolution.
	Telescope maps cosmic rays in Magellanic clouds A radio telescope in outback Western Australia has been used to observe radiation from cosmic rays in two neighbouring galaxies, showing areas of star formation and echoes of past supernovae.
	Saturn's famous hexagon may tower above the clouds The long-lived international Cassini mission has revealed a surprising feature emerging at Saturn's northern pole as it nears summertime: a warming, high-altitude vortex with a hexagonal shape, akin to the famous hexagon seen deeper down in Saturn's clouds. This suggests that the lower-altitude hexagon may influence what happens up above, and that it could be a towering structure spanning hundreds of kilometres in height.
	Veiled supernovae provide clue to stellar evolution At the end of its life, a red supergiant star explodes in a hydrogen-rich supernova. By comparing observation results to simulation models, an international research team found that in many cases this explosion takes place inside a thick cloud of circumstellar matter shrouding the star. This result completely changes our understanding of the last stage of stellar evolution.
	Russia says space station leak may be sabotage Russia launched checks Tuesday after its space chief said an air leak on the International Space Station last week could have been deliberate sabotage.
	Image: SMART-1's crash site This greyscale, mottled image shows a patch of the moon's surface, and features an intriguing shape towards the top of the frame. This was actually made by a spacecraft – it marks the final resting place of ESA's SMART-1 (Small Missions for Advanced Research in Technology-1).
	The rise of machine learning in astronomy When mapping the universe, it pays to have some smart programming. Experts share how machine learning is changing the future of astronomy.
	NASA to test parachute system for landing spacecraft on Mars A parachute system that's designed to land spacecraft on Mars will be tested this week off Virginia's coast.
	Rocket to view sun with X-ray vision Without special instrumentation, the Sun looks calm and inert. But beneath that placid façade are countless miniature explosions called nanoflares.

Technology news

	Identifying deep network generated images using disparities in color components Researchers at Shenzhen University have recently devised a method to detect images generated by deep neural networks. Their study, pre-published on arXiv, identified a set of features to capture color image statistics that can detect images generated using current artificial intelligence tools.
	New California bridge gets sensors to gather earthquake data A replacement bridge under construction at the second-busiest port in the U.S. isn't just a crucial route for cargo trucks and Southern California commuters—it's a concrete-and-steel science experiment for engineers and seismologists.
	Europe's news agencies blast Google, Facebook for 'plundering' content Europe's biggest news agencies accused Google and Facebook of "plundering" news for free on Tuesday in a joint statement that called on the internet giants to share more of their revenues with the media.
	Changing the type of silicon etching drops solar power costs by more than 10 percent At the end of one of the hottest summers on record, as fights about how to power homes rage, renewable solar energy continues to present an option that does not significantly add greenhouse gases to the environment in exchange for lighting and cooling our homes. And it's just been given another edge through material science.
	At last, a simple 3-D printer for metal Used to produce three-dimensional objects of almost any type, across a range of industries, including healthcare, aviation and engineering, 3-D printed materials have come of age during the last decade. Research published in the journal Materials Today demonstrates a new approach to 3-D printing to fuse metallic filaments made from metallic glass into metallic objects.
	Brief Facebook outage after 'networking issues' Facebook users around the world reported the social network was briefly inaccessible Monday, with many taking to Twitter to voice their frustration.
	China's online service giant Meituan aims to raise $4.4 bn Chinese restaurant review and food delivery giant Meituan-Dianping said it aims to raise up to $4.4 billion for its initial public offering in Hong Kong, despite a lukewarm response to other recent IPOs in the city.
	Announcing quartet of wireless charging products for home, office, car New wireless chargers have grabbed the attention of mobile tech-watching sites. JC Torres in SlashGear was just one of the many writers checking out mophie's newbie quartet. These four products are a vent mount, desk stand, powerstation wireless and powerstation wireless XL.
	Robot boat sails into history by finishing Atlantic crossing All summer, the small boat drifted steadily eastward across the churning North Atlantic until it neared the Irish coast, where it made history by becoming the first unmanned sailboat to cross the Atlantic.
	German car market surges as manufacturers face emissions crunch Registrations of new cars on German roads leaped 25 percent in August, official data showed Tuesday, ahead of the introduction of new stricter EU emissions tests that will shut out some older models.
	Environmentally friendly and efficient propane-burning heat pump Heat pumps use environmental energy to provide us with heat. However, they generally require synthetic refrigerants, which contain environmentally harmful fluorinated greenhouse gases (F-gases). Fraunhofer researchers have now contributed to the development of a heat pump that uses propane instead. The pump is both more climate-friendly and more efficient.
	Cable cars could ease Australian traffic woes Sections of cities all over the world are being demolished to meet increasing demand for transport infrastructure. The process of building new roads, harbour crossings, metro systems and light rail lines seems unending. Large-scale construction includes loss of public space, housing and backyards.
	How we showed Homer's Odyssey is not pure fiction, with a little help from Facebook When you look at networks of people, whether it's architects or table tennis players or a regular bunch of Facebook friends, they will have certain similarities. They tend to confirm the "six degrees of separation" idea that most people are connected in a few very short steps. Each person tends to have large numbers of connections and to associate with people who are similar to them. The networks are also usually organised into hierarchies.
	Humans still heft groceries on-demand, for now A self-driving car that delivers your groceries seems like a great idea: a robot vehicle that uses artificial intelligence to replicate the service of yesteryear's milkman and grocery store delivery kid.
	Cars are cruising down the monthly subscription highway If you already subscribe to digital services like Netflix to binge on TV shows and Spotify to groove to an endless mix of music, the auto industry might have a deal for you: Subscribe to your next car as well.
	Dueling pickups, popular SUV among new models coming in 2018 From new top-selling pickup trucks to an essential range extension for an electric car to the most popular SUV in the country, the 2019 model year for new vehicles has something for everyone.
	Mathematicians suggest exchanging wireless energy for data collected by sensors in mobile devices RUDN mathematicians have suggested an incentive to encourage participants in mobile crowd-sensing. The data collected by sensors built into personal mobile devices (such as smartphones) can be exchanged for wireless battery charging services. The work was published in IEEE Wireless Communications.
	New policy models and cost-cutting technologies could help nuclear play vital role in climate solutions How can the world achieve the deep carbon emissions reductions that are necessary to slow or reverse the impacts of climate change? The authors of a new MIT study say that unless nuclear energy is meaningfully incorporated into the global mix of low-carbon energy technologies, the challenge of climate change will be much more difficult and costly to solve. For nuclear energy to take its place as a major low-carbon energy source, however, issues of cost and policy need to be addressed.
	Machine learning, and how it helps researchers make scientific discoveries much faster Jillian Buriak and her team spent years developing cost-effective plastic solar cells that can be printed like newspapers. Then she chatted with fellow chemistry researcher Arthur Mar, and in a just a few weeks his machine learning team enabled her group to boost the efficiency of these solar cells by 30 per cent.
	Research helps make buses smarter A rather unusual trolleybus has been navigating the streets of Zurich in recent months. With its large windscreen and covered wheels, it could easily be mistaken for a tram – but it's not just the design that makes this bus so unique. For a start, it features a hybrid electric drive system that allows it to draw power from an on-board traction battery as well as overhead wires. But this bus is also "smart", boasting specially designed software that automatically gathers information on the route. That means it always knows what to expect – whether that's a downhill stretch or a dead wire up ahead.
	It's too soon to call 3-D printing a green technology Over the past decade 3-D printing has captured the imagination of the general public, engineers and environmental visionaries. It has been hailed as both a revolution in manufacturing and an opportunity for dramatic environmental improvement.
	3-D models from cheap video cameras Hannes Ovrén shows in his doctoral thesis in computer vision at Linköping University how 3-D models can be created from video films recorded with simple body- or robot-mounted cameras. The research opens new possibilities for both robots and humans, not least for the police and rescue services.
	'Five Eyes' agencies demand reignites encryption debate Privacy and human rights organizations expressed concern Tuesday after a coalition of intelligence agencies renewed a call for technology companies to allow so-called "backdoor" access to encrypted content and devices.
	Amazon goes from books to a trillion-dollar valuation (Update) Amazon's journey from an online bookseller started in a garage to a global e-commerce powerhouse valued at a trillion dollars has centered on obsession with the long road.
	Jeff Bezos rockets to richest person on the planet As Amazon became the second US firm to hit a trillion-dollar value on the stock market, founder Jeff Bezos regained the crown as the richest person on the planet.
	Twitter CEO says company isn't biased, wants healthy debate Twitter's CEO says the company is not biased against Republicans or Democrats and is working on ways to ensure that debate is healthier on its platform.
	After Trump bashing, tech firms gird for congressional grilling After days of vitriol from President Donald Trump, big Silicon Valley firms face lawmakers in the coming week with a chance to burnish their image—or face a fresh bashing.
	Scientists increase internet speed up to one and a half times Scientists from Samara University and the University of Missouri (Columbia, Missouri) have developed an algorithm that provides fast and reliable access to powerful data processing centers for solving high-tech tasks. Their work has been reported in IEEE Transactions on Network and Service Management.
	Highly durable silicon carbide (SiC) power semiconductor TED-MOS for energy saving in electric vehicle motors Hitachi, Ltd. today announced the development of an original energy saving power semiconductor structure, TED-MOS, using next-generation silicon carbide (SiC) material that contributes to saving energy in electric vehicles (EV). This power semiconductor is a new device using a fin-structured trench MOSFET based on the conventional DMOS-FET, a SiC transistor of power semiconductor. Using this new device, an energy saving of 50 percent was confirmed as the structure reduces the electric field strength, an index of durability, by 40 percent and resistance by 25 percent compared to the conventional DMOS-FET. Hitachi intends to apply this device in motor drive inverters which are a core component of EVs to increase energy efficiency. Furthermore, by utilizing this technology not only in EVs but also in a range of electrical transducers used in societal infrastructure systems, Hitachi hopes to contribute to efforts to reduce global warming and the realization of a low-carbon society.
	Russia warns Google against election 'meddling' Russia on Tuesday said it has officially warned US internet giant Google against "meddling" in next Sunday's local elections by hosting opposition leader Alexei Navalny's videos calling for mass protests.
Engineers are developing a small cooled turbine to make drones more efficient Southwest Research Institute engineers are developing a cooled, radial gas turbine for a small generator that provides thousands of hours of electricity to an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), a significant improvement to current UAV turbines that only operate a few hundred hours before wearing out.
	Person-centered video blogs increase chances of viewer support for cancer patients As people with cancer use social media to find and develop support systems, a new study looks at YouTube content to determine what kinds of videos elicit an empathetic response from viewers. Researchers have pinpointed several qualities among video diaries that garner the most support from commenters. The study and how it can be applied in a clinical setting are discussed in Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking.
	Freeze fighter: Warmer wetsuit will increase Navy dive time Diving in icy water is extremely dangerous to humans. Within seconds, arteries tighten, blood pressure and heart rate race, and lungs gasp for air. After only minutes, hyperventilation strikes and arms and legs go numb—signaling the onset of hypothermia.
	KLM reaches wage accord with pilots to avert strike Dutch national carrier KLM said Tuesday it had reached an accord with pilots for a new wage deal to avert a strike.
	Top US regulator calls for 'transparency' from tech giants The head of a key US regulatory agency called Tuesday for Silicon Valley firms to provide more transparency about how they operate, raising the possibility of tougher regulations for technology firms.

Medicine & Health news

	Using AI to make cancer evolution more predictable A team of researchers affiliated with several institutions in the U.K. and one in the U.S. has developed a way to use artificial intelligence to predict how cancer might change and spread in patients. The results are published in Nature Methods.
	The brain's tiny thrill-seekers Microglia, the immune cells of the central nervous system, differ in male and female mice. MDC researchers have reported on the sex-specific features in Cell Reports. Their findings could change how we treat neurological diseases.
	A doctor's reassurance speeds healing from an allergic reaction To feel better faster, a dose of reassurance might be just what the doctor ordered.
	B cells among factors leading to brain lesions in multiple sclerosis A team of researchers from the University of Zurich and the University Hospital Zurich has shown that in multiple sclerosis it is not only specific T cells that cause inflammation and lesions in the brain. B cells, a different type of immune cell, also play a role. These cells activate T cells in the blood. This discovery explains how new MS drugs take effect, opening up novel options for treating the disease.
	Scientists identify hormone link between diabetes and hypertension Physician researchers with The Ohio State University College of Medicine at the Wexner Medical Center say increased levels of the hormone aldosterone, already associated with hypertension, can play a significant role in the development of diabetes, particularly among certain racial groups.
	Novel strategy shows promise for earlier detection of Alzheimer's disease Finding an effective way to identify people with mild cognitive impairment who are most likely to go on to develop Alzheimer's disease has eluded researchers for years. But now, a team of researchers led by David Loewenstein, Ph.D., director of the Center for Cognitive Neuroscience and Aging (CNSA) and professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, has devised a novel strategy that could do just that.
	Genome-wide study identifies genes linked to diverticular disease More than half of adults in the Western hemisphere over the age of 40 have small bulging pouches inside their intestine known as diverticula. Caused by weakening of the outer lining of the intestine, these pouches are typically harmless.
	New clues found to understanding relapse in breast cancer A large genomic analysis has linked certain DNA mutations to a high risk of relapse in estrogen receptor positive breast cancer, while other mutations were associated with better outcomes, according to researchers from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, the Baylor College of Medicine and the University of British Columbia.
	AI beats doctors at predicting heart disease deaths A model developed using artificial intelligence (AI) is better at predicting risk of death in patients with heart disease than models designed by medical experts, a new study from the Francis Crick Institute shows.
	Study finds you act most like 'you' in a time crunch When they must act quickly, selfish people are likely to act more selfishly than usual, while pro-social people behave even more pro-socially, a new study found.
	Body's own 'bomb squad' can help protect against brain tumors Researchers have discovered how a molecule can help prevent certain types of brain tumors by recognizing and 'disarming' harmful proteins that cause them.
	Superbug discovery renews hope for antibiotic treatment Bacteria that were thought to be resistant to a powerful antibiotic may be susceptible to treatment after all, research has found.
	Natural 'breakdown' of chemicals predicts lung damage in 9/11 firefighters Abnormal levels of more than two dozen metabolites—chemicals produced in the body as it breaks down fats, proteins and carbohydrates—can reliably predict which Sept. 11 firefighters developed lung disease and which did not, a new analysis shows.
	Study provides 10-year risk estimates for dementia, which may help with prevention in high-risk individuals A Danish study provides 10-year absolute risk estimates for dementia specific to age, sex and common variation in the APOE gene, which may help identify high-risk individuals who potentially could benefit from early targeted prevention. The study is published in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal).
Deadly 'rat fever' in flood-ravaged Indian state "Rat fever" has killed at least 12 people with another 54 suspected fatal cases in the southern Indian state of Kerala since August, after the worst floods in almost a century, authorities said Tuesday.
	How Australia can fix the market for plasma and save millions Australia's demand for plasma, a component of blood that transports nutrients, is rapidly outpacing domestic supply. This means enormous quantities of plasma must be imported from overseas, where donors are paid for donating.
	How indigenous and faith healers approach mental health in Ghana The use of non-biomedical methods to treat mental disorders in developing countries, like Ghana, has long been acknowledged. The World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates that about 80% of people who need mental health care in developing countries go to indigenous or faith healers for care.
	Combating constant hunger A plant-derived substance widely used in traditional Chinese medicine has demonstrated promising weight loss effects. The findings of a study conducted by scientists at the Helmholtz Zentrum München, a partner of the German Center for Diabetes Research (DZD), have now been published in the journal Diabetes. If this substance called Celastrol also proves effective in clinical trials, it could offer a new option for the treatment of obesity.
	Achilles heel of anaplastic large-cell lymphoma (ALCL) cells identified Anaplastic large-cell lymphomas (ALCL) are rare cancers of the white blood cells. New research from the international ERIA consortium, led by scientists in Vienna, has now shown that the same signaling pathway is essential to the growth of cancer cells in various forms of ALCL: TYK2 (tyrosine kinase 2, an important component of the immune system) prevents apoptotic cell death by increasing the production of Mcl1, a special type of protein belonging to the BCL2 family. Due to its unique enzymatic composition, TYK2 is therefore an interesting therapeutic target, making TYK2-specific inhibitors highly promising as new therapeutic agents in ALCL.
	Increased chances of successful IVF if 18 to 20 eggs are retrieved The likelihood of childbirth after in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment increases if 18 to 20 eggs are stimulated to mature in a woman's ovaries, a dissertation at Sahlgrenska Academy, Sweden, shows. That is more eggs than the number aimed at in today's IVF treatments.
	Researchers use AI to treat metastatic cancer patient A translational research team led by the National University of Singapore (NUS) has harnessed CURATE.AI, a powerful artificial intelligence (AI) platform, to treat a patient with advanced cancer, completely halting disease progression. This new development represents a big step forward in personalised medicine.
	Growth in first three years of life affects respiratory health in children Children's growth in the first three years of life affects the development of their lungs and the risk of asthma at 10 years of age. This is the main conclusion of a new study carried out by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ISGlobal) and Erasmus University Medical Centre in Rotterdam, the Netherlands.
	A computational analysis identifies a new clinical phenotype of severe malaria There are more clinical phenotypes of severe malaria than those defined by the World Health Organization (WHO), according to a study led by ISGlobal. The results indicate that heart failure can be a pathogenic mechanism of disease, which has implications in the clinical management of these patients.
	Vicious circle leads to loss of brain cells in old age The so-called CB1 receptor is responsible for the intoxicating effect of cannabis. However, it also appears to act as a kind of "sensor" with which neurons measure and control the activity of certain immune cells in the brain. A recent study by the University of Bonn at least points in this direction. If the sensor fails, chronic inflammation may result—probably the beginning of a dangerous vicious circle. The publication appears in the journal Frontiers in Molecular Neuroscience.
	Breakthrough in understanding Warsaw breakage syndrome Researchers from Tokyo Metropolitan University and the FIRC Institute of Molecular Oncology (IFOM) in Italy have uncovered a previously unknown function of the DDX11 helicase enzyme. Mutations in the gene, which codes for DDX11, are known to be implicated in Warsaw breakage syndrome. They showed that DDX11 plays an important role in DNA repair, and functions as a backup to the Fanconi anemia (FA) pathway, whose malfunction is associated with another life-debilitating condition.
	Political leadership cannot be disentangled from collective psychology Much has been made recently of the revenge motives of Tony Abbott, and the seemingly self-defeating choices of the Liberal Party room in changing our prime minister from Malcolm Turnbull to Scott Morrison.
	What are "nightshade vegetables," and are they bad for you? If you get your health news from blogs such as Goop and Dr. Oz, you might be led to believe a certain group of vegetables called "nightshade vegetables" are bad for you.
	Dopamine receptor study offers hope for improved treatments with fewer side effects New work from researchers at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons sheds light on how dopamine receptors signal within cells, opening the door for more targeted—and more tolerable—therapeutics to treat an array of neuropsychiatric disorders.
	Mouse models may not accurately mimic severity of gonorrhea infection There is an urgent need to develop a vaccine to prevent gonorrhea infection due to rapidly increasing incidence and growing antibiotic resistance. BUSM researchers (in collaboration with University of Toronto researchers) have been investigating the use of animal models of gonorrhea, to study how the infection evolves and for potential use to determine the efficacy of next generation vaccines. They found that the mouse model may not fully reflect the severity of the infection and the types of immune responses seen in humans.
How weight loss is linked to future health for older adults Studies describing the effects of weight loss on health rarely consider age. However, weight loss during middle age likely has different effects on your health than does weight loss when you're 65-years-old or older—especially when you're older than 85.
	Pathology and social interactions—safety in numbers What if social behavior affected the progression of even noncontagious diseases? This has now been demonstrated by French CNRS teams and international collaborators. Using a fly model of intestinal cancer, the researchers have shown that disease progression is impacted both by social isolation—which has a negative effect—and the composition of the social group with which individuals associate. Their findings are published in Nature Communications (September 3, 2018).
	New research shows how children want their food served The aim of research from the Future Consumer Lab was to investigate whether children prefer their food served in a particular way and whether their gender and age make a difference with regard to their preferences.
	Killer cell immunotherapy offers potential cure for advanced pancreatic cancer A new approach to treating pancreatic cancer using 'educated killer cells' has shown promise, according to a new study by UNSW medical researchers.
	Severely traumatised refugees may not necessarily develop PTSD Heavily traumatized people such as refugees fleeing war, torture and natural catastrophes may not necessarily develop posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a new study reveals.
	Even 'good' levels of air pollution are bad for smokers (HealthDay)—Even low levels of air pollution can pose a threat to the lungs of cigarette smokers, researchers say.
	Working workouts into your life (HealthDay)—Weekly fitness guidelines can seem like a laundry list of to-do's that you just can't get done—30 minutes of cardio at least five days, resistance training two or three days, and at least two flexibility sessions … each and every week.
	Looking inside the brain to distinguish bipolar from depression New research has found that neurons deep inside the brain could hold the key to accurately diagnosing bipolar disorder and depression.
	Improving operations for the brain's most malignant tumor Important research by Barrow Neurological Institute neurosurgeons and University of Washington (UW) scientists on novel imaging technology for malignant brain tumors was published in the August issue of the Nature journal, Scientific Reports. The research was conducted by Drs. Mark Preul and Evgenii Belykh at the Barrow Neurological Institute Neurosurgery Research Laboratory along with Drs. Leonard Nelson and Eric Seibel from the Department of Mechanical Engineering and the Human Photonics Laboratory at the University of Washington.
	Airport security plastic trays harbour highest levels of viruses, study finds The plastic trays used at airport security checkpoints have been found to harbour the highest levels of viruses at airports, in a new scientific investigation by pandemic experts.
	ALS disease mechanism discovered A mechanism for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) development has been discovered at Umeå University, Sweden. The researchers report that proteins with a defect structure spread the deformation to other proteins. The discovery could result in novel pharmaceutical developments in the future.
	The burden of the 'suicide' headache They're called suicide headaches because the pain is frequent and unbearable.
	Pharmacists play vital role in improving patient health Pharmacists serving non-hospitalised patients, such as in general practices and community pharmacies, may achieve improvements in patient health outcomes according to the most comprehensive systematic review of the scientific evidence to date.
Internet and telephone assisted training for child disruptive behavior found to be effective Positive long-term outcomes, such as a reduction in child disruptive behavior and increased parental skills, have been reported in a new study in the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (JAACAP). For a large number of families, screened from the general population, internet- and telephone-assisted trainings that target disruptive behavior in children at age 4 decreases the likelihood of such disruptive behavior occurring. The program was effective 24 months after initiation.
	Concussions loosen insulation around brain cells Detailed scans of concussed university hockey players found that the protective fatty tissue surrounding brain cell fibers was loosened two weeks after the injury—even though the athletes felt fine and were deemed ready to return to the ice.
	Is gaming disorder real? It seems like everyone is worried about the addictive nature of video games, but what does the science actually say?
	Why historians ignored the Spanish flu To judge by the popularity of films like World War Z, pandemics are in vogue and none more so than the Spanish influenza of 1918-19. To mark the centenary of the pandemic this autumn, the BBC has commissioned Spanish Flu: In their own words, a major television docudrama on the pandemic, while 2018 has already seen the publication of several new titles revisiting the science and history of the flu.
	Why "find your passion" is bad advice Do you have a dream job? New evidence says that, rather than finding your passion, you should develop it instead.
	Anti-inflammatory use during surgery could improve cancer outcomes The world's first clinical trial (SURGUVANT) evaluating anti-inflammatory use at the time of surgery in colon cancer patients to improve their cancer outcome has been published in scientific journal, BMC Cancer.
	Why it's hard for blacks to "pull themselves up by bootstraps" when it comes to health Many Americans deeply believe that people should pull themselves up by their bootstraps. After all, individual responsibility is a core American value. Too much emphasis on an individual's responsibility, however, may result in overlooking the societal and historically causes that keep racial minorities such as blacks at an economic and health disadvantage.
	No pain, no gain? It's not the way. An innovative team at UWA have taken a decades-old test and transformed it, helping athletes avoid overtraining and injury.
	Life's purpose rests in our mind's spectacular drive to extract meaning from the world What is the purpose of life? Whatever you may think is the answer, you might, from time to time at least, find your own definition unsatisfactory. After all, how can one say why any living creature is on Earth in just one simple phrase?
	Oral steroids not effective for most children with glue ear A new study by researchers at Cardiff University and the University of Oxford shows that a one-week course of oral steroid tablets does not result in large benefits for most two- to eight-year-old children who have had glue ear with hearing loss for at least three months.
	Cheating on your diet? This blood test can tell By analyzing small molecules called metabolites in a blood sample, a scientist can determine if you're following your prescribed diet or cheating, researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health report.
	What is your first memory – and did it ever really happen? I can remember being a baby. I recall being in a vast room inside a doctor's surgery. I was passed to a nurse and then placed in cold metal scales to be weighed. I was always aware that this memory was unusual because it was from so early in my life, but I thought that perhaps I just had a really good memory, or that perhaps other people could remember being so young, too.
	New advice on kids' concussions calls for better tracking New children's concussion guidelines from the U.S. government recommend against routine X-rays and blood tests for diagnosis and reassure parents that most kids' symptoms clear up within one to three months.
	Preterm birth: The 'Nodal' gene under the microscope Preterm birth is a major global public health problem. Every year, 15 million babies are born prematurely and many will suffer from neurodegenerative disorders, including cerebral palsy, learning disabilities, impaired vision, and behavioural problems.
	Researchers discover key differences between the exercise-trained heart and failing heart Regular exercise protects patients from heart disease whereas conditions such as high blood pressure can lead to heart failure and Atrial Fibrillation, the most common type of irregular heartbeat.
New study finds patients want more information about their medicine Many patients want more information on the medicines they're prescribed and greater say in the brands they use, the first major study of the burden of long-term medicine use has concluded.
	Urgent care visits increase as emergency room visits fall Treatment for new health problems, or acute care visits, encompass over one-third of all ambulatory care delivered in the United States. Given the high costs of emergency departments, many insurance plans have created incentives to encourage patients to receive that care elsewhere. In response to patient expectations for more convenience and to long wait times at traditional physician outpatient practices, alternative care facilities such as urgent care centers, retail clinics, and telemedicine have rapidly emerged.
	Scientists find a neurological synergy in explaining the processing of an optical illusion A team of scientists has uncovered a neurological synergy that occurs in visual adaptation, a phenomenon in which perception is altered by prolonged exposure to a stimulus.
Is TV advertising for health insurance worth the expense? A new study says, 'maybe not' A new study to be published in the INFORMS journal Marketing Science has revealed that health insurance has a small effect on brand enrollments, raising the question of whether health insurance television advertising is worth the expense.
	Online searches about cardiovascular disease follow strong seasonal and geographical patterns There is a strong seasonal pattern in seeking cardiovascular health information on Google, with higher search activity during winter months, according to a new study published in Mayo Clinic Proceedings. Investigators also found that US states with higher deaths from cardiovascular disease (CVD) have higher CVD-related search volumes compared with regions with lower CVD mortality. By integrating artificial intelligence in healthcare research, the data generated by online cardiovascular health searches could be leveraged in the future to estimate disease activity in the community.
	Synthetic DNA technology provides a novel strategy for effective delivery of a complex anti-HIV agent Scientists at The Wistar Institute have applied their synthetic DNA technology to engineer a novel eCD4-Ig anti-HIV agent and to enhance its potency in vivo, providing a new simple strategy for constructing complex therapeutics for infectious agents as well as for diverse implications in therapeutic delivery. This critical development was published online in the journal EBio Medicine.
Researchers win prize for restoring children's eyesight Researchers in the United States and Britain are sharing a 1 million-euro ($1.16 million) prize from a Portuguese scientific foundation for developing revolutionary gene therapy that has restored the sight of children.
	Overall burden of tumor genome changes can predict patient outcomes Researchers have discovered a link between certain changes in the genome of a tumor and increased chances of death across multiple types of cancer.
	Dementia symptoms peak in winter and spring, study finds Adults both with and without Alzheimer's disease have better cognition skills in the late summer and early fall than in the winter and spring, according to a new study published this week in PLOS Medicine by Andrew Lim of Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre and the University of Toronto, Canada, and colleagues.
	Nutrient-rich diet may help heart failure patients avoid hospital, death A varied, quality diet could help prevent hospitalizations and even death among patients with heart failure, a new study suggests.
	Adding pharmacist to team can improve patient outcomes (HealthDay)—Integration of pharmacists into team-based care practice models can improve patient outcome, especially in chronic diseases, such as diabetes, according to a report published in the American Medical Association's AMA Wire.
	Relapse-free cure from MDR-TB higher than anticipated (HealthDay)—The frequency of relapse-free cure from multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) is higher than previously anticipated, according to a study published in the Aug. 1 issue of the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine.
	Remission of schizophrenia seen with amisulpride, clozapine (HealthDay)—Remission can be achieved for most cases of schizophrenia and schizophreniform disorder with amisulpride and clozapine, according to a study published online Aug. 13 in the The Lancet Psychiatry.
	USPSTF reaffirms screening for syphilis in pregnancy (HealthDay)—The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommends screening all pregnant women for syphilis infection. These findings form the basis of a reaffirmation recommendation statement published in the Sept. 4 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.
	Why we stick to false beliefs: Feedback trumps hard evidence Ever wonder why flat earthers, birthers, climate change and Holocaust deniers stick to their beliefs in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary?
	Focused delivery for brain cancers A person's brainstem controls some of the body's most important functions, including heart beat, respiration, blood pressure and swallowing. Tumor growth in this part of the brain is therefore twice as devastating. Not only can such a growth disrupt vital functions, but operating in this area is so risky, many medical professionals refuse to consider it as an option.
	Effective TB, HIV, malaria vaccines missing from pipeline Many of the vaccines critically needed to fight some of the world's most prevalent infectious diseases are not likely to be developed, a new analysis of current candidates in the research and development pipeline has found.
	No evidence that moral reminders reduce cheating behavior, replication effort concludes Scientists report they were unable to reproduce the results of a well-known study showing that people are less likely to cheat on a task after making a list of the Ten Commandments. Their findings are published in a Registered Replication Report (RRR) in Advances in Methods and Practices in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.
ACA reduced disparities in health care between Mexican-heritage Latinos and other Latinos Previous studies have shown that Mexican immigrants living in the United States are less likely to have insurance or to report a usual source of care than Mexican-Americans, other Latinos and non-Latino whites. But the Affordable Care Act may have made it easier for them to access health care when they need it. More Latinos of Mexican heritage in California reported having health insurance and a usual source of care compared to other Latinos after the health care law's major provisions were implemented than before these provisions were put into place, according to a new study led by a researcher at the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health.
	Body clock link to steroids discovered Professor David Ray, from The University of Manchester, lead the research which found that out of 752 genes which regulate lungs in mice, 230 genes work only in the day and only 197 at night.
	Common painkiller linked to increased risk of major heart problems The commonly used painkiller diclofenac is associated with an increased risk of major cardiovascular events, such as heart attack and stroke, compared with no use, paracetamol use, and use of other traditional painkillers, finds a study published by The BMJ this week.
	Watching an embryo's neural tube close In those precious weeks before a woman even realizes she's pregnant, an embryo will have already developed a neural tube, a hollow structure made of cells which will eventually become the brain and spinal cord. Now, with $3.2 million from the National Institutes of Health, UH professor of biomedical engineering Kirill Larin will tackle the evolutionary anomaly of why the neural tube closes in most embryos but remains open in others, leading to birth defects such as spina bifida and anencephaly.
	Antioxidant reduces risk for second heart attack, stroke Doctors have long known that in the months after a heart attack or stroke, patients are more likely to have another attack or stroke. Now, a paper in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology explains what happens inside blood vessels to increase risk—and suggests a new way to treat it.
Nalbuphine may help manage opioid-induced urine retention Nalbuphine may help to manage opioid-induced urine retention. Findings from a brief case report are published in Annals of Internal Medicine.
	Severe human infection with a novel avian-origin influenza A(H7N4) virus Wild birds are believed to be the reservoir of influenza A viruses, and poultry may serve as a key intermediary in the cross-species avian influenza virus (AIV) transmission from wild birds to human. Backyard poultry, especially those located in the flyway of migratory birds, is thought to play a vital role in the introduction of wild bird AIVs. A novel reassortant AIV, influenza A(H7N4), has been identified in such a scenario, according to a new study published in Science Bulletin.
	New resources will help researchers fight mosquito-transmitted diseases at no cost to end users Vector-borne diseases account for more than 17 % of all infectious diseases, causing over 700 000 deaths annually, according to a factsheet by the World Health Organization (WHO). These are infections transmitted by vectors like mosquitoes, ticks, flies, sandflies and fleas. Under an initiative to support research in this field, the EU-funded INFRAVEC2 project recently unveiled its revamped online shop and website.
	Genes shown to influence how well children do throughout their time at school Children differ widely in how well they do at school. In recent years, researchers have shown that around two-thirds of differences in school achievement can be explained by differences in children's genes.
	Gestational diabetes may predispose to postpartum depression symptoms Mothers diagnosed with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) have an elevated risk of developing postpartum depression symptoms, according to a new Finnish study.
	New lentivirus-based tool assesses effect of Wnt/beta-Catenin signaling on bone regeneration Researchers have developed a novel tool for determining the sensitivity of bone healing to inhibition of the Wnt signaling pathway and have validated its use in a study of bone regeneration in mice. The tool, which is based on a lentivirus encoding a ß-catenin shRNA model, is described in an article published in Tissue Engineering, Part A.
Nurse staffing regulations did not improve patient mortality and complications In 2014, Massachusetts lawmakers passed a law requiring a 1:1 or 2:1 patient-to-nurse staffing ratio in intensive care units (ICU) in the state, as guided by a tool that accounts for patient acuity and anticipated care intensity. The regulations were intended to ensure patient safety in the state's ICUs, but new research led by physician-researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) and published today in Critical Care Medicine found the staffing regulations were not associated with improved patient outcomes.
Cheaper, easier access to fruits and veggies key to college students eating better A benefit-oriented approach to nutrition increases college students' willingness to consume fruits and vegetables, yet the availability and cost of healthy food on campus are critical to changing their eating habits, according to research published in The Journal of the American Osteopathic Association.
	Jumping to scientific conclusions challenges biomedical research Improving experimental design and statistical analyses alone will not solve the reproducibility crisis in science, argues Ray Dingledine in a societal impact article published in eNeuro. Repeating classic behavioral economics experiments with graduate- to senior-level researchers, the author finds scientists of all career stages are subject to the same biases as undergraduates when interpreting data.
	Eye movements take edge off traumatic memories Two human experiments published in JNeurosci demonstrate that a widely used yet controversial psychotherapy technique suppresses fear-related amygdala activity during recall of a traumatic memory.
	Tailoring behavioral therapy for depression, obesity based on how the brain responds Precision lifestyle medicine is an emerging field that tailors behavioral treatments and lifestyle modification recommendations based on an individual's genetics, lifestyle and environment.
Researchers identify tool to help transgender women have a more authentic voice New York University researchers have identified visual-acoustic biofeedback as a new tool to assist in voice modification therapy for transgender women.

Biology news

	Small fish passes classic self-awareness test An international team of researchers has found a small tropical fish that is capable of passing a classic test of self-awareness. The results are published on the bioRxiv prepress server.
	Study of monotreme and marsupial brains suggests hemispheres communicated before development of corpus callosum A team of researchers with The University of Queensland has found evidence suggesting that mammalian brain hemispheres had a means of communicating long before the development of the corpus callosum. In their paper published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the group describes mammalian brain studies they conducted using MRIs and what they found.
	Regulation of Pom cluster dynamics in Myxococcus xanthus Rod-shaped bacterial cells normally divide by constriction midway along their long axis. LMU physicists have developed a theoretical model to explain how Myxococcus xanthus localizes the plane of division to mid-cell.
	Brown bear saliva found to contain chemical that kills Staphylococcus aureus A team of researchers affiliated with multiple institutions in Russia and the U.S. has found that Siberian brown bears have a chemical in their saliva that has been found able to kill Staphylococcus aureus bacteria. In their paper published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the group describes their study of the microbiome of a subspecies of brown bear and what they found.
	Patent mining indicates promising routes for research A group of researchers affiliated with the University of São Paulo (USP) campus in Ribeirão Preto, Brazil, has used big data tools such as data mining and network analysis to develop a method to identify technological routes, trends and partnerships in any knowledge area. For this purpose, it collected information from patent databases around the world.
	Regulator protein key to malaria parasite's lifecycle Malaria remains a significant threat to human health with approximately 216 million cases annually and over 400,000 deaths worldwide. It is caused by the Plasmodium parasite, which has a complex lifecycle involving transmission to humans via the Anopheles mosquito.
	Blue-green algae promises to boost food crop yields Scientists at ANU have engineered tiny carbon-capturing engines from blue-green algae into plants, in a breakthrough that promises to help boost the yields of important food crops such as wheat, cowpeas and cassava.
	Discovery aids disease elimination efforts Researchers at the University of Dundee have identified a new drug target in parasites that cause major neglected tropical diseases, a discovery that contributes towards a global drive to eliminate these diseases by 2030.
	Slip-sliding away… In the cell nucleus, the genomic DNA is packaged into a tightly condensed form, which is referred to as chromatin. The basic unit of chromatin organization is the nucleosome, a DNA-protein complex consisting of a defined length of DNA wrapped around a bead-like structure which is made of histone proteins. The individual nucleosomes are connected by a short length of linker DNA, forming a string of beads which are in turn packed together by special cross-linking proteins. The detailed structure of chromatin regulates access to the genes, and therefore plays a vital role in the control of gene expression. In response to metabolic signals, environmental changes and developmental processes, mechanisms are triggered that dynamically modify chromatin structure, making genes accessible for activation whose products enable the cell to adapt to changes in local conditions. Large protein complexes called chromatin remodellers play a central role in this process. These molecular machines act locally to disrupt the contacts between nucleosomal histones and DNA and effectively slide the nucleosome along the DNA. Now a research group led by Professor Karl-Peter Hopfner at LMU's Gene Center in collaboration with a team around Dr. Philipp Korber at the Biomedical Center, has dissected the function of an important module of the remodeller INO80 in this process. The new findings have just been published in the journal Nature Structural & Molecular Biology.
	Fossil teeth show how reptiles adapted to change Marine predators that lived in deep waters during the Jurassic Period thrived as sea levels rose, while species that dwelled in the shallows died out, research suggests.
	Study uses Herbarium samples to understand link between climate change and insect herbivory When she set out to understand whether climate changes over the past century might be effecting how much insects were eating various plants, Emily Meineke decided to go straight to the source—the plants themselves.
	State-of-the-art imaging techniques reveal heightened detail and beauty of vertebrate life A mingling of science and art, the next-generation photographs of vertebrate skeletons are at once fascinating, eerie, intricate and exquisite.
	Like a zipper: How cells form new blood vessels Blood vessel formation relies on the ability of vascular cells to move while remaining firmly connected to each other. This enables the vessels to grow and sprout without leaking any blood. In the current issue of Nature Communications, scientists from the Biozentrum at the University of Basel describe how this works. In this process, the cytoskeleton pushes the cell forward, while an adhesion protein subsequently closes the gap to the neighboring cell, like a zipper.
	Team successfully analyzes the structure of the protein FAT10 toward potential cancer therapy FAT10 is a small protein with a huge effect. Its attachment to a target protein is a signal for its degradation. FAT10 is a marking system for degradation that seems to be inefficient. In contrast to its biological competitor, ubiquitin, which is recycled, FAT10 is degraded along with its target protein, which appears wasteful at first glance.
	Machine learning algorithm automatically sorts zebrafish eggs Zebrafish possess almost all of the same genes we humans do—and that makes their eggs the perfect model organisms for use in genetic and drug research. Previously, samples have had to be prepared manually, which is a very time-consuming task. Now, however, a clever machine learning algorithm will be able to separate and sort the fish eggs automatically. From November 6-8, researchers from the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation IPA will be at the VISION trade show in Stuttgart (Hall 1, Booth G42) to demonstrate how their new solution works in practice.
	How animals went from single cells to over 30 different body types Whilst this planet has gone cycling on according to the fixed law of gravity, from so simple a beginning endless forms most beautiful and most wonderful have been, and are being, evolved.
	Sexual development in fungi Biologists at Ruhr-Universität Bochum and Georg-August-Universität Göttingen have gained new insights into specific enzymes that effect the specialisation of fungal cells. Analysing the microscopic fungus Sordaria macrospora, they demonstrated that the KIN3 enzyme connects different cellular signalling pathways that are involved in developmental processes. Thus, it is crucial for the sexual life cycle of the fungus.
	Researchers identify twenty-five genetic changes that could have extended human lifespan Senescence, or biological ageing, refers to the general deterioration of an organism's physiological functions, leading to increased susceptibility to diseases and ultimately death. It is a complex process that involves many genes. Lifespans vary greatly across different animal species. Thus, for example, flies live for four weeks, horses for thirty years, whereas some hedgehogs may live for up to two centuries. Why is the range of lifespans in nature so broad? This is one of the basic and most intriguing questions faced by biologists.
	Alpine ecosystems struggle to recover from nitrogen deposition What happens to high mountain ecosystems when you take away air pollution? Not much, not very quickly. A new CU research study finds that degraded alpine ecosystems showed limited recovery years after long-term inputs of human-caused nitrogen air pollution, with soil acidification and effects on biodiversity lingering even after a decade of much lower nitrogen input levels.
	Giving tortoises a 'head start' Research from the University of Georgia indicates that head-starting—raising a species in captivity and releasing it into a protected habitat after it has grown large enough to be less vulnerable to predators—is a useful intervention for boosting the state's gopher tortoise population, which has been declining in numbers for decades due to predation, poaching and loss of suitable habitat.
	Nearly 100 elephants killed for ivory in Botswana (Update) Ninety elephant carcasses have been discovered in Botswana with their tusks hacked off, a charity said Tuesday, in what is believed to be one of Africa's worst mass poaching sprees.

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