Dear Reader ,
Here is your customized PHYSorg.com Newsletter for October 27, 2010:
Spotlight Stories Headlines
- Physicists show that superfluid light is possible- Scientists sequence genomes from Africa, Europe, Asia
- Controlling individual cortical nerve cells by human thought
- From touchpad to thought-pad? Research shows that digital images can be manipulated with the mind
- Astronomers discover most massive neutron star yet known (w/ Video)
- New evidence supports 'Snowball Earth' as trigger for early animal evolution
- Friends with cognitive benefits: Mental function improves after certain kinds of socializing
- Columbus cleared of bringing syphilis to Europe
- Asteroid strike into ocean could deplete ozone layer
- Surprise finding: Pancreatic cancers progress to lethal stage slowly
- New methods detect subtleties in human genomes' repetitive landscapes
- Deadly monkeypox virus might cause disease by breaking down lung tissue
- Researchers find a 'liberal gene'
- Google giving away Google TV devices to developers
- A speed gun for the Earth's insides
Space & Earth news
Indonesia volcano kills 30 including spirit keeper
(AP) -- Rescuers scoured the slopes of Indonesia's most volatile volcano for survivors Wednesday after it was rocked by an eruption which killed at least 30 people, including an old man who refused to abandon his ceremonial post as caretaker of the mountain's spirits.
Pacific fisheries face collapse by 2035: study
Pacific island fisheries face collapse in the next 25 years as overfishing, population growth and climate change threaten one of the region's main economic resources, a study warned Wednesday.
Webb telescope primary mirror segment completes cryogenic test
Last week a primary mirror milestone was met for NASA's James Webb Space Telescope project as the first gold-coated mirror segment finished testing in the X-ray & Cryogenic Facility at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala.
Introducing the A-Train
Mention the "A-Train" and most people probably think of the jazz legend Billy Strayhorn or perhaps New York City subway trains — not climate change. However, it turns out that a convoy of "A-Train" satellites has emerged as one of the most powerful tools scientists have for understanding our planet’s changing climate.
Typhoon Megi unleashes its wrath
Though a storm’s strength is gauged by wind speed, tropical cyclones also pose a hazard because of the intense rain they bring to a region. This image shows the heavy rain Super-typhoon Megi unleashed as it tracked west across the Pacific between October 13 and October 23, 2010. The heaviest rainfall -- more than 600 millimeters or nearly 24 inches -- appears in dark blue. The lightest rainfall -- less than 75 millimeters or 3 inches -- appears in light green.
Scientists on the look-out for a 'Hartley-id' Meteor Shower
This month, Comet Hartley 2 has put on a good show for backyard astronomers. The comet's vivid green atmosphere and auburn tail of dust look great through small telescopes, and NASA's Deep Impact/EPOXI probe is about to return even more dramatic pictures when it flies past the comet's nucleus on Nov. 4th.
International Space Station water system successfully activated
NASA has announced the successful activation of new hardware that will support water production services aboard the International Space Station.
China says manned space station possible around 2020
China said Wednesday that it planned to complete a manned space station around 2020, as the Asian nation pushes ahead with its ambitious space exploration programme.
Scientists issue call to action for archaeological sites threatened by rising seas
Should global warming cause sea levels to rise as predicted in coming decades, thousands of archaeological sites in coastal areas around the world will be lost to erosion. With no hope of saving all of these sites, archaeologists Torben Rick from the Smithsonian Institution, Leslie Reeder of Southern Methodist University, and Jon Erlandson of the University of Oregon have issued a call to action for scientists to assess the sites most at risk.
Tagged narwhals track warming near Greenland
In a research paper published online Saturday in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans, a publication of the American Geological Union (AGU), scientists reported the southern Baffin Bay off West Greenland has continued warming since wintertime ocean temperatures were last effectively measured there in the early 2000s.
Experiment to test virulence of nasty bacteria in microgravity
NASA's space shuttle Discovery will make its swan song flight Nov. 1 carrying two University of Colorado at Boulder-built biomedical payload devices, including one to help scientists better understand changes in the virulence of nasty bacteria in the low gravity of space as a way to help researchers prevent or control infectious diseases.
Study finds trees not so large carbon sinks
The capacity of trees to counter rising carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere may not be as great as previously thought, according to a new study with significant implications for predicting future climate change.
Eight days left in comet flyby countdown
(PhysOrg.com) -- NASA's EPOXI mission continues to close in on its target, comet Hartley 2, at a rate of 12.5 kilometers (7.8 miles) per second. On Nov. 4 at about 10:01 a.m. EDT (7:01 a.m. PDT) the spacecraft will make its closest approach to the comet at a distance of about 700 kilometers (434 miles). It will be the fifth time that a comet has been imaged close-up and the first time in history that two comets have been imaged with the same instruments and same spatial resolution.
Spiral galaxies stripped bare
Six spectacular spiral galaxies are seen in a clear new light in images from ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) at the Paranal Observatory in Chile. The pictures were taken in infrared light, using the impressive power of the HAWK-I camera, and will help astronomers understand how the remarkable spiral patterns in galaxies form and evolve.
A speed gun for the Earth's insides
(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers at the University of Bristol reveal today in the journal Nature that they have developed a seismological 'speed gun' for the inside of the Earth. Using this technique they will be able to measure the way the Earth's deep interior slowly moves around. This mantle motion is what controls the location of our continents and oceans, and where the tectonic plates collide to shake the surface we live on.
Out of THEMIS, ARTEMIS: Earth's loss is moon's gain
(PhysOrg.com) -- Two micro-satellites originally launched into Earth's orbit in 2007 by NASA have been redirected by University of California, Berkeley, scientists toward new orbits around the moon, extending study of the earth and moon's interaction with the solar wind.
Variable southeast summer rainfall linked to climate change
A doubling of abnormally wet or dry summer weather in the southeastern United States in recent decades has come from an intensification of the summertime North Atlantic Subtropical High (NASH), or "Bermuda High."
Asteroid strike into ocean could deplete ozone layer
(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists in Texas say if a medium-sized asteroid were to crash into the ocean the ozone layer could be depleted, allowing high levels of ultraviolet radiation to reach the surface.
Astronomers discover most massive neutron star yet known (w/ Video)
(PhysOrg.com) -- Astronomers using the National Science Foundation's Green Bank Telescope (GBT) have discovered the most massive neutron star yet found, a discovery with strong and wide-ranging impacts across several fields of physics and astrophysics.
New evidence supports 'Snowball Earth' as trigger for early animal evolution
A team of scientists, led by biogeochemists at the University of California, Riverside, has found new evidence linking "Snowball Earth" glacial events to the rise of early animals.
Technology news
Facebook head of ad sales departing
(AP) -- Facebook's head of advertising sales is leaving the social networking company.
Airline fuel efficiency promoted with NASA software
Software developed at NASA's Ames Research Center is enabling major fuel savings for airlines and an increase in environmental efficiency.
European Union aims to increase electronic efficiency and eliminate power consumption
Today, Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne and IBM announced a major research initiative, with several leading academic and corporate research organizations across Europe, to address the alarming growth of energy consumption by electronic devices, ranging from mobile phones to laptops to televisions to supercomputers. The research project, called Steeper, aims to increase the energy efficiency of these devices, when active, by 10 times and virtually eliminate power consumption when they are in passive or standby mode.
NIST ships first programmable AC/DC 10-volt standard
Extending its 26-year tradition of innovative quantum voltage standards, researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have begun shipping a new 10-volt standard to users around the world. The programmable system measures both direct current (DC) and alternating current (AC) voltages. NIST AC/DC 10-volt standard chip.
IAC 3Q revenue up, profit down on year-ago boost
(AP) -- IAC/InterActiveCorp, the Internet company run by billionaire Barry Diller, saw a big jump in revenue in the latest quarter because of improvements in online advertising and an expansion in the number of people looking online for love.
Italy latest country to probe Google's Street View
(AP) -- Italian prosecutors said Wednesday they have opened an investigation into Google's Street View mapping feature for suspected violation of privacy.
Apple accused of copyright infringement in China
US high-tech giant Apple has been accused in China of copyright infringement, with a computer screen maker saying it owns the rights to the iPad name in the country, a report said Wednesday.
Google executive pushes privacy concerns
(AP) -- Google's global privacy counsel says he's surprised by how few people choose to control what ads are steered their way - a tool which the Internet search giant launched, albeit with minimal fanfare, over the past year.
Yahoo tries to entice users with e-mail facelift
(AP) -- Yahoo Inc. is sprucing up its free e-mail service in the latest attempt to persuade people to spend more time on its website.
'New MySpace' narrows focus to entertainment
(AP) -- MySpace, the online social hub that's been fighting to stay relevant in the age of Facebook and Twitter, is overhauling its image and its website into an entertainment destination for its mostly younger audience.
Fujitsu second quarter profit tumbles, strong yen weighs
Japanese information technology services giant Fujitsu said Wednesday its net profit for the July-September period tumbled 76 percent on-year while sales were hit by the impact of a surging yen.
Japan to test walk-through explosive sniffers during APEC
Japan will test new "walk-through" bomb detectors that can pick up minute traces of explosives when the country hosts an Asia-Pacific summit next month, government officials said Wednesday.
Programming the crowds
At the Association for Computing Machinery’s 23rd symposium on User Interface Software and Technology in October, members of the User Interface Design Group at MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory walked off with awards for both best paper and best student paper.
Innovative use of solar energy
Working in collaboration with industry partners, researchers of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) have successfully developed a Solar-powered Air-conditioning System for vehicles and completed a series of testing on the road.
Seven myths about physical security
The high-tech access control device was secure, sophisticated, and complex; it was intended to protect nuclear materials and other important assets. But security experts at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory defeated it with parts from a Bic pen.
Sprint Nextel posts first revenue gain in years
(AP) -- Sprint Nextel Corp. on Wednesday reported its first quarterly revenue increase in three years, as improvements in Sprint-branded and prepaid service offset the continued flight of subscribers from the Nextel network.
Taiwan's AU Optronics profit dives 98 percent
Taiwan's AU Optronics Corp said Wednesday its net profit in the three months to September plummeted 98 percent from the previous quarter due to falling prices.
SAP posts 12 percent gain in third quarter profit
SAP, the professional software giant, posted on Wednesday a third quarter net profit of 501 million euros (690 million dollars), a gain of 12 percent from the same period a year earlier.
Comcast drives growth with pricier bundles
(AP) -- Comcast Corp., the country's biggest cable TV company, continues to generate more money by attracting customers to pricier bundles of TV, Internet and phone service - even as a sluggish economy hampers efforts to sign up new subscribers.
Google showcases local businesses in a new 'place'
(AP) -- Google Inc., world's most popular search engine, started rolling out a new way to show information about local businesses on Wednesday.
Cablevision makes new offer to Fox to end blackout
(AP) -- With baseball's World Series hours away from starting, Cablevision Systems Corp. said Wednesday that it has made a new offer to Fox to pay for signals from Fox 5 in New York and Fox 29 in Philadelphia for one year.
Fox rejects Cablevision's new offer to end impasse
(AP) -- Fox on Wednesday rejected a last-ditch offer from Cablevision Systems Corp. to pay it more for its TV stations' signals, a move that could leave some 3 million Cablevision subscribers in the New York area with few options besides heading to a bar to watch baseball's World Series on TV.
PayPal unveils micropayments, Facebook integration
PayPal unveiled a new micropayments service on Tuesday that makes it easier to buy digital goods and announced an integration with social networking giant Facebook.
Getting the big picture quickly: Software edits huge images in seconds instead of hours
(PhysOrg.com) -- University of Utah computer scientists developed software that quickly edits "extreme resolution imagery" – huge photographs containing billions to hundreds of billions of pixels or dot-like picture elements. Until now, it took hours to process these "gigapixel" images. The new software needs only seconds to produce preview images useful to doctors, intelligence analysts, photographers, artists, engineers and others.
Commercial jets could use shorter runways with new design
Research underway at the Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI) could enable fixed-wing jet aircraft to take off and land at steep angles on short runways, while also reducing engine noise heard on the ground.
Smart traffic lights reduce fuel usage and lower emissions
(PhysOrg.com) -- Denso Corp. has designed the next version of 'the smart traffic light system'. By using messaging between vehicles and the traffic-light controller, better decisions about when to change signaling will help to maximize overall vehicle throughput at an intersection.
FTC ends inquiry into Google 'Street View' data collection
The US Federal Trade Commission said Wednesday that it was ending its inquiry into the collection of private wireless data by Google's "Street View" mapping service.
Google giving away Google TV devices to developers
Google, in a bid to promote and improve Google TV, which seeks to merge television and the Internet, is giving away 10,000 of the devices to developers.
Medicine & Health news
Cholera fears spark anti-clinic protest in Haiti
(AP) -- Protesters threw rocks at a cholera treatment center as it was preparing to open in the city of St. Marc on Tuesday, highlighting the fear surrounding a disease that was almost unknown in Haiti before it began spreading through the countryside, aid workers said.
Narcotics and diagnostics overused in treatment of chronic neck pain
Duke University and University of North Carolina (UNC) researchers report in the November issue of Arthritis Care & Research that narcotics and diagnostic testing are overused in treating chronic neck pain. Their findings indicate clinicians may overlook more effective treatments for neck pain, such as therapeutic exercise. According to reviews cited in the study, evidence to support the effectiveness of therapeutic exercise in treating chronic neck pain is good, yet only 53% of subjects were prescribed such exercise. This information was based upon reported data from a representative sample of North Carolina residents.
Helping older people get a better night's sleep with new technology
Older people who have trouble sleeping will soon be able to use a range of state-of-the-art technology including a pillow with inbuilt gentle music that can lull them to sleep.
Knowledge of genetic cancer risks often dies with patients
If you were dying from cancer, would you consider genetic testing? A recent study conducted by researchers from Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center showed that most terminally ill cancer patients who were eligible for genetic testing never received it despite that it could potentially save a relative's life.
Addiction index updated
The new version of the Addiction Severity Index (ASI) gives health professionals the opportunity to design an integral and personalised plan of assistance for patients suffering disorders due to substance abuse.
Canada needs to improve end-of-life care
Better psychological and spiritual support, improved planning of care and stronger relationships with physicians are necessary to improve end-of-life care in Canada, according to a study by a Queen's University professor.
Probing the mysterious second-wave of damage in head injury patients
Why do some of the one million people who sustain head injuries annually in United States experience a mysterious second wave of brain damage days after the initial injury — just when they appear to be recovering? Limited clinical trials using an innovative new device to monitor brain chemistry on a second-by-second basis are underway to answer that life-and-death question, according to an article in the current issue of Chemical & Engineering News (C&EN), ACS' weekly newsmagazine. Brain injury is the leading cause of death and disability worldwide.
Doctors' sense of mission, self-identity key factors in choice to work in underserved areas
Medical schools and clinics could boost the number of primary care physicians in medically underserved areas by selecting and encouraging students from these communities, who often exhibit a strong sense of responsibility for and identification with the people there, according to a new study by UCLA researchers and colleagues published in the current issue of the American Journal of Public Health.
60 Utahns are among landmark large-scale genome sequencing study
Just seven months after University of Utah geneticists took part in a landmark study that sequenced for the first time the genome of an entire Utah family, U of U researchers have taken part in another historic study that is the first large-scale genome sequencing project – 179 people representing three continents – and 60 Utahns played a major role in this study, too.
More proof that diet, exercise aid weight loss: studies
Researchers have uncovered more reason to believe that properly managed diet and exercise can help overweight, obese and severely obese people lose weight, two studies have suggested.
Year-long opiate substitution for drug misusers has 85 percent chance of cutting deaths
Giving people opiate substitution treatment to help with their drug addiction can lead to a 85% plus chance of reducing mortality, according to a new study published in the British Medical Journal today.
Following lifestyle tips could prevent almost a quarter of bowel cancer cases
Almost a quarter of colorectal (bowel) cancer cases could be prevented if people followed healthy lifestyle advice in five areas including diet and exercise, says a new study published in the British Medical Journal today.
Tendency to obesity starts with pre-schoolers
When it comes to understanding where tendencies to overweight and obesity develop, you have to begin with the very young, says John Spence, a behavioural scientist in the Faculty of Physical Education and Recreation at the University of Alberta.
Exploring new drug treatment for addictions
South Dakota State University researchers have demonstrated for the first time that a plant-derived compound used to treat nicotine addiction also has significant effects against alcohol addiction.
Newer type of radiation for prostate cancer favored in reviews
A new British review of existing research suggests that while a newer type of radiation for the treatment of prostate cancer does not help patients live longer compared to an older type – at least when similar doses are given – it does appear to reduce gastrointestinal side effects.
Scientists discover origin of brain immune cells
A team of international scientists led by Dr Florent Ginhoux of the Singapore Immunology Network (SIgN) of Singapore's Agency of Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), have made a breakthrough that could lead to a better understanding of many neurodegenerative and inflammatory brain disorders. Their work, published in top scientific journal Science, uncovered the origins of microglia, which are white blood cells specific to the brain, and showed that, in mice, microglia had a completely different origin than other white blood cells. This understanding may lead to the development of new strategies to manipulate microglia for the treatment of various brain disorders.
The brain's journey from early Internet to modern-day fiber optics -- all in one lifetime
The brain's inner network becomes increasingly more efficient as humans mature. Now, for the first time without invasive measures, a joint study from the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (EPFL) and the University of Lausanne (UNIL), in collaboration with Harvard Medical School, has verified these gains with a powerful new computer program. Reported in the PNAS early online edition last week, the soon-to-be-released software allows for individualized maps of vital brain connectivity that could aide in epilepsy and schizophrenia research.
Making sure your children get the proper amount of sleep leads to better quality of life
We all know that pulling all-nighters, being overly caffeinated and overly stimulated have become a part of college life, but the reality is that even school-age children are dealing with these scenarios as well. In fact, approximately 70 percent of children under the age of 10 have difficulty falling asleep or have problems that diminish their quality of sleep. This means that children are a large part of the 70 million Americans who suffer from sleep deprivation.
Maintaining a healthy diet during the holidays, without deprivation
We're in the season when sugary, high-calorie treats will be among the highest hurdles to maintaining healthy eating habits and proper weight management through New Year's Day. The first big hurdle: Halloween sweets.
Glucosamine causes the death of pancreatic cells
High doses or prolonged use of glucosamine causes the death of pancreatic cells and could increase the risk of developing diabetes, according to a team of researchers at Universite Laval's Faculty of Pharmacy. Details of this discovery were recently published on the website of the Journal of Endocrinology.
Heavy drinkers consume less over time, but not at 'normal' levels
Problem drinkers in the general population may reduce the amount of alcohol they consume over a period of years but not to the level of the average adult, according to a new study in the November issue of the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs.
CDC panel: Teens need another meningitis shot
(AP) -- Teens should get a booster dose of the vaccine for bacterial meningitis because a single shot doesn't work as long as expected, a federal advisory panel said Wednesday.
More not always better with in vitro fertilization
(AP) -- More tries aren't necessarily better when it comes to in vitro fertilization.
CDC: High blood pressure awareness, treatment up
(AP) -- More American adults are aware they have high blood pressure, and more are taking medicine to try to control it, according to a new government report released Wednesday.
Forces for cancer spread: Genomic instability and evolutionary selection
In new research published today, researchers uncover evolution in action in cancer cells. They show the forces of evolution in pancreatic tumours mean that not only is cancer genetically different between different patients, but each new focus of cancer spread within a patient has acquired distinct mutations.
New imaging technology predicts fracture risk
(PhysOrg.com) -- A new method for identifying which bones have a high risk of fracture, and for monitoring the effectiveness of new bone-strengthening drugs and techniques, has been developed by scientists at the University of Cambridge.
Getting older leads to emotional stability, happiness: study
(PhysOrg.com) -- As people age, they're more emotionally balanced and better able to solve highly emotional problems, says psychology professor and longevity expert Laura Carstensen.
Too much SP2 protein turns stem cells into 'evil twin' cancer cells
Researchers at North Carolina State University have found that the overproduction of a key protein in stem cells causes those stem cells to form cancerous tumors. Their work may lead to new treatments for a variety of cancers.
Even the sickest babies benefit from breast-feeding
Pediatric researchers at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia describe a successful program in which nurses helped mothers attain high rates of breast-feeding in very sick babies--newborns with complex birth defects requiring surgery and intensive care.
Sodas, other sugary beverages linked to increased risk of type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome
A new study has found that regular consumption of soda and other sugar-sweetened beverages is associated with a clear and consistently greater risk of metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes. According to the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) researchers, the study provides empirical evidence that intake of sugary beverages should be limited to reduce risk of these conditions.
How does the brain work? The 100-billion neuron question
(PhysOrg.com) -- For centuries, the brain has been the subject of countless philosophical and scientific debates. Recently, many discoveries and theories have cropped up around how the brain works, and those theories are helping us better understand the brain's role in health and behavior.
Not so fast -- sex differences in the brain are overblown
People love to speculate about differences between the sexes, and neuroscience has brought a new technology to this pastime. Brain imaging studies are published at a great rate, and some report sex differences in brain structure or patterns of neural activity. But we should be skeptical about reports of brain differences between the sexes, writes psychological scientist Cordelia Fine in Current Directions in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.
Panel: Gramps, get whooping cough shot
(AP) -- A federal advisory panel is recommending that people 65 and older who are around infants get vaccinated against whooping cough.
New targeted lung cancer drug produces 'dramatic' symptom improvement
A clinical trial of a potential new targeted treatment drug has provided powerful evidence that it can halt or reverse the growth of lung tumors characterized by a specific genetic abnormality. In their report in the October 28 New England Journal of Medicine, a multi-institutional research team reports that daily doses of the investigational drug crizotinib shrank the tumors of more than half of a group patients whose tumors were driven by alterations in the anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) gene. In another one-third of study participants, crizotinib treatment suppressed tumor growth. Preliminary results of this study were reported at the June 2010 meeting of the American Society for Clinical Oncology.
'Smart drug' targets new mutation, dramatically shrinks aggressive sarcoma and lung cancer
A new oral drug caused dramatic shrinkage of a patient's rare, aggressive form of soft-tissue cancer that was driven by an abnormally activated protein, physician-scientists from Dana-Farber Cancer Institute report in the Oct. 28 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.
Portable breast scanner allows cancer detection in the blink of an eye
(PhysOrg.com) -- Professor Zhipeng Wu has invented a portable scanner based on radio frequency technology, which is able to show in a second the presence of tumours – malignant and benign – in the breast on a computer.
Looking for new source of cancer markers in blood
The future of cancer diagnosis may lie in just a few milliliters of blood, according to a research team led by Professor Arie Admon of the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology.
Is your city led by heart or head?
Is your character shaped by where you live -- or vice versa? University of Michigan psychology researchers found that some cities lead with their heart -- emotional and interpersonal strengths -- while others lead with their head—intellectual and self-oriented strengths.
Certain cancer therapies' success depends on presence of immune cell: study
The immune system may play a critical role in ensuring the success of certain types of cancer therapies, according to a new study by researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine. The research showed treatments that disable cancer-promoting genes called oncogenes are much more successful in eradicating tumors in the presence of a signaling molecule secreted by kind of immune cell called a T helper cell.
Surprise finding: Pancreatic cancers progress to lethal stage slowly
Pancreatic tumors are one of the most lethal cancers, with fewer than five percent of patients surviving five years after diagnosis. But a new study that peers deeply into the genetics of pancreatic cancer presents a bit of good news: an opportunity for early diagnosis. In contrast to earlier predictions, many pancreatic tumors are, in fact, slow growing, taking nearly 20 years to become lethal after the first genetic perturbations appear.
New methods detect subtleties in human genomes' repetitive landscapes
(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists have invented methods to scout the human genome's repetitive landscapes, where DNA sequences are highly identical and heavily duplicated. These advances, as reported today in Science, can identify subtle but important differences among people in the number and content of repeated DNA segments.
Researchers find a 'liberal gene'
Liberals may owe their political outlook partly to their genetic make-up, according to new research from the University of California, San Diego, and Harvard University. Ideology is affected not just by social factors, but also by a dopamine receptor gene called DRD4. The study's authors say this is the first research to identify a specific gene that predisposes people to certain political views.
Scientists sequence genomes from Africa, Europe, Asia
Small genetic differences between individuals help explain why some people have a higher risk than others for developing illnesses such as diabetes or cancer. Today in the journal Nature, the 1000 Genomes Project, an international public-private consortium, published the most comprehensive map of these genetic differences, called variations, estimated to contain approximately 95 percent of the genetic variation of any person on Earth.
Controlling individual cortical nerve cells by human thought
Five years ago, neuroscientist Christof Koch of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), neurosurgeon Itzhak Fried of UCLA, and their colleagues discovered that a single neuron in the human brain can function much like a sophisticated computer and recognize people, landmarks, and objects, suggesting that a consistent and explicit code may help transform complex visual representations into long-term and more abstract memories.
From touchpad to thought-pad? Research shows that digital images can be manipulated with the mind
Move over, touchpad screens: New research funded in part by the National Institutes of Health shows that it is possible to manipulate complex visual images on a computer screen using only the mind.
Friends with cognitive benefits: Mental function improves after certain kinds of socializing
(PhysOrg.com) -- Talking with other people in a friendly way can make it easier to solve common problems, a new University of Michigan study shows. But conversations that are competitive in tone, rather than cooperative, have no cognitive benefits.
Biology news
Large-scale fish farm production offsets environmental gains
Industrial-scale aquaculture production magnifies environmental degradation, according to the first global assessment of the effects of marine finfish aquaculture (e.g. salmon, cod, turbot and grouper) released today. This is true even when farming operations implement the best current marine fish farming practices.
Mysterious disease killing off Rhode Island bat population
(PhysOrg.com) -- Bats have long played a spooky role during this time of year. However, now more than ever is a scary time for bats in the Northeast.
Nature's backbone at risk
The most comprehensive assessment of the world's vertebrates confirms an extinction crisis with one-fifth of species threatened. However, the situation would be worse were it not for current global conservation efforts, according to a study launched today at the 10th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity, CBD, in Nagoya, Japan.
Continuing biodiversity loss predicted but could be slowed
A new analysis of several major global studies of future species shifts and losses foresees inevitable continuing decline of biodiversity during the 21st century but offers new hope that it could be slowed if emerging policy choices are pursued.
Japan looks to ancient wisdom to save biodiversity
Four decades ago the oriental white stork became extinct in Japan, the victim of rapid industrialisation and modern farm practices and heavy pesticide use that destroyed its habitat.
New software eases analysis of insect in motion
Cockroaches can skitter through a crowded under-the-sink cabinet, eluding capture or worse, making the insects a model for rescue robots that would creep through the debris of disaster in search of survivors.
Global study to save Earth's endangered species
Texas A&M University is one of 10 international partners involved in the global conservation study and subsequent scientific paper, "The Impact of Conservation on the Status of the World's Vertebrates," that is scheduled to be published in Science, the academic journal of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Structural genomics accelerates protein structure determination
Membrane proteins are of immense biological and pharmaceutical importance. But so far there are only a handful of cases in which the exact structure could be successfully determined. Scientists at Columbia University, New York, and Technische Universitaet Muenchen have now succeeded in working out the structure of an important ion channel via the analysis of related proteins. The current issue of the journal Nature reports on their findings.
New snub-nosed monkey discovered in Northern Myanmar
An international team of primatologists have discovered a new species of monkey in Northern Myanmar (formerly Burma.) The research, published in the American Journal of Primatology, reveals how Rhinopithecus strykeri, a species of snub-nosed monkey, has an upturned nose which causes it to sneeze when it rains.
Competing for a mate can shorten life span
"Love stinks!" the J. Geils Band told the world in 1980, and while you can certainly argue whether or not this tender and ineffable spirit of affection has a downside, working hard to find it does. It may even shorten your life.
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